For the first time in Belgium, hydrogen will be used at a commercial-scale gas cogeneration plant situated at INEOS’ Phenol chemical park in Doel, just north of Antwerp in East-Flanders. The gas turbine will initially be 10% co-fired with hydrogen but the aim is to increase the feed to 20% hydrogen.
General Electric and CTCI Corp have commissioned Track 4A Power Plant, a 1,440 MW combined-cycle gas power plant on behalf of Southern Power Generation (SPG) in Pasir Gudang, Johor, Malaysia. The plant was built by CTCI and features GE’s first 9HA.02 in combined-cycle operation today.
Excelon Corp will split into two publicly traded companies. The plan is to carve out its six regulated electric and gas units as Exelon Utilities (RemainCo) and separate it from Exelon Generation (SpinCo) – set to become the largest clean energy provider in the United States with 31 GW generating assets.
Electric utilities in China avoid investing in gas peaking plants due to cost issues. Fuel prices are bound to rise with the start of China’s national emissions trading scheme (CETS) in mid-2021, and the latest winter cold period highlighted security of supply risks for imported LNG.
Guangdong Energy Group has commissioned Siemens Energy to supply two SGT5-4000F gas turbine units for the Zhaoqing Dinghu Combined Heat and Power (CHP) project. Situated in Zhaoqing City in China’s southern Guangdong Province, the plant is scheduled to start operation in 2023.
Exports of liquefied natural gas from the US will exceed gas exports by pipeline in the first and fourth quarter of 2021, as well as in 2022 on an annual basis. Monthly US LNG exports reached a record of 9.4 Bcf/d in November and of 9.8 Bcf/d in December 2020 and January 2021, according to shipping data, and are forecast to average 9.7 Bcf/d in February.
Japanese battery manufacturer TDK and the Israeli fuel cell maker GenCell agreed to invest $85 million into developing a low-cost approach for green ammonia. The new low temperature process is designed to produce carbon-free ammonia that could replace the 235 million tons of industrial ammonia produced today, worth an estimated $70 billion.
Lithium-ion based batteries are still dominating the stationary energy storage sector but a rising number of companies try to develop different technology types. Among the Li-ion batteries competitors, the Redox Flow Battery (RFB) system – based on flowing two liquids as electrolytes across the electrode – is seen as an attractive approach.
German construction firm Bilfinger and the infrastructure finance arm of Munich Re have both withdrawn from work related to the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline through the Baltic Sea, due to looming US sanctions. Bilfinger had been contracted to deliver and operate process control systems and supply a gas-fired heat and power unit.
Strong growth in renewables has reduced the share of coal in China’s power generation mix to less than 50% - for the first time. Fitch Ratings expects the contribution of coal will fall by a further 3% in 2021 as the government pushes for a coal-to-gas switch to reach carbon neutrality.
Volkswagen has sold more electric cars worldwide than Tesla for the first time ever, as electrification of transport accelerates in Europe, the US and China. The brands of the VW group, which include Porsche and Audi, sold 192,000 fully electric cars or plug-in hybrid vehicles in the fourth quarter, compared to Tesla's 181,000 e-vehicles sold.
Cast Aluminum Solutions (CAS) has launched a new CAST-X high temperature heater with 1500 Watt electrical power that is capable to withstand operating temperatures of up to 1110°Fahrenheit, or 600°Celsius. Thanks to its isolated fluid path, the new device can safely heat natural gas, diesel fuel, jet fuel and various alcohols under high pressure.