Fast adoption of floating LNG technology across Asia is opening up new gas markets in Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. According to Black & Veatch, gas-fired power projects are “attractive for emerging markets” due to advantages in price, reliability and fuel access over developing technologies such as battery storage.
C-Energy, an independent Czech power producer, has become the first user of Roll-Royce’s new medium-speed B36:45V20 gas engine at a cogeneration plant in Tabor, some 100km southeast of Prague. Both B36:45V20 engines were manufactured at the Bergen Engines facilities in Norway.
Global ECP contractor Worley, in partnership with the software company Arundo, has launched DataSee as one of the initial products of its wider Data Refinery technology that brings new speed and accuracy to processing engineering diagrams for energy infrastructure projects.
Austria-based INNIO, formerly part of GE Power, has supplied another four Jenbacher J320 gas engines to China Water Industry Group in Guangdong province, bringing the total number of installed engines to 104 units. China Water uses the J320 engines in landfills to generate energy from waste.
Ratings agency Moody’s has raised its forecast for German wholesale power prices by €5, reflecting higher carbon emissions prices. Wholesale power prices are seen to vary in a range of €40-50/MWh through 2022, and will also "become more volatile” as the share of renewables increases.
The European Network of Transmission System Operators for Gas (ENTSOG) has listed 17 renewable Power-to-Gas (P2G) projects to be built by 2025, and 19 such projects by 2032. For the first time, ENTSO’s latest development plan includes P2G and acknowledges them as ‘Projects of Common Interest’.
To test Power-to-Gas systems locally, Fraunhofer ISE installed a modular hydrogen injection system in the local gas distribution network in Freiburg, southwest Germany. Researchers coupled an electrolyzer with 120 kW electric connection power with a small hydrogen unit that is capable of storing 300 kWh of chemical energy.
Hungarian utility Tatabanya Erömu has contracted Wärtsilä to upgrade the automation and UNIC engine control system of utility’s 18 MW grid balancing power plant, running on three 34SG gas engines. The extended maintenance accord includes performance guarantees of 95% plant availability, and the ability to run at 10% load.
Siemens has been contracted to supply the complete electrification for a new paper production line at Palm’s paper mill in Aalen, southwest Germany. The order includes three SGT-800 gas turbines – at the latest 62 MW rating – and a SST-300 steam turbine for the client's new-built cogeneration plant.
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has granted a $180 million loan to Gulf PD, a joint venture of Gulf Energy Development and Mitsui, to build and operate a combined-cycle gas power plant in Rayong, Thailand. Total development costs for the 2,500 MW power project are estimated at $1.6 billion.
Energy demand in Africa, home to the fastest growing and youngest population on the planet, will be “critical for the world’s energy future, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA). In its latest World Energy Outlook (WEO2019), the Paris-based agency urged African leaders to tap the continent’s huge potential from solar, wind and natural gas.
Natural gas production in the United States is going from strength to strength, as is domestic gas use and export. According to Government figures, dry gas output surged 12% to 83.8 Bcf/d in 2018 and is on course to a fresh record this year. Consumption rose 11% over the same period, driven by demand from the power sector.
Germany first major climate law passed Parliament on Friday and is now being debated by the Bundesrat. The federal state council needs to give consent to parts of the reforms, notably tax support of energy-efficient modernisation of buildings, the rise in commuter allowance related to a new national CO2 price on transport emissions, and a cut in VAT tax on train tickets.
Chart Industries has installed and commissioned Europe’s largest LNG fuelling station near the northern German city of Bakum. Using cleaner-burning LNG as a transport fuel will help reduce sector emissions before Germany’s new national emission trading system (ETS) for transport comes into effect in 2021.
SRP, a large community-based utility in greater Phoenix metropolitan area, has decided go ahead with the Sonoran Energy Center – a 250 MW / 1,000 MWh battery project to be built south of Buckeye by 2025. Tapping Arizona’s abundant solar resources, the hybrid project will help SRP meet peak summer demand while saving fuel costs.
News in Brief
AI predicts peak in power use
Nov 20 – ABB and Verdigris Technologies have developed machine-learning algorithms to predict unplanned peaks in electricity consumption and help avoid them. The Energy Forecasting app will enable users to reduce their electricity bills by reducing peak demand charges.
India’s first UHVDC link commissioned
Nov 19 – GE Grid Solutions has commissioned Pole-3 - the ultra high-voltage direct current (UHVDC) transmission line in India, capable to transmit 4,500 MW of electricity. Once completed the Champa-Kurukshetra UHVDC project will be expanded to transmit 6,000 MW of electricity at 800 kV, serving customers in the areas of Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh.
COP25 urged to step up climate efforts
Nov 18 – The COP25 UN climate conference in Madrid is urged to enshrine greater commitments from the world's industrialised nations to curb their greenhouse gas emissions. “Europe will have to play a key role in this regard,“ environment minister Svenja Schulze said, adding Germany's recently announced climate package marks a "restart" in the country's climate policy.
Wärtsilä launches ‘Expertise Centre’ in Singapore
Nov 15 – The Finish technology group Wärtsilä has chosen Singapore as the location for its latest Expertise Centre (EC) that provides operational support and dynamic maintenance planning, both for marine and energy business customers. All of Wärtsilä’s Expertise Centres combined currently monitor some 900 installations with more than 2,000 engines around the world.
U.S. storage injection hits record high
Nov 14 – Near-record volumes of natural gas have been placed into storage in the United States in the current injection season. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA), the amount of gas held in storage in 2019 surged from a relatively low value of 1,155 billion cubic feet (Bcf) at the beginning of April to 3,724 Bcf at the end of October.
SaskPower proceeds with Moose Jaw project
Nov 13 – Canadian utility SaskPower has taken a significant step towards realizing a 350 MW gas power plant at Moose Jaw. The project was first proposed in 2017, but in the Canadian federal government June last year introduced new regulations for gas generation coming online after January 1, 2021, which stalled the plans. Having completed its regulatory review, Sask Power was now granted permission to proceed from the municipality of Moose Jaw. Major Fraser Tolmie said “this $700-million investment into the city of Moose Jaw, will ensure we have base-load power in the province of Saskatchewan and to maintain our power independence.”
Sembcorp powers up first BESS unit in the UK
Nov 12 – Sembcorp Energy UK, part of Singapore-based Sempcorp Group, has started to operate the first 60 MW unit of its battery energy storage system (BESS) fleet, supplied by GE. Combined, the three storage units in Leicestershire and Cheshire will bring Sembcorp Energy UK’s total energy portfolio to 973 MW.
Global gas glut may clear in 2021
Nov 11 – Economics of exporting American liquefied natural gas to Europe no longer add up. With Henry Hub spot prices around $2.7/MMBtu, moving LNG cargoes from the U.S. Gulf Coast to Europe is “not workable,” BP analysts said, indicating that production shut-ins could help clear the massive supply overhang towards the end of 2021.
Gazprom reassures Germany of Ukraine gas transits
Nov 8 – Alexey Miller, chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, has been trying to reassure the German government commissioner Georg Graf Waldersee that Russia was ready to signing a new transit contract with Naftogaz if both companies mutually waive claims. Before gas flows can proceed, however, Ukraine will have to create an independent gas transmission operator by January 1, 2020.
GE makes gains in wind power
Nov 7 – GE Power is gradually turning away from its loss-making fossil power segment to focus on the fast-growing renewable business. This week, GE struck a deal for its new Haliade-X turbines to be used at Dogger Bank Wind Farms. The three 1.2 GW Dogger Bank projects, situated offshore the UK’s Yorkshire coast, are expected to trigger approximately £9 billion of capital investment between 2020 and 2026.
PetroVietnam eyes LNG-to-Power project
Nov 6 – PetroVietnam has signed an agreement with B.Grimm Power Public Company (BGRIM) to jointly study the development of an integrated LNG import and power generation project. The aim is to build a 3,000 MW gas-fuelled power plant and an adjacent LNG import terminal. The location of the project has not been disclosed.
ABB launches ‘Smart City’
Nov 5 – Electrification specialists of the Swiss manufacturer ABB have designed an interactive ‘Smart City’ that contains smart buildings, e-mobility, energy management and data centers. The use of smart technologies and digitalization are encouraged by the United Nations as a way to help decarbonize cities around the world.
Gazprom, BASF cooperate on sulfur separation
Nov 4 – The Russian major Gazprom and the German chemical company BASF have agreed to devise a comprehensive solution for separation of sulfur from natural gas. The aim is to enhance eco-efficiency of the Astrakhan gas processing plant and improve operational efficiency of BASF’s amine gas treatment units at the Orenburg gas-fired power plant.
Germany’s emission fall ‘markedly’
Nov 1 – Germany is headed for second consecutive year of substantial reductions in carbon emissions, amid a sharp drop in coal-burn in the power sector and an overall decline in energy use in 2019. If this trend continues, the country could get much closer to its 2020 climate target than widely anticipated.
Exmar to refinance Tango FLNG
Oct 31 – Exmar, the Belgian shipping company, is trying to refinance the Tango FLNG vessel, moored offshore Argentina on behalf of YPF. The aim is to generate around $60 million in additional capital, Exmar said, suggesting a deal will likely be struck in the first months of 2020.
Petronet doubles net profit
Oct 30 – Indian LNG importer Petronet has nearly doubled its net profits in the third quarter although revenues fell by 13%. Net profits came in at 1,089 crore rupees ($153.6m), an increase of 90% on the same period in 2018 as the company benefited from India’s lower corporate tax rates. Third-quarter revenues, in contrast, fell to 9,449 crore rupees ($1.33 billion).
Wildfires spread around LA
Oct 29 – Thousands of Los Angeles residents have been evacuated as wildfires spread fast around the metropolis and power outages brought life close to a standstill. The risk of fires caused by overland transmission lines prompted Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) to prolong precautionary blackouts that could last up to three days.
