Denmark’s decision to allow Gazprom to build Nord Stream-2’s final stretch with Russian pipe-laying vessels means the controversial interconnector will become a reality. Fresh U.S. sanctions “cannot stop the project now” analyst say, as the permit makes works “cheaper and easier” for Gazprom.
Shell says its REFHYNE hydrogen electrolyser project, based on proton exchange membrane (PEM) technology, will be supported by the European Commission’s new hydrogen strategy. The policy sets out pathways how clean hydrogen can help the EU reach is 2050 net-zero emissions target.
Shanghai Electric, in consortium with Ansaldo Energia, has been contracted by North West Power Generation to design and build a combined-cycle gas power plant in Rupsha, western Bangladesh. The 880 MW plant will be powered by two GT26 gas turbines, manufactured by Ansaldo in Genoa.
Rolls-Royce’s power systems arm, hit hard by Covid-19 disruptions, has today posted a double-digit decline in revenue. Long-term, the outlook for sustainable power “remains positive,” Rolls-Royce's H1-2020 trading update reads. CEO Warren East stressed “as for Power Systems, many of our impacted end markets are forecast to recover by the end of 2021."
The UK energy industry has welcomed the £3 billion green energy stimulus package, unveiled by UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak as part of a wider strategy to revive the economy from the impact of the coronavirus. Grants to insulate homes, improve energy efficiency and retrofit green heating technology are seen as “critical” for the UK’s overall 2050 net-zero emission targets.
Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) has launched a 90-day public comment period for its 2020 Oil and Gas Sector Standard as momentum to replace fossil fuels is gaining traction. GRI standards focus on sustainability, widely seen as the industry’s “single biggest challenge”.
Shanghai Electric Power has made a fresh and slightly improved offer to K-Electric to acquire 66.4% of its shareholding. Arif Habib Ltd, the local bidding manager of Shanghai Electric, specified his client wants to buy up to 18.336 billion of K-Electric’s total issued shares.
Natural gas exports from the United States to Mexico are seen rise by 40% with the completion of the southern-most segment of the Wahalajara system, also known as the Villa de Reyes-Aguascalientes-Guadalajara (VAG) pipeline. The 0.89 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) pipeline entered service this June.
Engineering solution provider FuelTech has been awarded several equipment orders worth $2.2 million. In Europe, two order wins stipulate the use of NOxOUT Selective Non-Catalytic Reduction (SNCR) systems for single combustion units, firing natural gas and biomass. SNCR technology helps plant operators to comply with more stringent NOx emission rules.
Rumours of a Chinese takeover of the British multinational engineering company Rolls-Royce are circulating once again. In a statement, the company confirmed it is in “early stages of reviewing options to strengthen its balance sheet,” though no decisions have been made.
Golar Power, part of Hamilton-based Golar LNG, has teamed up with Galileo Technologies to expand its small-scale LNG activities in Brazil. Together with Stonepeak, Golar already developed several large-scale LNG-to-Power projects in northeast Brazil. Now, it turns to biomethane.
Germany's energy industry is slashing planned investment for 2020 and 2021. Though the Government urges utilities to step up and become a "main pillar" of a sustainable recovery in the wake of the coronavirus crisis, the industry association BDEW says capital spending this year will be way below the 2018 Capex of €15.5 billion.
News in Brief
Statkraft, GE enhance GB grid stability
July 10 – Statkraft and GE Power Conversion are working together to stabilise Britain’s power grid. To that end, GE will manufacture and install two Rotating Stabiliser synchronous machines at Statkraft’s site in Keith, Moray. Statkraft was awarded four stability contracts (two at Keith and two at Lister Drive) by National Grid ESO (NGESO) earlier this year.
Siemens Energy spin-off approved
July 9 – A large majority of Siemens shareholders have voted to approve the spin-off of the company’s energy business. The spin-off was approved by 99.36 percent of capital stock represented at today’s extraordinary shareholders’ meeting.
Central Hudson links solar farms to VPP
July 9 – Central Hudson Gas & Electric Corp has established its distributed generation program within the broader context of New York State’s energy plan. Together with Sensus and their Remote Telemetry Module (RTM-III), the Central Hudson will monitor decentralized solar PV backed up by flexible gas gensets.
Siemens and GREEN Solar turn German town CO2-free
July 8 – GREEN Solar and Siemens Energy are jointly developing a concept for making Herzogenrath CO2-free. The plan is to provide an energy-efficient and economical combination of solar power plants, wind turbines, batteries, CHP and combined cycle power plants, as well as heat and hydrogen storage. The hybrid system will be built on the grounds of Nivelsteiner Sandwerke and will be large enough to cover the city’s entire energy demand with zero CO2 emissions by 2030.
Denmark paves the way for Nord Stream 2
July 7– Denmark on late Monday gave the Nord Stream 2 consortium permission to utilize pipe-laying vessels with anchors in Danish waters, paving the way for the Gazprom-led consortium to complete the interconnector. Construction of the 1,230-kilometre pipeline is nearly complete, except for a final stretch of about 120-kilometers in Danish waters. The project was halted in December when the Swiss-Dutch pipe-laying company Allseas suspended works over threats of U.S. sanctions.
EPRI tests early warning system
July 6– The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) is conducting trial tests with multiple utilities across the United States of an early warning system. It can detect an off-gassing event as a precursor to thermal runaway up to 30 minutes prior to a cascading failure. This gives plant operators time to mitigate the problem or shut down the system.
KKR buys stake in First Gen
July 3 – Valorous Asia Holdings, owned by KKR investment funds, has bought a 11.9% stake in First Gen through a voluntary tender offer. First Gen, one of the Philippines’ largest independent power producers with 3,492 MW installed capacity, is owned by First Philippine Holdings which is controlled by the Lopez family. KKR’s acquisition of the First Gen stake is worth nearly $192.3 million.
Gazprom’s ‘BBB’ rating affirmed
July 2 – S&P Global Ratings, Moody's Investors Service and Fitch Ratings have affirmed Gazprom's long-term credit ratings as part of their annual reviews. The ‘BBB’ ratings for Gazprom from S&P and Fitch are in line with the sovereign credit rating of the Russian Federation, while Moody's ‘Baa2’ rating is a notch higher.
MHIEC to refurbish WtE plant in Kushiro
July 1 – Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Environmental & Chemical Engineering Co (MHIEC) has received an order from the Kushiro Wide-Area Federation to repair and improve the core equipment at the local Waste-to-Energy plant in Takayama. The WtE plant has a capacity of 240 tonnes per day (tpd). Renovation will increase the energy efficiency of the fluidized bed type gasification and ash melting furnace facility, reducing emissions by around 15% annually. Works are due completed in September 2023.
Nigeria: Only two of six power projects on target
June 30 – Nigeria’s Bureau of Public Enterprises has disclosed that only two out of six privatized power plants were delivered on target. Only Transcorp Power Ltd and Geregu Power Ltd out of the six privatised electricity generation companies (GENCOs) were said to have met their performance targets since taking over.
German investors prefer solar over wind
June 29 – Energy infrastructure investors are keen to build solar power projects in Germany, but shun wind parks. In the latest solar power auction, investors offered to build almost 450 MW of capacity – more than four times the 96 MW of volume on offer– with the average successful bid at 5.27 cents per kilowatt-hour (ct/kWh). The wind auction, in contrast, was undersubscribed: The German network agency (BNetzA) tendered around 826 MW, but successful bids only totalled 464 MW, at an average price of 6.14 ct/KWh.
MAN ventures into synthetic fuels
June 26 – MAN Energy Solutions has entered the hydrogen economy with the recent pro rata acquisition of H-TEC SYSTEMS, an electrolysis tech firm. The German OEM also committed itself to upgrading its gas turbines to run on 100% hydrogen by 2030.
Varegro starts using Cummins gas genset
June 25 – Belgian-based horticultural company Varegro, has started to use a Cummins HSK78G gas generator to power its greenhouses in Oostrozebeke, West Flanders. Varegro said it selected the Cummins HSK78G genset to produce combined heat and power (CHP) on its premises at a competitive cost for use in energy-intensive greenhouse facilities.
GE names Deloitte as independent auditor
June 24 – GE’s audit committee has selected Deloitte as the company’s independent auditor for the 2021 fiscal year, replacing KPMG. The selection of Deloitte concludes GE’s latest audit tender process.
Northern German states push for hydrogen pilot cluster
June 23 – Northern German states are pushing for greater hydrogen use with a pilot project cluster. Some 12 large demonstration plants for the production and use of green hydrogen are meant to be realised in Hamburg, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. The aim is to demonstrate how 75% of CO2 emissions can be saved in the region by 2035.
Wärtsilä to design and equip battery-powered ferries
June 22– The Finish engine maker Wärtsilä has been awarded a contract to design and equip two new zero-emissions ferries on behalf of the Norwegian operator Boreal Sjö. For each ferry Wärtsilä will supply the thruster motors, batteries, onboard and shore-based battery charging equipment, the back-up generators, and various electrical systems. The equipment is scheduled for delivery to the yard in early 2021 for the ships to start commercial operations in autumn 2021.
Subsidy cut slashes Chinese wind turbine margins
June 19 – China’s wind turbine original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) could have their gross profit margins halved due to subsidy cuts, Wood Mackenzie forecasts. Commissioned onshore wind power capacity is expected to drop by more than 16% to 19 gigawatts (GW) from 2020 to 2021 as government subsidies were terminated. This could also lead to a 27% drop in turbine prices over the next five years, slashing OEMs’ gross profit margins by half.
