Gas to Power Journal

Category: Regulation & Policy

US oil and gas major ExxonMobil has been given regulatory approval to build a LNG import terminal and power project at the northern Vietnamese port city of Haiphong. The project is meant to start generating electricity by 2026, though ExxonMobil has yet to confirm it is going ahead.

Thailand’s B.Grimm Power gained approval from the Provincial Electricity Authority to service more industrial customers near the Map Ta Phut LNG regas terminal. The Thai IPP is building 700 MW of gas-fired capacity, and arranged two LNG licences with a view to start importing as early as 2022.

The latest round of Germany’s green energy tenders has spurred a run on combined solar and storage, while onshore wind energy tenders were undersubscribed yet again. The German regulator initiated an ‘innovation auction’ for 650 MW projects that combine fluctuating onshore wind or solar PV with biomass and energy storage.

President Xi Jinping has told the UN General Assembly that China, the world’s largest carbon emitter, will reach peak emissions before 2030 and aspires to become carbon-neutral by 2060. President Xi called on all countries to “stop only pursuing development rather than environment protection.”

Striving to jump-start Australia’s economy, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has tabled a National Gas Development Plan, promising over $28 million to develop five gas basins and another $10.9 million on priority pipelines. Subsidies for gas-fired power are also on the cards as the PM aims for a “gas-led manufacturing recovery.”

Angela Merkel is under growing pressure to end her support for the German-Russian Nord Stream 2 pipeline project. Leading CDU party members and the Green party want the German Chancellor to halt construction after the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, especially because economists say the pipeline is “unnecessary” for ensuring supply security.

Germany’s federal and state governments have sealed a deal to make official the 40 billion Euros in state support for mining regions. The funding is dedicated to companies and regions worst affected by the landmark plan to exit coal-fired power generation by 2038 at the latest.

Northern Powergrid has become the UK’s first distribution network operator to release a strategy paper on how it can contribute to the country’s ‘green recovery’. The TSO, serving 8 million customers in the North East and Yorkshire, submitted its 2023-28 business plan in line with Ofgem’s ED2 price control regulatory period.

Utilities’ rising use of artificial intelligence (AI) accelerates Europe’s green energy transition. The greatest potential, according to Germany’s energy agency (dena) lies in forecasting as well as optimising operations and inventories. dena CEO Andreas Kuhlmann said AI can “drive new business models, accelerate innovation and increase efficiency.”

The German government prepares to launch green ‘twin bonds’ with a volume of eleven billion Euros in a bid to attract investors to sustainable finance and raise funds for emissions reduction projects. From September, investors can swap government bonds with the new green bonds.

News in Brief

AI-linked power projects double in US

Aug 31 – The number of gas-fired power plant projects, linked to US data centres, has nearly doubled in the first half of 2026. According to Global Energy Monitor, 378 MW of gas capacity is currently under development in the US, one-third of total projected capacity worldwide, led by Texas with 122 MW.

GE to deliver GIS substation at Chesterfield

Aug 27 – GE Vernova has been chosen by Laing O’Rourke to deliver a new 400 kV Gas-Insulated Switchgear (GIS) substation at Chesterfield, UK. The new substation is part of National Grid’s Brinsworth-to-Chesterfield and Chesterfield-to-High Marnham project, with the upgrade using SF₆-free technology to strengthen grid resilience in a sustainable manner.   The projects form part of The Great Grid Upgrade, the largest overhaul of the electricity grid across England and Wales in generations.

New gensets for Project Permian

Aug 26 – Net Power has agreed to purchase 123 MW of new power generation equipment to increase the installed capacity of its Project Permian to nearly 200 MW. The gas-fired power project in West Texas is being gradually scaled up to 1 GW.

Singapore allocates new data centre capacity

Aug 24 – Singapore’s Economic Development Board (EDB) has provisionally allocated 200 MW of new data centre capacity to Digital Realty, Equinix, Keppel Data Centres and ST Telemedia Global Data Centres, with each receiving 50 MW for facilities on Jurong Island. All sites will be developed within JTC’s planned low‑carbon data centre park on Jurong Island, and operators must source more than 50% of their capacity from green or low‑carbon energy such as biomethane, low‑carbon ammonia or hydrogen.

German gas storage only half full

Aug 21 – Germany’s underground gas storage facilities are only about 50% full as of mid-August, well below last year’s roughly 67%. To achieve the targeted 70% filling levels by November, the government is preparing additional intervention options although traders remain cautious amid elevated prices and geopolitical uncertainty.

Russian attack damages DTEK power plant

Aug 19 – A Russian air strike has damaged one of DTEK’s thermal power plant, forcing the Ukrainian operator to shut down one unit. DTEK’s thermal power fleet had an installed capacity of about 13.3 GW as of early 2022, spread across eight plants, though repeated attacks since then have destroyed much of that installed capacity, jeopardising regional electricity supply security.

Wärtsilä powers Texan data center

Aug 17 – Wärtsilä is preparing to deliver an off-grid power solution for a new data center, under construction in Texas. The 790 MW power plant will operate with 42 Wärtsilä 50SG engines running on natural gas.

India’s power demand up 5%

July 29 – Electricity demand in India is on course to rise 4-5% year-on-year in 2027, Fitch Rating reckons, referring to the country’s higher cooling needs and economic growth. Coal remains king in the Indian energy mix, fuelling more than 70% of power stations, while gas-burn fell to 15% in June 2026, down from 22% a year earlier amid supply constraints and higher LNG prices.

Japan mulls debt financing for US power projects

July 27 – The Japanese government is considering foreign debt finance for gas-fired power projects in the United States that form part of its $550 billion U.S. investment pledge. “If financing from foreign banks materialises, it should further facilitate the procurement of foreign-currency funding needed to implement the investment initiative,” the finance ministry said on the platform X late on Sunday.

EUAs hover around €80/t 

July 24 – EU Carbon Emission Allowances are expected to continue their mean-reversion trading around €80/t for the rest of this month, as the Commissions adjustments leave supply-demand balances for carbon credits tight through 2035. Further out, Energy Aspects reckons there may be 250 Mt more allowances in the market through 2040 as the pace of how fast the ETS cap falls has been slowed down for 2036 onwards.

Index seeks partners for Rivers IPP

July 22 – Nigeria’s Index Thermal Power has invited engineering firms, infrastructure developers and institutional investors to join the development and financing of its proposed 1,800 MW gas-fired independent power plant in Rivers State. The project is planned for the Onne Oil and Gas Free Trade Zone in Port Harcourt.

Utilita Energy joins WattsWatt

July 20 – Utilita Energy has become the third energy supplier to join WattsWatt – the national energy information service – alongside Outfox Energy and Home Energy in bid to help households gain affordable warmth by comparign tariffs and improving access to energy efficiency grants.

Electrifying urban air mobility

July 17 – Hitachi Energy and Eve Air Mobility, an Embraer-backed aircraft manufacturer, are looking to advance the electrical infrastructure needed to support urban air mobility. The agreement brings together Hitachi’s Grid-eMotion charging infrastructure with Embraer-backed electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft technology.

H2 turbine market to top $3.5bn

July 15 – The global market for hydrogen (H2)-compatible gas turbines will grow to nearly $3.5 billion by 2032, expanding at an annual rate of over 10% during the forecast period. According to DataM intelligence, hydrogen is emerging as a strategic and sustainable alternative to fossil fuelled power generation as nations strive to reduce reliance on imported fossil fuels and stabilize their power grids,

JERA, Samsung collaborate on H2 value chains

July 13 – Japan’s largest power generator JERA has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Samsung C&T of Korea to collaborate on hydrogen and ammonia. JERA is developing Japan’s first low-carbon ammonia value-chain, and is targeting start of operations around fiscal year 2029. Samsung C&T focused on low-carbon ammonia infrastructure and supply chain initiatives in Korea, and by combining their capabilities both companies aim to strengthen value chain resilience across Asia.

Seletar Campus to be powered by LNG

July 8 – GasHub has finished an LNG storage and regasification facility at Rolls-Royce’s Seletar Campus in Singapore and begun LNG deliveries, with the system designed to support the campus’s long-term energy requirements, including reliable electricity demand. The setup is part of a shift away from compressed natural gas and aims to reduce fuel deliveries, emissions, and operating costs.

Works start 1GW BESS in Germany

July 6 – Swiss energy storage operator BW ESS has started construction on the 1GW Klostermansfeld project, one of Europe’s largest battery storage projects to date. Situated in the southern Harz region, the battery is designed to supply around three million German households with electricity for at least four hours. 

Siemens expand switchgear factory

July 2 – Siemens is investing €300 million to expand the production of high-efficiency power distribution systems for data centers, e-mobility and industrial automation. To that end, Siemens is expanding its switchgear factory in Frankfurt and a new supplier facility in Offenbach, creating 700 new jobs by the end of 2030

Green H2 progresses in Italy

June 29 – IGM, a  specialist engineering company, has supplied a 2 MW electrolyser to Industria Gas Tecnici (IGAT), marking the company’s entry into green hydrogen production under Italy’s national Hydrogen Valley programme.

PJM braces for 5.4% load growth

June 26 – PJM Interconnection expects peak summer load will grow at an average of 5.4% per year over the next decade driven by electrification of road transport and the concentration of data centers. Summer peak load in PJM’s Dominion zone was 23,905 MW last year, 23% higher than in 2019, while winter peak load in PJM’s Dominion zone was 25,413 MW in the 2025–26 winter season, 45% higher than five years ago.

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