Marubeni, together with Iwantani and Deloitte Tohmatsu, studies the feasibility of setting up a hydrogen supply chain in the Kobe/Kansai region. Use of low-cost imported hydrogen for power generation and transport is essential if Japan wants to achieve its aim of a carbon-free society by 2030.
Uniper has thanked Ansaldo Energia when laying the foundation for the 300 MW Irsching 6 balancing plant in Bavaria. The open-cycle power plant, driven by an AE94.3A gas turbine, is being built on a turnkey basis and due completed and commissioned by September 2022.
One of the first project-financed interconnectors – the 1.4 GW NeuConnect – will be built between the Isle of Grain and Wilhelmshaven by 2023, or early 2024. Meridiam, Allianz and Kansai Electric Power put nearly £1.4 billion in upfront and will recoup their investment from future revenues.
Prices European Electricity Exchange (EEX) have tripled to over €90/MWh since the end of Covid-related lockdowns, as the economic rebound pushed up prices for coal natural gas and carbon emissions. China’s hunger for hard coal in turn drove up the price to €15/MWh in Europe, while gas prices at the TTF hub surpassed €36/MWh.
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) will absorb the business operations and employees of Mitsubishi Power by October 1, 2021. Design, manufacturing, sale, installation and engineering of thermal power generation systems will be transferred to MHI while the management of the two companies will be unified to become more efficient and dynamic.
Johnson Matthey, part of the European GAIA consortium, has helped develop a hydrogen fuel cell with a power density of 1.8 W/cm2 @ 0.6V. That’s a 20% rise compared with current technology. Working alongside BMW, Freudenberg, 3M and three others, Johnson Mattey supplied critical components within the fuel cell stack – membrane electrode assemblies.
MAN Energy Solutions and ANDRITZ Hydro have agreed to develop hydrogen from hydropower, starting with a pilot project in Europe that will produce 650 tons of hydrogen from 4 MW electrolysis output before year-end. In future export-orientated projects, the electrolysis output will be raised to 100 MW.
Wärtsilä will supply dual-fuel engines to extend and modernise a captive power plant at Nigeria’s largest food and agro allied company, Flour Mills Nigeria. The Lagos-based food processing plant needs reliable electricity supply 24/7 and the new engines are scheduled to start full operations in early 2022.
GE’s H-class gas turbine has reached a milestone of accumulating more than 1,000,000 commercial operating hours. The heavy duty turbine was ordered by 50 customers to date and generated over 26 GW electricity.
Japan’s largest LNG importer JERA has invested in the operator of the 978 MW Linden Gas Power Generation Project which is partially fuelled by gas containing hydrogen. Phillips 66 is supplying the hydrogen and natural gas mix to the Power Unit 6 from its nearby Bayway Oil Refinery in New Jersey.
Investment in solid state batteries is surging with technologies close to mass production and the overall market may well grow to over $8 billion by 2031, IDTechEx forecasts. Replacing liquid electrolytes with solid-state counterparts pushes the energy density beyond 1,000 Watt-hours per litre (Wh/L), while enhancing operational safety and durability.
Industrial gas company Air Products will convert its global fleet of 2,000 trucks to run on hydrogen fuel cells. Cummins will provide the electric powertrains that will be integrated into the trucks starting from 2022 in a bid to decarbonise the transport sector.
Rising CO2 costs accelerate the coal exit in Germany. With the EU’s carbon price trading above €56 per ton, a lignite power station in Chemnitz will be shut early and the conservative chancellor candidate Armin Laschet suggested North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) “could manage [the coal exit] as early as 2030” – years before the mandatory exit date in 2038.
Capital expenditure of oil and gas companies will rise around 3% in 2021 before accelerating to 9% in 2022, Fitch Rating forecasts, though this is “not enough” to recover to pre-crisis levels. The pandemic had reduced 2020 corporate Capex by €36 billion, or about 7% compared to 2019 amid crippling lockdowns.
News in Brief
CCUS market to reach nearly $3bn in 2025
Oct 25 – The global carbon capture, utilization, and storage (CCUS) market will grow from $1.30 billion in 2020 to $1.46 billion in 2021, according to ResearchAndMarket estimates. The rebound comes as companies return to normal operations and sales, after a pandemic-related slowdown. Analysts expect the market will keep growing at a rate of nearly 20% annually to reach $2.97 billion by 2025.
SDG&E accelerates drive towards Net Zero by 2045
Oct 20 – San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) has set a new sustainability strategy, outlining new and accelerated goals to help meet its pledge to reach net zero greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2045. SDG&E it now seeks to operate a 100% zero emissions vehicle fleet by 2035 – five years earlier than planned.
B&W develops biomass-to-hydrogen plant in Australia
Oct 19 – B&W's Renewable segment and Port Anthony Renewables Ltd have started to develop a biomass-to-hydrogen energy project in Victoria, Australia, based on B&W’s BrightLoop technology. When completed, the plant is expected to be part of the largest green hydrogen hub in south-eastern Australia.
LNG prices rise faster than oil
Oct 18 – Liquefied natural gas and pipeline supplies have experienced an even sharper increase in prices in 2021 than oil, driven by a combination of circumstances that included a strong recovery in demand in North Asia, southeast Asia and Europe, unseasonal weather and planned and unplanned capacity outages.
Wärtsilä shaft gensets to power two LNG carriers
Oct 14 – The Finish technology group Wärtsilä has been awarded a contract to supply four shaft generators to provide electricity take-off from the main engines of two LNG carriers. The ships are being built at the Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) shipyard in Korea on behalf of the Capital Gas Ship Management of Greece.
VoltH2 gets green light for large hydrogen plant
Oct 13 – Vision Hydrogen Corp has announced that its affiliate VoltHe has received building and environmental permits to realise its first large-scale hydrogen plant at the Dutch North Sea Port of Vlissingen. The 5 MW hydrogen plant is located near existing high voltage power and gas infrastructure as well as large wind power assets. Once operational, it will produce around 3,500 tons of green hydrogen per year and will be scalable to 100 MW or 14,000 tons.
Tesla overtakes German e-cars
Oct 12 – Sales of Tesla in Germany has overtaken that of leading German carmakers. In September, more electric Tesla Model 3s were registered in the country than leading domestic models, such as the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4 and Mercedes C-Class combined.
EnerMech spends £500k on crane training tech
Oct 11 – EnerMech has invested £500,000 in new crane simulator training systems at its Luanda (Angola), Doha (Qatar) and Great Yarmouth (UK) facilities. The British company recently formed a joint venture with 3t Energy Group to bring the KraneSIM-6000 equipment to both Qatar and Angola and offer in-country training across client organisations globally.
Germany finances green hydrogen projects abroad
Oct 8 – The German government has agreed to support green hydrogen projects in other countries with up to €350 million by 2024, the economy ministry said when publishing a directive with relevant guidelines. Moreover, financial support is given to projects that produce and process green hydrogen for storage, transport and use in countries outside the EU through investment grants worth up to €15 million each.
UK e-car sales surge 186%
Oct 6 – Sales electric cars in the UK have surged 186% to a total of 108,000 in 2020 during the pandemic, up from just 38,000 in the previous year. Latest statistics show there were nearly 300,000 pure-electric cars on UK roads at the end of August 2021, and more than 600,000 plug-in models if including plug-in hybrids (PHEVs).
FogHorn deploys AI software at Chugoku Electric Power in Japan
Oct 4 – FogHorn, developer of Edge AI software, has deployed its Internet of Things (IoT) software at the Chugoku Electric Power hydroelectric power plant. The AI solutions will make the power gen process more efficient and enhances workplace safety. Chugoku Electric Power employs nearly 9,200 workers across 114 power units in the western part of Honshū, the largest island of Japan.
Rolls-Royce supplies MTU engines for ferry propulsion
Oct 1 – Rolls-Royce's new MT engines, automation system, and MTU Go! tool for remote service have future-proofed the high-speed catamaran Avemar Dos, run by the Spanish operator Balearia. Four MTU 20V1163 M84 units replaced the previous 1163 units, taking the vessel to a "new level of ecological soundness," the manufacturer says.
GES appoints former Puma Energy Chairman as NED
Sept 30 – Global Energy Storage (GES) has appointed the former Puma Energy Chairman, Graham Sharp, as an NED. Graham will support GES on its ‘new energies’ strategy for the energy transition, focusing on hydrogen fuels and hydrogen carriers space.
Aggreko reaches 2 GW of live power gen capacity
Sept 29 – Aggreko has today announced it has reached 2GW of live global gas power capacity and growth in flare gas to power and stranded gas projects. This new record follows a milestone of exceeding 1GW of delivered flare gas power projects in 2020.
Wärtislä renews O&M agreement with Lafarge Africa
Sept 28 – The Finish technology group Wärtsilä has renewed a long-term Operation & Maintenance (O&M) agreement with Lafarge Africa, a large producer of building materials in Nigeria. The agreement covers the 100 MW Lafarge Ewekoro power plant, which provides a dedicated supply of electricity to the company’s concrete and cement manufacturing processes.
Rolls-Royce supplies MTU engines to Sanlorenzo
Sept 27 – Rolls-Royce business unit Power Systems will become one of the leading engine suppliers for Sanlorenzo, delivering MTU 10V, 12V and 16V 2000 yacht engines with a compact IMO 3 solution. A framework contract from 2022 through 2024 has been signed at the Monaco Yacht Show.
Shell exits Permian Basin
Sept 24 – Royal Dutch Shell has sold all its upstream interested in US Permian Basin to ConocoPhillips for $9.5 billion in cash. Shell’s assets in the Permian include around 225,000 net acres with a current production of around 175,000 barrels per day equivalent.
