Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) has re-configured its 163 MW Humboldt Bay Generating Station to provide electricity for Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS) events. Part of HBGS’ capacity hereby gets separated from regular grid dispatch for use exclusively to re-energise towns in northern California in the event of a blackout.
Energy markets across Europe have largely recovered from the demand shock and drop in power price, caused by coronavirus lockdowns. After 2023 demand will be “hardly affected by the pandemic,” analyst say, except for coal which stays uneconomic due to a massive gas supply overhang.
Edge Gathering Virtual Pipelines 2, better known as Edge LNG, has been selected by EXCO Resources to capture and liquefy gas from a stranded well in the Marcellus Shale. The gas is being trucked to electric utility customers in the Northeast (NE) of the United States.
The public regulator in Massachusetts investigates whether the Boston Everett LNG import terminal might have to close, given that the U.S. northeastern state wants to phase out all fossil power stations. Burning imported LNG so far helps keep the lights on in Boston during the winter season.
Texas-based SparkCognition is working with Siemens on a cybersecurity system that leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to protect endpoint, or remotely operating assets in the power generation and oil and gas sector. Digitalization of control systems helps link and protect distributed genset fleets.
China’s southern province of Guandong is considering cutting electricity rates that gas-fired generators can charge from their customers by 5-12%. If enacted, this rate cut risks derailing a wider policy target of boosting gas generation to 35 GW installed capacity.
China National Technical Import & Export Corp. (CNTIC), together with VPower Group, has welcomed an inaugural cargo at the new-built jetty adjacent to their Thanlyin gas power plant (350 MW). Petronas ultimately delivered the cargo directly to the FSU – and not to Myanmar’s land-based Yagon LNG terminal.
Germany’s long-delayed national hydrogen strategy has been approved, with the government placing a large bet on hydrogen made with renewable energies, the so-called green hydrogen. The policy permits, however, the use of grey hydrogen made from natural gas using carbon capture storage (CCS) “on a transitional basis.”
Siemens Gas and Power, in consortium with Terna, has been awarded a turnkey EPC contract by Ariadne Interconnection to build a high-voltage direct-current (HVDC) link from Crete to the Greek mainland. Commissioning of the 1,000 MW power link is scheduled for mid-2023.
U.S government forecasts see Henry Hub natural gas spot prices stage a swift recovery. In May 2020, prices fell to $1.75/MMBt as lockdowns depressed demand, but subsequent steep cuts in production and rising demand in winter are set to push up prices to $3.08/MMBtu by early 2021.
The world’s largest green hydrogen plant is being developed by SGH2 Energy in Lancaster, a city situated some 70 miles north of Los Angeles. Scheduled to start operations in 2021, the facility will transform plastic waste into hydrogen for use as a fuel for transport and power generation.
Wholesale power prices in Germany have fallen to record lows in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic. About 5,000 onshore wind turbines with 3.7 Gigawatt combined capacity are at risk of being taken offline next year when their support from Germany’s renewable surcharge (EEG levy) runs out, prompting calls to extend the scheme.
News in Brief
Petronas to truck LNG to off-grid users
Sept 29 – Petronas Dagangan Group is gearing up to build a LNG truck delivery service for off-grid customers in Peninsular Malaysia. Trucks fitted with cryogenic tanks will bring the super-chilled fuel to remote industries and small-scale power generators with no access to the natural gas grid. Malaysia’s Peninsular Gas Utilisation (PGU) pipeline is only 2,500 kilometers in length and was initially built to export gas to Singapore.
Siemens to reduce emissions at NLNG
Sept 28 – Nigeria LNG has contracted Siemens Energy to provide a cryogenic boil-off gas (BOG) compression train for its liquefaction plant on Bonny Island. The new BOG train will be driven by an high-efficiency electric motor and includes two compressors. Manufactured in Duisburg, Germany, the equipment will be delivered in the fourth quarter of 2021.
Supercapcitors to replace batteries
Sept 25 – The global market for supercapacitors was valued at over $487 million last year and is forecast to top $1,570 millio by 2025, growing at an annual rate of 21.8%. Supercapacitor, an emerging technology for energy storage systems, can offer higher power density than batteries was may soon replace the latter.
Atos, Siemens expand digital partnership
Sept 24 – Atos, a global leader in digital transformation, has expanded its strategic partnership with Siemens AG for five years, helping the latter with data driven digital, cloud transformation and cybersecurity. The extension comes in the context of 5-year total €3 billion agreements which were separately signed with Siemens AG, Siemens Energy and Siemens Healthineers.
Rotterdam Port to store CO2 beneath the North Sea
Sept 23 – The Porthos project, a joint venture between the Port of Rotterdam Authority, Gasunie and EBN, seeks to transport CO2 from industry in the port to empty gas fields beneath the North Sea. In its early years, the Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) will be able to store approximately 2.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year with plans to be operational by 2024.
German power sector to reach net zero in 2040s
Sept 22 – Revisions to Germany’s Renewable Energy Act (EEG) stipulate the power sector should become greenhouse-gas neutral in the early 2040s. Despite the gradual electrification of heating and transport, the German energy ministry is so far sticking to its estimate of 580 terawatt-hours (TWh) of power consumption in 2030 – close to current levels.
B&W to supply superheaters to Lumiant
Sept 21 – Babcock & Wilcox’s thermal segment has been contracted to design, manufacture and supply new superheater components for a high-efficiency boiler at Luminant’s Oak Grove Power Plant near Franklin, Texas. Material delivery to Oak Grove is scheduled for February 2021.
EC targets 55% emission cut by 2030
Sept 17 – The European Commission’s latest 2030 Target Plan stipulates a 55% cut in emissions by 2030, compared to 1990-levels. The lobby group COGEN Europe stressed the importance of combined heat and power generation (CHP) to reach that goal, calling for more stable policies and supportive regulation.
Rolls-Royce may sell ITP Areo
Sept 17 – Britain’s prime manufacturer Rolls-Royce confirmed it is looking to strengthen its balance sheet, possibly by disposing of ITP Aero which his hoped to generate proceeds of more than £2bn over the next 18 months. Further cost cutting is meant to deliver £1 billion and revamping of the company’s Civil Areospace business should save another £1.3 billion.
China’s GDP may grow 1.8%
Sept 16 – China’s GDP is forecast to grow 1.8% this year as the economy recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic. The government slashed electricity tariffs to support manufacturing but the Asian Development Bank (ADB) warns of mounting credit risk for banks. Fiscal revenue pressure also intensifies as 1.5% of China’s GDP growth in the first half of 2020 was based on bond-funded investment by local governments.
Zeebrugge goes for green hydrogen
Sept 15 – Colruyt Group (Eoly), Parkwind and Fluxys aim to spend up to 35 million Euros to develop a green hydrogen plant in Zeebrugge, Belgium, by 2023. The plan is to convert off-shore wind energy into green hydrogen which can then be injected in the high-pressure natural gas transmission grid.
Shale gas market to top $41bn
Sept 14 – Global markets for unconventional gas, mostly developed by shale fracking, is forecast to grow at an annual rate of 7% to reach $ 41.76 billion by 2024. According to Technavio, the Americas region will remain dominant with an 87% market share as hydraulic fracturing technologies evolve. Top players in the market are BP, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil, PetroChina, Gazprom, Shell, Santos, Saudi Arabian Oil Co., and YPF.
SNAM, Saipem join forces on hydrogen
Sept 11 – Two Italian energy companies, SNAM and Saipem, have agreed to develop initiatives for green hydrogen production and transport, as well as for carbon dioxide capture, transport and reuse or storage (CCRS). The move supports the European Commission’s Hydrogen Strategy to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
MAN, Wasco to drive Power-to-Gas Tech in Asia
Sept 10 – MAN Energy Solutions and Wasco have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to promote and commercialize Power-to-X (PtX) projects in South-East Asia. The technology in question converts electricity into carbon-neutral synthetic fuels, gas or liquid, for use as a clean, carbon-neutral energy source.
Romgaz, GSP to realise 200 MW gas and solar project
Sept 9 – Romania’s state gas company Romgaz has agreed to build 200 MW power generation capacity with the privately-owned Grup Servicii Petroliere (GSP) which is controlled by the local businessman Gabriel Comanescu. The project entails a 150 MW gas-fired power plant and a 50 MW solar photovoltaic park, to be built on the site of a disused coal power plant in southern Romania.
Alaska uses twice as much energy for transport as NY
Sept 8 – More energy is used per person for transportation in U.S. states with low population density. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA), people in geographically large states with small populations, such as Alaska, Wyoming and North Dakota, are useing twice as much energy for transportation than the U.S. average on a per capita basis. That’s in stark contrast to states with higher population density, such as Rhode Island and New York.
Hydrogen Council launched in Kobe/Kansai area
Sept 7 – Mitsubishi Power, part of MHI, and various Japanese energy companies have set up the so-called ‘Kobe/Kansai Hydrogen Utilization Council’ to develop new utilization methods and establish a regional hydrogen supply chain. The aim is to help Japan shift to a carbon-free, hydrogen-powered society by 2030.
