After relying on shale gas for over a decade, public opinion in the Texan town of Denton has shifted and the city council is considering imposing a ban on fracking as inhabitants want to preserve the livability of their surroundings.
Almost half of Europe's energy consumption is used for industrial processes and to heat and cool building, but policy makers at the European Commission are dragging their feet to assess how heat-related policies could help meet Europe's energy efficiency objectives and climate goals, criticised industry group COGEN Europe.
Though economic recovery has been slow and unsteady in many countries of the EU-28 bloc, Lafayette Herring, commercial LNG advisor at Poten & Partners estimates global LNG demand will reach 450 million tons per year by 2025, provided European demand comes back to pre-crisis levels.
Despite of India's surging electricity demand, the economics of gas generation hinge on peak production, said Rajeev Mathur, executive director marketing at Gas Authority of India Ltd (GAIL). "If anyone wants reliable power [during hours of peak demand] he can pay more. That's where the economics of imported gas for power generation will work," he told Gas to Power Journal.
As the bidding battle for Alstom intensifies, GE has restructured its $17 billion (€12.5bn) offer for the energy assets of the French group by adding a series of joint ventures on rail and nuclear technology. Siemens and MHI were quick to counter by raising their cash contribution by €.1.2 billion to €.8.2 billion which increases their valuation of Alstom's energy business to €14.6 billion ($19.8bn).
Stepping up efforts to source much-needed natural gas for power generation, Kuwait is close to reaching an agreement with Tehran on pricing terms for imports from its resource-rich neighbour. If an accord can be reached, Kuwait would be the second Gulf state following Oman to turn to Iranian gas.
Spark spreads, the profit margins for burning gas considering costs of carbon, are unlikely to increase at the expense of margins for coal-fired plants as the risk of an intensifying Ukraine crisis will lift gas prices, Société Générale analysts forecast.
Prompt prices at the Dutch TTF, the leading gas trading hub in Continental Europe, eased off late Wednesday amid ebbing concerns over reduced Russian gas deliveries following a blast on a Ukrainian transit pipeline and very healthy storage levels in much of the EU-28.
A much-awaited tender seeking requests for qualification (RfQ) to develop Oman's mega 2,600 MW gas power plant project has been floated by state-owned Oman Power and Water Procurement Co (OPWP). Pre-qualified developers will need to submit their request for proposals (RfP) by August 3.
Finnish engine manufacturer Wärtsilä has won an order by Umm Al-Qura Cement Company to supply a turnkey 47-MW captive power plant equipped with its new 2-stage turbocharged engines to site in the mountain desert close to the Saudi Arabian city of Taif.
Tapping the Ute Indian tribe's large reserves of natural gas in Utah, tribe elders have teamed up with SCT&E engineers to fast-track an action plan of building a 1,000 MW gas-fired plant that could cover the annual electricity needs of up to 850,000 homes.
GE Power & Water's Distributed Power business has introduce a 10-megawatt class Jenbacher J920 FleXtra gas engine for North American's 60-Hz market, claiming it features best-in-class electrical efficiency of up to 49%. Sky Global Partners, a Houston-based independent power producer, has signed up as the first customer of the new engine.
News in Brief
Fatih Birol on Time 100 list
Sept 20 – The Executive Director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), Fatih Birol has been named as one of the 100 most influential people by Time Magazine in its annual list. ““In a world where facts are assaulted, Fatih Birol combines the best of high-tech data, optimistic know-how and old-school rhetorical finesse,” US Special Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry commented, suggesting the IEA head would use his authority to “slash carbon emissions and save our planet.”
Chevron lack Net Zero target
Sept 17 – US oil major Chevron is plans to further reduce greenhouse gas emissions along its oil and gas value chain, but lacks a clear Net Zero target. CEO Mike Wirth told investors and shareholders “an ultimate pathway to net zero will require technology advancements, more ambitious government policy, and development of large offset markets.” Concrete steps will be revealed in next month’s update to Chevron’s climate change resilience report.
Paul Browning to lead MHI’s energy transition team
Sept 15 – Mitsubishi has appointed Paul Browning as deputy head of Energy Transition & Power Headquarters, Energy Systems at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI). Browning is currently CEO of Mitsubishi Power Americas and will move to the new position on October 1, 2021.
Linde to help build liquefaction plant in Russia
Sept 14 – Gazprom has handed an EPC contract to Linde, Renaissance Heavy Industries and RusKhimAlyans, to build a gas liquefaction plant within the Gas Processing Complex (GPC) at the port of Ust-Luga, west of St Petersburg. The GPC will process ethane-containing gas into various fuels, and the two-Train liquefaction plant will have a design capacity for 13 million tons of LNG per year.
Santos completes Oil Search takeover
Sept 13 – Australian LNG exporter Santos has completed the takeover of Oil Search in a deal worth A$8.40 billion (US$6.25 billion). The all-share transaction brings together upstream oil and gas and LNG export assets in the Timor Sea, the Australian state of Queensland and in Papua New Guinea. Under the deal, Santos holds a 61.5% share of the merged company and Oil Search the remaining 38.5%.
Rolls-Royce goes green at DSEI trade show
Sept 10 – Rolls-Royce Energy Solutions is showcasing a range of sustainable power solutions at the DSEI trade show in London this week. The company’s is currently exploring how its Defence business can contribute to wider corporate objectives such as sustainability, electrification, and the development of digital technologies
Wärtsilä develops mobile battery for inland vessels
Sept 8 – Wärtsilä has developed and delivered a mobile battery container to enable inland waterway vessels to operate with zero emissions to ZES, a Dutch company founded in 2020 by ING Bank, the French utility Engie and the Port of Rotterdam. The two containers were delivered in June and the batteries are in continues operation since then.
EU-funds project for energy efficiency
Sept 7 – Today, the European Union (EU) funded HEATLEAP project has been launched to demonstrate the benefits of waste heat recovery systems such as large heat pumps for industries and gas expanders for electric utilities. Turboden will coordinate the project whereby heat pumps and gas expanders are tested at real scale.
EnerMech signs new deals in Americas
Sept 6 – Integrated solutions specialist EnerMech has secured several multi-sector contracts in the Americas. The multiple sector awards span the oil and gas, petrochemicals, maritime, and power generation industries. The largest contract is for nitrogen and leak testing of installations for an E&P operator in offshore Gulf of Mexico. As a result of these new awards EnerMech doubled its electrical team, and increased the number of mechanical pipefitters.
ACWA Power to hold IPO
Sept 3 – ACWA Power International has launched an initial public offering (IPO) to list its shares on the Saudi stock exchange, the Tadawul. The ACWA Power share sale will be the biggest in the Kingdom since the 2019 floatation of Saudi Aramco, which sold 1.5% of its shares and the trading debut valued the oil and gas business at $1.88 trillion.
Iran braces for winter gas shortage
Sept 2 – Iran’s Thermal Power Plant Holding (TPPH) has urged the energy ministry to take precaution to avoid fuel shortages in the coming winter. “We have faced serious problems last year due to the lack of gas and liquid fuel required by the power plants, and there is a concern that we will not be able to fully meet the country’s electricity needs this winter either,” said TPPH’s managing director Mohsen Tarztalab. Since households customers are prioritised and significantly increase their gas consumption in the coal season, power generators often have to resort to burning liquid fuels instead.
LYTT technology monitors carbon capture
Sept 1 – LYTT, a provider of real-time insights to oil and gas operators through a fiber optic sensor, LYTT is testing novel technology to monitor CO2 transport and migration in storage reservoirs together with SINTEF, an institute for applied research. Tracking dynamic multiphase flow is essential when monitoring the long-term effectiveness of carbon capture storage (CCS).
Gazprom invests in Russian gas grid
Sept 1 – Gazprom’s board of directors has approved 2.9 times more financing for new gas supply and infrastructure in 2021-2025 than in the previous five-year period. Over two-thirds of the investments will be made in rural areas, Gazprom explained, and by 2026, the gas grid expansion is planned to be “completed to the fullest extent possible in 35 regions of Russia.”
Woodside pioneers MAN’s Factory LNG solution
Aug 30 – Australian LNG pioneer Woodside is working with MAN to commercialise a solution for small-to-mid scale LNG production. Known as Factory LNG, concept involves a nominal 0.05 mtpa unit, the size of 40-foot ISO shipping container that can be transported via standard heavy-lift ships and trucks. The compact design shortens construction timeframes compared to traditional stick-built or modular LNG trains.
Seismic nodes enhance gas exploration
Aug 18 – Omani-based Africa Geophysical Services has agreed a deal with STRYDE to secure 154,000 seismic nodes for oil and gas exploration projects in Oman and Africa. Seismic nodes have become the preferred system to make high-definition images of subsurface structures, enabling upstream companies to maximise the output of reservoirs with targeted and cost-effective drilling.
Emission monitoring market surges
Aug 16 – Global market for Continuous Emission Monitoring Systems (CEMS) is forecast to grow at a rate of 7.8% from $2.2 billion in 2020 to reach $3.8 billion by 2027, according to MarketandMarkets. The power gen segment is likely to surge 8.3% and reach $1.3 billion over the forecast period.
Nokia deploys LTE to Western Power Distributions
Aug 13 – Nokia has provided a private wireless network to Western Power Distribution (WDP) in the UK. The 4.9G/LTE network will enable smart grid trials and support daily operations of WPD, which distributes electricity to the Midlands, South West and Wales.
