Unparalleled clean energy investment – set to triple by 2030 – will drive up overall energy spending to $5 trillion by 2030 and add an extra 0.4% per year to global GDP growth. In its Net Zero pathway, the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) assumes no new oil and gas fields or coal mines will be developed as demand shifts to clean fuels.
Siemens Energy has put more pressure on its Spanish wind power unit Gamesa. “We want management to push for change with discipline and in all consequence,” CEO Christian Bruch said prior to the annual shareholder’s meeting on February 24. The German manufacturer is expected to buy the rest of the ailing unit and restructure it.
Russia’s state-dominated Gazprom has disclosed supplies to its European customers were lowered by over 35.5%, or 9.8 billion cubic meters (bcm), in January and February to date, while flows to China through the ‘Power of Siberia’ interconnector increased. February 14 marked a new record for daily supplies to China’s CNPC.
Costs to compensate energy companies in Britain who take on stranded customers from bankrupt firms like Bulb, Arvro and Octopus have been levied onto energy bills. The onboarding suppliers passes on the extra distribution network charges which pushes up bills by an average £34.36, or 33.9%, in the 2022-23 period, Cornwall Energy finds.
Generators in the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) have met a surge in electricity use for heating during icy weather in early February when demand peaked at 68,862 MWh – slightly below the 69,215 MWh peak during the February 2021 winter storm. Unlike last year, generators kept fuel supplies in place and avoided power outages.
Flows of Russian gas via the Yamal-Europe pipeline remain reversed until Wednesday at least. Data from the TSO Gascade shows a steady stream of 1.52 million kWh/h of natural gas exiting Germany via the Mallnow border point to Poland. Gazprom normally uses the pipeline for 15% of its annual westbound supply, but has currently not booked any capacity.
Tokyo Gas has decided to issue a corporate bond in March to finance low-carbon initiatives. The bond will be issued in two tranches of 7-year and 10-year terms, with a combined value of 20 billion yen ($173 million). Proceeds will be used for the Niihama LNG import project, smart energy networks as well as for the Harumi hydrogen venture.
Germany’s liberal party FDP wants to scale up activities that make use captured CO2 to create a market for negative emission technologies. By issuing tradable certificates for each tonne of CO2 withdrawn from the atmosphere, heavy industry and power generators would be incentivised to retrofit their plants with carbon capture utilisation and storage (CCUS).
Despite relying heavily on imports at the start of the winter, France has maintained its position as the biggest net exporter of electricity in Europe in the second half of 2021. According to EnAppSys data, France’s net exports amounted to 21.5 TWh and most of the electric power was flowing to Italy (7.5 TWh) and Great Britain (6 TWh).