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Policy & Regulatory

Germany launches a 958 MW offshore wind tender

1 Mar 2021

The German Federal Network Agency has launched a tender for 958 MW of offshore wind capacity across three areas in the North and Baltic Seas. The regulator offers 658 MW in the German North Sea and 300 MW in the Baltic Sea, with a maximum value of bids at €73/MWh. Offshore wind project developers must submit their bids until 1 September 2021 and the offshore wind projects should be commissioned in 2026.

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Mexico passes a law to favour power utility CFE over private competitors

1 Mar 2021

The Mexican lower house of congress has passed a bill that requires power grid operators to take power generated by state-owned power utility CFE in priority over private generators.

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Bangladesh will scrap 7.5 GW of planned coal-fired capacity

26 Feb 2021

The government of Bangladesh has decided in principle to cancel 9 coal-fired power plant projects with a combined capacity of 7,461 MW, due to environmental concerns.

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French nuclear regulator clears 50-year operation at EDF’s 900 MW reactors

26 Feb 2021

The French Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN) has ruled on the conditions for the continued operation of EDF’s 900 MWe nuclear reactors beyond 40 years. The regulator has issued a resolution prescribing the implementation of the major safety improvements planned by EDF, along with additional measures  necessary to achieve the objectives of the safety review. Each reactor will subsequently enter a specific review phase, which will run until 2031. EDF operates a fleet of 32 reactors rated 900 MWe, which entered commercial operations between 1977 and 1988.

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Companies

Centrica posted a €418m loss in 2020 (UK)

1 Mar 2021

The UK energy group Centrica has released its 2020 results, posting a £362m (€418m) loss from continuing operations. The company’s share of nuclear generation volume decreased by 11% to 9.1 TWh, due to an extended outage at Hinkley Point B that took the plant offline for most of the year and to outages at Dungeness B and Hunterston B. Centrica Business Solutions’ total gas and electricity supply remained stable at 25 TWh, as new large industrial and commercial customers offset the impact of the COVID-19 lockdowns that reduced full-year demand by around 12%.

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EDP (Portugal) posts a €901m net profit in 2020 (+7%)

1 Mar 2021

The Portuguese energy group EDP has released its 2020 results, posting a €901m net profit (+6%). The company’s power output decreased by 4% to 64 TWh in 2020, with wind and solar accounting for 45% of the total, followed by hydro (29%), gas (15%) and coal (9%). EDP produced 22.8 TWh in Portugal (+2%), 16.6 TWh in the United States (+6%), 12.8 TWh in Spain (-15%) and 8.2 TWh in Brazil (-14%).

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Engie (France) announces a €1.5bn net loss in 2020

1 Mar 2021

The French energy group Engie has released its 2020 results, posting a €1.5bn net loss, mainly due to a €2.9bn impairment charge to prepare for the closures of its nuclear power plants in Belgium.

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J-Power (Japan) vows to close down old-coal fired power plants

1 Mar 2021

Japan’s Electric Power Development (J-Power) has unveiled a plan to reduce its CO2 emissions by 40% by 2030. To do so, the group plans to close down its old coal-fired power plants and to upgrade some existing plants with advanced technology such as coal gasification.

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Infrastructure & Investments

IndiaOil will increase the Panipat refinery’s capacity by 2/3 to 25 Mt/year

1 Mar 2021

IndianOil will invest INR329.5bn (US$4.5bn) to increase the capacity of its Panipat refinery in northern Punjab state (India) by 2/3 from 15 Mt/year (300,000 bbl/d) to 25 Mt/year (500,000 bbl/d) by September 2024. The company will also add catalytic dewaxing and polypropylene units.

IndianOil, a state-owned company, dominates the refining sector with a total capacity of about 1.6 mb/d (nearly 32% of the total capacity in FY 2020). The company owns 9 refineries and controls 2 refineries through its subsidiaries.

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Sasol takes FID on a 470 MW gas-fired power plant project in Mozambique

1 Mar 2021

The South African oil company Sasol has reached a final investment decision (FID) on the production sharing agreement for the Temane natural gas project in Mozambique. The project, which is expected to cost US$760m, includes a 450 MW gas-fired power plant and a liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) facility. Construction should start in 2021 and commissioning is scheduled in 2024.

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