Daily Energy News
Policy & Regulatory
Indonesia plans to convert 5.2 GW of diesel-fired capacity to renewables
11 May 2021
The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) of Indonesia will issue a decree to convert diesel-fired power plants that are still operating in the country into renewables projects. The conversion projects will be led in stages, ending in 2025-2026. The authorities plan to start with 358 diesel-fired power plants totalling 307 MW that would be replaced with solar power plants. The first phase is expected to be completed in 2023-2024. At a later stage, solar power plants with storage could be used, or solar power plants hybridised with diesel.
Massachusetts (US) launches third offshore wind round for 1.6 GW
11 May 2021
Massachusetts (United States) has launched a third offshore wind solicitation round, seeking 1.6 GW of offshore wind capacity. The price cap is set at US$77.76/MWh. Bidders can submit projects until 23 September 2021 and winners will be selected by 17 December 2021.
Russia aims to amend power concession agreements and attract investments
10 May 2021
The Ministry of Energy of Russia has presented draft amendments to concession agreements for power plants, in the attempt to attract additional investment in the power sector, especially in the modernisation of power plants, including in isolated regions of the country. The draft law includes a clause on the amount of gross proceeds received by the concessionaire for each year of the term of the agreement.
Technology
The Netherlands grants €2bn in subsidies to the Porthos CCS project
11 May 2021
The Netherlands have awarded around €2bn in subsidies to the 2.5 MtCO2/year Port of Rotterdam Transport Hub and Offshore Storage (Porthos) project, as part of the first SDE++ round. The carbon capture and storage (CSS) project, developed by a consortium of Air Liquide, Air Products, ExxonMobil and Shell, aims to capture CO2 emitted by factories and refineries in the Port of Rotterdam area and store it in empty Dutch gas fields in the North Sea. The consortium had registered for a €2bn subsidy in January 2021.
Infrastructure & Investments
South Korea supports plans to build a 6 GW floating offshore wind plant
11 May 2021
The South Korean authorities have announced a plan to create a floating 6 GW floating offshore wind plant off the coast of Ulsan by 2030. The project, which will be developed under a public private partnership, requires an investment of KRW36,000bn (US$32bn). The power plant is expected to produce 84,000 t/year of clean hydrogen.
UTM Offshore plans a 1.8 bcm/year FLNG project in Eastern Nigeria
11 May 2021
The Nigerian oil and gas company UTM Offshore plans to develop a 1.8 bcm/year floating LNG (FLNG) project at the Yoho oil field, located 40 km offshore eastern Nigeria. The FLNG project will remove reinjected gas in the field that was used for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The company will award a pre-front end engineering design (pre-FEED) contract for the project to JGC. In February 2021, the Department of Petroleum Resources awarded a licence to the project.
MingYang installs 1st turbine at Qingzhou 3 offshore wind project (China)
11 May 2021
MingYang Smart Energy has installed the first MySE6.8-158 wind turbine at the 500 MW Yangjiang Qingzhou 3 offshore wind project, off Yangjiang city in southwestern Guangdong Province (China). The project was approved in December 2018 and in August 2020, China Huadian Corporation ordered 37 MySE6.8-158 turbines and 30 MySE8.3-180 turbines from MingYang Smart Energy. Commissioning is scheduled in 2022.
Repsol starts building an 860 MW onshore wind project in Spain
11 May 2021
The Spanish oil and gas group Repsol has started building its 860 MW Delta II onshore wind project in the province of Huesca, Zaragoza and Teruel, in Aragon (northern Spain). In the first construction stage, the company will build two wind plants, La Cometa I and La Cometa II, with a combined capacity of 60 MW. They should by operational in the first quarter of 2022. The entire 860 MW project will comprise 26 wind plants and is scheduled to be commissioned in 2023. The company commissioned the 335 MW Delta wind project in the same area in March 2021.
Brazil secures financing for a 359 MW solar project
11 May 2021
Atlas Renewable Energy has secured a US$150m loan from IDB Invest, the private sector arm of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) group, and the Norwegian financial group DNB for the 359 MW Lar do Sol – Casablanca solar project in Minas Gerais (south-eastern Brazil). The power plant, which should generate 805 GWh/year, will supply power to the mining company Anglo American. Commissioning is scheduled in 2022.
Companies
Brazil aims to complete Eletrobras’ privatisation by January 2022
10 May 2021
The Brazilian government aims to complete the privatisation of the national power company Eletrobras by January 2022 and to raise BRL25bn (US$4.75bn) from the process. In February 2021, the Brazilian president delivered a provisional measure to Congress, allowing the national development bank BNDES to start Eletrobras’ privatisation process. Brazil directly controls 42.57% of Eletrobras’s total capital. In addition, 10.23% are owned by the federal government through BNESPAR, 5.92% through BNDES and 2.97% through government funds, raising the total state-owned interest to 61.69%.
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