Daily Energy News
Policy & Regulatory
The Supreme Court forces Ireland to strengthen its climate plan
5 Aug 2020The Supreme Court of Ireland has ruled that the government’s National Mitigation Plan (2017-2022) does not comply with Ireland’s obligations under the Climate Action and Low Carbon Development Act 2015 and that it fails to give sufficient detail on greenhouse gas (GHG) emission reduction and about how to achieve the national target of a low carbon economy by the end of 2050. In addition, the court judged that the 2019 climate action plan – that aims at reaching net zero emissions by 2050 – is not a plan in the sense of the 2015 Act, as it had not been through a public consultation process.
Read moreUkraine liberalises its residential gas market
5 Aug 2020Ukraine has authorised residential customers to freely choose their gas supplier as of 1 August 2020, as planned in the new Gas Market Act adopted in 2015. Residential customers will have to select a gas supplier or will be supplied by Naftogaz, which has been designated as a supplier of last resort. The market liberalisation is expected to contribute to reduce gas prices.
Read moreIndonesia offers more flexible terms for oil and gas production contracts
4 Aug 2020The Indonesian government has revised its "gross split" production sharing contract model, introduced in 2017, to allow more flexibility for oil and gas investors when selecting their contract options for exploration. In a bid to foster investment, contractors can now choose between different contracts, including the “cost recovery” and the “gross split” model.
Read moreCompanies
BP unveils its new 10-years strategy focused on low-carbon investments
5 Aug 2020BP has introduced its new 10-year strategy aimed at pivoting from being an international oil company to an integrated energy company. Within a decade, BP plans to reduce its oil and gas production by at least 1 mb/d from 2019 levels (-40% by 2030). The company will cease exploring for oil and gas in new countries.
Read moreJSW Energy cancels acquisition of a 1 GW coal-fired power plant in India
5 Aug 2020JSW Energy, the energy branch of the Indian conglomerate JSW, has terminated a INR53.2bn (US$710m) deal with GMR Energy to acquire its subsidiary GMR Kamalanga, which owns and operates a 1,050 MW (3×350 MW) subcritical coal-fired power plant in the State of Odisha (eastern India), given the continued uncertainty due to Covid19 pandemic. The two parties had reached a preliminary agreement in February 2020.
Read morePoland plans to merge power utilities PGE, Enea and Tauron
4 Aug 2020The Polish government plans to merge three power utilities, namely PGE (57.4% state-owned), Enea (51.5% state-owned) and Tauron (30.1% state-owned) into two companies: one new company would consolidate their coal and coal-fired assets, while non-coal assets would be grouped together in a separate entity.
Read moreEnergy Prices & Taxes
Russia plans to raise US$1.9bn in 2021-2022 in taxes from oil production
5 Aug 2020The Russian government plans to raise an extra RUB143.4bn (US$1.9bn) from oil production in 2021 and 2022. The country would tweak the Tax Code and the profit-based tax to generate an additional revenue of RUB87.9bn (US$1.2bn) in 2021 and RUB55.6bn (US$756m) in 2022.
Low oil prices are expected to wipe RUB2,000bn (US$27.2bn) from Russia’s budget in 2020. In addition, around RUB213bn (US$2.9bn) was lost to the budget in 2019 due to introduction of the profit-based tax, which replaced the mineral extraction tax, for oil output at some fields.
Read moreInfrastructure & Investments
Kenya submit impact studies for a 1 GW nuclear project
5 Aug 2020The Kenyan Nuclear Power and Energy Agency has submitted impact studies to the National Environment Management Authority to build a 1 GW nuclear power project by 2027. The power plant, which would be developed under a build, operate and transfer (BOT) model, could be built in Tana River County, near the Kenyan coast. Construction is scheduled to take 7 years. The parastatal is currently assessing the ideal technology for the country.
Read moreMVP plans to commission its 20 bcm/year pipeline in early 2021 (US)
5 Aug 2020The US gas pipeline company Mountain Valley Pipeline (MVP) plans to commission its long-delayed 1.9 bcf/d (20 bcm/year) gas pipeline project from Wetzel County (West Virginia) to Pittsylvania County (Virginia) in early 2021. In June 2020, the Supreme Court of the United States reversed a lower court decision regarding the U.S. Forest Service’s authority to grant a right-of-way to cross the Appalachian Trail. The positive ruling clears the path for MVP’s Appalachian Trail crossing.
Read moreThe Netherlands closes financing for a 322 MW repowering wind project
5 Aug 2020NWB Bank and the Danish export credit insurer EKF have joined Rabobank in the financing consortium of the 322 MW Windpark Zeewolde wind project in the Netherlands. The project received a €470m loan from Rabobank. The project is led by a cooperation of 200 local farmers, inhabitants and entrepreneurs in the outskirts of Zeewolde and will provide power to more than 250,000 households.
Read more
No Comment