Latest Energy News
Policy & Regulatory
Australia is considering net zero carbon emission target by 2050
12 Feb 2020The Federal Energy Ministry of Australia is considering adopting a net-zero emissions target by 2050 ahead of the COP26 climate summit in November 2020. The government will assess the potential impacts of adopting such a policy, considering that the Ministry of Finance estimates that coal still has a future in the Australian power mix in spite of rising renewable energy supply.
Read moreEgypt eliminated power subsidies in the second half of 2019
12 Feb 2020According to the Egyptian Ministry of Finance, Egypt cut electricity subsidies from EGP8bn (US$509m) in the second half of 2018 to zero in the second half of 2019. In addition, energy subsidies (excluding power) were reduced by 67% from EGP30.2bn (US$1.9bn) in the second half of 2018 to EGP9.9bn (less than US$630m) in the second half of 2019.
Read moreAngola’s ANPG plans to tender 50 new blocks for oil prospecting
11 Feb 2020Angola’s National Oil, Gas and Biofuels Agency (ANPG) plans to sell off 50 new oil exploration blocks in the country by 2025, with the objective to increase national oil production. The blocks will be auctioned only after drilling test planned within two to six months. Angola is seeking to reverse the declining trend in crude oil production since 2015 (from 89 Mt to 73 Mt in 2018).
Read morePoland’s SOEs Ministry supports mergers of state-owned energy groups
11 Feb 2020The Polish Ministry of State Assets has expressed its support to a proposed merger of Polish state-owned energy group PGE, Enea, Energa and Tauron Polska Energia. The State Treasury owns 57.4% of PGE, 51.5% of ENEA, 51.5% of Energa and 30.1% of Tauron. In term of power generation, the 4 groups had a combined market share of 72% in 2018. The previous government planned to merge Energa with PGE, but the proposed merger has been postponed until the restructuring of the coal sector is completed.
Read moreCompanies
Total will develop 2 GW of solar projects in Spain
12 Feb 2020Total has entered Spain’s solar industry with two agreements to develop nearly 2 GW of solar projects. The group, through its subsidiary Total Solar International, will buy 100% of a portfolio of solar PV projects developed by Solarbay in Andalusia, Aragon and Castile-La Mancha, with a combined capacity of 1.2 GW. In addition, Total Solar International will create a joint venture with Powertis (65% Total, 35% Powertis) to develop solar PV projects in Spain; Powertis will bring its pipeline of 800 MW portfolio of projects into the joint venture.
Read morePetrobras’ oil and gas production rose by 5.4% in 2019 (Brazil)
12 Feb 2020Brazil’s national oil and gas company Petrobras has released its 2019 results, posting a 5.4% increase in its global hydrocarbon production in 2019, to an average of 2,770 kboe/d. Crude oil production in Brazil rose by 6.7% to an average of 2,172 kb/d, spurred by a 28.5% surge in pre-salt production (up to 1,277 kb/d) that offset a decline in oil production from post-salt areas (-14% to 704 kb/d), onshore areas (-8.1% to 124 kb/d) and shallow waters (-27% to 66 kb/d).
Read moreForecasts
US energy-related CO2 emissions are forecast to remain stable through 2050
12 Feb 2020According to the Annual Energy Outlook 2020 released by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), US energy-related CO2 emissions are expected to remain broadly stable between 2019 and 2050. CO2 emissions should decrease until 2031 before recovering until 2050, when they should average 4.9 Gt, i.e. slightly below their 2019 level (around 5.1 Gt).
Read moreThailand aims to set up the framework to become an LNG hub
12 Feb 2020The Ministry of Energy of Thailand aims to turn the country into an LNG free-trade hub, offering an improved access to the LNG import and export market under the third-party access (TPA) concept. The Ministy is working on a gas market model and investment framework to create such an LNG hub, in a context of depleting domestic gas production and of rising gas-fired power generation.
Read moreInfrastructure & Investments
AboitizPower plans 975 MW of solar and wind projects in the Philippines
12 Feb 2020The Philippine independent power producer (IPP) AboitizPower plans to invest nearly PHP 34bn (US$673m) to develop 975 MW of solar and wind projects in the Philippines.
Read moreRosatom passes qualifying steps for Saudi Arabia nuclear power project
12 Feb 2020Russian state-owned nuclear group Rosatom has passed two qualifying steps to participate in a tender to build a 2.8 GW nuclear in Saudi Arabia. In 2015, Russia and Saudi Arabia signed an agreement to cooperate on nuclear energy development; two years later, the two parties entered into a “program of cooperation” on the peaceful uses of nuclear energy.
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