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Vattenfall has won the tender for the second phase of the Hollandse Kust Zuid offshore wind project, the 750 MW Hollandse Kust Zuid 3-4 phase, in the Dutch part of the North Sea. Offshore construction will start in 2022, while commissioning is scheduled in 2024. The project will have to be fully operational within 5 years after permit have become irrevocable. Like the Hollandse Kust Zuid 1 and 2 wind parks, the new projects will not benefit from financial aid for power generation.

The Swedish group already secured the rights to develop the Hollandse Kust Zuid 1 and 2 wind parks under the framework of the first Dutch power generation subsidy-free public offshore wind tender issued by the Dutch government in March 2018. Upon completion, the 700 MW projects will sell the power generated directly on the wholesale market. Vattenfall intends to increase its presence in the Dutch offshore wind sector and hopes to achieve economies of scale if all the projects are combined into a nearly 1.5 GW wind project, which would thus bring significant benefits in terms of cost reductions.

Vattenfall’s involvement in the European wind sector is significant: at the end of 2018 the company had 2.8 GW of installed wind capacity (1.1 GW onshore and 1.7 GW offshore, respectively) in five countries: Sweden, Denmark, United Kingdom, Germany and the Netherlands. These parks delivered a combined yearly production of 7.8 TWh..

The Brazilian government expects to raise around BRL 18bn (US$4.8bn) from a capital increase in state-owned power company Eletrobras. The company will issue between BRL 30bn and BRL 36bn (US$8-9.6bn) in new shares, diluting the government’s stake in the company to a minority holding. …

The National Energy Administration (NEA) of China estimates government subsidies for centralised solar projects at CNY 1.7bn (around US$248m) in 2019. So far, more than 3,900 centralised (large-scale PV, not rooftop) projects in 22 provinces and cities have received approval for subsidies, corresponding to a total capacity of 22,790 MW. …

The Energy Secretariat of Argentina will open a tender for a new gas pipeline from the Vaca Muerta shale gas field in the Neuquén province by the end of July 2019. The construction of the first stage of the project should be commissioned by mid-2021.

The Ministry of Energy and Mines of the Dominican Republic has launched its first oil licensing round, offering 10 onshore blocks in three basins and four offshore blocks. The round offers simple terms providing low cost of entry and low risk as well as seismic exploration data for all the offered areas.

According to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), the installed capacity of utility-scale (above 1 MW) battery energy storage systems (BESS) in the United States could reach 2.5 GW by 2023. …

The government of Iraq has approved two projects aimed at raising the country’s crude oil exports. The first one is a 1,680 km oil pipeline project stretching from Basra (Iraq) through Najaf (Iraq) to the Aqaba terminal on the Red Sea (Jordan). The project was put forward in 2013 but has been delayed because of Iraq’s instability.

Total has signed definitive agreements with US LNG project developer Tellurian to acquire US$200m of Tellurian’s stocks, to invest US$500m in Driftwood Holdings, Tellurian’s affiliate that is developing the 27.6 Mt/year Driftwood LNG export project in Louisiana (United States), and to buy 1.5 Mt/year of LNG from Tellurian’s offtake volumes from the Driftwood LNG project, at a price based on Platts…

The Ministry of Water and Energy (MINEE) of Cameroon has signed a Letter of Intent with the US hydropower project developer Hydromine and ENEO Cameroon for the development of the 1,000 MW Grand Eweng hydropower project.