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Mexico’s state-owned oil and gas company Pemex has released its Business Plan for 2019-2023, which aims at reversing the declining trend in oil production since the last 14 years. Mexico is facing a sharp decrease in its oil production, which halved from 3.4 mb/d in 2004 to 1.9 mb/d in 2018 and around 1.7 mb/d currently. The group targets a production level of 2,697 kb/d by the end of 2023. To that end, Pemex will seek to increase the development activity in fields currently in operation, with new wells and with major repairs, and to accelerate the development of newly discovered reservoirs. Pemex also plans a gradual recovery of its refining capacity, with higher investments in the rehabilitation of six refineries and the construction of the new Dos Bocas refinery.

Pemex’s Business Plan for 2019-2023 also aims at modernising the company, making it more competitive and guaranteeing its long-term financial viability. Pemex is struggling with a high tax burden, a high debt and low investments, leading to decreasing oil production and revenues. The Mexican government has already committed to reduce taxes for the company, extending the fiscal benefit in the payment of oil production rights through the publication of a decree (benefit of around MXP 30bn, i.e. US$4.5bn for 2019). The Federal Government plans to reform the Hydrocarbons Revenue Law to reduce the rate of the shared utility tax, from the current 65% to 54% by 2021 (gradual reduction scheme of 7% for 2020 and 4% by 2021). This should contribute to Pemex plans to achieve a balanced budget in 2021.

The Georgia Public Service Commission (PSC) has approved US power utility Georgia Power’s 2019 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), which plans to raise the company’s renewable power capacity by 72% to 5,390 MW by 2024, by adding 2,260 MW of solar, wind or biomass power capacity in the United States.

According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) of India, renewable power capacity in India has exceeded the 80 GW mark, with 80,460 MW of renewable capacity operational as of 30 June 2019, including 29,550 MW of solar capacity and 36,370 MW of wind power capacity.

The British government has opened a consultation on plans to fit every new-build home with an electric car chargepoint. Under the government’s proposed commitment, chargepoints would use «smart» technologies to encourage electric vehicles owners to charge them during off-peak periods and to prepare the energy system for mass uptake of electric cars.

The Natural Gas Public Company of Cyprus (DEFA) has pre-qualified three joint ventures in the first phase of a tender to provide a floating storage and regasification unit (FSRU) to import and regasify LNG in Cyprus.

Oman Power and Water Procurement (OPWP) Company has launched a tender for two solar Independent Power Projects (IPPs) in Oman, namely Manah Solar I and Manah Solar II. The projects will each have a power generation capacity of 500 MW to 600 MW (combined capacity of 1.1 GW) and are expected to be awarded in the third quarter of 2020 and to start operations in the fourth quarter of 2022. …

A consortium of EDF Renewables and Masdar (Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company, United Arab Emirates) has selected Vestas to supply 99 of its V150-4.2 MW wind turbines for the 415 MW Dumat Al Jandal wind project in the Al Jouf region of Saudi Arabia.

Nabinagar Power Generating Company Limited (NPGCL) has commissioned the first unit of its 3×660 MW (1,980 MW) Nabinagar subcritical coal-fired power project in Aurangabad, in Bihar (India). NPGCL is a 50-50 joint venture between NTPC and Bihar State Power Holding Company Limited.