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The government of Finland aims to reform its climate policy, by accelerating emission reduction measures and by strengthening carbon sinks, in order to make the country carbon neutral by 2035. Finland will seek to help the European Union become carbon neutral by 2050, which would require tightening the 2030 emission reduction target to at least 55% compared to 1990. Finland will update the targets of its 2050 climate law, adding emission reduction targets for 2030 and 2040. The Land Act will also include the land use sector to strengthen carbon sinks.

According to the industrial association Finnish Energy, thermal power generation accounted for 39% of the Finnish power mix in 2018 (including around 17% from biomass). Renewables excluding biomass accounted for 28% (19% hydropower and 9% wind), while nuclear accounted for 32%.

Novatek, Sinopec and Gazprombank have signed Heads of Agreement (HoA) to set up a joint venture to sell natural gas and LNG to end customers in China.

The Brazilian electricity regulator ANEEL has blocked the proposed sale of Renova Energia’s Alto Sertao III wind power project to AES Tietê – subsidiary of US-based energy company AES Corp., considering that the companies failed to provide guarantees for the conclusion of the project and to show possible gains for the consumers.  …

Angola’s newly created National Agency of Petroleum, Gas and Biofuels has initiated the 2019 licensing round, which will offer a total of 10 blocks, including Blocks 11, 12, 13, 27, 28, 29, 41, 42 and 43 in the Namibe Basin, and Block 10 in the Benguela Basin. …

The Ministry of Oil and Energies of Senegal aims to convert all the thermal power plants operated by the national power utility Senelec to gas by 2022. This conversion to gas would help to cut power generation costs and end consumer prices. It would also make the country’s power mix cleaner, based on gas, hydropower, wind, biomass and solar. …

The government of Chile has presented a coal exit plan – agreed by power producers Engie, Enel, AES Gener and Colbun – that aims to close all coal-fired power plants by 2040 and to make the power generation sector carbon-neutral by 2050.

Ørsted has started operating the 1,214 MW Hornsea One offshore wind project in the North Sea (United Kingdom) ahead of commissioning. The first turbine was commissioned in February 2019 and the full commissioning of the wind project is currently expected for 2020. …