Energie Terug naar discussie overzicht

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1. voda 3 juli 2015 21:18

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   Germany agrees deal on coal power and nuclear energy
   
   Irish Times reported that after months of squabbling, Berlin’s ruling coalition has struck a compromise it says will square the circle on how to abandon nuclear energy without breaching German climate targets.
   
   Berlin has said that it will push ahead with closure of brown- coal or lignite-fired plants producing energy of 2.7 GW, the equivalent of five power stations but without imposing a planned industry levy to cover the cost.
   
   Mr Sigmar Gabriel, economics minister, said that the deal would safeguard Germany’s 2020 carbon-reduction targets, to reduce 1990 CO2 levels by 40% but environmental groups said that the deal was a bonanza to Germany’s energy giants.
   
   Shares in the RWE energy utility jumped nearly 6% on the news that a planned mothballing levy had been dropped. In addition, energy companies will be allowed keep the closed plants as part of a capacity reserve to be activated in case of energy shortages.
   
   Mr Gabriel, the SPD leader and deputy chancellor, said that “We’re sending an international signal to show we are achieving the switch to renewables in a highly industrialised country and are setting European and international standards.”
   
   The aim of the plan remains, to cut 22 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. Under the revised plan half the savings will come through mothballing coal-burning stations and the rest through additional measures for greater energy efficiency and for alternative power and heat co-generation.
   
   Subsidies worth EUR 1.16 billion will on offer to support energy efficiency projects, while industry can tap a EUR 1.5 billion fund to boost production at gas-burning plants.
   
   In Berlin, the opposition Green Party criticised the deal for transforming a planned industry levy for carbon production into a reward programme. It said the deal was an expensive and dirty sell-out, shifting on to taxpayers the cost of a deal it said would eventually fall short of meeting Germany’s climate change obligations.
   
   Source : Irish Times
   
2. voda 6 juli 2015 22:16

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   Say goodbye to coal-fired power in Australia - Dr Diesendorf
   
   The writing is on the wall for coal-fired power in Australia. Despite federal government attempts to stop the growth of renewable energy, all they can do is delay the inevitable transition.
   
   Tasmania already has almost 100% renewable electricity, based on hydro supplemented by wind. The ACT is on track to reach its target of 90% net renewable electricity by 2020, based on solar and wind.
   
   South Australia, with no freshwater hydro-electric potential, is the leading mainland state in the transition to renewable energy. Last year 33% of its annual electricity consumption was generated by the wind and 6% from rooftop solar. Furthermore, its electricity system has already operated reliably and stably for hours when the contribution of variable renewable energy reached two-thirds of demand. Recently wind power and gas coped admirably when the coal-fired Northern power station went unexpectedly offline.
   
   Coal power will soon disappear from SA and eventually from the whole country. Because wind has no fuel cost, it can bid the lowest price into the electricity market and so is ranked higher in operating order than coal. The result: coal is displaced from operating as base-load (24/7) power, coal's economics become worse and incidentally the wholesale price of electricity decreases.
   
   This is the real reason our Prime Minister is trying to stop the growth in wind power. It has nothing to do with aesthetics or the sham 'wind turbine syndrome', but everything to do with Mr Abbott's misguided commitment to coal.
   
   Hourly computer simulation modelling by Dr Ben Elliston and colleagues at UNSW show that the National Electricity Market could be operated entirely on scaled-up, commercially available, renewable energy sources. Some of this research is summarised in my 2015 report to the Conservation Council of South Australia, now available online.
   
   The NEM could be supplied reliably by a combination of variable renewable energy sources (wind and solar PV) and flexible, dispatchable sources (hydro with dams, gas turbines and concentrated solar thermal power with thermal storage). It is the combination of variable and flexible sources, together with geographic dispersion of wind and solar farms, that is the basis for reliability of 100% renewable electricity systems.
   
   Biofuelled gas-fired turbines and demand management via 'smart' meters and switches could manage the infrequent small lulls in wind and solar supply. Gas turbines have low capital cost and, if operated infrequently, low running costs. Therefore, until other kinds of energy storage become cheaper, gas turbines can play the role of reliability insurance with a low premium.
   
   As pointed out by Professor Andrew Blakers at ANU and a research group at the University of Melbourne, pumped hydro-electricity, based on small dams that supply high power for short periods, could also handle the small lulls.
   
   Our simulations show that the NEM does not need any baseload power stations, such as coal or nuclear. Indeed, the inadequate operational flexibility of coal and nuclear makes them poor partners for high penetrations of variable renewable energy.
   
   Given the political will, I estimate the renewable energy transition would take 15-25 years. Increased interstate trading of electricity, possibly assisted by a new direct transmission link joining SA to NSW, would assist in smoothing the fluctuations in wind and solar.
   
   --Dr Mark Diesendorf, is associate professor and deputy director of the Institute of Environmental Studies at the University of NSW.
   
   Source : Sydney Morning Herald
   
3. voda 8 juli 2015 21:35

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   Tripping of transmission lines and power plants plunge parts of Sindh and Balochistan in darkness
   
   The Tribune reported that what started as a tripping of a 220 KV power line from Bin Qasim power plants in Karachi, cascaded into tripping of two other major power plants in the region to plunge parts of Sindh and Balochistan into darkness.
   
   A broken conductor on a 220 KV power line transmitting electricity from the Bin Qasim power plants casued the line, and then subsequently the plants to trip on Tuesday evening. The fault caused the 560MW power plants to be shut down, as repairs were made to the transmission line.
   
   The tripping and the plant shutdown plunged large parts of Karachi into darkness.
   
   After working on repairs for over 7 hours, the transmission and the plants were being brought back online when it caused a cascading effect in the system, causing the HubCo power plant, the 660 MW Jamshoro power plant and the 500 KV National Transmission and Distribution Company line from the national grid, to trip.
   
   This plunged large parts of Sindh and Balochistan into darkness, with reports that the cascading effect had also affected grids as far away as Peshawar.
   
   In Sindh, the second tripping caused blackouts in Karachi, Hyderabad, Thatta, Kotri, Mirpurkhas, Badin and Nawabshah. Hub, Lasbela among some other areas in Balochistan also suffered blackouts. K-Electric spokesperson said that their teams were working to restore power, adding that alternative arrangements for power were also being made.
   
   Earlier, large parts of Karachi plunged into darkness on Tuesday evening after the main power line from Bin Qasim Power plant tripped.
   
   A spokesperson for K-Electric power supply company explained that a conductor on the main 220 KV transmission line broke, causing the extra high tension line to trip. Its ripple effect caused Bin Qasim’s power plants to trip and shut down, creating a power deficit of 560 MW.
   
   The official added that their engineers were analysing the situation to start repairs, but they could not provide a timeline for when power would be restored.
   
   Source : The Tribune
   

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4. voda 8 juli 2015 22:20

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   Natural gas falls as weather signals soft demand
   
   The Wall Street Journal reported that natural gas fell to its lowest settlement in nearly a month as temperate weather forecasts suggest soft demand on the way.
   
   The front-month August contract settled down 4 cents, or 1.5%, to USD 2.716 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. A two-day losing streak has now pushed gas below the tight, 17-cent range it had settled within every session since June 9th.
   
   Analysts said that “Weather forecasts are suggesting that the early part of the summer isn’t going to be hot enough to drive the kind of demand needed to soak up near-record production.”
   
   Mr Paul Markert, senior meteorologist at MDA Weather Services in Maryland, said that ”Hot weather can lead people to use air conditioning and gas-fired power. But the Northeast and Midwest, some of the largest markets, are seeing normal to unseasonably cool forecasts.”
   
   Mr Aaron Calder, senior market analyst at energy-consulting firm Gelber & Associates in Houston, said in a note that “It’s harder to believe that hot weather will bail out bullish traders.”
   
   Mr John Saucer, VP of research and analysis at Mobius Risk Group in Houston, said that “Power plants also burned less gas in recent days, possibly because of the slower holiday weekend.”
   
   Cash prices at many points around the country are coming off of record lows from last week but haven’t surged above futures prices. Pipeline bottlenecks are trapping an oversupply of gas in regional markets. Several hubs in the northeast saw prices far below USD 2 per million British thermal unit on Tuesday.
   
   Mr Saucer said that “It’s looking looser, sloppier, weaker than where we were a week ago.”
   
   Production has been so strong this year, holding near record highs despite cutbacks that have led to a record-low number of working gas drilling rigs, that Jefferies LLC cut its price outlook. The bank’s analysts also cited expectations for a disappointing amount of exports.
   
   They cut their 2015 forecast to USD 3.00 per million British thermal unit from USD 3.50 and cut their 2016 forecast to USD 4 from USD 4.25. That is still higher than long-term futures prices. The Jefferies analysts said they are ultimately still bullish because they expect production growth will have to slow down while new pipelines get built and because demand for gas-fired power will increase.
   
   Source : The Wall Street Journal
   
5. voda 14 juli 2015 19:33

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   States take aim at new rules for power-plant emissions
   
   The Wall Street Journal reported that State regulators are descending on Washington Tuesday to make last-minute pleas for changes in the Obama administration’s sweeping new rules for power-plant emissions, which will determine the direction of utility investments for decades to come and could affect the price of electricity.
   
   California and several East Coast states want the Environmental Protection Agency to respect the steps they have already taken to cut carbon pollution in their regions and hold other states to higher standards by not easing proposed emission targets.
   
   Mr Mary Nichols, chairman of the California Air Resources Board, said that “We want a strong rule. There are not quite as many viewpoints as states but it’s pretty close.”
   
   Other states, including Tennessee, Ohio and Nevada, say the pollution targets put forth by the EPA are so onerous they threaten to close power plants and cost consumers substantially more to keep the lights on.
   
   At least 5 governors have threatened not to comply with the new pollution rules, including those of Texas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Indiana and Wisconsin.
   
   According to spokesman Mr Tom Reynolds, the EPA has received more than four million comments so far on what the Obama administration is calling its Clean Power Plan, the most in the agency’s history. Once finalized in August, it is expected to face a barrage of legal challenges. In the meantime, some Republicans and coal-state Democrats have been pushing legislation to delay the rule’s compliance deadlines until all the litigation is complete.
   
   Source : The Wall Street Journal
   
6. voda 20 juli 2015 17:21

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   200 coal plants announced to retire since 2010 in US
   
   Treehugger reported that it's been clear for a while that coal is the fuel of the past, not of the future. Just this year, 12,300 MW of coal power will shut down in the US, with a lot more to come.
   
   The Sierra Club, with its Beyond Coal campaign, is working very hard to move the US off coal and get commitments that coal plants will be retired.
   
   They maintain this interactive map that shows defeated coal plants and which ones are still operational for now:
   
   This week they're celebrating a new milestone: The 200th US coal plant retirement announcement since 2010. This is a huge deal, because in 2010 there were 535 coal plants in the country, so this is almost 40% of the fleet that is going away.
   
   In 2009, the pollution from the 200 coal plants now slated for retirement caused 6,000 heart attacks, 60,000 asthma attacks and 3,600 deaths each year. The plants emitted more than 188 million metric tons of carbon pollution, equivalent to the annual emissions of more than 39 million passenger vehicles. The coal plants also emitted more than 7,600 pounds of mercury each year. Mercury, a potent neurotoxin, contributes to thousands of birth defects and neurological disorders, putting communities surrounding coal plants at higher risk.
   
   What pushed us over the 200 milestone is a decision by Iowa utility Alliant Energy to retire 6 coal plants in the state.
   
   Mr Michael Brune, Executive Director of the Sierra Club, said that “The days of coal-fired power plants putting Americans at risk are coming to an end. In Iowa and across the country, people are demanding clean air and clean water and they are winning. Iowa is a leader in America’s transition from coal to renewable energy and is providing a model for other communities as they demand and realize a 100% clean energy future.”
   
   Source : Treehugger
   

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7. voda 22 juli 2015 20:28

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   Swedish energy group Vattenfall announces USD 4 bln value drop
   
   Agence France-Presse reported that Sweden's state-owned energy group Vattenfall announced a massive USD 4.2 billion writedown Tuesday tied to looming closures of two nuclear reactors and slumping lignite activity in Germany.
   
   Vattenfall said that Q2 losses skyrocketed to USD 2.9 billion, while revenue fell 1.3% to SEK 36.1 billion.
   
   Mr Magnus Hall, president of Vattenfall, said in a statement that “Naturally, this is a very negative development which unfortunately reflects the world we live in. Very low electricity prices are putting pressure on margins for conventional generation from gas, coal, hydro and nuclear power facilities.”
   
   Mr Hall said energy demand that slumped after the economic crisis in 2009 had still not recovered, while capacity from both solar and wind power, with low marginal costs, has been added to the system.
   
   Vattenfall said that it had taken a 17 billion krona hit on the weak profitability of its Ringhals 1 and 2 nuclear reactors, which the group decided in April to close no later than 2020, rather than no later than 2025. It also wrote down an additional SEK 19 billion on its lignite, or brown coal, assets and income in Germany.
   
   Vattenfall has been looking to sell its German brown coal plant in Hamburg and Mr Hall said that activities to identify additional cost reductions are in progress in the entire organization.
   
   Source : Agence France-Presse
   
8. voda 24 juli 2015 22:29

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   Financiële strop dreigt voor energiebedrijven •Bert van Dijk
   Gisteren, 17:00Update: vandaag, 09:31
   
   De malaise op de olie- en steenkoolmarkten in combinatie met strenger klimaatbeleid leidt tot toenemende zorgen over het risico op waardedaling van de bezittingen van energiebedrijven. Er staan voor duizenden miljarden euro’s op het spel.
   Eerder deze week schreef het Zweedse Vattenfall miljarden euro’s af op onder meer zijn sterk vervuilende bruinkoolactiviteiten in Duitsland. Als concurrent RWE in augustus zijn halfjaarcijfers publiceert, dreigen ook bij dat bedrijf grote afboekingen op oude kolencentrales. En hoewel Vattenfall, dat zijn bruinkoolactiviteiten wil verkopen, verwacht een koper te vinden, ziet de langetermijntoekomst van die activiteiten er somber uit. Duitsland heeft aangekondigd kolencentrales met een capaciteit van in totaal 2,7 gigawatt in de mottenballen te leggen en later te willen sluiten om aan zijn klimaatdoelstellingen te kunnen voldoen.
   
   Economisch gestrand
   
   Ondertussen zorgt de sterk gedaalde olieprijs ervoor dat een groter deel van de reserves economisch niet rendabel te winnen zal zijn. 'De lagere olieprijzen geven producenten de keuze: doorgaan met produceren en verlies lijden in de hoop dat de prijzen weer gaan stijgen, of de verliezen beperken en de productie stoppen', schrijft zakenbank HSBC in het recente rapport Stranded assets: what’s next?, waarin het ingaat op de risico’s voor beleggers.
   
   'Als het besluit wordt genomen om niet te produceren van een bewezen reserve of te stoppen met lopende productie, dan kan die activa worden beschouwd als economisch gestrand. Of activa permanent stranden of alleen tijdelijk, hangt af van de kosten van het in de mottenballen leggen versus sluiting.'
   
   Enorm omzetverlies
   
   Nationaal klimaatbeleid en lagere grondstofprijzen vergroten het risico op onverkoopbare reserves. En het is nog maar het begin. Het Internationaal Energie Agentschap waarschuwt dat twee derde van alle gerapporteerde energiereserves in de wereld waardeloos zullen zijn, als landen zich houden aan de afspraak om de temperatuur niet verder te laten stijgen dan 2 graden Celsius tot aan 2050.
   
   Want als alle olie, gas en kolen die nu nog in de grond zitten, worden verbruikt leidt dat tot een hogere uitstoot van CO dan is toegestaan. De kosten van het niet kunnen gebruiken van die brandstoffen, zullen volgens diverse onderzoeken de duizend miljard dollar ver overschrijden. Zakenbank Kepler Cheuvreux schat dat het omzetverlies van de fossiele industrie zelfs $?28.000 mrd zal bedragen.
   
   Twee derde van alle reserves wordt waardeloos als landen zich houden aan de klimaatafspraken
   
   'Gebruik het, of verlies het'
   
   De discussie over deze zogenoemde ‘carbon bubble’, waarbij aandelenkoersen wellicht de risico's niet goed hebben geprijsd, wordt daarmee niet langer alleen maar door activistische milieuorganisaties gevoerd. Ook in de financiële wereld krijgt het onderwerp steeds meer aandacht.
   
   Deutsche Bank bijvoorbeeld constateert dat de oliesector geobsedeerd is met het verder uitbreiden van zijn reserves terwijl er nu al veel te veel fossiele brandstofreserves zijn. ‘De wereld zit boven op reserves die nog goed zijn voor vijftig jaar productie van olie en gas en zelfs honderd jaar voor steenkool. Het verbranden van al die reserves leidt tot een CO2-uitstoot van 2500 gigaton, oftewel 2,5 keer het nog resterende quotum van 1000 gigaton’, schrijft de bank in een recent rapport.
   
   Volgens de bank is de weigering van de Opec-landen om de productie terug te schroeven volgens het principe van ‘gebruik het, of verlies het’ dan ook ‘volstrekt rationeel’. ‘Deze nieuwe wereld biedt Opec-leden veel minder flexibiliteit om omzetten naar de toekomst te verschuiven en dus is maximalisatie van de productie voordat de CO2-deadline wordt bereikt, wat telt.’
   
   Door met proefboren
   
   Ondertussen voeren beleggers in binnen- en buitenland de druk op fossiele energiebedrijven op om transparanter te zijn over de risico’s van klimaatbeleid op hun resultaten. Tijdens de aandeelhoudersvergadering van Shell in mei werd een resolutie over grotere transparantie van Shell over de gevolgen van klimaatverandering op de resultaten van het bedrijf met grote meerderheid aangenomen.
   
   Shell-topman Ben van Beurden vindt dat oliebedrijven meer moeten meedoen aan het klimaatdebat en kritisch naar zichzelf moeten kijken. 'Je kunt niet praten over het verlagen van de uitstoot van emissies als je bijvoorbeeld zelf traag bent in het erkennen van klimaatverandering', zei hij eerder dit jaar. Maar bang voor een zogenoemde carbon bubble, waarbij Shell in de toekomst met vervuilende en onverkoopbare activa blijft zitten, is Van Beurden niet, omdat fossiele brandstoffen volgens hem nog heel veel jaren een belangrijke rol blijven spelen in het voldoen aan de verwachte energievraag in de wereld. Daarom gaat Shell ook door met proefboren in het noordpoolgebied.
   
   Bron: FD.nl
9. voda 27 juli 2015 16:21

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   Minder winst voor Gasunie
   
   Gepubliceerd op 27 jul 2015 om 10:07 | Views: 1.610
   
   GRONINGEN (AFN) - Gasunie heeft de nettowinst over het eerste halfjaar zien dalen met 31 miljoen euro tot 326 miljoen euro. Ook het bedrijfsresultaat daalde met 38 miljoen euro. De opbrengsten bleven met 876 miljoen euro in lijn met de eerste zes maanden van 2014. Het gastransportbedrijf maakte de halfjaarcijfers maandag bekend.
   
   De getransporteerde hoeveelheid gas (607 TWh) kwam iets lager uit ten opzichte van de eerste zes maanden van 2014 (621 TWh). Dit kwam onder andere door verminderde productie van gas uit het Groningenveld.
   
   Het lagere resultaat wijt Gasunie onder meer aan hogere kosten voor het meerjarig onderhouds- en vervangingsprogramma. Daarnaast zijn als gevolg van de verlaagde gasproductie uit het Groningenveld de kosten voor gas uit andere bronnen gestegen. Verder is 22 miljoen euro ten laste van het resultaat gebracht voor het buiten bedrijf stellen en verwijderen van leidingdelen om Gasunie’s infrastructuur beter aardbevingsbestendig te maken.
   
   ,,De eerste helft van 2015 hebben we een solide resultaat behaald'', zegt topman Han Fennema in een toelichting. ,,De laatste jaren hebben we op verzoek van klanten ons netwerk uitgebreid en daardoor de gasrotonde verder versterkt. Nu deze vrijwel volledig op sterkte is, richten we ons op onderhoud en tevens vervanging van oudere onderdelen in ons net. Hierdoor zal onze infrastructuur ook op de lange termijn een belangrijke bijdrage kunnen blijven leveren aan de Noordwest-Europese energievoorziening.''
   
10. voda 29 juli 2015 19:14

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    China's energy consumption up 0.7pct in H1 of 2015 - NEA
    
    China’s total energy consumption rose 0.7% in the H1 of 2015 compared with the same period last year, the country’s energy authority said, as a decline in coal use was offset by increases in oil, natural gas and renewable power consumption.
    
    The National Energy Administration said in a notice posted on its website that energy consumption was likely to inch up further in the second half.
    
    According to the National Bureau of Statistics, it did not give any absolute numbers for total primary energy use over the period. Total consumption in 2014 was estimated to have reached 3.6 billion tonne of standard coal equivalent up just 0.3% compared with 2013.
    
    China’s energy consumption has tripled in only two decades but annual growth has now slowed considerably as a result of an economic downturn.
    
    The impact has been felt disproportionately in the coal sector, which accounts for about two-thirds of total energy consumption, but is now the primary target of the government’s 'war on pollution.'
    
    The NEA said that coal production fell 5.8% to 1.79 billion tonne in the first 6 months of the year. Fixed asset investment in the coal sector plunged 12.8% to CNY 168.6 billion.
    
    The energy bureau said that over the same period, crude oil output rose 2.1% to 110 million tonne while natural gas production including coal-bed methane and shale gas rose 4.3% to 67.4 billion cubic metres.
    
    It said that total power generation was up 0.6%, largely as a result of higher renewable and nuclear volumes. The share of non-fossil-fuel energy in total power generation reached 22.9%, up 3 percentage points from the same period in 2014.
    
    The NEA forecast that total power use during 2015 was likely to reach 5.7 trillion KWh up about 3% compared with last year.
    
    Source : South China Morning Post
    
12. voda 4 augustus 2015 17:24

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    Obama's clean power plan seems US's strongest ever climate action
    
    The Guardian reported that hundreds of businesses including eBay, Nestle and General Mills have issued their support for Mr Barack Obama’s clean power plan, billed as the strongest action ever on climate change by a US president.
    
    The rules, announced on Monday, are designed to cut emissions from power plants and have been strengthened in terms of the long-term ambition as originally proposed by the president last year, but slightly weakened in the short-term in a concession to states reliant on highly-polluting coal.
    
    White House adviser Brian Deese said the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rules represented the “biggest step that any single president has made to curb the carbon pollution that is fuelling climate change”. The US is the world’s second biggest carbon emitter after China.
    
    White House insists tough new carbon restrictions are legal under Clean Air Act
    
    The rules are expected to trigger a “tsunami” of legal opposition from states and utilities who oppose the plans, which will significantly boost wind and solar power generation and force a switch away from coal power. Republican presidential hopefuls moved quickly to voice their opposition, saying they would be economically damaging.
    
    But 365 businesses and investors wrote to 29 state governors to strongly support the rules, which they said would benefit the economy and create jobs.
    
    Ms Mindy Lubber, who is attending the launch ceremony of the rules on Monday and is the president of Ceres, a network of investors that organised the letter, said that “The clean power plan is the right measure at the right time. It’s a flexible, practical and economically sound blueprint to transition America toward a low-carbon future.”
    
    Source : The Guardian
    

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13. voda 10 augustus 2015 16:30

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    TenneT plaatst megastopcontact op zee
    
    Gepubliceerd op 10 aug 2015 om 15:07
    
    ARNHEM (AFN) - Hoogspanningsnetbeheerder TenneT breidt de infrastructuur voor offshore-netaansluitingen in rap tempo uit. Met de plaatsing van 's werelds grootste stopcontact voor windmolens op zee in het Duitse deel van de Noordzee is een nieuwe mijlpaal bereikt. De installatie maakt deel uit van de negende netverbinding van het Duitse windpark en het vasteland van de deelstaat Nedersaksen, maakte TenneT maandag bekend.
    
    De Europese netbeheerder is in Duitsland bezig met het aanleggen van dertien aansluitingen voor windenergie op zee. Duitsland besloot versneld om te schakelen naar duurzame energie na de kernramp in Japan in 2011. Het nu geplaatste platform is zo groot als een voetbalveld en zo hoog als een flatgebouw van dertig verdiepingen. Op dit moment zijn er nog drie offshoreverbindingen in aanbouw.
    
    Tegen 2020 wil Duitsland 6500 megawatt aan transportcapaciteit voor op zee opgewekte windenergie beschikbaar hebben. Met de inbedrijfstelling van windpark DolWin1 enkele weken geleden, voldoet TenneT nu voor twee derde aan de Duitse doelstellingen voor wind op zee.
    
    Zeekabel
    
    Met DolWin2 zal er in 2016 al rond 5200 megawatt aan capaciteit beschikbaar zijn voor het transport van offshore-windenergie naar het vasteland. De verbinding loopt over een afstand van 45 kilometer als zeekabel naar het aanlandingspunt in Hilgenriedersiel. Van daaruit gaat het 90 kilometer ondergronds naar een converterstation.
    
    Ook in Nederland wordt TenneT verantwoordelijk voor de bouw en het onderhoud van offshore platforms voor windenergie. De planning is om vanaf 2019 in de Nederlandse Noordzee jaarlijks een platform op te leveren tot een totaal van 3500 megawatt aansluitcapaciteit in 2023.
    
14. voda 11 augustus 2015 17:29

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    'Shah Deniz' the one of world's largest gas projects
    
    The signing of such a big agreement testifies that the banks support not only LukOil, but the Shah Deniz project, Mr Oqtay Movsumov, Head of the Project and Structured Finance Department at LukOil said after the signing ceremony of the agreement on the allocation of the EBRD and ADB loans to the company.
    
    He said that "Shah Deniz project is one of the largest gas projects not only in the region but also worldwide. The allocation of such a large loan testifies that this project is supported by many people."
    
    Mr Movsumov said that the loan has been delivered to the company for 12 years and with fairly good conditions.
    
    Mr Movsumov thanked SOCAR for assistance in the project preparation, as well as the technical operator of Shah Deniz, BP for assistance in arranging financing. Allocating a loan testifies that the world's banks support an investment climate in Azerbaijan.
    
    Some USD 250 million of the total funds of the ADB loan will be allocated at the LIBOR rate and the remaining USD 200 million - via an additional funding scheme.
    
    The additional financing will be used to drill more than 20 subsea wells, construct two platforms, create the subsea infrastructure, expand the Sangachal oil terminal and the South Caucasus gas pipeline.
    
    The contract for development of the Shah Deniz offshore field was signed June 4th 1996. The field's reserve is estimated at 1.2 trillion cubic meters of gas.
    
    As part of implementation of the Shah Deniz project, the annual gas production will increase from 9 billion cubic meters in the first phase by additional 16 billion cubic meters in the second phase.
    
    In the second stage of development of the Shah Deniz, gas will be exported to Turkey and European markets through expansion of the South Caucasus Pipeline and construction of the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline and the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline.
    
    Source : Trend News Agency
    

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15. voda 12 augustus 2015 16:12

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    E.ON boekt minder winst door lagere energieprijzen
    
    AMSTERDAM (Dow Jones)--Het Duitse nutsbedrijf E.ON se (EOAN.XE) rapporteerde een winstdaling in het eerste halfjaar, als gevolg van lage energie- en olieprijzen en de effecten van de gedevalueerde Russische roebel.
    
    Het nutsbedrijf zei dat de onderliggende winst met 21% is gedaald tot EUR1,2 miljard. Analisten hadden EUR1,14 miljard verwacht.
    
    De winst voor rente, belastingen, afschrijvingen en amortisatie zakte 13% tot EUR4,3 miljard, wat overeenkomt met de analistenverwachtingen.
    
    Ondanks de afnemende winstgevendheid bevestigde E.ON zijn verwachtingen voor geheel 2015 en blijft daarmee rekenen op een EBITDA van EUR7 miljard tot EUR7,6 miljard en een onderliggende winst van EUR1,4 miljard tot EUR1,8 miljard.
    
    E.ON verschafte geen nettowinst cijfer.
    
    Bestuursvoorzitter Johannes Teyssen zei dat voorbereidingen om het bedrijf op te splitsen in E.ON en Uniper op schema liggen. E.ON wil zijn conventionele activiteiten om energie op te wekken afsplitsen.
    
    
    - Door Natascha Divac; Dow Jones Nieuwsdienst; +31 20 571 52 00; amsterdam@dowjones.com
    
    
16. voda 13 augustus 2015 16:17

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    RWE boekt hogere winst die onder verwachtingen uitkomt
    
    AMSTERDAM (Dow Jones)--RWE (RWE.XE) rapporteerde donderdag een winststijging over het afgelopen halfjaar, ondanks dat lagere energieprijzen op de marges drukten bij de conventionele activiteiten om elektriciteit op te wekken.
    
    De nettowinst in het eerste halfjaar steeg naar EUR1,74 miljard van EUR1,02 miljard, lager dan de analistenverwachting van EUR2,06 miljard. De winst voor rente, belastingen, afschrijvingen en amortisatie daalde 7% tot EUR3,19 miljard, terwijl analisten hier hadden gerekend op EUR3,26 miljard.
    
    De omzet was grotendeels onveranderd op EUR25,14 miljard.
    
    De resultaten laten zien dat nutsbedrijven het lastig hebben in Duitsland en Europa, omdat de opkomst van duurzame energie heeft geleid tot een overaanbod van elektriciteit, die groothandelsprijzen omlaag drukt en ertoe leidt dat conventionele energie opwekking onrendabel wordt.
    
    RWE bevestigde zijn outlook voor het volledige jaar met e e n uitzondering. In het Verenigd Koninkrijk zal minder goed presteren dan vorig jaar, ook al werd eerder op een bescheiden winstverbetering gerekend. Het bedrijf verwacht desalniettemin dat de winst voor rente, belastingen, afschrijvingen en amortisatie dit jaar tot 14% kan dalen en de operationele winst tot 10%.
    
    
    Door Natascha Divac, bewerkt door Levien de Feijter; Dow Jones Nieuwsdienst: +31-20-5715200; levien.defeijter@wsj.com
    
    
17. voda 24 augustus 2015 20:07

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    German power sinks below EUR 30 as EON and RWE falls to records
    
    Bloomberg reported that German power prices sank below EUR 30 a MWh for the first time in more than a decade, signaling more pain for utilities from EON SE to RWE AG, already trading at record lows.
    
    Electricity for year-ahead delivery, a benchmark European contract, fell 2.1% to its lowest level since October 2003. EON, Germany’s biggest utility, declined 8.6%, the most since November 2012, while RWE dropped 9.1%, the biggest slump since August 2011.
    
    According to Mr Bruno Brunetti, senior director of electricity, at Pira Energy Group in New York, next-year power in Europe’s biggest market is headed for a fifth annual drop as Chancellor Ms Angela Merkel’s unprecedented shift toward an economy based on renewable energy boosts output of solar and wind electricity to record and squeezes generation from traditional coal and gas plants. Until now, the 30-euro level was a psychological barrier for the year-ahead price.
    
    Mr Omar Ramdani, head of analysis at RheinEnergie Trading GmbH in Cologne, said that “We are approaching an unhealthy level. It wouldn’t surprise me if we would trade below in the short term, but we should actually hold the 30, which is near the floor price.”
    
    The contract exceeded EUR 90 in July 2008, just before the financial crisis took hold of the markets. It dropped as low as EUR 29.73 a MWh on Monday on the European Energy Exchange.
    
    Mr Ricardo Klimaschka, a trader at Energieunion GmbH, said that “Who says there is an end at EUR 30? Renewable generation will rise in Germany and modern hard coal plants can produce already at EUR 25. These round figures are purely psychological.”
    
    RWE and EON are the worst performers this year on Germany’s DAX Index of leading shares. EON on Monday fell below EUR 10 for the first time since it was formed 15 years ago and closed at EUR 9.57 in Frankfurt, while RWE closed at EUR 13.22. EON dropped 33% this year and RWE sank 48%. RWE spokeswoman Vera Buecker, analysts and fund managers from Union Investment to Independent Research have attributed the decline to sliding wholesale power prices.
    
    Mr Georg Oppermann, an EON spokesman, pointed to the falling stock market and commodities environment, without being more specific, when commenting on the slump in shares.
    
    Brunetti said that “Major German power generators have already hedged large amounts of power forward, so I think the pain will be felt in the longer term, rather than immediately.”
    
    Renewable energy’s share of gross German power consumption increased by 2.4 percentage points last year to 27.8%, according to the Economy and Energy Ministry. Coal, lignite and nuclear accounted for 59% of German generation in 2014, according to AG Energiebilanzen e.V., an association of energy lobbies and economic-research institutes.
    
    Brunetti said that some coal and nuclear plants will struggle to cover their fixed costs with power prices below EUR 30.
    
    Coal for next-year delivery fell to its lowest level since at least 2007, according to broker data compiled by Bloomberg. The fuel accounts for about 18% of Germany’s electricity and price swings impact power prices. Brent crude plunged 57% in the past year in London trading.
    
    Source : Bloomberg
    
18. voda 24 augustus 2015 20:15

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    BIG crowdfunds steam ring generator for ski slope power plant
    
    Back in 2011, we reported on BIG's Amager Bakke project: a waste-to-power station near Copenhagen billed as 'the world's cleanest power plant.' It should certainly be the world's most fun, as it's due to get a ski slope and an art installation which expels a steam ring each time a ton of carbon dioxide is released. The Danish firm recently turned to Kickstarter to fund development of the steam ring generator.
    
    To be clear, the power plant, complete with ski slope, is already under construction, and BIG's Kickstarter campaign is concerned solely with the steam ring generator device itself.
    
    Based on an original design by Berlin architectural studio realities:united, the steam generator will sit atop the power plant and expel a 21 meter diameter steam ring into the sky each time the plant releases a tonne of CO2 into the atmosphere. It comprises three steam lines, each with a different pressure, which produce the rings.
    
    It's a compelling idea, and offers locals a real insight into what's being pumped into the air they breathe.
    
    BIG said that "By 2017 the citizens of Copenhagen will not only be able to ski down the cleanest power plant in the world, their perceptions of what a power plant can be will be challenged by an art piece that raises awareness of our carbon emissions."
    
    BIG and its collaborators have already produced two small prototypes of the steam ring generator and are seeking funds toward a larger unit. If this goes well, the final version will hopefully be built by 2017.
    
    The Kickstarter campaign's promised awards include having one's name engraved into the steam ring generator prototype and joining BIG's Bjarke Ingels and the rest of the team at the opening of the Copenhagen power plant upon completion.
    
    Source : Gizmag
    

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19. voda 24 augustus 2015 20:23

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    India's first HVDC transmission line to be operational on Aug 31
    
    Financial Express reported that India’s first high-voltage, direct-current transmission line, connecting the northern states with the north-eastern ones, will be operational on August 31st. The 800 KV, 6,000 MW line was built by Power Grid Corporation of India at an investment of INR 12,000 crore.
    
    A senior Power Grid official said that “The high-capacity HVDC bipole line is being implemented from Bishwanath Chariali in Assam to Agra in Uttar Pradesh through Alipurduar in West Bengal. The high-voltage corridor would facilitate transfer of 24,000 MW from future generation projects in the north-eastern region and Bhutan.”
    
    The corridor shall integrate the north-eastern region with other regions of the country to facilitate smooth and reliable power transfer, giving rise to a stable national grid. The nature of control of power flow of the HVDC interconnection provides additional flexibility in grid operation, thereby improving various grid parameters.
    
    The link will act as a highway from the north-eastern region to the rest of the country and shall play a significant role in the hydro potential in the north-eastern region.
    
    The transmission project, connecting 1,728 kilometer, was started in September 2013 and is nearly complete. Currently, only China has such a high-voltage transmission corridor. Two more such corridors are likely to come up in India, which include Champa-Kurukshetra and Raigarh-Pugalur-New Trichur.
    
    The Power Grid official explained that “There was a need to interconnect the north-eastern grid with a strong, reliable and secure interconnection with the rest of the Indian grid, which would also take care of the large potential of hydro power in the region.”
    
    Currently, the north-eastern states are generating about 2,000 MW, while demand is around 1,610 MW. In the future, the HVDC line could help to evacuate electricity to the tune of 50,000 MW and supply to power-deficit northern states.
    
    Government-owned BHEL and Switzerland-based ABB have supplied equipment for the project. The line has overcome a major hurdle by passing through the chicken-neck area in Siliguri district of West Bengal, having an acute constraints in the availability of right of way.
    
    The HVDC interconnector will facilitate bidirectional control flow of power, which means it can transfer power from the north-eastern region when it is in surplus during the high hydro period of the year. On the other hand, the north-eastern region can also import power from other regions, particularly in the lean hydro period of the year.
    
    Source : Financial Express
    
20. voda 28 augustus 2015 16:44

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    Dutch power plants use record quantity of coal this year
    
    Published on Fri, 28 Aug 2015 55 times viewed
    
    Reuters reported that Dutch power plants used a record quantity of coal in the first 5 months of 2015, a data showed, highlighting the difficulty the Netherlands will have in meeting greenhouse gas emission targets.
    
    Statistics Netherlands said that the Netherlands consumed 8.7 billion kilogrammes of coal, between January and May, mostly for use in coal-fired power plants. Usage for power plants peaked in April at 1.3 billion kg.
    
    It was the highest quantity recorded for the period since 1991, when the CBS began tracking the figures.
    
    The increase coincided with a rare court ruling in June challenging the government's climate policy.
    
    In a victory for environmental groups, the Hague district court ordered the government to cut greenhouse gas emissions faster than currently planned.
    
    A judge said the state must ensure that the Dutch emissions in the year 2020 will be at least 25% lower than those in 1990" as the Netherlands' fair share to avert more heat waves, floods and rising sea levels.
    
    The ruling has caused political friction in the Netherlands, which cut spending on alternative energy sources during the financial crisis and has eaten into coal reserves.
    
    Based on current government policy, the Netherlands will achieve a reduction of 17% at most in 2020, which is below a norm of 25-40% for developed countries.
    
    Source : Reuters
    
21. voda 28 augustus 2015 16:45

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    German power sinks below EUR 30 as EON and RWE falls to records
    
    Published on Fri, 28 Aug 2015 172 times viewed
    
    Bloomberg reported that German power prices sank below EUR 30 a MWh for the first time in more than a decade, signaling more pain for utilities from EON SE to RWE AG, already trading at record lows.
    
    Electricity for year-ahead delivery, a benchmark European contract, fell 2.1% to its lowest level since October 2003. EON, Germany’s biggest utility, declined 8.6%, the most since November 2012, while RWE dropped 9.1%, the biggest slump since August 2011.
    
    According to Mr Bruno Brunetti, senior director of electricity, at Pira Energy Group in New York, next-year power in Europe’s biggest market is headed for a fifth annual drop as Chancellor Ms Angela Merkel’s unprecedented shift toward an economy based on renewable energy boosts output of solar and wind electricity to record and squeezes generation from traditional coal and gas plants. Until now, the 30-euro level was a psychological barrier for the year-ahead price.
    
    Mr Omar Ramdani, head of analysis at RheinEnergie Trading GmbH in Cologne, said that “We are approaching an unhealthy level. It wouldn’t surprise me if we would trade below in the short term, but we should actually hold the 30, which is near the floor price.”
    
    The contract exceeded EUR 90 in July 2008, just before the financial crisis took hold of the markets. It dropped as low as EUR 29.73 a MWh on Monday on the European Energy Exchange.
    
    Mr Ricardo Klimaschka, a trader at Energieunion GmbH, said that “Who says there is an end at EUR 30? Renewable generation will rise in Germany and modern hard coal plants can produce already at EUR 25. These round figures are purely psychological.”
    
    RWE and EON are the worst performers this year on Germany’s DAX Index of leading shares. EON on Monday fell below EUR 10 for the first time since it was formed 15 years ago and closed at EUR 9.57 in Frankfurt, while RWE closed at EUR 13.22. EON dropped 33% this year and RWE sank 48%. RWE spokeswoman Vera Buecker, analysts and fund managers from Union Investment to Independent Research have attributed the decline to sliding wholesale power prices.
    
    Mr Georg Oppermann, an EON spokesman, pointed to the falling stock market and commodities environment, without being more specific, when commenting on the slump in shares.
    
    Brunetti said that “Major German power generators have already hedged large amounts of power forward, so I think the pain will be felt in the longer term, rather than immediately.”
    
    Renewable energy’s share of gross German power consumption increased by 2.4%age points last year to 27.8%, according to the Economy and Energy Ministry. Coal, lignite and nuclear accounted for 59% of German generation in 2014, according to AG Energiebilanzen e.V., an association of energy lobbies and economic-research institutes.
    
    Brunetti said that some coal and nuclear plants will struggle to cover their fixed costs with power prices below EUR 30.
    
    Coal for next-year delivery fell to its lowest level since at least 2007, according to broker data compiled by Bloomberg. The fuel accounts for about 18% of Germany’s electricity and price swings impact power prices. Brent crude plunged 57% in the past year in London trading.
    
    Source : Bloomberg