Vattenfall, TuuliWatti to Balance Finnish Wind
European energy company Vattenfall has signed a five-year energy services agreement with the largest Finnish wind power producer TuuliWatti that includes the latter’s total wind power production in Finland.The agreement, which started on 1 January, entails forecasting, trading and balancing services for TuuliWatti’s total wind power production in Finland.Currently, the company’s wind power portfolio has an installed capacity of 441 MW and annual production of approximately 1,3 TWh, which equals to 20% of…
Germany’s biggest OWF Operational Now
Germany’s biggest wind farm has been fully connected to the grid. According to EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG (EnBW), its Albatros offshore wind farm is located roughly 100 km off the coast of Germany."The Hohe See offshore wind farm has already been in operation since October 2019. Now its smaller neighbour Albatros is also producing electricity," it has informed.The Albatros project features 16 Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy SWT-7.0-154 turbines. Albatros is located near the 497 MW Hohe See project which consists of 71 SWT-7.0-154 turbines.
Dunkirk Port Switches on Cold Ironing
French container line CMA CGM announced that its ship APL Singapura has inaugurated the cold ironing facilities of the Terminal des Flandres in the Port of Dunkirk.By plugging into an onshore electricity supply (also known as "cold ironing"), container ships calling at port can shut down their auxiliary engines while still getting the power they need, particularly in order to maintain controlled temperatures in refrigerated containers (Reefers).This innovative technology has significant environmental benefits…
Kuwait Signs 15-yr LNG Gas Deal with Qatar
State-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corp signed a 15-year agreement with Qatar Petroleum to import three million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) each year starting from 2022.The agreement was signed by Dr. Khaled A. Al-Fadhel, the Minister of Oil and the Minister of Electricity & Water, the Chairman of the Board of Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and His Excellency Saad Sherida Al-Kaabi, the Minister of State for Energy Affairs, the President and CEO of Qatar Petroleum, during a special ceremony held in Kuwait City.Under the 15-year agreement…
Equinor Targets Zero Emissions
Norwegian oil producer Equinor aims to cut greenhouse gas emissions generated at offshore fields and onshore plants in Norway by about 40% in the coming decade and to near zero by 2050, it said on Monday.The cuts could allow Norway, western Europe's top oil and gas exporter, to continue to pump millions of barrels of oil even as the country seeks to fulfill obligations under the 2015 Paris climate agreement to slash domestic emissions.Equinor and its partners plan to invest around 50 billion Norwegian crowns…
Toshiba Delivers Fuel Cell System to Ship
The provider of energy industry solutions Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions Corporation (Toshiba ESS) announced that the company has delivered a mobile 30kW hydrogen fuel cell system, which volume per unit power output is reduced to 1/3 compared to the stationary fuel cell systems, to a fuel cell ship.The fuel cell ship, which passed the Temporary Navigation Permit Inspection of Japan Craft Inspection Organization on October 30, has started demonstrations of the verification by NREG Toshiba Building Corporation…
Poland's Regulator Approves PGE Price Hike
Poland's energy regulator URE said on Friday it had agreed to let power company PGE hike prices, following similar approvals for the country's other three operators.Household electricity bills for PGE clients will rise by 10.5-11% on average monthly, starting from Jan. 18 until the end of March, URE said. (Reporting by Alan Charlish and Anna Koper Editing by Tomasz Janowski)
Britain's Zero-carbon Power Outstrips Fossil Fuels in 2019
Britain, the birthplace of coal power, produced more electricity from zero-carbon sources such as wind, solar and nuclear than from fossil fuel plants for the first time in 2019, National Grid said on Wednesday.Having built the world's first coal-fired power plant in the 1880s, coal became Britain's dominant electricity source and a major economic driver for the next century. But last year Britain became the first G7 country to commit to reaching net-zero emissions by 2050 and in November will host the United Nations' international climate talks in Glasgow."As we enter a new decade…
Estonia Mulls OWF in Gulf of Riga
The Estonian government's decision to initiate the construction permit procedure for the Gulf of Riga offshore wind farm allows Eesti Energia to continue its research and search for partners for the construction of an offshore wind farm in the Gulf of Riga.Eesti Energia, the state-owned international energy company that operates in Baltic countries, said that the Gulf of Riga offshore wind farm has the potential to become the first joint Estonian-Latvian renewable energy production project, as the Latvian…
Russia's Floating Power Plant Plugged In
Russia’s state-owned nuclear company Rosatom said its floating nuclear power plant has been connected to the grid and has commenced electricity production for the first time in a remote region of Russia.The floating power unit (FPU) Akademik Lomonosov has been connected to the grid, generating electricity for the first time in the isolated Chaun-Bilibino network in Pevek, Chukotka, Russia’s Far East. This happened after the Russian regulator Rostekhnadzor issued an operations permit, as well as permission…
Iraq's Nassiriya Oilfield Resumes Operations
Operations resumed at Iraq's southern Nassiriya oilfield on Monday, the oil ministry said, but it will take up to two days for output to be fully restored, two oil sources said.Protesters broke into the oilfield, which produces 80,000-85,000 barrels of oil per day, on Saturday and forced employees to cut off electricity from its control station, taking it offline.The incident marked the first time protesters have shut an entire oilfield, though they have blocked entrances to refineries and ports in the past.It did not affect Iraq's exports…
Offshore Energy Outlook for 2020
The “new normal” is a phrase tossed around often in offshore energy circles today as those servicing and operating in the sector grapple with the harsh realities of the prolonged industry downturn. Operators, service companies and equipment suppliers have been forced to adjust to oil selling at prices well below the $100+ per barrel mark seen in years past. As of this writing, Brent oil was hovering around $62 per barrel, and analysts expect prices will remain in this range for some time into the future.On top of this…
Ørsted Secures Funding for Hydrogen Pilot
Offshore wind developer Orsted has secured funding for a demonstration project using offshore wind power to produce renewable hydrogen to power.Seven industrial partners have been awarded funding for a demonstration project in Denmark using offshore wind power to produce renewable hydrogen for road transport.Within energy, Avedøre is best known for housing Ørsted's large biomass-fuelled CHP plant, Avedøre Power Station, but in the future, the area might become home to more than heat and power production.
Eneco Buys Power from GE Haliade-X 12
Dutch energy company Eneco is set to purchase all the electricity generated by GE Renewable Energy's 12MW Haliade-X offshore wind turbine prototype.The announcement was made during a ceremony to inaugurate the prototype that was recently installed at the port of Maasvlakte-Rotterdam in the Netherlands.The prototype set a new world record this past weekend by being the first wind turbine ever to generate 262 MWh of clean energy in 24 hours, enough energy to power 30,000 households in the region.Over the next five-year period…
SGRE's 1,000th Offshore Wind Turbine Up
Spanish-based manufacturer of wind turbines Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has reached a milestone with the installation of its 1000th offshore direct drive wind turbine as it embarks on the 10MW-plus era.The company reached the milestone by recently installing turbine 51 on Iberdrola's 714MW East Anglia One project off the UK – eight years after predecessor Siemens Wind installed its first direct drive machine at sea.Since being launched in 2011, the 1,000 units of the Siemens Gamesa offshore direct…
North Sea Countries to Boost Offshore Wind
Energy Ministers from North Seas countries met yesterday (December 04) in Brussels and agreed their 2020 Work Program on offshore wind deployment as a means of reaching climate neutrality by 2050.The 10 North Seas Energy Cooperation countries – Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the UK – agreed at their Ministerial meeting in Esbjerg in June 2019 to broaden the scope of their cooperation. Their 2020 Work Program now elaborates what they intend to do together on maritime spatial planning…
Ørsted, Covestro Ink World's Largest Offshore Wind PPA
Polymer materials supplier Covestro has signed a 10-year corporate power purchase agreement with Ørsted to buy the output of 100MW from the planned Borkum Riffgrund 3 offshore wind farm, expected to be fully commissioned in 2025, subject to Ørsted's final investment decision (FID).Covestro will offtake 100MW of the planned wind farm's 900MW total capacity for 10 years, which makes it the world's largest corporate PPA for offshore wind. The PPA will be effective from 2025.Covestro is the first major chemical…
Energean Targets Net Zero Carbon Output by 2050
Mediterranean-focused oil and gas producer Energean has joined a U.N.-backed initiative and committed to reducing its net carbon emissions to zero by 2050, its chief executive said on Monday.Oil and gas producers have come under heavy pressure in recent years to tackle greenhouse gas emissions as the world battles climate change.Energean's pledge came as the 25th annual United Nations Climate Change Conference — also known as COP 25 — begins in Madrid.The company said in a statement it was the first London-listed oil and gas exploration and production company to commit to the UN's efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees
EDF Begins Construction on 450 MW OWF
French utility EDF Group announced that its subsidiary EDF Renewables has launched the construction of the Scottish Neart na Gaoithe (NnG) offshore wind farm project along with the new partners, the Irish electricity company Electricity Supply Board (ESB), which is taking a 50% stake in the project.The 450MW Neart na Gaoithe will consist of 54 turbines and will be located in the North Sea approximately 15 kilometers off the coast of Fife in south-east Scotland.When fully operational, the NnG offshore wind farm will generate the equivalent electricity to power over 375…
EU Targets 450 GW Offshore Wind by 2050
The EU Commission’s big goals for offshore wind – between 230 and 450 GW by 2050 – are achievable provided the right investments in electricity grids and Governments take the right approach to maritime spatial planning, said a report.According to the WindEurope report examines where 450 GW of offshore wind could be deployed most cost-effectively around Europe, bearing in mind there is only 20 GW today. 450 GW of offshore wind is part of a European Commission scenario to deliver climate neutrality by 2050.The…
