(EnergyAsia, August 17) — French energy major Total said it has acquired a 10% interest in Scotrenewables Marine Power Ltd, based in Scotland’s Orkney Islands, that is developing an electricity generation technology based on tidal turbines. Scotrenewables Marine Power Ltd is a sister company of Scotrenewables Wind Power Ltd. The marine power company is working...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — Myanmar has secured the assistance of Malaysia’s state energy company Petronas to help develop and export its natural gas reserves, according to the official media, New Light of Myanmar. The government and Petronas signed a memorandum of intent (MoI) to jointly conduct feasibility survey on commercial and technological matters to...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — South Korea’s Daewoo International Corp said it may have discovered commercially viable natural gas reserves in two fields off the northern coast of Myanmar that it holds a 60% stake. Citing a report by US consulting firm Gaffney, Cline and Associates, Daewoo told Yonhap News Agency that the offshore gas...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — US oil stocks likely edged lower in the week ending August 11, led by crude, as lower Alaskan output compounded the impact of recent gains in refining activity, said commodities trader FIMAT. With US oil fundamentals tightening, the Iranian nuclear dispute is expected to heat up again. Although the end of...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — Japanese trading company Marubeni Corporation and DG Energy of the US have formed a joint venture to own and operate renewable energy and cogeneration facilities throughout North America. The new joint venture, DG Investors LLC, is headquartered in San Diego, California, and includes 45 MW of generation located in California, New...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — Information distributor Research and Markets has announced the release of a report entitled, China’s Coal Chemical Industry Study in 2006. With the rising prices of crude oil and natural gas and growing dependence on imports, China’s planners are focusing on developing its coal chemical industry. Traditional coal chemical industries such...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — Australian crude oil production fell by more than 10% for the year ended June 30 2006 compared with the previous year, said the Australian Petroleum Production & Exploration Association (APPEA). Crude oil production was down from 126.3 million barrels in 2004/05 to 113.3 million barrels in the latest year, according to...
(EnergyAsia, Aug 17) — Singapore-listed China Aviation Oil continues its road to recovery, reporting a net profit of S$14.8 million in the second quarter compared with a S$18.5 million loss in the same quarter last year. Nearly bankrupt a year ago, the revived company made a profit of S$342.2 million in the first quarter. ...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — Nasdaq-listed Spire Corporation said it has appointed Silicon International Ltd to represent Spire in providing photovoltaic sales and services in China. Silicon International has offices in Beijing, Shanghai and Hong Kong. Silicon International is the most recent company to form a strong partnership with Spire to sell and support Spire’s photovoltaic...
(EnergyAsia, August 17) — The Australian government said it will provide a A$2,000 grant to people who wish to convert their private motor vehicles to using LPG fuel. The LPG vehicle scheme, announced by Minister for Industry, Tourism and Resources, Ian Macfarlane, is aimed at helping families cope with rising energy costs. The scheme...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Lewis Kling, President and CEO of US company Flowserve Corp, has been conferred the 2006 Marco Polo Award, the highest honour given by the Chinese government to a foreign business leader. Flowserve is a world leader in fluid motion and control products and services to the power, oil and gas, chemical...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Indian construction firm Punj Lloyd Ltd said it has secured its first contract in Yemen from Yemgas, the joint venture formed by France’s Technip, Japaan’s JGC Corp and UL’s Kellogg – Brown & Root Inc. The US$69.2 million contract calls for the construction of civil, mechanical, piping, electrical, instrument, insulation...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Graham Corp said it has landed a US$3.9 million order from a turbomachinery original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for surface condensers to be installed in an unnamed Southeast Asian ethylene production plant. The plant is part of an integrated petrochemical and refining complex. Graham Corp said the surface condensers are scheduled...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — The US Agriculture and Energy Departments have jointly awarded nine grants totaling $5.7 million for biofuels research as part of an overall drive to develop alternative fuel resources. The awards were given out by Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman and Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns at a ceremony early this month. ...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Singapore-listed upstream company Interra Resources Limited said its second quarter net profit rose to S$800,000 compared to S$300,000 for the same quarter last year. Revenue was up 30% to S$5.6 million from S$4.3 million previously. (US$1=S$1.57). On a year-on-year basis, the company said its net profit after tax increased by 26%...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Malaysia began exporting its first cargo of biodiesel to Europe this week, said Plantation Industries and Commodities Minister Peter Chin. He announced that Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi launched the first Malaysian Palm Oil Board (MPOB)-initiated biodiesel plant in Pasir Gudang and the first shipment of 60,000 tonnes of the biofuel...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — The Australian Gas Light Company (AGL) has lodged with the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) a draft scheme booklet relating to its plans to create AGL Energy and merge AGL’s infrastructure assets and services business with that of Alinta Limited. Once the booklet is reviewed by ASIC and approved...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Japan’s Showa Shell Sekiyu KK said its first half operating profit was down 200 million yen to 50 billion yen compared with the same period last year while revenue rose 35.7% to 1,438.1 billion yen. (US$1=115 yen). Earnings fell 16.8% to 26,287 million yen. The downstream oil company did not...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) said the oil spill in Lebanon caused by the conflict with Israel could well rival the environmental damage of the Exxon Valdez disaster of 1989. It UNEP said the quantity of oil spilled in Lebanon is already comparable to the disaster caused in 1999 off...
(EnergyAsia, August 16) — Caltex Australia is offering its E10 ethanol-blended unleaded gasoline at a three cents a lite discount to regular unleaded gasoline. There are 41 sites selling Caltex’s E10 Unleaded in Queensland and New South Wales states under the Caltex, Ampol and Bogas brands. More than 100 sites are expected to sell E10 by...
(EnergyAsia, August 15) — Japan’s Environment Ministry will ease restrictions on setting up wind power generation projects within national parks. The move is aimed at promoting clean energy and help combat global warming. Until now, wind power projects in national parks were largely prohibited and subject to strict regulations, in particular with regard to...
(EnergyAsia, August 15) — India’s wind power generation capacity grew by 48% to 5,340 megawatt (MW) for the financial year to March 31 2006. Tamil Nadu state was the leader with 2,893 MW or more than half the total installed capacity, followed by Maharashtra with 1,001 MW. The other states with wind power generation...
(EnergyAsia, August 15) — The Indonesian government has launched an ambitious biofuels production programme aimed at cutting the country’s fossil oil consumption by 10% by 2010. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono told local reporters that planning has begun for the programme’s implementation from next year. The government has established a committee to look into issues...
(EnergyAsia, August 15) — State-owned Guohua Energy Investment Corp has begun construction of a 200,000-kilowatt wind power project in Dongtai in east China’s Jiangsu province. The first phase of the 1.7-billion-yuan project will be completed next year with a 50,000-kw capacity. Guohua Energy Investment plans to build wind power projects with a combined capacity...
(EnergyAsia, August 15) — As China steps up its drive for renewable energy, foreign and domestic firms are rushing in to set up wind farms or build production plants across the country. The latest project is a joint venture between China Aerospace Science and Technology Group and Spain’s Acciona, which has started assembling its...