(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Thailand’s RCA Global International, a lubricants trading firm, is teaming up with two Chinese partners to invest in a one-billion-baht ethanol plant. (US$1=33 baht). The proposed 250,000-litre-per-day plant in Chanthaburi, due to start up late next year, will use cassava as feedstock. Controlled by the Vasuratna family, RCA is venturing...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Ministers at the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) group’s 19th meeting in Sydney, Australia have issued a joint statement to advance trade and economic ties while addressing a number of issues including security and the environment. Energy security and sustainability were among the key issues discussed and addressed by the...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — China Sunergy, a solar cell manufacturer based in Nanjing city, said its second quarter revenue grew 100.9% to US$56.2 million over the same period last year. It did not disclose its net profit or loss. Solar cells accounted for 72.3% of total sales, while polysilicon and modules represented 25.6% and...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — China’s first ever wind power generator is now on sale to buyers in Guangdong province. Manufacturer Guangdong Mingyang Wind Power Technology said it is selling the 1.5-megawatt (MW) generator at 20% below the price of competing models imported from overseas. The company said the generator is designed to cope with...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — India’s West Bengal state has set up a new corporation to spearhead its investments in renewable energy projects and companies. West Bengal’s three public sector power utilities are investing a total of Rs110 billion to establish Green Energy Development Corporation, said state Power Minister Mrinal Banerjee. (US$1 = Rs41). The...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — India aims to supply up to 25,000 rural villages with solar electricity by 2012, said Renewable Energy Minister Vilas Muttemwar. Many Indian villages are not tied to the national grid as connecting them is an expensive exercise. Around 56% of India’s villages have no power tie-up at present. Analysts have...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Indonesia, Southeast Asia’s only OPEC member, expects its oil output to remain little change for the next few years as its producing fields go into decline. But its natural gas and coal production will increase and help offset the impact of its oil decline, said energy and mines minister Purnomo...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Meridian Energy is planning to invest NZ$900 million in a large hydro electric project to supply New Zealand’s South Island. (US$1=NZ$1.4). The company has proposed to use water from Lake Waitaki to produce up to 1,400 gigawatt (GW) of electricity. Meridian is New Zealand’s largest generator of electricity....
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Singapore’s Biofuel Industries is planning a S$30 million biomass power project that will use recycled wood waste as feedstock. (US$1=S$1.52). Engineering work for the 14.9-megawatt per hour plant will be handled by Industrial Power Technologies, which has built biomass power projects in Malaysia’s Sabah state and Thailand. The plant will...
(EnergyAsia, September 10, Monday) — Fearing an ethanol supply glut in Thailand, the Mitr Phol Sugar Group said it will not proceed with plans for a second plant. The proposed 200,000 litres per day plant was to be built in Kalasin province. Mitr Phol President Isara Vongkusolkit added that it would cut output from an...
PowerGas will develop the terminal on a 30-hectare site which is currently being reclaimed on Jurong Island. Construction is expected to begin in 2009, with the terminal scheduled to be operational by early 2012. In the initial phase, the terminal will have a send-out capacity of three million tonnes a year. Quek Poh Huat, group...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — Singapore’s plan to become a liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading hub for the Asian region has been thrown into further doubt when it announced that it will import only one million tonnes per year by 2012, below the planned terminal’s annual capacity of 3 million tonnes. Most LNG buyers commit...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — Two experts have questioned Singapore’s plan to become a hub for trade in spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes. Singapore is investing around S$1 billion, up from last year’s estimated $500 million, to build an import terminal in the hope that it will become the regional hub for the LNG...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — The Indian government said it has started up all units of the first phase of its 1,000 megawatt (MW) Tehri Dam hyrdo power project.Tehri is a large dam project near Tehir in Uttarakhand state. The project was originally due to start operating in 2005, but has been delayed by resettlement...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — India has announced a new policy to encourage its state oil companies to purchase and use biodiesel in place of fossil fuels. Leading downstream companies like IndianOil Corp, Bharat Petroleum, Hindustan and MRPL will be encouraged to buy biodiesel produced from non-edible oils. Purchase prices will be set for six months...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — India’s Andhra Pradesh state is preparing to unveil its policy for promoting wind power. The state government wants to encourage private investment which has been put off by the high cost of wind power projects. The state has an estimated wind power potential of 2,000 megawatt (MW) but so far...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — Qapco, the joint-venture between Industries Qatar (80%) and Total Petrochemicals (20%), has completed the $230 million expansion project of its ethane cracker in Messaied in southeastern Qatar. Launched in 2003, the project has added a parallel train of 200,000 tonnes per year of ethylene capacity bringing the total to 720,000...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — Wärtsilä-Hyundai Engine Company Ltd has broken ground at its new plant in South Korea for manufacturing Wärtsilä 50DF dual-fuel engines. The plant in Yeongam city is a joint venture investment between Finland’s Wärtsilä Corporation and Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Co Ltd (HHI). Due to start up by the second half...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — US major Chevron Corp and publishing house The Economist Group have launched Energyville, an interactive online game that challenges players to meet the energy needs of their own city. Energyville, developed using data and content provided by the Economist Intelligence Unit, The Economist Group’s research arm, examines the economic, environmental...
(EnergyAsia, September 7, Friday) — France’s AREVA said its transmission and distribution (T&D) division has signed a multimillion Euro contract to supply H400 High-Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) thyristor valves to interconnect the Chinese and Russian power grids. The contract, the first of its kind awarded to AREVA T&D in China, is signed with the Xuji Group...
(EnergyAsia, September 6, Thursday) — ExxonMobil Chemical Company said it has completed its detailed study of a second world-scale steam cracker complex in Singapore and made the final decision to proceed with construction. The project will integrated with its existing Jurong Island site, providing feedstock, operating and investment synergies with both the chemical plant and...
(EnergyAsia, September 6, Thursday) — Taiwan is taking steps to encouraging the use and production of renewable energy fuels. Its government wants the renewable energy sector to reach an output worth US$20 billion by 2015. It has set a target for renewable-based electricity generation capacity to reach 5.13 billion watts by 2010, and 8 billion...
(EnergyAsia, September 6, Thursday) — The World Bank’s IFC will finance Petronet Limited’s plan to expand its natural gas transmission network in the Indian state of Gujarat. The project will help Gujarat significantly reduce harmful environmental emissions, while making energy cheaper for private and commercial users by displacing more expensive imported fuels. IFC said its...
(EnergyAsia, September 6, Thursday) — India’s leading upstream company Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) is looking to venture into the solar energy and hydrogen fuels business. The company recently launched a Rs4.9 billion energy research and development (R&D) centre to focus on alternative energy sources, conservation and efficiency improvement. (US$1 = Rs41). The ‘Rajiv...
(EnergyAsia, September 6, Thursday) — IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, has signed a financing agreement to support the development of China’s coalbed methane resources as a cleaner, safer, and more efficient energy source than coal. IFC said its $15 million equity investment in Far East Energy Corporation will help fund the exploration...