(EnergyAsia, May 8, Monday) — Uzbekistan’s government has raised excise taxes on gasoline and diesel fuels and also mandated new pre-payment rates for fuel buyers. Excise taxes were raised by up to 30% depending on the grade of fuel. The government also demands buyers to make full advance payment for their gasoline, diesel and liquefied...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — US oil consumption declined almost 2% in the first three month of 2008, marking the biggest drop since the 1992 recession. For the full year, the US Department of Energy expects oil consumption to average 20.6 million b/d, for a 1% drop from 2007. The first-quarter decline and projections of...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — Oerlikon Solar and Baoding Tianwei have announced signing a contract for a turnkey thin film solar module production line. The initial production capacity will be 46.5 MWp (megawatt peak) per year. The deal includes all major thin-film solar module production equipment including metrology and testing facilities. Oerlikon said that in...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — ExxonMobil’s Thai refining subsidiary had a disappointing initial public offering (IPO) last month, raising just 8.8 billion baht instead of the 11 billion baht it had hoped for. (US$1=30 baht). Analysts said investors were concerned that rising crude oil prices would undermine the company’s refining profitability. ExxonMobil, with a 87.5%...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — France’s nuclear power company Areva said it has signed a contract to supply MOX fuel to leading Japanese utility, Kansai Electric Power Co. Nuclear Fuel Industries (NFI) is the fuel vendor selected by Kansai to execute contract. Areva will supply 16 MOX fuel assemblies for units 3 and 4 of...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — China’s JA Solar said it has signed a new long-term silicon wafer supply agreement with Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development Co Ltd, a subsidiary of GCL Silicon Technology Holdings Ltd. GCL Silicon Technology will supply a total of approximately 6,000 MW of silicon wafers to JA Solar from April 2008...

(EnergAsia, May 8, Thursday) — Technip and Subsea 7 said their joint venture company, Technip Subsea 7 Asia Pacific Pty Ltd (TS7), has been awarded two contracts for subsea installation and pipeline supply projects in New Zealand and Vietnam. Shell Todd Oil Services Limited (STOS), a company jointly owned by Shell Petroleum Mining and Todd...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — Sri Lanka’s controversial 409 gigawatt (GWh) Upper Kotmale hydro power plant project is on track for completion by 2011. The US$380 million project’s first phase, which involved the relocation of some 480 families, has been completed. The section phase, which includes building a tunnel and an underground powerhouse, is due...

(EnergyAsia, May 8, Thursday) — Dubai Group, the leading diversified financial services company of Dubai Holding, said it has acquired a 40% stake in Chiranjjeevi Wind Energy Limited (CWEL), a wind turbine manufacturer in India. The investment was made by Dubai Ventures, the equity investment company of Dubai Investment Group, a subsidiary of Dubai Group....

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — New York-based asset manager Van Eck Global marked Earth Day recently by launching Market Vectors – Solar Energy ETF (KWT) on the American Stock Exchange. This new exchange-traded fund (ETF) is among the first solar ETFs listed in the US, and is unique in the degree of pure-play exposure it...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Australia’s Arrow Energy said an international consortium it is leading has been awarded licences to explore in two of the three coalbed methane (CBM) blocks in India that were on offer in late 2006 during the last CBM III licence round. Arrow Energy has mobilised two rigs to begin drilling...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Indonesian state oil and gas firm Pertamina may not renew contracts to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies to key buyers in Taiwan and South Korea. The move comes as Indonesia’s main Arun and Bontang gas fields are experiencing sharp production declines. Arun’s six-train complex will completely shut down by...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Rising oil prices will help the members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) generate a record US$980 billion in income this year, said the US agency Energy Information Administration.   Their net export earnings will rise by at least 45% increase from 2007’s $676 billion as they continue...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Indonesian energy firm Medco is investing in a biomass power plant in Singapore. It recently signed a deal with Singapore’s Biofuel Industries to jointly develop a 24.8 megawatt (MW) cogeneration plant. The S$55 million unit will be fed with horticultural and industrial wood wastes. (US$1=S$1.35). The plant will be located...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Singapore’s Swiber Holdings Limited said it and Thailand’s CUEL Limited have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to jointly pursue offshore engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) projects in the Asia Pacific region. Swiber is a niche service provider to the offshore oil and gas industry offering a wide...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — US-listed China Clean Energy Inc has reaffirmed its expectation of achieving at least $14 million in adjusted net income next year despite having “temporarily” halted biodiesel production and shifted its focus to specialty chemicals. The company said it has the ability to produce both biodiesel and specialty chemicals, thus allowing...

(EnergyAsia, May 7, Wednesday) — Suzlon Energy (Tianjin) Limited (SETL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of India’s Suzlon Energy Limited, has secured orders totaling nearly 200 MW of capacity for wind farm projects in China. The orders from two major players in China’s energy sector, is a significant addition to Suzlon’s position in the country’s growing wind...

  By Dr Peter Harrop* (EnergyAsia, May 6, Tuesday) — Solar cells are needed on everything from clothing to packaging, toys, spaceships, consumer goods, medical testers, skin patches and tools. Mostly, they must be thin and flexible, lightweight, environmental and low in cost – even disposable in many cases. Optical transparency would prevent them defacing...

(EnergyAsia, May 6, Tuesday) — Consumers in emerging countries are already highly energy-efficient as they have to pay a relatively high cost for their energy supplies, said, India’s Centre for Knowledge Societies (CKS). In a special study, CKS said its findings could allay fears in the West that the high economic growth rates in India...

(EnergyAsia, May 6, Tuesday) — JIC Technology Company Ltd said it will be renamed as Hong Kong Energy Holdings Limited (HKE), a wholly-owned subsidiary of HKC (Holdings) Limited, and is planning to invest in three renewable energy projects in China. They include the Lunaobao wind farm in Hebei province, the Siziwang Qi wind farm in...

(EnergyAsia, May 6, Tuesday) — India has started construction of a strategic petroleum reserve (SPR) in Visakhapatnam port, said Petroleum Minister Murli Deroa. India is setting up SPRs at Visakhapatnam, Mangalore and Padur to enhance the country’s energy security. Preparations are now underway to start building storage terminals at Padur and Mangalore as well. The...

(EnergyAsia, May 6, Tuesday) — Nasdaq-listed FuelCell Energy Inc said that POSCO Power, South Korea’s leading independent power producer, has ordered 25.6 MW of its power plants and fuel cell modules. FuelCell Energy Inc is a leading manufacturer of high-efficiency, ultra-clean power plants using renewable and a variety of other fuels for commercial, industrial and...