(EnergyAsia, August 14, Friday) — China’s Zhaoheng Hydropower said it has raised US$57.5 million to help finance new projects and expansions. The largest contributors were two funds controlled by US private equity firm Olympus Capital Holdings Asia. Zhaoheng, which owns 11 hydropower plants with a combined 200MW capacity, said it will use the money to...
(EnergyAsia, August 14, Friday) — Banpu, Thailand’s largest coal producer, said it expects to hit its 2009 sales target of 20.5 million tonnes with higher sales in the second half helping to compensate for a slower first half of the year. The company, which owns the fourth largest coal miner in Indonesia, is looking to...
(EnergyAsia, August 14, Friday) — The Chinese government has set the tariffs for wind-generated power at between 0.51 yuan and 0.61 yuan per kilowatt hour depending on the region, but these may be too low to attract new investments, said analysts. (US$1=6.82 yuan). The powerful National Development and Reform Commission, the country’s leading economic agency,...
(EnergyAsia, August 14, Friday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it is providing a $3 million grant to help design and deliver renewable energy products for the development of small pilot projects in Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu. The planned activities include the development of a mini hydroelectric project in Papua New...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — Construction work has started on a 20 million kilowatt (KW) wind power station in Gansu province. The project at Jiuquan will have an initial capacity of just over 5 million KW by end 2010. It is expected to be gradually expanded to 20 million KW by 2020, and up to...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — India’s Jaiprakash Associates plans to raise more than 15 billion rupees by merging two of its power units in a deal valued at up to Rs 40 billion. (US$1=Rs48). The deal combined Jaiprakash Power Venture Ltd with listed company Jaiprakash Hydro Power. The move is aimed at helping Jaiprakash to...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — Singapore-listed marine fuels supplier Chemoil said it will continue to provide sustainable marine fuel solutions to help ship operators reduce emissions to meet new requirements proposed for waters off the US and Canada. This follows a joint application to the International Maritime Organisation (IMO) by both the US and Canada...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Wednesday) — Dynamic Engineering, a leading US engineering firm in chemical production technologies for polysilicon, said it has signed a multi-level contract with Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development Co Ltd, a subsidiary of China’s GCL Solar Energy Technology Holdings Inc. The contracts represent DEI’s most comprehensive polysilicon services relationship to-date and the...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — UK energy major BP and Nasdaq-listed Martek Biosciences Corp said they have signed an agreement to jointly work on the production of microbial oils for biofuels applications. The partnership combines a broad technology platform and operational capabilities to advance the development of a step-change technology for the conversion of sugars...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — Plantation owners will likely stop producing ‘green’ palm oil owing to poor European demand, and instead focus on the output of cheaper, uncertified oil. Yusof Basiron, the chief executive of the Malaysian Palm Oil Council, said there is still robust demand for palm oil without the green certification because...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — Taiwan has unveiled an ambitious five-year programme backed by a NT$245 billion investment plan to become a green energy economy. (US$1=NT33). The Taiwanese government said it contribute NT$20 billion to research and development while the private sector will contribute NT$200 billion under the Xusheng Project to fight climate change and...
(EnergyAsia, August 13, Thursday) — Vienna, Austria-based Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) said it has provided 667,500 euro in seed funding to support eight new clean energy projects in the developing world. (US$1=0.7 euro). Piloting innovative finance methods is one of the non-government organisation’s (NGO’s) key priorities in its small-scale project funding. Microfinance...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Asia’s telecommunications firms are launching more energy-efficient and recyclable models in response to growing consumer awareness of energy and environmental issues. Cost is a major consideration too. In India, cell phones can only be sold if they are energy-efficient, thus offering low recharging costs to poorer households. Despite its widespread...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Sumitomo Corp of America (SCOA) and its parent, Sumitomo Corp of Japan, said they plan to invest $240 million in a 120MW windfarm in Martin County in Texas, the US, marking the group’s entry into the US wind energy business. Sumitomo said it bought a 42.5% stake in Stanton Wind...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — US-based Evolution Solar Corporation (EVSO) said it and other solar stocks are benefitting from China’s new $2.70 per watt government solar incentive delivered as part of the nation’s economic stimulus package. The stimulus spending represents a 50% government participation in the cost of many solar projects. Clearly this changes the...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Hong Kong’s power group, CLP, and Wind Prospect said the government has approved the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) Report for their proposed offshore wind farm project of up to 200MW in capacity. “The approval represents an important milestone to realising renewable energy in Hong Kong,” said CLP. The HK$6.7 billion...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Origin Energy Limited, Australia’s leading integrated energy company, said it has signed an agreement with Carbon Conscious Limited for what they claim is the largest carbon pollution reduction scheme (CPRS) bio sequestration project in the country. The deal will involve both companies planting large-scale native Mallee Eucalypt trees in the...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Suntech Power said it has signed a strategic agreement with China Huadian New Energy Development (HNE) to develop a total of 500MW of utility-scale and commercial roof-top solar projects in China’s sun rich Jiangsu province and Shanghai over the next three years. HNE will be responsible for the project investment...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — Duke Energy, one of America’s largest electric utilities, said it has signed a memorandum of understanding with China Huaneng Group, the country’s biggest electric utility, to explore the development of a variety of renewable and clean-energy technologies. The MOU will cover high-level discussions and information-sharing on a number of renewable...
(EnergyAsia, August 12, Wednesday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Australian government’s Global Carbon Capture and Storage Institute have signed a trust fund agreement to support the capture and storage of rising levels of carbon emissions in Asia. Australia will provide a A$21.5 million grant for the fund which will support geological investigations...
(EnergyAsia, August 11, Tuesday) — American Superconductor Corporation, a Nasdaq-listed global energy technology company, said it has amended its multi-year contract with Beijing-based Sinovel Wind Corporation Limited, China’s largest wind turbine manufacturer, to enable Sinovel to meet increased demand in China for its 1.5 megawatt (MW) wind turbines. The original contract called for AMSC...
(EnergyAsia, August 11, Tuesday) — Canadian Solar said it has entered into a broad strategic cooperation with Guodian Power Development Co Ltd, one of China’s largest power generation companies. The two companies have agreed to jointly design, invest, build, operate and maintain PV power plants in China. They will work together as strategic partners in...
(EnergyAsia, August 11, Tuesday) — Shenyang, China-based NF Energy Saving Corporation and GE Enterprise Development (Shanghai) Co Ltd, a GE subsidiary, have signed an agreement to jointly promote sustainable market and energy savings projects in China. “We are glad to partner with GE in developing the Chinese energy-saving market,” commented Mr. Li Gang, chairman and...
(EnergyAsia, August 11, Tuesday) — A global climate change agreement targeted for approval in December will need the support of China to succeed, said UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. Now the world’s leading emitter of carbon dioxide, China is on track to account for 25% of its carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, experts say. The...
(EnergyAsia, August 11, Tuesday) — Developers of the Xiluodu dam in China have increased the project’s safety risks and cost by trying to advance its completion deadline by two years to 2013, the country’s auditor has found. The National Audit Office said in a report that budget costs of the project have gotten out of...