(EnergyAsia, May 11 2010, Tuesday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said its board has approved a loan of up to US$70 million for the construction of a 73MW solar power plant in central Thailand. The plant, one of the largest solar photovoltaic projects in the world, will be key to the country’s efforts to...

(EnergyAsia, May 11 2010, Tuesday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it has agreed to lend Uzbekistan US$350 million to help boost the efficiency of the country’s electricity supply through the construction of a new combined cycle gas turbine. The loan will help fund the construction of the US$1.28 billion Talimarjan Clean Power Project,...

(EnergyAsia, May 11 2010, Tuesday) —- Cities in Asia should lead the way in making the reduction, reuse and recycling of resources a way of life, while providing economic models for conservation which national governments could replicate, said the Asian Development Bank (ADB). Asian urban centers are facing immense strains on limited resources, which is...

(EnergyAsia, May 11 2010, Tuesday) — By Fawzia Sheikh for Oilprice.com.   The promise of green energy has intrigued the Middle East, but Saudi Arabia’s US$170 billion investment in traditional oil projects underscores lingering concern about betting on renewables. State Saudi Aramco, which will bankroll more than half that amount for energy and oil refining...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) — A US Congress committee has been told that the burst BP exploration well off Louisiana state in the Gulf of Mexico could leak as much as 60,000 b/d from the current estimate of 5,000 b/d if efforts now underway to stop the flow fail. Executives from BP, the Macondo...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) —NYSE-listed STR Holdings Inc said it has started work to double the size of its solar encapsulant plant in Johor state in Malaysia to service its growing customer base in Asia. STR Holdings said its warehouse space will be expanded by the first quarter of 2011 to provide floor space...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) — Thai Oil Plc, the country’s largest oil refinery, said it has allocated as much as US$30 million to acquire a minimum 25% stake in an ethanol plant to boost its access to ethanol supply. Surong Bulakul, CEO of Thai Oil, said the company is in talks with a number...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) — Orizon Renewable Energy, a Malaysian and Bahraini joint venture, plans to invest US$230 million to set up a 55-megawatt power plant in Sri Lanka that will use solid waste as feedstock. Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment (BOI) said it has signed an agreement with Orizon for the project to...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) — Singapore’s petrochemical industry fared well in the first quarter of this year in the face of rising feedstock costs and increased competition from new petrochemical facilities in the region which are still not in full operating mode. Petrochemical plants in the city-state have been able to operate at more...

(EnergyAsia, May 10 2010, Monday) — Philippine subsidiaries of Global Green Power Plc Corp, a joint venture between British and Filipino investors, have moved closer to building several biomass power plants with the capacity to generate at least 70 megawatts (MW). Green Power Panay Philippines Inc and Green Power Nueva Ecija Philippines Inc have signed...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — US-based Matinee Energy Inc said it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding and formed a strategic alliance with South Korea’s Hyundai Heavy Industries Company Ltd and LG Electronics Inc. Matinee has invited Hyundai and LG to join as lead partners for a total of 240 megawatts or $1 billion...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — A South Korean firm has been awarded ownership of a Philippine hydroelectric plant after it submitted the highest offer of US$441 million in a competitive bid organised by the Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp (PSALM). Korea Water Resources Corp has been declared the new owner of the...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — China Petroleum and Chemical Corp (Sinopec) is said to be considering the establishment of a large refining and petrochemical complex on Singapore’s Jurong Island. Sinopec is holding talks with the Economic Development Board for a possible major project, a spokesperson from the EDB has confirmed without giving any details....

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — The US Department of Energy (DOE) said it and Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s renewable energy initiative, have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to promote collaboration on clean and sustainable energy technologies. The agreement, signed by the US Deputy Secretary of Energy Daniel Poneman and Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, CEO...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — Environmental lobby group Greenpeace has accused Indonesian plantation group Sinar Mas of continuing to destroy the country’s rainforests despite repeated promises not to do so. Greenpeace released what it calls “new evidence” ahead of Sinar Mas subsidiary Golden Agri Resources (GAR)’s  annual general meeting (AGM) last month. Deforestation for...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — Better Place said it has demonstrated the world’s first switchable-battery electric taxi in partnership with the Japanese Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, and Nihon Kotsu, Tokyo’s largest taxi operator. The 90-day project, launched last month, marked a key milestone leading up to a complete system test of all...

(EnergyAsia, May 7 2010, Friday) — Japan’s Economy, Trade and Industry Ministry said it aims to boost the share of environmentally-friendly vehicles of domestic new car sales to 50% by 2020 from 9% at present.     The ministry is also targeting to install two million chargers in residences and households for use by electric, hybrid...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — US-based AES Corporation said its subsidiary, AES VCM Mong Duong Power Company Limited (AES VCM), has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with Electricity Vietnam (EVN), the state-owned power company, for Mong Duong II, a 1,200 MW coal-fired power plant. In support of this agreement, AES VCM has also...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — OSolar Ltd, a South Korean photovoltaic engineering company, said it is expanding its global presence with a long-term strategic partnership with Longyuan (Beijing) Carbon Asset Management Technology Co Ltd, a subsidiary of China Guodian Group. OSolar said it and Longyuan have secured an order to supply 1MW of single-axis...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — Chevron Qatar Energy Technology QSTP-B, an affiliate of the US major Chevron Corp, and GreenGulf Inc QSTP-B, a Qatar-based renewable energy and clean technology company, have signed a memorandum of understanding for a joint study to test solar energy technologies and their application in Qatar. The two organisations said...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — Tesla Motors, the Silicon Valley, US-based maker of the world’s fastest highway-capable electric vehicle, said it has shipped a dozen Japan Signature Series Roadsters from Port Hueneme, California to select customers throughout Japan. The hand-built, carbon fiber electric Roadster accelerates from 0-100 km in 3.7 seconds. In January, Tesla...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — Japan’s Kyocera said it is supplying modules for the largest outdoor solar-powered plant in the Czech Republic, a four-megawatts peak (MWp) plant covering a production area of nine hectares due to be completed next year. The developer, Austrian photovoltaic pioneer Pan Oekoteam, has connected 1.6 MWp of the Czech...

(EnergyAsia, May 6 2010, Thursday) — Malaysian plantation conglomerate Felda Holdings Bhd said it is planning to establish biomass projects under the auspices of the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) to develop renewable energy use and create a new source of revenue. The organisation is looking to set up 56 biogas plants, six compost plants,...