(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — Indonesia’s PT Perkebunan Nusantara has teamed up with three state-owned firms to build a biodiesel plant in Medan, North Sumatra. The four companies are engaged in palm oil and rubber production. The project is expected to come onstream in 2009 using locally-grown palm oil as feedstock. The developers said they...
(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — China’s Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region has become the first province in the country to supply only biofuel-blended motor fuels. Within a few weeks last month, local authorities started to replace standard gasoline with ethanol-blended fuels. The blends are produced from cassava, a tropical plant widely grown in Guangxi. The blends...
(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — EnergyAsia has released filmed interviews with four participants at the Third Annual ‘World Renewable Energy Summit’ (WRES) at the JW Marriot hotel in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from March 27 to 28. The filmed interviews with Dr Wolfgang Palz, Chairman of the World Council for Renewable Energy, Ms Nguyen Thanh Phat (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — Philippine ethanol producer Basic Energy is studying the feasibility of supplying up to 50 million litres/year of ethanol to the local subsidiary of US energy major Chevron. The Philippines government plans to introduce mandatory 5% ethanol blending starting next year, rising to 10% by 2010. Oil companies said they could...
(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — Indonesia’s President Susilo Yudhoyono has told state oil and gas company Pertamina to get ready to take over the Natuna D-Alpha natural gas-block from ExxonMobil. According to local media reports, the President wants the block to become a major gas producer under the full ownership and control of Indonesians. As...
(EnergyAsia, April 15, Tuesday) — Germany has called off its plan to raise mandatory bioethanol blending to 10% from 5%, due to the large number of cars that would not be able to run on an E10 blend. Industry groups estimate that some 3.3 million existing cars would not be able to use the E10...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — EnergyAsia’s filmed interviews with Rotary Engineering, Woodside, Australian High Commission and Shell Global Solutions on the state of the energy industry on www.EnergyAsia.com. Rotary Engineering chairman and managing director Chia Kim Piow shares his thoughts on the oil and gas industry in the face of rising costs, the global competiton (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — The ‘Middle East Petrochemicals 2008’ conference will be held at the Sheraton Bahrain Hotel from June 15 to 17. More than 40% of the global petrochemical capacity will be built in the Middle East by 2011. This would make the region the petrochemicals hub of the world offering the industry (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest crude oil producer, has spoken openly of its support for solar energy for the first time at an oil conference in France last week. It’s a sign of the times that oil producers no longer worry about being threatened by the development of renewable energy,...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — Dubai Group, the leading diversified financial services company of Dubai Holding, said it has invested US$49.5 million for a 30% stake in Malaysia’s GBD Investment Limited (GBDI), which owns the largest biodiesel plant in Southeast Asia. The investment was made by Dubai Ventures, the equity investment company of Dubai Investment...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — Swicorp Joussour Company, a Saudi Arabia-based company, said it is teaming up with another Saudi firm, Chemical Development Company (CDC), and Norway’s NorSun to invest in a polysilicon plant in the industrial city of Jubail. NorSun will initially own half the company, with Swicorp Joussour and CDC holding the rest....
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — Florida, US-based China Nuvo Solar Energy Inc said it will be developing a low-cost solar cell based on the thin-film CIGS technology in collaboration with partner Pioneer Materials Inc (PMI) at its pilot production facility in Chengdu, China. Nuvo said that using the copper indium gallium selenium (CIGS) technology, it...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — The McCloskey Group, a leading energy market news and information services company and the global leader in coal market news and price reporting, has launched a new publication entitled ‘McCloskey’s NuclearBusiness’. As nuclear power is once again viewed as a likely leading provider of future global energy needs, there is (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — Japan’s Mitsubishi Electric Corp plans to invest US$70 million to boost the production of solar cells to meet surging world demand. The company said it aims to raise capacity to 500 megawatt (MW) by 2013 from 150 MW now. Sharp Corp and Sanyo, two other leading Japanese players, are also...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — New Zealand Wind Energy Association (NZWEA) said wind energy is becoming an important part of the country’s energy mix. At a recent wind energy conference in Wellington, local and international experts hailed the arrival of wind energy at a time of record oil, gas and coal prices on the world...
(EnergyAsia, April 14, Monday) — IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, and Guizhou Kaiyang Xinglong Hydropower Co Ltd have agreed to work on reducing carbon dioxide emissions in China by tapping carbon credits from two small run-of-river hydropower projects. The credits will be made available through the Clean Development Mechanism of the Kyoto...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — EOC Limited, a leading Asian operator of offshore construction and production vessels, has reported a 318% rise in net profit to US$12.4 million for the half-year ended February 29. Group turnover rose nine-fold to US$56.8 million thanks largely to the addition of two new heavy lift vessels, the Lewek Chancellor...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — Germany’s Q-Cells and Solar Tec are investing in solar cell manufacturing facilities in Malaysia after deciding against building in neighbouring Singapore. Q-Cells, one of the world’s largest producers of photovoltaic (PV) modules, is building a RM1 billion plant in northern Malaysia to produce thin film modules. (US$1=RM3.15). The company reportedly...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — China’s environmental authorities are delaying their approval for a massive refining-petrochemicals joint venture in the Pearl River Delta between Kuwait Petroleum and Sinopec Corp. The proposal for the $5 billion project has been awaiting approval for at least two months as proponents and critics argue over its likely impact on...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — The Thai government is considering building a national strategic reserve to stockpile palm oil to ensure supplies for food and biodiesel production. A reserve would help avoid a repeat of the severe palm oil shortages experienced earlier this year after Thailand introduced a mandatory 2% biodiesel blend. The Energy Ministry,...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — Thailand has signed a deal for a joint venture to develop a hydropower project with Laos. The project, sited in the Baankum barrage, is located on the Mekong River between Khong Chiam district in Ubon Ratchathani in north-eastern Thailand, and Champasak at the south western tip of Laos. The two...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — US-based Shaw Group Inc said that the nuclear division of its power group has been awarded a contract from Shandong Electric Power Engineering Consulting Institute (SDEPCI) to provide engineering service support for the Haiyang nuclear power station turbine island in China. The power station will be constructed in Shandong province...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — Singapore Exchange Limited (SGX) said it is launching the world’s first clearing service for over-the-counter benzene swaps to serve growing demand for credit risk mitigation in the petrochemical market. SGX AsiaClear will launch the service on May 5. Including this new product, SGX will have 13 energy contracts. The size (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — New Zealand can potentially meet its entire energy requirement by planting biomass forests, a new study has found. Specially planted ‘energy’ forests which could be set up over 25 years would supply the country’s future demand for transport fuel and heat, thereby avoiding any negative impact on agriculture for food...
(EnergyAsia, April 11, Friday) — Japanese oil refiners have set a target to use biofuels to replace 500,000 kilolitres of petroleum fuels by 2013. Until 2010, they are aiming to displace the use of 210,000 kilolitres of petroleum fuel. However, to reach the 2013 target the government must ensure that the country is importing sufficient...