(EnergyAsia, August 17 2011, Wednesday) — The State Oil Company of Azerbaijan (SOCAR) expects to start up a 645,000-cubic metre oil storage terminal in Fujairah port in the UAE later this year. SOCAR has teamed up with Swiss trading house Aurora Progress to jointly develop the terminal’s 20 tanks to store products and support the...

(EnergyAsia, August 17 2011, Wednesday) — State-owned Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) may complete its 15-million-tonne-a-year Paradip refinery in Orissa state by the first quarter of 2013, a full year behind schedule. Recently announcing this in Parliament, Minister of State for Petroleum and Natural Gas R.P.N. Singh said the company will not be eligible to apply...

(EnergyAsia, August 17 2011, Wednesday) — Pakistan’s government and oil companies are increasingly being blamed for the country’s growing fuel shortages as they have not fulfilled their promises to expand tank storage capacity. Consumers have accused the industry of deliberately ignoring regulations to maintain a minimum level of 20 days of fuel inventory for emergencies,...

(EnergyAsia, August 17 2011, Wednesday) — UAE fuel supplier Emarat said it recently expanded its oil storage capacity at its Port of Fujairah terminal in the UAE to 260,000 cubic metres. The company invested 300 million dirham to develop 10 new tanks with a combined capacity to store 210,000 cubic metres of gasoline, jet fuel and...

(EnergyAsia, August 16 2011, Tuesday) — To ensure sufficient electricity to produce crude and natural gas in Saudi Arabia, state energy firm Saudi Aramco said it is planning to more than double its power generating capacity to 4,700 megawatts by 2015. Aramco is planning to expand the number of power generators and support facilities that...

(EnergyAsia, August 16 2011, Tuesday) — As Thailand considers postponing construction of nuclear power plants, state oil and gas firm PTT Plc is looking to import another five million tonnes a year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to fuel its power plants. It is looking to buy 700 million cubic feet per day of LNG...

(EnergyAsia, August 16 2011, Tuesday) — Exxon Mobil Corporation said it and its Indonesian partners are aiming to raise the 20,000 b/d crude oil production from the Banyu Urip field in the Cepu block in East Java to 165,000 b/d. Early this month, the US major said its subsidiary, Mobil Cepu Ltd (MCL) which operates...

(EnergyAsia, August 16 2011, Tuesday) — The International Maritime Organisation (IMO) has been praised for its decision to mandate energy efficiency ratings for global shipping fleet, which accounts for around 3% of global emissions, more than that of Germany. Carbon War Room, a non-government organisation (NGO) aiming to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions through entrepreneurial...

(EnergyAsia, August 15 2011, Monday) — China’s on-going power shortages could well continue beyond this year as its supply system is unable to keep up with the country’s seemingly insatiable energy demand growth, said government and industry officials. The National Energy Administration (NEA) has conceded the possibility that the country’s power shortages could worsen in...

(EnergyAsia, August 15 2011, Monday) — As China confronts the prospects of long-term power shortages, its largest coal producing company is planning to invest nearly RMB110 billion in coal, power and rail projects in the country’s far-western Xinjiang Uighur region. (US$1=RMB6.43). Of that, Shenhua Group Co Ltd will be allocating nearly half or RMB52 billion...

(EnergyAsia, August 15 2011, Monday) — Russian mining and metals producer Mechel OAOsaid its coal production fell 5% to 12.53 million tonnes in the first half of 2011 compared with 13.22 million tonnes for the same period last year. CEO Yevgeny Mikhel attributed the decline to a “temporary halt” in subsidiary Yakutugol’s Nerungrinskaya washing plant...

(EnergyAsia, August 15 2011, Monday) — Construction work has begun on a Myanmar section of a planned 2,806-km pipeline delivering oil and gas to China. China National Petroleum Corp said subsidiary China Petroleum Pipeline Bureau began work on the project on August 1 with a ceremony attended by officials from the two countries including Chinese...

(EnergyAsia, August 12 2011, Friday) — Canadian coal miner SouthGobi Resources Ltd said higher coal prices helped drive up its second quarterly net profit by more than 26% to US$67.3 million compared with year-ago level of US$53.3 million. The company, which operates exclusively in Mongolia and is producing coal from the Ovoot Tolgoi mine for...

(EnergyAsia, August 12 2011, Friday) — This is an edited version of an article by Lester R. Brown of the Earth Policy of Washington DC. “At a press conference on July 21, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that he was contributing US$50 million to the Sierra Club’s Beyond Coal Campaign. Michael Brune, head...

(EnergyAsia, August 12 2011, Friday) — Banpu Pcl, a leading coal miner in Thailand and Indonesia, said its second quarter net profit fell 16% to 3.161 billion baht from year-ago level due largely to reduced sales from its flood-ravaged Indonesian operations. (US$1=30 baht). Thailand-listed Banpu has reduced its coal sales target in Indonesia for this...

(EnergyAsia, August 12 2011, Friday) — Struggling to meet domestic energy demand, Vietnam said it will raise the export tax on coal from 15% to 20% from September 11. According to the Ministry of Finance, the higher tax will help slow down the country’s export of its dwindling coal reserves at a time when it...

(EnergyAsia, August 11 2011, Thursday) — Following an investigation of stock trading irregularities, accounting inaccuracies and other infringements, the NYSE Amex has told China-based Puda Coal Inc, whose stock has been suspended since April 11, that it will be delisted from the exchange. In a statement, Puda Coal said the exchange has determined that “it...

(EnergyAsia, August 11 2011, Thursday) — Mechel OAO, a leading Russian mining and metals companies, has provided an update of its coal and mineral reserves as of May 1. Based on a review prepared by IMC Group Consulting Ltd, the NYSE-listed company said it has the total equivalent coal ore reserves and resources of 3.27...

(EnergyAsia, August 11 2011, Thursday) — Dyna-Mac Holdings Ltd, a Singapore-based specialist provider of engineering, procurement and construction services (EPC) to the offshore oil, gas and marine construction industry, said it has secured S$56 million worth of orders from Keppel FELS Limited and SBM Offshore NV. On July 29, SBM Offshore awarded Dynamac the contract...

(EnergyAsia, August 10 2011, Wednesday) — Rio Tinto Group, the world’s second-biggest mining company, and Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp said they are jointly offering A$1.49 billion for the remaining 14.09% stake in Coal & Allied Industries Ltd (CNA) they don’t own to take the Australian coal miner private. UK-headquartered Rio Tinto, which own a 75.71% stake,...

(EnergyAsia, August 10 2011, Wednesday) — Indonesian coal producer PT Adaro Energy said it is on track to achieve its 2011 production goal of 46 to 48 million tons after almost meeting its first half production target of 23.2 million tons. Adaro said a 19% surge in its second-quarter output to a record 12.2 million...

(EnergyAsia, August 8 2011, Monday) — China has started up its first national coal storage base at Gaolan port in the city of Zhuhai as part of a long-term strategy to beef up its energy security. A consortium comprising Shenhua Group Co, Guangdong Yudean Group Co and Zhuhai Port Co invested RMB400 million to develop...

(EnergyAsia, August 8 2011, Monday) — The Chinese government may aim for a truly revolutionary target of reducing energy consumption when it unveils a masterplan later this year to produce a low-carbon economy. While details are still being negotiated, experts said it will be the first time that the Chinese government is even considering reducing...

(EnergyAsia, August 8 2011, Monday) — Coal’s share in the global energy mix has risen from 25.6% in 2000 to 29.6% last year, the highest since 1970, said BP said in its recently released Statistical Review of World Energy. BP said world coal consumption surged by 7.6% in 2010 for its fastest growth rate since...

(EnergyAsia, August 8 2011, Monday) —- Vietnam has signed its first major contract to import coal, underlining the speed of its decline from net exporter. Japanese trading house Marubeni Corp said it has agreed to supply between one and two million metric tons of coal a year to state Vietnam National Coal-Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin)....