(EnergyAsia, June 17 2011, Friday) — Price differences prevented Russia and China from concluding an important agreement to supply natural gas from Siberia to the energy-hungry coastal regions of the Asian country. Meeting in Moscow this week, President Dmitry Medvedev and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao were unable to put the icing on the cake...
(EnergyAsia, June 17 2011, Friday) — Saudi Arabia will have to deliver the extra oil the world needs in the second half after the Organisation of the Exporting Countries (OPEC) ended their “worst ever” June 8 ministerial meeting without agreeing to a production quota. According to energy media Platts, the cartel boosted May output to 29.04...
|(EnergyAsia, June 17 2011, Friday) — The Philippines’ leading oil refiner, Petron Corp, may have to spend at least 21 million peso over the next few years as part of its plan to relocate its fuel storage facilities from Pandacan district near residential areas to another area in metropolitan Manila, said chairman Ramon S. Ang....
(EnergyAsia, June 17 2011, Friday) — US major Chevron has applied to raise production at its A$43 billion Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Western Australia by 5 million tonnes a year to 20 million tonnes. The company has told the Australian government that the expanded LNG output will help ease global reliance on...
(EnergyAsia, June 17 2011, Friday) — Oman Oil Refineries and Petrochemical Industries is investing US$1.5 billion to expand and upgrade its flagship 116,400 b/d refinery in Sohar to 187,774 b/d by end-2015. The company will build new units including 71,500 b/d for crude distillation unit, 96,800 b/d for vacuum distillation, 66,400 b/d hydrocracking, 42,400 b/d...
(EnergyAsia, June 16 2011, Thursday) — Despite an expected second-half recovery, the Japanese economy will shrink by 0.7% this year as a result of the devastating earthquake-tsunami-nuclear tragedy of March 11, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The recovery will be sharper next year as reconstruction lifts the economy by 2.9%, still some way off...
(EnergyAsia, June 16 2011, Thursday) — South Korea’s JCon Corp, UBEC Inc and Daechang HRSG Corp, engineering subcontractors for refiner and oil trader SK Energy, have secured a contract to carry out regular maintenance at Vietnam’s Dung Quat refinery. The project, the first large-scale overseas maintenance project by a mid-sized Korean firm, could create US$150...
(EnergyAsia, June 16 2011, Thursday) — Vietnam National Coal and Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) said it is making progress on building a large port to handle coal shipments. The state trading firm is looking for a location to develop the port and a terminal to store, handle and transport imported coal to power plants in...
(EnergyAsia, June 16 2011, Thursday) — Indonesia’s efforts to boost oil and gas production may be at risk, with 23 exploration and production projects running behind schedule, said state regulator BPMigas. The agency has attributed the delays to investor uncertainty, plan revisions, expenditure approvals and late tender processes. Production at the Jambi Merang gas field...
(EnergyAsia, June 16 2011, Thursday) — Transport fuel and chemical feedstock will account for a higher share of China’s total oil demand in the next decade, according to the state Energy Research Institute. The institute, a unit within the powerful policy making unit, the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC), said that demand for transport...
(EnergyAsia, June 15 2011, Wednesday) — The Australian government’s proposed strategy to lower greenhouse gas emissions through a new carbon tax could lead to reduced investments and jobs, according to leading mining industry players. The government is struggling to gain support for its carbon price scheme, which seeks to promote cleaner energy development by taxing...
(EnergyAsia, June 15 2011, Wednesday) — The Chinese government said its efforts to improve coal mining safety is yielding results, with related deaths down sharply in the first four months of the year. The number of deaths from coal mining accidents and incidents were down 39% on year in January-April period, continuing a trend of...
(EnergyAsia, June 15 2011, Wednesday) — In an attempt to pressure mining companies to speed up operations, the Indian government has cancelled the allocation of 14 coal blocks and one lignite block, said Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal. State NTPC Ltd suffered the embarrassment of losing allocations to five coal blocks, leaving them with just three...
(EnergyAsia, June 15 2011, Wednesday) — Malakoff Corp Bhd, a Malaysian infrastructure firm, said its fully-owned subsidiary Transpool Sdn Bhd has won a tender to design, construct, operate and maintain a 1,000mw coal-fired power plant in Tanjung Bin in the southern Malaysian state of Johor. Malakoff, a 51%-owned subsidiary of diversified Malaysian group MMC Corporation Berhad,...
(EnergyAsia, June 15 2011, Wednesday) — The Australian government’s proposed move to implement a nationwide carbon tax scheme will put thousands of jobs at risk, force the closure of coal mines, and drive away billions of dollars in new mining investments to other countries, said an industry lobby. The Australian Coal Association (ACA) issued these...
(EnergyAsia, June 14 2011, Tuesday) — Heavyweights Anglo American and Xstrata have joined other mining groups in warning that the Australian government’s plan to introduce a price on carbon emissions could slow down inflow of new investments. Anglo American said it could be forced to rethink its planned A$4 billion investments in the Australian coal...
(EnergyAsia, June 14 2011, Tuesday) — Australia expects to generate A$11.5 billion in the first year of implementation of a controversial carbon tax, said the government’s top climate adviser Ross Garnaut, who is proposing to start the tax at A$20-A$30 a tonne. (US$1=A$0.93). Based on Dr Garnaut’s proposal, the carbon tax will rise 4% a...
(EnergyAsia, June 14 2011, Tuesday) — Thanks to Asia’s boom, Australia’s Treasury chief Martin Parkinson has painted a rosy long-term outlook for his country’s economy, with enhanced mining and energy capacities and high export prices leading the way. The Treasury expects Australia to attract around A$380 billion of new investments into its already massive mining...
(EnergyAsia, June 14 2011, Tuesday) — Coal imports into China and India are expected to continue rising rapidly through at least 2015 on account of their growing demand for electricity, industry players say. China’s thermal coal imports are projected to more than double to 200 million tonnes in 2015 from around 90 million tonnes this...
(EnergyAsia, June 14 2011, Tuesday) — Indian conglomerate Adani Group is exploring the possibility of investing in another two new coal terminals in Australia’s Queensland state to capitalise on rising coal trade in the region. It will look to build the terminals next to Abbott Point which it acquired for A$1.83 billion from the Queensland...
(EnergyAsia, June 13 2011, Monday) — US-based Post Carbon Institute has released a report examining the key assumptions about the role that natural gas can and should play in the energy future of the US. Founded in 2003, the Santa Rosa, California-based study group sees its role as leading society in the transition to a...
(EnergyAsia, June 13 2011, Monday) — India’s Gujarat NRE Coking Coal Limited said it is raising its coking coal production to 2.5 million tonnes for the fiscal year ending March 2012 from this year’s 1.5 million tonnes. By 2015, it expects to boost its output to six million tonnes by 2015 as it steps up...
(EnergyAsia, June 13 2011, Monday) — Steam coal prices in China have risen to their highest level in more than two years and could head higher in coming months given the strong demand from power plants. China remains at risk of experiencing further power cuts as rising coal prices continue to outpace the recent modest...
(EnergyAsia, June 13 2011, Monday) — Australia’s Labor Party government has released a study that supports its case to promote the pricing and trading carbon emissions as the most effective national scheme to reduce pollution and battle climate change. In an attempt to strengthen its argument for the scheme to be launched in mid-2012, the...
(EnergyAsia, June 10 2011, Friday) — Australia’s Environmental Clean Technologies Limited (ECT) said it has secured an agreement to supply 2,000 metric tonne of test-burn sample coal to China Datang Overseas Investment (CDTO), a subsidiary of China Datang Corporation (CDT), in the third quarter of 2011. ECT said the deal is “a precursor” to an...