(EnergyAsia, August 14 2013, Wednesday) — The World Coal Association (WCA) has criticised a recent report from Australia’s Climate Commission as being “ideologically driven, one-sided and inherently unscientific.” In calling for the closure of Australia’s coal industry, the WCA said the report, “The Critical Decade 2013: Climate Change Science, Risks & Response”, crossed the line...
(EnergyAsia, August 13 2013, Tuesday) — Australia’s Queensland state government has approved a A$6.4 billion proposal by Waratah Coal Pty Ltd to develop the coal deposits in the Galilee Basin and a support rail network. (US$1=A$1.1). But, the firm, controlled by mining tycoon Clive Palmer, will have to wait for the Federal government to give...
(EnergyAsia, August 13 2013, Tuesday) — China will help develop four coal-fired power plants at the soon-to-be-established Gadani Power Corridor in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said. He said the Pakistani government has set a target for the coastal corridor in the impoverished and politically unstable province to accommodate eight coal-fired power...
(EnergyAsia, August 13 2013, Tuesday) — Nigerian officials are unsure how much oil the country is producing or if it will achieve its medium-term targets amid rising security threats to the nation’s pipeline infrastructure and the oil-rich Niger Delta region by terrorists, armed gangs, disenfranchised local inhabitants and corrupt officials. There is also the growing...
(EnergyAsia, August 12 2013, Monday) — Russian mining company Mechel said it has begun delivering coal concentrate to China by rail through a new border checkpoint. “Until now, Mechel made major coal deliveries to Chinese customers only through sea ports. The opening of this railroad route will enable Mechel to diversify its logistics and make...
(EnergyAsia, August 12 2013, Monday) — Bowing to public pressure, Australia has again delayed approval for the development of the world’s largest coal port in Queensland state that environmentalists say would permanently damage the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest marine park, with negative consequences for spawning fish and other life forms migrating between the...
(EnergyAsia, August 12 2013, Monday) — Platts, a leading global energy, petrochemicals and metals information provider, said it has begun publishing daily price assessments for five West African grades of crude oil. The new price assessments, launched on August 1, provide end-of-day values on the open spot market for two Nigerian grades, two Angolan grades (more…)
(EnergyAsia, August 7 2013, Wednesday) — Australia’s Modun Resources said it has been granted a licence to mine a major thermal coal project now under development in Mongolia. The Mineral Resources Authority of Mongolia (MRAM) has approved Modun’s right to mine 2,497 hectares of the Nuurst’s project for an initial period of 30 years with...
(EnergyAsia, August 7 2013, Wednesday) — Celsius Coal Limited has affirmed its focus on developing Kyrgyzstan’s vast coking coal deposits following the findings of a study which showed strong demand and further growth prospects for the fuel in neighbouring China’s Xinjiang autonomous region. The Australia-listed company presented its conclusion based on a first phase Xinjiang...
(EnergyAsia, August 7 2013, Wednesday) — Helped by rising crude oil production and exports of gold and cocoa, Ghana’s economy is on course to repeat last year’s 8% growth in 2013, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The three commodities together account for 85% of the West African country’s export earnings. In a recent assessment,...
(EnergyAsia, August 6 2013, Tuesday) — Singapore-based Rotary Engineering Limited said it has been awarded a number of engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) contracts worth a total of S$200 million for work in Saudi Arabia and Singapore. (US$1=S$1.26). The EPC and maintenance services provider for the energy sector said it secured three contracts to build storage (more…)
(EnergyAsia, August 6 2013, Tuesday) — Authorities in Nigeria and the UK are investigating claims that a company linked to a former Nigerian oil minister has pocketed the bulk of US$1.3 billion paid by Shell and Italy’s ENI for the rights to explore and develop an offshore oil block in the West African country. Dan...
(EnergyAsia, August 6 2013, Tuesday) — PT Adaro Energy, a leading Indonesian coal miner, said it raised production by 12% to a record 13.52 million tonnes in the second quarter. For the same period last year, the company produced 12.05 million tonnes. In a filing with the Indonesia Stock Exchange, Aadro said it mined 24.94...
(EnergyAsia, August 5 2013, Monday) — The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said it will boost investment in improving end-user energy efficiency to help Asia Pacific countries tackle surging power demand and growing environmental threats from greenhouse gas emissions. The bank announced its initiative at a recent conference in Manila, Philippines in which it also released...
(EnergyAsia, August 5 2013, Monday) — Finnish engineering consulting firm Poyry said it has been awarded a contract to provide engineering services for the development of a 1,320 MW coal-fired power plant project in Vietnam. The contract was awarded by Japan’s Sumitomo Corp for the Van Phong 1 plant comprising two 660MW units which will...
(EnergyAsia, August 5 2013, Monday) — Royal Dutch Shell has put a pin into what could be the shale bubble which it said contributed to a 60% plunge in its second quarter profit. The European major wrote off the value of its North American shale assets by more than US$2 billion after tax, causing earnings...
(EnergyAsia, August 2 2013, Friday) — The power subsidiary of India’s Adani Group said its net loss for the April-June 2013 quarter surged 47.9% to 11.98 billion rupees compared with 810 billion rupees for the same period last year. (US$1=60 rupees). Adani Power Ltd attributed the increased loss to the decline in in the value...
(EnergyAsia, August 2 2013, Friday) — Australia’s Origin Energy Limited said it has completed a set of related agreements involving the A$50 million purchase of a state-owned power-generating company and new fuel supply agreements. Last month, the company said it had signed agreements with the New South Wales government for the A$50 million acquisition of...
(EnergyAsia, August 2 2013, Friday) — Sri Lanka could be the latest Asian country to import and use liquefied natural gas (LNG) to generate electricity and provide fuel for ships. The Sri Lanka Ports Authority (SLPA) has announced plans to develop an LNG import terminal at the country’s fast-growing southern port of Hambantota as part...
(EnergyAsia, August 1 2013, Thursday) — Canadian miner Teck Resources Ltd said it is slowing the development of its Quintette coal mine in British Columbia province until prices for the commodity recover. (US$1=C$1.03). Owing to the continued weak outlook for metallurgical coal prices that contributed to a 50.5% plunge in second quarter earnings, the Vancouver-based...
(EnergyAsia, August 1 2013, Thursday) — Canada’s MicroCoal Technologies Inc (MCI) said it has sold a “master agreement” to Indonesia’s PT Wijaya Tri Utama (PWTU) for the design, construction, operation and maintenance of a proprietary coal drying facility at a coal-fired power plant on Kalimantan Island. The Vancouver, British Columbia firm said it will receive...
(EnergyAsia, August 1 2013, Thursday) — Z Energy, New Zealand’s main downstream oil company, is seeking to raise between NZ$650 million and NZ$900 million through a public offer of its share at NZ$3.25 to NZ$3.75 apiece. (US$1=NZ$1.26). The final price for the offer which values Z Energy at between NZ$1.3 billion and $1.5 billion will...
(EnergyAsia, July 31 2013, Wednesday) — Switzerland-based engineering giant Foster Wheeler AG said a subsidiary has been awarded a contract to provide project management and consultancy for the construction of a new US$9 billion oil refinery and petrochemicals complex in Vietnam. The Nasdaq-listed company said its Global Engineering and Construction Group was awarded the contract...
(EnergyAsia, July 31 2013, Wednesday) — Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd (MHI) said it has received an order for core components of two sets of a 660MW supercritical-pressure coal-fired boiler and steam turbine to be installed in two high-efficiency coal-fired power generation units in northern India. Rajasthan Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam Ltd (RRVUNL) is building...
(EnergyAsia, July 31 2013, Wednesday) — An Iranian state firm said it is building three large crude oil storage terminals, including one that it claims will be the largest floating unit in the Persian Gulf. The National Iranian Offshore Oil Company (NIOOC) will launch a 2.2-million barrel storage terminal in the Southern Bushehr province near...