Shell Singapore eyes solar farm near Bukom refinery
Shell and Singapore government agency JTC signed a non-binding initial agreement today to explore the development of a solar farm, as part of the oil major's long-term plan to shift its core operations in the country towards lower carbon alternatives.
The solar farm will be based on part of the Semakau Landfill, close to Shell's Pulau Bukom refining complex where capacity will be cut by 40pc next month as part of the firm's strategic shift.
The planned farm will be the first large-scale solar project in Singapore, where a sanitary landfill is also used for clean energy generation, the firms said. "This project is aligned with our 10-year plan to repurpose our core business, cut our own CO2 emissions in the country and help our customers decarbonise," Shell Singapore chairman Aw Kah Peng said.
The 10-year plan, announced last November, includes reducing capacity at Shell's 500,000 b/d Pulau Bukom refinery by 200,000 b/d in July to cut its Scope 1 and 2 emissions in Singapore by around a third within the next decade. Shell has set a target to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050.
The planned project, supported by Singapore's National Environment Agency and Energy Market Authority (EMA), is also in line with the city-state's target to increase solar deployment to at least 2GW peak (GWp) by 2030. The solar farm is expected to have a capacity of at least 72MWp, sufficient to reduce CO2 emissions by 37,000 t/yr and power up to 17,500 households for a year.
"Our energy sector is moving towards a cleaner and more sustainable future. Solar is our most promising renewable energy source and is a key switch for decarbonisation," EMA chief executive Ngiam Shih Chun said.
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Beryl enters GOM, heading towards Texas: Update
Beryl enters GOM, heading towards Texas: Update
Updates hurricane watch and status of Texas ports and lightering zones. New York, 5 July (Argus) — Hurricane Beryl weakened to a tropical storm as it crossed the Yucatan Peninsula and entered the Gulf of Mexico on Friday afternoon, with a likely second landfall in Texas on Monday. Maximum sustained winds have dropped to near 65mph, the National Hurricane Center said in a 5pm ET advisory, but the tropical storm is forecast to strengthen to a hurricane again as it moves over the Gulf of Mexico, with forecasts pointing to a landfall late Sunday or early Monday from far northeastern Mexico to the eastern Texas coast. The National Hurricane Center issued a hurricane watch from the mouth of the Rio Grande River to Sargent, Texas, about 80 miles southwest of Houston. Heavy rainfall of 4-8 inches is expected by Sunday into next week. The US Coast Guard changed the status of the port of Corpus Christi, Texas — a key US oil export hub — to "X-ray" at 3pm ET Friday, meaning gale force winds are expected to arrive at the port within 48 hours. All commercial traffic and transfer operations can continue during X-ray, but the Coast Guard said ocean-going commercial vessels greater than 500 gross tons should make plans to depart the port. Corpus Christi is also home to three refineries totaling 800,000 b/d of capacity. Citgo said it is implementing its hurricane preparedness plan at its 165,000 b/d refinery there. The ports of Houston, Texas City, Galveston and Freeport were set to port condition Whiskey at 5:05pm ET Friday, meaning gale force winds are expected to arrive within 72 hours. The ports remain open to all commercial traffic. Ship-to-ship transfers off the Texas coast proceeded as normal on Friday but will be postponed off Corpus Christi beginning Sunday. The US National Weather Service (NWS) forecast winds up to 90mph and waves up to 32 ft at the Corpus Christi lightering area on Sunday and Monday before calmer conditions return Tuesday. Ship-to-ship transfers are expected to be postponed at the Galveston Offshore Lightering Area early next week due to the same conditions. Most of Mexico's Gulf coast ports were closed today and many offshore oil production operations. The impact to US Gulf oil and gas operations so far appears to be limited, with BP determining forecasts "indicate Hurricane Beryl no longer poses a significant threat" to its offshore platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. Shell had taken the precaution of shutting in production and evacuating all staff from its Perdido platform and its Whale development, which is scheduled to begin operations later this year. "We have safely paused some of our drilling operations, but there are currently no other impacts on our production across the Gulf of Mexico," the company said late on Thursday. Earlier this week, Beryl was a Category 5 storm, which made it the strongest on record for the month of July, as it left a trail of destruction in the Caribbean. By Stephen Cunningham, Tray Swanson and Nathan Risser Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Caribbean power faces long recovery from Beryl
Caribbean power faces long recovery from Beryl
Kingston, 5 July (Argus) — Power utilities in several eastern and central Caribbean countries have started repairing networks that were brought down this week by Hurricane Beryl. Beryl — the Atlantic's first hurricane this season — hit several islands with winds of up to 225 km (140 miles)/h, and also damaged roads, bridges and ports and telecommunications infrastructure. Many parts of Jamaica, Grenada and St Lucia remain without power, with one utility company forecasting "a long and difficult period of continuing darkness" in these countries. Jamaican power utility JPS said yesterday 60pc of its clients — just under a half a million households — were without electricity. "Our teams are doing damage assessment, and will complete the necessary repairs to restore power as quickly and as safely as possible," the company said. Beryl entered the Caribbean earlier in the week, leaving extensive damage in St Vincent and the Grenadines and in Dominica. St Vincent and the Grenadines will be without power for the next fortnight, chief executive of its power utility Vinlec Vaughn Lewis said. "We have significant damage … and we will be working to get power to facilities such as gas stations and supermarkets." Granada's ward island Cariacou is in an "Armageddon-like condition," prime minister Dickon Mitchell said. "The electricity and communication systems are wiped out." Winds from Beryl hit the southern coast of the Dominican Republic on 3 July, causing blackouts from a deficit of 900MW, according to distributor Edesur. Winds affected major natural gas-fired power plant AES Andres, reducing its regasification capacity for LNG and its fuel supplies to other natural gas plants, the government said. Beryl left several thousand people without power in the Cayman Islands yesterday as it left Jamaica and headed for Mexico. The Caribbean is likely to be hit by more strong hurricanes by the end of the season in November, a spokesman for Jamaica's weather office told Argus . "We have been promised a very active season with many and strong storms." The US federal weather agency NOAA forecast that there is an 85pc chance that this year's Atlantic hurricane season will be "above normal." The Atlantic season's first hurricane "sets an alarming precedent for what is expected to be a very active hurricane season," the World Meteorological Organization said. By Canute James Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hurricane Beryl threat to US offshore oil lower
Hurricane Beryl threat to US offshore oil lower
Calgary, 5 July (Argus) — A northward shift in forecasts for Hurricane Beryl could bring the storm to the mid-Texas coast early next week, but its threat to US Gulf of Mexico oil and gas production appears limited. US Gulf oil and gas operators evacuated non-essential workers from some offshore facilities earlier in the week as a precaution. But on Thursday those concerns appeared to lessen, with BP saying the storm "... no longer poses a significant threat to our Gulf of Mexico assets". Beryl had weakened to a Category 2 hurricane, according to a 5pm ET advisory from the National Hurricane Center (NHC), with maximum sustained winds of 110 mph. The storm is expected to reach the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico by early Friday, bringing heavy rain, hurricane-force winds and storm surge. Beryl will likely weaken to tropical storm status as it passes over the Yucatan but regain hurricane status when it enters the Gulf of Mexico late Friday-early Saturday. Current forecasts have it turning northwest to make landfall again somewhere between the northeastern coast of Mexico and the mid-Texas coast on Sunday. The US Coast Guard changed the status of the port of Corpus Christi, Texas, -- a key US oil export hub -- to "whiskey" on Thursday, meaning gale force winds are expected to arrive at the port within 72 hours. The port remains open to all commercial traffic. Earlier in the week Beryl was a Category 5 storm, which made it the strongest on record for the month of July. It was a Category 4 storm on Wednesday with maximum sustained winds of 140 mph as it brushed past the southern coast of Jamaica. By Brett Holmes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
French power sector braces for change ahead of election
French power sector braces for change ahead of election
Paris, 4 July (Argus) — The outcome of the French parliamentary election on Sunday could bring reforms that will impact the country's power industry, causing mixed reactions among market participants. The far-right National Rally (RN) and its allies gathered 33pc of votes in the first round of the French legislative election on 30 June, placing it ahead of the coalition of left-wing parties, the New Popular Front (NFP), and the current government's Ensemble coalition. But energy agendas strongly differ across the three political groups, creating a climate of uncertainty in the French power sector, especially as those programmes were put together in a rush after Emmanuel Macron called a surprise snap election, and they will probably need some fine-tuning. Divide over the renewable line On the topic of wind farms, the RN has reiterated its proposal to halt the construction of new wind projects, which could put at risk the achievement of French renewable targets. Despite the halt of new projects, RN leader Jordan Bardella in the party's last press conference said he does not plan to "stop all variable sources of energy", adding that wind farms currently in operation would not be dismantled. He also mentioned an ambition to "recreate a French solar PV [photovoltaic] industry" and to protect it by raising tariffs on the European level. But the party did not respond to Argus on the specifics of its programme. The NFP intends to develop both offshore wind and tidal energy, and has called for a vote on an "energy and climate law". And the current government has raised solar PV targets in its updated national energy and climate plan (NECP), in addition to raising the offshore wind goal to 45GW by 2050. "The pressure on public support mechanisms for renewable development would depend on the next majority in parliament," director of power and PPA advisory at consultancy firm Greensolver, Alexandre Soroko, told Argus . "It could change the way in which renewable energy projects under development generate their revenues and finance their development. If the pressure is increased, it would probably have a bigger impact on wind projects than on solar PV ones." Other market participants told Argus they expect delays in permitting processes if RN wins the election. Parliament last year passed the "renewable acceleration law", to speed up permitting processes that are longer in France than in neighbouring countries. A boost to nuclear energy The RN plans to strengthen the French nuclear fleet with a massive investment programme, making it the pillar of the French energy mix, while NFP's position is not clear on the matter. RN aims to increase French nuclear capacity through the construction of European pressurised reactors (EPRs) paired with small modular reactors (SMRs) and fast-neutron reactors. This plan echoes Emmanuel Macron's recent pledge to build 14 EPRs of type 2 reactors by 2050, with three pairs already planned . In contrast, the topic of nuclear reactor construction has been absent from the NFP's programme as views on it diverge among participants in the union, mostly between green party Les Ecologistes, which has been traditionally against nuclear energy, and the communist faction. An exit of the European power market? Criticising the rules of the European power market has been a recurring discourse on the French political scene. Bardella said he wanted a "French power price, that corresponds to the costs of nuclear production", while far left La France Insoumise (LFI), which is part of the NFP group, opposed the EU power market design reform in April. During the Europ'Energies conference this week, energy consumers association CLEEE's president Frank Roubanovitch said he was "favourable to the idea supported by RN and LFI of ending the marginal pricing mechanism while maintaining physical interconnections". But an exit of the European market would mean a "not optimal use of transmission infrastructure", according to European Commission team leader on the internal energy market, Mathilde Lallemand. Points of convergence Nuclear power, a protection of current hydropower concessions and the conversion of coal-fired plants to biomass are topics that are found in both the RN and Ensemble agendas. Although the RN plans to invest into hydropower plants to increase their production capacity, it is strongly opposed to the introduction of competition to the hydropower concessions system. The latter was mentioned in the draft energy sovereignty proposal unveiled by the government in February, but was never introduced to parliament. The RN party also wants to phase out coal and convert coal-fired plants to biomass — an ambition announced by Emmanuel Macron for 2027 at the end of 2023 . The second round of the elections is planned for 7 July. By Tatiana Serova Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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