Singapore's MPA, IEA unite on maritime decarbonisation
The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the IEA have signed an initial deal to push the transition to zero and near zero emission fuels, while working on technology as well as digitalisation to meet the maritime decarbonisation agenda.
The agreement, signed by MPA chief executive Teo Eng Dih and IEA executive director Faith Birol, was announced at the Singapore Maritime Week 2024 (SMW) this week.
"Greater international collaboration in maritime and energy industries is critical for international shipping to meet international decarbonisation goals," Teo said.
"Shipping is one of the hardest sectors to decarbonise and we need to spur development and deployment of new technologies to slow and then reverse the rise in its emissions," said IEA chief economist Tim Gould. "This will require strong collaboration at a national and international level."
Training programmes will be built to support the adoption of new fuels. There will also be partnerships made towards fuel-related projects and initiatives such as the International Maritime Organisation-Singapore NextGen project.
The IEA plans to open its first regional co-operation centre in Singapore, which will be its first regional office outside of its headquarters in Paris, France.
Related news posts
Technical issues shut Japanese crackers, delay restarts
Technical issues shut Japanese crackers, delay restarts
Singapore, 26 July (Argus) — A series of technical issues forced Japanese cracker operators to shut their units or delay restarts in July, resulting in lower olefins output and higher spot demand. Idemitsu Kosan shut its naphtha cracker in Tokuyama, Yamaguchi prefecture on 15 July, because of gas leakage at its complex. The cracker can produce up to 623,000 t/yr ethylene and 370,000 t/yr propylene. Associated downstream units at the Tokuyama site are likely still operating, resulting in spot demand for prompt ethylene cargoes in the Japanese market, according to market participants. The restart date of the cracker remains unclear, with some market sources saying that the cracker could be on line again in first-half of August. But others said the cracker will be off line until end of August to coincide with Idemitsu Kosan's planned maintenance schedule. Idemitsu Kosan originally planned to shut the Tokuyama-based cracker in September for a 50-day turnaround. The firm declined to comment on the turnaround schedule, citing that the cracker remains shut and it is unsure when it can resume operations. Mitsui's cracker in Sakai, Osaka prefecture also encountered technical issues during its cracker restart. The producer has completed the turnaround, which took place in early July, but will need to procure equipment to address technical issues for the cracker start-up, market participants said. Mitsui's cracker has a nameplate capacity of 600,000 t/yr of ethylene and 280,000 t/yr of propylene. Fellow producer Maruzen Petrochemical also delayed the restart of its cracker in the Chiba prefecture. The cracker was shut on 15 May and was supposed to restart by mid-July. The shutdown has been extended to the end ofJuly, according to market participants. The reason behind the extensions were unclear. Maruzen's Chiba cracker has a production capacity of 525,000 t/yr of ethylene and 335,000 t/yr of propylene. Tighter supplies Shutdown extensions and sudden outages at crackers have tightened olefins supplies in northeast Asia, with Chinese market participants reporting limited offers this week. Asian ethylene prices in the cfr northeast Asia market rose slightly this week to $860-880/t, up by $8/t from the last session, according to Argus ' latest assessments on 24 July. Japan experienced a heavy cracker turnaround season this year, with four crackers conducting scheduled maintenance in the first-half of 2024. Eneos' cracker in Kawasaki prefecture was shut from 5 March until mid-May. Tosoh's Yokkaichi cracker in Mie prefecture was also shut for maintenance from 4 March to the end of April. Keiyo Ethylene's cracker in Chiba prefecture went off line on 10 April for a 14-day planned maintenance. Mitsubishi Chemical's cracker in Kashima, Ibaraki prefecture was shut from May to June. Total ethylene exports from Japan this year are expected to fall from the previous year because of heavy cracker turnarounds. Japan's ethylene exports were at 239,642t during January-May, down by 5,733t from the same period in 2023, according to GTT data. Imports were at 20,296t from January to May, up by 13,500t or almost tripling on the year. By Nanami Oki, Brian Leonal and Toong Shien Lee Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
BayWa suspends 2024 profit forecast over restructuring
BayWa suspends 2024 profit forecast over restructuring
London, 25 July (Argus) — German agricultural group BayWa on Wednesday suspended its full-year profit forecast due on 8 August, citing ongoing restructuring. It posted a preliminary revenue of €10.7bn ($11.6bn) for the first half of the year, down by 15pc from €12.6bn a year ago. BayWa's first-half 2024 preliminary earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation stood at €149.5mn, less than half of the €322.1mn earned in the same period last year. BayWa said it continues to be in constructive talks with its financing partners, adding that it also has postponed publication of the final half-yearly results to 27 September, citing impairment reviews. The company commissioned a restructuring report on 12 July in response to a "strained financing situation". The Munich-headquartered BayWa Group operates in the fields of energy, agriculture — including fertilizers — and building materials. By Suzie Skipper Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Singapore shortlists consortia for NH3 power, bunkering
Singapore shortlists consortia for NH3 power, bunkering
Singapore, 25 July (Argus) — The Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA) and the Energy Market Authority (EMA) selected two consortia, with one of them likely to lead the project to develop ammonia as a low or zero-carbon solution for power generation and bunkering in the island nation. MPA and EMA selected the two consortia from a total of [six firms that were shortlisted in 2023]https://direct.argusmedia.com/newsandanalysis/article/2501511), after a request for proposal (RFP) was launched. The final selection from the chosen two will be made in the first quarter of 2025. This project, which is part of Singapore's national hydrogen strategy , is looking at developing end-to-end ammonia solution that can generate 55-65MW of electricity via direct combustion in combined cycle gas turbines. Low- to zero-carbon ammonia would be imported and used for this purpose. The project is aiming for 100,000 t/yr of ammonia bunkering, starting with shore-to-ship bunkering followed by ship-to-ship bunkering. The two consortium leads are Singaporean conglomerate Keppel's arm Keppel Infrastructure, as well as Singaporean-based Sembcorp-SLNG. The consortia also include the following bunkering participants - Japan's shipping firm NYK Line, as well as Japanese trading firms Sumitomo and Itochu. By Mahua Chakravarty Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Refining, LNG segments take Total’s profit lower in 2Q
Refining, LNG segments take Total’s profit lower in 2Q
London, 25 July (Argus) — TotalEnergies said today that a worsening performance at its downstream Refining & Chemicals business and its Integrated LNG segment led to a 7pc year-on-year decline in profit in the second quarter. Profit of $3.79bn was down from $5.72bn for the January-March quarter and from $4.09bn in the second quarter of 2023. When adjusted for inventory effects and special items, profit was $4.67bn — slightly lower than analysts had been expecting and 6pc down on the immediately preceding quarter. The biggest hit to profits was at the Refining & Chemicals segment, which reported an adjusted operating profit of $639mn for the April-June period, a 36pc fall on the year. Earlier in July, TotalEnergies had flagged lower refining margins in Europe and the Middle East, with its European Refining Margin Marker down by 37pc to $44.9/t compared with the first quarter. This margin decline was partially compensated for by an increase in its refineries' utilisation rate: to 84pc in April-June from 79pc in the first quarter. The company's Integrated LNG business saw a 13pc year on year decline in its adjusted operating profit, to $1.15bn. TotalEnergies cited lower LNG prices and sales, and said its gas trading operation "did not fully benefit in markets characterised by lower volatility than during the first half of 2023." A bright spot was the Exploration & Production business, where adjusted operating profit rose by 14pc on the year to $2.67bn. This was mainly driven by higher oil prices, which were partially offset by lower gas realisations and production. The company's second-quarter production averaged 2.44mn b/d of oil equivalent (boe/d), down by 1pc from 2.46mn boe/d reported for the January-March period and from the 2.47mn boe/d average in the second quarter of 2023. TotalEnergies attributed the quarter-on-quarter decline to a greater level of planned maintenance, particularly in the North Sea. But it said its underlying production — excluding the Canadian oil sands assets it sold last year — was up by 3pc on the year. This was largely thanks to the start up and ramp up of projects including Mero 2 offshore Brazil, Block 10 in Oman, Tommeliten Alpha and Eldfisk North in Norway, Akpo West in Nigeria and Absheron in Azerbaijan. TotalEnergies said production also benefited from its entry into the producing fields Ratawi, in Iraq, and Dorado in the US. The company expects production in a 2.4mn-2.45mn boe/d range in the third quarter, when its Anchor project in the US Gulf of Mexico is expected to start up. The company increased profit at its Integrated Power segment, which contains its renewables and gas-fired power operations. Adjusted operating profit rose by 12pc year-on-year to $502mn and net power production rose by 10pc to 9.1TWh. TotalEnergies' cash flow from operations, excluding working capital, was $7.78bn in April-June — an 8pc fall from a year earlier. The company has maintained its second interim dividend for 2024 at €0.79/share and plans to buy back up to $2bn of its shares in the third quarter, in line with its repurchases in previous quarters. By Jon Mainwaring Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Business intelligence reports
Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.
Learn more