MSC scraps carbon offsets, focuses on reducing CO2
Switzerland-based MSC Cruises has decided not to pursue carbon offsetting and instead focus on directly reducing its carbon footprint.
In 2019, the leisure cruise company said it would invest in carbon offsets to meet future emissions regulations, but it has now decided to invest in research and development of alternative marine fuels, such as ammonia and hydrogen. MSC's vessels travel in the North Sea, the Baltic Sea and the Mediterranean, in addition to cruising in South America, the Middle East and Asia.
EU proposals to include marine fuel CO2 emissions in its Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and cut marine fuel greenhouse gas (GHG) intensity in EU waters could incentivize MSC to speed up its transition to alternative marine fuels.
"A core goal of MSC Cruises is to meet the industry target of 40pc improvement in emissions intensity by 2030, compared to a 2008 baseline," the company said, referring to an International Maritime Organization's (IMO) directive.
MSC will take delivery of three new LNG-powered vessels. The first one, MSC World Europa will arrive in 2022, and the other two in 2023 and 2024. MSC will also test fuel cells which can covert LNG into electricity and "are much more efficient than conventional engines". MSC Cruises also has nine of its 17 vessels outfitted with exhaust scrubbers.
Before Covid-19, MSC was expecting to burn around 679,500t of marine fuel in 2020, but it burned 290,596t, emitting 908,393t of CO2. In April 2020 all of MSC's 17 ships were placed in layup and only two became operational later in 2020. By comparison, the company burned 650,306t of marine fuel in 2019 and emitted 2mn t of CO2.
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New York picks WCI for carbon market platform
New York picks WCI for carbon market platform
New York, 26 September (Argus) — New York state will use the Western Climate Initiative (WCI) platform when administering its economy-wide carbon market, the latest sign that regulators in the state are looking to align program elements with systems in other North American carbon markets. Regulators from Quebec and New York announced the agreement on Wednesday at the International Emissions Trading Association's North American Climate Summit, an event on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly and Climate Week NYC. After a competitive process to select a platform for its market, New York state reached a deal this week to lean on the WCI for its "market registry platform, the auction platform, and financial services", New York State Department of Environmental Conservation deputy commissioner Jon Binder said. The WCI nonprofit provides the market infrastructure for California and Quebec's linked carbon market, as well as for a similar program in Washington state where regulators are weighing a potential linkage with the other two. Any eventual linkage with New York's program, which could see compliance obligations start in 2026, would be made easier by all the jurisdictions utilizing the same system for administering their respective programs. The decision does not "necessarily mean these programs are linking," but New York is "happy to keep those conversations going in that regard," Binder said. Nova Scotia, which wound down its cap-and-trade program last year, used the WCI platform for auctions without linking its programs with any other jurisdictions. "It doesn't mean that New York will link with us," said Jean-Yves Benoit, chair of the WCI board and the director general of carbon regulation and emissions data at Quebec's environment ministry. "Although I would be very happy if we issue a joint press release next year saying that." By Cole Martin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Brazil's drought: Northern rivers still dropping
Brazil's drought: Northern rivers still dropping
Sao Paulo, 26 September (Argus) — The worst drought in Brazil's history continues to reduce river levels in the Northern Arc region, hampering navigation on rivers that are used as waterways and are important routes to transport grains and fertilizers. Madeira waterway The waterway links Rondonia state's capital Porto Velho to the Itacoatiara port, in Amazonas state. Itacoatiara port is expected to receive around 371,435 metric tonnes (t) of fertilizers in September, according to line up data from shipping agency Unimar. Status: The situation is most critical in the Madeira waterway, the second largest in the northern region, in Porto Velho. The state's ports and waterways authority (Soph) halted operations there on 23 September because the Madeira River's depth at the port reached 25cm (9.8in), the lowest since monitoring began in 1967. The Madeira River depth in Porto Velho increased to 34cm on 26 September, according to monitoring data from the Brazilian Geological Survey (SGB). Amazonas waterway It is the main waterway in Brazil's north, handling around 65pc of the region's cargo, according to the national transportation and infrastructure department (Dnit). It links Amazonas' capital Manaus to Para's capital Belem. Status: The Negro River has also been falling. The depth was at almost 13.88m at the SGB monitoring point in Manaus on 26 September — an extreme drought level and very close to the historic low of 13.64m recorded in 2023. Tapajos waterway It is an important waterway to move production from Mato Grosso state's northern area, with the Santarem port, in Para state, as a destination. The Santarem port handled nearly 4mn t of cargo in 2023, with fertilizers accounting for 578,630t, according to the Para port authority. Status: The Tapajos-Teles Pires waterway is also facing a dire situation. The national water and sanitation agency ANA declared a water shortage on the Tapajos River on 23 September. Drier weather than usual has dropped the levels of Tapajos, especially in the stretch between Itaituba and Santarem cities, in Para state, where flows are below the minimum levels observed in history. The depth of the Tapajos River at the Itaituba monitoring point, where the transfer point for the Miritituba waterway is located, was at 92cm on 26 September, below the record low of 132cm, according to SBG data. At the Santarem monitoring point, where the port of Santarem is located, the Tapajos River was at 74cm, a level considered dry. The historical minimum at the location is -55cm below the port's reference point. A level below zero does not mean the river is dry, but a negative reading indicates very low conditions. Tocantins-Araguaia waterway The Tocantins-Araguaia waterway encompasses the Araguaia and Tocantins rivers. It runs from the Barra do Garcas city, in Mato Grosso, onto the Araguaia River, or from Peixes city, in Tocantins state, onto the Tocantins River, to the port of Vila do Conde, in Para. Soybeans, corn, fertilizers, fuels, mineral oils and derivative products are transported via the northern waterways. Vila do Conde port handled 19.3mn t of cargo in 2023, according to Para port authority. Status: The SGB has two monitoring points on the Araguaia River. In the Nova Crixas city, in Goias state, the river was at 299cm, below the historical level of 310cm. In Sao Felix do Araguaia city, in Mato Grosso state, the river was at 257cm, a situation of extreme drought and close to the historical minimum level of 251cm. In September, the federal government announced investments of R500mn ($91.4mn) to carry out dredging work on stretches of rivers in Amazonas. Para's state government requested another R146mn to address problems caused by the drought. By João Petrini Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hurricane Helene shuts in 29pc of US Gulf oil
Hurricane Helene shuts in 29pc of US Gulf oil
New York, 25 September (Argus) — Hurricane Helene, which is forecast to intensify as it heads for a late Thursday landfall in Florida, has shut in about 29pc of US Gulf of Mexico oil output. Around 511,000 b/d of US offshore oil output was off line as of 12:30pm ET, according to the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE), while 313mn cf/d of natural gas production, or 17pc of the region's output, was also off line. Operators have so far evacuated workers from 17 offshore platforms. Helene was last about 110 miles north-northeast of Cozumel, Mexico, according to a 2pm ET advisory from the US National Hurricane Center, with maximum sustained winds of 80 mph. Helene is expected to be a major hurricane, with winds of at least 111mph, when it reaches the eastern Florida coast on Thursday evening. "A turn toward the north and north-northeast with an increase in forward speed is expected later today through Thursday, bringing the center of Helene across the eastern Gulf of Mexico and to the Florida Big Bend coast by Thursday evening," the center said. Shell restarting some production Although the hurricane will largely pass to the east of most offshore oil and gas production areas, companies have taken precautionary measures. Given a shift in the forecast track, Shell said late Tuesday that it had started to ramp up production at the Appomattox platform to normal levels, and was in the process of restoring output at the Stones facility, both off the coast of Louisiana. It paused some drilling operations. Chevron said earlier it was shutting in production at company-operated facilities in the Gulf of Mexico, and evacuating all workers. Equinor said it was shutting down the Titan oil platform. BP had earlier this week started to shut in production at its Na Kika and Thunder Horse platforms, southeast of New Orleans, and was curtailing output from its Argos and Atlantis facilities, as well as removing non-essential staff. US offshore production was disrupted earlier this month when Hurricane Francine made landfall, with up to 42pc of production was offline at one point. The offshore Gulf of Mexico accounts for around 15pc of total US crude output and 5pc of US natural gas production. By Stephen Cunningham Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
LNG glut coming and may catch many by surprise: Orsted
LNG glut coming and may catch many by surprise: Orsted
London, 25 September (Argus) — There will be an oversupply of LNG on the global market in the coming years, which may contribute further to "the decade of turmoil", Danish utility Orsted senior vice-president Rune Sonne Bundgaard-Jorgensen told Argus . "The [energy] crisis is absolutely not over. To me, an energy crisis is one of uncertainty and volatility," Bundgaard-Jorgensen said on the sidelines of the Energy Trading Week conference in London. "We are going to see an LNG glut which we all in this [conference] room see is coming but the rest of the world does not necessarily. That is going to catch a lot of people by surprise," he said, adding that "surprises are never good when it comes to energy". According to Bundgaard-Jorgensen, "we are going to see an ongoing decade of turmoil. Who knows where the war in the Middle East with the latest attacks on Hezbollah and Israel is going to take us," he said. Among other concerns, he mentioned "uncertainties in the Far East, around the South China Sea". "So, though the current energy crisis of decoupling from Russian pipe gas is over, the continued crisis of where we are going to get sustainable, long-term energy from is far from over," Bundgaard-Jorgensen said. Commenting on Orsted's long-term gas plans, Bundgaard-Jorgensen stressed that Orsted is "constantly evaluating" its gas portfolio. He refused to say whether Orsted is negotiating another long-term deal with Norwegian state-controlled Equinor after their previous contract expired in April. Orsted entered an agreement with Equinor at the end of 2022, after Russian state-controlled Gazprom halted deliveries to the firm from June 2022 following Orsted's refusal to pay for its supply in roubles . "We are quite happy that we are out of our long-term contract with Gazprom," Bundgaard-Jorgensen said. "As a company we believe in decarbonisation — but I also need to believe in a resilient portfolio. So, we are constantly looking to optimise. Gas is not a strategic core of Orsted but it is a very important tool of securing our portfolio," he said. Bundgaard-Jorgensen refused to comment on whether the firm is planning to appeal a decision made by the Danish Supply Authority in July that the tariff levied by Orsted on the Tyra-Nybro pipeline to Denmark from 2011 to October 2012 was too high. The authority reduced the tariff in the period by almost 30pc to 7.20 Danish kroner/m³ from DKr10/m³. By Alexandra Vladimirova Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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