The lackluster response to a Request for Proposal (RFP) floated by Pakistani authorities for a 600 MW solar power project at Muzaffargarh indicates a high-risk environment and a low benchmark tariff as the key deterrents to new renewable energy added through auctions. Renewable energy has been added to the system mainly through an upfront or a cost-plus tariff regime, but both were discontinued in 2016.
Read More
The UK government is exploring whether to permit hydrogen blending of up to 20% in the gas grid. Blending does not encourage strategic deployment of hydrogen in sectors where it is the primary option for decarbonisation. Without a strategic vision, blending risks locking in hydrogen for inefficient uses like domestic heating, at the expense of other sectors.
Read More
The update will look at key topics for renewables this year and next, including how the energy crisis will affect their deployment in the EU, their impact on energy affordability, and the latest trends in the United States, China and India. It will also explore the implications of developments affecting major technologies like solar, wind and biofuels – including market dynamics, financing, energy security priorities, manufacturing and power system integration.
Read More
China’s power market reforms have been evolving for 20 years. The core aim of the reforms has been to introduce more competition along the power sector value chain to diversify investments and optimize the overall operation. Beginning in 2002, power generation was separated from grid utilities who oversaw transmission, distribution, and retail. In 2015, the “current round of reforms” was introduced to bring competition to the electricity energy market and the distribution and retail market.
Read More
It is important to note that hydrogen is not a silver bullet for decarbonisation as its production can be carbon-intensive if it relies on fossil fuels. This is because the majority of hydrogen currently produced comes from steam methane reforming, a process that requires fossil fuels as feedstock. In addition, the production of hydrogen from renewable electricity can be expensive and inefficient as significant amounts of energy are required to produce hydrogen through the process of electrolysis.
Read More
Colombia Sustainable Finance State of the Market 2022 identifies sustainable investment opportunities in Colombia in accordance with the Colombian Green Taxonomy and the potential for green and other thematic instruments to attract investment to the country. The report describes the shape and size of the local green, social, sustainability, and sustainability-linked (GSS+) debt market.
Read More
This report summarises the findings, makes recommendations and identifies opportunities for government and industry to accelerate the deployment of offshore wind projects in the UK. The recommendations include reducing the time taken to plan and consent offshore wind farms, address major delays for grid connections and reform the remit of the UK’s Office of Gas and Energy Markets (Ofgem) to prioritise clean energy projects.
Read More
Peru’s non-hydro renewables segment will return to growth, supported by an improving policy environment following years of stagnation amid political instability. Low-carbon power technologies dominate the market’s project pipeline, with non-hydro renewables experiencing lower development risks than planned hydropower and gas-fired power projects. Non-hydro renewables’ share of the power mix will increase over the coming 10 years in line with government targets.
Read More
NEOM Green Hydrogen Company (NGHC) has announced that, following the signing of financial documents with 23 local, regional, and international banks, and investment firms, it has now achieved financial close on the world’s largest green hydrogen production facility at a total investment value of $8.4 billion. The plant is currently being built at Oxagon, in Saudi Arabia’s NEOM region.
Read More
In an effort to sharpen their part of the Western Interstate Hydrogen Hub (WISHH) bid and enhance their prospects of being selected as a DOE hydrogen hub, Colorado’s legislature passed a bill at the tail end of the recent session to layer state hydrogen incentives on top of the lucrative federal incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act.
Read More
To achieve climate-resilient economies, financial resources need to be directed towards environment-friendly projects and activities. Therefore, as green finance gains traction in the public and private sectors across global economies, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has announced plans to establish a framework for the acceptance of green deposits. As a financial instrument, a “green deposit” is an interest-bearing deposit received by regulated entities (REs) for a fixed period.
Read More
The fight continues over whether power sector decarbonisation should be fully achieved by 2035 – as pushed by the G6 – or predominantly achieved, as sought by an increasingly isolated Japan. The G7’s willingness to name specific targets for deploying solar and wind power for the first time shows the growing confidence of governments that they can deliver clean power at scale – also reflected in increasing calls for global renewables targets.
Read More
On March 29, 2023, DOE released ‘Advancing Offshore Wind Energy in the United States, U.S. Department of Energy Strategic Contributions Toward 30 Gigawatts and Beyond’ strategy, which is a comprehensive summary of its role to meet the country’s OSW target. The strategy has divided the OSW efforts by the DOE into four pillars – Near-Term Offshore Wind (NOW), Floating Offshore Wind Accelerated Research and Development (FORWARD), CONNECT and TRANSFORM.
Read More
Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Greece is reducing its reliance on Russian energy imports and ensuring secure access to energy by diversifying its supply and increasing domestic energy production. Despite these notable successes, significant challenges remain. Fossil fuels still account for most of Greece’s energy use and stronger efforts are needed on energy efficiency. In this report, the IEA provides a range of energy policy recommendations to help Greece smoothly manage its transition to a secure, efficient and flexible carbon neutral energy system.
Read More
Brazil’s Ministério de Minas e Energia or Ministry of Mines and Energy (MME), under Plano Decenal de Expansão de Energia (PDE) 2030 or Ten-Year Energy Expansion Plan (2030), has highlighted the upcoming generation projects in the northeast region and has suggested expanding the export capacity of the north/northeast to help eliminate electrical restrictions and ensure the full disposal of surplus generation in the long-term. To this end, the plan is to interlink the north/northeast and southeast/centre-west regions.
Read More
Africa is very well positioned to help lead the revolution on clean energy industrial value chains because it accounts for 80% of the world’s platinum reserves, 50% of cobalt reserves and 40% of manganese reserves and huge resources for graphite and lithium. Africa is therefore a crucial source for minerals and metals for clean energy value chains, including electric vehicles and utility-scale battery storage.
Read More
More than $1 trillion of private investment went into the global energy transition in 2022, which “shattered records” according to the report. The US attracted the second-highest amount, $141 billion, which represented an 11% increase over 2021. Over 40% ($57.3 billion) of this investment went into electrified transport, and $49.5 million was pumped into the renewable energy sector. At least $369 billion of government funds is also due to be invested through the IRA.
Read More
CBET is crucial from the viewpoint of energy security in the South Asian region, especially in light of the current geopolitical scenario. Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, global prices of fuels such as gas and coal have surged, adversely impacting the energy security in countries heavily dependent on imported fossil fuels for electricity. A case in point is Bangladesh, which has been suffering energy shortages for the past several months. Besides this, several other factors make CBET attractive in South Asia.
Read More
In 2022, the global energy storage market size was $19,000 million according to a recent report by Acumen Research and Consulting. The market is set to grow at a CAGR of 9 per cent, reaching $48,500 million by 2032. The Asia-Pacific region is expected to be the fastest-growing market for energy storage systems with demand coming from countries such as China, India, Japan and South Korea.
Read More
Prompted by a severe electricity supply crisis in the mid-1990s, Armenia has revamped its energy sector over the past 20 years. Parts of the sector have been privatised, some companies have been restructured, most households now have access to gas, and cost-reflective tariffs have been introduced. This has led to ample investment in capacity and networks, which has considerably improved reliability; funding came mainly from the donor community, upon which Armenia still relies for support.
Read More