Energy Strategy News

Developer of maritime battery systems EST-Floattech has received an investment of 4 million euros from Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam and existing shareholders Rotterdam Port Fund, PDENH, Ponooc, and Yard Energy.Energy Transition Fund Rotterdam is investing 3 million euros, the fund's first investment in maritime battery systems. The existing shareholders are jointly investing 1 million euros.The announcement was made by Chantal Zeegers, the Alderman for Climate, Building, and Housing in Rotterdam.

The Port of Seattle is installing a third shore power system at Pier 66, making it the world’s first port with three systems for cruise ships.The port receives over 200 cruise vessels in a typical season between April and October, and adding a third shore power system is a major component of the port’s Waterfront Clean Energy Strategy.The new shore power connection is expected to be fully operational by the 2024 Alaska cruise season.The contract for the shore power system components was awarded in November 2022 to Watts Marine.

Scotland's new First Minister Humza Yousaf and Just Transition Secretary Màiri McAllan this week visited Port of Aberdeen's £400 million South Harbour expansion.According to Port of Aberdeen, the duo heard firsthand how the port "supports Scotland's Just Transition and creates new opportunities in energy, trade, decarbonization, and tourism."Senior leaders from the port, Aberdeen & Grampian Chamber of Commerce, Energy Transition Zone and Opportunity North East met with Yousaf and McAllan to discuss the economic opportunities and challenges facing the region's key industries…

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has released its Offshore Wind Energy Strategy, a first of its kind, comprehensive summary of the Department’s efforts to meet President Biden’s goal to deploy 30GW of offshore wind energy by 2030.The strategy aims to set the nation on a pathway to 110GW or more by 2050.Deploying 30GW of offshore wind would provide enough power for 10 million homes, support 77,000 jobs, and spur $12 billion per year in direct private investment, says the DOE.The…

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) said Friday that it would hold an oil and gas lease sale in the Gulf of Mexico in March 2023.The Gulf of Mexico Oil and Gas Lease Sale 259 will offer approximately 13,600 blocks on 73.3 million acres in the Western, Central, and Eastern Planning Areas on the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf. Lease Sale 259 was one of three offshore lease sales initially cancelled by the Biden Administration in May 2022. The subsequent Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) mandated that BOEM hold Lease Sale 259 no later than March 31…

Italy's Emilia Romagna region has approved a project for a new floating LNG terminal off the coast of Ravenna in the upper Adriatic sea, it said on Monday, part of the country's broader efforts to replace dwindling Russian gas supplies. Almost one billion euros ($998 million) in total will be invested in the project, Emilia Romagna's Economic Development Councillor Vincenzo Colla told a news conference. The clearance took only about four months to be secured -- rather than years for similar projects in the past. As part of its energy strategy, Italy is adding two floating storage and regasification units (FSRU) to its existing three facilities. One will be off Ravenna, the other moored in the Tuscan port of Piombino on the other coast.

Canada and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) are among the first countries to back a new initiative aiming to advance the production, export and import of low-carbon fuels for shipping.The International Chamber of Shipping (ICS) and International Association of Ports and Harbors (IAPH), along with the CEO-led Clean Energy Maritime Taskforce, unveiled the ‘Clean Energy Marine Hubs Initiative’ on Friday at the Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) in Pittsburgh. The Initiative will be a convening platform for public and private senior-level stakeholders from the ports…

Greece has cut Russian gas imports by more than half this year thanks to increased deliveries from other producers to its sole liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal near Athens, the country's gas grid operator said on Thursday.Greece has relied on Russia for about 40% of its gas needs for years but it has ramped up LNG purchases from other countries in line with a European Union plan to cut dependence on Russian energy. It has been receiving Russian gas via the Turkstream pipeline which also delivers to Hungary via Serbia.Its LNG facility on the Revithoussa islet…

Hundreds of climate change protesters blocked oil terminals across Britain on Friday with some supporters climbing on top of oil tankers as part of their campaign to force the government to end its reliance on fossil fuels.Extinction Rebellion, which caused days of traffic chaos in central London three years ago, and another group Just Stop Oil blocked refineries around London, Birmingham, and Southampton.Police in Essex, just east of London, said they were dealing with three incidents and six people had been arrested.The protests are part of planned demonstrations by Extinction Rebellion, whi

The ports of Seattle, Tacoma and the combined container operations of The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA) have adopted near-term implementation plans that guide emission reduction efforts for seaport-related activities.The Northwest Ports Clean Air Strategy covers six sectors of port activity: oceangoing vessels, cargo-handling equipment, trucks, harbor vessels, rail and port administration and tenant facilities. The recently adopted implementation plans direct changes in equipment…

The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), an energy-focused multilateral development financial institution, and the National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) signed a five-year $108 million debt finance facility with Hartree Maritime Partners, LLC (HMP), the shipping affiliate of Hartree Partners, a global energy and commodities firm, with the aim to help boost maritime sustainability.The facility, in which APICORP acted as the Mandated Arranger and Facility Agent, will be utilized to finance HMP’s purchase of two eco-friendly very large crude carriers (VLCC).

Horisont Energi, a company working to develop its blue ammonia project in Norway, has signed a deal with liquid bulk storage company Koole Terminals to develop an ammonia terminal and storage facility at the Port of Rotterdam, for further distribution.Horisont Energi is developing the Barents Blue project in Norway's north, Europe's first large-scale carbon-neutral ammonia plant with offshore carbon storage. Gas for the project will come from Equinor's and Var Energi's offshore fields in the Barents Sea.

The investment outlook for liquefied natural gas (LNG) has improved this year but project go-aheads will not match the bonanza of 2019, as the fight against climate change clouds the prospects for gas demand growth longer term.Renewed optimism as the industry emerges from the pandemic, rapidly rebounding oil and gas prices and a better economic outlook is building confidence in short and long term LNG demand in Asia and spurring companies to look at new LNG projects, most of which were shelved last year when prices slumped.However, they need to take into account the ever tighter carbon emissio

Some €6.5 billion (around $7,9 billion) in port infrastructure investments will be necessary for Europe to reach its 2030 offshore wind objectives, according to WindEurope.WindEuope, which says that ports are key to offshore wind development, has called for the European Commission to develop a Ports Strategy "and recognize the societal and ecological value of ports.""To deliver the offshore wind expansion set out in the EU’s Offshore Renewable Energy Strategy, Europe’s ports must expand and add new infrastructure," WindEurope said Thursday."Ports are central to offshore wind.

The Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller Center for Zero Carbon Shipping on Tuesday announced its management team. to join CEO Bo Cerup-Simonsen in building an organization capable of facilitating the transition to a carbon free global shipping industry.Made possible by a DKK 400 million ($63.5 million) donation by the A.P. Møller Foundation, the Center was formed in June by a group of global shipping entities committing themselves to decarbonizing the maritime industry. The Center, which recently revealed its Board of Directors and a location at the heart of the Danish Shipping cluster in Copenhagen…

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will provide an €80 million loan ($94,7 million), alongside EU and EIB financing, for a floating storage and regasification unit in CyprusThe EBRD is providing an €80 million loan to the Natural Gas Infrastructure Company of Cyprus (ETYFA) for the acquisition of an FSRU and the development of related infrastructure.The FSRU will be permanently anchored about 1.3 km off the coast of Limassol in Vasilikos Bay and will connect directly to the adjacent Vasilikos power station, the largest power plant in Cyprus. The EU is extending a €101 million grant for the project under the Connecting Europe Facility.

ABB will equip Japan-built self-elevating wind turbine installation vessel with its power and control technologies.The company said Tuesday that the 28,000-GT jack-up unit on order from builder Japan Marine United Corp, and due for delivery to Shimizu Corp. in 2022, will feature ABB's closed ring configuration for the vessel’s dynamic positioning (DP) operations This will enable safe and predictable performance with high tolerance in the event of the power plant fault."Whether applied to newbuilds or retrofits…

The Trump Administration has proposed a $189m fiscal year 2021 budget for the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM), designating just under $27m for offshore wind.The FY 2021 budget includes approximately $26.5 million to advance offshore renewable energy development.In recognition of the role renewable energy can play in securing the Nation’s energy independence and supporting economic growth, BOEM continues to advance renewable energy through its leasing program and streamlining its permitting and National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) processes.In addition, the proposed budget increases BOEM’s capacity to undertake research activities and foster stakeholder engagement.According to a press note from BOEM…

Bay State Wind, a 50/50 joint venture between Ørsted and Eversource, has submitted its proposal in response to Massachusetts’ second request for proposals (RFP) for offshore wind energy generation.Bay State Wind included proposals for a 400 MW and 800 MW project. According to the developer, the 800 MW project could generate enough renewable energy to power up to 500,000 Massachusetts homes.“Since day one our team has been focused on delivering cost-effective, renewable offshore wind energy to the Bay State,” said President of Ørsted North America and CEO of Ørsted U.S. Offshore Wind Thomas Brostrøm.“Our project will not only create jobs and provide local investment…

The Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has issued a request for proposal (RFP) to appoint consultants to study, develop and construct floating solar photovoltaic plants in the Arabian Gulf."This is a new and innovative initiative by DEWA to use solar power that supports the objectives of the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 (DCES 2050) to diversify the energy mix in Dubai, to make the Emirate a global hub for clean energy and green economy, and provide 75% of Dubai's total power output from clean energy by 2050," said a press release from the authority.The consultancy services include a feasibility study, the technical requirements for a floating solar photovoltaic plant…

U.S. crude exports from Corpus Christi, Texas, have surged to a record in recent weeks, often surpassing hubs such as Houston and Beaumont, Texas, thanks to faster-than-expected infrastructure additions.The infrastructure boom at Corpus Christi helped push crude exports there to a weekly record of 1.59 million barrels per day (bpd) in late December, more than doubling levels that held for the first eight months of last year, and above Houston's 2019 peak of 1.36 million bpd, according to vessel-tracking firm ClipperData.The heavy flows suggest that fears of a bottleneck that would impede U.S.

U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke announced three major developments in American offshore wind energy spanning from coast to coast.The Secretary spoke at the American Wind Energy Association’s Offshore Wind Conference and announced 1.) much-anticipated wind auction in federal waters off the coast of Massachusetts; 2.) the environmental review of a proposed wind project offshore Rhode Island; and 3.) the next steps to a first-ever wind auction in federal waters off of California.“I'm very bullish on offshore wind, and harnessing this renewable resource is a big part of the Trump Administration's made in America energy strategy…

Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy (SGRE) has secured an order to supply its turbines for a 254MW wind farm in Sweden that will power Google’s Hamina data centre in Finland.The Stavro wind farm, SGRE's largest ever onshore wind order in Sweden,  will use 62 turbines with a 4.1MW rating. It is expected online by the end of 2021.Stavro is located in the northern part of Sweden, northwest of Umeå, and divided into two sub-sites: Blodrotberget, with 40 turbines, and Blackfjället, with 22 turbines.Commissioning of the wind farm is scheduled for the end of 2021 and the project will be covered by a 30-year service agreement also delivered by SGRE.