Greenstat India to produce green hydrogen in Sri Lanka
Greenstat Hydrogen India, a subsidiary of Norwegian energy firm Greenstat, has signed an agreement with the Petroleum Development Authority of Sri Lanka to produce green hydrogen in Sri Lanka.
"The first pilot is expected to be commissioned in late 2023," Greenstat Hydrogen India chairman Sturle Harald Pedersen told Argus. "We are conducting a comprehensive feasibility study and developing a roadmap for green hydrogen for Sri Lanka."
The agreement likely marks the first time Sri Lanka has taken a step towards green hydrogen, with the government having set a target to achieve decarbonisation by 2050.
Sri Lanka has a lot of renewable energy such as offshore wind, which could potentially increase to a capacity of 73GW, that it can use to produce green hydrogen for domestic energy use, while its surplus wind power can be exported, said Pedersen, although a timeline for the rise in offshore wind capacity was not provided.
The Sri Lanka Sustainable Energy Authority puts the country's onshore and offshore wind capacity from new projects at 2MW and 3-5MW, respectively. Commercially available wind turbines have reached 8MW of capacity, it said.
Sri Lanka can move from an energy deficit to a surplus if it develops large volumes of green hydrogen and ammonia within the next five years, Pederson added.
Sri Lanka has become more reliant on oil product imports since a foreign exchange crisis forced its sole 50,000 b/d Kelaniya refinery to close temporarily in November 2021, and again in January. It bought 40,000t (298,000 bl) of diesel from Indian state-owned refiner IOC last month to meet urgent fuel requirements.
Sri Lanka consumes around 110,000 b/d of oil products but produces only about 35,000 b/d at Kelaniya.
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Hoekstra to face 'tough' EU parliamentary hearings
Hoekstra to face 'tough' EU parliamentary hearings
Brussels, 18 September (Argus) — EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, who has been nominated again for the role, is expected to face "tough" hearings in the European Parliament, according to a senior European official. The official told Argus that Hoekstra might have a "slight" advantage, as he underwent parliamentary hearings in 2023 when he took over fellow Dutchman Frans Timmermans' climate portfolio. At the time, Hoekstra was questioned extensively about past work with Shell and on climate issues. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen put forward new commissioner candidates on 17 September, assigning Hoekstra the climate, net-zero, and clean growth portfolio. All candidates will undergo hearings before the EU parliament votes on the new commission line-up. Hoekstra has said he is "honoured and humbled", but formal appointment depends on how he performs during the hearings before the European Parliament's energy, environment and other committees. Hoekstra's mandate would include drafting legislation to enshrine a 90pc cut in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040, from 1990 levels, into European law. The commission's 2040 target, revealed in February, referred to a "net GHG emissions reduction of 90pc". Hoekstra last year made a "personal" commitment to defend a "minimum target of at least 90pc" net GHG cuts. Von der Leyen has tasked Hoekstra with designing climate policies for the post-2030 period and developing an Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act. Other key objectives include channelling investment toward net-zero infrastructure and ensuring revenues from the EU's emissions trading system (ETS) are used "effectively" to drive decarbonisation. Hoekstra's responsibilities extend to advancing a single market for CO2, boosting carbon removals for hard-to-abate sectors, and phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. Hoekstra would work closely with former Danish climate minister Dan Jorgensen, who is nominated for the energy and housing portfolio, if both are appointed. Jorgensen will be responsible for advancing the Electrification Action Plan for industrial transition and overseeing a roadmap to phase out Russian energy imports. He is tasked with ensuring the "full use" of joint procurement mechanisms, with a mandate to extend the current aggregated demand system from gas to include hydrogen and potentially other commodities. Supervising both Hoekstra and Jorgensen, in addition to von der Leyen, will be Teresa Ribera, Spain's former climate minister. Ribera has been nominated as executive vice-president for a clean, just and competitive transition. European Parliament officials expect to receive financial declarations and other procedural documents in the coming days. That will allow parliamentary committees to send written questions to Hoekstra and other nominated commissioners, officially kicking off the hearing process. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Asia-Pacific faces $815bn/yr green financing shortfall
Asia-Pacific faces $815bn/yr green financing shortfall
Singapore, 18 September (Argus) — Asia-Pacific holds significant investment opportunities in the energy transition, but obstacles such as insufficient public funding, lack of regulation and investment risks have resulted in a financing shortfall in the region. The Asia-Pacific region needs at least $1.1 trillion/yr in climate financing, but actual investment falls short by at least $815bn/yr, said Singapore's ambassador for climate action Ravi Menon at a conference in Singapore last week, referencing data from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). There is existing green funding in the region such as from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which estimated its investments amounted to $10.7bn in 2023, and bilateral arrangements like the $600mn India-Japan fund, established by India's National Investment and Infrastructure Fund and Japan Bank for International Co-operation in October 2023. But this is insufficient, especially as the region's energy demand is only set to rise further. Energy demand in Asia is growing by 2.9pc/yr, the highest of any region in the world, said Menon. Renewables such as solar and wind are now more cost-competitive than fossil fuels, but the region needs more grid connectivity and capacity to make renewable energy a viable option. Building transmission lines and energy storage in the region alone will cost about $2.4 trillion over the next 10 years, added Menon. Obstacles to capital flows Total energy investment worldwide is expected to exceed $3 trillion in 2024, with about $2 trillion going to clean technologies and slightly over $1 trillion toward fossil fuels, according to the IEA's World Energy Investment 2024 report. Fossil fuel financing by the world's 60 largest banks rose to $705bn in 2023 , up by 4.8pc from $673bn in 2022, with the rise largely driven by LNG financing. The continued investments in fossil fuels and fossil fuel-based technologies will lead to more carbon-intensive infrastructure, divert capital from clean energy alternatives and undermine climate targets, derailing Asia-Pacific from its energy transition goals. Emerging economies typically have "many developmental needs" to take care of, hence public financing in these countries cannot shoulder the overall trajectory of growth of energy transition financing, said the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis' (IEEFA) sustainable finance and climate risk research lead Shantanu Srivastava at the IEEFA Energy Finance 2024 conference earlier this month. Many smaller economies rely on financing from multilateral development banks (MDBs), but this comes in "bits and pieces" and with many strings attached, he added. It is hence essential to bring in private capital, but the region faces challenges in attracting private investments. The lack of a sound climate information architecture hampers accurate assessment and tracking of climate risks, which impedes investors' ability to make decisions and prevents the scale-up of climate finance, according to the IMF. Other measurable risks — such as political risk, credit risk, and foreign exchange risk — often significantly raise the risk premium of investments into the region. Investors tend to expect higher returns on investments with higher risk premiums, but there are limited investment opportunities available which would provide such returns and this prevents foreign capital from scaling, according to Srivastava. Insufficient regulatory and government measures in the region as well as the inconsistency of existing ones also deter private investors, as these increase project execution risks. Policy continuity and long-term visibility of what the country is going to do is essential as a "policy flip-flop" deters investor confidence, Srivastava said. Tools to attract more climate finance Blended finance is necessary to mobilise private capital for Asia's energy transition, according to Menon. Governments and development finance institutions could provide concessional or risk capital in the form of grants and limited guarantees, while MDBs can provide technical assistance in the form of development expertise, capacity building and institutional support, he said. Finance can also be encouraged through sovereign sustainable bonds, which can stimulate local sustainable bond markets by setting long-term price benchmarks, boosting liquidity, and serving as models for private issuers, according to IEEFA. The issuance of these bonds also signal a dedicated government commitment to sustainability goals and can drive the development of a robust and transparent regulatory environment, IEEFA added. This is crucial for the long-term growth and stability of the region's sustainable bond markets, which is essential for boosting investors' confidence. Another method is through revenue generation tools, such as carbon pricing and carbon taxes, according to the Financing Just Transition Through Emission Trading Systems report released earlier this month by think-tank Asia Society Policy Institute (ASPI). Carbon pricing sends a strong signal to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and indicates the government's intent to intensify efforts related to energy transition, which encourages private capital flow, stated the ASPI report. Carbon pricing also has the potential to generate substantial revenue, which can be allocated to climate funds to support low-carbon technology innovation and aid enterprises in making green investments, to aid low-carbon transition efforts, the ASPI report added. By Joey Chan Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
German CCS debate heats up as government advances
German CCS debate heats up as government advances
Berlin, 17 September (Argus) — The debate on carbon capture and storage (CCS) is heating up in Germany, as the federal government finalises its carbon management strategy and environmental groups reiterate their warnings on the associated risks. Environmental group Greenpeace today slammed Berlin's plan to support CCS technology as part of its nascent carbon management strategy. Greenpeace pointed to the technical risks and high costs, and that Europe's only larger CCS sites — Norway's Sleipner and Snohvit — have already encountered "unexpected" problems. Germany's federal ministry of economic affairs and climate action stressed in a strategy paper last week that CCS is categorised as safe and "not a high-risk technology". The ministry started consultations last week on its strategy with other relevant ministries, with a draft to be sent to parliament in the next few weeks. The paper stresses that funding will be available only for dealing with technically unavoidable and "hard-to-abate" emissions, based on a "scoring model" developed by the economy ministry that analyses CCS use based on costs, technological availability, avoidance potential, emission source and lock-in risk. The cement, lime and thermal waste treatment sectors have been given an "A" score, as their emissions are deemed "technically unavoidable", with steam crackers scoring a "B", allowing these sectors to be considered eligible for support. Blue hydrogen, the glass industry and gas-based direct reduced iron (DRI) technology in the steel industry are rated "C", and aluminium, gas-fired power plants, combined-heat-and power (CHP) plants, and blast furnace technology in the steel industry are rated "D". The development of CO2 infrastructure should be "private-sector and market-driven" and "as competitive as possible", the paper said, but some "hedging mechanisms" for investors may be necessary in the "ramp-up" phase to mitigate the risks for first movers and leverage the long-term potential for economies of scale. Support would go beyond Germany's carbon contracts for difference (CCfDs), and possibly imply some kind of state backing via public bank KfW. CCfDs are among the existing funding instruments planned for certain CCS applications for larger industry firms, along with decarbonisation aid for medium-sized companies presented last month . The ministry plans to set up a CO2 infrastructure working group to co-ordinate planning, possibly alongside other working groups on areas such as CO2 use or storage. The annual quantities of CO2 to be sequestered in Germany are estimated at 34mn-73mn t of CO2 in 2045. Germany's amended draft carbon storage bill, which forms the legal framework for the pipeline-based transport and storage of CO2, is now under parliamentary scrutiny. And Germany will deal with carbon removal and the targets for "technical sinks" in its long-term strategy on negative emissions, which the government aims to present by the end of this year. By Chloe Jardine Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Cop 29 presidency sets out initiatives, summit agenda
Cop 29 presidency sets out initiatives, summit agenda
London, 17 September (Argus) — The president-designate of the UN Cop 29 climate summit, Azerbaijan's Mukhtar Babayev, has set out 14 initiatives and a detailed agenda for the conference, including a new focus on methane reduction and tackling barriers to a "clean hydrogen" market. There is an "urgent need to harmonise international frameworks, regulations and standards to create viable business models" for hydrogen, Babayev said. The Cop 29 presidency will build on the declaration of intent on mutual recognition of hydrogen certification schemes, made at Cop 28 last year, it said. It plans to launch a framework to set priorities ahead of Cop 30, scheduled for November 2025 in Brazil. The Cop 29 presidency also aims to tackle "the growing problem of methane from organic waste", it said. Methane — a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) — is often a focus at Cop summits, although typically with an eye to the largest emitters, the agriculture and fossil fuel industries. Babayev has called for governments to commit to targets to cut methane from organic waste in their climate plans, as well as for more signatories of the Global Methane Pledge. The pledge, launched in 2021 at Cop 26, asks signatories to cut methane emissions by at least 30pc by 2030, from 2020 levels. The Cop 29 presidency has also developed a two-pronged pledge, which seeks to scale up global installed energy storage capacity to 1.5TW by 2030 and add or refurbish more than 80mn km of power grid by 2040. It has developed a "green energy zones and corridors" pledge as well, to maximise sustainable energy generation and ensure "cost-effective transmission over large distances and across borders". Babayev provided further details of a planned climate fund , which will be capitalised by fossil fuel producing countries and companies. "We believe that countries rich in natural resources should be at the forefront of those addressing climate change," Babayev said, noting that the direction came from Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev. The fund will be a public-private partnership, with "concessional and grant-based support to rapidly address the consequences of natural disasters" in developing countries, Babayev said. It will "provide offtake agreement guarantees for small and medium-sized renewable energy producers and first-loss capital for green industrial projects", with a focus on food and agriculture, he said. Cop 29 is set to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan on 11-22 November. It will be the first Cop hosted in the Caucasus region, Babayev noted. He flagged the "extreme heat [and] water scarcity" the region faces, but also pointed to its wind and solar power potential. Topics of other programmes set out today include water, climate action in tourism and a peace initiative which emphasised the "interplay between conflict and climate change". By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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