31 Oct 2011
Indonesia generates 86% of its electricity from conventional fossil fuel sources (coal, gas, and oil). It was also the third-largest generator of geothermal power in 2009. The country had 27.8GW installed generating capacity and generated 122BKWh of electricity, during 2008. 86% of which came from fossil fuels (oil, natural gas, and coal), 8%...
State-owned electric utility PT PLN (Perusahaan Listrik Negara) is the main actor in the electric power sector. PLN owns and operates 86% of the country’s generating capacity through its subsidiaries. It still maintains a virtual monopoly over distribution. The 2009 Electricity Law ends PLN’s distribution monopoly, but sufficient implementing regulations have yet to come into effect.
Before the Asian financial crisis, Indonesia planned to increase its power supply. PLN opened the...
07 Feb 2012
Australia is set to pour US$115bn into infrastructure expansion, to accommodate China and India’s desire for coal and iron ore early double global coal trade.
What happened
Bloomberg’s David Fickling reported on the Australian US$115bn infrastructure boom planned to make room for China and India’s want for coal and iron ore. The country plans to add AU$232bn in mineral and energy projects. The projects will near double the global coal, writes Fickling. ...
23 Nov 2011
France has the second largest energy sector in the EU. It is also the EU’s largest net exporter of electricity. Overall, France’s per capita CO2 emission rate is one of the lowest in Europe, due to its strong dependence of nuclear power. Nuclear energy also keeps the electricity production costs down.
Nuclear Energy
The country’s nuclear power industry has been labelled a “success” in terms of providing cheap, CO2-free energy. However, France's nuclear reactors are commonly used in load-following mode. Some reactors are closed over the weekend as there is no market for the generated electricity. 11 of the 15 inland plants have cooling towers, which use evaporative cooling. Others use lake or river water directly. As a result, generation output is limited during hot...
03 Feb 2012
Australian Flagship Ventures closes venture capital fund US$20m over target; Australia’s shale gas industry is a decade behind the times and massive infrastructural plans to support coal exports to Asia.
SustainableBusiness.com: Australia Seeds Largest Renewable Energy Fund, Flagship Raises VC (venture capital) Fund
As published on SustainableBusiness.com, Australia’s Flagship Ventures closed its latest fund at US$270m. This exceeded its initial target of US$250m.
The fund will invest mainly in clean tech/sustainability and healthcare early-stage companies. Some of the cleantech companies are:
· Joule (pioneering the production of liquid fuel...
30 Apr 2012
Due to delays on large hydropower projects and rising demand, Mozambique will have to wait until the end of the decade for a more reliable power supply.
What happened
Mozambique faces a limited power supply until 2020, due to escalating power demand and delays on major hydroelectric projects, reports Reuters. The proposed hydro projects include:
The1,245MW Cahora Bassa North
The 1,500MW Mphanda Nkuwa
Both are located along the Zambezi River.
Carlos Yum, director for business development for Mozambican utility Electricidad de Mocambique (EDM,) explains that the plants will be completed by around 2019. The two projects also rely on...
09 Jan 2012
South Africa’s strong economic growth, rapid industrialization and a mass electrification program led to power demand outstripping supply in 2008. Electricity Supply Commission (ESKOM) is the state energy company which supplies 95% of the country’s electricity. It has embarked on a massive program, upgrading and expanding the country's...
South Africa has been producing Nuclear energy since the 1980’s and is currently tendering to expand this project. Eskom is investing US$48.6bn into new generation projects through 2013 and plans to have spent in excess of US$126bn by 2026, doubling its capacity to 80,000MW.
Eskom is the largest producer of electricity in Africa, generating 60% of the total electricity generated on the African continent. It is among the top 11 utilities in the world in terms of generation capacity,...
02 Nov 2011
The UK closed many coal fired power stations to meet the clean air requirements of the European Large Combustion Plant Directive. This caused a growing 'energy gap' in generating capacity. The government estimated that the country would have a 20% generation shortfall by 2015. The 2006 Energy Review proposed the country construct new-generation...
The UK published its Low Carbon Transition Plan in July 2009. It plans to cut carbon emissions by 34% by 2020. The plan includes:
· Employing over 1.2 million people in green jobs
· Upgrading 7 million households to be more efficient and over 1.5 million will generate renewable energy
· Low carbon sources such as renewables, nuclear...
02 Nov 2011
51% of urban areas in Kenya have electricity, whereas only 8% of rural areas are electrified. (See: World Bank - Rural electrification programs in Kenya.) The country boasts a high level of renewable energy due to its 60% hydroelectric generation. However, drought, deforestation and the silting of dams limit its capacity. As a result,...
The Kenya Power and Lighting Company Limited (KPLC) generated, transmitted and distributed electricity in Kenya until 1997. The Electric Power Act split these functions.
There are 5 ‘actors’ in the energy sector:
· Ministry of Energy
· Kenya Electricity Generating Company Limited (KenGen)
– manages the nation’s public power generation facilities. The company...
02 Nov 2011
Brazil consumes the most electricity in Latin America. It is double what Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, and Uruguay consume. Brazil’s installed capacity can be compared to that of Italy and the United Kingdom. Its transmission system is much larger though. Brazil’s installed generating capacity more than doubled from 49.6GW to 102.61GW between 1998...
Brazil also has the world’s largest water storage capacity, thus creating the potential for substantial hydroelectric power. Hydroelectricity supplies over 80% of Brazil’s electricity needs. Hydroelectricity made up 73,678MW of the nation’s 96,294MW total installed capacity in 2007. This is followed by gas at 10.6% and oil at 4.4%. The recent droughts have pushed the government to look at alternate energy sources. State-owned Petrobrás wants to spend over US$174bn in...
30 Apr 2012
The 2.8GW HidroAysen hydropower project will give Chile the power boost it needs.
What happened
Chile's Supreme Court approved the 2.8GW HidroAysen hydropower project, after it rejected seven appeals, reports Reuters. The US$3.5bn project consists of five hydroelectric dams on two rivers in Patagonia.
President Sebastián Piñera approved the project last year, but plans were put on hold as environmentalists protested its construction, concerned about a negative impact on the region’s ecosystem. The dams will generate over 18TWh per year – 33%...
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