14 November 2022
Wallenberg: Government's proposal on nuclear power is not enough, a broad solution is needed
The pandemic, Russia's war in Ukraine, the energy crisis and high inflation have paved the way for the difficult economic situation. Worse times await, says Jacob Wallenberg, Chairman of the Investors and Swedish Business Confederation, including the US-China trade conflict and the rise of global protectionism. In an interview with SVT last year, Jacob Wallenberg said that Sweden could consider investing in nuclear power if the right conditions existed. Now the new government has put forward several proposals for nuclear power, but Wallenberg does not think they are sufficient. He believes that a cross-block agreement is needed in addition to the current proposal to support nuclear power. In this regard, a broad agreement is needed at parliamentary level to set the rules of the game in the long term. Wallenberg also said that he would like to see clear rules of the game for all forms of energy, not just nuclear. If possible, Sweden needs more hydro power, wind power and a planable energy base. Sweden needs to invest in all three areas and create reasonably equal conditions for investment in them before we can get a balanced electricity system over time.
OX2 and Hyundai collaborate on hydrogen-fuelled vehicles
OX2 and Hyundai Motor Finland have signed a Letter of Intent to make Åland a pilot region for hydrogen-fuelled vehicles. OX2 plans to build a full-size hydrogen station for passenger cars and heavy traffic on a 3 MW electrolyzer. The hydrogen refuelling station is scheduled for completion in 2024 to accompany the large solar power park planned by OX2. A prerequisite for completion is that all necessary permits are obtained and financial decisions are made. Hyundai plans to offer a variety of financing arrangements and testing opportunities to local companies to incentivise them to test hydrogen energy vehicles with limited financial risk.
Maersk "forced" to participate in huge green fuel projects
Maersk's decision to go green with shipping is now driving the company to take unconventional measures. Speaking at a climate summit in Egypt, Head of Decarbonisation at Maersk, Morten Bo Christiansen, said the shipping company had been forced to embark on huge multi-billion dollar projects when others could not provide the necessary amount of green fuel. Christiansen said that so far the shipping company had ordered 19 green ships, which will use the special CO2-neutral fuel e-methanol and need to be launched by 2025. Maersk will need approximately 750,000 tonnes of green methanol per year. This demand will increase sevenfold by 2030, when a quarter of all Maersk's maritime cargo will have to be transported on green fuels if the company is to meet its short-term climate targets. This would require around 5 million tonnes of green fuel per year. That is why Maersk recently signed a cooperation agreement with the Spanish government to develop projects that could supply up to two million tonnes of green methanol per year. Last spring, the company signed a similar agreement with Egypt, which Morten Bo Christiansen says has similar potential. According to several experts, this is an extremely difficult task that Mærsk has set for itself. Christiansen further noted that it is very positive that more companies are moving forward with PtX, and he also encouraged oil companies to get on board as soon as possible.
Norway provides NOK 500 million to Africa to support renewable energy
Norway is strengthening its investment in clean energy in Africa by lending an additional NOK 300 million to the African Bank's “Sustainable Energy Fund for Africa” (SEFA). The investment is linked to the support of the Nordic Environment Finance Corporation (NEFCO). Norway has been supporting SEFA since 2018. Together, this amounts to an addition to clean energy in Africa of NOK 500 million through Norad.
TECO 2030 ASA secures strategic investment of NOK 100 million from SunHydrogen
TECO 2030 ASA has received a strategic investment of approximately NOK 100 million from SunHydrogen, which is a US-based company that is the developer of a breakthrough technology for making renewable hydrogen from sunlight and any water source. Through its partnership with SunHydrogen, TECO 2030 will seek to increase its international visibility, particularly in the US, and advance its zero-emission fuel cell projects globally. TECO 2030 is currently accelerating the transition to renewable fuels through the development and construction of Europe's first giga-plant for hydrogen PEM fuel cell packs for medium and heavy duty trucks and PEM fuel cell modules for marine applications. Following the investment, SunHydrogen will be invited to take up a directorship on the board of TECO 2030.
Ovako’s first hydrogen plant ready for operation in summer
Swedish company Ovako in Hofors has been given permission to build Sweden's largest electrolyser for the production of fossil-free hydrogen. The hydrogen plant is expected to be operational by the summer of 2023. The Land and Environmental Court in Östersund has approved the application. The hydrogen plant will make Ovako the first company in the world to heat steel with hydrogen before rolling. The technological solution will also enable the large-scale and cost-effective production of hydrogen for fossil fuel-free transport using fuel cell trucks. This green investment is being made in cooperation with Volvo Group, Hitachi Energy, H2 Green Steel and Nel Hydrogen. The Energy Agency, through Industriklivet, is supporting an investment of approximately SEK 180 million. The plan is that, by 2030 at the latest, all rolling mills in Ovako will use locally produced hydrogen, provided there is a good supply of non-fossil electricity.
Partnership with Mc Energy broadens the field of use of Nilar batteries
Nilar International AB has signed a letter of intent with Dutch company Mc Energy BV, specialising in the design and production of advanced energy storage solutions. Mc Energy develops custom energy storage systems primarily for industrial users that can be installed in both indoor and outdoor container units. The Letter of Intent contains specific areas for enhanced collaboration, including projects and initiatives in three sequential areas:
- A "proof of concept" project where Nilar batteries will be integrated and tested with Mc Energy's GridConn solution (the brain that controls battery charging and discharging).
- A pilot project in which Nilar supplied batteries for the 7 Mc Energy BattPack 60 system, a complete energy store containing 50 Nilar battery packs per cell.
- Setting the stage for mass production of hundreds of Mc Energy BattPacks to meet market demand for 10s of MWh. The BattPacks are based on second generation Nilar ReOx cells and battery management systems.
Nel ASA receives order for 40 MW electrolytic tank from undisclosed Nordic customer
Nel Hydrogen Electrolyser AS, a subsidiary of Nel ASA, has signed a contract for alkaline electrolyser equipment worth NOK 120 million with a high quality Nordic energy company. The contract also includes a front-end engineering and design (FEED) study in connection with the delivery. The contract applies to the alkaline electrolyser equipment and the associated FEED, including the delivery mechanism for steel and nickel price adjustments. Production of the electrodes is expected to be completed by the end of 2023.
New EU agreement for emissions and absorption of greenhouse gases in forests and land
The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament have reached a preliminary political agreement to enhance the contribution of the land use, land-use change and forestry (LULUCF) sector to the EU's overall climate target for 2030. This is the third proposal in the comprehensive Fit for 55 package to be approved. It is important that the EU can agree on all parts of the package to achieve the target in the climate bill of reducing net emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The agreement on LULUCF means that the ambition adds a total of 85 million tonnes of CO2 equivalent to the EU. For Sweden, this means that by 2030, the annual CO2 uptake must be 4 metric tonnes higher than it is today. High growth in active forestry and products using renewable raw materials provide the highest long-term climate benefits. The Swedish Government assesses that Swedish forestry is protected according to the outcome of this negotiation.
COP27
Saudi launches regional Voluntary Carbon Market initiative
Fossil fuel producers propose their solutions at UN climate summit
This year’s UN climate summit is marked by being the first to invite oil and gas companies to participate in the official programme of events at COP27 in Egypt. The Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel al-Jubeir, told the FT that the Paris Agreement goal struck in 2015 to keep global warming to 1.5C, ideally, was “achievable,” but “we don’t see this as a discussion about fossil fuels.”
Meanwhile, US climate envoy John Kerry was being asked at a media briefing about a push by “a few” countries to omit the global warming goal of 1.5C, or 2C at worst, from the concluding text in the COP27 negotiations. He confirmed that a “very few countries” had “raised the issue.”
al-Jubeir would not be drawn on whether the Kingdom wanted a reference to 1.5C in the text, saying he would “leave that to the negotiators.” The focus should be on reducing emissions, not targeting the sector, he argues. “You can achieve carbon neutrality while producing fossil fuels, and we’re proving it in Saudi Arabia,” al-Jubeir said in an interview. A Saudi event featured TotalEnergies chair Patrick Pouyanné, and Amin Nasser, chief executive of the state-owned Saudi Aramco. Nasser listed tree planting, carbon capture technology, hydrogen fuel derived from gas and a “circular carbon economy”, or recycling, as climate solutions. “We are heavily investing in gas, because gas is a transition fuel,” TotalEnergies’ Pouyanne said at the Saudi summit.
al-Jubeir also indicated that Riyadh should not have to contribute towards so-called “loss and damage” financing, an issue that has become among the most watched debates at the summit and relates to money to help developing nations cope with climate-related disasters. “We didn’t contribute this damage, this damage was contributed over the past 120 years by industrial countries, and if you want to see where the problem is look at where the smoke stacks are,” said al-Jubeir. “We are a developing country.” (Financial Times, Financial Times)
What we're reading
- German chemicals giant stockpiles coal to keep producing (Financial Times)
About Nordic Green News
The Nordic countries are some of the most dynamic and successful economies in the world. They are also leaders in sustainability, from renewable energy, biofuels, carbon capture and storage and the hydrogen economy, circular economy business models and battery development, the Nordics are pioneers in policy design, technology development and consumer uptake. Mundus Nordic Green News is covering this transition for the international community. Every day we curate the stories of most relevance to international businesspeople and policy experts from the flow of news. Mundus Nordic Green Indices summarise the meta-data from our daily coverage to enable easy tracking of trends. We supplement these with our own opinion pieces and commentary.
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