3 October 2022
EU Energy Ministers agree to regulate energy prices
After several weeks of negotiations, the EU countries were able to agree on concrete measures on 30 September to bring down the high electricity prices within the European Union. Electricity consumption must now be reduced and excess profits from electricity producers must go back to consumers. “It will have a big effect on prices,” said the Minister for Energy and Digital Development, Khashayar Farmanbar (S), after the meeting. The crisis meetings have taken place in Brussels in recent weeks to find solutions to reduce the high electricity prices. At the Extraordinary Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council (Energy) on 30 September, the EU countries were able to agree on three concrete measures to overcome the prices - measures that are in line with the proposals that the European Commission previously put forward. The measures that are decided on are partly about saving electricity by reducing consumption. Electricity consumption must be reduced by 5% during the hours when the use of electricity is at its highest.
The Ministers also decided on an income cap for companies that produce non-fossil energy, such as wind and solar power and nuclear power, and that make large profits from the high electricity prices. The idea is to use some of these excess profits to provide support to households and businesses. In a similar way, excess profits from fossil energy companies must be used to also provide support to households and businesses. According to the European Commission, the collected excess profits can provide as much as EUR 140 billion in support to the EU countries, which they can channel to affected households and companies. The idea is that this should be introduced as soon as possible and take effect already in the winter.
Denmark and Belgium sign landmark agreement for CO2 transport
An agreement between the Belgian and Danish governments has cleared the way for Europe’s first trial of CO2 storage in the North Sea, with the nations agreeing to enable captured CO2 to be shipped across their borders to be permanently stored in a sandstone reservoir beneath the seabed of the Danish North Sea. The agreement allows Ineos’ Project Greensand to move forwards with Europe’s first ever trial of the entire supply chain for CCS to be carried out later this year, the chemical company said on Friday. Ineos plans to capture CO2 from its plant at Zwijndrecht to be transported through the Port of Antwerp to its Nini platform in the Danish North Sea to be permanently stored. Project Greensand aims to store 1.5 MtCO2 by 2025 and up to 8 Mt by 2030.
Svenska kraftnät confirms: Decommissioning of nuclear power triggers power crisis
The Director General of state-owned utility Svenska kraftnät says the shutdown of the Ringhals nuclear reactor is the reason for Sweden's expected power woes this winter. The risk of blackouts is now greater than before due to Sweden's increased demand for imports and the fact that electricity and gas from Russia are no longer being supplied to Europe.
Vestas to supply turbines for Latin America's largest wind power project
Danish wind power company Vestas has received an order from Engie Brazil to supply turbines for the Serra de Assuruá wind power project, which will be the largest wind power project in Latin America. The order includes the supply, installation, operation and maintenance of 120 V150-4.5 MW turbines for the first 540 MW phase of the project. Delivery and commissioning are expected to take place in the second half of 2024. The contract includes an option for Engie to purchase an additional 68 units for the second phase of the project by the end of 2022. The agreement also includes a 25-year active output management services agreement.
PowerCell Sweden AB invited to participate in an EU project on the development of environmentally sustainable aviation
PowerCell Sweden AB has been invited to participate in contract negotiations for the EU Joint Programme for Clean Aviation, which aims to develop a new generation of environmentally sustainable aviation. Upon completion of the negotiations, PowerCell can participate in the development of specially adapted fuel cell systems of several megawatts. The Joint Commitment for Clean Aviation includes a total of 20 projects with a total budget of more than EUR 700 million, designed to support the EU's Green Grant and its ambition for the continent to become climate neutral by 2050. Following the application, PowerCell Sweden was invited to participate in the contract negotiations for the sub-project Newborn, led by Honeywell in the US. The Newborn project includes, among other things, the development of a specially adapted fuel cell system of several megawatts. Negotiations are expected to be completed in the fall/winter of 2022-2023.
NHO fears depletion of hydropower investments
After the Norwegian government proposed an increase in the hydro land rent tax last week, hydropower companies will pay up to 90% of the price of electricity above NOK 0.70 per KWh which is higher than the tax on oil and gas production. Steffen Syvertsen, CEO of Agder Energi, said he planned to apply for a licence for a pumped hydro power plant, which would help solve future challenges. But the additional tax has made this unprofitable, so they decided to shelve the project to apply for a hydroelectric licence. Currently, companies such as Lyse, Agder Energi and SKL are all set to abandon multi-billion dollar hydropower projects.
NHO CEO Ole Erik Almlid is critical of the increased tax on hydropower and fears that more participants will abandon their projects. Almlid said the tax measures announced for the power sector would exacerbate and prolong the power crisis and make it more difficult to implement a green shift. He said the basic problem we face is the lack of power. Norway will need more renewable energy for large industrial projects in the coming years. Norway's ambitions in battery production and hydrogen production could be compromised if there is not enough power. The oil industry and existing industries also need a lot of electricity to reduce the use of fossil energy.
Scatec's share price plunges as analysts say it must raise NOK 5 billion
Scatec's capital market day on 29 October aimed to invest NOK 10 billion in equity in new power plants by 2027. This is a sharp downward revision of the previous growth target. Last year, the company announced plans to invest NOK 100 billion in the development of new projects by the end of 2025. On the same day, the stock closed down 2.93%. Scatec's share price fell as much as 12.9% on Friday 30 September. After Friday's price drop, Scatec's market capitalization stood at NOK 11.6 billion. Earlier this week, Scatec announced that the company was looking for a new Chief Financial Officer. Tørud, who holds the position today, will take on another role as Director of Green Hydrogen and MENA. Tørud will remain in the position until his successor is in place.
DNB Markets lowered its target price on Scatec shares to NOK 70 from NOK 81 previously, and DNB Markets analyst Helene Kvilhaug Brøndbo said that although Scatec has significantly lowered its growth target, they see a 50% shortfall in the new target of investing NOK 10 billion in equity growth by 2027. Kvilhaug Brøndbo believes the company will have to finance much of this by turning to the stock market, which will be dilutive to existing shareholders. She retains a sell recommendation on the stock. Analyst Kvilhaug Brøndbo estimates that the company will have to raise NOK 5 billion through a stock market offering if it is to meet its growth targets for 2027.
Solar project planned for Joensuu - Neoen and Joensuu City sign lease agreement
The city of Joensuu and Neoen have signed a lease agreement for about 120 hectares of land in the Biotie business district. Next, the suitability of the area for an industrial-scale solar power plant will be determined. When completed, the solar power plant will support Joensuu's 2025 carbon neutrality target and the energy self-sufficiency of eastern Finland. According to preliminary studies, the area's strengths are solar resources and power transmission possibilities. Preliminary soil and constructability studies have been conducted in the area during 2022. The permitting process will take place in 2022-2023, when a detailed study of the area's suitability for solar power will also be conducted.
TECO 2030 wins award at the ZeroEmission@Berth innovation competition
TECO 2030 announced that it has won the Innovation Competition category "Innovative Concept" for its energy efficient TECO 2030 Power Barge. The TECO 2030 Power Barge provides a stable and continuous supply of zero-emission energy to ports and moored vessels. The power barge is designed with modular and scalable power output and hydrogen storage to reduce operational risk, cost and footprint while improving energy efficiency. The innovation competition ZeroEmission@Berth is hosted by The Maritime Cluster Northern Germany. The ZeroEmission@Berth innovation competition was launched by nine German ports to find innovative alternatives to existing shore power systems and energy supply methods for ships at berth, which also help to reduce emissions from ships at sea.
Finnish report flags gaps in EU law on domestic offsetting
EU nations lack the legal means to apply corresponding adjustments for carbon projects on their territories, a report commissioned by the Finnish government pointed out on 30 September, complicating matters for companies seeking to buy carbon credits across the bloc.
What we're reading
- Qatar funds RWE’s $6.8bn green energy deal in US (Financial Times)
- Europe’s fiscal discussions heat up ahead of cold winter (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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