2022-08-16 16:25News

16 August 2022

Mundus Nordic Green News

Norway and Germany "together on green transition and security"

On Monday, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz met in Oslo to discuss the main challenges facing Europe. The issue of energy was clearly on the table. Chancellor Scholz expressed great understanding of Norway's own electricity crisis. Meanwhile PM Støre said that he believed that all European countries were in the same energy crisis. This is why Norway, which is not an EU country, is fully cooperating with the EU's electricity programme. Earlier, under political pressure, Støre had said that Norway might have to limit or stop exporting electricity to foreign countries, including Germany, in order to secure its own supplies. After the meeting, Scholz said that "we will handle this matter in the spirit of friendship and solidarity," without elaborating on what this meant.

Støre said that Norway would cooperate with Germany in a number of energy areas, including hydrogen, carbon capture and storage, offshore wind energy and battery production. The Norwegian government stressed that Germany is Norway's most important partner and like-minded ally in Europe and both sides must stand together on security, climate and the green transition.

Regjeringen.no, Resett, MSN, Montel

Sweden needs to cut electricity usage and increase export, warns Government authority

The European energy system is integrated, so Germany's electricity crisis is also Sweden's crisis. Erik Ek, state-owned Svenska kraftnät's Head of Operations, says that if Sweden started saving electricity now and exported more to Germany, Germany could save gas in the summer. When Sweden needs to import during winter, Germany may be able to supply electricity from the production of gas. But it is not easy to export more electricity to Europe, because there are limits to the transmission capacity of the cables. When electricity prices are at their highest, residents can make a difference by saving electricity, as gas prices in Germany then dominate in Sweden and there is still cable capacity for electricity to be exported.

SvD

Uniper and city of Luleå sign LoI to move towards the completion of BotnialänkenH2

Uniper plans to work with the Port of Luleå, Luleå Energy, ABB and ESL Shipping to establish a regional hydrogen hub in Luleå, where hydrogen can be used in the regional process industry, converted into electric fuel for ship fuel or exported fossil-free hydrogen to industry. The letter of intent with the Municipality of Luleå is an important step in the work to establish BotnialänkenH2, which aims to accelerate the transition to a sustainable society in Luleå and Sweden. The project will create at least 100 new jobs in Luleå. The Port of Luleå is a central part of the project and its strategic location and mission make it possible to develop logistics chains in the region and in Europe. The project is currently in the process of being sited and the municipality believes that either Hertsöfältet or Svarton could be operated.

Press Release, SVT

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners wants to buy 3GW's "Northern Battery" project

Danish renewable energy investor Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) is looking to buy another gigawatt Australian renewable energy and storage project. The project, officially known as the Bowen Renewable Energy Hub, could include a 1.4GW pumped storage project, up to 1.3GW of solar, a 500MW wind farm and possibly battery storage and hydrogen electrolysers. The project is being developed by Renewable Energy Partners (REP) and Bowen River Utilities (BRU). They originally planned to build a dam outside Mackay, which has now evolved into a renewable energy centre. The proposal has a significant presence in the Queensland government, with a Memorandum of Understanding with the state-owned utility CS Energy, and is now seeking an agreement with CIP to take ownership and funding of the project. REP says its intention is that CIP will own the project and CS Energy will sign an offtake agreement.

Renew Economy

Skellefteå Kraft strengthens its focus on electricity market flexibility with investment in Emulate

The transition to renewable electricity as a primary energy source is essential for a sustainable social transformation. With the shift towards more weather-dependent energy production, interest in demand flexibility is increasing. With the help of the Emulate solution, Skellefteå Kraft wants to further develop a tool to meet demand flexibility. This means "collecting" energy that is not currently used and storing it via a "virtual battery" so that it can be recharged from the battery at the next step if necessary. In this way, the energy system is used more efficiently and can reduce the customer's electricity costs by up to 50%. 

Press Release

Biltema installs 1 million square metres of solar cells

Biltema is now embarking on the largest environmental investment in the Group's history. To ensure access to energy and ultimately self-sufficiency, Biltema is investing in installing solar cells on all its properties. It shows good results as a pilot launched in Denmark in 2019. By producing electricity locally with the help of solar cells, access to energy and a reduced impact on the environment can be ensured. In addition to supplying its warehouses, Biltema  also hopes to be able to sell the surplus of solar power generated during the summer. Biltema's multi-billion dollar investment is a continuation of the company's vision of zero carbon emissions.

Press Release 

Skanska signs USD 223 million contract to rebuild offshore wind marshalling port in Virginia, USA

The redevelopment of this project supports the Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind (CVOW) project, the largest offshore wind project of its kind in the United States. The project will redevelop approximately 72 acres of the 287-acre Portsmouth Marine Terminal for an offshore wind power harbour, which will improve 1,500 feet of the existing 3,540-foot terminal. Construction of the project began in July 2022 and is expected to be completed in 2025. 

Stockhouse

Norad provides NOK 85 million to support Scatec in developing green hydrogen projects in Africa

This is the first time Norad has supported a green hydrogen project, and Norad Director Bård Vegar Solhjell sees great potential for green hydrogen production in Africa, which can yield large amounts of renewable energy at very low cost. In addition, Solhjell says, it will be an important contributor to improving food security in Africa. This is because green hydrogen can be converted into ammonia, which is used to make man-made fertilisers and there is a critical shortage of man-made fertilisers in the African market. Norwegian company Scatec has committed a total of NOK 85 million to support the development of hydrogen projects in Egypt, Tunisia, Morocco and South Africa. Part of Norad's support is a risk premium for financing Scatec's planned hydrogen plant in Egypt. 

NTB, Press Release

Nysnø invests in New Energy Fund of HitecVision

Through the newly established New Energy Fund (NEF), HitecVision will invest in renewable energy production, green energy infrastructure and decarbonisation. Nysnø Klimainvesteringer has committed to invest EUR 15 million in HitecVision's NEF and co-invest EUR 6 million in the fund's first offshore wind investment, Vårgrøn. Through the NEF, HitecVision will continue its investment strategy in the renewable energy sector. EUR 540 million through NEF has already been invested into the green industry value chain. The fund closed at EUR 875 million, bringing in other investors such as Nysnø Klimainvesteringer and Sparebank1 Forsikring, Ardian, Första AP-fonden, KLP, Lacera and Manulife. In addition, Vårgrøn has secured EUR 175 million in co-investment capital.

Press Release

Equinor Ventures invests in Inherit Carbon Solutions AS

In July 2022, Equinor Ventures, together with co-investors Stratel and StartupLab, successfully completed the seed investment in Inherit Carbon Solutions AS, a startup based in Oslo, Norway. Inherit Carbon Solutions will offtake CO2 emissions from biogas producers, bringing them to a permanent storage site. Equinor, a developer of industrial-scale storage sites in Norway, Europe and the U.S., looks forward to supporting Inherit in scaling up its business to reduce carbon emissions.

Press Release

What we’re reading
  • Weeks of heat above 100F will be the norm in much of US by 2053, study finds (The Guardian)
  • UN chief taps Grenada’s Simon Stiell as new UN climate chief (ABC17News)


About Mundus 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.