Japan sticks with a climate solution that critics say is far from clean
The hosting of its third International Conference on Fuel Ammonia was another sign of Japan’s unwavering commitment to a climate solution that critics say is far from clean, writes Annelise Giseburt in The Japan Times.
Energy-hungry Cambodia takes a big gamble on coal
Cambodia’s plans for coal power expansion have survived China’s promise to cut overseas coal investments. But most of the promised plants are still not built as volatile fuel prices, and the push for clean energy threaten the future of coal, writes Anton L. Delgado in the Mekong Eye.
We can’t breathe: A village in India fights coal dust in their lungs
Residents living near the Hinduja power plant near the port city of Visakhapatnam in Andhra Pradesh have requested the company relocate them away from exposure to the plant’s coal ash dump. The privately-owned Hinduja National Power Corporation has declined, writes E Bhavani in The News Minute.
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Texas coal plant to close four years early
The New Mexico Public Regulation Commission has voted in favour of an agreement with Xcel Energy’s subsidiary, Southwestern Public Service Company (SPS), to bring forward the closure of the 1136 megawatt (MW) Tolk Generating Station in Texas from 2032 to 2028. The agreement also requires SPS to only operate the plant when it economically benefits customers. The plant was commissioned in 1982 and serves customers in Texas and New Mexico. In 2020, the Sierra Club agreed with SPS to close the plant by the end of 2032 and assess the option of an earlier retirement based on the plant’s operating costs and its significant role in depleting the Ogallala Aquifer. (Utility Dive, Sierra Club)
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Death toll at ArcelorMittal’s Kazak mine triggers nationalisation: Forty-five coal miners died in an explosion at ArcelorMittal’s underground Kostenco metallurgical coal mine in Kazakhstan. One more miner is missing, presumed dead. In the wake of the disaster, ArcelorMittal announced it had agreed to transfer the ownership of ArcelorMittal Temirtau to the Republic of Kazakhstan. ArcelorMittal Temirtau operates a steelworks that produces four million tonnes of steel annually. The steelworks is supplied with raw materials from eight coal mines and four iron ore mines in the country. Anger at ArcelorMittal, which took over the steel plant and mining operations in 1995 after the collapse of the Soviet Union, has been simmering for a long time over pollution from its operations and a poor safety record. After the latest disaster, President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev described ArcelorMittal as “the worst enterprise in Kazakhstan’s history in terms of cooperation with the government”. (Guardian, ArcelorMittal)
Formation of new Polish government delayed by President: The formation of a new Polish government comprising three opposition parties may be delayed until December after President Andrzej Duda, a former member of the defeated nationalist Law and Justice party (PiS), said he wouldn’t convene the first sitting of the new parliament until November 13. Duda has delayed announcing who he will nominate as prime minister until later. At the November 15 election, PiS and the right-wing Confederation alliance won just 218 seats of the 460 seats, with the centrist Civic Coalition, the centre-right Third Way and the left-wing Lewica winning 248 seats. The three parties in the likely new government broadly agree on the need for a rapid switch to renewables and a reduced reliance on coal generation. However, they will likely face opposition from the coal mining unions and Duda, whose term as President runs until late 2025. The President has the power to initiate and veto bills. (Guardian)
Report estimates up to 32,000 deaths if Eskom plant closures are delayed: The Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA) estimates postponing the decommissioning of more of Eskom’s old coal units until after 2030 would cause 15,300 excess air pollution-related deaths. South Africa’s Integrated Resource Plan, which came into effect in 2019, proposed the closure of 11,300 MW of coal capacity at seven plants by 2030. Since then, only the Komati coal plant has been retired. CREA warns that delaying the retirement of units until the 2030s risks delaying the closures currently slated for the 2030s and 2040s. In this case, this would extend residents’ air pollution exposure and result in 32,300 deaths from air pollution from Eskom’s coal plants. Calib Cassim, Eskom’s interim CEO, said that the utility is looking to delay the closure of more coal plants that require minimal investments by two to four years to help eliminate load shedding. But Cassim acknowledges that longer delays would cause more pollution and risk stalling the transition to renewables. (Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air, Financial Times)
Canadian CCS group objects to 95 per cent capture requirement: The International CCS Knowledge Centre – a project initially jointly funded by BHP and Saskatchewan public utility SaskPower – is urging the Canadian government to weaken proposed power sector emission standards requiring gas and coal plants operating after January 1, 2035, to achieve a 95 per cent carbon dioxide capture rate. Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) proponents have promoted the technology as capable of reaching 90 to 95 per cent capture rates. However, a spokesperson for the International CCS Knowledge Centre opposed the introduction of regulations that are “too stringent” and warned, “There are many risks that must be considered, as there are no power plants with CCS that have achieved this level of performance anywhere in the world to date”. David Schlissel from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis said that when governments set targets based on high capture rates, CCS proponents backed away from their earlier claims. “They’re saying there are all these problems, which is what we and others have been saying for years,” he said. (The Energy Mix, International CCS Knowledge Centre)
Whistleblower accuses Southern Company of fraud over US CCS plant: A whistleblower lawsuit filed in US federal court alleges that managers at a Southern Company subsidiary directed staff to falsify financial projections on the cost of the 582 MW Kemper Carbon Capture and Storage project in Mississippi to obtain US$382 million in federal funding from the US Department of Energy. Kelli Williams, who worked as Construction Project Manager on the Kemper Project from 2010 to 2013 and then held other roles on the project from 2015 to 2016, first filed her whistleblower suit in 2018. Her lawsuit was sealed from public disclosure by the court. Williams has filed an amended lawsuit after a judge approved a Department of Justice request to lift the seal on the case. The Kemper project was initially estimated to cost US$2.4 billion, but this blew out to US$7.5 billion before the CCS project was abandoned in June 2017, and the power station switched to run on gas. Southern Company declined to comment and has not filed a response with the court. (Government Accountability Project, Loevy & Loevy [Pdf])
US judge backs Oakland coal port developer in draft ruling: Alameda County court Judge Noel Wise has issued a tentative ruling supporting the argument that Oakland Council breached its contract with Oakland Bulk and Oversized Terminal (OBOT) by not granting an extension to proceed with the construction of the terminal in Oakland. OBOT and the council have 15 days to file comments or objections to the proposed decision. Port developer Phil Tagami has proposed the port include the storage and export of coal, products the council decided in 2016 should not be transported through the city. The court will commence a second stage of the trial on November 28 to consider the issue of damages and other possible orders. (Mercury News, The Oaklandside, No Coal in Oakland)
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Australia: The Environment Council of Central Queensland has lodged appeals to the full Federal Court over the Federal Environment Minister’s refusal to assess the climate impacts of the Whitehaven Coal’s Narrabri mine and MACH Energy Mount Pleasant mine extension.
Australia: Theiss has won a contract to deploy 21 driverless haul trucks and three remote-controlled drill rigs at Pembroke Resources’ Olive Downs metallurgical coal mine in Queensland.
Australia: The Australian Religious Response to Climate Change has complained to the advertising standards regulator that claims on the website of Adani subsidiary Bravus Mining are potentially false or misleading.
Finland: The National Emergency Supply Agency has agreed to extend the life of Fortum’s 565 MW Meri-Pori coal plant until the end of 2026 to ensure security of supply.
India: The National Financial Reporting Authority has begun an inquiry into EY affiliate S R Batliboi, an accounting firm that has worked for various Adani Group companies.
Pakistan: A study by the Sindh Coal Authority found that Thar lignite is suitable for surface gasification and conversion into gas, liquids and urea.
Sweden: H2 Green Steel has signed an agreement to supply up to 35,000 tonnes of low-carbon steel to Porsche from 2026.
US: Ohio Republicans are pushing to allow SunCoke Energy, which converts coal into coke, to gain renewable energy credits for using waste heat to generate power.
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Few grants included in G7 funding offer for Vietnam’s just transition deal: Documents shown to Reuters reveal that just US$321.5 million has been offered in grants to Vietnam by the Group of Seven (G7) members as part of the Just Energy Transition Partnership. The grants would comprise just two per cent of the US$15.5 billion in proposed funding under the transition deal. Most of the proposed grants are from the European Union (EU) and EU countries. While US$2.6 billion has been offered in concessional loans from the EU, member countries, the Asian Development Bank and Canada, Vietnam is baulking at US$4 billion of commercial loans at market rates. Private lenders have proposed a further US$7.5 billion, but these are contingent on the adoption of specific regulatory reforms and the viability of nominated projects. Vietnam estimates it needs about US$135 billion up to 2030 for its power sector plan, but the G7 funding is for an initial three to five-year period. (Reuters)
Indonesia plans to drop captive coal plants from transition plan: The Indonesian government is planning to exclude all captive coal plants from its comprehensive investment and policy plan (CIPP), a key document outlining its commitments and projects to be funded under the US$20 billion Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP). Excluding captive coal plants aims to protect the rapidly expanding nickel smelting sector but would shift the bulk of emissions reductions onto public utilities. A report by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air and Global Energy Monitor estimated that there is 10,800 MW of operating captive coal plant capacity, with a further 14,000 under construction or proposed. Indonesia’s implementation plan is due for release for public comment this week. (Reuters)
Energy Community initiates action against Serbia over illegal lignite plant: The Energy Community Secretariat has initiated a dispute settlement procedure against Serbia over its refusal to close Elektroprivreda Srbije’s polluting 120 MW lignite-fired Morava plant. The EU’s Large Combustion Plants Directive allowed the plant to operate for up to 20,000 hours from 2018 without upgrading pollution controls. The Renewables and Environmental Regulatory Institute and CEE Bankwatch Network complained to the Energy Community Secretariat in June 2023, arguing that the plant had run for 23 051 hours since 2018 and continued to operate. Late last year, the Energy Community Secretariat estimated that the plant’s opt-out period would expire in September 2022. (Balkan Green Energy News)
Push to end subsidies for fossil fuel projects: The UK and European Union are proposing the OECD agree to cease all public fossil fuel subsidies at a meeting this month. In 2021, OECD countries agreed to end subsidies for overseas coal power projects, albeit with some caveats. This move increased pressure on China to announce a similar policy later that year. The UK and the EU are proposing OECD member countries require export credit agencies lending to align with the goals of the Paris Agreement, a measure likely to be opposed by major fossil fuel producers and supporters such as the US, South Korea and Japan. A recent European Commission review found EU member countries’ subsidies for fossil fuels jumped from €56 billion (US$59 billion) in 2021 to €122 billion (US$129 billion) in 2022 as governments sought to counter the effects of the surge in prices and supply disruptions after Russia invaded Ukraine. (Financial Times)
Bonds set to mature for major coal producers: Updated data by Toxic Bonds, a project of a coalition of NGOs, estimates major coal power utilities and mining companies have billions of dollars of bonds maturing in 2023 and 2024. The coalition estimates the Adani Group will need to refinance more than 23 per cent of its US$1.7 billion of outstanding US and Euro debt by the end of 2024. Other companies with bonds maturing in 2023 include the South Korean utility Kepco, the world’s largest thermal coal exporter, Glencore, the Indian power utility NTPC and India’s Power Finance Corporation. (Toxic Bonds)
Funding for Australian mine deal highlights challenge for met coal miners: The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis argues that the financing package for Whitehaven Coal’s US$3.2 billion purchase of the Daunia and Blackwater mines in Queensland illustrates the increasing difficulty companies face in obtaining finance even for metallurgical coal projects. While none of the four major Australian banks have policies explicitly restricting financing metallurgical coal projects, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia has revenue threshold limits for companies heavily reliant on coal. Whitehaven has flagged the possibility of selling minority stakes in the projects to global steel producers. In July, Whitehaven’s chief financial officer, Kevin Ball, told analysts that it was “increasingly difficult being a coal producer to attract external funding” and was turning to US debt markets. (Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis)
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Report finds proposed dirty steel projects outpacing coal-free plans: A report by Global Energy Monitor and the Stockholm Environment Institute estimates that 208.2 million tonnes per annum (Mtpa) of coal-based blast furnace capacity is planned, dwarfing the 83.6 Mtpa in planned primary green iron and steel capacity under construction or consideration. The report notes that while proposed green iron and steel projects are growing, they are mostly confined to Europe, Canada, and South Korea developed markets. China, India and Vietnam dominate the proposed coal-based steel capacity. The report notes that only a third of the top 50 steel producers have set targets to reach net zero emissions by 2050, and only 20 have set an emission reduction goal for 2030. (Global Energy Monitor [Pdf])
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Financial risk in Australia’s coal ports, Institute for Energy Economics & Financial Analysis, October 24, 2023.
This 21-page report argues that banks and credit rating agencies are operating on outdated assumptions about the climate transition and other risks to coal export terminals in Australia.
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