South Africa’s new plan to end power cuts is seriously flawed
South Africa’s draft power plan has many flaws, including huge errors in costing the different future energy scenarios, writes Hartmut Winkler from the University of Johannesburg in The Conversation.
A dark shadow hangs over 14 Indian villages due to Adani’s Gare Pelma II coal project
The lives of thousands of tribal people could be upended as Adani presses ahead with the proposed Gare Pelma II mine in the central Indian state of Chhattisgarh, writes Ayaskant Das in Adani Watch.
The European Union’s carbon border tax and the fragmentation of global trade
The European Union’s carbon border tax was a hot topic of discussion at a meeting of 400 Chinese steel industry executives and engineers late last year to consider options for weaning the world’s biggest steel producer off coal-fired blast furnaces, write Alice Hancock and Sylvia Pfeifer in the Financial Times.
Power companies paid civil rights leaders in the US South. They became loyal industry advocates
Since at least 2009, consulting companies have worked on behalf of major power companies seeking to influence Black leaders and their organizations, write Mario Alejandro Ariza and Kristi E Swartz from Floodlight News and Adam Mahoney from Capitol B.
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Bosnia and Herzegovina abandons the proposed Tuzla 7 lignite unit
The Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Nermin Niksic, has confirmed that the proposed 450 MW Tuzla 7 lignite unit will not proceed, over a decade after the project was first announced in May 2011. Elektroprivreda BiH, a state-owned utility, pressed for the project despite losing key partners, such as General Electric, a legal challenge against the permit for the plant by Ekotim, a BiH NGO, and increasing economic difficulties. In mid-2022, the State Aid Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina ruled that a state guarantee for the €614 million (US$672 million) loan from the China Eximbank for the plant was illegal. (Intellinews, Global Energy Monitor)
First of three large coal units in Minnesota closes
The 680 megawatt (MW) Unit 2 at Xcel Energy’s Sherburne County Generating Station in Minnesota shut down on New Year’s Eve, the first stage in the closure of one of the most polluting coal plants in the US. Unit 2 was first commissioned in 1977, with the remaining 680 MW Unit 1 and the 860 MW Unit 3 scheduled to close in 2026 and 2030, respectively. Isabel Ricker from Fresh Energy, a clean energy NGO, said the closure of Unit 2 was a “momentous occasion”. In October 2015, the company announced its intent to close the two oldest units at the plant in 2023 and 2026. Unit 3, commissioned in 1987, was added to the closure schedule in 2019 with an initial retirement date of 2034. The following year, Xcel Energy brought forward the closure date to 2030. (Star Tribune)
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Investigation finds Indian journalists and MP’s phones hit with spyware: A joint investigation by the Washington Post and Amnesty International has found that the phones of high-profile Indian journalists were infected with Pegasus spyware, including Anand Mangnale, the South Asia editor of The Organised Crime and Corruption Report Project (OCCRP). Mangnale’s phone was attacked within a day of contacting Adani for comment on a story on the involvement of Vinod Adani in alleged violations of Indian securities law. On October 31, Apple notified iPhone users, including 20 Indian opposition leaders and journalists, who may have been targeted by “state-sponsored” attacks. The NSO Group, an Israeli company, developed the Pegasus spyware, which says it sells the software only to approved governments. Hardware to run the system has been purchased by India’s Intelligence Bureau, leading the groups to conclude the phones were most likely infected at the instigation of the Indian government. The revelation follows the targeting of NGOs, journalists, and politicians critical of the Adani Group by the Modi government. Journalists Ravi Nair and Anand Mangnale are the subject of an investigation by Gujarat police after completing a report on Adani for OCCRP, and NGO groups have been blocked from accessing international funding. (Al Jazeera, Amnesty International, Adani Watch)
Indian court sets a three-month deadline for Adani investigation: The Supreme Court of India has directed the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to conclude its outstanding investigations into allegations against Adani Group companies of stock manipulation within three months. SEBI told the court it had completed 22 of the 24 investigations initiated after the January 2023 report by the short seller Hindenburg Research alleging breaches of corporate regulations by the Adani Group. The Supreme Court rejected applications by public interest petitioners seeking an independent investigation by a team reporting either directly to the court or the Central Bureau of Investigation. A spokesperson for the opposition Congress Party, Jairam Ramesh, said the ruling was “extraordinarily generous to SEBI”. Ramesh said the Expert Committee appointed initially to investigate the Hindenburg Research allegations pointed to SEBI’s decisions in 2018 and 2019 to weaken and then abandon reporting requirements for companies to disclose the ultimate owners of foreign shareholdings. (The Hindu, Business Today)
New South Wales government backs expansion of mine: In the days before Christmas, the New South Wales Department of Planning and Environment recommended the approval of Idemitsu’s proposed expansion of its Boggabri coal mine. The expansion will allow Idemitsu to produce an additional 26 million tonnes of coal over three years to 2036. Before the March 2023 state election, the then Labor Party opposition said, “New coal mine projects must be subject to an independent approval process”. However, the newly elected Minns government classed the expansion as a modification that did not require independent assessment. Lock the Gate said the project is the first of 14 coal projects likely to be considered by the NSW state government in the next 18 months. The projects have the potential to generate two billion tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions. (The Land [paywall], Lock the Gate, Department of Planning and Environment [Pdf])
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Australia: New Wilkie Energy, which operates the Wilkie Creek thermal coal mine, has laid off more than 100 workers after being placed into administration on December 27.
Europe: Wind generation exceeded coal generation in Europe for the first time in the last quarter of 2023.
Germany: EPH has closed the 690 MW Mehrum 3 coal plant. The plant was recommissioned in August 2022 to run until April 2023 to address energy security concerns after Russia invaded Ukraine.
Japan: Hokuriku Electricity Power shut down the 1200 MW Nanao Ota coal plant after an earthquake on 1 January. The utility also shut down the 250 MW No 2 unit at the Toyama Shinko coal plant for inspections.
Japan: Hokuriku Electricity Power shut down the 1200 MW Nanao Ota coal plant after an earthquake on 1 January. The utility also shut down the 250 MW No 2 unit at the Toyama Shinko coal plant for inspections.
Poland: PGE has closed units 3 and 4 at the Rybnik power plant. The units have a combined capacity of 450 MW and will be replaced with a new gas plant.
South Africa: Eskom’s 800 MW Unit 5 at the 4800 MW Kusile coal plant was synchronised with the grid for the first time on December 31 and is expected to begin commercial generation by April.
Taiwan: Environmental groups have called on the local government to demand the phasing out of coal at Taiwan Power Company’s 5500 MW Taichung Power Plant by the end of 2026.
US: The Tennessee Valley Authority, a publicly-owned utility, has threatened to delay the closure of the 2470 MW Cumberland coal plant unless the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission promptly approves a proposed pipeline for a replacement gas-fired unit.
US: An auditor for the West Virginia Public Service Commission found costs connected to the Ohio House Bill 6 scandal were misallocated to First Energy subsidiaries in West Virginia. However, the auditor could not get full details on the spending as the utility’s report was classed as “attorney-client privileged”.
US: Pennsylvania environmental groups have filed legal action challenging the Department of Environmental Protection’s decision to allow the 85 MW Scrubgrass cryptocurrency power plant a four-year delay to remove its unpermitted coal ash pile.
“You’ve got all these mines [in Wyoming] chasing fewer and fewer customers, fewer and fewer tonnes getting shipped out. How long can all of these mines stay viable?”
asked Seth Feaster from the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis.
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South Africa’s draft power plan panned by analysts, business and NGOs: Energy, business and community groups have criticised the lack of detail and ambition for renewables in the South African government’s draft Integrated Resources Plan (IRP) 2023. The central scenario for 2030 assumes the energy availability factor of Eskom’s coal fleet recovers from its current 51 per cent to 69 per cent by 2030, delays the decommissioning of coal plants, cuts the deployment of new solar and wind capacity and proposes extra gas capacity. Energy analyst Chris Yelland notes that the central scenario to 2030 includes “gap” years with no new centrally purchased solar or wind capacity and suggests only 8000 MW of new wind and solar power by 2030. The draft plan envisages delaying the decommissioning of 13,000 MW of coal capacity before 2034, 2000 MW less than the 2019 plan, but no additional closures between 2035 and 2045. The core scenario envisages 18,000 MW of coal capacity remaining online in 2050, up from 10,000 MW in the previous plan. Compared to the 2019 IRP, the current draft proposes 30 per cent less utility-scale solar, a 55 per cent reduction in utility-scale wind capacity and an additional 4220 MW of gas plants. One scenario for the 2030-2050 period envisages the commissioning of 5000 MW of ‘clean coal’ capacity by 2040 and up to 14,500 MW of new nuclear plants by 2050. Business Unity South Africa, a peak industry lobby group, criticised the lack of detailed cost data used in the scenarios for competing technologies. The plan is open for public comment until February 23, 2024. (Business Day, Business Day, Engineering News, South African Government [Pdf])
Report finds renewables the cheapest new generation even with firming: A report on electricity generation costs by Australia’s national science agency, CSIRO, and the Australian Energy Market Operator has found wind and solar have the lowest cost of any new power generation options even after allowing for firming costs. The report estimated a new black coal plant with carbon capture and storage (CCS) would have a levelised cost of electricity of between A$193-364 per megawatt-hour (MWh) in 2023-24, declining to A$161-259 per MWh in 2030. The CSIRO estimates that electricity from a new black coal plant without CCS would cost between A$86 and A$137 per MWh in 2030. The report estimates that in 2030, wind and solar power would cost between A$69-101 per MWh after allowing for integration costs in a scenario where renewables account for a 90 per cent share of generation. CSIRO estimates electricity from small modular reactors would cost between A$212-353 per MWh in 2030. The draft report is open for consultation until February 9, 2024. (Guardian, CSIRO)
US coal production to slump in 2024: The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts a dramatic decline in US coal production of 90 million short tons (82 million tonnes) to 490 million short tons (445 million tonnes) in 2024 and a further fall of 60 million short tons (54 million tonnes) in 2025 to 430 million short tons (390 million tonnes), mainly due to an increase in solar and wind generation. In its latest Short-Term Energy Outlook, the EIA notes that the decline would cut production to the lowest level since the early 1960s. The EIA estimates coal’s share of electricity generation will fall by nine per cent in 2024 and a 10 per cent drop in 2025 due to the retirement of 12,000 MW of coal generation and higher costs compared to renewables. The EIA estimates thermal coal exports of 41.7 million short tons (38 million tonnes) and 49.3 million short tons (45 million tonnes) of metallurgical coal in 2024, with a marginal increase in 2025. (US Energy Information Administration)
Indonesia sets 2024 coal production target of 710 million tonnes: Indonesia has set a coal production target of 710 million tonnes in 2024, up from the 695 million tonnes target of 2023 due to increasing power demand. The government has set a domestic market obligation (DMO) target of 220 million tonnes of coal, up from 174 million tonnes in 2023. The power sector may consume between 170 and 180 million tonnes of coal, up from 161 million tonnes in 2023. The DMO requires coal producers to supply domestic demand, with the price capped at US$70 per tonne for power sector sales. The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) estimates 490 million tonnes could be exported, marginally down from the 500 million tonnes shipped in 2023. ESDM estimates Indonesian coal production was 766 million tonnes in 2023. The agency auctioned off four new coal blocks in December 2023, two in Kalimantan and two in Sumatra. (Argus)
China reimposes coal import tariffs: China’s Tariff Commission of the State Council has reimposed a tariff of six per cent will be reimposed on thermal coal and three per cent on metallurgical coal for steel production for all cargoes imported after January 1, 2024. The tariffs will apply to Russia, South Africa, the US and Mongolia as ‘most-favoured countries’ with other exporters facing a 20 per cent tariff. The tariffs will not apply to Australian and Indonesian coal, which are exempt under the provisions of free trade agreements with China. The tariffs were suspended on May 1, 2022, to counter the surge in imported coal costs after the global market was disrupted following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The decision is most likely to affect Russian, Mongolian and US metallurgical coal exporters adversely and may further dampen demand for South African thermal coal demand. (Power Technology, SteelOrbis)
New Mexico regulators rejects utility bid on coal plant costs: New Mexico’s Public Regulation Commission (PRC) has rejected a request by the privately-owned Public Service Company of New Mexico (PNM) to increase residential electricity costs by 9.7 per cent to cover part of the costs of upgrades to the 1636 MW Four Corners Power Plant and the Palo Verde nuclear plant in Arizona. PRC examiners ruled that PNM’s decision in 2016 to invest in extending the life of the Four Corners coal plant wasn’t prudent and should not be passed on to customers. Matthew Gerhart from the Sierra Club welcomed the PRC decision as an acknowledgement that “PNM failed to do its due diligence before reinvesting in Four Corners after 2016 when there were clear signs that coal is a costly and deadly fuel”. In 2021, the PRC rejected PNM’s proposal to transfer its 13 per cent share of the Four Corners plant to Navajo Transitional Energy Company without identifying plans to replace the 200 MW of capacity it owns. (Associated Press, New Mexico Public Regulation Commission [Pdf])
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