INDUSTRY NEWS
ENERGY TRANSITION BRIEFS Plans for phase one of a green hydrogen production, storage and distribution facility in Aberdeen, UK, powered by renewable energy, have been approved. The Aberdeen Hydrogen Hub is being delivered by bp Aberdeen Hydrogen Energy Limited (bpAHEL) – a joint venture between bp and Aberdeen City Council. Phase one is targeting production from 2025, delivering over 800 kg of green hydrogen per day. TotalEnergies has agreed with Petronas and Mitsui to develop a carbon storage project offshore Malaysia. The partners will evaluate several CO2 storage sites in the Malay Basin, including both saline aquifers and depleted offshore fields. Copenhagan Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has agreed to invest $350 million into offshore wind projects in Korea. The projects include both fixed-bottom and floating offshore wind and are located in the Jeonnam Province, including Shinan County, Yeonggwang County, and the Ulsan region. The UK North Sea Transition Authority has offered an additional licence as part of the UK’s first carbon storage licensing round, which opened in June 2022 and closed to applicants in September 2022. All applications have now been assessed, with a total of 21 offers made. Flour Corporation has signed an agreement with the CO2 mineral storage operator Carbfix to pursue integrated CCS solutions. Fluor will provide its Econamine FG Plus carbon capture technology. Carbfix’s technology dissolves CO2 in water and injects it into porous basaltic rock formations, where natural processes cause the CO2 to form stable carbonate minerals within two years. The agreement covers other CO2 removal projects such as direct air capture and bioenergy carbon capture and storage. The Danish Energy Agency has published plans to procure 6 GW and 3 GW of offshore wind at Energy Island Bornholm, before the end of 2030.
36
FIRST
BREAK
I
VOLUME
41
I
US auctions solar energy projects in Nevada The US Department of Bureau of Land Management’s (BLM) auction for utility-scale solar energy development in Nevada has generated in $105.15 million in high bids. The auction of four parcels across 23,675 acres in the Amargosa Desert – the highest-yielding onshore renewable energy auction in the agency’s history – could support nearly 3 gigawatts of renewable energy to the electrical grid. ‘The technological advances, increased interest, cost effectiveness, and tremendous economic potential make these projects a reliable path for diversifying our nation’s energy portfolio,’ said (BLM) Secretary Deb Haaland. The Amargosa Valley Solar Energy Zone was one of 17 that the BLM initially identified in a 2012 blueprint on solar energy development in six western states. The BLM is considering adding more states and identifying new or expanded areas for solar development. The BLM also recently announced a proposed update of its renewable energy regulations to promote the development of solar energy on public lands, including by reducing fees for projects by around 80%, facilitating development in priority areas by streamlining review of applications, and delivering greater certainty for the private sector.
NV Energy placed the high bids for both leases auctioned in the Amargosa Valley Solar Energy Zone. Parcel A includes 3775 acres with a high bid of $35.25 million, and Parcel B includes 3451 acres with a high bid of $46.6 million. Provisional preferred applicants were identified for the two parcels auctioned outside the solar energy zone. NextEra Energy Resources placed the high bid of $21 million for rights to submit a solar energy development proposal for a 10,129-acre parcel (Parcel 1) and Leeward Renewable Energy placed the high bid of $2.3 million to submit a solar energy development proposal on a 6320-acre parcel (Parcel 2). The BLM is currently processing 74 utility-scale onshore clean energy projects proposed on public lands in the western United States. This includes solar, wind and geothermal projects, as well as interconnected gen-tie lines that are vital to clean energy projects proposed on non-federal land. These projects have the combined potential to add more than 37,000 MW of renewable energy to the western electric grid. The BLM is also reviewing more than 150 applications for solar and wind development, as well as 51 applications for wind and solar energy testing.
Sercel wins equipment contract from BGP Sercel has won multiple equipment contracts from geophysical services provider BGP. The contracts include delivery of 54 Nomad 65 Neo vibrator trucks and 29,000 GPR300 seabed nodes. The equipment will be used this year on several big onshore and OBN seismic surveys conducted in the Middle East. Meng Qingbing, president of BGP International, said: ‘Throughout BGP’s long-term cooperation with Sercel we AUGUST
2023
have been impressed by their agility in anticipating our needs and meeting our tight deadlines.’ Emmanuelle Dubu, Sercel CEO, said: ‘These major equipment sales strengthen Sercel’s already long-established presence in the Middle East. Featuring Sercel’s QuietSeis broadband digital sensor technology, the GPR records the highest-quality data for the most accurate imaging in all seabed environments, including shallow water, as for this award in the Middle East.’
