Power Engineering International articles from June 2006

Power Engineering International archives from June 2006

Inventing the future.(Up Front)(securing fuel supply in Europe)
June 1, 2006... Alan Kay, an American computer scientist, researcher and visionary once said: "The best way to predict the future is to invent it". It may sound like a strange thing to say but it makes sense, especially in our business. [ILLUSTRATION...

ETS seeks carbon credibility: the European Commission has released figures for the first year of Europe's carbon trading scheme. The data indicates that this fledgling market is not quite ready to take flight, writes Sian Green.(Emission Trading Scheme)
June 1, 2006... Carbon prices fell sharply in May after the European Commission released the first verified data for installations participating in the European Union's Emission Trading Scheme (ETS). The market's reaction to the report--which showed an overall...

Government approval secures Russia reform.(regulations for electricity industry)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The Russian government has taken an important step in the process of liberalizing its electricity industry with the approval of laws allowing for the listing of generating assets on foreign exchanges. The chairman of power monopoly Unified...

Alternative energy axis formed.(alliance with Georgia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Ukraine)
June 1, 2006... The governments of Georgia, Azerbaijan, Moldova and Ukraine have agreed to strengthen their alliance of 1997 and will undertake cooperation in the energy sector. The meeting in the Ukrainian capital of Kiev was also attended by representatives...

UAE launches renewable energy park backed by energy giants.(partnerships in energy industries in United Arab Emirates)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates is to host a renewable energy research and development project in partnership with many of the world's leading energy sector companies including BP, Shell, Total, Occidental, GE, Rolls Royce, Fiat and...

Suez projects commence operation.(Suez Energy International's new energy plants)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Belgium-based Suez Energy International has reported the commencement of power deliveries from two major projects in the Middle East region. In Oman, the first phase of the Independent Power and Water Project (IWPP) at the Port of Sohar,...

Enel wins EMS privatization.(international)
June 1, 2006... Enel has won a tender for the Romanian power distribution company Electrica Muntenia Sud (EMS). EMS serves the capital Bucharest and surrounding regions and accounts for about 11 per cent of the Romanian electricity market. Enel bid...

VA Tech Hydro supplies Ethiopia.(Salin Costruttori's contracts)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Salin Costruttori, the turnkey supplier for Ethiopia's largest hydropower station located on the Beles River, has awarded a supply contract to Austria's VA Tech Hydro worth [euro]70m ($88.4m). The scope of the supply includes model test,...

AES Corporation.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Bulgaria: AES Corporation has announced plans to begin construction of Maritza East l, a $1.4bn 670 MW lignite fired power plant in southeast Bulgaria. The plant will be built by Alstom and is scheduled to be completed in 2009.

The Bulgarian government's privatization Commission.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Bulgaria: The Bulgarian government's privatization Commission has agreed to sell the 1260 MW Varna coal fired power station near the Black Sea to CEZ of the Czech Republic for [euro]306m ($386m).

Estonia.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Estonia: Work has begun in Estonia on laying the land section of the Estlink cable, the interconnector that will join the Baltic and Finnish electrical systems. The cable was manufactured in Sweden by ABB.

Kenya.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Kenya: A contract to supply 100 MW of temporary power to supplement the grid has been awarded to Aggreko by the Kenya Electricity Generating Company.

Latvia.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Latvia: GE Energy is to supply a Frame 9FB gas turbine-generator to the Riga Thermal Power Plant II. It will be the first application of 400 MW class F technology for combined cycle operation in Eastern Europe.

Qatar.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Qatar: ABB has won a $44m contract from General Electric to supply a substation and transformers for the extension of a gas fired power and water plant under construction near the Qatari capital of Dohar.

Rwanda.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Rwanda: A 5 MW pilot project utilizing methane gas extracted from beneath Lake Kivu for power generation was began in April by Rwandan utility Electrogaz, with a view to developing the 35 MW Kibuye Phase 1 plant.

Saudi Arabia.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Saudi Arabia: Plans have been announced for the privatization of the Saline Water Conversion Corporation and for the establishment of a large IWPP in Jubail industrial City.

Sudan.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Sudan: Mott MacDonald has been appointed owner's engineer by the National Electricity Corporation of Sudan for the development of the Khartoum North Phase III 2 x 100 MW extension.

Tanzania.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Tanzania: GE Energy is supplying three JGS 616 GS-N.L Jenbacher gas engines to the Tanzania Electric Supply Company for a 6 MW power plant, forming part of the Songo Songo electricity infrastructure development project.

UAE.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... UAE: SembCorp Utilities has submitted a $1.7bn bid for the Fujairah independent water and power plant to the Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority matching a similar bid from Suez Tractebel.

Ukraine.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Ukraine: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has received an order for two blast-furnace fired gas turbine combined cycle power generation units for Alchevsk Iron and Steel Works in the Ukraine.

Airtricity unveils plans for pan-European 'Supergrid'.(plans to construct pan-European subsea electricity grid)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Airtricity, the Irish wind energy company, is seeking political support for an initiative to build a pan-European subsea electricity grid. The company is seeking support for its Supergrid initiative, the first phase of which is a 10 GW windfarm...

Commission raids energy companies.(European Union. European Commission)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... EU investigators have searched the offices of a number of major German energy groups for the second time in a matter of weeks. The European Commission declined to name the companies involved but said that the inspections were not part of its...

Giant solar park for Portugal.(construction of solar photovoltaic power project)(PowerLight Corporation)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Construction is underway on the world's largest solar photovoltaic power project in Serpa, Portugal, 200 km southeast of Lisbon. The 11 MW project is costing $75m and comprises 52 000 photovoltaic modules. The plant is scheduled to enter full...

UK is vulnerable to climate change.(europe)
June 1, 2006... A new report compiled by the UK Met Office, E.ON UK. EDF Energy and the National Grid has found that the UK's energy industry is highly sensitive to changes in climate. The report investigated how climate change will affect future energy use...

Nuclear back "with a vengeance".(research into new nuclear power stations and the management of nuclear waste)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... UK Prime Minister Tony Blair has said that the issue of building new nuclear power stations in the UK is "back on the agenda with a vengeance". The pronouncement will be welcome news to industry stakeholders, according to research by...

ABB's Italian job.(ABB Asea Brown Boveri Ltd.'s contracts)(Terna SpA )(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... ABB has won a $180m order from Italian transmission system operator Terna SpA to deliver a high voltage direct current (HVDC) power system connecting the grids of Sardinia and peninsular Italy. The 1000 MW HVDC undersea link will carry...

High Level Group.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Europe: A European Commission High Level Group on competitiveness, energy and the environment has recommended the full use of Commission powers to ensure a more competitive environment for electricity and gas supply.

LogicaCMG.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Europe: New research from LogicaCMG reveals that while European consumers are environmentally conscious, financial cost is even more important when it comes to energy consumption.

France.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... France: The board of EDF has given its approval to construct a third nuclear reactor at Flamanville near Cherbourg, which will be the first European Pressurized Water Reactor (EPR) to be built in France.

MAN B & W Diesel.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Germany: MAN B & W Diesel has secured an order for a stationary engine running on bio-oil for a project in Germany.

Siemens.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Germany: Siemens has received orders for 17 wind turbines for three repowering projects in Germany and will supply larger units to replace smaller and older wind turbines.

Vattenfall.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Germany: Vattenfall has contracted with Alstom to build the steam generator for the world's first carbon-free demonstration plant utilizing oxygen combustion technology at Schwarze Pumpe in Brandenburg.

Italy.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Italy: Independent Resources Group plans to generate electricity using the pressure arising from natural gas contained in its proposed underground gas storage facility in Italy.

Netherlands.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Netherlands: Austrian Energy & Environment in consortium with Siemens is to build a 36 MW biomass fired power plant using poultry manure for the BMC Moerdijk project company.

GE Energy.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Spain: GE Energy is to supply a 209FB combined cycle system to Iberdrola for a new 858 MW power plant to be built in Castellon, north of Valencia, Spain.

European Commission.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Spain: The European Commission has launched a legal procedure against the Spanish government for introducing laws intended to prevent E.ON's takeover of Endesa.

Switzerland.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Switzerland: The Swiss utility EOS is to construct the country's first combined cycle power station by 2010 in response to growing demand for electricity and the phasing out of nuclear power.

E.ON.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... UK: E.ON is investigating the feasibility of refurbishing and re-equipping a mothballed gas-fired power station in Lincolnshire to coal fired generation with C[O.sub.2] capture

Mitsui Babcock.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... UK: Mitsui Babcock has signed an agreement with Scottish and Southern Energy to undertake the front end engineering of a carbon capture ready 500 MW clean coal plant retrofit at Ferrybridge power station in Yorkshire.

Australia calls for nuclear debate.(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Australian Prime Minister John Howard has called for a full-scale debate on nuclear power in the country. The move has been prompted by the renewed international interest in nuclear energy, growing energy demand and concerns over energy prices,...

World's largest coal mine methane project.(contracts of Shanxi Jincheng Anthracite Coal Mining Group)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The Shanxi Jincheng Anthracite Coal Mining Group has selected Caterpillar to supply the generating sets for what is thought to be the world's largest coal mine methane power project. Caterpillar will provide 60 generating sets for the project,...

PSALM keeps faith in asset sales.(Philippines' Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp.)(National Transmission Corp.)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The Philippines' Power Sector Assets and Liabilities Management Corp. (PSALM) is to try again to sell off the country's National Transmission Corp. (Transco) under a 25-year concession. The organization is also planning to sell the Calaca coal...

Basslink HVDC commissioned.(High Voltage Direct Current)
June 1, 2006... Siemens Power Transmission and Distribution group has handed over the Basslink high voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission link to National Grid Australia after a successful trial operation period. The 500 MW link between Tasmania and the...

Bangladesh pledges funds.(protests against the budget for energy industries)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The government of Bangladesh has increased its allocation for the power sector in its latest budget in a response to the country's on-going power crisis. It has also pledged to undertake a number of long-term measures to improve power supplies...

Indonesia approves fast track coal fired power projects.(Indonesian government has approved the construction of coal fired power plants)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The Indonesian government has approved the construction of a series of coal fired power plants over the next four years to prevent power shortages and reduce dependence on oil. The plants will be built on a fast track basis, with some of them...

Asean.(The Association of Southeast Asian Nations signs a memorandum )(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Asean: The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean) is to sign a memorandum of understanding on the framework to develop an Asean power grid during its Ministers of Energy Meeting in Vientiane, Laos, in July. The power grid and the 4500...

Australia.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Australia: The Vestas Group has received an order for 53 units of its V90-3.0 MW wind turbine for the Lake Bonney Stage 2 project in South Australia. Delivery of the units will take place in 2006, with commissioning of the final turbines...

IFC has signed an agreement with China's Industrial Bank.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... China: The IFC has signed an agreement with China's Industrial Bank to facilitate loans to promote energy efficiency in the country, Industrial Bank will establish a $58m loan portfolio for small and midsize energy users.

China has completed construction of the Three Gorges dam in Hubei Province.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... China: China has completed construction of the Three Gorges dam in Hubei Province, marking a key milestone in the development of the project. The main dam is 2.3 km long and retains 16m [m.sub.3] of water.

China National Nuclear Corporation.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... China: China National Nuclear Corporation has connected the largest nuclear power generating unit to the national grid. The first 1.06 GW generator of the Tianwan plant in Lianyungang city, Jiangsu Province, will enter commercial operation at...

India.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... India: JBIC has signed loan agreements worth $582.4m with the Indian government and the Rural Electrification Corporation Ltd. for pumped storage power generation, water supply and rural electrification projects in India.

Indonesia.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Indonesia: The Indonesian government will open tenders for the construction of a 1000 MW nuclear power plant in 2007. The plant will be located on the Muria peninsula in central Java.

Pakistan.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Pakistan: The Karachi City Administrator has given the go-ahead to a $850m power and desalination plant for the city. The 200 MW, 91m litres/day plant will be completed in 36 months.

Singapore.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Singapore: Island Power is planning to raise S$600m ($376m) to build a gas fired power plant in Singapore, making it the first nongovernment linked operator to do so. The company, a subsidiary of Intergen, wants to construct a 785 MW plant that...

South Korea.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... South Korea: Mitsubishi Heavy Industries has received an order for three 1 MW wind turbines from Dongkuk Structures and Construction for the Shin-An wind farm. The order marks MHI's first order for wind turbines from Korea.

Ontario government to build more nuclear plants.(americas)
June 1, 2006... Ontario's Provincial government has announced plans to build at least two more nuclear plants. Among six sites suggested are the three existing sites, Pickering, Bruce and Darlington plus Nanticoke, on Lake Erie, where there is a 2000 MW coal...

TXU makes wider plans.(planning of plant construction)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... TXU is examining opportunities to develop coal fired generation outside of the ERCOT electricity market where it believes the economics for plant construction could be even more attractive than Texas, according to chairman and CEO John Wilder....

Seven states fight for FutureGen.(planned zero emissions energy plant)(FutureGen Alliance)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... America's FutureGen Alliance is considering 12 sites in seven US states as the location for its planned $1bn prototype "zero emissions" energy project. States that have submitted proposals include Illinois, Texas, Ohio, Oklahoma, Kentucky,...

United States gets wind in its sails.(installation a record-breaking 3000 MW of new generating capacity)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The US wind energy industry will install a record-breaking 3000 MW of new generating capacity this year, according to the American Wind Energy Association. The industry boom follows the two-year extension to the federal wind production tax...

LNG market will double by 2010.(Liquefied Natural Gas's market growth)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... New analysis by Cambridge Energy Research Associates (CERA) suggests that the global liquefied natural gas (LNG) supply market is building strongly and is on its way towards meeting 15 per cent of the world's natural gas demand by 2012. CERA...

Work starts on Peruvian gas unit.(start construction of Kallpa power plant)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Siemens Power Generation has been given the go ahead by emerging markets power developer Globeleq to start construction of the first unit of the two-unit 336 MW Kallpa power plant near Lima, Peru. The first phase of the Kallpa plant will...

Central America.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Central America: Inabensa, the Spanish engineering subsidiary of energy conglomerate Abengoa, has been awarded a $114m contract to build, operate and maintain a 953 km interconnector linking Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Panama.

Canada.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Canada: Under its new Provincial energy policy Hydro-Quebec is to invest C$25bn ($22.4bn) in new dams producing 4500 MW of hydroelectricity of which 1000 MW is earmarked for export sales.

CGTEE of the 350 MW Candiota III.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Brazil: Construction by federal power company CGTEE of the 350 MW Candiota III coal fired power project in Brazil's Rio Grande do Sul state is scheduled to commence in July, with operations due to start in 2010.

Enel.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Brazil: Italian power company Enel has fulfilled its announced strategy of entering the Brazilian power market with an agreement to buy 22 small-scale hydroelectric power plants for 450m reais ($198m) from Brazil's Grupo Rede.

Tractebel Energla.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Brazil: Tractebel Energia has obtained Clean Development Mechanism registration for its biomass fuelled cogeneration plant in Lages in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil. The project will generate 220 000 tradable Certified Emission Reduction...

Guatemala.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Guatemala: Ormat technologies has increased it stake in the Zunil Geothermal Project in Guatemala to 85.91 per cent with the purchase of a 14.09 per cent partnership interest from CDC Group. The plant is now fully operational following repairs...

Mexico.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Mexico: A $40m interconnection project, through which Mexico has agreed to export electricity to its power-hungry neighbour Guatemala, has been inaugurated at the Mexican border town of Tapachula.

Uruguay.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Uruguay: State-owned power company Usinas y Trasmisiones Electricas has called on consumers to conserve electricity and help maintain reservoir water levels after Brazil cut power sales to the country by 70 MW in order to meet its own domestic...

Constellation Energy and EDF have signed a Memorandum of Understanding.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... USA: Constellation Energy and EDF have signed a Memorandum of Understanding under which the two companies will work together to develop the Areva-designed Evolutionary Power Reactor (EPR), for deployment in the USA.

Mirant.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... USA: Mirant has withdrawn its offer to buy fellow US power generator NRG Energy after its bid was rejected by the NRB Board and concerns about the strategy was expressed by some Mirant stakeholders.

Iberdrola.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... USA: Spanish power company Iberdrola has entered the US wind market with the acquisition of Community Energy.

AES joint venture.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... AES joint venture: AES Corporation and AgCert International have formed a joint venture to deploy AgCert's greenhouse gas emission reduction technology. The new company, AES AgriVerde, aims to achieve 20m t/year of greenhouse gas emission...

Alstom license.(EIG Inc's licence agreement with ALSTOM Signaling Inc.)
June 1, 2006... Alstom license: Alstom has signed an exclusive worldwide licence agreement with EIG Inc. of the USA for its carbon dioxide capture process, enabling Alstom to develop and commercialize the technology. The technology is based on chilled ammonia...

GE Energy nuclear.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... GE Energy nuclear: GE Energy's nuclear business has signed an exclusive agreement with Silex Systems of Australia to licence and develop the company's next generation low enriched uranium process in the USA. Silex's technology is a new...

GE patents.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... GE patents: GE Energy's wind business has entered into patent licences with Fuhrlander AG of Germany and Harrington Partners of the USA for GE's variable speed technology for wind turbines.

IFC sets standards.(International Finance Corporation's services)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... IFC sets standards: The International Finance Corporation has adopted new environmental and social standards for all the projects it finances. The standards are stronger and more comprehensive than any other finance institution working with the...

WADE survey.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... WADE survey: According to the World Alliance for Decentralized Energy (WADE)'s latest annual market assessment, 24 per cent of electricity output from newly installed power generation plants in 2005 was derived from decentralized energy...

Wartsila extends.(News digest)
June 1, 2006... Wartsila extends: Finland's Wartsila Corporation has added two sizes of biomass fuelled plants to its BioPower product range. The new BioPower 3 and BioPower 7 plants each deliver approximately 3 and 7.5 MW of electricity, respectively.

World Bank goes neutral.(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... World Bank goes neutral: The World Bank Group has announced that it is to become carbon neutral with respect to its Washington, DC, offices, its spring and annual meetings, staff commuting and all operational travel from headquarters. The...

MAN launches new design.(new gas engine equipped with a novel start-up and ignition system from MAN B und W Diesel GmbH)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... MAN B & W Diesel has developed a new gas engine equipped with a novel start-up and ignition system that requires no spark plugs. The new engine--the 32/40PGI--has been operating for one year in the company's Augsberg, Germany facility and is...

Siemens steps into gasification.(Siemens' Power Generation Group's acquisition with Sustec-Group )(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... Siemens' Power Generation Group has expanded its product portfolio through the acquisition of Switzerland's Sustec-Group, which specializes in gasification technology. The move will enable Siemens to secure a future in the growing clean coal...

Alstom returns to fitness.(ALSTOM Signaling Inc.'s growth)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... French engineering and power group Alstom has reported a return to profitability in its latest set of annual results, achieving an operating margin of 5.6 per cent, positive free cash flow of [euro]525m ($663m) and a net profit of [euro]178m....

Merger called off.(mergers)(Brief article)
June 1, 2006... The planned merger between Austria's oil group OMV and electricity group Verbund has been scrapped following political opposition. OMV was to pay [euro]13bn ($16bn) for Verbund, which is 51 per cent state owned. The merger would have created a...