Hydropower capacity, including pumped storage hydropower (PSH), should more than double by 2050 if the world is to decarbonise and meet the climate goals set in the Paris agreement, a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (Irena) has found.
Annual investment in hydropower should grow fivefold during the period to reach the target, the report said.
This translates to $85 billion per year in investment in conventional hydropower and $8.8 billion in PSH, which is more than three times the investment in hydropower in 2017 and more than five times 2018's figure.
Hydropower is an important component of power systems worldwide and is the largest source of renewable electricity.
“Most hydropower potential lies in developing countries,” the report said.
“Financing institutions need to work together with governments to overcome local risks and limitations, find common ground and start funnelling much-needed investment into these regions and countries.”
The majority of the world’s hydropower capacity is in Asia, accounting for 42 per cent, followed by Europe, North America, South America, Eurasia and the rest of the world.
China is the largest producer of hydropower with 1.3 petawatt hours per year of capacity, followed by Brazil, Canada and the US.
Investment in hydropower has been dwarfed by investment in solar PV and wind technology, despite it being one of the cheapest sources of renewable electricity, over the past decade, the report said.
Renewable energy attracted $1.8 trillion between 2013 and 2018 but only $72 billion was invested in hydropower, which is equivalent to 4 per cent of all investment in renewable energy.
This is a “relatively small amount, especially when considering that it is a mature technology that generates around 65 per cent of all renewable electricity”, the report said.
It added that the world’s hydropower fleet was ageing and would need refurbishment.
“This need presents an opportunity to introduce new technologies and to modernise plants to fit the requirements of today’s power systems,” Irena said.
Existing plants will have to be assessed and retrofitted where necessary to account for increased climate risks and new projects will need to incorporate these risks in their design, it added.
“Hydropower has been an effective source of clean power generation for more than a century,” said Irena director general Francesco La Camera.
“However, with the rapidly evolving energy landscape, it is important to re-evaluate its future role and leverage recent technological advancements that can maximise its potential while ensuring its sustainability and climate resilience.”
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Opec has revised its global economic growth forecast for this year to 2.6 per cent. Reuters
Opec has raised its 2023 oil demand forecast by 100,000 barrels per day amid expectations of an economic rebound in China, the world's largest crude importer.
The group expects global oil demand to grow by 2.3 million bpd this year, which is higher than its previous estimate of 2.2 million bpd growth for 2023.
“Key to oil demand growth in 2023 will be the return of China from its mandated mobility restrictions and the effect this will have on the country,” the group of oil-producing countries said in its monthly oil market report on Tuesday.
China, the world’s second-largest economy, reopened its borders last month after adhering to a strict zero-Covid policy for about three years.
“Much will depend on how the government plans to manoeuvre the delicate balance of curbing Covid-19 infections versus opening up for business,” Opec said.
“Moreover, a number of global economic concerns — including the inflation levels, monetary tightening measures, sovereign debt levels, as well as geopolitical tensions — will weigh on global oil demand prospects.”
Opec also revised its global economic growth forecast for this year to 2.6 per cent on “better-than-anticipated” economic performance in key countries in the second half of 2022.
It previously estimated growth of 2.5 per cent.
The group lowered its 2023 output estimate for non-Opec production by 100,000 bpd to 1.4 million bpd on expectations of a drop in output in Russia and Mexico.
Russia, the world’s second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia, said it would cut oil production by 500,000 bpd, or about 5 per cent of its crude output, in March after the West imposed price caps on Russian crude and oil products.
On February 5, the G7 and the EU agreed to set the price cap at $100 a barrel for products that trade at a premium to crude, such as diesel, and $45 a barrel for products that trade at a discount, such as naphtha and fuel oil.
The price cap was introduced along with an EU ban on Russian diesel and other refined products.
“Large uncertainties remain over the impact of ongoing geopolitical developments, as well as US shale output in 2023,” Opec said.
At its last meeting, the Opec+ alliance of 23 oil-producing countries agreed to roll over its existing oil output cuts of two million bpd.
“It is important for the countries of the Declaration of Co-operation to continue co-ordinating efforts to support a balanced and stable oil market to help navigate these uncertainties,” the group said on Tuesday.
The International Energy Agency expects global oil demand to surge to record levels this year on China’s recovery.
Oil demand will rise by 1.9 million bpd to 101.7 million bpd in 2023, said the IEA, which previously estimated a growth of 1.7 million bpd.
Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund recently raised its global economic growth estimate for this year to 2.9 per cent from a previous forecast of 2.7 per cent.
Global economic growth may be reaching a “turning point”, supported by falling inflation and China’s reopening, IMF’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva said on Sunday.
“While this is encouraging, the balance of risks remains tilted to the downside. China’s recovery could stall [and] inflation could remain higher than expected,” she said.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, was trading 1.28 per cent lower at $85.50 a barrel at 10.09pm UAE time.
West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was down 1.31 per cent at $79.09 a barrel.
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Oil prices fell on Tuesday after the US said it would release more crude from its Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR), even as concerns continue about sluggish demand due to slowing global economic growth.
Brent, the benchmark for two thirds of the world’s oil, was trading 1.28 per cent lower at $85.50 a barrel at 10.09pm UAE time.
West Texas Intermediate, the gauge that tracks US crude, was down 1.31 per cent at $79.09 a barrel.
The US Department of Energy said it would sell 26 million barrels of crude from its emergency reserve this year to “meet its obligation to Congress".
Bids on the oil are due on February 28 and it will be delivered from April 1 to June 30, the department said.
A record 180 million barrels of oil were released from America’s emergency reserves last year after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine resulted in Brent crude closing in on a 14-year high of $140 a barrel.
"Oil prices settled slightly higher overnight but have given up those gains in early trade today on plans from the US government to release more crude from strategic stockpiles," said Jeanne Walters, a senior economist at Emirates NBD.
"These sales had been planned as part of budgeting exercises from several years ago, rather than adding to the release of 180 million barrels last year aimed at stopping price growth."
Investors will also be keenly awaiting Tuesday’s US consumer price index data, a closely followed inflation gauge.
“If inflation is scorching hot, we could see a make-or-break moment in the dollar as more [US Federal Reserve] rate hikes get priced in,” said Edward Moya, senior market analyst at Oanda.
“The crude demand outlook is still holding on to hopes that the US economy could still have a soft landing, but a hot inflation report might trigger more recession calls.”
This month, the Fed raised interest rates — for the eighth time since last year — by 25 basis points, and indicated that more increases were to come.
The latest announcement puts the Fed's target range at between 4.5 per cent and 4.75 per cent — about 50 basis points away from its end-of-year projection of 5.1 per cent.
The International Monetary Fund expects central banks to continue monetary tightening to keep inflation in check, the fund’s managing director Kristalina Georgieva said at an event on Monday.
“Inflation is trimming down [but] the fight is not won yet,” said Ms Georgieva.
Crude futures gained more than 8 per cent last week amid China's recovery prospects and supply concerns triggered by Russia's plans to slash output by 500,000 barrels per day.
Russia said it would cut about 5 per cent of its production in March after the West imposed a price cap on exports of its refined products.
On February 5, the G7 and the EU agreed to set the price cap at $100 a barrel for products that trade at a premium to crude, such as diesel, and $45 a barrel for products that trade at a discount, such as naphtha and fuel oil.
The price cap was introduced along with an EU ban on Russian diesel and other refined products.
wonderlandcoconut.com is the official website of PT. WONDERLAND COCONUT, which is passionate about the export and import of coconut shell charcoal and its derivatives from Indonesia, in the form of activated carbon, hookah shisha, BBQ, tamarind wood charcoal, Sawdust charcoal and many more, you can see it on our product menu.
Egypt is seeking investments in all aspects of energy production, whether it be in traditional fossil fuels or renewables, the Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources Tarek El Molla said.
“I cannot say that we will do one bucket on the account of the other. We have to do them all,” Mr El Molla said at the Egypt Petroleum Show in Cairo on Tuesday.
“We need investments in exploration, we need investments in [the energy] transition, we need investments in renewables, we need investments in decarbonisation ... We need investments in all aspects and I wouldn't prioritise any of them.”
Oil demand is set to reach 102 million barrels a day this year and increase to 110 million barrels per day by 2025, Opec Secretary General Haitham Al Ghais said at the opening of the industry conference on Sunday.
The disruption of the market following Russia's invasion of Ukraine a year ago has pushed up prices of oil and natural gas, particularly in the heavily dependent European market.
Oil prices closed 2022 with a second straight annual gain with Brent gaining about 10 per cent and US crude rising about 7 per cent.
Wholesale prices of electricity and gas in Europe have surged as much as 15-fold since early 2021, according to the International Monetary Fund.
Egypt, which hosted the UN climate conference Cop27 in November, has committed to sourcing 42 per cent of its energy from renewable sources by 2030 from an estimated 20 per cent currently.
However, as the country suffers from the economic fallout of the Russia-Ukraine war, it is also looking for ways to solve its foreign currency crunch and maximise its natural gas exports as Europe looks for new energy suppliers.
Mr El Molla said earlier this week that the state is planning to offer three international gas and oil tenders this year and has an “ambitious plan” to drill more than 300 exploration wells by 2025.
“Because we have seen the prices of oil and gas are extremely high now … this will have a negative impact on many economies in the world. Therefore, we need to increase the production of these fossil fuels, but in a responsible manner,” Mr El Molla said.
“Otherwise, less investments means less production, that means higher prices, and it is going to be a vicious cycle.”
Egypt expects to produce about 7.5 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas this year, in line with production in 2022, when it shipped 80 per cent of its LNG to Europe, according to Mr El Molla.
Egypt and Israel signed a framework agreement with the EU in June to increase LNG sales to European countries. Under the deal, Israeli gas is transported by pipeline to Egypt’s LNG plants before being shipped to Europe.
But expansion in export capacity under the deal will take time and significant investments, industry leaders said at a panel on Tuesday.
Egypt has the capacity to export about 13 million tonnes annually through its Idku and Damietta plants, said Magdy Galal, head of state-run operator EGas.
Adding five production trains to the two plants could bring total capacity to more than 30 million tonnes, but “it is not cheap”, Mr Galal said.
Yossi Abu, chief executive of Israel’s NewMed Energy, said he is confident the two countries will reach a final agreement “that creates a win-win to everybody”.
wonderlandcoconut.com is the official website of PT. WONDERLAND COCONUT, which is passionate about the export and import of coconut shell charcoal and its derivatives from Indonesia, in the form of activated carbon, hookah shisha, BBQ, tamarind wood charcoal, Sawdust charcoal and many more, you can see it on our product menu.
Despite the great potential in exports, the Association of Indonesian Coconut Charcoal Briquette Entrepreneurs (HIPBAKI), assesses that there are still a number of obstacles faced by entrepreneurs today. The chairman of HIPBAKI, Basuki said, one of the problems faced by these briquette entrepreneurs was the scarcity of briquette raw materials. “This is a very major obstacle, because whole-grain coconuts are exported excessively. This causes coconut shells, which are the basic ingredients for briquettes, to be difficult to obtain. So that the production of briquettes cannot meet demand,” he said, Saturday (11/28/2020). When not operating due to the scarcity of basic briquette materials, it automatically makes the workforce experience a decrease in income and even tends to be laid off so that it has an impact on unemployment. “There is no synchronization between associations, or associations related to coconut business commodities and their derivatives, resulting in only sectoral settlements or according to their respective interests,” he added. Not only that, the delivery of coconut charcoal briquettes for export is very constrained. His party is still wondering because some shipping parties are reluctant to transport the briquette production. So that there is a buildup of briquette products in the factory warehouses of each member. “We hope that the government is present in its regulations to stabilize the raw material for coconut shell briquettes in particular and the coconut derivative business in general. So that the normalization of the briquette production business can be guaranteed,” he said. “In addition, we also hope that the Government can assist in coordinating with the shipping or transportation company because until now export shipments have been delayed until the time limit is unclear,” he added.
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