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Oil & Gas

With $20 billion investment, Brunei’s oil and gas workforce to grow from 20,000 to 35,000

25 July 2019

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Brunei Darussalam

Brunei’s oil and gas industry is expected to hire 15,000 more people over the next few years with $20 billion in investment into downstream projects including a petrochemical refinery and fertilizer plant.

Deputy Minister of Energy, Manpower and Industry Dato Seri Paduka Awg Hj Matsatejo Sokiaw said that the first phase Hengyi Industries’ oil refinery and petrochemical plant at Pulau Muara Besar (PMB) has recently completed construction.

Hengyi’s plant will be able to refine up to 165,000 barrels per day (bpd), with a planned second phase increasing refining capacity to 500,000 bpd, bringing the project’s investment value to over $15 billion.

Another significant downstream project is the $1.8 billion ammonia and urea plant producing industrial fertilizer in Sg Liang which is slated to be completed in 2021. At full scale, both refinery and fertilizer plants are expected to be amongst the biggest of their kind in Southeast Asia.

“Currently, the oil and gas sector is employing around 20,000 people,” said MEMI’s deputy minister during at the opening the waterflooding workshop organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers which focused on the use of water injections to increase oil extraction at existing wells.

“With the growth in the upstream and particularly the downstream and service sector, during operation phase-only, we would need another 15,000 people in the next few years.”

Hengyi’s refinery will also produce several chemical products used to make clothing and plastics which will be exported.

The deputy minister urged companies to give the “highest priority” to the development of Bruneians in the industry, while encouraging local youth to leverage digital technology and innovation to be competitive.

He added that local and international training organisations were encouraged to set up in Brunei to train the industry’s expanding workforce.

Meanwhile in the upstream sector, Brunei is embarking on drilling for oil and gas more than 2,000 metres underwater, while also focusing on deploying advanced recovery to extract remaining hydrocarbons in older assets.

“Brunei is celebrating 90 years of discovery of oil, and the first few discovered fields are still producing today. Inevitably, the secondary and tertiary enhanced recovery plays an important role to produce the remaining hydrocarbon in the depleted reservoirs,” he said.

“We have also invested significant amount and efforts in developing waterflood projects in one of our biggest offshore fields.”

Brunei’s oil and gas industry accounts for over half of the nation’s GDP and more than 95% percent of its export. However oil production has steadily dropped from a high of 219,258 bpd in 2006 to around 100,000 bpd in the past two years.

Coal ,
Energy Policy

Think tank urges Duterte to issue EO on reducing coal dependence

24 July 2019

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Philippines

MANILA, Philippines — Energy and environmental think tank Center for Energy, Ecology, and Development (CEED) is urging President Rodrigo Duterte and his administration to come up with an executive order outlining how they plan to “fasttrack” the development of renewable energy sources while “reducing” dependence on coal, as he mentioned during his State of the Nation Address on Monday.

“We welcome the positive remarks uttered by the President during his Sona, responding to the clamor of the public against dirty, deadly, and costly energy from coal and fossil fuels,” said CEED Executive Director Gerry Arances. “His statements are significant given that existing energy and power policies largely favor coal.”

Arances cited that at present, the power mix is dominated by the share of coal at 51 percent, and is set to continue to grow given the 30 coal-fired power plants still in the pipeline. The Department of Energy (DOE) also projects that coal will only increase for at least two decades more, according to the Philippine Energy Plan.

“We urge the President to formalize in an Executive Order the marching orders he gave during his speech to provide clear policy directions to the DOE and the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR),” said Arances.

Electricity/Power Grid ,
Renewables

How Solar Para Sa Bayan plans to end energy poverty by 2022

24 July 2019

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Philippines

MANILA, Philippines – While millions suffer from frequent brownouts, the town of Paluan, Occidental Mindoro is now brownout-free.

In 2018, Solar Para Sa Bayan (SPSB) completed the largest Solar-Battery Microgrid in Southeast Asia at zero cost to government. Using solar panels, Tesla batteries, and backup diesel generators, it serves Paluan 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, at 50% below the full cost of the local electric coop.

NO MORE BROWNOUTS. Paluan, Occidental Mindoro celebrates the completion of Southeast Asia’s largest solar-battery microgrid. All photos courtesy of Solar Para Sa Bayan

Paluan Mayor Carl Pangilinan attested to the project’s benefits. “Throughout our history, our town was denied service by the electric coop because of lack of supply in the whole Occidental Mindoro. Everything changed when Paluan sought Solar Para Sa Bayan to provide stable, cheap, clean energy. Our municipality now enjoys 24/7 electricity, which has opened new opportunities for Palueños.”

ACCESS TO MORE FILIPINOS. Solar Para Sa Bayan is now operating in over 12 towns.

SPSB is now serving 24/7 power in over 12 towns, benefiting over 200,000 Filipinos. It has developed projects in 18 provinces and aims to support the Department of Energy’s (DOE) goal for the Philippines to achieve 100% electrification by 2022.

12 million Filipinos without electricity

According to the DOE, an estimated 12 million Filipinos lack access to electricity. This is despite the fact the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) became law in 2001, with its primary objective “to ensure and accelerate the total electrification of the country.”

The National Electrification Administration says it still needs 25 billion pesos to reach the country’s unenergized sitios. The National Power Corporation spends over 20 billion pesos per year serving missionary areas, mostly for less than 24 hours a day given the difficulties of serving off-grid areas.

For years, billions in government subsidies yielded inadequate results. But thanks to advances in technology and SPSB’s initiative, consumers in underserved areas can finally access cheaper, better service at zero cost to government.

Necessity for a microgrid franchise

Despite all this, Occidental Mindoro Electric Cooperative (OMECO) has insisted that SPSB cease its operations because Paluan is part of OMECO’s franchise. In a statement, the Philippine Rural Electric Cooperatives Association said that its members would defend their “electricity franchise privileges” and “cannot be expected to peacefully yield their jobs anytime soon to the private sector.”

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In this light, SPSB applied for its own franchise. House Bill 8179 grants SPSB the non-exclusive right to operate microgrids in “remote and unviable, or unserved or underserved areas in selected provinces of the Philippines.” Unlike the existing Qualified Third Party (QTP) program, which has energized just 3 barangays in 18 years and is highly subsidized, this franchise enables projects without needing the consent of the existing utility; covers underserved municipalities, not just unserved barangays; reduces permitting requirements; and creates an effective alternative, while respecting the rights of existing utilities and paving the way for others to offer better service to consumers.

Heavily amended version

House Bill 8179’s final version limits the scope to “remote and unviable, unserved, or underserved areas,” in selected provinces with less than 2% of the power demand of the Philippines; requires use of renewable energy; subjects the grantee to regulation by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) and DOE, pursuant to EPIRA; obligates the grantee to provide reliable service, with financial penalties; and explicitly states the grantee “shall not be entitled to any government subsidy.”

This incorporates inputs of industry stakeholders from extensive congressional hearings, to ensure the franchise is highly regulated and compliant with EPIRA and the constitution, respects existing franchises, and enables DOE and ERC to impose further safeguards. This imposes even greater restrictions on SPSB than existing utilities, limiting it to marginal areas and prohibiting it from receiving any government subsidy.

Overwhelming consumer support

Motivating SPSB is the support it has received from consumers in underserved areas. Facebook posts supporting HB 8179 have reached 20 million Filipinos and generated over 2 million likes, comments, and shares. Various Local Government Units have attested to the benefits should the bill become a law.

Misamis Occidental Governor and former Tangub City Mayor Philip Tan said: “For several years, Tangubanons experienced extended power outages and exorbitant energy prices. But, with the advent of the Solar Para Sa Bayan Project, these will now become a thing of the past.”

BRIGHTER FUTURES. Solar Para Sa Bayan is bringing 24/7 power for the first time to over 200,000 Filipinos, at zero cost to government.

Mayor Shierwin Taay of Dingalan, Aurora said: “We thank Solar Para Sa Bayan for fulfilling the dream of Dingaleños, by solving our power crisis and reducing the cost of electricity. This is a great help for a town like ours to achieve a stronger economy and better life for our people.”

These sentiments are consistent with the results of a Pulse Asia survey indicating that 82% of Filipinos favor new options for electric service. According to Pulse Asia Director Ana Maria Tabunda, support for new options for electricity is consistent across all demographics in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

100% electrification by 2022

Should the bill become a law, SPSB’s commitment is clear. In a statement, it said, “We commit our utmost to support this administration’s goal of achieving 100% electrification and ending energy poverty by 2022, and do this without need for government subsidy.”

For decades, Philippine presidents have tried and failed to reach 100% nationwide electrification. Now, we have a solution, with the potential to energize the entire country by 2022 and add to the list of reasons why this administration will be remembered as the one that did the most to improve the lives of ordinary Filipinos. – Rappler.com

Eco Friendly Vehicle

Hyundai supports EV growth in the Philippines

24 July 2019

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Philippines

With the rest of the world switching to electrification in the past several years, the Philippines appears to be lagging behind when it comes to alternative means of transporation. But at the recent 2019 Philippine Electric Vehicle Summit, Hyundai Asia Resources Inc. (HARI), the official distributor of Hyundai in the Philippnes, believes that the country is ready to make the switch.

During the annual event organized by the Electric Vehicle Association of the Philippines (EVAP), the automaker showed its latest electric vehicles, the Ioniq and Kona EV. First revealed at this year’s Manila International Auto Show, they serve as the brand’s first zero emissions vehicles that offer a cleaner & greener alternative than your typical internal-combustion engine automobiles.

Working alongside the event’s theme ‘Modernizing the transportation landscape, driving sustainable growth’, Hyundai says that electric vehicles hold the key to the future of mobility and showed their support to electric transportation.

“We at Hyundai believe that electric vehicles are the future of mobility. EVs have the potential to address the pressing concerns Filipinos are facing in terms of energy and environmental sustainability. That’s why we are one with the government and EVAP in advocating sustainable mobility through EVs or new energy vehicles, and we are proud to participate in this important summit,” said Ma. Fe Perez-Agudo, president and CEO of HARI.

But in order to make the switch a reality, all sectors, including the government, transport groups, auto industry, motorists, and even commuters, have to work together to make the EV future happen.

“Making the shift to EVs from internal combustion engines in the Philippines requires cooperation between the auto industry, government, transport groups, vehicle owners, and commuters. We look to this summit to build stronger relationships between these sectors and thus bring us closer to the future of mobility,” added Agudo.

In review, the Kona EV serves as Hyundai’s first electric crossover in the range. It’s powered by an electric motor that produces 200 PS and 394 Nm of torque. On a single charge, Hyundai claims it can travel over 400 km before needing a recharge.

Meanwhile, the the Ioniq EV is the all-electric counterpart to the Ioniq Hybrid. As the name suggests, pure electricity powers the hatchback that allows it to put out 120 PS and 295 Nm of torque. Thanks to 28 kWh battery pack, the Ioniq EV can travel 200 km before the batteries are completely drained.

Renewables

Penang in solar power push, to start with Chowrasta Market

24 July 2019

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Malaysia

GEORGE TOWN, July 24 — Penang is turning to solar energy as part of its green agenda and will install solar panels at public facilities across the state, said exco Jagdeep Singh Deo.

The local government, housing development and town and country planning committee chairman said the initiative would both improve the state’s energy efficiency and reduce its power costs.

“I have instructed both local councils in the state to identify more public facilities to expand the solar energy project in line with our green agenda,” he said in a press conference when visiting Walk@Chowrasta this morning.

He said Chowrasta Market is the first market in the country to be green building index (GBI) certified and will soon have solar panels installed along the walkway next to it.

A total of 110 solar panels will be installed on the canopy of the walkway — named Walk@Chowrasta — at a cost of RM180,000 by the MBPP.

Jagdeep said the solar panels will be spread out along the 105m lane and will be completed by October.

He said the panels will save the city council about RM3,000 each month in energy bills at the site and expected to pay for themselves in about six years.

He said the project is one of the many by the local government to benefit the people and ratepayers.

Walk@Chowrasta is the first canopy project on the island to provide shade to market-goers and traders along the lane.

“Walk@Chowrasta is built with rainwater harvesting tank and it can collect up to 9,000 litres of water for irrigation and cleaning works,” he said.

The Walk@Chowrata project was awarded at RM2.5 million through an open tender to contractor Nazareka Sdn Bhd with Perunding YAA Sdn Bhd as the consultant.

The project started on November 1 last year and had been due for completion on April 30, but this has been extended to October 15.

The RM2.5 million was only for the construction of the canopy and does not include the RM180,000 to install the solar panels.

MBPP Mayor Datuk Yew Tung Seang said the city council is now looking at other premises to install solar panels for energy efficiency and to cut energy costs.

“This is part of our green agenda so we will identify more premises to install solar panels and harvest the energy,” he said.

Chowrasta Market was originally a collection of market stalls at the junction of Jalan Penang, Lebuh Tamil, Jalan Kuala Kangsar and Jalan Chowrasta back in the 1890s.

A modern market building was constructed on the site in the 1960s and it was the first market complex with an escalator.

The century-old Chowrasta Market was given a RM13.18 million facelift several years ago and the newly renovated complex was opened in late 2016.

Energy Policy

Seda completing e-bidding for biogas, small hydropower

24 July 2019

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Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR: The Sustainable Energy Development Authority (Seda) Malaysia is completing the second biogas e-bidding and inaugural e-bidding for small hydropower systems, according to Minister of Energy, Technology Science, Climate Change and Environment Yeo Bee Yin.

In a statement yesterday, Yeo said the e-bidding’s aim is to facilitate price discovery for renewable energy (RE) generated from biogas and small hydro resources through healthy competition.

The inaugural e-bidding for biogas was carried out in the last quarter of 2018 and Seda is into the second e-bidding for 2019. In the same period, it will be conducting its inaugural e-bidding for small hydro.

Seda is the authority and implementer of the feed-in tariff (FiT) scheme.

In its statement, it said as at end-June 2019, it had approved 12,540 FiT applications with a total capacity of 1,744.38 megawatts (mws) — consisting of 34.6% small hydro, 25.4% solar photovoltaic (PV), 23.5% biomass, 14.4% biogas and 2.1% geothermal.

In the same period, however, total RE projects achieving commercial operations amounted to 10,254 with a total installed capacity of 621.96mws (61.8% solar PV, 15.4% biomass, 11.5% biogas and 11.3% small hydro).

As a result of the FiT scheme introduced in 2011, Seda said the estimated capital investment for the RE project is RM9.8 billion with a projected carbon dioxide emission avoidance of 3.3 million tonnes up to 2023.

Yesterday, Yeo launched Goodyear’s solar PV system — the largest recorded under the net energy metering (NEM) scheme in the country. Located in Shah Alam, the PV system is rated 2.5mw peak and is expected to meet 11.5% of Goodyear’s daily electricity consumption.

Yeo said Goodyear’s PV system is exemplary of more corporates with a strong commitment to meeting their environmental, social and governance obligations.

The NEM concept is the energy produced by an installed solar PV system that will be consumed first, and the excess energy exported to Tenaga Nasional Bhd.

The NEM was implemented at end-2016 and the total approved capacity as at end-2018 was 27.81mws.

Since January 2019, the NEM scheme has been enhanced to allow surplus solar electricity to be sold on a one-on-one basis. In the first six months of 2019, Seda had approved 20.72mw of NEM from a total 500mw quota allocated valid until end-2020.

Yeo said the government’s target is to achieve 20% of RE in the national installed capacity mix (excluding large hydro) by 2025. As at end-2018, it had achieved 6%.

Electricity/Power Grid

Paper on TNB’s overcharged bills with AGC

24 July 2019

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Malaysia

THE probe into Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s (TNB) alleged violation of the Energy Commission’s standard for service levels has been completed with the investigation paper (IP) sent to the Attorney General’s Chambers (AGC) for feedback.

Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change Minister Yeo Bee Yin told reporters that the IP was completed two weeks following consumers’ complaints over the sharp rise in their electricity bills.

She earlier launched the Low Carbon Cities 2030 Challenge at Greentech Malaysia Corp in Bangi, Selangor.

Last May, a number of consumers vented their anger on TNB after their bills showed an extraordinary increase as compared to the amount they usually pay.

Assuring those affected, Yeo was reported to have said TNB would be penalised as it has committed an offence under the Electricity Supply Act 1990.

TNB on May 31 admitted that there was a technical hitch in the billing system resulting in the excessive charges.

On the penalty, Yeo said the ministry wants a large fine.

“We’ll see how it goes,” she added.

On the Low Carbon Cities 2030 Challenge, the minister said it is targeted to establish and designate 200 low-carbon zones across the country by 2030, and at least 1,000 low-carbon cities partners working together towards a low-carbon future.

She said the goal of the challenge is to reduce the overall emissions from Malaysian cities by 45% by 2030.

Yeo said the low-carbon zones will have reduced emissions from energy and water consumption from buildings and common areas, reduced emissions from petrol and diesel private vehicle use, and reduced emissions from the generation of waste that end up in landfills.

Those who succeed in the challenge will be awarded diamond recognition by the ministry and will have the opportunity to participate in various low-carbon programmes, she said.

Meanwhile, at the launch of Malaysia’s largest rooftop solar photovoltaic (PV) project under the net energy metering (NEM) scheme by Goodyear Malaysia Bhd that was held later in the day, Yeo expressed her confidence that the solar industry will be able to create more jobs in the country.

She said more than 54,300 Malaysians have been working in related fields in the industry since 2011.

“In line with the government’s aim to provide sustainable solar energy, we have been creating jobs in the industry,” she told reporters.

Yeo said currently, the solar industry does not only focus on the installation of solar panels on commercial buildings, but also on factory premises.

“This has been done by Goodyear, who has installed solar panels on its factory premises as a step towards reducing its carbon footprint, as well as ensuring a more environmentally friendly future.

“It will also help the company reduce electricity consumption and cut down its electricity bills,” she said.

Meanwhile, Goodyear manufacturing operations Asia-Pacific director Ramon Le said Goodyear has installed 6,680 solar panels, which are connected to six low voltage substations capable of generating 2.5MW, not only for the manufacturing plant, but also for the office building and the warehouse.

He said the panels were made from 375W bifacial monocrystalline PERC double glass solar modules, capable of reducing 1980 tonnes in carbon emissions annually for 25 years.

The NEM scheme is a solar PV initiative by the Ministry of Energy, Science, Technology, Environment and Climate Change to encourage Malaysia’s renewable-energy uptake.

Electricity/Power Grid

Vietnam could face power shortage

24 July 2019

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Vietnam

HANOI (Viet Nam News/ANN) – Vietnam could face an electricity shortage of 6.6 billion kWh in 2021 and 11.8 billion kWh in 2022. The shortage could increase to 15 billion kWh in 2023, according to the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT).

Phuong Hoang Kim, director of the ministry’s Electricity and Renewable Energy Authority, said the reason for the shortage was due to delayed progress in 47 out of 62 power projects with capacities of more than 200MW in the Vietnam Power Master Plan VII.

It was expected that the electricity sector would still meet the country’s power demand in 2020. However, there would be risks of a shortage if the demand is higher than forecast, poor water flow to hydropower reservoirs or a lack of coal and gas for electricity production, Kim said.

In the first half of the year, electricity consumption increased 10 per cent from the same period last year because of prolonged hot weather.

The power consumption was expected to continue to increase by 10 per cent at year-end.

Currently, power projects have been implemented in three investment models including those invested by Vietnam Electricity (EVN), the Việt Nam National Oil and Gas Group (PetroVietnam) and Vietnam National Coal and Minerals Group (Vinacomin); build-operate-transfer (BOT) projects and independent power producer (IPP) projects.

Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc Vuong said the main reason for the delayed progress was due to capital and contractor issues. Power projects are often on a big scale with total investment of more than US$2 billion each and long construction times. Therefore, it was not easy to find capable contractors. In addition, the removal of the Government guarantee mechanism for power projects has made it difficult to raise capital.

In addition, it took a long time for BOT projects to negotiate power prices with EVN to ensure their profits, thus causing delays.

Vượng added that prolonged land clearance and low power tariffs were not attractive enough for investors.

He proposed that the Government should promote the implementation of renewable energy projects as they take a shorter time to complete.

According to EVN, it took only six months to implement a solar power project while that of a 220kV or 500kV plant was three to five years.

He added that the ministry would consider importing electricity from Laos and China to resolve the power shortage. However, this would be a temporary solution. The country should accelerate the progress of large power projects.

Trinh Quoc Vu, deputy director of Energy Saving and Sustainable Development Department said the sector should improve businesses’ awareness to save power. Some of the firms signed a commitment with EVN and the department to save 10 per cent of power consumption this year.

Minister Tran Tuan Anh asked EVN and relevant agencies to quickly complete projects in the Power Master Plan VII while updating regulations to attract investment into the sector.

Anh also asked to review regulations on responsibilities of investors of delayed projects and localities’ leaders.

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