Page 12 - AsiaElec Week 40

AsiaElec
NEWS IN BRIEF
AsiaElec
POLICY
Pakistan draws up plan to
add 74,448MW to national
grid by 2040
Pakistan cannot accelerate economic growth without a robust power production and supply system in place.
It has drawn up a comprehensive plan to develop 120 new power projects in a bid to add 74,448MW of production capacity to the system till 2040, mostly from hydro, domestic coal and renewable sources including wind and solar.
“In the year 2040, the nominal production capacity in the system will stand at 98,091MW against projected peak load (demand) of 80,425MW,” the National Transmission
and Despatch Company (NTDC) said in a study titled “Indicative Generation Capacity Expansion Plan 2018-40.”
In 2018, the nominal capacity and demand matched quite closely as the nominal capacity from all generation sources hovered around 27,715MW whereas the demand was close to 26,700MW.
In 2019, the gap between nominal capacity and demand is steadily widening and has started surpassing the peak load in the system.
It can be observed that a significant surplus of around 17,600MW remains between the projected demand and installed capacity, according to the study. Sufficient generation has been planned to be added by 2040 to satisfy the 1% LOLP (loss of load probability) criteria and add sufficient reserves to the system.
COMPANY NEWS
Japan’s JERA acquires 22% stake in Summit Power
Japan’s largest energy company JERA has acquired a 22% stake in Summit Power International for $330mn to establish major energy infrastructure, including power generation projects in Bangladesh.
The investment has been finalised within only four months of signing a memorandum of understanding between JERA and Summit in Tokyo, Summit said in a statement yesterday.
In May, Summit Corporation and JERA Asia had inked the initial agreement to initiate an energy infrastructure project at Matarbari in Cox’s Bazar involving an investment of more than $500mn.
As a shareholder of Summit, JERA will
strive to increase the corporate value of Summit through the efficient construction and operation of its power generation facilities and contribute to the sustainable economic growth of Bangladesh, according to the statement.
Summit’s Founder Chairman Muhammed Aziz Khan expressed his satisfaction with the investment.
“Much-needed technology and capital for Bangladesh’s fast-growing power and energy market will be available from JERA with their vast knowledge and balance sheet. JERA by far could be our best partner.”
“This partnership will support our investment programme of $3bn by 2022 in Bangladesh.”
Toshiro Kudama, CEO of JERA Asia, said JERA is fully dedicated and committed to the future development and economic growth of Bangladesh through this precious partnership with Summit.
“We believe that Summit has unrivaled presence and capacity in the country. Thus, we will humbly and steadily provide our support to them in the future. We look forward to working together with Summit in supplying not only reliable electricity but also primary energy sources to the people of Bangladesh.”
The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the IFC Emerging Asia Fund, and EMA Power were shareholders of Summit until now and will exit through this transaction, the statement said.
INVESTMENT
Schneider Electric creates Energy Access Asia
Schneider Electric announced at its Global Innovation Summit in Barcelona on October 2 that its partners Norfund, EDFI and Amundi had agreed to create the new impact fund named “Schneider Electric Energy Access Asia.”
The fund targets the 350 million people who have no energy access mainly in India, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Indonesia and the Philippines.
The strategy is to provide the benefit of electricity to households, small businesses and collective services such as schools or health stations by investing in the value chain of access to energy: manufacturers, distributors, and solution providers.
The beneficiaries of these mainly will
be chosen based on the three following criteria: (1) contribution to the Sustainable Development Goal N°7 through measurable impact in Asia Pacific, (2) growth potential and financial viability, (3) clear governance and will respect the highest ESG criteria.
“We believe that to drive long-lasting positive change, impact investing is crucial and will accelerate our ambition to quadruple the number of people gaining access to energy. We are talking about roughly 24 million people that gained access to energy
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Week 40 08 •October•2019