Page 14 - AsiaElec Week 41 2021

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decline in first half of 2021 in September, 76 per cent more than it did the pandemic, said Yawen Lu, an oil market
during the same month last year, customs
analyst at FGE.
Analysis by Chain Reaction Research (CRR) data released yesterday showed. Natural gas Chinese-produced supplies of diesel,
shows that 10 palm oil companies were imports rose 23 per cent to 10.6m tonnes which can be used for heating, industrial
responsible for approximately 5,000 hectares compared with the previous year. and trucking purposes, are typically sold to
(ha) of forest clearing during the first six Factories and businesses have been forced destinations including Philippines, Australia
months of 2021 in Indonesia, Malaysia, to ration power use and some households and Singapore. State-owned refiners can
and Papua New Guinea. The figure is have experienced electricity outages after export fuels within limits set by government-
approximately 43 percent of the total 11,500 a power crunch hit more than 20 Chinese issued quotas. Last year, Zhejiang Petroleum
ha of deforestation detected within known oil provinces last month. and Chemical Co Ltd received the green light
palm concessions in the region. Total detected Meanwhile, the effects of the energy to export fuel, making it the only Chinese
deforestation within oil palm concessions crisis continues to ripple around the world. private refiner with permission to do so.
is almost half of the amount seen in the Americans’ home heating bills will rise sharply
same regions during the first half of 2020. this winter, according to a federal government
Against the backdrop of this reduced rate of forecast, as a global energy crunch begins to
deforestation, some companies with as little as reach the world’s biggest economy at a time of SOL AR
200 ha of deforestation were on the top 10 list. building concerns over inflation. And in the
In the same timeframe in 2020, the minimum UK, two more UK energy suppliers have gone China energy crisis
amount of deforestation was 700 ha. under owing to record wholesale gas prices.
A feature of this year’s list compared causing solar price crunch
to previous years is the presence of two
companies in Peninsular Malaysia, YP Olio in Australia, threatens
and Nadi Mesra. Last year’s largest deforesters POWER CRISIS
were exclusively Indonesian companies. “knockout blow”
Another feature is the number of concessions China set to cut fuel exports
clearing forest despite not having a mill and The prospect of significant increases to the
seemingly without links to the international as power crisis spurs cost of installing rooftop solar systems in
No Deforestation, No Peat, No Exploitation Australia is once again looming large, with the
(NDPE) market. This trend has been growing domestic use latest market headwind – an energy crisis in
in the palm oil sector in the last few years, China – threatening to deliver a “knock-out
particularly in Indonesia. In 2020, domestic China, Asia’s biggest oil refiner by capacity, blow” to companies already on the ropes, One
consumption in Indonesia drove demand is set to slash fuel exports as it keeps more Step Off The Grid reported.
for palm oil in Indonesia as exports fell due supplies for domestic use amid a power crisis Australian rooftop solar industry insiders
to the COVID-19 pandemic. Demand has stemming from coal shortages, Bloomberg are warning that the China power crunch,
particularly come from Indonesia’s domestic reported. on top of huge hikes in shipping costs and a
biofuel sector, where weak standards have Outflows of oil products such as diesel and global shortage of solar panel raw materials
long presented a leakage risk. gasoline are expected to slip this month due are starting to come through at the retail level,
The decline is also a consequence of the to tighter balances nationwide, which have potentially adding up to $1,000 to the cost of a
successful uptake of NDPE policies in the boosted retail prices and margins from local 6.6kW system.
palm oil sector. As buyers have increasingly sales, according to local industry consultant And while the 20-30% increase in the cost
removed deforestation-linked palm oil from JLC. This trend should continue through the of imported panels will, ultimately, make
their supply chains, those companies still fourth quarter, it said, with aviation fuel being its way through to customers, the impact
deforesting are operating outside of the NDPE the only exception. on the industry threatens to be much more
market. China has been grappling with an energy detrimental, as companies hang in the balance
CHAIN REACTION RESEARCH crunch caused by a shortage of coal and of Covid-delayed installation pipelines, low
surging natural gas prices. More competition stockpiles of cheaper panels, and wafer-thin
for these fuels from India to Europe is likely to margins.
POWER support more gas-to-oil switching, prompting As Bloomberg reported at the end of
Chinese refiners to hoard more diesel and September, the latest blow to the global solar
Chinese energy crisis bites fuel oil for use in small-scale generators and industry has been delivered by the surging
price of industrial silicon, the metal used to
heaters during the winter months.
in threat to growth significantly to about 310,000 tons, according make polysilicon.
Diesel exports are expected to fall
Chinese imports of coal and natural gas to JLC, which would be the lowest level
increased sharply in September as Beijing since March 2015. The potentially lower
raced to deal with a spiralling energy crisis shipments are coming at a time when the
that threatens economic growth. wider Asia region is set to consume more
China imported 32.9m tonnes of coal diesel as economic activities resume after

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