Page 9 - AsianOil Week 37 2022

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Iran reportedly outdoing Russia in discounts

offered on oil deliveries to China

PIPELINES & IRAN has reportedly been outdoing Rus- breach US sanctions aimed at driving Iranian
TRANSPORT sia in discounts offered to China on crude oil oil off international markets. But Russia, hit
deliveries. with Western sanctions in the wake of its mil-
Russia has discounted In an article suggesting that Iran’s oil exports itary invasion of Ukraine in late February, has
its crude because of on world markets increased for a third straight become a bigger rival to Iran in terms of oil sales
sanctions difficulties. month in August, Radio Farda reported Reuters to China as the economic backlash against the
information that Iran offered Chinese refineries war it is waging on its neighbour has forced it to
oil delivery for August at $11 below the price of seek new buyers.
Brent crude oil, which was $8 less than the price “To compensate for the drop in demand
offered by Russia to the Chinese. from traditional markets, Moscow has sought to
China is a vital market to Iran for oil sales increase exports to Asia by discounting its crude
given that Beijing—encouraged by discounts by about $30 per barrel in Asian markets, which
and in line with its rejection of US foreign pol- was initially $10 per barrel more than Iran's dis-
icy driven by sanctions—is known to turn a count to its Asian customers, especially China,
blind eye to ‘under the radar’ shipments that according to Reuters,” wrote Radio Farda. ™

JOGMEC to supply financing for Japan’s

hydrogen, ammonia projects using CCS

PROJECTS & JAPAN Oil, Gas and Metals National Corpora- alternative to hydrocarbons.
COMPANIES tion (JOGMEC) announced this week that it will Japan’s parliament in May passed legislation
provide financial and technical support for blue that allows JOGMEC to provide financing for
Japan has embraced hydrogen and ammonia projects in Japan using hydrogen, ammonia and CCS projects.
hydrogen and ammonia carbon capture and storage (CCS). JOGMEC is In August JOGMEC announced that it would
as key tools in its already involved with supporting a number of participate in a joint study for injecting CO2
decarbonisation effort. projects that are employing CCS as a means of into wells at Indonesia’s Jatibarang field in West
reducing carbon emissions. Java as part of an enhanced oil recovery (EOR)
Speaking in Tokyo on September 6, JOG- and CCS project that will test carbon storage in
MEC executive vice president Satoshi Asawa depleted oil and gas fields.
said the state-run company would have a “new JOGMEC announced the publication of its
mission to help realise a carbon-neutral society. first version of ‘recommended guidelines for the
We intend to pursue carbon neutrality by focus- implementation of carbon dioxide capture and
ing on blue hydrogen and ammonia projects for storage (CCS) projects’ in May this year. The
the time being…but we are looking at increasing announcement said that the company would
the number of green projects in the future,” he “maximise its experience in resource develop-
said at a Clean Coal Day International Sympo- ment accumulated over the past 50 years, and
sium, according to Reuters. as a core organisation responsible for energy
Blue hydrogen and ammonia are produced security, will strengthen its support for LNG,
using natural gas or coal whereby the carbon hydrogen, ammonia and CCS projects being
emissions are captured and stored away using promoted by Japanese companies.”
the technical process of CCS. This technology In November last year, JOGMEC joined the
has yet to prove efficient. Green hydrogen and CCS+ initiative, which was set up in April 2021
ammonia are produced by using renewable by major IOCs for the purpose of establishing
sources of energy to power a process called elec- standards for carbon accounting methodologies
trolysis, which generates hydrogen from water. by CCS activities.
Green hydrogen continues to face high costs JOGMEC said in the announcement that it
and problems created by the lack of a global sup- would actively promote international co-opera-
ply chain. However, governments worldwide are tion in the field of CCS to contribute to the reali-
funding numerous projects designed to make sation of a carbon-neutral society and stabilising
hydrogen commercially viable and a suitable the supplies of natural resources and energy. ™

Week 37 19•September•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P9