Page 9 - AsiaElec Week 47

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NEWS IN BRIEF
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said in a statement. “It could sabotage our elections, shut down our access to television, the internet and other communication technologies, cause the collapse of our economy and undermine our national security,” she said.
Japan to assist creation of local power providers that function even during blackouts
The Japanese Environment Ministry plans to create a financial aid program to encourage the establishment of community-based power providers that could supply energy locally if disasters bring large-scale outages.
The program will assist the creation of independent systems involving renewable energy facilities, transmission grids and storage batteries, sources said Friday.
The move comes after a municipally funded power provider in the Chiba Prefecture town of Mutsuzawa supplied electricity to a roadside rest station when Typhoon Faxai caused a blackout across
the whole town in September. The area is primarily serviced by Tokyo Electric Power Company Holdings Inc. Residents in town- managed public housing next to the rest station and another 800 nearby residents were able to use its toilets and take showers.
The ministry wants similar systems to be built in many other parts of the country, the sources said. It hopes to secure funds for the financial aid program under the government’s planned supplementary budget for fiscal 2019.
Mutsuzawa’s independent power firm uses locally produced natural gas and a solar power system to supply electricity to the rest station and the public housing. With underground power cables left unscathed by the typhoon, it was able to supply electricity during and after the disaster.
The ministry has already been encouraging local governments to launch community-
based power providers that use renewable energy as a measure to fight global warming.
M&A
Mitsubishi beats Shell to buy Dutch power firm Eneco
A group led by Japan’s Mitsubishi Corp will buy Eneco in a deal valuing the Dutch energy firm at EUR4.1bn ($4.52bn), Eneco said on Monday, beating off rival bidders including Shell and private equity firm KKR, Reuters reported.
Eneco, a company owned by 44 Dutch municipalities and with a strong focus on renewable energy, said it had been swayed by Mitsubishi’s plans to allow the company to continue its strategy and retain its corporate identity.
The deal, backed by Eneco’s boards and a committee representing shareholders, must still be approved early next year by the Dutch company’s municipal investors.
“The consortium made the best offer for shareholders and all other stakeholders of Eneco, including employees,” the Dutch company said in a statement.
The Mitsubishi offer beat two other consortiums, one led by Shell with Dutch pension fund manager PGGM and another one that included private equity firm KKR with Dutch lender Rabobank.
Mitsubishi’s consortium planned to invest EUR1bn ($1.1bn)in Eneco’s operations in the Netherlands, Germany and Belgium in the next three years, Eneco Chief Financial Officer Guido Dubbeld told in a call with journalists.
He said the investment would be made “mostly in the Netherlands, mostly in wind, somewhat less in solar.”
The deal will give Mitsubishi 80% of Eneco and its partner Chubu a 20% stake.
Mitsubishi already owned 400MW of Dutch offshore wind power and would combine those operations with Eneco, the Dutch company said.
COAL
Indian government warns
Coal India production
blocks
The Indian coal ministry has asked state- owned Coal India Ltd. to either expedite the operationalisation of 110 additional blocks allotted to it or return the mines to the government, an official said.
The coal ministry recently enquired from the state-run miner about the operational status of the additional blocks allotted to it, and whether extraction from these coal blocks is techno-economically feasible, the official said.
The government was told that of the 110 additional Coal India blocks, 50 were explored, 41 were under exploration and balance 19 were partly/regionally explored.
Out of 50 explored blocks, project reports of 25 blocks have been prepared, Coal India informed the ministry.
The ministry emphasised on quick operationalisation of all of these blocks, otherwise Coal India may return them to the Ministry of Coal for their allotment auction to other agencies, according to the same official.
Coal India accounts for over 80 percent of domestic coal output.
The state-owned firm had earlier said that it will produce 750mn tonnes of coal in the next financial year. It will further produce 1bn tonnes of coal by FY24, Coal Minister Pralhad Joshi had said.
Coal India is targeting to produce 660mn tonnes of the dry fuel in 2019-20 compared to 607mn tonnes in the last fiscal year.
RENEWABLES
Macquarie Group commits
to 100% renewable
electricity by 2025
Australian investment bank Macquarie Group has committed to purchasing all of its electricity from renewable sources by 2025, as the company becomes the latest to officially join the RE100 initiative that encourages the world’s biggest companies to make the switch to renewables.
“Macquarie will seek to develop projects to supply the green energy for its new
Sydney headquarters and Melbourne office. Macquarie has been carbon neutral in sourcing its energy supply since 2010 through
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