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Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran agree on energy network
ASIA
RUSSIA, Azerbaijan and Iran have concluded an agreement on the joint development of a project to connect their energy systems, Ria Novosti reported.
e newly announced deal implies the joint development of a feasibility study for the “North- South Energy Channel” integrating the systems of the three countries.
e Russian companies party to the agree- ment are SO-UPS and Rosseti. On the part of Azerbaijan and Iran, AzerEnerji ASC and man- agement company Tavanir will take part in the project, respectively.
Exchanges of electricity between Russia, Azerbaijan and Iran are already in operation, but for full integration of the countries’ power grids further work needs to be done.
At the same time, regional connections to the power networks of Georgia and Turkey are developing.
e agreement is seen as in tandem with the International North-South Transport Corridor (INSTC) multi-modal freight transport project.
Azerbaijan has increased its generation of
electricity, therefore the energy corridor is seen as an opportunity to increase power resource exports, reducing economic reliance on ship- ments of gas and oil.
Iran and Russia need additional energy, thus the possible synchronisation of power grids and the transfer of excess energy from Azerbaijan to the neighbouring countries will have a positive e ect both commercially and economically.
Iran suffers from spates of summertime power cuts. e corridor might help tackle that particular dilemma. On the other hand, during winter months when Iran needs less electricity, it might contribute power ows to the network.™
GAS-FIRED GENERATION
New Caledonia plans LNG imports
NEW CALEDONIA
NEW Caledonia, a French island in the Paci c Ocean, is seeking LNG supplies for 15 years, according to a report from Bloomberg. The news agency reported that it was seeking around 200,000 tonnes per year (tpy) of LNG, under a project backed by Nouvelle-Caledonie Energie (NCE).
This would involve a floating storage and regasi cation unit (FSRU) and a 200-MW gas- red power plant. e LNG contract should run from the second half of 2023 to the rst half of 2024. LNG will be priced against crude or the US’ Henry Hub, or a combination of the two. Cargoes should come in 40,000 or 80,000 cubic metre amounts.
Submissions are due by August 29, Bloomb- erg said. A request for proposals (RfP) will be issued to short-listed applicants in the second quarter of 2020.
e power facility would replace an existing facility in Noumea, which supplies a nickel plant, owned by Eramet’s Societe Le Nickel (SLN), which has been on the islands for more than 100 years. e nickel producer is also a shareholder in the NCE venture. According to a document from the government in 2018, SLN takes the
lion’s share of the power – at 160 MW – while the remainder goes to local needs. e island group is reported to hold 10-20% of the world’s nickel resources.
New Caledonia formulated a plan for its energy transition in 2016, following the Paris Accords. e Doniambo facility currently runs on heavy fuel oil, which is both polluting and expensive. Energy accounts for 35% of SLN’s running costs.
According to Eramet’s 2018 corporate social responsibility (CSR) report, switching SLN’s oil- red power plant to LNG would play a major role in reducing its emissions. “A delay in the implementation of this lever would lead to a 20% reduction in tonnes of CO2 per tonne of outgo- ing product instead of the target of 26%.”
Eramet’s sulphur oxide (SOx) emissions increased by 10% in 2018, largely as a result of greater power generation by SLN in New Caledonia.
Shi ing to LNG should save cash for both the nickel company and for local users. Using gas will also allow it to o set the intermittency problem of renewable energy. e territory has both solar and wind facilities.™
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w w w . N E W S B A S E . c o m Week 33 20•August•2019