Asia Pacific Energy Review: July 16-21

This column focuses on the previous week's main energy events in Asia and the Pacific.

Australia / Nuclear power

The clean energy industry’s opposition to nuclear power is on two fronts: technological complexity and viability, and high costs. This was one of the main takeaways from last week’s Australian Clean Energy Summit 2024.

Canada / Oil exports

Asia's crude oil imports from the expanded Trans Mountain pipeline will rise as major refiners in China, Japan and South Korea seek more supply. The flow of crude from Alberta to Canada's Pacific coast will triple to 890,000 bpd. The pipeline gives Canadian producers more access to the U.S. West Coast and Asian markets.

China / Carbon emissions

China plans to cut carbon emissions in its coal power industry by piloting co-firing using coal mixed with either green ammonia or biomass, as well as with carbon capture, utilization and storage.

India / Russia

PM Modi and President Putin agreed to cooperate in energy, including nuclear power, oil refining and petrochemicals. Both are also looking into increasing the supply of coking coal, and exporting anthracite coal from Russia to India.

South Korea / Nuclear power

The Czech govt picked Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power (KHNP) as preferred bidder to build two nuclear reactors, marking South Korea's first overseas order for a large-scale nuclear power project since 2009.

Sri Lanka / Energy transition

The Asian Development Bank granted Sri Lanka a $100 million policy-based loan to support reforms in the power sector introduced under the Electricity Act; this includes institutional and regulatory reforms that aim to improve operational sustainability of the electricity sector.

Thailand / Energy scandal

Share prices of Thai renewable energy company, Energy Absolute, plunged 30% in trading on July 16 after the lifting of a trade suspension following a leadership shake-up. Shares had been suspended on July 15 when the company announced changes to its board and senior management; the previous CEO was accused of fraud.

UAE / Energy finance

State-backed green energy group Masdar raised $1 billion with its second green bond issuance on the London Stock Exchange. It was five times oversubscribed and is part of a larger effort to raise up to $3 billion to deploy 100 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. Masdar has a portfolio worth more than $30 billion.

​​U.S. / LNG exports

A U.S. court ordered the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to reassess the impact of GHGs from Commonwealth LNG's project in Louisiana. By 2027, the government aims to cut average carbon emissions by 50% from 2023 levels.

Vietnam / Renewable energy 

Vietnam’s renewable energy developers are set to benefit from a newly approved mechanism for direct power purchase agreements, said Saigon Securities, adding that the DPPA can encourage more investment in domestic renewable energy, thus improving efficiency of the country’s power market.