Ghana: Ministry Of Energy To Supply 500 Solar Lanterns To Residents Of East AdaData from the Company indicates that the leading causes of electrocutions are; poor wiring at customer premises (24%), illegal connections (16%), structures and buildings near power lines (12%) and deliberate acts (9%). The ten leading counties in cases of electrocutions are Nairobi, Nakuru, Kericho, Uasin Gishu, Siaya, Busia, Nyamira, Meru, Kirinyaga and Kiambu. Nakuru County accounts for most of the electrocutions across the country at 11% followed by Kiambu at 7%. Cognisant of the danger involved in electricity, the Company aims to provide safe and reliable power supply to its customers to enable the country’s socio-economic development in a sustainable manner. “We commit to ensure that all our operations are carried out in a manner that protects life, the environment and the community in general,” said Mr. Ngugi. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Kenya: Kenya Power, National Government Administration Officers Partner To Promote Public Electrical Safety
Kenya Power has partnered with the National Government Administration Officers (NGAO) to enhance public awareness on the danger of unsafe use or accidental contact with electricity.
Through the partnership, the Company is also aiming to educate the public on how to prevent electrical accidents and inform them of the channels for reporting accidents and unsafe situations in a timely manner.
The partnership with NGAO is part of a wider Public Safety Campaign that the Company has launched to address rising cases of electrocutions.
“As an organisation, we have a legal and moral obligation to protect lives and we always aim to operate in a safe environment. To address the worrying trend in public electrocutions, we are kicking off a safety campaign to educate members of the public on the danger of unsafe use of electricity. We are confident that the partnership with NGAO and the media will enable us to adequately educate the public and consequently address the challenge of electrocutions,” said Managing Director & CEO, Bernard Ngugi.
He was speaking at a public safety sensitization workshop for Administration Officers organised by the Company that was held today at Stima Club in Nairobi.
The meeting was also attended by representatives from the Ministry of Interior and Coordination of National Government, Ministry of Energy, the Multi-Sectoral Agency Consultative Committee, and the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA).
Ghana: TOR Rejects Incompetent Tag Against Its Board
The Management of Ghana’s only oil refinery, Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), has rejected the assertion by the staff of the refinery that its Board of Directors are incompetent.
A release issued and signed by TOR’s Corporate Affairs Manager, Dr. Antwi-Boasiako, on November, 5, 2020, said the unions’ allegation was based on the Board’s decision to defer the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) negotiation to 2021, due to the harsh economic impact of COVID-19 on TOR’s finances in 2020.
He explained that the unions and Management of TOR meet every three years to negotiate a Collective Bargaining agreement that sets out salary and benefits for the next year, which they had to defer to 2021 because of the devastating impact of Covid-19 on TOR’s operations for 2020.
Touching on progress made by the current management to dispel the incompetence tag, the management observed that efforts by the current Board has led to the payment of TOR’s outstanding GHc1 billion debts accrued between 2009 and 2016.
The payment was made by the current Nana Akufo-Addo-government as part of support to TOR.
The release noted that a further US$67 million of the debt carried over from 2009 to 2016 has also been paid by the government.
It stressed that the Board and Management of TOR continued their efforts to clear the debts that were left, adding that under the leadership of the current Board, TOR has been able to successfully carry out its long overdue shutdown maintenance, improved the efficiency and availability of the processing plants, reduce losses, improvement in product yields and financial performance.
The management said this is evidenced by the recent continuous processing of up to eight million barrels of crude oil at the refinery since September 2019.
The management also wondered why under the current Board, TOR has seen more operational days than 2009-2016, and has engaged with oil traders such as Woodfields, leading to the signing of a processing agreement for the company to process crude oil/feedstock compared to process 11 million barrels of crude oil on their behalf since September 2019 to date, yet the unions want to describe them as incompetent.
“Thus, the current management has demonstrated the capacity and also ensured that TOR has had consistent supply of crude/feedstock for processing as compared to previous years, making the unions concerns unfounded.”
The statement further affirmed that under the current Board of TOR, a new furnace has been procured to replace the exploded one.
It was of the view that the current Board has set out to immediately ensure that the auditing of financial accounts that had been neglected from 2013 to 2016 were carried out as a matter of urgency, adding, “We can report now that auditing of 2013 to 2016 financial accounts have now been completed, with 2016 being the worst performing year which recorded a loss of approximately GHS 866 million.”
Ghana: TOR Workers Call For Dissolution Of ‘Incompetent’ Board (Video)The management of TOR also said, in consultation with the union Executive, set up a taskforce to implement the recommendations from the Committee’s reports the unions referred to in their statement. The taskforce’s activities, the statement explained, are ongoing. In the light of cash flow and other financial challenges that TOR has been facing, the company commenced the development of a Profitability Improvement Plan in May 2020. Objective of the plan is to revitalize TOR by setting out a clear path that would ensure that TOR is able to operate as a viable going concern and meet its payment obligations, while effectively carrying out its core business activities. It concluded that plan focuses on three key areas: revenue generation, cost reduction and loss elimination, adding that Covid-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on the global refinery industry and TOR has not been spared either. According to the TOR’s management, for unions to allege that the Board has made no significant contribution to the company is unsubstantiated and unfortunate because, “TOR as at January 2017, the financial account had not been audited since 2013. In addition, TOR has outstanding debts of around US$345 million and also about GHc1.05 billion owed to third parties, traders and financial institutions,” the management explained. Source www.energynewsafrica.com
Ghana: Next NDC Gov’t To Provide Energy Infrastructure For Accelerated Economic Growth
A former Ghana’s Minister for Energy and Petroleum under the erstwhile National Democratic Congress (NDC), Emmanuel Kofi Buah, has assured Ghanaians that should his party assume office in January 2021, they would undertake accelerated infrastructural development in the energy sector to ensure speedy economic growth.
Speaking during the ‘Energy Manifesto Town Hall’ organised by the Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD) and its partners in the energy sector, Mr. Buah said the NDC would partner the private sector and strengthen BOST to reduce the cost of fuel for consumers, ensure product availability and increase reserves on annually.
Touching on the problems of Tema Oil Refinery (TOR), the former Energy Minister noted that the problem includes governmental involvement, managerial difficulties and lack of the right investments.
To resolve these, he said the NDC has practical steps to involve workers of the facility in decision making to ensure its smooth operations.
This, he stressed, would ensure efficient operation, add value and restore the facility to become a viable venture.
Commenting on how to resolve challenges in the pre-mix sector, the former Energy Minister said they would revert to the use of the Landing Beach Committees (BDC) which ensured reliable and equitable supply chain in the fishing industry.
“The story today is different. It is political appointees who are managing pre-mix. This is exactly the reason why fishermen are not getting this very critical product, and so, we are going to
change that. The implements they need, the outboard motors and other important implements are something will get,” he assured.
With reference to the LPG, Mr. Buah was of the view that the flaring of gas at the Atuabo Gas they undertook in their time, reduced LPG importation by 50 percent.
“So, the NDC will expand the facility to increase basic domestic production of the product.
“Additionally, the NDC intends as a policy, to aggressively promote the LPG as preferred fuel for cooking with the expansion of production of cylinders.
“With the cylinder re-circulation and all the issues around it, the NDC is coming to power with clear interest of Ghanaians at heart. Our intention is to basically bring LPG recirculation but not to collapse business. We are going to work with them,” he explained.
With reference to the upstream sector, he observed that the NDC would ensure that there would be quantum leap in the industry “s that Ghana reaches the one million barrels daily to feed the petrochemical industry.
“The NDC promises to support the private sector in the industry and invest in the Volta Basins and other basins in the country to ensure added value chain in the sector.”
Outlining prospects in the power sector, the former Deputy Minister Energy, John Jinapor stated that should the NDC win power, the whole country is set to get power by 2025, instead of the 2030 target by the NPP.
“We also want to ensure that we increase generational capacity to meet demand. We cannot afford to go back to load shedding. And so, we would also work on transmission sector. When we were in office, we did a lot of upgrading. We moved the lines from 161 to 330. We even got GRIDCo on their own balance sheet,” Mr Jinapor observed.
Source:www.energynewsafrica.com
Nigeria: 10,000bpd Production Threatened Over Explosion At OML 40
There are indication that the country’s economy may plummeted further, as it losses about 10,000 barrels per day of oil production to an explosion at Oil Mining Lease (OML) 40 operated by the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), an upstream subsidiary of the corporation.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, which confirmed the incident in a statement signed by General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of NNPC, Kennie Obateru, said the explosion occurred while carrying out production evacuation at Gbetiokun early production facility (EPF).
The corporation said there were no fatalities or injuries and no significant spill during the incident.
“There was, however, significant damage to the marine storage vessel, MT Harcourt, which will impact production by about 10,000 barrels per day,” the statement read.
The corporation further said it has commenced investigation to ascertain the cause of the incident with a view to avert future occurrence.
Nigeria: Gov’t Signs N105bn Afam Power Sale Agreement Today
The Federal Government of Nigeria will today, Thursday, November 5, 2020 sign an agreement for the sale of Afam Power Plant for N105bn to the preferred bidder.
Energynewsafrica.com understands the signing ceremony which will take place at the Office of the Vice President, would lead to the official sale of the power generation company to the preferred bidder, Transcorp Power Consortium.
In October 2019, the National Council on Privatisation approved Transcorp Power Consortium as the preferred bidder for the Afam Electricity Generation Company (Afam Power Plc and Afam Three Fast Power Limited) with a bid price of N105.3bn (about $343.6m).
This was one of the major decisions taken by the council, chaired by the Vice President and Chairman of Council, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, at the 2nd Meeting of the NCP for 2019 on October 14, 2019.
Ghana: CEO Of Bui Power Authority Adjudged Energy Personality Of The YearProviding updates on what the Bureau of Public Enterprises had been doing since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Director-General, BPE, Alex Okoh, said the signing of the N105bn deal was part of the work being done by his organisation. He said, “We had to review our activities as an agency upward instead of downward as a result of the COVID-19 issues. “Just as an indication of some of the activities that we have heightened up, tomorrow we are going to be doing the signing ceremony for the sale of Afam Power Plant to the preferred bidder. “That alone will fetch the Federal Government a total sum of N105bn.” The BPE boss said the successful investor would make part payment and subsequently clear the balance.
Sudan: UAE, Transitional Gov’t Sign Agreement To Develop 500 MWp Solar Power Plants
The Sudanese transitional government has signed an agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to produce 500 MWp of electricity from several solar power plants.
The parks will be built by independent power producers (IPPs) from the UAE.
The Sudanese transitional government is multiplying gestures both politically and diplomatically to open up the country to the world economy, after years of stagnation caused among other things by American sanctions imposed on the regime of former president Omar el-Bechir.
Thus, the transitional authorities signed an agreement with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for the development of the electricity sector in Sudan through the construction of several photovoltaic solar power plants.
The agreement of intent foresees the production of 500 MWp from solar energy, which the country, with its desert climate, has enormous potential. The installations will be developed by independent power producers (IPPs) from the Emirates. And the gulf country has them at its disposal. Most of them have numerous concessions on the African continent. This is the case of Amea Power which has won numerous contracts in Africa, notably south of the Sahara.
Ghana: Bui Power Authority To Commission Phase 1 Of 50MWp Solar PowerIn Togo, for example, the company is currently building the Blitta photovoltaic solar power station which will have a capacity of 50 MWp. In Mali, the IPP is developing a 50 MWp solar project in Tiakadougou-Dialakoro, a small council of 7,000 inhabitants, located just a stone’s throw from the capital Bamako. The company is also developing clean energy projects in Uganda, Egypt and other countries. The Emirati IPP Masdar could also be part of the Sudanese adventure. The company has great ambitions in renewable energy in Africa, culminating in the formation of a joint platform with the Egyptian company Infinity Energy. The aim of this alliance is to conquer market share in Africa. The two companies strengthened their rapprochement through the acquisition of assets from the German IPP ib vogt in a 64.1 MWp solar power plant in the Benban complex in Egypt. ib vogt developed this project with Infinity Energy.
BP Nears Sale Of London Headquarters After £235million Offer
British Petroleum (BP) is nearing the sale of its London headquarters to a firm controlled by Thomas Lau, brother of Hong Kong property billionaire Joseph Lau.
The oil giant is in advanced talks to sell the office building in historic St. James’s Square to a company backed by Lifestyle International Holdings Ltd., according to people with knowledge of the matter.
The Hong Kong department store operator has offered about 235 million pounds ($305 million) for the property, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the process is private.
The deal would be the first big real estate acquisition in the UK for Lifestyle International, whose chairman and largest shareholder is Thomas Lau. His brother Joseph is already a major investor in London property through his development company Chinese Estates Holdings Ltd.
A BP spokesman said the process of selling the building is ongoing and declined to comment further. A Lifestyle International spokesman declined to comment.
BP plans to cut 10,000 jobs amid the slump in oil prices and transition to cleaner energy, with staff in office-based jobs and those holding senior roles most affected.
The company is also moving to a mixture of home and office working as it adapts to the impact of the pandemic, according to the Sunday Times newspaper, which reported the start of the sales process in August.
About 500 people are housed in the St. James’s Square office, including the board and executive management, according to BP’s website.
The building has about 120,000 square feet (11,148 square meters) of space, according to real estate data provider EGi.
Some of the UK’s largest companies are planning to reduce the amount of office space they rent following the coronavirus crisis.
Capita Plc is vacating an office in London’s West End. Deloitte plans to close four of its 50 UK offices, according to the Financial Times.
Still, large companies from Netflix Inc. to Morgan Stanley are in the process of undertaking big office moves in London that show demand for the biggest and best buildings is recovering from lockdown lows. W.R. Berkley Corp. has kicked off the sale of its 36-story London headquarters named The Scalpel in the city’s financial district, and asset manager DWS Group has put a 145 million-pound office complex up for sale.
Lifestyle International operates some of Hong Kong’s best known retail outlets including the Sogo store. The company also owns most of the buildings from which its stores operate.
Source: Energyvoice.com
Ghana: TOR Workers Call For Dissolution Of ‘Incompetent’ Board (Video)
Angry workers of Ghana’s only refinery, Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) have called on the President of the West African nation, Nana Akufo-Addo to dissolve the Board with immediate effect citing incompetence.
During a protest at the refinery on Wednesday, the workers accused the Tongraan Kugbilsong Nanlebegtang led Board for disappointing the President, the nation as well as the workers.
The other members of the Board are Mr. Seth Achamfour-Yeboah, Kofi Brako (MP), Mr. Leon Kendon Appenteng, Mrs. Edith Sapara Grant, Dr. Williams Abayaawien Atuilik and John Boadu.
According to the workers, the board and management have shown very little commitment and sense of urgency in improving the fortunes of the refinery.
Chairman of UNICOF, Bright Adongo said “the workers went out of their job description and made proposals to the board which interestingly will not cost them a dime to implement yet they failed to exercise their oversight responsibility and get work done”.
Bright Adongo who represents workers of UNICOF in the refinery further expressed disappointment in the failure of the board to assure workers of the future prospects of revenue inflows.
He further alleged that the refinery is still indebted to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Ghana Water Company Limited.
“What we want to say is that with immediate effect the president must dissolve the board because it is in a state of disarray and we are not happy,” he said.
The chairperson of the Ghana Transport, Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union, Serwa Duncan – Williams also claimed that, the board failed to secure partnerships from several investors who had expressed interest in expanding the refinery’s capacity between 100,000 to 150,000 BPSD
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
According to the workers, the board and management have shown very little commitment and sense of urgency in improving the fortunes of the refinery.
Chairman of UNICOF, Bright Adongo said “the workers went out of their job description and made proposals to the board which interestingly will not cost them a dime to implement yet they failed to exercise their oversight responsibility and get work done”.
Bright Adongo who represents workers of UNICOF in the refinery further expressed disappointment in the failure of the board to assure workers of the future prospects of revenue inflows.
He further alleged that the refinery is still indebted to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA), the Social Security and National Insurance Trust (SSNIT), the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) and the Ghana Water Company Limited.
“What we want to say is that with immediate effect the president must dissolve the board because it is in a state of disarray and we are not happy,” he said.
The chairperson of the Ghana Transport, Petroleum and Chemical Workers Union, Serwa Duncan – Williams also claimed that, the board failed to secure partnerships from several investors who had expressed interest in expanding the refinery’s capacity between 100,000 to 150,000 BPSD
Source: www.energynewsafrica.com
GRIDCo Wins Two Prestigious Awards
Ghana’s power transmission company, GRIDCo, grabbed two awards last Friday at the 4th Ghana Energy Awards held at the Movenpick Ambassador Hotel in Accra.
GRIDCo won Energy Company of the Year for the Power sector category and Brand of the Year.
For the Power Sector Company of the year, GRIDCo beat Sunon Asogli Power Ghana Ltd, Karpowership, ECG and Saflex Engineering Co to emerge winner.
With regards to the Brand of the Year, GRIDCo beat Petrosol, Rigworld Solution, Dutch & Co and Total Ghana to emerge as winner.
Commenting on the awards, CEO of GRIDCo, Ing. Jonathan Amoako- Baah said, “As a catalyst organisation, sitting between the generators and distributors, we cannot afford to keep our eyes off the ball. We have worked hard over the years to position the company as a viable player across West Africa. These awards are a product of an attitude of not resting on our laurels. There’s more to come.”
Ghana: Next NDC Gov’t To Strip VRA, BPA Of Renewable Energy Role In A Restructuring Exercise
Ghana’s largest opposition party, National Democratic Congress (NDC), has given indication of restructuring the country’s power if the party returns to power after the upcoming December 7, 2020, general elections.
A former Deputy Minister for Power and a Member of Parliament for Yapei-Kusawgu in the Savannah Region on the ticket of the NDC, John Jinapor, who dropped the hint on Monday, said the Volta River Authority (VRA) and the Bui Power Authority (BPA) would be made to focus their attention on hydro power generation instead of venturing into other areas of generation.
According to him, the next NDC gov’t would create a separate entity called Ghana Thermal Plant for the management of the thermal power plants in the country. And in this, he said Ghanaians would be given the opportunity to own a stake in it.
“What we want to do on assumption of office is to ensure that we put the hydro plants together. We want to restructure the whole power sector so that Bui and Akosombo, being hydro, will concentrate on hydro. Then you have what we call Ghana Thermal Plant. We will bring the thermal plants together. Then, you can float it through a transparent process for Ghanaians to own that stake. And I want to put on record that President Mahama will put Ghanaians and their interest first,” Mr Jinapor said at the Energy Manifesto Town Hall organised by Chamber of Bulk Oil Distributors (CBOD) and its partners in Accra, capital of Ghana.
This would be a complete departure from what the incumbent New Patriotic Party administration, led by President Akufo-Addo, has done.
Under the current administration, Bui Power Authority Act 2007 (ACT 270) has been amended to enable the Authority assume additional responsibility in the area of developing other renewable energy projects apart from the hydro.
The Authority is currently executing 50MWp of Solar Power Park at Bui in the Bono Region.
It has also acquired sites in the Northern regions for the development of both solar and wind energy projects.
On the other hand, the VRA has also developed five years’ development plan for renewable energy. So far, VRA has developed 9MWp solar project comprising 2.5MW in Navrongo and 6.54MWp at Lawra in the Upper West Region. The Authority is also currently executing 13 MWp solar park at Kaleo.
Although, the NDC has proposed the creation of Renewable Energy Commission to spearhead its golden age of Renewable Energy agenda, Mr Jinapor failed to explain what would become of the renewable energy projects VRA and BPA have planned to undertake.
Source:www.energynewsfrica.com
Saudi Aramco’s Q3 Profit Slumps By 44.6% As COVID-19 Pandemic Chokes Demand
Saudi Arabian state oil giant Aramco has reported a 44.6% drop in its third-quarter net profit as the coronavirus crisis continued to choke demand and weigh on crude prices.
Share prices of global oil companies have been hammered this year as investors fret over the impact of the pandemic on energy demand and the long-term shift away from fossil fuels.
Oil prices have recovered only slightly since tumbling to their lowest in almost two decades in March, prompting Aramco and other majors such as Shell RDSa.L and BP Plc BP.L to slash capital expenditure this year and next.
Weaker refining and chemicals margins also hit Aramco’s net profit, which fell to 44.21 billion riyals ($11.79 billion) for the three months ended Sept. 30, in line with an analyst estimate of 44.6 billion riyals provided by Refinitiv but down from 79.84 billion riyals in the same period of last year.
“We saw early signs of a recovery in the third quarter due to improved economic activity, despite the headwinds facing global energy markets,” Saudi Aramco Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser said in a statement as carried by Reuters.
ExxonMobil To Cut 1,900 Jobs In The U.S.Aramco’s shares rose as much as 1% and were 0.6% higher at 34.4 riyals by 0830 GMT. Although down 2.3% year to date, Aramco has outperformed the likes of Exxon XOM.N, BP and Shell, which are down by more than 50% while Chevron CVX.N is down by 40%. Analysts say that is partly because of the broader performance of the Saudi stock market, on which Aramco is listed, but also because the company has guaranteed its dividend payment. Aramco said it would distribute a dividend of $18.75 billion for the quarter, in line with its plan to pay a base dividend of $75 billion for 2020. But equity analyst Yousef Husseini at investment bank EFG-Hermes said Aramco would likely have to increase its debt financing in the short- to medium-term or further cut capital expenditure, in order to be able to maintain the dividend unless oil prices recovered to at least $55 a barrel. Dividends from the world’s top oil producing company, which went public last year, play a critical role in helping the Saudi government manage its fiscal deficit. Aramco’s net profit almost doubled from 24.62 billion riyals in the second quarter, which the company attributed to higher oil prices, although it noted that was partly offset by a drop in volumes sold. Saudi Arabia has slashed its crude production since May under a global supply cut pact with OPEC and its allies, a group known as OPEC+, to support oil prices and demand. Aramco had free cash flow of $12.4 billion in the third quarter, compared with $6.1 billion in the second quarter.
Total Electricity Generation Of Abu Dhabi’s Energy Sector Reached 85 GWh In 2019
Abu Dhabi Department of Energy (DoE), has reported that Abu Dhabi’s energy sector’s total electricity generation reached 85 Gigawatts hours in 2019 – an increase of 1.33 percent from 2018.
The department, which is responsible for regulating the UAE capital’s energy sector, also revealed that the total available electricity generation capacity was 17,636 Megawatts, MW, in 2019, an increase of 6 percent from 16,623 MW in 2018.
Sultan Naser Al Shkeili, Energy – Pricing & Tariffs Director at DoE, said: “The electricity sector is of fundamental importance within the energy ecosystem in Abu Dhabi, as it is the main engine for operations in all sectors, especially industrial and residential. Abu Dhabi is witnessing an increasing demand for electricity as a result of the emirate’s sustained economic growth. This requires us to develop more policies regulating the electricity sector – policies that guarantee the provision of services of the highest quality and efficiency at all times.”
He added: “Abu Dhabi’s electricity sector is characterised by durability, high flexibility, and a large production capacity that can meet the needs of all sectors. In order to continuously enhance the sector’s capacity, we are committed to promoting the use of modern technology in the various stages of electricity production and distribution and through enhancing infrastructure, including facilities and buildings. We are also counting heavily on generating energy from renewable and clean sources in order to enhance our efforts to achieve sustainability across the entire energy sector in Abu Dhabi.”
Demand for electricity in Abu Dhabi continued to grow during 2019 driven by a slight increase in system demand in the emirate and a higher increase in demand resulting from exports to the Northern Emirates (also known as global demand). In 2019, global electricity demand in Abu Dhabi peaked at 15,223 MW on June 18, with Abu Dhabi system peak reaching 11,179 MW and exports to the Northern Emirates reaching 4,220 MW – an increase of 0.89 percent and 3.5 percent respectively from the previous year.
With regard to electricity generation technologies in Abu Dhabi, DoE revealed the percentages of energy generated through different technologies over the 12-month period. Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGT) contributed 85% of the total energy produced, with the share of co-generation stations, Co-gen, and open cycle gas-turbine being 13 percent. Renewables from SHAMS and Noor accounted for around 2% of the electricity generation mix in Abu Dhabi.
DoE confirmed that the share of clean energy will continue to grow in the coming years in light of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. Located in the Al Dhafra Region in Abu Dhabi, the plant – with its planned commissioning in 2021 – will generate up to 1,400 MW of electricity when fully operational. With its four APR1400 reactors, the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant will be one of the most technologically advanced nuclear reactor designs in the world and will meet the highest international standards for safety and performance.
Equinor Advancing Energy Transition Plans As New CEO Takes OverThe department also pointed out that it is natural gas that is the predominant fuel type used within the sector to generate electricity and produce water in Abu Dhabi. Both Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, ADNOC, and Dolphin Energy Limited, DEL, continued supplying the sector with natural gas throughout the year without the need to burn any back-up fuel (more than the regular amounts used to carry out operational tests to maintain liquid fuel supply system ready on standby). It reported that both ADNOC and DEL delivered around 796,289,326 MBTU of natural gas to the sector in 2019, which is 3 percent less than the previous year’s figure of 820,751,096 MBTU. DoE indicated that the peak demand load of Abu Dhabi Distribution Company, ADDC, grew by 0.9 percent from 2018 to reach 6,081 MW in 2019, while that of Al Ain Distribution Company, AADC, grew by 2.4 percent to reach 2,376 MW. With respect to energy transmission, DoE stated that Abu Dhabi Transmission and Despatch Company, TRANSCO, is the sole electricity transmission licensee in the Emirate of Abu Dhabi. It operates the high voltage network (400 – 132 Kilovolts, KV, transporting large volumes of electricity from production companies to distribution companies, high demand customers connected at the transmission system and to the northern emirates. TRANSCO is also interconnected with the 400 KV GCC interconnection. DoE also highlighted that the emirate has 468 primary substations and 36,004 distribution stations, while the length of electricity cables and overhead lines is 71,640 km and the number of electricity connected customers are 543,950. It also indicated that ADDC and AADC own and operate the medium voltage network (33 – 22- 11kV) transporting electricity from the transmission system to homes and businesses across the emirate. Source: Emirates News Agency
Ghana: Let’s Revisit Energy Conservation and Efficiency Perspective-VRA Boss
The Chief Executive Officer of Volta River Authority (VRA), Ghana’s largest state power generation company, Ing. Emmanuel Antwi-Darkwa, has underscored the need for the country’s Ministry of Energy to revisit policy directives in the industry to ensure energy efficiency and sustainability in pandemic situations in the future.
In a speech to mark the 4th Ghana Energy Awards in Accra on October 30, 2020, themed: ‘Excelling in Crisis: The Energy Sector in a Covid-19 era’, he urged the sector ministry to laisse with captains of the industry to come out with a pragmatic, prudent and a more efficient and sustainable energy policy directive and initiatives not to catch the country off-guard during future events such as the Covid-19.
“From policy perspective, I will like to remind the Minister what Covid-19 has done. It has created an opportunity for us to revisit our energy conservation and efficiency perspective. Consumers, who as a result of Covid-19 have less disposable income, are the right candidates to embrace energy conservation,” Ing. Antwi-Darkwa advised.
According him, the West African country needs to swiftly take advantage of the COVD-19 situation now and re-write the energy situation to safeguard the resource availability for domestic and industry use in future pandemics.
Though Ghana, VRA and other institutions in the energy and water supply-chain services have been able to sustain their mandates in this critical era, the VRA boss was of the view that, they need support to even perform per-excellence in future.
“Mr Minister, Covid-19 underscores the need to support electricity and water to our health and critical services,” he noted.
This, he said, would help such institutions to come in handy to help in future pandemic situations.
Touching on revenue generation for VRA in this Covid era, Ing. Antwi-Darkwa lamented, “There was one thing that unsurprisingly materialised.
“So as we speak, the ECG, NEDCO and ourselves continue to find ways to insentivise consumers who genuinely have difficulties to pay for electricity.”
He suggested to the government, as the last option, to consider assisting the utilities sector providers to ensure their efficiency and sustainability.
Commenting on the windfall that Covid-19 brought, he stated that it offered businesses innovative ways of operation, refocus on safety and health needs of employees and fully embracing the digital age.
While commending the government for proving free electricity and water to cushion all Ghanaians, the VRA boss acknowledged that, it is early days yet to fully assess the full impact of the pandemic.
In his remarks, the Special Guest of Honor, who also chaired the function, His Royal Majesty, Akwamuhene in the Eastern part of Ghana, Odeneho Kwafo Akoto III, also challenged the country to, as a matter of urgency, explore other renewable energy sources to augment its energy needs.
He specifically mentioned thermal and solar to produce inexpensive sources of energy to help the speedy development of the Ghanaian economy.
Odeneho Kwafo Akoto III was of the opinion that should Ghana take full advantage of the numerous renewable energy sources, the country will have energy sufficiency and sustainability would not be a major concern in the future.
He commended nominees and awardees of this year and urged other energy industrial stakeholders to strengthen their roles to fast-track the West African nation’s socioeconomic drive.
Nigeria: Creation Of NNPC Limited Will Mark A Turning Point For Nigeria’s Oil & Gas Industry-Agunbiade
The decision by the Federal Government of Nigeria to scrap the country’s National Oil Company (NNPC), and rather create NNPC Limited has been hailed by Dr Jide Agunbiade, a Director at National Oilwell Varco, the largest oil and gas equipment manufacturing company in the world headquartered in Houston Texas, USA.
President Muhammadu Buhari, on September 2020, proposed the scrapping of the NNPC for the creation of NNPC Limited, in the new Petroleum Industry Bill 2020 submitted to the National Assembly.
Sharing his opinion on the Nigerian Petroleum Industry in an article, Dr Agunbiade, who has over 20 years’ experience in the global oil and gas company, was hopeful that the creation of NNPC Limited would mark a turning point for the petroleum industry in Nigeria.
In his view, he said that the challenges that the sector has faced for many years would be addressed and remedied through that.
Nigeria Accelerates Plans To Encourage Downstream InvestmentAccording to him, an assessment of the Nigerian petroleum industry revealed that the NNPC has been one of the inefficient government institutions in Nigeria, with heavy political interference, ambiguities, corruption and nepotism. “Recent investigations and probes into government corruption in Nigeria reveals that a substantial part of governments’ corruption, originates from the activities that relate to the management of the oil and gas proceeds, supposed to be channeled towards the growth and development of the nation.” He argued that despite the monetary resources remitted to its coffers, NNPC had since been facing challenges in funding its upstream operations and obligations. “NNPC has also failed to effectively manage the downstream sector, which is characterised by moribund refineries, scarcities, inconsistent and uncompetitive fuel prices. Despite the abundance of petroleum commodities in Nigeria, the country’s largest import is from the petroleum products, which increases the supply and reduces the value of the Naira in the foreign currency market,” he said. “Consequently, NNPC has lost its international goodwill because of its inconsistency and political interferences, and this has caused doubt and high business risk in the Nigerian oil industry. “Though an oil rich country, Nigeria is the world’s headquarters of poverty, which explains further the poor management of the oil resources in the country. “Nigerian petroleum industry has also been negatively impacted by a number of external factors such as a surplus of global crude supply, leading to global oil price decline, competition from renewable energy, the devastating impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the global oil economy, as well as the 2020 fracturing of the OPEC+ alliance (with Russia) leading to a sharp decline in oil prices in 2020. Many of these challenges, though near to medium term, have the potential to continue for the longer term,” he concluded. Source:www.energynewsafrica.com