tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-55400046675714960542024-03-14T13:00:10.670+01:00Perken-EnergyThomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.comBlogger260125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-29187991067916900602022-10-26T18:05:00.003+02:002022-10-26T18:05:22.294+02:00FT: Europe faces critical shortage of metals needed for clean energy<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The <a href="https://www.ft.com/content/72400b96-4c67-4a7f-9a98-53371f5ab421?fbclid=IwAR1UsPYM-oQNYFWHwUxkkBA10T2vOMrWTR_xoNpwwpl71F3sAZO7lIdMnx4" target="_blank">Financial Times</a> writes: </span></p><p><br /></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i> Europe faces a critical shortage of clean-energy metals and needs to decide urgently how it will bridge the looming supply gap or risk new dependencies on unsustainable producers. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i> That is the conclusion of a new study commissioned by Eurometaux, an industry group that represents some of the region’s biggest metal producers, including Glencore and Rio Tinto.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i> The report, written by Belgium’s Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, marks the first attempt to provide some EU-specific numbers around last year’s warning from the International Energy Agency of supply challenges owing to the amount of metals needed for batteries, solar panels and wind turbines. </i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i> It comes as the EU, which is aiming to be carbon neutral by 2050, looks to reduce its dependence on imported Russian energy and make a quicker switch to renewable energy.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i> “There is a risk . . . with the geopolitical developments we are seeing round the world that Europe . . . will not have the metal for its climate programme,” said Mikael Staffas, president of Eurometaux and chief executive of Boliden, one of Europe’s biggest metals and mining companies. He was speaking before the launch of the study in Brussels.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.ft.com/content/72400b96-4c67-4a7f-9a98-53371f5ab421?fbclid=IwAR1UsPYM-oQNYFWHwUxkkBA10T2vOMrWTR_xoNpwwpl71F3sAZO7lIdMnx4" target="_blank">https://www.ft.com/content/72400b96-4c67-4a7f-9a98-53371f5ab421?fbclid=IwAR1UsPYM-oQNYFWHwUxkkBA10T2vOMrWTR_xoNpwwpl71F3sAZO7lIdMnx4</a><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-36371694048655456032022-10-26T15:21:00.005+02:002022-10-26T15:21:46.432+02:00Lithium: Imerys will exploit lithium mine in France<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">World leader in industrial minerals Imerys announced monday 24 october that in the french town of Echassières, writes <a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2022/10/24/imerys-annonce-l-ouverture-de-la-premiere-production-de-lithium-en-france-qui-fera-de-l-entreprise-un-acteur-de-poids-du-marche-europeen_6147060_3234.html" target="_blank">Le Monde</a>: </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><br />You can share an article by clicking on the share icons at the top right of it. <br />
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<a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2022/10/24/first-lithium-mining-project-launched-in-france_6001570_19.html">https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2022/10/24/first-lithium-mining-project-launched-in-france_6001570_19.html</a><br /><br />
</p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On Monday, October 24, the Imerys group, the world leader in industrial specialty minerals, announced the launch of a major lithium mining project in Echassières (central France). Since the end of the 19<sup>th</sup> century, this open-pit mine – named "de Beauvoir" after the former operating company and located on the edge of the Colettes forest on the border between the Allier and Puy-de-Dôme departments – has produced 25,000 to 30,000 tons of kaolin for ceramics every year.</i></span></p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Studies and core sampling predict the presence at a great depth of high concentrations of lithium hydroxide, a total of 1 million tonnes containing between 0.9% and 1% of oxide, confirming the estimates of the French Geological and Mining Research Bureau (BRGM). This deposit will enable 34,000 tons to be extracted over 25 years, making Imerys a leading supplier to the European market, with a capacity to equip 700,000 vehicles per year with lithium-ion batteries.</i></span></p><p> </p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In addition to the studies already carried out for €30 million, the project will require a minimum investment of €1 billion, based on an estimated lithium production cost of €7-9 euros/kilo. Imerys considers this "very competitive, particularly on the European market, and sufficient to guarantee a return on investment in line with group guidelines."</i></span></p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;">You can read the rest of the post via the below link:</span></p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p class="article__paragraph "><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2022/10/24/first-lithium-mining-project-launched-in-france_6001570_19.html" target="_blank">https://www.lemonde.fr/en/economy/article/2022/10/24/first-lithium-mining-project-launched-in-france_6001570_19.html</a><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-75566950536615480852022-08-22T16:52:00.002+02:002022-08-22T16:52:25.812+02:00EU: Commission approves german 27.5 Bn energy-compensation scheme<p> <span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><i>The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a German scheme to partially compensate energy-intensive companies for higher electricity prices resulting from indirect emission costs under the EU Emission Trading System (‘ETS').</i></span></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><i>Executive Vice-President Margrethe <span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: bolder;">Vestager</span>, in charge of competition policy, said: “<span style="box-sizing: inherit;">This €27.5 billion scheme will allow Germany to reduce the impact of indirect emission costs on its energy-intensive industries and hence the risk that these companies relocate their production to countries outside the EU with less ambitious climate policies. At the same time, the measure will facilitate a cost-effective decarbonisation of the German economy in line with the Green Deal objectives, while limiting possible distortions of competition</span>.”</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><span style="box-sizing: inherit; font-weight: bolder;"><i>The German measure</i></span></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><i>The scheme notified by Germany, with a total estimated budget of €27.5 billion, will cover part of the higher electricity prices arising from the impact of carbon prices on electricity generation costs (so-called ‘indirect emission costs') incurred between 2021 and 2030. The support measure is aimed at reducing the risk of ‘carbon leakage', where companies relocate their production to countries outside the EU with less ambitious climate policies, resulting increased greenhouse gas emissions globally.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><i>The measure will benefit companies active in sectors at risk of carbon leakage listed in Annex I to the <a href="https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52020XC0925%2801%29" style="box-sizing: inherit; color: #004494;">Guidelines on certain State aid measures in the context of the greenhouse gas emission allowance trading scheme post-2021</a> (‘ETS State aid Guidelines'). Those sectors face significant electricity costs and are particularly exposed to international competition.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><i>The compensation will be granted to eligible companies through a partial refund of the indirect emission costs incurred in the previous year, with the final payment to be made in 2031. The maximum aid amount will be generally equal to 75 % of the indirect emission costs incurred. However, in some instances, the maximum aid amount can be higher to limit the remaining indirect emission costs incurred to 1.5 % of the company's gross value added. The aid amount is calculated based on electricity consumption efficiency benchmarks, which ensure that the beneficiaries are encouraged to save energy.</i></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;">You can read the rest of the piece under the below link:</p><p style="box-sizing: inherit; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 18px;"><br /></p><p style="box-sizing: inherit;"><span style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 18px;">https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_22_4925</span></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-36672798665389744232022-08-22T16:48:00.003+02:002022-08-22T16:48:53.082+02:00EU: energy cooperation between the bloc and Ukraine and Moldova<p> <span style="background-color: white; color: var(--green-color); font-family: arial;">Transmission System Operators for Electricity of Continental Europe agree to increase the trade capacity with the Ukraine/Moldova power system, <a href="http://entsoe.eu">entsoe.eu</a>:</span></p><p><span style="background-color: white; color: var(--green-color); font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On 28 July, the Transmission System Operators (TSOs) of Continental Europe agreed to increase the trade capacity with Ukraine/Moldova to 250 MW which is more than double the capacity that was set in the initial phase (100 MW). The possibility of further increasing trade capacity will be assessed in September based on power system stability and security considerations.</i></span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Commercial electricity exchanges with the Ukraine/Moldova power system started on 30 June on the interconnection between Ukraine and Romania, followed by the Ukraine-Slovakia interconnection on 7 July. Electricity trading on the other interconnections (Ukraine-Hungary and Moldova-Romania) is expected to follow later.</i></span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;">You can read the rest of the piece under the below link:</span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="color: #555555; font-family: arial;"><i>https://www.entsoe.eu/news/2022/07/29/transmission-system-operators-for-electricity-of-continental-europe-agree-to-increase-the-trade-capacity-with-the-ukraine-moldova-power-system/</i></span></p><p style="background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: 0px 0px; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; border: 0px; box-sizing: border-box; color: #555555; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px auto 1.5rem; max-width: var(--article-width); outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;"><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-88010641221504862042022-08-22T16:40:00.003+02:002022-08-22T16:40:16.620+02:00Germany: politicians shun fracking-option to mitigate gas import problems<p><span style="font-family: arial;">As Germany is severley affected by the cut-back of russian piped gas and also in the light of ethical consideration the fracking-option, banned in 2017, is again put forward. However politicians and lawmakars are reluctant: <a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/plus240391805/Gas-aus-Deutschland-Der-Bundestag-verschleppt-die-Fracking-Debatte-trotz-Energiekrise.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Germany is stuck in the natural gas crisis and is dependent on Russian supplies, which are being reduced. The focus is on Germany's own resources: Huge amounts of natural gas lie beneath Germany, which geologists say could supply the country for decades.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The energy reserves could be tapped by fracking. But the previous federal government banned the drilling technology in 2017, even though scientific reports had also shown fracking to be practicable in Germany.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The ban is not set in stone, according to the Water Resources Act it should be reconsidered: The German Bundestag was obliged to review the appropriateness of the fracking ban as early as 2021 - "on the basis of the current state of science and technology", as the law states . However: That did not happen – despite the gas crisis.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>When asked by WELT, the Bundestag pointed out that the “Fracking Expert Commission” only submitted its report from 2021 at the end of June, on the basis of which advice should be given. The factions of the parties represented in the Bundestag would now decide when the parliamentary deliberations would take place.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, the “Fracking Expert Commission” had already submitted a report in 2020. In it, the scientists determined the legal situation: "In 2021, the German Bundestag will review the appropriateness of the ban on unconventional fracking based on the current state of science and technology". So why didn't the Bundestag take action in 2021?</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Inquiries from WELT to the responsible bodies of the parties did not result in an answer. The only thing that is clear is that a date for examining the fracking ban has not yet been agreed.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Nothing will happen before September after the end of the summer break," says an SPD employee. The Fracking Commission's report already has a printed matter number, but it has not yet been referred to a committee.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>It will probably be "decided in one of the session weeks in September which committee will be responsible for the treatment, whether the committee for climate and energy or the environment committee," explains an expert from the CDU. After that, “the further procedure would be decided”.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The opposition also shows little interest</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The parties' interest in fracking seems low, and even the opposition isn't putting any pressure on it. The deputy federal chairman of the CDU and spokesman for the CDU/CSU parliamentary group for climate protection and energy, Andreas Jung, sees the review of the fracking ban as "a statutory mandate". However, he rejects fracking, despite the lack of natural gas: The technology has been put under lockdown in Germany "for good reason because of the threatening effects on the environment and nature".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Scientists, meanwhile, have tried again to put fracking on the political agenda. The Professional Association of German Geoscientists wanted to provide information about the technology and its potential before the federal press conference this summer, but the board of directors of the federal press conference refused, according to WELT information in July.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Researchers had repeatedly given the green light for fracking in Germany. "As long as we need natural gas in Germany, it's - to put it mildly - a prank that we don't mine it here," says the former President of the Federal Institute for Geosciences and Natural Resources, raw materials expert Hans-Joachim Kümpel. Domestic fracking gas could "considerably reduce the blatant import dependency".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In fracking, rock in the ground is broken up with a liquid to extract natural gas. The technology has a bad reputation, although it has been tried and tested for decades and there are hardly any problems now.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>An international body of geological associations has complained in its "Copenhagen Declaration" about "frequent misleading media reports about shale gas exploration and exploitation" in the face of many false reports about alleged environmental damage, which "can lead to bad decisions for society".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Reports by scientists from German research institutes all came to the conclusion that the risks involved in fracking could be easily managed if certain regions were excluded from funding: regions where drinking water is obtained, fracture zones and earthquake zones should be avoided. In addition, gas reservoirs should not be tapped above 1000 meters in order to maintain the distance to the groundwater.</i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Fracking technology has been tried for decades. According to the industry, around 300 fracking operations were carried out in Germany in order to get more natural gas out of ordinary deposits. There weren't any problems.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As recently as 2012, the SPD parliamentary group had demanded that "the development of new natural gas sources must remain possible". The federal government developed a concept according to which criteria fracking funding should be approved.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The fact that the energy treasure was not salvaged under Germany was mainly due to the protest by climate protectionists against the promotion of fossil fuels, and on the other hand to the protest against fracking. Alarmed by media reports about the protests, citizens had put pressure on their constituency MPs to prevent fracking.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the current natural gas emergency, scientists are again pleading for the extraction technology. "In view of the political situation, Germany should frack," says energy researcher Mohammed Amro from the Bergakademie Freiberg. Within a year Germany could start producing shale gas. In five years, the production rate could be increased to such an extent that Germany could cover a fifth of its natural gas requirements with domestic fracking gas, says Amro.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Federal government does not put all options on the table"</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Occasionally, some politicians are now joining the scientists. "In the current difficult situation, the federal government is not putting all options on the table," says CDU MP Klaus-Peter Willsch to WELT. With German natural gas production, Russian imports "cannot be completely compensated for, but they could significantly reduce dependence on imports". He expects the federal government to "rapidly rethink".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, it seems unlikely that the government will give in. With their report "Evaluation of the Fracking Regulation Package" last year, the Ministries for the Environment, Economics and Education apparently wanted to put an end to the fracking issue. The nine-page text concluded: "Overall, the provisions of the fracking regulatory package have proven their worth." Recommendations to change legislation would "not currently be made" - a revision of the ban would therefore be unnecessary.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, the government cannot shake off fracking that easily. There is a “need for legal action”, states the legal scholar Michael Reinhardt from the University of Trier. Experts have attested to a "rather low and controllable risk for people, the environment and water" for fracking, which the legislature must include in a "complex proportionality test".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>To hope that no one would protest in court to urge Parliament to take up the issue would be "inappropriate to the importance of the matter," writes Reinhardt. The German Bundestag is obliged to create a final regulation on fracking.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-81418030716802350852022-08-20T16:58:00.001+02:002022-08-20T16:58:10.984+02:00Natural Gas: Germany considers LNG imports from Senegal<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">With gas supply from russia becoming more precarious and ethically problematic, Germany is scouting around for new sources of supply. On his jorney through several african countries, germany Chancellor Olaf Scholz has explored options of gas exportations of gas from Senegal zu Germany. Climate advocates however find fault with this, <a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/plus240390609/Olaf-Scholz-will-Fluessiggas-aus-Afrika-und-schuert-eine-grosse-Sorge.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Senegal has big plans: The West African country wants to use the newly created gap in the gas supply and supply industrialized countries like Germany with liquefied natural gas (LNG) in the future.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>According to estimates by the energy company BP, more than 425 billion cubic meters of natural gas are waiting to be extracted off the coast of Senegal and Mauritania. The local enthusiasm is great: “Experts consider the estimated gas resources in Senegal to be world-class. Senegal is on the way to becoming a major gas exporter,” says the Senegalese newspaper Le Quotidien.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Although the country has large gas reserves, it was only the Ukraine war and the move away from Russian gas that really revived hopes of a boom. "The war changed everything," quoted the Washington Post as Mamadou Fall Kane, deputy chief of Senegal's natural resources agency. "Now Europe is knocking on our door."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because after Africa was asked for years by the European Union, for example, to rely on renewable energies, the energy crisis is now also focusing on fossil fuels again in industrialized countries that want to free themselves from dependence on Russia.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The federal government is also positioning itself: during his trip to Africa in May, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) campaigned in Senegal for closer cooperation on the expansion of the gas infrastructure. It makes sense to "follow closely" such cooperation, this is a "common concern," Scholz said after talks with Senegalese President Macky Sall in Dakar. "We also want to do this with regard to the LNG issue and gas production here in Senegal."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>At first glance, that sounds like a win-win situation: African gas can put Germany's energy supply on a broader footing. In return, Senegal could benefit if liquid gas terminals are built with the technical know-how from Germany.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In reality, however, the project is more complicated.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Experts doubt that supply bottlenecks with gas from Senegal can be bridged in the short term. Senegal could export gas abroad via a floating LNG terminal at the end of 2023 at the earliest. Initially, 3.4 billion cubic meters per year are planned. "This will not close the current gas gap," believes Franziska Müller, a political scientist at the University of Hamburg.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The expert on globalization and governance of climate policy is critical of the construction of a new platform off the coast of Senegal for other reasons too. She considers the extraction of natural gas to be a step backwards. “There is a risk of prolonged economic dependence on fossil fuel infrastructures. That would be a massive economic risk for Senegal.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Germany actually decided at the world climate conference in Glasgow last November that it would no longer support any new coal, oil and gas projects with public funds from 2023 onwards. However, given the Russian war of aggression in Ukraine, this goal was revised at the G-7 summit in June.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In their final declaration, the G-7 states agreed that investments in gas should be possible temporarily, provided they are compatible with climate targets and that projects for the development of low-CO₂ and renewable hydrogen are then also integrated with the infrastructure. "In these exceptional circumstances, public investments in the gas sector can be appropriate interim solutions," it said.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Scholz reiterated the position of the federal government at the St. Petersburg climate dialogue: "We temporarily need new LNG capacities so that here and in many other countries around the world the lights don't go out for people at home and in the workplace." At the same time, Scholz emphasized that there were no new permanent dependencies of fossil energy sources - "not here and also not in the producing countries".</i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, environmental campaigners fear just that - a long-term softening of Glasgow's climate targets and long-standing dependencies. The fact that "the self-appointed climate chancellor is traveling to the climate hotspot of Africa" and promoting new gas drilling cannot be surpassed in terms of cynicism, said Fridays for Future activist Luisa Neubauer. "In order to still have a chance to stabilize the global climate in the medium term ... there can be no more new oil or gas fields."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Senegalese Fridays for Future activist Yero Sarr also warned of environmental damage in his country, where a large part of the population is dependent on fishing and whose coast lies a large coral reef that is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site: "The Oil and gas exploration adds to the list of threats to our marine and coastal environment and the health of Senegalese people,” said Sarr. Sarr called the advertising of new gas wells by Scholz "brazen". Instead, the activist called for more support for the switch to renewable energy.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The International Energy Agency (IEA) also demands this. According to estimates by the organization, the climate goals can only be met if there are no more investments in coal-fired power plants and the development of new oil and gas fields worldwide. The IEA only allows Africa to continue to produce gas for the transition to the energy transition - albeit with one restriction: the fuel is intended to serve the industrialization of the continent.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Gas production would be designed primarily for export. Nevertheless, the traffic light, including the Green coalition partner, is behind the plan to look for new gas deposits abroad. "Unfortunately, it is necessary to temporarily pump more gas to escape Russian gas," said Jürgen Trittin (Greens), former Federal Environment Minister, the "taz".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If you want to do without the gas from Russia, you have to invest in new infrastructure. The prerequisite is that this happens within narrow limits and without lock-in effects, i.e. without creating dependency relationships. “If we don't want a lock-in, the write-off periods have to be very short. That is only possible with state guarantees.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Political scientist Müller is not convinced by this argument. On the contrary: "The federal government would thus establish renewed dependencies." This applies in particular if new infrastructures are created for this, which first have to be profitable. "There is a risk of a renewed lock-in of fossil fuels, since gas supply contracts usually have very long terms in order to offer both partners planning security," agrees Steffen Haag, who is researching the topic together with Müller and has already carried out field research several times in Senegal Has.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Exchanging 'commodities for money' leads neither to sustainable economic growth, diversification of the economy, nor to higher added value in the country." Commodity trading does bring rapid growth rates. However, this often goes hand in hand with an extreme political dependence on the extraction of raw materials.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Among other things, the Federal Government is already cooperating with Senegal on the construction of solar power plants. During his visit to Africa, Scholz confirmed his intention to work more closely together in the areas of solar and wind energy. According to the government spokeswoman, energy policy reforms are to be supported with the aim of decarbonising energy systems and increasing energy efficiency. What that means in concrete terms remains open.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In any case, the potential is great: According to the German Energy Agency (dena), Africa has more than 60 percent of the world's most suitable solar locations. In Müller's view, the economic advantages in the field of renewable energies outweigh the long-term: These created "four times as many jobs as is the case in the gas industry".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>At the moment, however, the expansion is still faltering: "In all African countries together there are currently as many onshore wind and solar systems as Germany intends to install in a single year," said Andreas Kuhlmann, CEO of dena. "The international community must therefore give Africa much more support in developing a sustainable energy industry and finally make better use of the continent's enormous potential."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-69345503467064457132022-08-13T19:08:00.001+02:002022-08-13T19:08:23.316+02:00Mediterranean: Lebanon and Israel dispute over access to Karish gas field<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">Lebanese party and militia leader Hassan Nasrallah was issued a warning to Isreal to claim the gas field for itself, writes <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/ausland/mittelmeer-hisbollah-droht-israel-im-streit-um-gasvorkommen-a-4266f043-87c5-4398-8b37-e29f9a031dc9" target="_blank">SPIEGEL</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the border dispute over gas deposits in the Mediterranean, the head of the radical Islamic Hezbollah militia in Lebanon, Hassan Nasrallah, has warned Israel against claiming them for itself. "The hand that reaches out for our riches will be cut off," the head of the Iran-backed militia said in a televised speech in Beirut on Tuesday. This is reported by the AFP news agency.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Nobody should be allowed "to plunder the country," said the Hezbollah chief in his speech to supporters. Lebanon's oil, gas and water supplies would have to remain under Lebanese control.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The USA is currently mediating in the smoldering and recently escalated border dispute between Israel and Lebanon over mineral resources in the Mediterranean – so far without a result. US mediator Amos Hochstein told the Lebanese media in early August that he was "optimistic" and was aiming for a solution for both sides. Accordingly, Israel should be able to continue its activities in the Karisch gas field and at the same time allow Lebanon access to the energy market.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The conflict escalated after Israel sent a gas production vessel towards the Karish gas field in June. However, parts of the gas field are claimed by Lebanon. Beirut then called for the resumption of talks mediated by the United States.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The discovery of large gas deposits in the eastern Mediterranean in recent years has aroused the desires of all the neighboring countries and fueled border disputes. From Israel's perspective, the gas field lies within its territorial waters and not within a disputed area at stake in negotiations with Lebanon over the maritime border between the two countries.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Lebanon and Israel negotiated their disputed sea border for the first time in October 2020, mediated by the United States. Negotiations were suspended in May 2021. The border dispute was initially about an 860 square kilometer stretch off the coast of both countries, and finally Lebanon demanded an additional 1,430 square kilometers, which also includes the Karisch field.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Formally, the neighboring countries are still at war and do not maintain diplomatic relations. The United Nations peacekeeping force Unifil, stationed in Lebanon since 1978, has patrolled the border since the 2006 Israeli-Lebanese conflict.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-72604455094981399502022-08-05T14:54:00.004+02:002022-08-05T14:54:46.049+02:00Europe: Countries of the bloc sound out strategies to avoid the commodities trap<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">After the rude awakening caused by the military aggression by Russia on Ukraine and the assessment of the overwhelming dependency of countries - especially Germany - on gas supply from Russia, thinktanks in the EU reflect about how not to repeat the same mistake with other commodities such as rare earths, titanium or graphite, writes <a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/plus240219707/Gas-Lithium-und-Co-als-Waffe-So-will-die-EU-Rohstoff-Kriegen-entkommen.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Ukraine war and the gas crisis are causing politicians to view Europe's heavy dependence on a few raw material suppliers with greater concern than before. When it comes to mining and processing strategically important raw materials, countries such as China hold quasi-monopolies – and of all things when it comes to the materials on which the European energy and mobility transition depends.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The business-oriented think tank Center for European Politics (CEP) has now investigated how dependent the EU is on such raw materials. Germany and other European economies are therefore too dependent on raw materials from a few countries for future key technologies and should end this dependency as quickly as possible. "The chances of survival of the European economic and social model are also decided on the international commodity markets," says the unpublished study, which is available to WELT.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For the study, the researchers specifically identified resources that are indispensable for future technologies, but whose supply situation is critical. To do this, they brought together two analyses: on the one hand, a study by the German Raw Materials Agency (DERA), which identifies groups of raw materials that are essential for the energy transition and digitization, and on the other hand, a list from the European Commission of 30 raw materials for which there are supply risks.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The researchers have identified twelve substances that are equally promising and supply-critical. The list includes materials such as lithium, cobalt and rare earths, which also dominate the public debate about the scarcity of raw materials. However, substances such as titanium, graphite and more exotic substances such as scandium and vanadium also appear.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>They are in wind turbines, solar systems, batteries for electric cars, fuel cells, electric motors or in microchips, displays and fiber optic cables. And for all the substances examined, a few or even just individual countries dominate the global supply.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Not only is a large part of the relevant raw material deposits outside of one's own sphere of influence," says study author André Wolf. “The global markets are currently also predominantly dominated by countries that represent strategic rivals or that do not share the environmental and social standards that are essential for the EU’s self-image. The move away from fossil resources threatens to replace old dependencies with new, unwanted ones.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The dominance of China is particularly striking: The country was the most important sponsor of eight of the twelve substances examined in 2020. If one also takes into account the processing of raw materials, China's dominance is likely to be even greater.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>And the leadership in Beijing has shown in the past that it is willing to use this power. At the end of 2010, China had stopped exports of rare earths to Japan because of a diplomatic dispute in order to extort concessions from Tokyo.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The realization is not new, but Brussels and national capitals have been alarmed since Russia invaded Ukraine. The fact that geopolitical upheavals are jeopardizing the supply of raw materials is suddenly no longer an abstract danger.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“Russia is blackmailing us. Russia uses energy as a weapon,” said Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission recently. There is concern in her authority and in the national capitals that such a scenario could happen again.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because geopolitically the world threatens to split into two blocs again: on the one hand the western world, on the other hand countries like Russia, China and other authoritarian systems. Against this background, the EU states want to secure the supply of critical raw materials and end one-sided dependencies.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Two years ago, Industry Commissioner Thierry Breton's staff presented an action plan on raw materials, but it was relatively non-binding. Since the outbreak of the Ukraine war, the agency has tightened its course. In March von der Leyen announced a law on critical raw materials. The draft should be available by the end of the year.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>One of the things discussed in Brussels is that companies or even states should build up strategic stocks of important raw materials. The increased mining of critical raw materials in Europe should also make the EU more independent from the rest of the world.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, the CEP experts warn that the Commission's plans could overshoot the mark. In particular, the scientists consider plans to mine critical raw materials in Europe to be misleading. "Massive state support for the mining of future raw materials in the EU area would be a questionable strategy from an economic policy point of view," says the study.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The EU does have significant deposits of lithium and rare earths, for example. States like China are not only so dominant on the raw materials markets because of the deposits there, but also thanks to state subsidies, low wages and low environmental standards. “The EU cannot and should not copy such a strategy.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Instead, in the short term, Europe should look around for new sources of raw materials in friendly countries that have large deposits, good infrastructure and share Europe's values. Norway, Canada and the USA in particular are ideal partners.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In fact, the EU is striving for such strategic raw material partnerships, but so far it has only agreed on two: with Canada and, of all places, Ukraine. However, a sense of proportion is required for the agreements, after all, new one-sided dependencies must not arise.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the long term, the EU must expand the recycling of strategically important raw materials in order to secure supplies, write the CEP researchers. The EU Commission is also in favor of this. According to a study by the authority, the recycling rate for cobalt and platinum metals, which are mainly used for electric motors, was 20 percent in the EU in 2020. In the case of iridium or lithium, however, the quotas would be close to zero.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-71184248121977247122022-07-01T19:15:00.005+02:002022-07-01T19:15:59.657+02:00Gas: tortuous manoeuvering for gas transports between Spain, Morocco and Algeria<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The tensions between Morocco and Algeria on the issue of Western Sahara make gas shipments to a very tricky question. In reason of Spain's support for the moroccon position, Algeria has stopped every gas supply to Spain through the Maghred-Europe Gas Pipeline (MEG) and interdicted all shipments to Morocco from Spain of algerian gas, source <a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/afrique/article/2022/06/30/l-espagne-a-commence-a-acheminer-du-gaz-vers-le-maroc_6132724_3212.html" target="_blank">Le Monde</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Spain began, for the very first time, to transport gas to Morocco through the </i></span><span style="font-family: arial;">Maghred-Europe Gas Pipeline (MEG)</span><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>, assuring that it was not Algerian gas, while Algeria does not supply plus the GME to Spain since the end of October 2021 against the backdrop of the diplomatic crisis.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“On the basis of commercial relations and good neighborliness, yesterday [Tuesday] the first shipment by the Maghreb gas pipeline of LNG [liquefied natural gas] previously acquired by Morocco on international markets and landed in a regasification plant took place. Spain,” sources from the Spanish Ministry for Ecological Transition told AFP.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Spain had announced in February that it would re-export gas to Morocco via the GME, which Algeria no longer supplies to Spain through Moroccan territory since the end of October 2021 due to a diplomatic crisis around of Western Sahara. “A certification process guarantees that this gas [routed from Spain to Morocco] is not of Algerian origin,” the same source told AFP.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Algiers had threatened in April to break its gas supply contract with Spain if Madrid were to transport Algerian gas "to a third destination", an implicit reference to Morocco.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Enagás, manager of the Spanish gas network, has the task of "verifying the origin of the LNG tanker transporting the gas" purchased by Morocco and, after unloading it, issues a certificate with "the relevant data, thus avoiding either exported gas which has not been unloaded for this purpose”, specified the sources of the Ministry of Ecological Transition.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>But the fact for Spain to transport gas through this gas pipeline is anything but trivial in the context of the very complicated relations with Algeria and Morocco. The reaction of Algiers will therefore be watched with attention in Madrid.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Algerian government has been very upset with Spain since the executive of socialist Pedro Sánchez decided in March to support the Moroccan autonomy plan for Western Sahara, a former Spanish colony, in order to put an end to almost a year of diplomatic crisis between Madrid and Rabat.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In response to this about-face, Algiers had recalled its ambassador to Spain and Sonatrach, the Algerian hydrocarbon giant, had not ruled out raising the price of gas delivered to Spain.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Algerian authorities also suspended a cooperation treaty with Spain in early June, while a key banking body in Algeria announced restrictions on business transactions with Madrid.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Spain's dependence on Algerian gas has been significantly reduced since the shutdown of the GME, but almost a quarter of the gas imported by Spain still came from Algeria in the first quarter, compared to more than 40% in 2021, according to the manager of the Spanish gas network. This gas is delivered to Spain by the Algerian hydrocarbon giant Sonatrach through the undersea gas pipeline Medgaz which directly connects the two countries.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-59639151212130294622022-07-01T19:00:00.005+02:002022-07-01T19:16:25.993+02:00LNG: Germany negotiates with Canada for LNG-shipments<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">Source <a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/plus239631303/Gas-LNG-aus-Kanada-ist-die-neue-deutsche-Hoffnung-in-der-Krise.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Saint John on Canada's rough east coast offers many photo opportunities: a lighthouse, a former fort, a marketplace with a fountain. It is the oldest city in the country, with almost two million tourists visiting each year, many on cruise ships.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>What is hardly known, however, is that Saint John is also the only Canadian port with a terminal for liquid gas - and therefore probably a new hope for Germany recently.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the fringes of the G-7 summit in Elmau, Bavaria, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) spoke to Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and advocated an expansion of energy trading, according to the Bloomberg news agency. Specifically, Scholz wants to import more liquid gas from Canada to replace Russian gas. It is apparently another attempt to free Germany from Vladimir Putin's grip.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The industry speaks of “Liquified Natural Gas”, or LNG for short. These three letters have been at the center of world politics since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis. It's about the question of where millions of Europeans should get the raw material with which they heat and operate many of their power plants.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because Russia, the most important gas supplier up to now, became an outlaw after attacking its neighbor. An unpredictable aggressor who cannot be trusted.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"The war in Ukraine," says Michelle Robichaud, head of the Canadian interest group Atlantica Center for Energy, "puts the spotlight on the LNG industry on our country's east coast." This is an enormous economic opportunity for the region. "We would be happy," says Robichaud, "if the projects here got going."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Before Putin's invasion of Ukraine, Russian gas accounted for about half of Germany's imports, now it's a third. And Moscow could continue to curb the volumes.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because Russia, the most important gas supplier up to now, became an outlaw after attacking its neighbor. An unpredictable aggressor who cannot be trusted.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"The war in Ukraine," says Michelle Robichaud, head of the Canadian interest group Atlantica Center for Energy, "puts the spotlight on the LNG industry on our country's east coast." This is an enormous economic opportunity for the region. "We would be happy," says Robichaud, "if the projects here got going."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Before Putin's invasion of Ukraine, Russian gas accounted for about half of Germany's imports, now it's a third. And Moscow could continue to curb the volumes.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Germany does not yet have an LNG terminal, the gas is obtained from Belgium, France and the Netherlands. But by the end of the year, two stations in Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein should go into operation.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Canada is currently building the first LNG terminals for export, but only in the west. The country's largest gas deposits are located in the provinces of British Columbia and Alberta. In addition, the Pacific Coast is closer to the world's major LNG customers: China, Japan, South Korea, India and Taiwan. So there could be a race for gas from Canada. Because what Germany buys will be missing in Asia.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The hopes of the federal government rest not only on Canada, but also on the USA. In the Ukraine crisis, the country has become the world's most important LNG supplier, ahead of Qatar and Australia. The United States only started selling its gas in 2016 and already covers a fifth of global demand.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>American LNG exports to the EU now outstrip Russia's pipeline supplies. And the trend is likely to continue, after all, Germany stopped the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline, which was supposed to bring gas from Russia to Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>During Donald Trump's tenure, the American gas industry was booming. The industry was important to the Republican because the gas companies and their workers were among his most important supporters. Trump relaxed environmental regulations and accelerated approval processes. This made it possible to build drilling rigs and LNG terminals more quickly.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>New liquefaction plants were built in rows on the Gulf of Mexico. Now they are being used to ship gas around the world from Texas, Pennsylvania and Louisiana. It's a win-win situation for the US. For one thing, exporting is lucrative.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the other hand, the country can reduce the dependency of its European allies on Russia. “Freedom Gas” – that was the keyword that Trump often used. It is quite possible that the molecules of freedom will soon also come to Germany from Canada.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-26604238908548729082022-04-26T14:56:00.003+02:002022-04-27T10:16:25.175+02:00Gas: Italy shifts to Algeria for gas procurement<p><span style="font-family: arial;">Eager to divest itself von Russian dependance on natural gas, Italy has switched in a precipitous move to Algeria as a supplier just days after the russian invasion into Ukraine. Italy and especially its energy giant ENI have deep and decade-old ties to Algeria. Even major investements by ENI and acquisitions of BP shares on oil fields are under discussion, <a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/international/article/2022/04/08/embellie-de-la-diplomatie-gaziere-entre-l-italie-et-l-algerie_6121202_3210.html" target="_blank">Le Monde</a>: </span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Algeria is showing a diplomatic upturn with Italy which takes on a particular meaning as Europe is prospecting for alternatives to Russian gas, war in Ukraine obliges. The recent ballets of visits by Italian officials to Algiers, where the red carpet is rolled out at the energy giant Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi (ENI) – already historically well treated – testify to a most cordial atmosphere. Italy had become, in recent years, increasingly dependent on Russian energy supplies (40% of its gas imports, or about 30 billion cubic meters [m3]). It is now more than ever eyeing Algerian gas, while it is imperative for it to diversify its purchases abroad, particularly in the Mediterranean.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The overall economic relationship between the two countries has certainly always been healthy. Italy is Algeria's third supplier (behind China and France) and its first customer (ahead of France and Spain). It is also the first foreign investor, a status due to the weight that ENI represents on Algerian soil. History is a big part of it. The tutelary figure of the historic leader of the company, Enrico Mattei (1906-1962), a Christian Democrat politician who was a great promoter of independent Algeria (who died in 1962 after a mysterious plane crash), has always acted bridge between the two countries.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“ENI is a company considered to be a friend of Algeria, a friend of the Algerian revolution at the time, notes Akram Kharief, Algerian security expert and founder of the Menadefense site. It is very difficult to compete with her. In recent weeks, the glorification in the Algerian press of this memory has reached unprecedented levels. "The esteem for Italy is felt among the people of the people", could we read, on March 30, in an editorial of the official daily El Moudjahid.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The staging, in Algiers, of friendship with Italy does not date from the war in Ukraine. The distinguished welcome reserved in the Algerian capital for the Italian President of the Republic, Sergio Mattarella, during a visit in November 2021, had already sent a first message in the midst of the crisis between Algiers and Paris. The recent Algerian-Spanish turbulence on the Western Sahara issue – following concessions made by Madrid to Rabat – has added to the ambient Italophilia in Algeria. The remarks of the boss of the Algerian public company Sonatrach, Toufik Hakkar, on April 1, evoking the possibility of "recalculating" the price of gas sold to the Spaniards, announce a probable changeover in the long term of part of the supplies from Spain to Italy.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This is fitting, at a time of Rome's strategic shift vis-à-vis Russian gas dictated by urgency. As usual, Italian diplomacy negotiated it in a few hours, with a mixture of agility and pragmatism. Monday, February 28, barely four days after the start of the Russian offensive in Ukraine, the Italian Foreign Minister, Luigi Di Maio, was in Algiers, accompanied in particular by the managing director of the energy giant ENI, Claudio Descalzi, to to assess the possibility of increasing gas imports. In energy matters, Italian diplomacy and ENI are used to moving forward together.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Exploitation of new deposits</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the Algerian case, the calculation is simple. Algeria is the country's second largest supplier (21 billion m³), and the Transmed gas pipeline transporting gas to Sicily – also called the Enrico Mattei gas pipeline – is not operating at full capacity (its capacity is 30 billion m³ per year) . What hope, in the short and medium term, additional deliveries.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Italian minister's trip to Algiers was only the start of a tour centered on energy issues, which took the head of Italian diplomacy, in March, to Africa, the Arabo-Persian Gulf and Azerbaijan. But Algeria is considered, within Italian diplomacy, with particular attention.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>So Claudio Descalzi was back in Algeria on April 3 to meet once again the CEO of the Algerian public energy giant, Sonatrach, ENI's historic partner, to discuss the increases in deliveries in the short term and, at a further afield, the exploitation of new deposits. In particular, it is a question of “accelerating” the implementation of joint projects in the region of Berkine Sud, on the border with Tunisia. According to the Algerian press, ENI is also negotiating the acquisition of assets from British Petroleum (BP) in two major gas projects in In Saleh (Centre) and In Amenas (East). According to unconfirmed information, Sonatrach is also discussing the acquisition of ENI assets in Russia.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Be that as it may, the prospect for Algeria to deliver significant quantities of gas to Italy is long term. In the immediate term, its production and transport potential is limited. "Algeria's ability to offset Russian gas for Europeans is questionable," says Olivier Appert, energy and climate center adviser at the French Institute for International Relations (IFRI). Faced with the aging of its infrastructure and the flight of its domestic consumption, Algeria has in fact suffered from a continuous decline in its gas exports, which have fallen from 64 billion m3 in 2005 to 41 billion in 2020. substantial investments to reverse the curve. ENI and the Italians are in the running.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-11474490419448968482022-03-28T13:05:00.004+02:002022-03-28T13:07:28.914+02:00US: four russian hackers indicted<p><span style="font-family: arial;">Four russian hackers with links to russian intelligence service FSB are indicted for the failed attempts to infiltrate energy companies, <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/netzpolitik/usa-klagen-russen-wegen-weltweiter-hacks-im-energiesektor-an-a-f190d402-19fe-4a38-8771-bd89f957eb16" target="_blank">SPON</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The US government on Thursday published its indictments against four Russian citizens, whom it accuses of having hacked numerous energy companies around the world on behalf of the secret service FSB and the Ministry of Defense.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The charges relate to cases that date back a while. In the US, there are sealed, ready-made indictments that can be made public at any time. In this case, they are from June and August of the previous year. Now the US authorities thought the time had come to make them public.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>These are two separate charges, but they have one thing in common: the hacking activities they describe are sophisticated and have been carried out over a long period of time. They are not aimed at short-term effects, but consist of targeted and well-prepared attacks in which malware is intended to be smuggled into the systems of companies in the critical infrastructure - in order to manipulate their operation on a »Day X« chosen by the attacker or even completely shut it down sabotage.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>It is this type of cyber attack that is of greatest concern to security agencies around the world. An infiltrated energy infrastructure, which in extreme cases could be switched off by malicious actors, is considered a nightmare scenario.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The first new US indictment is directed against a 36-year-old Russian, Evgeny G., who is said to work for a leading research institute of the Russian Defense Ministry. In the period from May to September 2017, he and his accomplices are said to have penetrated the security systems of a refinery outside the USA, which is not described in detail in the indictment, and tried to install malware there called Triton.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>According to the prosecution, the attackers could have used the code to manipulate and deactivate the security system used there by the French company Schneider Electric – without the refinery employees noticing it on their control monitors. The malicious code would have indicated systems were operating normally and had the potential to damage the refinery's equipment, cause economic damage and even injure employees, US prosecutors said.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, the attempt failed: The Schneider Electric systems responded to the Russian attempts to upload their manipulation code twice with an emergency shutdown. The hackers, however, were apparently not discouraged. According to the indictment, they are said to have tried similar refineries in the USA for months the following year, also without success. In the extremely unlikely event of extradition to the United States and a conviction on all three counts, Evgeny G. would have to face a total of 45 years in prison.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In 2017, Triton attacks on Saudi systems that work with Schneider Electric technologies became known. The IT security company FireEye had already suspected Russian authorship and pointed to traces of a Moscow research institute. The international IT security scene reacted with alarm because the Schneider Electric target systems targeted by the hackers are used in oil, gas and nuclear power plants worldwide. According to experts, the attacks in Saudi Arabia could have had potentially catastrophic consequences had they been successful - up to and including poison gas leaks and explosions.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The second set of charges now published by the United States is also about years of sophisticated, multi-stage attempts to attack facilities in the energy industry - in tens of thousands of cases and in more than 135 countries, including the United States and Germany. It is aimed at three employees of the FSB unit 71330, named and identified with portrait photos, who are said to belong to a hacker group that has been known in security circles for around a decade under names such as "Energetic Bear", "Dragonfly" and "Crouching Yeti". .</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The three FSB men are accused of having targeted control and monitoring systems for such facilities from 2012 onwards. Using targeted phishing emails and other methods such as fake software updates, they are said to have succeeded in more than 17,000 cases in installing their »Havex« malicious code on the devices of victims - including electricity suppliers and other companies in the energy industry.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In a second, according to the indictment, "more targeted" phase, they sent phishing emails to more than 3,300 employees of more than 500 international companies from 2014 and subsequently infiltrated many systems. One target was the Wolf Creek company in the US state of Kansas, which operates a nuclear power plant. However, the attackers only made it into the accounting and administration area. According to the indictment, they did not penetrate the control systems of the power plant.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If the three defendants, aged 36, 39 and 42, are ever found guilty by a US court, they face combined sentences of between 25 and 47 years in prison. Hackers on behalf of the Russian government are "a serious and ongoing threat to the energy industry in the United States and the rest of the world," said one of the responsible US prosecutors when the indictments were published.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>It is hardly a coincidence that the US authorities are now making them public. Only on Monday did US President Joe Biden warn of Russian cyber attacks and spoke of indications that the Kremlin was considering new attacks in response to the sanctions. With regard to companies, Biden demanded: "Harden your cyber defenses, immediately!"</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In Germany, too, there is great nervousness. Security authorities have been warning of possible attacks by Vladimir Putin's cyber troops for weeks. The intelligence agency fears that the sanctions against Russia and the arms deliveries to Ukraine have further increased the risk of attacks "against German bodies, including companies." The authorities are convinced that the Russian services "undoubtedly" have the ability to "considerably and permanently sabotage" both critical infrastructure and military facilities and political operations.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the past, the authorities had warned several times about the hackers of the "Berserk Bear" group and their "long-term and with great effort" driven activities in the energy sector. German targets are in the sights of the group, it said. Concrete waves of attacks by the group on targets in Germany were observed in 2018 and 2020.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The US government has been pursuing its "naming and shaming" strategy for several years. Special Counsel Robert Mueller indicted a dozen Russian intelligence officials in 2018 for hacking the 2016 presidential campaign. Seven other GRU workers were named and charged just months later, with a further six in 2020.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As a rule, the charges do not have any direct effects because Russia has no extradition agreement with the USA and, in particular, would not leave its state hackers to the USA. But on the one hand, those affected know that they must expect to be arrested abroad from now on. And on the other hand, the USA should be concerned with sending out signals, along the lines of: »We see what you think you are doing in secret, we are technically superior to you.«</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In addition, the signal could also have an inward effect. A threat that has human faces may be taken more seriously than abstract references to intelligence hackers.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>See the bills of indictment below:</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.justice.gov%2Fopa%2Fpress-release%2Ffile%2F1486831%2Fdownload&clen=802282&chunk=true&pdffilename=dc_gladkikh_0.pdf" target="_blank">www.justice.gov%2Fopa%2Fpress-release%2Ffile%2F1486831%2Fdownload&clen=802282&chunk=true&pdffilename=dc_gladkikh_0.pdf</a><br /></i></span></p><p><a href="chrome-extension://efaidnbmnnnibpcajpcglclefindmkaj/viewer.html?pdfurl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.justice.gov%2Fopa%2Fpress-release%2Ffile%2F1486836%2Fdownload&clen=17213562&chunk=true&pdffilename=ks_akulov_gavrilov_tyukov_0.pdf" style="font-family: arial;" target="_blank">www.justice.gov%2Fopa%2Fpress-release%2Ffile%2F1486836%2Fdownload&clen=17213562&chunk=true&pdffilename=ks_akulov_gavrilov_tyukov_0.pdf</a></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-50944482842320260112022-03-24T15:59:00.001+01:002022-03-24T15:59:26.992+01:00Europe: Anti-fracking NGO's received russian money<p><span style="font-family: arial;">Investigations by different media suggest that european environmental NGO's opposed to fracking received money injections from russian sources, <a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/plus237519431/Energiekosten-Wie-Putin-Klimaschuetzer-gegen-den-Westen-einspannte.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The interests of western climate protectionists and the Russian dictator Vladimir Putin coincide, albeit for very different reasons: slowing down the promotion of fossil fuels in western countries is their common goal. For the activists, this is a stage on the way to a CO₂-free industrial society, for Putin, whose country benefits enormously from the international oil and gas business, it is an important trump card.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">For years there have been indications that Moscow is supporting activists in the US and Europe in their fight against fossil fuels in order to be able to sell Russian gas and oil better. In the mid-2000s, the Kremlin decided to fill what it called a “value vacuum”: using so-called “soft power” to place its own views and interests in other countries. According to various sources, Russia also financed non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Europe and the USA in order to push through its agenda.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Many NGOs enjoy special rights in the West: the EU and the United Nations grant environmental organizations extensive legal standing and information rights. Germany grants many organizations the tax-privileged status of "non-profit". As a rule, the NGOs do not have to disclose where they get their money from.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Researchers who analyzed NGO funding on behalf of the European Parliament in 2016 had to admit their failure: "The analysis reveals a complex web of intertwined NGOs, linked by the membership of numerous overlapping networks that pursue many different purposes," she said Conclusion. “It is often difficult to identify which organization in a network is engaged in which activities, or how grants flow between them in relation to those activities.”</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">There is an "obvious gap between NGOs' declared commitment to accountability and transparency and actual practice," the researchers concluded. Entries in the transparency register of the EU would mostly be avoided. It often remains unclear what interests the funders of the associations really have.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Anyone who demands insight into the funding of NGOs is therefore dependent on key witnesses. The Russian government has transferred 82 million euros to European climate protection associations whose aim is to prevent natural gas production in Europe, an informant told scientists at the Martens Center for European Studies.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Former NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen reported back in 2014 that Russia had supported environmental organizations "in order to maintain European dependence on Russian gas". "What are they smoking at NATO headquarters to spread such accusations?" Greenpeace countered the allegations. Due to the lack of transparency of the money flows described, it is not possible to make a conclusive, independent assessment of whether they are correct or not.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">At least NATO stuck to their description. "We share the concern of some allies that Russia may seek to impede potential shale gas exploration projects in Europe in order to maintain Europe's dependence on Russian gas," a NATO official told Foreign Policy. Experts have puzzled over the "sudden" emergence of well-organized anti-fracking environmental groups in Eastern Europe, where Russia has been selling its energy but previously had no public concerns about natural gas production, the magazine wrote.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Fracking, which involves breaking up rock in the ground with a liquid to produce gas, has gotten a bad rap, although it's been tried and tested for decades with few problems now. Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton had also advocated fracking, but reported unusual resistance. In a private speech in 2016, made public by Wikileaks, she lamented: "We were dealing with fake environmental groups, and I'm a big environmentalist, but they were funded by the Russians."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">American security expert Fiona Hill, former director for Europe and Russia on the Trump administration's National Security Council, reported on a conversation with Putin in November 2011 in which he made it clear to experts and journalists that he saw fracking in the US as a "major threat of Russian interests”. "We were struck by how much emphasis he put on the subject," Hill said.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">American media reported on documents that were supposed to show that energy managers from Russian companies had transferred millions to American environmental organizations - which they, however, rejected. Representatives of American energy companies also accused the Kremlin of covert financing of climate protection groups. "Russia is funding the anti-fracking movement in the US," the head of Continental Resources claimed.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Climate and environmental protection organizations distributed misleading films of places where fracking is being done: Drinking water from the tap was burning, toxic gases and chemicals were seeping out of the ground, and entire regions were contaminated. Mass media picked up on the scenarios, particularly aggressively by the Russian channel “Russia Today”.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">He labeled fracking companies as child molesters, falsely claiming natural gas extraction would cause cancer in children. A US National Security Agency report saw Putin's people behind the reports, which "probably reflected the Russian government's concerns about US natural gas production and potential challenges to Gazprom's profitability." "We have seen Gazprom funding from environmental NGOs," agrees Dominique Reynié of the Fondation pour L'innovation politique, a French research institute.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">After Germany's decision to phase out nuclear energy, Gazprom celebrated "building new, modern gas-fired power plants in Germany". However, the expansion of fracking in the USA worried the Russian competition: the Americans had achieved a decisive turnaround by intensifying natural gas production by fracking in their own country - with positive consequences for the climate. The USA has been able to reduce its CO₂ emissions more than almost any other country in the past 15 years because it has replaced coal with cracked natural gas, which releases much less CO₂.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Europe also has immense shale gas resources. The EU Commission states that gas contained in shale rock using fracking "can contribute to the security of supply of the EU and its competitiveness". In the 2000s, the big energy companies in Europe were ready to develop domestic natural gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">But the resources remained in the ground, the pressure from climate activists on companies and governments led to investors turning away, the investment bank Goldman Sachs determined. The Financial Times and recently the New York Times came to the same conclusion.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Exploration of new gas fields in Europe collapsed, including in Great Britain, which has particularly rich shale gas resources. Not only NGOs, but also scientific institutes cheered the trend. For example, the Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change of the London School of Economics recently called for the end of all domestic oil and gas exploration.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The market is now "fixated on climate change and the dwindling appetite for fossil fuels," wrote financial news agency Bloomberg. Share prices of companies that said they would expand their production of gas and oil came under pressure; Apparently, investors feared damage to their image. In the Netherlands, a court ordered the energy company Shell to reduce its CO₂ emissions, which further slowed exploration efforts.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The great opposition to natural gas production in Europe made gas from Russia attractive. Europe has radically reduced its production of conventional natural gas: 15 years ago it produced more gas than Russia exported, now Russia exports three times more natural gas than Europe produces. From 2015 to 2019 alone, Russia was able to increase its natural gas imports to Europe by a third. The continent now covers around 40 percent of its needs with Russian natural gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The market is now "fixated on climate change and the dwindling appetite for fossil fuels," wrote financial news agency Bloomberg. Share prices of companies that said they would expand their production of gas and oil came under pressure; Apparently, investors feared damage to their image. In the Netherlands, a court ordered the energy company Shell to reduce its CO₂ emissions, which further slowed exploration efforts.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The great opposition to natural gas production in Europe made gas from Russia attractive. Europe has radically reduced its production of conventional natural gas: 15 years ago it produced more gas than Russia exported, now Russia exports three times more natural gas than Europe produces. From 2015 to 2019 alone, Russia was able to increase its natural gas imports to Europe by a third. The continent now covers around 40 percent of its needs with Russian natural gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In recent years, Germany has relied particularly consistently on Russian energy. It phased out nuclear power, but did not allow terminals for gas shipments by ship from the US, instead planning dozens of new gas-fired power plants. The intended main supplier: Russia.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">When former US President Donald Trump declared in 2018 that Germany had become dependent on Russia for its energy supply, German diplomats laughed at him. At the latest, however, the Russian invasion of Ukraine revealed Germany's dependency relentlessly. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) said Germany was dependent on Russian gas. If no more gas came from Russia, there would be a risk of “damage to society as much as possible,” said Economics Minister Robert Habeck (Green Party).</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In the USA, too, the new government of President Joe Biden has meanwhile made a change. On his first day in office, Biden stopped the Keystone XL pipeline, which was supposed to transport oil from Canada 3,500 kilometers to the United States, after protests by activists. After the import stop for Russian oil, the President now has to put up with the accusation of endangering the supply security of the USA.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The result of the fight against natural gas production in Europe and the USA is sobering, it has not served climate protection. Natural gas is still burned, it only comes from Russia. Nuclear power plants were shut down in favor of natural gas. The war in Ukraine also makes natural gas more expensive, so that the demand for coal increases, which causes CO₂ emissions to rise more sharply. In Germany, the green economics minister is considering letting coal-fired power plants run longer due to a lack of alternatives to Russian gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, on the other hand, is now considering starting fracking in his country. Russia is no longer a reliable source, it is important to ensure the energy supply. The climate protection group Extinction Rebellion has announced that it will soon occupy oil refineries in Great Britain. "Fossil energies must be stopped once and for all," declared the activists. "Now is the time, this is the moment".</span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-68777015683594733852022-03-23T19:25:00.003+01:002022-03-24T12:30:09.618+01:00France: Nuclear Safety Authority stops construction on ITER fusion reactor site<p><a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/sciences/article/2022/03/22/les-revers-du-projet-international-de-reacteur-iter_6118615_1650684.html" target="_blank"> </a><span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/sciences/article/2022/03/22/les-revers-du-projet-international-de-reacteur-iter_6118615_1650684.html" target="_blank">Le Monde</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the pharaonic construction site of the prototype of the ITER nuclear fusion reactor at the Cadarache site (Bouches-du-Rhône), it is not just the workers who are busy. The engineers had to change their priorities to respond quickly to the long list of requests from the Nuclear Safety Authority (ASN), so that the assembly of this unique machine in the world continues on schedule.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>ASN's requests, in the form of a letter addressed by its chairman to the director general of the international organization ITER, were revealed on 21 February by the news site New Energy Times, which is highly critical of the energy of merger. The missive is not good news. It indicates that, as it stands, the assembly of the reactor cannot begin, in particular the key and irreversible stage of welding the first two elements together, out of nine, constituting the vacuum chamber 19.4 meters in diameter and 11.4 meters high, in which the fusion reactions must take place.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Unlike nuclear fission, which breaks uranium nuclei to release energy, here, as in stars, light hydrogen nuclei are forced together. For this fusion to take place, it is necessary to bring the nuclei together and heat them to 150 million degrees long enough to produce more energy than that needed to initiate the reaction. This technique, called "tokamak", uses intense magnetic fields to confine matter.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The ITER project, decided in 2006 and bringing together six countries and the European Union, must demonstrate the viability of this large-scale solution from 2025, at a construction cost of around 20 billion euros. In 2012, when the ASN agreed to start the work, three so-called “stopping points” were planned as so many appointments to be honored for the continuation of operations. In 2014, for the pouring of the concrete screed (the slab), and in 2016, for the external heating devices, these steps had been completed.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>But, on January 25, one year after its request for "lifting of the third stop point", ITER received the negative response from the ASN: "The stop point linked to the tokamak assembly cannot be lifted (…). As a result, the tokamak assembly cannot be engaged. “The latter was to take place” towards the end of 2022 “, explains Laban Coblentz, director of communication for ITER. He adds: “The construction site is not stopped. This letter does not interrupt work. This is a usual phase of dialogue with the regulator. It must also be said that we are dealing with a machine which is the first of its kind and which is very complex. »</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the first two elements of the vacuum chamber, work continues, in fact, to weld reinforcement parts and electric coils. They are still in the assembly hall and the first could be lowered into the main shaft in "a few weeks", estimates Laban Coblentz.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>ASN is in fact asking for additional information to guarantee safety and control of radiation protection within the installation on seven points. First, on the resistance of the materials to the flux of neutrons emitted during the reactions. “ITER did not provide all the elements for us to position ourselves,” recalls Bastien Lauras, head of the Marseille division of ASN.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Then, during collisions with the surfaces of the vacuum chamber, these neutrons make radioactive nuclei in the enclosure. ASN therefore also requests "radiological maps" to estimate the radiation on the installation and to confirm that the safety of the workers will be ensured. It also indicates that it is necessary for ITER to demonstrate that the concrete slab will indeed support any excess weight linked to the addition of possible additional protections. Similarly, it requires a more complete assessment of the various radioactive sources present during operation or in the event of an accident of the machine. Just as it requires new demonstrations of the facility's resistance to the effects of an earthquake, to take account of experience feedback from the Fukushima accident, like what was requested for nuclear facilities classics.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Finally, two other requests relate to defects observed during manufacture. The slab, capable of supporting the 400,000 tons of the complete machine, rests on 493 anti-seismic pillars, but it has risen a little at the edges. ASN asks that this be taken into account in the final safety demonstration.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In a letter made public by New Energy Times, Bernard Bigot, the director general of ITER, assures that the Spaniards have found a solution. Laban Coblentz believes that all the answers can be provided "in April or May". "ITER must submit a new file so that we can investigate it", specifies Bastien Lauras. For the first stopping point, ITER had planned to pour the concrete in 2013 but had not been authorized to do so until more than a year later by the ASN.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The next few months will therefore be decisive, as several other events are pending. The European part of ITER, the agency Fusion For Energy (F4E), is also awaiting the results of an investigation, but this time on the working conditions within it. In May 2021, an engineer indeed committed suicide. Then, in November, a staff strike prompted management to request an additional investigation into the circumstances of this death. Before parliamentarians from the budget control committee on February 28, Johannes Schwemmer, the director of F4E, acknowledged that psychological support had been put in place and that the workload, with "98 projects to be carried out by 440 people was very important. Union representatives spoke of “lack of social dialogue” and “toxic management”.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Next June, the ITER council will meet and “study proposals for schedule and cost revisions,” according to Laban Coblentz. In September 2021, Bernard Bigot also considered it “untenable” to start test operations without a merger, in 2025, as planned. From now on, the ITER communication prefers to mention not this stage, but the later stage of the first fusion reactions, announced for 2035.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The European Court of Auditors warned, in its 2021 report, that “any change in the main assumptions underlying the estimation and the risk exposure could lead to significant cost increases and/or further delays”. Premonitory, perhaps, it stipulated that “the French nuclear safety authority has the last word, and [that] any future modification of the requirements in this area could have a significant financial impact”.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-24267339824254891712022-03-23T19:05:00.007+01:002022-03-24T12:29:49.772+01:00Europe: members of the Bloc sound ways to end dependency from russian gas<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The measures are planned to be effective by the end of the year, <a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/plus237730241/Russisches-Oel-und-Gas-So-kann-die-EU-fuer-Ersatz-sorgen.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The pressure on the EU states to impose an embargo on Russian energy supplies is increasing. The heads of state and government meeting in Brussels on Thursday will also argue about this issue again. It is very unlikely that they will agree on a gas embargo this week. But the pressure will remain.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The European Commission, the EU's powerful administration, is therefore already preparing for a possible supply freeze for oil and gas from Russia – even in the event that Russia stops supplies of its own accord.</span></p><p><span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The staff of EU Industry and Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton have drawn up a scenario of how the EU can become independent of gas supplies from Russia by the end of the year. The calculations are exclusive to WELT.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">"It's high time we prepared for all eventualities this year," Breton told WELT. “This includes a complete ban on Russian gas supplies and even all other fossil fuels that we get from there. We need to prepare and discuss a zero fossil fuel scenario from Russia.” EU countries also source oil and coal from Russia.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">According to the Commission, Russia supplies the EU with 155 billion cubic meters of natural gas every year. The European Commission has already considered in the past how two-thirds of this amount could be replaced by the end of the year. Breton staff have added to this list. The figures give the theoretical possibility of almost completely replacing Russian natural gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Not without reason: the Commissioner cares deeply about the interests of companies. In the event of an acute gas shortage, companies that are not system-critical can be cut off from the gas supply - and then in some cases would have to stop production. German companies are already running through similar scenarios.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">The plans contain some already known measures. This includes additional imports of liquefied natural gas (LNG), primarily from the USA and Qatar. They could replace 50 billion cubic meters of Russian gas. The big challenge, however, is to route additional supplies to where Russian gas fails.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Spain has many LNG terminals but is currently not connected to the gas network of the rest of the EU. The construction of new terminals in Northern Europe takes several years. A much-discussed option is floating LNG terminals, which can be deployed more quickly. Something like this is planned in Wilhelmshaven in Lower Saxony and could be ready for use by the end of 2023, as State Environment Minister Olaf Lies (SPD) WELT reported.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In addition, deliveries via other existing pipelines are to be increased, for example to Azerbaijan, Algeria and Morocco. They are currently not being fully used or are even idle due to political disputes. In some cases, higher delivery volumes have already been agreed, for example with Norway. According to the Commission's calculations, additional deliveries could replace ten billion cubic meters of Russian gas.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In addition, the authority sees great potential in renewable energies: Planned wind, solar and biogas projects are to be accelerated so that this year even more capacity than planned could go on line. Newly completed biogas plants could replace 3.5 billion cubic meters of Russian gas by the end of the year, new wind turbines 10 billion cubic meters and new solar parks 12.5 billion cubic meters.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">At the same time, the authority is focusing on lower gas consumption: Breton calculates that reducing the room temperature by one or two degrees could reduce gas consumption in Europe by 10 billion cubic meters. When other nuclear reactors were shut down in Japan after the Fukushima accident, that would have worked, says the French politician. Energetic refurbishment, which should also be accelerated, will save another four billion cubic meters.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">In addition to such largely undisputed measures, the Breton employees have identified savings opportunities that offer far more potential for conflict. Environmentalists and climate protectors in particular are unlikely to be enthusiastic.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Breton proposes that the three German nuclear power plants, which are due to go offline in the next few months, continue to run. The French politician considers this a technically and politically viable option and refers to recent statements by Economics and Climate Minister Robert Habeck. "I heard that the vice chancellor didn't say no to that."</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Belgium postponed the planned phase-out of nuclear power over the weekend; there, two power plants that were actually supposed to be shut down are supposed to run for ten years longer. Together, the two Belgian power plants and the three German power plants could replace 12 billion cubic meters of Russian gas, Breton calculated.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Higher production in the Dutch Groningen gas field could replace an additional three billion cubic meters. This is also a proposal with potential for conflict. "You obviously have to be careful, given the risks of earthquakes that could cause that," Breton said. However, he believes that the Netherlands is ready to consider higher funding.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">It is also possible to switch from gas to other energy sources when generating electricity. Additional coal firing could replace 20 billion cubic meters of Russian gas. "German coal-fired power plants alone could replace 14 billion cubic meters if they ran at full capacity," says Breton.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Burning heavy oil in power generation could replace another 10 billion cubic meters. However, both options would result in higher CO₂ emissions, and heavy fuel oil in particular is an extremely dirty fuel. Relying more heavily on dirty fuels would also counteract the European Green Deal, which Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wants to uphold.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Commission officials also see potential for savings in industry, which is responsible for a quarter of natural gas consumption. Burning more oxygen instead of natural gas could save three billion cubic meters of gas by the end of 2022, especially in the steel and metals industry and in the manufacture of mineral wool and glass.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;">Refineries could use heavy oil instead of natural gas to heat some processes. Even switching to biogas, pellets, oil and coal can be considered with the necessary technical adjustments.</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-86225659701238240592022-03-23T18:30:00.005+01:002022-03-23T18:44:22.095+01:00Russia accepts payment for gas supply only in rubles<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article237730257/Russland-akzeptiert-fuer-Gaslieferungen-nur-noch-Rubel.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In the future, customers in Germany and other EU countries will have to pay in rubles for gas deliveries from Russia. Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday instructed the government to stop accepting payments in dollars or euros. Deliveries would continue to be fully guaranteed, the Kremlin chief assured in a government video conference that was broadcast on state television.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The "unfriendly states" blacklisted by Russia are affected. This includes Germany and all other EU countries, but also the USA, Canada and Great Britain.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The announcement promptly strengthened the Russian currency, which is under massive pressure. The move could therefore also aim to support the ruble exchange rate. Gas companies would first have to buy rubles on the foreign exchange market.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The central bank and the Russian government now have a week to determine the modalities for switching from foreign exchange to ruble payments, Putin said. The West itself has devalued its currencies by freezing Russian assets abroad.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"Escalation of the Economic War"</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"This is an escalation of the economic war," Jens Südekum, a member of the scientific advisory board of the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology, told the Reuters news agency. "Not many expected this broadside."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For Südekum, this represents a clear breach of contract. "There are long-term contracts for gas supplies that are denominated in dollars," said the professor at the Institute for Competition Economics at Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf. "If Putin now declares that he only accepts rubles, he is breaking these contracts." The West will now have to react in some way. "An embargo on energy imports from Russia has now become more likely."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If the West followed Russia's request, it would have to circumvent its own sanctions over the war against Ukraine and take rubles from the Russian central bank. "But it was actually sanctioned," said Südekum. "That's why you can't actually do that."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As a reaction to the sanctions imposed by the West, the Russian government had already decided at the beginning of the month that its own financial obligations to "unfriendly states" would only be settled in rubles. These include Ukraine, Switzerland and Japan.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-31727305093872345772022-03-23T14:45:00.003+01:002022-03-23T18:46:29.080+01:00Germany: chairman of industry association warns: gas network ill-equipped for LNG flows<p><span style="font-family: arial;"> The chairman of Federation of German Industries (Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie) issues a warning about a complete embargo on oil and gas from Russia. This could, according to his statement, generate a severe recession in Germany and Europe. Furthermore the european gas network is not ready for transporting LNG through Europe, <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/industrie-sieht-europaeisches-gasnetz-nicht-fuer-energie-embargo-geruestet-a-702b10a3-3159-4dfa-9f42-7c840460ab70" target="_blank">SPON</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Forgoing imports of Russian gas and oil in the short term would cause massive damage to European industrial companies, according to the Federation of German Industries (BDI). "The EU is not prepared for a short-term, comprehensive energy embargo," BDI President Siegfried Russwurm told SPIEGEL. “In doing so, it would jeopardize its unity and ability to act economically and politically.” If there were no energy supplies, production stops threatened with unforeseeable consequences for supply chains and employment.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>A boycott of Russian gas supplies would threaten the entire EU with a "structural test," Russwurm continued. Because the European gas network has not yet been designed for gas flows from West to East. "It is unclear whether, if Russian gas supplies are stopped, liquefied gas that ends up in the Netherlands or Belgium will find its way to the Czech Republic or Slovakia," said Russwurm. A gas embargo would cause disruption to production, loss of employment and, in some cases, massive damage to production facilities. A number of other business associations had already warned of this.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>A boycott of Russian gas supplies would threaten the entire EU with a "structural test," Russwurm continued. Because the European gas network has not yet been designed for gas flows from West to East. "It is unclear whether, if Russian gas supplies are stopped, liquefied gas that ends up in the Netherlands or Belgium will find its way to the Czech Republic or Slovakia," said Russwurm. A gas embargo would cause disruption to production, loss of employment and, in some cases, massive damage to production facilities. A number of other business associations had already warned of this.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"We support the sanctions imposed on Russia by the western allies," said BDI President Russwurm. »We are aware that further harsh and unequivocal reactions may have to follow.«</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-38714549020731797062022-03-23T13:58:00.005+01:002022-03-23T13:58:53.279+01:00Germany: Shell is first key account for LNG-terminal in Brunsbüttel<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The LNG-terminal in Brunsbüttel on Germany's north coast is in the planning stage since several years. The russian invasion into Ukraine could accelerate the completion. The operating company can introduce a major customer, the multinational oil and gas company Shell, writes <a href="https://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/gas-lng-terminal-brunsbuettel-gewinnt-shell-als-ersten-grosskunden-a-4e045b2f-2b66-424b-b27e-dbca8d5d5900" target="_blank">SPON</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The operating company of the German Railway Terminals in Brunsbüttel has a large shopping center in the country. A statement stating that "the shell of a substantial part of the capacity of the terminals in the Brunswüttel for imports from LNG is free of charge", according to the German LNG Terminal GmbH mit. "Beide the pages of the work of the Daran, Umfang and Dauer of the partnership can be highly contracted to be united."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Terminal is located in 2026 in operation and has a capacity of billions of cubic meters of gas. Long-lived for the import of green water-based derivatives, ammonia is also available.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The plans for an import terminal for liquid earthquake (LNG) in the harbor of the Schleswig-Holstein Kleinstadt and the suburbs run from the year, the stone is not right. For the time being, the Bundesregierung, the view of the Kriegs in Ukraine, has been able to meet the needs of the German-speaking countries of the Russian Erdgas.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This land is owned by the Füderbank KfW at the Betreibergesellschaft with 50 percent. Other company managers are Dutch gas companies Gasunie (40 percent) and the German company RWE (10 percent). These "young developments" are part of the background to the relationship with Shell. Shell-Deutschlandchef Fabian Ziegler spoke about a "very important letter, a short course in Germany and a good place in Europe."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz has the opportunity to build two of the Flüssiggas-Terminals in Germany - in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbüttel. Deutschland bezog zuletzt rund 55 Prozent seines Erdgases aus Russland.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On imports of Russian gas and oil, which are free of charge, are protected by European industry companies, according to the Bundesverbands of the German industry (BDI). "The EU is not on a short-lived, highly energy-efficient basis," said BDI President Siegfried Russwurm of SPIEGEL. "We have a great deal of economic and professionalism in politics and politics." At the release of energy deliveries, wire production stops with unsolicited follies for deliveries and employment.</i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The EU is in the throes of a boycott of Russian gas deliveries and a "trial", according to Russwurm. Denn das europäische Gasnetz sei bislang noch nicht auf Gasflüsse von West nach Ost ausgelegt. "It's the same, at the foot of a Russian gas station in Flüssiggas, that in the Netherlands or Belgium, the way to the Czech Republic or the Slovaks found," said Russwurm. Gasembargo is a source of production interruptions, employment expenses and a large amount of damage in production facilities. Davor has received a number of other business associations.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-58867738729925617432022-03-13T17:12:00.004+01:002022-03-28T12:51:52.614+02:00Gas: Spain positions itself as gas hub; wants to revitalize MidCat pipeline<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">In view of the war in Ukraine and the sudden turnaround in gas procurement Spain positions itself as gas hub. Indeed it has a direct gas pipeline to Algeria (Medgaz) and has also the biggest LNG stocking capacity in Europe. Spanish government suggest the reconsideration of the MidCat pipeline (planned from Portugal, through Spain and the Pyrenees to France) that was abandoned in 2019 to compensate the unwelcomed gas from Russia,<a href="https://www.lemonde.fr/economie/article/2022/03/12/guerre-en-ukraine-l-espagne-veut-ressusciter-le-projet-de-gazoduc-midcat_6117250_3234.html" target="_blank"> Le Monde</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>While Europe seeks to reduce its dependence on Russian gas, Spain intends to position itself as a strategic "hub" to diversify the continent's supply sources. "We can be an alternative to Russian gas," insisted the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from the beginning of February, even before the invasion in Ukraine. The idea has since caught on. “With its great energy capacity and its great experience in renewable energies, Spain can and will play an important role in supplying Europe, finally confirmed the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on a visit to Madrid. , March 5. And, for this, we must work in the interconnections between the Iberian Peninsula and the rest of the European Union [EU]. »</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the table, a file that we thought was definitively buried has been resurrected: the MidCat. Launched by Spain, Portugal and France in 2003, this gas pipeline project crossing the Pyrenees between Catalonia and the south-west of France was intended to connect the Spanish and Portuguese networks to the European network and help open up the Iberian Peninsula, a real “energy island”, which has less than 5% interconnections – far from the 15% required by Europe.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>With an estimated cost of 400 million euros in its first phase of development, the infrastructure had even figured, for a time, among the priority infrastructures of the EU, before being abandoned in 2019, against the backdrop of demonstrations of environmental opponents.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“Failing to complete the MidCat was a strategic mistake, regrets the former Spanish foreign minister from 2011 to 2016, José Manuel Garcia-Margallo. With its other gas pipelines and regasification plants, Spain could have provided a real alternative to Russian gas. But a study commissioned by the European Commission found that the pipeline would be neither profitable nor necessary. In July 2018, Emmanuel Macron acknowledged, during a meeting in Lisbon, that he “had not been convinced of the usefulness” of gas interconnections. For lack of consensus on the distribution of costs, but, above all, of interest on the French side, the project was finally buried, in 2019, by the Energy Regulatory Commission (CRE). Which called into question the benefit-cost relationship of infrastructure and its strategic interest…</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This one, now, is hardly in doubt and, bitter, the Spaniards, already disappointed at the time, lament this lost opportunity. “Spain has a regasification capacity which could play a significant role in improving the security of gas supply in Europe, if we had the right and sufficient capacity to export through the Pyrenees. Not counting on it is a serious setback at the moment,” said expert Mariano Marzo, professor emeritus at the University of Earth Sciences in Barcelona.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The kingdom, indeed, does not lack assets. It is connected to Algeria by the Medgaz submarine gas pipeline, with a capacity of 10 billion cubic meters per year. And, until its closure on November 1, 2021, after a crisis between Algeria and Morocco, it was also closed by the Maghreb-Europe gas pipeline. In order to increase the flows, the Spanish government continues to court Algiers: on Sunday March 6, the Socialist Prime Minister, Pedro Sanchez, again called the Algerian President, Abdelmadjid Tebboune.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Spain also has six liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification plants, representing 27% of the total capacity of the European Union and the United Kingdom included, i.e. 60 billion cubic meters per year. These gas terminals enable it to import gas by LNG carriers from fourteen countries – mainly the United States, but also from countries in sub-Saharan Africa and the Gulf, while Russian gas represents less than 10% of its imports. However, they are only used at half capacity. Finally, Spain is also the European country with the largest LNG storage capacities (35% of the total), ahead of the United Kingdom (22%) and France (14%), according to the association Gas Infrastructure Europe (GIE), which brings together operators from 27 countries.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, to transport this gas to the rest of Europe and thus take advantage of the Spanish infrastructure, the country has only two gas pipelines. In Larrau, in Navarre, and in Irun, in the Basque Country, they only allow the passage of 8 billion cubic meters per year towards France. Since the last week of February, these two gas pipelines have been sending an average of 40 gigawatt hours each day to France, a limited but significant amount of Spain's willingness to contribute to a solution. Its gas terminals, in particular that of Bilbao, also store LNG intended to be then distributed in other European countries.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Can the energy crisis caused by the war in Ukraine now resuscitate the MidCat project? If the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, pleads in this direction, the Minister of Ecological Transition, Teresa Ribera, tempers. “This must not end in a dead end. It is important that there is an adequate connection in France, she explained, Tuesday March 8, in the Council of Ministers. The debate is not whether Spain wants or does not want to bet on European interconnections, but how to articulate a European effort. »</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For the minister, such an infrastructure should be financed "as a project of European interest, not by Spanish users", since its main objective is the security of gas supply to the countries of the north and east of the EU. 'Europe. “If we want to make available to Europe our storage capacities, which are above 60%, while they are on average 30% in the EU, it is not Spain but Europe which must finance it”, added Mr. Sanchez, during an informal conversation with a group of Spanish journalists accompanying him on a trip to Latvia on Tuesday.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The infrastructure should also have technical characteristics that "allow the transport of biomethane and other biogases, and, in the near future, renewable hydrogen, in order to ensure the long-term commercial viability of the infrastructure", underlined Mrs Ribera. With 6.9 billion euros of European recovery funds devoted to the development of green hydrogen, Spain could thus use, in the future, the MidCat to export its surplus production. Because it is impossible for this infrastructure to provide a short-term solution: Ms. Ribera recalled that the construction of such an infrastructure would take, at best, “five to six years”. And even the most optimistic experts count on a minimum of two to three years…</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-36315524388786082462022-03-01T16:59:00.002+01:002022-03-01T16:59:08.315+01:00Nord Stream 2: operating company lays off all personnel<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The operating company of the contentious pipeline has announced that it discharges all 140 employees, <a href="https://www.bild.de/politik/ausland/politik-ausland/ukraine-krieg-aus-fuer-putin-pipeline-nord-stream-2-entlaesst-alle-angestellten-79311890.bild.html" target="_blank">BILD</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Does this mark the end of the Putin pipeline?</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>According to Swiss Economy Minister Guy Parmelin, the operating company Nord Stream 2 has laid off all employees. The company is based in the tax-efficient Swiss canton of Zug.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As Parmelin explained on Monday evening on French-speaking Switzerland television, 140 people were affected by the dismissal. The company asked for a meeting with representatives of the cantonal authorities this Tuesday, the broadcaster reported.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Last week, the United States imposed sanctions on Nord Stream 2 AG, prohibiting further business with the company. The German federal government has put the approval process for Nord Stream 2 on hold in view of the Russian escalation in Ukraine.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Nord Stream 2 is a subsidiary of the Russian gas company Gazprom and is headquartered in Zug, a good 30 kilometers south of Zurich. The pipeline that was laid and completed through the Baltic Sea was supposed to bring Russian gas to Germany.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The project was also supported by former Chancellor Gerhard Schröder (77), who, as a friend of Russia's warmonger Vladimir Putin, has been lobbying on his behalf for years. He is the head of the supervisory board at the oil giant Rosneft, has a top position at Nord Stream and is actually supposed to become a supervisory board member at the Gazprom group.</i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On Tuesday it became known that four employees from Schröder's former chancellor's office had quit - including the long-standing office manager Albrecht Funk. The reason: Schröder's failure to distance himself from Putin.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-35848767895995002472022-02-27T19:21:00.005+01:002022-02-27T19:21:44.580+01:00LNG: Germany preparing for LNG imports<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">With Russia as designated gas provider falling out due to the russian invasion of Ukraine and president Putin's unpredictable behaviour, Germany is carrying out a change in gas import, more precisely turning to US LNG (<a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/plus237172069/LNG-USA-werden-neue-Weltmacht-der-Energie.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>):</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On the high seas, in the middle of the Indian Ocean, the "Minerva Chios" suddenly changed course. The ship came from the USA and was almost there, but then it turned 180 degrees, turning from south-east to north-west. The captain had been assigned a new port. He should no longer head for Asia, as originally planned, but for Rotterdam. Apparently someone in Europe was offering more money for their cargo.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The "Minerva Chios" was loaded with liquid gas or "Liquefied Natural Gas", as it is called in the industry, LNG for short. These three letters have been at the center of world politics since the beginning of the Ukraine crisis. It's about the question of where millions of Europeans should get the raw material with which they heat and operate many of their power plants.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because Russia, the most important gas supplier for Germany and the entire continent, has made itself an outsider by attacking Ukraine. An unpredictable aggressor who can no longer be trusted. Germany must look for alternatives to Russian natural gas, says Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens), otherwise you will become "a pawn".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Is liquid gas from America, like it was on board the "Minerva Chios", the better solution for Germany? Or is it too expensive? After all, Asia also wants LNG, so there is a risk of a price war. Europeans are already paying a lot of money to import liquid gas. 27 cubic meters or one million BTU – the raw material is traded in this unit – currently costs around 28 dollars. That's four times what it was in early 2021 and 17 percent higher than the price in Asia. It is therefore worthwhile for suppliers to divert LNG tankers to the EU.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Robert Habeck would of course like to make Germany self-sufficient with wind and solar power. But that takes too long. After 20 years of energy transition, renewable energies only cover 16 percent of the demand, the rest is still fossil and is mostly supplied from Russia. Of the 21 million heating systems in Germany, 14 million run on natural gas. To believe that green electricity can quickly replace this gas is illusory.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>On Sunday, Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) reacted to the dependence on Russian natural gas: he announced the construction of two terminals for liquefied natural gas in Germany. Scholz named Brunsbüttel and Wilhelmshaven as locations in the Bundestag.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Quick fixes are also needed now. Because nobody knows what Vladimir Putin will do next. "Russia has not only mobilized its army," says Samantha Gross of the Washington think tank Brookings, "the state is also turning its raw materials into weapons." Putin is reducing supplies for political reasons. The gas from its pipelines covers only 17 percent of European demand, about half as much as a year ago. "Moscow meets the minimum contractual delivery obligations," explains Gross, "no more."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>If Putin stops deliveries completely, the consequences for Europe would be devastating. "In the event of a prolonged disruption in Russian supplies, the stores could not be replenished over the summer," warns Kateryna Filippenko, an analyst at consulting firm Wood Mackenzie. And then a catastrophic situation threatens next winter. Prices would skyrocket, industrial companies would have to close. An inflationary spiral is possible. "The European energy crisis," believes Filippenko, "could definitely trigger a global recession."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Only the import of large quantities of liquid gas could prevent such a scenario. The abrupt change of course of the "Minerva Chios" on the high seas shows how flexibly the LNG market can react to changes in supply and demand. The only problem is that a global struggle for the raw material is emerging. And that threatens to make securing Germany's energy supply an extremely expensive affair.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>It is a global zero-sum game: what Europe buys, Asia lacks. Japan in particular has hardly any energy resources of its own. The country relies on nuclear power and LNG imports. According to the International Trade Administration, the Japanese are the world's largest buyers of the frozen gas. They spend more than $30 billion a year on it. 21 percent of global LNG production ends up in tankers in Yokohama and other Japanese terminals.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Earlier this month, Japan promised to send aid to the EU. The government has agreed to voluntarily divert some LNG shipments as long as this does not endanger its own security of supply. But things won't stay that peaceful for long.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Consumers have to adjust to higher prices</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>According to Julien Hoarau of EnergyScan, the analysis platform of the French energy giant Engie, Europe will only be able to attract gas tankers in larger quantities in the future – unless the importers put in even more money. What that would mean for consumers is clear: prices will continue to rise.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Transport with ships like the "Minerva Chios" is expensive, since the gas has to be cooled down to minus 162 degrees Celsius in the ports of departure so that it can be liquefied and loaded. The beneficiary of all this is America. In the Ukraine crisis, the country has risen to become the world's most important LNG supplier. For the first time, the US now exports more than Qatar and Australia.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Russia and Saudi Arabia, the leaders of the powerful Opec oil cartel, are considered by the public to be energy superpowers. Now that includes the United States. They only started selling their gas in 2016 – and already cover a fifth of global demand. "The Ukraine crisis and Europe's energy crisis," says Daniel Yergin, something of America's energy pope, "are putting the spotlight on the geopolitical importance of American oil and gas production."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Meanwhile, says Yergin, who works at the consulting firm IHS Markit, US LNG is even “the critical factor” when it comes to preventing gas shortages in Europe and around the world. In fact, US LNG exports to the EU surpassed Russia's pipeline shipments for the first time last month. And the trend is likely to continue, after all, Germany stopped the Nord Stream 2 Baltic Sea pipeline, which was supposed to bring gas from Russia to Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For America, it's a win-win situation. For one, the country can free its European allies from dependence on Russian gas. “Freedom Gas” – that was the keyword that ex-President Donald Trump often used. On the other hand, the export is lucrative.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>During Trump's tenure, the gas industry boomed, and new liquefaction plants were built in rows on the Gulf of Mexico. Now they are being used to ship gas around the world from Texas, Pennsylvania and Louisiana. It could also give the US the “energy dominance” that Trump once aspired to. Putin of all people is helping America to achieve an important foreign policy goal: control of liquid gas.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-37146410560042680682022-02-27T16:55:00.003+01:002022-02-27T16:55:29.421+01:00Germany: chancellor announces construction of two LNG terminals<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">In the light of the russian invasion into Ukraine german chancellor Olaf Scholz operates a reversal of the german energy policy. In a government declaration chancellor Scholz announced alongside a considerable raise of the defefense spendung also the construction of two LNG terminals, namely in Wilhelmshaven and Brunsbuttel where terminals never got beyond the project phase. <a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/article237180045/Deutschland-100-Milliarden-Euro-fuer-Bundeswehr-Fluessiggas-Terminals.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) has announced a massive increase in German defense spending in response to the Russian attack on Ukraine.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The 2022 federal budget should be provided with a one-time special fund of 100 billion euros for “necessary investments and armament projects”, said Scholz in his government statement on Sunday in the Bundestag. He added: "From now on we will invest more than two percent of the gross domestic product in our defense every year."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>To reduce dependence on Russian natural gas, Scholz announced the construction of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in Germany, naming Brunsbüttel and Wilhelmshaven in Schleswig-Holstein and Lower Saxony as locations. In addition, a coal and gas reserve should be built up.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>An LNG terminal that receives gas today can also receive green hydrogen tomorrow, said Scholz. Although there are many terminals for liquefied natural gas in the EU, which comes from the USA or Qatar, for example, there have not been any in Germany so far.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-91025573850478881192022-02-22T14:34:00.003+01:002022-02-22T14:34:59.474+01:00Nord Stream 2: german chancellor stops pipeline project in reaction of russian invasion into Ukraine<p> <span style="font-family: arial;"><a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/ausland/article237068437/Nord-Stream-2-Scholz-hat-entschieden-die-Gas-Pipeline-auf-Eis-zu-legen.html" target="_blank">WELT:</a></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>As a reaction to the Russian actions towards Ukraine, the federal government is stopping the Nord Stream 2 pipeline project. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD ) on Tuesday in Berlin. "And without this certification, Nord Stream 2 cannot go into operation."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Scholz condemned President Vladimir Putin's decision to recognize the self-proclaimed People's Republics of Luhansk and Donetsk as independent states as a serious breach of international law. With his actions in eastern Ukraine, Putin is not only breaking the Minsk Agreement, but also the UN Charter, which provides for the preservation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of states.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-10437135230056255622022-02-20T21:44:00.000+01:002022-02-20T21:44:03.091+01:00Nord Stream 2: the curious deals of the mecklenburgian foundation for climate protection<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">The state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in the north of Germany has created a foundation for climate protection quite accurately one year ago. This foundation, the Stiftung Klima- und Umweltschutz MV, is seen as remedy to handle possible sanctions against operators and involved companies. However the object of the foundation and the backers are obscure. Recently the foundation purchased shares of a limited shipping company, the MAR Agency GmbH. The goals and intentions of this company are more than obscure. Traces lead to puppet-masters of Nord Stream 2, writes <a href="https://www.welt.de/politik/deutschland/plus236999611/Nord-Stream-2-Die-Stiftung-Klima-und-Umweltschutz-MV-und-ihre-Tarnfirma.html?source=puerto-reco-2_ABC-V1.B_click_prob_only" target="_blank">WELT</a>:</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Siegfried Kempe can look back on an adventurous life. The man from Mecklenburg had already sailed the seven seas as a sailor in GDR times. Later he maneuvered tugboats into the port of Rostock. In August 2018 it was over, retirement at the age of 63.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The local magazine "Der Warnemünder" paid tribute to the captain a. D. as someone who was a very educated man and gave good advice for retirement. But then everything turned out differently, Kempe was suddenly needed again. He should have a role in a play set on the grand stage of world politics.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The sailor is now an actor in the endless drama about Russian natural gas, American sanctions and German fickleness. However, hardly anyone knows, because Kempe acts behind the scenes. It's about the state-owned company Gazprom and its controversial pipeline in the Baltic Sea.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The commissioning of the line, which is now almost complete, was and is in jeopardy: First by punitive measures under the aegis of Donald Trump, now by Vladimir Putin's demonstration of power at the Ukrainian border.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In order to save the project, the state government of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and the Gazprom subsidiary Nord Stream 2 AG (NS2), which is responsible for the pipeline construction, have devised a sophisticated construct. And the name Kempe appears in it.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><span></span></span></p><a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span><p></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>At the beginning of January 2021, the MV Climate and Environmental Protection Foundation was established. Equipped with Russian money, it is supposed to protect the pipeline from sanctions.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The main actors are SPD prime minister Manuela Schwesig and her predecessor and party friend Erwin Sellering, who directs the fortunes of the foundation as chairman of the board, as well as NS2 boss Matthias Warnig and Gerhard Schröder, president of the board of directors.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The East German Warnig, once employed by the Stasi as an industrial spy in the Federal Republic, is a Putin confidant, as is former Chancellor Schröder. Schwesig and Sellering are considered reliable Gazprom advocates.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Sellering recently told the news portal T-Online that the foundation is about "countering attempts by a great power to intimidate people that violate international law."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Environmental groups, on the other hand, speak of fraudulent labeling. They refer to the statutes of the foundation. It states: The entity should “participate primarily in the completion of Nord Stream 2”.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>FDP parliamentary group leader Alexander Graf Lambsdorff describes the foundation as a “front organization”. In fact, instead of NS2, it is subcontracting the pipeline project to service providers and subcontractors. They rent port areas, buy goods and send ships out to sea.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The companies do not have to fear penalties for possible violations of sanctions - the state has put up an umbrella over them via the foundation.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>When the foundation was founded, Andrij Melnyk, the Ukrainian ambassador in Berlin, spoke of an "incredible gas spectacle from Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania" that reminded him "of cheating and shell games". Transparency International Germany sees a “clear dependency relationship” between the foundation and NS2.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>From the point of view of money laundering compliance, the construction is "not only daring, but abusive". Because of the possible violation of applicable laws, Transparency has now turned on Federal Finance Minister Christian Lindner (FDP) and his cabinet colleague Nancy Faeser (SPD) from the Interior Department.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The foundation is even allowed to invest in companies as part of the pipeline project. The media has been speculating about such a commitment for months. WELT AM SONNTAG found what they were looking for.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The foundation has acquired a 49 percent stake in a maritime service provider, MAR Agency GmbH, based in Rostock. The rest is up to Siegfried Kempe, the retired captain. According to the commercial register, he is also the sole managing director.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The Rostock local giant and the foundation nurtured by the most powerful gas exporter in the world have quietly entered into a joint venture that forms an ideal platform for discreet business.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Neither partner wants to talk about the background. He is "currently not available" for an interview, says the board of directors of Sellering. Kempe is also closed to WELT AM SONNTAG: "I'm not the type who wants to be involved with the media."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, the north-east German is curious and agrees to a five-minute telephone conversation. He characterizes the MAR Agency as a "completely normal shipping agency".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>When the topic of the foundation's role as a shareholder came up, he reacted irritably: "I can't confirm or deny anything here. If you have any information, that is your business and not mine.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Kempe also does not want to say anything about a visit to Hamburg on March 9, 2021. At that time, he appeared at the Bergstraße notary's office and presented a purchase contract there - which shows that he had just acquired the MAR Agency, which was already in liquidation, from an entrepreneur on the island of Rügen.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Subsequently, certificate no. 808/2021 JB was drawn up in German and English. This was believed to be the first step in a later deal with the foundation.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The seat of the MAR Agency was relocated from Sassnitz to Rostock. Since then, the "holding and operation of ships" has been part of the business purpose, as has the participation "in other companies of all kinds" and the establishment and operation of "branches at home and abroad".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>135 days later, the decisive course was set: According to a list of shareholders from July 23, 2021, sole owner Kempe sold almost half of his GmbH shares to the Stiftung Klima- und Umweltschutz MV for an unknown price.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>According to research by this newspaper, the MAR Agency was and is in connection with a large number of ships. This is revealed by logs of entries into the port of Rostock. Among other things, she acted as a broker in connection with the "EEMS Duisburg" and the "Lena H" - as well as the Russian "Murman", a freighter that was on a US sanctions list.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For example, it is known that the "EEMS Duisburg" brought stones from Rostock to Sassnitz. The material is used to stabilize the natural gas pipes on the seabed.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The GmbH is based in Kempe's residential building in Rostock's old town. Directly opposite the Katharinenstift, which now houses a university, there is a narrow, three-story house in which four people live. It was recently renovated, the yellow facade glows in the sun.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>You won't find a bell for the MAR Agency, there is only one mailbox. Kempe is not at home, but he says later on the phone: "I'm not afraid of sanctions, and I'm not affected by sanctions either." He also asserts: "I have nothing to do with the pipeline."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Because Kempe wants to give so little information about his company's business, the question arises: does someone else control the company's decisions? Does the foundation pull the strings, is Kempe a straw man? What is striking: For the MAR Agency, there is no record in the transparency register of who is the "beneficial owner".</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The foundation itself knows the fine art of concealment. It has set up a "profitable business operation" run by a knowledgeable manager. According to the statutes, this CEO is appointed by the head of the foundation, Sellering, but at the suggestion of NS2.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>But who is this person? So a secret is kept. All that is known is that it is said to be a Russian who resides in Hamburg.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The business operations of the foundation are not only involved in the MAR Agency, they have also acquired a special freighter: the 93 meter long "Blue Ship", which offers space for a 50-strong crew. This became public when a US government official informed the Bloomberg news agency in November last year.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>An industry expert interviewed by WELT AM SONNTAG put the purchase price in the low double-digit millions. In addition, there are operating costs of around 100,000 euros per year and, depending on the operation, high fuel costs. This shows that there is a lot of money at stake.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The previous owner of the “Blue Ship” was Stone Marine Engineering from Chioggia in the Venice Lagoon. If you call there, you are dealing with a man at the other end of the line who is willing to provide information. He says the contact person at the time for this business, a certain Tamara M., no longer works for the foundation. That's why he has no contact information.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Research on the person provides an interesting insight: according to her own information on the career portal LinkedIn, Tamara M. has never worked for the foundation. Rather, she introduces herself in her profile as a procurement and contract manager at Nord Stream 2.</i></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5540004667571496054.post-78590128518946007062022-02-17T15:21:00.003+01:002022-02-17T15:21:28.099+01:00Germany: high energy prices strain steel industry<p> <span style="font-family: arial;">German steel producers complain about high energy prices and the planned new mechanisms of emission trading that will have a negative impact on competitiveness (<a href="https://www.welt.de/wirtschaft/article236961679/Energiekosten-200-000-Jobs-in-Gefahr-Stahlindustrie-im-Klima-Dilemma.html" target="_blank">WELT</a>):</span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The steel industry in Germany is struggling with high energy costs. "In the last six months alone, our expenditure on electricity and gas has increased by a three-digit million amount," reports Bernhard Osburg, CEO of Thyssenkrupp Steel Europe.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>And his company has the advantage of only having to buy a small amount of energy. "We currently produce two thirds of the electricity ourselves," reports Osburg at the "Handelsblatt annual conference on the future of steel". The cost explosion arises only with the remaining third.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>For the industry as a whole, the Steel Industry Association puts the additional costs at around 1.7 billion euros at the current high price level for electricity and gas. "This endangers the international competitiveness of electric steel production, which will also play a decisive role in the climate goals of the federal government," warns Association President Hans Jürgen Kerkhoff. Especially since Germany already has one of the highest electricity prices in an international comparison.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>But Kerkhoff does not just worry about the here and now. "The high energy prices are also jeopardizing the start of the planned transformation of the steel industry," says the industry representative. Because that requires a lot of energy.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>So far, the industry has been one of the biggest climate sinners in Germany. Almost 60 million tons of CO₂ are emitted every year in steel production, which alone corresponds to a third of industrial emissions in Germany. In order to drastically reduce this number and to become almost climate-neutral in the future, manufacturers are planning new production processes.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“Green steel” is the corresponding catchphrase. This means that production is no longer carried out in the classic blast furnace, but in direct reduction plants. In contrast to the usual blast furnace route, so-called reduction gases, which extract the oxygen from the iron ore, are not produced with coking coal, but in the first step with natural gas and then with hydrogen in the future, produced with electricity from renewable energy. "This enables a CO2 reduction of 95 to 97 percent," says the think tank Agora Energiewende, which specializes in the electricity sector.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>All major steel producers in Germany have had corresponding pilot plants for a long time. However, the actual conversion will cost a lot of money, estimates in the industry range from 20 to 30 billion euros. And investing in the systems is not enough.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>At the same time, the energy requirement increases many times over. "Because the transformation of the steel industry is based on electrification, electrolytically generated hydrogen and natural gas as a low-CO₂ transitional raw material," explains expert Kerkhoff. Due to the high energy prices, there is now a risk of a drastic increase in costs. Because by 2030 alone, the demand for natural gas will increase by two thirds and the demand for green electricity will even triple.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The example of Thyssenkrupp shows how gigantic the quantities are in the final stage. The German market leader currently needs around 4.5 terawatt hours of energy for its plant at the Duisburg site – incidentally the largest steel plant in Europe. "If we produce in a climate-neutral manner, this need will increase tenfold," announces Steel Division boss Osburg. For comparison: According to the company, the 45 terawatt hours required then correspond to 4.5 times the electricity requirements of the city of Hamburg.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>That is a gigantic amount. And unlike today, that would have to be bought in completely. "But we will not be able to do this alone, either as a company or as an industry as a whole," says Osburg. Rather, compensation is needed via the climate protection agreements planned by Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck (Greens).</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Steel President Kerkhoff is also calling for state aid. "Politicians must not just look on, but should develop solutions in dialogue with industry on how gas and electricity prices can be kept at a competitive level for industry," demands the industry representative. Especially since the energy cost problem is by no means the only source of danger for the industry.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Burdens from European emissions trading. The EU is currently discussing a far-reaching revision of this mechanism. And the proposals currently being discussed provide for the gradual abolition of the free allocation of CO₂ certificates. According to the Steel Industry Association, there is a risk of additional costs of 16 billion euros per year - in addition to the investments in systems and the additional costs for energy.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>“But that would take away the economic power and investment leeway that companies need for the transformation,” warns association leader Kerkhoff. The companies themselves complain about that. "It takes our breath away," says Thyssenkrupp manager Osburg. "Merging off free allocations and investing in the future at the same time - that can't work."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Geert van Poelvoorde also finds clear words. "You have to ask yourself whether the steel industry still has a future in Europe," says the European boss of ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel manufacturer. “More pressure will not accelerate the transformation. On the contrary: the steel industry is being deprived of the means to switch production to green.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Especially in connection with the high energy prices. Van Poelvoorde expects the costs for electricity and gas to normalize step by step. However, the price will not drop to previous levels. And even that has an impact. His company has a plant in Hamburg that will initially produce climate-friendly steel with natural gas and later with green hydrogen. “At the moment, however, we cannot operate this plant competitively. With the current electricity prices, it would stand still.”</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>However, a constant start-stop mode will not work. And what that can ultimately mean is shown by another example from the ArcelorMittal Group. "We just had to close a plant in Poland, also because the electricity costs are too high," reports van Poelvoorde.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>The manager sees Europe as a steel location at a crossroads. "2022 will decide how big or small the European steel industry will still be." The EU must decide whether to support the transformation and thus the decarbonization of the steel industry with subsidies or not.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>In any case, the previous plans in Brussels were not sufficient to ensure the future viability of the industry. "There are enough goals, what we need now are decisions to be able to implement projects so that green steel can be produced," van Poelvoorde very clearly demands support.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>After all, in the case of ArcelorMittal, a complete conversion to direct reduction plants involves investments in the order of five to six billion euros. "In the current environment, however, a decision on these investments is impossible."</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This is also emphasized by the steel trade association. "The political framework for investments worth billions must be created now," says Association President Kerkhoff. “These large-scale industrial investments require a reliable financing basis across legislative periods.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>This is not about long-term funding, but about appropriate support in the ramp-up phase and protection against the enormous risks.” And that as quickly as possible. "Every month that goes by costs competitiveness," says Thyssenkrupp man Osburg. The long-established company wants to commission the first plant that can also produce climate-neutrally using hydrogen in 2025.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>"It's a facility that's 150 meters high and costs a little over a billion euros. They don't even build them in 14 days. If we don't step on the gas now, that won't happen.” For such a decision, however, the supervisory board needs well-founded data and acceptable framework conditions.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i><br /></i></span></p><p><i><span style="font-family: arial;"></span></i></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><i>Politicians are under pressure. Because steel is one of the most important materials and also plays a key role in the German industrial mix, after all, car and mechanical engineering are among the core sectors in this country. And their business is closely linked to steel. According to a study by Prognos commissioned by the Steel Industry Association, a drop of 40 percent in steel production in Germany means the loss of 200,000 jobs and 114 billion euros in added value.</i></span></p><p><span style="font-family: arial;"><br /></span></p>Thomas Walbererhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14938687377158105964noreply@blogger.com0