Japan's greenhouse gases emissions drop 4% to a record low in FY23/24
Government data released on Friday showed that Japan's greenhouse gases emissions dropped by 4%, reaching a new record low for the fiscal year ending March 2024. This was due to lower energy consumption, increased use of renewable energies, and restarting nuclear power plants. The data of the Environment Ministry showed that emissions for 2023/24 dropped from 1.116 billion to 1.071 billion tons of carbon dioxide.
Britain Emphasizes Collaboration on Energy Security at Global Summit
Britain urged closer international cooperation to improve energy security on Thursday, telling dozens of other governments and business leaders that they would otherwise be vulnerable to those who were willing to weaponise supplies.Security of energy supply shot up the agenda of countries around the world after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 drove up global prices…
US utility Xcel claims tariff exposure is 2% to 3% of capex plan
Executives with the company stated on Thursday that a global trade war is likely to affect renewable energy supply chains and storage systems, exposing 2%-3% of Xcel Energy’s $45 billion plan for capital expenditures. The expansion of AI data centres and the electrification in industries such as transportation are driving U.S. electricity consumption to record highs. Power companies have increased capital expenditure plans this year to build infrastructure.
Xcel Energy's first-quarter profit misses estimates due to higher costs
Xcel Energy, a U.S. utility, missed Wall Street expectations for the first-quarter profits on Thursday due to higher operating and interest costs. The high interest rates have made it difficult for utility companies to build and maintain vital infrastructure at a time of increasing electricity demand. Data centers are booming due to AI. Xcel Energy reported that its total operating costs increased 8.7% to $3.23 Billion…
CMS Energy reports higher profits on the strong demand for power from data centers
CMS Energy, a U.S. gas and electric utility, reported on Thursday a higher profit for the first quarter. This was due to heightened power demand. In February, the U.S. Energy Information Administration forecast that power demand would reach record levels in 2025 and in 2026 as data centers are experiencing a surge. After warning of potential supply-chain problems due to tariffs, the company stated that nearly 90% of its supply chain would be sourced domestically.
Spot prices are affected by lower demand and more solar.
The drop in demand for power and the increase in solar power in Germany pushed spot prices down on Thursday. These changes also overshadowed a predicted drop in wind energy supply on Friday. German baseload electricity for Friday fell 7.5% to 92 euros (104.65 dollars) per megawatt-hour (MWh) at 0826 GMT. The French equivalent contract dropped 1.3%, to 74 Euro/MWh. LSEG data shows that power usage in Germany will drop by 1.8 gigawatts to 54.3 GW.
UK launches energy security summit by investing in offshore wind supply chain
The UK will host a summit on energy security in London, starting the event by promising to invest 399 million pounds (399 million dollars) into the domestic supply chain of offshore wind projects. After the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2022, which led to price spikes around the globe and saw the EU try to reduce its dependence on Russian fuels. The UK Government, International Energy…
UK bans state investments in solar panels that are linked to forced labor
The energy department announced on Wednesday that Britain will avoid using solar panels associated with suspected forced labor in China by its new state-owned company, Great British Energy. Over 80% of solar panels are produced in China. According to a study by the UK's Sheffield Hallam University, forced labour is used in the production of polysilicon - one of the panel's core components - among Uyghurs.
NextEra exceeds profit expectations as the power company avoids trade risks
NextEra Energy's CEO stated that the company beat Wall Street expectations on Wednesday regarding rising electricity demand, as it works to navigate around increasing global trade risks. The rising costs brought on by President Donald Trump’s tariff war threaten to slow down a recent surge of electricity demand, and dent plans for expansion by the country’s power companies. NextEra…
Baker Hughes' first-quarter profits beat expectations on the back of strong demand for natural Gas Technology
Baker Hughes, a U.S. oilfield technologies firm, beat Wall Street expectations for the first-quarter profits on Tuesday thanks to a robust demand for natural Gas technology. The positive results are coming as oilfield service firms prepare for the impact of the tariffs introduced by the President Trump. These are expected to increase costs and disrupt sourcing of materials that are used in equipment such as drill pipes and artificial lifting systems.
New England grid demand reaches record lows as rooftop solar kicks off
Grid operator ISO New England reported on Tuesday that power grid usage in the northeast United States reached a record low this weekend due to mild weather and rooftop panels. Climate change, renewable electricity generation, and electrification in buildings and industries such as transportation are all changing the U.S. power system. ISO New England, grid operator for New England, announced in a press release that on April 20th, power demand dropped to 5,318 Megawatts.
IMF: AI's economic benefits will likely outweigh its emissions costs
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that the benefits of artificial intelligence would boost global production by 0.5% per year between 2025-2030, and outweigh the rising costs associated with the carbon emissions from the data centres required to run AI models. The IMF released a report at its annual spring meetings in Washington that noted the fact that these output gains were not shared equally around the globe.
India extends the deadline for commissioning certain solar energy projects to December
A document obtained by revealed that the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy in India (MNRE), due to multiple obstacles, has extended the deadline for commissioning certain solar projects to December 2025. In a letter sent to the Solar Energy Corporation of India and the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency, the MNRE cited the limited availability of photovoltaic modules made in India…
Coal India will set up a power plant as a joint venture
Coal India will invest 165 billion rupees to build a coal-powered 1,600 megawatt plant in Jharkhand, a state located in eastern India. This investment is needed to meet the growing demand for electricity. On Monday, the state-owned company signed a nonbinding memorandum with Damodar Valley Corporation to build a plant that will consist of two 800 MW units. This plant will be an extension of an existing plant of 500 MW.
Chevron, other companies withdraw from Egypt's Red Sea concessions and redirect resources
The Egyptian petroleum ministry reported that a number of multinational oil companies, including Chevron, have left their Red Sea oil concession blocks without finding any oil or gas and have instead channeled their resources to other parts of the country. In 2019, Egypt, as part of its effort to become a hub for energy, awarded the first oil and gas exploration concessions on the Red Sea to Chevron and Shell, and the Abu Dhabi sovereign fund Mubadala Investment Company.
Trump's order to stop NY wind project shocks offshore industry and threatens other projects
The Trump administration’s decision late Wednesday to halt the construction of Equinor’s Empire Wind 1 off the coasts of New York sent shockwaves throughout the offshore wind industry. It raised concerns that fully permitted developments worth billions of dollars are not secure. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, had promised during his campaign to put an end to offshore wind energy. He argued that it was too expensive and harmful for whales and birds.
Trump's order to stop NY wind project shocks offshore industry and threatens other projects
The Trump administration's late Wednesday decision to stop construction of Equinor’s Empire Wind 1 off the coasts of New York sent shockwaves throughout the offshore wind industry. It raised concerns that developments with full permits, representing billions of dollars in investment, aren't secure. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, had promised during his campaign to put an end to offshore wind energy. He argued that it was too expensive and harmful for whales and birds.
Prices to fall as demand falls ahead of the holiday
The German wholesale electricity price on Thursday was expected to fall over the four-day holidays due to low consumption. The indication for the next day's working day, which is April 22, was nearly half of the price paid for delivery on Friday. The week-ahead contract in France was priced below Wednesday's closing price. LSEG's research noted a reduction in demand during the holiday season, and that it outweighed the effects of a weakening of wind supply.
Bhutan's economy is powered by 'green' cryptocurrency
Chief executive of Bhutan's sovereign wealth fund, Mr. Parminder Singh Dhugyal, said that Bhutan is looking at ways to harness green cryptocurrency using hydropower in order to boost the economy and create employment to reduce brain-drain and to boost its economy. Green cryptocurrencies is a term used to describe digital currencies that are mined with clean energy sources such as solar, wind or hydro power.
The US has ordered the construction of Equinor New York Offshore Wind Project to be halted
U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum announced on Wednesday that he had instructed his agency to stop construction of Equinor's Empire Wind off-shore wind project near the coast of New York. Burgum wrote in a blog post on X that information indicated the Biden administration rushed to approve the project without adequate environmental analysis. Burgum stated that he had spoken with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick.
