1️⃣ New steelmaking technology employs hydrogen fuel - The Swedish steel industry has developed a new steelmaking technology that could provide a competitive and viable way to use hydrogen fuel to reduce the need for fossil fuel. The goal of this steelmaking technology is to swap out coal and fossil fuels that burn dirty at about 1.8 tons of CO2 for every 1 ton of steel produced. This new method would knock the CO2 emissions down to 25 kilograms.

2️⃣ Origin investigating export scale green hydrogen project in Tasmania - Australia’s Origin Energy will conduct a $3.2m feasibility study into building an export scale green hydrogen and ammonia plant in Tasmania’s Bell Bay. Under the proposal, green hydrogen will be produced from sustainable water using renewable energy. The hydrogen will then be combined with nitrogen extracted from the air to create green ammonia, which can be safely and efficiently shipped to export markets.

3️⃣ Groundbreaking $5.2M Hydrogen Blending Project Aims To Green Ontario's Natural Gas Grid - Today, Enbridge Gas and Hydrogenics announced a $5-million project which will blend renewable hydrogen gas into the existing Enbridge Gas natural gas network, reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

 

1️⃣ Climate Targets Could Slash Natural Gas Investment By $1 Trillion - If the world is to go down the 2-degree pathway, investment in new natural gas exploration and production could be slashed by 65 percent, from nearly US$2 trillion to US$700 billion, by 2040, because gas demand would peak earlier than previously thought, Wood Mackenzie said in a recent report. While international agencies and supermajors are now competing in calling the date for peak oil demand, talk of peak demand for natural gas is not so mainstream.

2️⃣ China's CNOOC to add six LNG storage tanks at Binhai terminal - China’s biggest offshore oil and gas producer CNOOC Group will add 1.62 million cubic metres of storage capacity for liquefied natural gas (LNG) at its Binhai terminal in the eastern province of Jiangsu. The expansion will consist of six tanks with storage capacity of 270,000 cubic metres each and construction is expected to be completed in 2023.

3️⃣ Petronas' LNG Canada project worth RM56b ready to deliver despite setbacks from Covid-19 - Petroliam Nasional Bhd's (Petronas) 25%-owned LNG Canada's liquefied natural gas (LNG) project in Kitimat, British Columbia worth C$18 billion (RM56.27 billion) is expected to be ready to deliver in the middle of this decade despite setbacks from the Covid-19 pandemic, according to a news report. According to the Vancouver Sun, LNG Canada said major work of the project is ongoing, and it includes advanced site preparation, pile driving, dredging and construction of the marine terminal in Kitimat.

4️⃣ TechnipFMC receives notice to proceed with US$1 billion contract for LNG facility - TechnipFMC has received a notice to proceed for an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract worth over US$1 billion by Sempra LNG and Infraestructura Energética Nova, S.A.B. de C.V. (IEnova) at their Energía Costa Azul (ECA) LNG facility in Baja California, Mexico. The project will add an LNG facility with a nameplate capacity of 3.25 million tpy to the existing regasification terminal using a compact and high efficiency mid-scale LNG design.

5️⃣ Stade LNG developer to launch non-binding open season 'in coming weeks' - Hanseatic Energy Hub (HEH), the developer of the planned LNG import terminal at Stade in northern Germany, plans to launch "in the coming weeks" the non-binding phase of an open season to gauge market interest in the facility. The 12 Bcm/year onshore Stade LNG terminal is the largest of three LNG plants under development in northern Germany, according to the current project concepts.

 

1️⃣ Nikola continues to see battery-electric and hydrogen future - Battery-electric prototypes of the Nikola Tre being developed in a partnership with Iveco, for the European market, are approaching completion, and serial production is planned for 2021. In North America, work is underway to establish a new production facility in Arizona, while European manufacturing will be based in Ulm, Germany.

2️⃣ Bloom Energy and SK E&C announce 28 MW Korean fuel cell technology deployment - Bloom Energy and SK Engineering and Construction (SK E&C) have announced new fuel cell technology deployment in the South Korean province of Gyeonggi. The new installations will be located in two cities in that province: Hwasung and Paju. Both installations are a part of the fuel cell technology deployment using Bloom Energy’s non-combustion, electrochemical process for generating electricity with improved reliability and lower costs with greater reliability. This all occurs while cutting overall carbon emissions.

3️⃣ Arcola Energy introduces production-ready hydrogen fuel cell powertrain platform for heavy-duty vehicles - The A-Drive platform offers a powerful drop-in zero-emission replacement for diesel-based powertrains and is scalable for a range of heavy-duty fleets, trucks, municipal operations and public transport applications, including buses and trains. The platform is the basis of a range of vehicles Arcola is bringing to market from 2021.

 

1️⃣ Argus supports development of green ammonia as bunker fuel by sharing its database - Global energy and commodity price reporting agency Argus Media on Tuesday (17 November) said green ammonia is emerging as a possible future fuel in the shipping sector, supported by shipowners’ efforts to identify alternatives to fossil fuels to meet growing environmental concerns. Argus added it has agreed to share its database of ammonia terminals with DNV GL’s Alternative Fuel Insight online platform, a key industry website that provides information about and promotes the use of alternative fuels.

2️⃣ Study confirms contribution of bioenergy to climate change mitigation - The study showed that the GHG mitigation potential of switchgrass cultivation for cellulosic ethanol production in the US was comparable on a per-hectare basis to that of reforestation and several times greater than that of grassland restoration. Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) is a widely grown North American native grass proposed as biomass for the biobased economy.

1️⃣ For lithium to still lead the way… - Although lithium-ion is currently the market leading battery technology in energy storage, this status cannot be guaranteed in perpetuity. Three leading figures from the lithium-ion battery industry give Energy-Storage.news editor Andy Colthorpe their views on how the technology can continue to prosper.

2️⃣ Equinor, Hydro, Panasonic explore battery options - Norwegian companies Equinor and Hydro are joining forces with Panasonic to explore possibilities for establishing a sustainable and cost-competitive European battery business.

 

1️⃣ Tesco 'to source energy from Anglesey solar farm' - Supermarket giant Tesco has announced plans to source renewable energy from a proposed solar farm scheme on Anglesey that has attracted controversy. The Parc Solar Traffwll development would be one of three solar schemes created in partnership with renewable energy company Low Carbon. Backers say it will generate enough power for 12,250 homes and cut carbon emissions equivalent to 5,500 cars. But there are concerns for the area's landscape, wildlife and tourism.

2️⃣ City of London buys into new Dorset solar farm to help power Square Mile - City Corporation signs £40m deal with French renewables firm Voltalia to ensure green energy supply.

1️⃣ Government backs Net Zero Teesside with £200m funding to create two carbon capture clusters - Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen has welcomed the Government’s backing for Net Zero Teesside, the UK’s ground-breaking carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) project, following the announcement of £200 million of new funding to create two carbon capture clusters by the mid-2020s, with another two set to be created by 2030.

 

1️⃣ UKRI invests £20m to tackle plastic waste in developing countries - An investment of £20 million will support interdisciplinary research that aims to improve understanding of the impacts of plastic pollution in developing countries.

2️⃣ Tadweer opens expanded used tyre recycling facility in Abu Dhabi - Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre, Tadweer, has announced the opening of its expanded used tyre recycling facility in Abu Dhabi. Recycling of scrap tyres provides an excellent opportunity to use them as an alternative fuel in cement manufacturing. Scrap tyres are used in cement kilns where they are burnt at high gas temperatures of 1000-1200 C resulting in an instantaneous, complete, and non-smokeless tyre combustion.

3️⃣ Pilot project of four cement manufacturers plans to use captured CO2 as a raw material for the production of synthetic fuels - The pilot project 'catch4climate', for which four cement manufacturers have joined forces, is actively tackling the capturing of CO2 and its subsequent industrial use. At the site of the Mergelstetten cement plant in southern Germany, the consortium intends to build and operate its own demonstration plant on a semi-industrial scale, where the so-called oxyfuel process will be applied for CO2 capture. In the future, the captured CO2 will be used to produce so-called 'reFuels', which are climate-neutral synthetic fuels such as kerosene for air traffic, with the help of renewable electrical energy.

1️⃣ Germany increases offshore targets and leaves bidding procedures untouched - Germany is now set to significantly expand offshore wind. The parliament passed a new Bill that aims to increase Germany’s offshore wind capacity to 20 GW by 2030 and further to 40 GW by 2040. To deliver on the promise of this fast development of new offshore wind capacities, the Government will increase staffing of permitting authorities.

2️⃣ EU defines sustainable plastic manufacturing in draft green finance rules - The manufacturing of plastics can be considered a “sustainable” economic activity in Europe provided that they are “fully manufactured by mechanical recycling of plastic waste” or by chemical recycling processes if minimum emission standards are met, according to a leaked EU proposal seen by EURACTIV.

3️⃣ IEA renewables boss: 'Energy transition depends on government policy, regardless of price of wind and solar' - Market forces alone will not enable countries to reach their net-zero targets, as renewables projects would increasingly be seen as high-risk with low returns.

4️⃣ PM's climate vision: 10 steps forward, 10 steps back? - The prime minister's ambitious 10-point plan has been broadly welcomed by businesses and environmentalists. But while Mr Johnson creates jobs and cuts carbon dioxide with one hand, he's either increasing emissions - or leaving them uncut - in at least 10 other areas. These are road-building, SUVs, high-speed rail, aviation, overseas finance, oil and gas, coal mining, farming, meat-eating and peat.

5️⃣ Russia Releases Hydrogen Roadmap - Russia has produced its own hydrogen roadmap. The roadmap is rather short term, covering the years 2021–2024, and is meant to be an initial step for Russian government, businesses, and institutions to better understand the potential of hydrogen opportunities and to encourage the implementation of hydrogen pilot projects.

6️⃣ Facing an epic recession, Britain unveils its ‘green industrial revolution’ to jumpstart economy, create jobs - U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a 12 billion-pound ($15.9 billion) plan to boost green industries and tackle climate change, in a blueprint he says will create or support as many as 250,000 jobs. As he seeks to relaunch his premiership and revive the economy, Johnson aims to use his plan for a “green industrial revolution” to deliver on his pledge to invest in former industrial heartlands that voted for him at last year’s election.

7️⃣ US wind industry calls on Biden for 'bold and sensible' energy policy shift - Clean energy targets, carbon cap-and-trade, permitting and competition regulation among recommended focuses for President-elect from American Wind Energy Association.

1️⃣ Primary Energy vs Final Energy: Why Replacing Fossil Fuels Won't Be So Hard - Much of the energy from burning coal, oil and gas is simply lost as waste heat, meaning a switch to renewables isn’t that big a leap.

2️⃣ Rocky Mountain Institute Releases Report Introducing New Concept of Whole-System Zero-Emissions Demonstration - WS-ZED will help cities in China implement the country's latest announcement on the pledge of "2030 Carbon Peaking" and "2060 Carbon Neutrality." The report provides a theoretical framework and quantitative indicator system to decouple green economic growth from carbon emissions, waste and pollution in cities.

3️⃣ The futuristic cargo ship made of wood - Ceiba is the first vessel built by Sail Cargo, a company trying to prove that zero-carbon shipping is possible, and commercially viable. Made largely of timber, Ceiba combines both very old and very new technology: sailing masts stand alongside solar panels, a uniquely designed electric engine and batteries. Once on the water, she will be capable of crossing oceans entirely without the use of fossil fuels.

4️⃣ The Green Revolution Has Been Won, Says America's New Wind Billionaire - I’m an engineer. Not an environmentalist,” says Michael Polsky, as if to explain why even after spending 17 years developing renewable-energy systems, he’s still enthralled by the sight of 125-foot-long wind turbine blades sweeping in elegant circles through the sky. It’s machines that this serial entrepreneur loves. And building. And making profitable deals. After becoming a centimillionaire by developing gas-fired turbines, the 71-year-old has ridden wind power to billionaire status.

5️⃣ SSE to treble renewables output by 2030 - SSE is to treble its renewables output by 2030, with an aspiration to add 1GW a year of new clean power capacity by the second half of the decade. The company said it has already pledged to spend £7.5bn – £4m every day – to 2025.

6️⃣ Shipping decarbonisation requires $5bn investments to develop cleaner fuels - A vast amount of research and development (R&D) at a $5bn cost is required to speed up the roll-out at an industrial scale of zero carbon fuels necessary for the shipping industry’s decarbonisation, according to the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS).

7️⃣ Britain’s Accelerated ICE Vehicle Sales Ban Aims To Speed CO2 Progress, With Unintended Consequences - Automakers welcomed the sales ban through gritted teeth, environmentalists loved it and wanted more, while there were warnings of imminent job losses and the likelihood average earners won’t be able to afford electric cars when traditional ones are banned from sale in Britain from 2030.

8️⃣ The Inevitability Of Renewable Energy: Convincing Skeptics - An early 2020 survey by the Pew Research Center found that 77% of people in the US agreed that it’s more important to develop alternative energy sources, such as solar and wind power, than to produce more coal, oil, and other fossil fuels. But conservative Republicans, who represent that party’s majority, were evenly divided over whether to prioritize alternative energy (49%) or expand fossil fuel production (49%). That’s a problem.

9️⃣ Ten chemistry start-ups to watch - Chemical & Engineering News (C&EN), the weekly newsmagazine of the American Chemical Society (ACS), has unveiled its annual list of 10 chemistry start-ups to watch. The companies were chosen from among hundreds of nominations submitted from readers and those compiled by the magazine's writers and editors, who scoured the chemical, biotech and materials world for young companies with great promise.

 

1️⃣ Half of companies can use AI to help cut emissions by 16% over 3-5 years: Capgemini - The group's research shows that 48% of organizations across the energy and utilities, automotive, industrial and process manufacturing, consumer products and retail industries are using AI to tackle climate change, and these sectors can use the technology to cut emissions by 16% over the next three-to-five years.

2️⃣ CMA CGM launches solutions to reduce shipping's carbon footprint - Named ACT with CMA CGM+, the new offering consists of four services, enabling customers to analyse their environmental footprint, use cleaner alternative energy sources, and to offset the emissions generated during the transport of goods.

3️⃣ UN shipping agency greenlights a decade of rising greenhouse gas emissions - Governments have backtracked on their own commitments to urgently reduce climate-heating emissions from the shipping sector, environmental organizations have said following a key meeting of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) on 17 November.

 

1️⃣ Upgraded radar can enable self-driving cars to see clearly no matter the weather - A new kind of radar could make it possible for self-driving cars to navigate safely in bad weather. Electrical engineers at the University of California San Diego developed a clever way to improve the imaging capability of existing radar sensors so that they accurately predict the shape and size of objects in the scene. The system worked well when tested at night and in foggy conditions.

2️⃣ Blockchers presents 4 exciting blockchain startups shaping the future of energy, legal compliance, consulting, and banking - Blockchers is a new project, founded in 2019, that supports the growth of future and emerging DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology) technologies, specifically Blockchain. They select the most promising startups in this area, give them support, up to €50K direct equity-free funding, and connect them with traditional SMEs, to carry the benefits and opportunities of these new technologies further.

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