Analysis: Russian gas crisis stokes Europe’s appetite for Russian coal

 Russian coal merchants are proving to be the winners as European buyers, nervous a feared Russian invasion of Ukraine could lead to disrupted gas supplies, stock up on the dirtiest fossil fuel. Despite Europe’s ambitions to reduce carbon emissions to net zero by the middle of the century, which means weaning itself off all fossil fuels, but especially coal, the continent has been switching to coal from gas since the middle of last year. Even before the current risk invasion and possible Western sanctions on Russia could choke off gas…

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How to store excess wind power underwater

With 17 new wind farm projects planned for Scotland, the UK’s offshore wind power capacity is set to more than double. But what happens when the wind is blowing, the turbines are cranking out electricity and there’s no demand for it? It’s already a problem. In 2020, enough electricity to supply more than one million homes was wasted due to a lack of storage, according to a report by KPMG that was commissioned by the power company Drax. But one firm, which won a 2022 Best of Innovation award at the CES…

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OPEC+ backs another modest oil output hike

The 23-nation OPEC+ group said in a statement that it will increase production by 400,000 barrels per day in March, the same amount as in previous months. The group, which includes the 13 members of the Saudi-led Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their 10 allies, including Russia, has resisted US pressure to further boost production to tame prices. OPEC+ said in its statement following a ministerial videoconference that the decision was made “in view of current oil market fundamentals and the consensus on the outlook”. The alliance´s…

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Prism Energy secures 2MW solar system contract

Yousaf Weaving Mills Limited (YOUW) has awarded a contract to Prism Energy (Private) Limited for the installation of a solar system to provide 2MW electricity, a bourse filing said on Thursday. The system will provide electricity for a period of 15 years at a rate of Rs9.90/kWh, which will be raised by 3 per cent per annum, it added. Under the contract agreement, Prism Energy will make all the investment in this project. The installation work has been commenced and it is expected that the project will be completed by the second…

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Energy officials fail to provide Sindh, K-P gas figures

Key officials of the energy ministry drew ire of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) on Thursday after they failed to provide exact figures about the annual production and consumption of gas in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh. PAC Chairman Rana Tanveer and other members of the committee were flabbergasted when the top officials of the ministry kept evading the simplest of the questions from the members, when they discussed the audit paras of the Petroleum Division and report of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) for 2019-20. Since it appeared to…

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