Most Countries Reducing Dependence on Power Generated from Coal to Reach Net Zero Emissions by 2050-60 : Moody’s Research

As countries including India, China, Japan and Korea would look to meet their carbon emission standards they are set to cut down on consumption of coal Moody’s research said. The research said that most countries would gradually aim at reducing their dependence on power generated from coal.

We expect governments across Asia to tighten environmental standards, to meet their commitments to curb carbon emissions and to improve air quality, through review of those policies and measures, the report said. Countries including China, Japan and Korea have recently pledged to reach net zero emissions by 2050-60. This also comes at a time when Covid pandemic is set to push back the recovery of the global economy by two years to 2023. We expect a emerging economic rebound to take hold globally but recovery will remain fragile amid the coronavirus pandemic, thereby creating uncertainty around the pace of recovery of power demand growth and sustained levels going forward. Coal-fired power producers will likely bear the brunt of demand reductions in major countries including China, India, Japan, Korea and Indonesia. This is because renewable energy will play an increasingly important role in power supply given governments' clean energy policies and initiatives for green recovery,” the report added.

State-run explorer Oil India said on Monday a deadly fire at its well in eastern India that that started raging nearly six months ago has been "doused completely."

"There is no pressure in the well now and the same will be observed for 24 hrs to check," Oil India said in a filing to exchanges on Monday.

Oil India had suspended operations at the gas well in its Baghjan oilfield in the Tinsukia district in eastern Assam state on May 27 after an uncontrolled gas emission. The company had brought in experts from Singapore-based company Alert to control the blow-out.

Officials had since been struggling to contain the blowout, even as black smoke continued to billow out of the well for months. Locals say they are relieved, but still wary as they were scared to go back. "It was a nightmarish six-month experience and at times we thought this fire will never end. Finally a sigh of relief," Bandana Baruah, a college student in the region said.

The Wildlife Institute of India, an autonomous body under the federal environment ministry, expects the incident to have a long-term impact on the environment, as pollutants could leach into the ground and contaminate water. Three rescue officials died and five were injured while trying to put out the fire in the Tinsukia district of Assam in two separate incidents.

Nov 22, 2020

The Kochi-Mangalore natural gas pipeline project is finally ready for commissioning by January 2021 as the national energy major Gail India has completed the final 540-metre treacherous stretch across the Chandragiri river in northern Kerala, according to a senior company official. Once testing is over, the pipeline will supply natural gas to Palakkad town as well as to Kanjikode and other industrial estates in the district.

The 444-km long natural gas pipeline was launched in 2009 at an estimated cost of Rs 2,915 crore and was to be commissioned in 2014. But opposition on safety and commercial grounds wherein the land price was the main hurdle, both from political parties and the public, ensured that the project lingered on. This led to the project cost nearly doubling to over Rs 5,750 crore.

Once testing is over, the pipeline will supply natural gas to Palakkad town as well as to Kanjikode and other industrial estates in the district. Pipeline will supply to all the seven districts it passes through in the state -- Ernakulam, Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasargod -- as well as the hilly Wayanad district. Of these already city gas distribution is on in Kochi where its supplies 3.8 million cubic metres of gas every day.

Nov 22, 2020

Initial bids for privatisation of Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) will soon close amid indications of supermajors UK's BP Plc, Total of France and Saudi Aramco unlikely to bid.

The government, which is selling its entire 52.98 per cent stake in India's second largest oil refining and marketing company. The deadline was November 16. Industry sources said even Russian energy giant Rosneft or its affiliates and Saudi Arabian Oil Company (Saudi Aramco) not very keen on bidding to buy the firm at a time when the world is moving away from conventional fuel.

Billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd, which operates the world's largest single location oil refining complex at Jamnagar in Gujarat and has fledgling ambitions to retail fuel, can be one such company. Reliance has so far remained tight-lipped about its intentions for BPCL. Sources said it makes business sense for Reliance to combine its Jamnagar refineries with BPCL's Mumbai, Kochi and Bina units as well as merge its 1,406-plus fuel stations with 17,138 petrol pumps of BPCL.

BPCL operates four refineries in Mumbai (Maharashtra), Kochi (Kerala), Bina (Madhya Pradesh), and Numaligarh (Assam) with a combined capacity of 38.3 million tonnes per annum, which is 15.3 per cent of India's total refining capacity of 249.8 million tonnes.