Power Sector Troubles in Southern Europe!

Times are tough for the power sector in Portugal, Spain, Italy and Greece. Troubles with the euro are forcing governments to cut back on investment and subsidies for power generation and increase power prices in Southern Europe. As a result, dreams to achieve energy security are increasingly a more distant prospect as the investment climate becomes more difficult for investors to achieve such ambitions. In Spain we have seen the government look with more interest at the possibility of shale gas in the Basque country and offshore drilling for gas in the Canary Islands, providing a new solution for its power sector. However, in Italy, the failure of Berlusconi's dreams for a nuclear Italy mean that, renewables will play a greater role in fulfilling Italy's energy security prospects. However, in all the countries concerned energy policies will be limited by fiscal constraints and political uncertainties.

http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Italy-Power-Review.html

Discovery of good quality oil in south Santos Basin

November 23, 2011

Discovery of good quality oil in south Santos Basin Petrobras has confirmed the presence of good quality oil in well 4-SPS-91 (4-BRSA-1002-SPS),  in south Santos Basin, in an area known as Tiro and Sidon. The new well, informally known as Patola, is located at a water depth of 299 meters, some 200 km off the coast of São Paulo State and 3.8 km from discovery well 1-SPS-57 (1-BRSA-658-SPS), in the Evaluation Plan area containing wells 1-SPS-56 and 1-SPS-57 (1-BRSA-607 / 1-BRSA-658), former block BM-S-40. Preliminary analyses indicate that this oil is of the same quality as the oil found in   wild cat wells, around 36o API. The discovery confirms the potential for good quality oil in the shallow waters of south Santos Basin. The discovery was confirmed by cable test oil samples taken from the post-salt sandstone. The reservoir is approximately 2,160 meters deep. Petrobras will now go ahead with the activities and investments set forth in the   Evaluation Plan, including drilling other wells in the area, and will proceed with an Extended Well Test (EWT). EWTs are currently in progress on wells 1-SPS-56  and 1-SPS-57.

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Sub-Saharan Africa hungers for power

Nicholas Newman http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Freelance-Journalist.html

In terms of its per-capita endowment of primary energy, sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is close to the global average. Its 800 million people make up about 9 per cent of the world's population and they are estimated to share 8 per cent of global gas reserves, 10 per cent of the world's oil, and 13 per cent of hydropower resources – as well as much more than their fair share of solar radiation. http://www.powerengineeringint.com/articles/print/volume-19/issue-9/power-report/sub-saharan-africa-hungers-for-power.html

The Balkans: In need of a jolt

Problems including war-damaged infrastructure, unrealistic power prices and insufficient investment trouble southeast Europe. Although the EU is helping the region, will it be able to avoid a looming electricity crisis?
Nicholas Newman http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Freelance-Journalist.html

Southeast Europe is struggling to keep the lights on. Since January 2007, the region has experienced a worsening power supply situation that threatens to reverse many of the economic, social and environmental improvements it has achieved since the end of the Yugoslav conflicts of the 1990s.
In January 2009, the region nearly experienced a system-wide blackout because of the gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine. It helped that the demand for power was lower than usual at the time due to the economic slowdown and the winter holidays, but even when the situation is less difficult, problems can occur.

Damage and disruption

Even without the damage and disruption caused by the Yugoslav conflicts of the 1990s, the region’s power sector would have been in need of substantial new investment and reform. Up to the end of the 1990s, energy decision-makers appeared to have little concern for the economical production and use of electricity. http://www.powerengineeringint.com/articles/print/volume-18/issue-5/features/the-balkans-in-need-of-a-jolt.html

Australia's Clean Coal Drive

Nicholas Newman, UK http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Freelance-Journalist.html
Coal's dominant share cent of Australia's generation mix (around 80 per cent) is poised to halve over the coming decades as more gas and renewable generation come onstream. But how far coal's contribution slips will also hinge on advances in cleaner coal technology, with growing official concern over emissions signalled by a carbon tax due in force next July.

Australia's power sector currently depends heavily on a network of 30 coal fired power plants, most of which date back more than 20 years. Their conventional designs typically allow operational efficiencies of between 33–35 per cent, far below those obtained through supercritical equipment. Only four power plants are currently operating with some form of cleaner coal technology, according to the Australian Parliamentary Library.

Yet cost is crucial in the transition to greener generation. Cheaply mined domestic coal reserves have enabled Australian consumers to enjoy some of the lowest electricity prices in the world. Since 1990 low prices have fuelled a 72 per cent rise in power demand, largely driven by energy-intensive manufacturing such as the production of iron, steel and aluminium from domestically mined bauxite and alumina. http://www.powerengineeringint.com/articles/print/volume-19/issue-7/features/australias-clean-coal-drive.html