Asia’s first large tidal energy farm will be deployed off the Indian state of Gujarat next year, under an agreement signed in January between state-owned Gujarat Power Corp. Ltd. and marine energy developer Atlantis Resources Corp., based in the U.K. and Singapore. Rendering Courtesy Of Atlantis Resources Marine energy developer Atlantis Resources will use its AK1000 turbine design in the Gulf of Kutch, off the coast of Gujarat state in India. Rendering Courtesy Of Atlantis Resources The offshore project, a joint venture of Atlantis and a local power utility, will involve installation of 50 bottom-mounted turbines, each generating 1 MW
Gas supplies to Israel are set to resume this month from a field in Egypt’s northern Sinai desert after a Feb. 5 pipeline explosion that was believed to be terrorist-generated. But Israel’s national infrastructure ministry has decided to fast-track a proposed $300-million liquified-natural-gas project off the country’s central Mediterranean coast as part of an effort to diversify its sources of supply. Photo: AP Worldwide Feb.5 Explosion Of Egyptian Gas Pipeline, Allegedly By Saboteurs, Has Cut Off Exports To Israel. Israel Natural Gas Lines, a state-owned utility, has issued a request for information for the project’s infrastructure. Egypt supplies 40% of
The six companies planning the Nabucco pipeline to bring Caspian gas to Europe—RWE AG of Germany, OMV of Austria, Mol Nyrt of Hungary, Bulgargaz EAD of Bulgaria, Transgaz SA of Romania and Boru Hatlari ile Petrol Tasima AS of Turkey—will each need to arrange $2.3 billion in pre-completion guarantees for the project in addition to $559 million in equity, according to recent news reports. Related Links: Europe Moves, Russia Counters on Gas Lines The Nabucco pipeline will transport 31 billion cubic meters of gas from the Caspian basin to Austria. Bulgaria announced on Jan. 21 that it will borrow $1.7
Maine could be the proving ground of a significant new renewable powerhouse for the Northeast, as scientists and builders use composites and robotics in hopes of harnessing wind and wave power. + Image Rendering: Courtesty of NREL/Walt Musial Cianbro Corp., Pittsfield, Maine, is constructing a new $30-million Offshore Wind Laboratory, scheduled for completion in June. It has 4-ft-thick test floors with a waterproof blade-tip pit, 30 ft wide x 75 ft long x 16 ft deep, to be used as a wave basin for testing models of floating wind turbines. “It’s challenging keeping up with constantly evolving equipment technology,” says
Four major oil companies said on Feb. 17 they are ready to deploy an interim system to cap future leaks in deepwater oil wells, paving the way for deepwater activity to resume. The system was created by the Marine Well Containment Co., a consortium formed by ExxonMobil, Shell, ConocoPhillips and Chevron after the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement required that such a system be in place before it issues any new deepwater drilling permits in the Gulf of Mexico. The new device, made by Trendsetter Engineering, Houston, includes a subsea capping stack with the ability to either
The nation’s second new nuclear enrichment facility could be under construction before the end of the year, while a third languishes in need of a Dept. of Energy loan guarantee. The new facilities—one in Idaho, one in New Mexico and a third in Ohio—are needed to supply existing nuclear powerplants in the United States and could be expanded to supply new ones. Rendering: Courtesy Areva Eagle Rock plant in Idaho would be a French-U.S. engineering joint venture. Photo: Courtesy Urenco Plant in New Mexico is in production. Paris-based Areva on Feb. 11 signed a two-phase contract with San Francisco-based URS
The 130-turbine Cape Wind project off the coast of Massachusetts has spurred more support for offshore wind generation, including a $199-million terminal construction at the Port of Paulsboro, N.J., and a $35-million project on the waterfront in New Bedford, Mass. That new port infrastructure as well as recently announced federal programs to support offshore wind infrastructure may finally help launch the U.S. offshore wind industry, which has lagged behind countries such as the United Kingdom and Denmark where the offshore supply chain was developed years ago. New Bedford is Cape Wind’s designated hub for offshore wind staging and assembly. Kristin
China, which has surpassed Japan as the world’s second-largest economy, signaled its intent to invest in North America as Calgary-based natural-gas producer Encana Corp. on Feb. 13 announced the largest Chinese investment in Canada to date. Under terms of a $5.4-billion cooperation agreement, PetroChina, an arm of China’s state-owned National Petroleum Co., will acquire a 50% share in Encana’s Cutbank Ridge gas production facilities, representing 255 million cubic feet per day of proved reserves of approximately one trillion cu ft on 250,000 hectares straddling the Alberta-British Columbia border. Photo: Courtesy Encana Infusion of Chinese capital aimed at priming Cutbank Ridge-area
As European offshore wind power development accelerates, a series of costly failures has undermined confidence in turbine tower foundations. Now, a leading risk management company has produced new design guidance in a bid to prevent tower settlement that can cause potentially costly stresses in support structures. Photo: courtesy of Scira Sheringham farm designers had time to alter the monopiles while they were still in fabrication. + Image Image: courtesy of DNV Norway’s Det Norske Veritas A/S, H�vik, began reviewing its seemingly faulty design guidance in the fall of 2009 following reports of support failures in some completed turbine installations. DNV
India’s Ministry of New and Renewable Energy Sources (MNRE) is working on a master plan for establishing 60 “solar cities.” The MNRE says the plan will help reduce fossil fuel use by 10% by 2018. The objective of the program is to promote renewable energy in urban areas and enable local governments to use public-private partnerships to meet sustainable energy challenges at the municipal level, explains Arun Tripathi, MNRE director. “This is the first time a plan is being structured in a consolidated manner,” Tripathi says. Currently, 45 cities have been given the green light, and a consultant will be
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