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April 2025 • Volume 18 • No 2 • Published monthly • ISSN 1757-7365

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES is published by Man in Black Media • www.mibmedia.com • Editor-in-Chief: Junior Isles • For all enquiries email: enquiries@teitimes.com

Special Project Supplement Unlocking EV exibility

Siemens Energy is helping Shell to cut

carbon emissions by replacing old steam-

driven compressors with electric drives

at the Moerdijk Chemicals Park in the

Netherlands Page 8

The exibility potential of EVs is huge.

But the road ahead demands bold

action, clear regulatory direction and a

commitment to innovation. Page 14

News In Brief

EU to ll gap in Just Energy

Transition nancing after US

withdrawal

The European Union has moved to

ll a funding gap in a climate -

nancing programme set up to sup-

port the energy transition plans of

various developing countries, fol-

lowing the withdrawal of Donald

Trump’s administration from the

programme.

Page 2

Biden-era clean energy

support boosts renewable

installations

Wind and solar overtook coal in

electricity generation in the USA

for the rst time in 2024, according

to an analysis by clean energy

think-tank Ember.

Page 4

India falling short on clean

investment needs

Despite record solar installations

last year, India is still falling well

short on the investment needed to

meet its clean energy targets.

Page 5

UK to speed up transmission

network expansion

UK energy regulator Ofgem has

announced plans to fast-track

around £4 billion of investment in

new electricity transmission as part

of a £75 billion effort to decarbo-

nise the grid by 2030.

Page 6

O&G companies will

continue shift from fossils

Renewable energy will play a

growing role in the product portfo-

lios of oil and gas companies, as it

is forecast to represent more than

40 per cent of the global energy mix

by 2030, according to analytics

company GlobalData.

Page 7

Grids in crisis: a wake-up

call for Europe

The grid congestion crisis in the

Netherlands is a clear signal of

what’s to come across Europe.

Page 13

US opposition to clean

energy could drive

investment elsewhere

While the US’ discouraging stance

on renewables might deter both lo-

cal and overseas investors, as glob-

al clean energy markets surge it

could offer substantial opportuni-

ties elsewhere.

Page 15

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Growth in energy demand doubled last year compared to the 10-year historical average, with

electricity demand being the main driver, according to a new International Energy Agency

report. Junior Isles

Fresh push for nuclear to meet growing energy demand

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY

TIMES

Final Word

It’s time to amp up

energy security, says

Junior Isles. Page 16

Electricity demand is driving a resur-

gence in energy demand, according to

a new report by the International En-

ergy Agency (IEA).

The latest edition of the IEA’s ‘Glob-

al Energy Review’ – the rst global

assessment of 2024 trends across the

energy sector – revealed that global

energy demand grew at a faster-than-

average pace in 2024, with increased

supply of renewables and natural gas

covering the majority of additional

energy needs.

The report nds that global energy

demand rose by 2.2 per cent last year

– lower than GDP growth of 3.2 per

cent but considerably faster than the

average annual demand increase of

1.3 per cent between 2013 and 2023.

Emerging and developing econo-

mies accounted for over 80 per cent of

the increase in global energy demand

in 2024. This was despite slower

growth in China, where energy con-

sumption rose by less than 3 per cent,

half its 2023 rate and well below the

country’s recent annual average. After

several years of declines, advanced

economies saw a return to growth,

with their energy demand increasing

by almost 1 per cent in aggregate. The

European Union witnessed an energy

demand increase for the rst time

since 2017, according to the IEA.

During the launch of the report, IEA

Executive Director Fatih Birol, said:

“Global energy demand has grown

two times faster than historical aver-

ages. In the last 10 years, global en-

ergy demand increased about 1 per

cent; in 2024 it increased by more

than 2 percentage points. This is yet

another example that energy demand

is growing, but electricity demand

increases two times higher than the

energy demand growth. We hear the

footsteps of the age of electricity

coming.”

The acceleration in global energy

demand growth in 2024 was led by the

power sector, with global electricity

consumption surging by nearly 1100

TWh, or 4.3 per cent. This was nearly

double the annual average over the

past decade.

The sharp increase in the world’s

electricity use last year was driven by

record global temperatures, which

boosted demand for cooling in many

countries, as well as by rising con-

sumption from industry, the electri-

cation of transport, and the growth of

Continued on Page 2

The US has called on the World Bank

to end a decades-old ban on funding

nuclear power in order to help the west

compete with China and Russia, as

countries and industries around the

world look to nuclear to meet their

growing energy needs.

French Hill, Chair of the House Fi-

nancial Services Committee, has sig-

nalled that the new US administration

will continue to support the push to

fund nuclear projects just months

ahead of a crucial decision on the ban.

Hill told the Financial Times that

World Bank chief Ajay Banga had US

backing to end the ban, as the world’s

biggest development fund moves

closer to embracing nuclear energy in

lending to emerging markets.

“We support both the export of this

technology and a much more broad-

based approach to nancing it,” Hill

told the FT.

The World Bank has not nanced

nuclear power since the 1950s. But it

could bring the technology back into

the fold within months after a review

of energy policies under Banga, peo-

ple familiar with the matter said.

Early last month Banga signalled his

willingness to reconsider nuclear

technology in an address to the Euro-

pean Commission. Germany and a

handful of smaller European coun-

tries have traditionally led opposition

to nuclear power as World Bank

shareholders.

The US is especially keen for the

topic to be revisited, underscoring

alarm in Washington that Beijing and

Moscow are winning a race to build a

new generation of nuclear plants in

Africa and Asia.

“I’m in constant discussions with

other governments who are extremely

interested in expanding nuclear, but

they can’t get the attention of anyone

in western countries,” Hill, a Republi-

can representing Arkansas, said.

Banga has led efforts in the bank to

consider how it might factor in tech-

nologies that could make nuclear

power cheaper, such as small modular

reactors, people familiar with his

thinking said.

The US government’s call on the

World Bank came as Amazon, Google

and Meta joined a call by big, energy-

intensive companies for governments

and utilities to build more nuclear

power.

Oil group Occidental and chemical

producer Dow are also among the

eight large buyers of energy to sign a

pledge to support the goal of tripling

nuclear capacity by 2050. The state-

ment was co-ordinated by the World

Nuclear Association.

The show of support follows a simi-

lar pledge in September by 14 of the

world’s biggest nancial institutions,

including Goldman Sachs, Bank of

America, Barclays and Morgan Stan-

ley, to increase their support for the

sector and back a call made at the

COP28 UN climate conference for

nuclear power to be tripled by 2050.

Urvi Parekh, head of energy at

Meta, said the company had backed

the pledge because it believed the

challenge of building expensive nu-

clear plants required signicant co-

ordination between developers, utili-

ties, governments and power

consumers.

Amazon said it has invested more

than $1 billion in the nuclear industry

in the past year and speeding up new

power stations would be “critical” for

US security, meeting growing energy

demands and helping combat climate

change.

Electricity consumption

drives surge in energy

demand, says IEA

Birol: We hear the footsteps of the

age of electricity coming

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Junior isles

The European Union has moved to ll

a funding gap in a climate nancing

programme set up to support the en-

ergy transition plans of various devel-

oping countries, following the with-

drawal of Donald Trump’s admin-

istration from the programme.

ast month, the US said it was with-

drawing from the ust Energy Transi-

tion Partnership (ETP), launched in

2021 to help South Africa, Indonesia

and ietnam switch from coal to re-

newable energy. The US, along with

the UK, France, Germany and the EU

pledged $45 billion to the initiative.

South Africa’s ETP unit, which sits

under the presidency, said the US with-

drawal reduced the overall pledges to

the country from $13.8 billion to $12.8

billion. The US had pledged $5 mil-

lion in grant funding, and $1 billion in

potential commercial investments.

Speaking to the Financial Times,

Dion George, South Africa’s Minister

of the Environment, sheries and for-

estry, said all the other countries remain

committed to the partnership. A new

commitment obtained from the EU will

ll part of the gap, he said. “The EU

committed 4.7 billion to South Africa

for a number of projects, and this in-

cludes for the just energy transition, so

this will help ll the gap.”

European Commission President Ur-

sula von der eyen said the 4.7 billion

($5.1 billion) would be used in part to

shore up the just energy transition proj-

ect and for green energy.

Referring to the US, von der Leyen

said: We know others are withdrawing

but the EU wants to be very clear with

our message: we are doubling down

with our support. We are here to stay.”

In a letter sent to South Africa’s gov-

ernment, seen by the FT, the former

US charg d’affaires Dana Brown said

Trump’s executive order, which calls

for putting America rst in interna-

tional deals, “revokes and rescinds the

US international climate nance plan

issued by the previous oe Biden

administration”.

Brown wrote, “effective immedi-

ately, the US is no longer a member of

the international partners group for the

just energy transition partnerships for

Indonesia, South Africa and ietnam”

and “all associated nancial pledges

are also withdrawn”.

Commenting on the US withdrawal

Shah ahan Khandokar, energy and

infrastructure partner at law rm Mc-

Dermott Will  Emery, said: “Whilst

US withdrawal from various bilateral

and multilateral programmes may ini-

tially be seen as detrimental for vari-

ous renewable energy initiatives, the

US has made clear in recent days, most

notably during an African climate

summit in Washington DC on March

7th, that the US is still open for busi-

ness on the continent and elsewhere.

African leaders were told that US

withdrawal from such programmes is

not the same as US isolationism.

Rather, governments need to ensure

that if they would like US (private and

public sector) support, they need to

prioritise projects, be they renewable

or otherwise, that demonstrate a true

partnership with the US, rather than a

reliance on US subsidies.

“In the context of South Africa, In-

donesia, and Vietnam, those countries

themselves will need to ensure they

focus on moving away from coal (if

that is what they wish to do) and put in

place the correct incentives to induce

private sector to invest in renewable

and low-carbon technology projects.

Our experience (and specically

through working on various ETP proj-

ects) in those countries has shown they

are well placed and prepared to do so.”

Tracey Davies, Executive Director of

South African non-prot ust Share,

said that if anything, Washington’s de-

parture from the programme may be

positive for the energy partnership.

She told the FT: “If America had

stuck around and been obstructive, this

could have slowed things down further.

So in a sense, its absence could be

positive for climate nancing.”

Davies says the bigger risk may be at

a diplomatic level, where countries risk

compromising their climate goals to

appease the US.

The news came as Ministers from

Africa, Asia, Latin America and the

Caribbean, and the Pacic recommit-

ted to exploring collaborative oppor-

tunities to accelerate a just and equi-

table energy transition.

At two Ministerial gatherings at the

SEforA Global Forum in Barbados

last month, ministers from 28 countries

also spoke of advancing climate resil-

ience for populations in the Global

South.

“The two ministerials highlight the

importance of working together to

bridge energy access gaps, fostering

economic development, and ensuring

that the energy transitions in develop-

ing nations align with global climate

goals under the Paris Agreement,” said

Senator the Hon. Lisa Cummins, the

Chair of the SIDS Ministerial and Co-

Chair of the Global Ministerial, Min-

ister for Energy and Business for Bar-

bados. “We now need to move from

commitments to action, creating last-

ing change globally,”

data centres and articial intelli-

gence (AI).

The expanding supply of low-

emissions sources covered most of

the increase in global electricity

demand in 2024. The amount of

new renewable power capacity in-

stalled worldwide rose to around

700 GW, setting a new annual re-

cord for the 22nd consecutive year.

Nuclear power capacity additions

reached their fth highest level in

the past three decades.

As a result, 80 per cent of the in-

crease in global electricity genera-

tion in 2024 was provided by re-

newable sources and nuclear,

which together contributed 40 per

cent of total generation for the rst

time. The supply of natural gas-

red generation also increased

steadily to cover rising electricity

demand.

As a result of higher power con-

sumption, natural gas saw the

strongest increase in demand

among fossil fuels in 2024. Gas

demand rose by 115 billion cubic

metres (bcm), or 2.7 per cent, com-

pared with an average of around 75

bcm annually over the past decade.

Meanwhile, oil demand grew

more slowly, rising by 0.8 per cent

in 2024. Oil’s share of total energy

demand fell below 30 per cent for

the rst time ever, 50 years after it

peaked at 4 per cent. Sales of elec-

tric cars rose by over 25 per cent

last year, with electric models ac-

counting for one in ve cars sold

globally. This contributed consid-

erably to the decline in oil demand

for road transport, which offset a

signicant proportion of the rise in

oil consumption for aviation and

petrochemicals.

Global coal demand rose by 1 per

cent in 2024, half the rate of increase

seen the previous year. According

to the report, intense heatwaves in

China and India – which pushed up

cooling needs – contributed more

than 90 per cent of the total annual

increase in coal consumption glob-

ally, highlighting the major impacts

extreme weather can have on en-

ergy demand patterns.

The continued rapid adoption of

clean energy technologies limited

the annual rise in energy-related

carbon dioxide (CO

) emissions,

which are increasingly decoupling

from economic growth, according

to the report. Record temperatures

contributed signicantly to the an-

nual 0.8 per cent rise in global CO

emissions to 37.8 billion tonnes.

But the deployment of solar P,

wind, nuclear, electric cars and heat

pumps since 2019 now prevents

2. billion tonnes of CO

annually,

the equivalent of 7 per cent of

global emissions.

emissions in advanced econ-

omies fell by 1.1 per cent to 10.9

billion tonnes in 2024 – a level last

seen 50 years ago, even though the

cumulative GDP of these countries

is now three times as large. The

majority of emissions growth in

2024 came from emerging and de-

veloping economies other than

China. Though emissions growth

in China slowed in 2024, the coun-

try’s per-capita emissions are now

1 per cent above those of ad-

vanced economies and nearly

twice the global average.

“From slowing global oil demand

growth and rising deployment of

electric cars to the rapidly expand-

ing role of electricity and the in-

creasing decoupling of emissions

from economic growth, many of

the key trends the IEA has identi-

ed ahead of the curve are showing

up clearly in the data for 2024,” Dr

Birol said.

Continued from Page 1

The EU’s recent package of green and

industrial policy announcements has

been viewed as sending mixed signals

about its dedication to climate policy.

In early March, Brussels outlined

proposals for a softer approach to po-

licing state subsidies as it unveiled

guidelines that will allow member

states to keep pouring cash into clean-

tech investments until the end of the

decade.

The new state aid framework is a

pillar of the EU’s Clean Industrial

Deal, unveiled in late February, which

attempts to balance the bloc’s climate

goals and efforts to improve its ag-

ging competitiveness.

To meet those goals, Brussels will

allow European countries to fund in-

vestments that cut emissions, such as

industrial decarbonisation projects

and renewable energy products. How-

ever, the subsidy limits for cleantech

manufacturing are lower than during

the pandemic and subsequent energy

crisis, according to the draft.

Teresa Ribera, the EU’s competition

chief who is responsible for oversee-

ing state aid enforcement, told the

Financial Times the rules attempted

to follow the “ne line” between “a

story of growth and protection of con-

sumers and at the same time a well-

functioning, transparent and balanced

single market”.

The guidelines come against a back-

drop of rising global temperatures.

Last month, UN research that found

2024 was likely to have been the hot-

test year on record and the rst to

surpass 1.5C above pre-industrial

levels. The concentration of carbon

dioxide in the atmosphere is now at

its highest point in 800 000 years, ac-

cording to the UN.

In an annual assessment of the cli-

mate, the UN’s World Meteorological

Organization said the global average

surface temperature was 1.55C

above the 1850-1900 level, with a

0.13C margin of uncertainty either

way – making last year the warmest

in a 175-year observational record,

according to the research, which

draws together data from member

countries and partner agencies.

“Our planet is issuing more distress

signals,” said UN Secretary-General

Antnio Guterres, urging world lead-

ers to step up climate action.

Faith in the nascent hydrogen economy

appears to be faltering, as some com-

panies re-assess their commitment to

rolling out the technology.

Hydrogen, which emits no carbon

dioxide during combustion, has been

identied as having a key role in de-

carbonisation, but there are now signs

the technology is facing headwinds.

Australia’s ueensland state govern-

ment last month said it rejected a re-

quest from a state-owned electric

power company for more than A$1

billion ($30 million) of additional

investment in a hydrogen project in the

eastern Australian state. apanese trad-

ing company Marubeni Corp. is also

involved in the project.

David anetzki, ueensland’s Ener-

gy Minister, told the local media that

the investment in the project is not in

line with expectations of providing

sustainable and affordable electricity

to residents.

The project involves producing and

using green hydrogen, produced from

renewable energy, in ueensland as

well as a plan to export some to apan.

Total plant construction costs are esti-

mated to be A$12.4 billion.

Since Kansai Electric Power Co.,

which was to be a recipient of the hy-

drogen, has already decided to with-

draw from the project, it is possible the

project itself will be halted.

The Australian government has been

focusing on the promotion of the hy-

drogen industry, taking advantage of

the country’s solar potential.

There were signs that European rms

are also growing hesitant to proceed

with hydrogen projects. Finnish energy

giant Neste Corp. and Spanish oil giant

Repsol SA have already decided to

freeze or withdraw their hydrogen

business plans.

The International Energy Agency

said that demand for clean hydrogen,

which was up to 1 million tons in 2023,

may expand to at least  million tons

in 2030. According to the British re-

search rm Wood Mackenzie td.,

however, the global contracted vol-

umes of hydrogen represent only  per

cent of the total announced production

capacity.

Hydrogen has potential uses in hard-

to-abate sectors like steel production,

as well as in transport.

Speaking at the Eurelectric Eision

conference last month, however, Mi-

chael iebreich, Chairman and CEO

of iebreich Associates and Co-Man-

aging Partner of EcoPragma Capital,

was scathing of the technology.

He said: “What is Europe prepared

to do to get cheap energy, which is at

the heart of prosperity and jobs are

we prepared to scrape off the barna-

cles Are we prepared to admit that it

hydrogen was a blind alley

“Hydrogen Strategy 2021 proposed

spending 40 billion just on produc-

tion and distribution of hydrogen. The

report said green hydrogen is going to

cost 1.50, well it doesn’t.

“It costs -13 and the experience

curve is not going to help you, because

it’s 40 per cent electricity cost, 40 per

cent heavy engineering and electrical

engineering, and only 11 per cent elec-

trolysers. We’re not going to get cheap

green hydrogen and we need to admit

it.”

Headline News

Faith in hydrogen appears to be faltering

EU to ll gap in Just Energy

Transition nancing after US

withdrawal

Europe is doubling down on its support for the energy transition following the US’ withdrawal

from the Just Energy Transition Partnership.

EU sends mixed signals on climate policy, as CO

levels hit new high

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

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Conﬁrmed speakers include

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THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Asia News

The Philippines Department of Energy

(DOE) has released the terms of refer-

ence (TOR) for the fourth round of the

Green Energy Auction (GEA-4),

aimed at adding 9378 MW of new ca-

pacity from ground-mounted solar,

roof-mounted solar, oating solar, and

onshore wind projects.

The auction also includes renew-

ables plus storage systems, speci-

cally solar plus battery energy storage

systems. With an additional 1100 MW

of solar capacity integrated with en-

ergy storage, these projects are ex-

pected to enhance grid reliability and

exibility.

The announcement of the TOR fol-

lows DOE approval of system impact

studies (SIS) for 11 energy projects

across the country, paving the way for

their assessment and potential integra-

tion into the power grid.

The projects, primarily renewable

energy (RE) initiatives, will undergo

evaluations to determine the grid’s

capacity for new connections and iden-

tify necessary upgrades in transmis-

sion lines, transformers, and

substations.

The approved projects include three

pumped-storage hydropower facili-

ties, one hydropower plant, ve wind

farms, one battery energy storage sys-

tem (BESS), and one coal power plant,

all of which have been endorsed to the

National Grid Corporation of the Phil-

ippines (NGCP) for assessment in

early 2025.

The Maton pumped-storage hydro-

electric power project in Apayao leads

the list with a 2000 MW capacity, mak-

ing it the largest among the approved

facilities.

n A c c i o n a E n e r g í a h a s b r o k e n g r o u n d

on the Daanbantayan solar plant (176

MWp) on Cebu island.

Philippines sets out terms of fourth

round of clean energy auctions

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Junior Isles

India’s renewables sector must signi-

cantly increase investments and access

foreign nancing if it is to meet its

target to more than double non-fossil

fuel sources of generating capacity by

the end of the decade, according to

Ember.

A report by the energy think-tank said

India received total green energy in-

vestment of just over $13 billion last

year, well short of the $68 billion

needed annually to achieve the govern-

ment’s goal of producing 500 GW of

power from renewable sources by

2030.

Neshwin Rodrigues, Senior Energy

Analyst for India for Ember and one of

the report’s authors commented:

“When you look at the gap of how much

money has to ow into renewables, it’s

very clear that, even in conservative

targets, we need a lot more investments

and nancing than what is coming in.”

The report estimated that a total

capital ow of $300 billion by 2032

would be needed to keep India on track

to meet its “ambitious” renewable en-

ergy targets. India has about 209 GW

of installed renewable energy capacity,

which contributes less than a quarter

of the country’s total power generation,

according to Ember and government

data.

In a separate report S&P Global’s

India subsidiary Crisil estimated that

India’s green investments totalled

nearly $70 billion between 2019 and

2024. This will need to go up to $350

billion in the next ve years if it is to

meet its green energy targets, Crisil

forecast. It said this would be an “uphill

task” because of perceptions of low-

carbon projects being high-risk, facing

longer gestation periods and changing

regulatory policies that result in an un-

predictable business environment.

India, which is the world’s third-

largest emitter of greenhouse gases, has

set ambitious clean energy targets to

meet its climate change commitment

of achieving net zero carbon emissions

by 2070.

According to a recent report by the

Council on Energy, Environment, and

Water (CEEW), India must scale up its

non-fossil-fuel power capacity to 600

GW by 2030 to meet rising electricity

demand reliably and affordably.

The report, ‘How Can India Meet Its

Rising Power Demand? Pathways to

2030’, highlights the need for a high-

renewable energy pathway if energy

demand continues to exceed current

projections due to climate change or

rapid economic growth.

It proposes an energy mix that in-

cludes solar power (377 GW), wind

energy (148 GW), hydropower (62

GW), and nuclear (20 GW). To support

this transition, India must also invest

in exible energy resources to ensure

grid stability, said CEEW. The key

components include: battery storage

(70 GW of four-hour battery energy

storage systems); pumped storage

hydro (13 GW) and retrotted coal

plants (upgrading 140 GW of coal ca-

pacity for grid management).

The need for rapid acceleration of

new clean capacity saw record solar

additions last year. According to Mer-

com India the country added 25.2 GW

of solar in 2024, up more than 204 per

cent year-on-year. Solar installations

made up 73 per cent of new power ca-

pacity in 2024.

“India’s solar sector saw record-

breaking installations in 2024, but the

numbers could have been signicantly

higher if not for transmission issues and

supply chain delays. Rising costs due

to import duties and expensive domes-

tic modules remain a concern for the

industry. With over 35 GW of annual

solar additions needed to meet 2030

goals, the industry requires clear, stable

policies that balance local manufactur-

ing with seamless project develop-

ment,” commented Raj Prabhu, CEO

of Mercom Capital Group.

Meanwhile, India’s annual wind

power capacity addition is expected to

more than double to 7.1 GW on average

over the next two nancial years, com-

pared to 3.4 GW during the 2023-2025

period. This growth is driven by gov-

ernment measures to accelerate project

development, according to a report by

Crisil Ratings. The projected increase

will take the country’s total installed

wind capacity to 63 GW by FY27.

Last month its climate target goals

received a boost when the government

also proposed to build 18 more nucle-

ar power reactors with a cumulative

generating capacity of 13 800 MW.

Five sites have already been given in-

principle approval.

India falling short on clean energy

investment needs

Despite record solar installations last year, India is still falling well short on the investment needed to meet its clean

energy targets.

Vietnam’s government decree to pro-

viding regulations for the develop-

ment of large-scale offshore wind

power projects, will open up invest-

ment opportunities and provide great-

er clarity for the market, according to

experts.

Decree No. 58/2025 will provide

incentives for offshore wind projects

approved by authorities before Janu-

ary 2031. This includes exemption

from maritime area use fees for the

rst three years of construction fol-

lowed by a 50 per cent reduction for

the next 12 years, and a commitment

from the Vietnamese government to

purchase at least 80 per cent of eli-

gible offshore wind projects’ output

for 15 years, unless buyers and sellers

have other agreements in place.

Vietnam currently has no offshore

wind power projects and is aiming to

add 6000 MW of the renewable energy

source by 2030 with the ultimate aim

of achieving over 113 500 MW of wind

power by 2050.

Offshore wind projects are required

to have at least a 5 per cent stake owned

by a state-owned enterprise.

Vietnam’s energy mix is still domi-

nated by coal, gas and large hydro

projects, however, in recent years

there has been increased investment

in renewables due to attractive feed-in

tariffs.

However, last month saw 28 devel-

opers sign a letter pushing back on a

change in the pricing framework for

solar and wind projects in Vietnam,

arguing it may impact $13 billion

worth of investment in renewables.

In a letter seen by Reuters and dated

March 5, investors told Vietnamese

leaders they were “deeply alarmed” by

the potential end to favourable energy

tariffs.

They warned that the policy change

could weaken broader nancial stabil-

ity and damage trust in Vietnam as it

seeks to signicantly increase its re-

newable energy capacity in a drive to

meet an emissions reduction target of

43.5 per cent by 2030 and net zero

emissions by 2050.

Vietnam creates offshore wind opportunities

of multiple gas red boilers that gen-

erate steam for the facility; among

them are two steam turbine-compres-

sor trains. The rst train consists of a

25 MW steam turbine driving a com-

pressor, and a second train with an 8

MW steam turbine and compressor.

“Basically, it’s two electrications

in one project,” said uyderduyn.

“So, we are replacing two steam tur-

bines with two electric motors. The

steam turbines are still running well.

They had some overhauls but now is

a good time to take them out.”

Postma added: “The steam turbines

have been running continuously

without any stops. And replacing

them is a challenge. If you move to

electrically-driven motors, you have

to ensure that they can run 247 for

35 daysyear for decades, at least

until the next turnaround, without

failure.

Siemens Energy, together with

Shell, carried out a reliability, avail-

ability and maintenance (RAM) study

during the tender phase and are con-

tinuing this study during execution to

identify any weak spots.

“This helps us select the right mate-

rials, set up the necessary redundan-

cies or implement mitigation mea-

sures so that the system can be

quickly recovered if it fails,” said

Postma. “ou only have a moment

during the six to seven years turn

around to check if everything is ne.”

Special attention was paid to the

variable frequency drives and the

throughout industries. Countries and

businesses have already been shifting

towards wind and solar in the EU, not

only to combat climate change but

also to safeguard themselves in a

precarious gas market.

Postma noted: “The difference in

price between electricity and gas has

now become more in favour of elec-

tricity. On top of that, there are decar-

bonisation goals. These are for many

of our customers, the two main drivers

to change from steam to electricity

for compression. CO

reduction is

of course important but the cost re-

duction in industrial processes justi-

es projects like this even more.”

There will be other benets from the

project too. In addition to cutting

, electrication of the compres-

sion process also reduces energy

consumption by approximateky 75

per cent and notably nitrous oxides

(NOx) by 30 per cent.

Albert uyderduyn, Siemens Ener-

gy’s Project Manager for the Mo-

erdijk project, said: “NOx is arguably

even more important than CO

. And

there will also be a signicant reduc-

tion in the particulates emissions that

you have with gas, as well as im-

provements to further reduce the heat

loss so less cooling water will be

needed. After this retrot, it will be-

come one of the most efcient liquid

crackers in Europe in terms of energy

efciency.”

The project will be challenging. The

Moerdijk chemical complex consists

E-House with variable

frequency drive, cooling

system and auxiliary systems

hell Chemicals Park Moerdijk

plays an important role in Shell’s

global chemical activities. o-

cated in North Brabant, Netherlands,

the complex has been producing

chemicals since the 1970s. But like

many other industrial facilities, Shell

has been striving to meet government

targets for reducing carbon dioxide

(CO

) emissions.

The most recent sustainability driv-

en project has seen Shell Chemicals

Park Moerdijk embark on a project

that will deliver signicant savings in

carbon emissions. In short, the project

will see the electrication of the

steam cracker process for producing

ethylene which is used as a feedstock

for the production of industrial

chemicals, a range of materials such

as plastics and food ripening process.

The project will see Siemens Energy

replace existing steam turbines driv-

ing compressors in the steam cracker

plant with electric drives in a move

that is expected to reduce Shell’s CO

emissions in Moerdijk by 230 kilo-

tons per year. At this scale, it could

become an industry showcase project.

Electrication has been on Shell’s

agenda for some time. It began at the

Moerdijk facility in 2018 with the

replacement of steam turbines with

electric motors at a non-critical ser-

vices part of the plant. The energy

transition journey continued with a

large solar panel park and replace-

ment of more efcient cracking fur-

naces with project Skyline. The latest

project, however, will see the electri-

cation of the core part of the chemi-

cal complex.

Peter Postma, Sales Manager, En-

ergy Solutions, at Siemens Energy,

has long been involved with the Mo-

erdijk electrication project and was

responsible for securing the contract

with Shell. He said: “The heart of the

Shell Moerdijk plant is the production

of base chemicals in the cracker with

ethylene and propylene as key prod-

ucts. The compression system is at the

heart of this production process. And

if it does not run, the whole plant

stops, resulting in aring and produc-

tion loss. So, the system must be ro-

bust. Steam turbines have therefore

been used since the 1970s to drive

mechanical compressors. These

steam turbines are driven by steam

from simple gas red boilers. It’s a

simple system that is still running to-

day; it is old but reliable.”

Using this simple but robust set-up

for compression made perfect sense.

In the 1970s there was no legislative

pressure to reduce CO

emissions,

and gas prices were low. Today, the

scenario is very different. Organisa-

tions and governments are under

pressure to become carbon neutral

within the space of just a few decades.

At the same time gas is now very ex-

pensive.

Extremely high and volatile gas

prices across Europe over the last

three years have certainly served as a

catalyst in the drive for electrication

Electrication nds a

sweet spot at Moerdijk

Special Project Supplement

THE ENERG INDUSTR TIMES - APRI 2025

Electrication of inustrial processes is seen as an important tool in the global ecarbonisation effort. Junior Isles

hears ho iemens Energy is helping hell to cut carbon emissions by replacing ol steamriven compressors

ith electric rives at the oeri hemicals ar in the etherlans.

Photo: courtesy Shell

Chemicals Park Moerdijk

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Special Project Supplement

High speed electric motor

with intermediate base frame

connected to the existing

compressor

Shell Chemicals Park

Moerdijk, located in North

Brabant, Netherlands, has

been producing chemicals

since the 1970s. Photo:

courtesy Shell Chemicals Park

Moerdijk

“The second important criterion for

the complete drive system is main-

tainability. If there is a failure, it must

be returned to service very quickly,

within hours. High system efciency

and pro-active monitoring is also very

important.”

As this is a browneld project, it

was paramount that Siemens Energy

paid close attention to space optimisa-

tion.

“The solution must be suitable for

the existing space and foundation.

Usually, the steam turbine has

smaller space requirements than an

electrical drive. So, you need to use

a specially designed high-speed mo-

tor to avoid the need for a gearbox.

We therefore selected products that

both we and Shell are familiar with,”

said Tomic. “It hits the sweet spot in

terms of reliability and sizing.” He

added: “Space also has to be opti-

mised for other areas such as the

substation and transformer.”

Siemens Energy is well positioned

to meet the numerous requirements of

the project. It is one of the largest

suppliers of rotating electric equip-

ment itself, and not only has advanced

tools for equipment design but also

for checking complete system integ-

rity, according to Tomic.

“As a leading company in the eld

of electrical engineering and inte-

grated projects in the power industry

as well as oil and gas, we can provide

complete solutions from high voltage

down to the motor. Siemens Energy is

one of the leading system integrators

for control and automation systems

for these drives,” he said. “Further,

we have a huge database [with data

and experience from similar projects

as well as from compressors and

electrical drives themselves, so we

are able to avoid potential weak

points.”

While this was one key factor in

winning the contract, Siemens Energy

also had to convince Shell that it

could execute it “awlessly”.

Postma explained: “During a turn-

around, when the plant is fully down

the turbine-motor swap will be done

with lots of preparation in advance. It

will be like open-heart surgery where

you have to do everything in time. So,

when the plant is shut down, together

with our partners, we must remove

the existing equipment and replace it

with the new equipment during this

period. So, it all must be perfectly

planned before we execute. This

means you have to put a lot of effort

into investigating and engineering so

that everything is done correctly.”

To ensure it is all completed in this

turnaround window, a number of ac-

tivities will be carried out in advance.

Initially it was planned that both

compression trains would be replaced

at the same time, but it was then de-

cided that the smaller train will be

replaced rst.

“As the smaller train is less critical

it is possible to continue production,

but just at a lower rate,” said Postma.

“If you switch off the smaller com-

pressor, you will just turn down the

total production volume. This means

the smaller train can be done without

stopping the entire process. So, it’s

like a pre-turnaround activity. And

the advantage of this is that we can

learn lessons to improve the second,

most important one that needs to be

done in the turnaround period. We

have experience with this, but every

project has its own characteristics.”

“Everything we can do pre-turn-

around, such as installation of certain

equipment, we will do pre-turn-

around,” added Zuyderduyn. “The

turnaround then includes decommis-

sioning the old steam turbine, remov-

ing it, installing the electrical motor

and connecting it to the compressor.”

The trickiest part will be the rst

startup. “You have to make sure ev-

erything is right”, says Zuyderduyn.

Everything has to be double-checked

and thought through in advance.

Siemens Energy is currently nalis-

ing the engineering. Zuyderduyn

commented: “We are focusing on the

production [of the equipment]. Then

for the middle of this year we will

start rst installations on site. And

then early 2026 is the big turnaround.”

This called for equipment to be or-

dered at an early stage, so that all

equipment is scheduled for delivery

this year. “It is our key focus that

these deliveries do not slip,” said

Zuyderduyn.

Although there will be several

milestones along the way, the key

dates are those for the turnaround –

early 2026 for the smaller 8 MW

compressor train, and a few months

later for the main 25 MW train.

On completion, the Moerdijk proj-

ect will provide a number of addi-

tional benets to Shell, in addition to

environmental and cost reduction.

Firstly, greater digitalisation will be

possible since all systems will be

electronic. “There is a goal to have

data analytics across the entire sys-

tem, so we can analyse the availabil-

ity,” said Postma. “With mechanical

drives, that’s not possible.”

“We are working on solutions to

predict and see degradation of elec-

tronics and then turn that into a pre-

diction of availability or the right

moment to replace it,” said Postma.

He also noted that greater digitalisa-

tion reduces costs.

As decarbonisation efforts continue,

Siemens Energy expects to see more

electrication projects within the

petrochemicals and oil and gas sec-

tors, especially in Europe. “Gas mol-

ecules will be replaced with green

electrons from renewables. And the

faster you can do this, the sooner you

will have sustainable productions,”

said Postma. “There are several pro-

cesses that can’t be electried, and

there you will use hydrogen. But to-

day, this electrication is the sweet

spot for CO

reduction.”

Accordingly, Siemens Energy is

gearing up for the surge in electri-

cation. “You see this in our compe-

tence centre, with new people joining

every month,” said Zuyderduyn.

Looking to the future, Postma

summed up: “There is a market here.

Customers are switching from gas to

electricity, which means they need

solutions like this. It’s a huge invest-

ment for Shell but the payback time is

only a few years. Sustainable solu-

tions cost money, but they pay-off in

the long run. This is a protable, sus-

tainable solution.”

cooling systems. The drives are

therefore equipped with totally re-

dundant cooling systems. All the

control systems that control the cool-

ing systems and drives are also con-

gured to be fault tolerant.

The RAM studies also demonstrate

how the solution will be implemented.

“Now the project still has to be deliv-

ered… the proof is in the pudding,”

said Postma.

Mitar Tomic, who is working as

Solutions Architect at Siemens Ener-

gy’s Centre of Competence for E-

Drives, has been involved since the

bidding stage, specifying the solu-

tions and technical scope of the offer.

He said: “We studied their situation

and made sure that the solution is reli-

able. We did a lot of work in selecting

equipment and assessing the various

solutions to translate that into avail-

ability gures; and then demonstrate

that it will work.”

Tomic added: “Unlike other indus-

tries, such as steel or mining, where

you have the opportunity to stop the

process every month or six months,

petrochemicals plants must run

continuously because any unplanned

shutdown results in production

losses and therefore nancial losses.

So, the key requirements for the

electric drive system are reliability

and availability.

Junior Isles

Siemens Energy and Rolls-Royce

SMR have entered into a partnership

agreement that is expected to lead to

the exclusive supply of conventional

technology for future small modular

reactors (SMR).

Under this agreement, Siemens En-

ergy is to be the sole supplier of steam

turbines, generators, and other auxil-

iary systems for the British manufac-

turer’s planned Generation 3+ modular

nuclear power plants. The nal con-

tract, detailing all specics, is expected

to be completed by the end of 2025.

SMRs are seen as a promising

technology for the future of nuclear

energy and a key factor in the success

of the energy transition. They are more

compact, safer, and more cost-ef-

cient than conventional nuclear pow-

er plants. Rolls-Royce SMR is cur-

rently developing a “mini nuclear

power plant” that can be operational

much faster than traditionally built

plants, thanks to its standardised,

modular design. Rolls-Royce SMR’s

pressurised water reactors are de-

signed to achieve an electrical output

of up to 470 MW.

Commenting on the agreement,

Karim Amin, a Member of the Siemens

Energy Executive Board, said: “We are

currently experiencing a global renais-

sance of nuclear energy. Numerous

countries are turning to nuclear tech-

nology to produce low-emission elec-

tricity, and small modular reactors will

play a key role in this. Siemens Energy

brings decades of experience in con-

ventional equipment, while Rolls-

Royce has the necessary implementa-

tion expertise.”

The tie-up followed a warning in late

February from the head of Rolls-

Royce that the UK government runs

the risk that critical supply chains to

support the development of small

nuclear reactors will be built else-

where if it fails to select the companies

to build them by the end of June.

Rolls-Royce was one of four compa-

nies shortlisted last year by the govern-

ment to develop SMRs. The competi-

tion has been subject to delays,

although Great British Energy, the

government’s state-owned energy

company, said it expected to select two

winners by the “spring”.

SMRs are also being touted as ideal

energy sources for the rapidly growing

data centre market.

Meanwhile, at the end of February,

Rolls-Royce Power Systems achieved

record sales, prot and return on sales

in the nancial year 2024, largely

driven by the sale of mtu solutions for

emergency power supply for data cen-

tres and governmental business.

Dr Joerg Stratmann, CEO Rolls-

Royce Power Systems, said: “These

record gures are the result of our clear

strategy focusing on energy supply,

governmental business, marine, bat-

tery storage and service.

“We are in a strong position in our

markets around the world. We have

increased our market share in mtu prod-

ucts and see further growth potential.

Some of our end markets are growing

signicantly, decoupled from the gen-

eral economic trend. This and our order

intake of €6 billion make us very con-

dent for 2025.”

Businesses are increasingly factoring

cost-competitiveness and overall in-

vestor returns into their decision-mak-

ing as they push forward with their

energy transition investments, accord-

ing to new research by global law rm

Ashurst. As businesses continuously

update strategies at what is a pivotal

juncture of the global transition move-

ment, businesses must evaluate a

broader range of factors to support

energy transition investments.

The report, ‘Powering Change: A

New Era for the Energy Transition’,

captures the views of nearly 2000 busi-

ness leaders from across the G20

economies. This year’s report also

analyses trended data from the past ve

years of its energy transition research,

revealing how attitudes towards the

global transition to cleaner energy

have evolved since 2019.

Although corporates remain com-

mitted to driving change, they are tak-

ing a more considered approach to

energy transition investments. The

vast majority (87 per cent) of respon-

dents said their investment strategy has

changed in response to the energy

transition over the last 12 months. The

shifting attitudes can be explained by

business leaders rening investment

criteria, while also balancing parallel

challenges, such as geopolitical ten-

sions and energy security.

Investment sentiment for renewables

remains strong. This year, over three

quarters (77 per cent) of respondents

viewed renewable energy investment

as essential to their strategic growth,

with solar remaining the most popular

renewable energy source to invest in

over the ve-year period, rising from

52 per cent in 2019 to 59 per cent today.

The overall success of solar can be seen

as an example of how government sup-

port can help growth and lead to a

reduction in real costs of technology.

In this context, the responses sug-

gested that many businesses are eyeing

‘power-to-X’ (P2X) technologies as

one potential route to realising at least

part of their transition plan ambitions.

Corporates have real condence: 80

per cent of respondents plan to increase

investment in P2 over the next ve

years. However, key challenges

identied by respondents included

cost of technology (56 per cent), inte-

gration with renewable energy sources

(49 per cent) and transportation and

storage (48 per cent). As businesses

assess the viability of projects, regula-

tory certainty, a more developed sub-

sidy regime and signicant investment

will be essential for realising the po-

tential of P2X technologies.

Michael Burns, Global Co-Head of

Energy at Ashurst, said: “Businesses

remain committed to clean energy, but

as they respond and adapt to ever-

evolving market conditions, they are

continuing to strategically assess what

their energy transition journey looks

like. Inevitably, in some cases this may

mean becoming more selective about

clean energy investments. Navigating

this next – and crucial – stage of the

global energy transition will require a

careful balance of aspiration with eco-

nomic alignment.”

Dan Brown, Global Co-Head of

Energy at Ashurst, added: “At this

critical point in the global energy tran-

sition, businesses are now examining

the bigger picture once more, in order

to take a larger leap forward. This ap-

proach will allow businesses to posi-

tion themselves more condently in

the long-term. Increased scrutiny will

be crucial for more clarity on invest-

ment plans, particularly in order to

overcome the various obstacles

which are currently slowing the im-

plementation of the journey.”

ABB and Charbone Hydrogen Corpo-

ration – an integrated green hydrogen

production company based in Mon-

treal, Canada – have signed a Memo-

randum of Understanding (MoU) to

collaborate on the development of up

to 15 modular and scalable green hy-

drogen production facilities across

North America over the next ve years,

providing a clean fuel source for exist-

ing hydrogen users and heavy indus-

trial processes, which currently use

grey hydrogen as an energy source.

The MoU positions ABB as the pre-

ferred supplier for the design, engineer-

ing, fabrication, testing and supply of

modular and standard electrical substa-

tions (eHouses) for the interconnection

between production facilities and local

utilities. ABB will support Charbone

in standardising basic engineering for

systems and components across its

project portfolio, to increase energy

efciency and reliability. Future scope

may also see ABB operate as the main

automation, electrication and tele-

com contractor depending on project

requirements.

Among the sites covered by the col-

laboration is Charbone’s agship

Sorel-Tracy facility near Montreal in

Québec, Canada. The facility is ex-

pected to be connected to the Hydro-

Québec grid by the end of quarter two

in 2025, using hydro electricity to

power green hydrogen electrolysers.

The plant will create a blueprint for the

design and engineering of modular and

scalable equipment for other sites be-

ing developed by Charbone. The next

project to get underway will be in the

greater Detroit area in the US, which

is the manufacturing base for major

automotive companies.

“This strategic collaboration with

ABB is a strong and signicant signal

about our proposition for the North

American green hydrogen market,”

said Daniel Charette, Chief Operating

Ofcer of Charbone Hydrogen Corpo-

ration. “With the Sorel-Tracy project

moving quickly to on-site activities,

and the capabilities of plug and play

modular approach to get production

starting in a minimal number of weeks,

Charbone will support the decarboni-

sation of industry.”

Clean energy stocks have sunk to lev-

els last seen ve years ago, as uncer-

tainty over political support for the

clean energy transition away from

fossil fuels puts a brake on the market.

Following an environmental, social

and governance urry that pushed

green energy stocks to record highs,

the S&P Global Clean Energy Transi-

tion Index, which tracks the perfor-

mance of big clean energy companies,

has dropped 16 per cent over the past

12 months.

Some investors believed shares

would start to recover late last year as

interest rates levelled off or fell and

electricity prices climbed. However,

US President Donald Trump’s deci-

sion to freeze Ination Reduction Act

funding for green projects and with-

draw the country from the Paris cli-

mate agreement have dampened the

market.

According to the Financial Times,

Deirdre Cooper, Head of sustainable

equity at global investment manager

Ninety One, said pessimism hanging

over the decarbonisation sector was

“exceptional” and mismatched with

underlying company performance.

“Companies that we hold in the de-

carbonisation sector have seen strong

growth and stable returns, but they

have underperformed in terms of

share price,” she said.

“I have never seen such bearishness

in terms of the valuation for compa-

nies with structural growth… The

market is assuming no growth for

decarbonisation [i.e. the sector].”

According to analysts at S&P Dow

Jones Indices, underperformance was

in part driven by several ongoing chal-

lenges such as the interest rate and

inationary environment, meaning

higher project costs and policy uncer-

tainty, which impact the clean energy

sector.

After peaking in early 2021, the S&P

Global Clean Energy Index started to

fall steadily as interest rates rose, with

clean energy projects particularly vul-

nerable to higher borrowing costs due

to high upfront costs.

Uncertainty over political support for clean

transition sees green energy stocks tumble

loal usinesses pus forard on energy transition it rened inestment criteria

ABB and Charbone Hydrogen agree to advance North

American green hydrogen production facilities

Siemens Energy and Rolls-Royce team up on SMRs

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Companies News

WWW.INVEST-AFRICA-ENERGY.COM

13-14 MAY 2025

PARIS, FRANCE

LES SALONS HOCHE

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energy investment in Africa’s energy security, industrialization

and energy transition.

SSE Renewables has announced it will

invest £70 million over the next three

years to repower the 45 MW Lochay

hydropower station, located in Killin,

Perthshire, Scotland.

The upgrade is intended to moder-

nise the facility with new turbine

technology and extending its opera-

tional life by 40 years. The plant cur-

rently generates 170 GWh annually.

The refurbishment will replace all

the main generation components

and enhance the output without re-

quiring additional water volumes.

The existing civil infrastructure will

be retained.

Construction will begin in April

2025. Voith Hydro will be the lead

mechanical and electrical contractor

for the refurbishment. Global Infra-

structure has been awarded the con-

tract for enabling works. AJT Engi-

neering will design and install an

automatic self-closing valve.

The project is scheduled for com-

pletion by 2028.

A consortium comprising Korea’s

Doosan Enerbility and Sepco3 has

won a $1.5 billion order to build two

combined cycle gas turbine (CCGT)

power plants in Saudi Arabia. The two

plants are Rumah 1 and Nairyah 1,

which will have a total combined ca-

pacity of 3600 MW.

The project scope includes devel-

opment, nancing, construction,

ownership and operation of these

plants. The contract was awarded

by the developer consortium of

Acwa Power, Korea Electric Power

Corporation (Kepco) and Saudi

Electricity Company (SEC).

Meanwhile, Siemens Energy and

Harbin Electric International have

been awarded a $1.6 billion contract

to deliver the 1800 MW Rumah 2

and the 1800 MW Nairyah 2 proj-

ects. Siemens will provide key tech-

nologies and Harbin will be the

EPC contractor. Siemens Energy

will supply six SGT6-9000HL gas

turbines, four SST6-5000 steam tur-

bines, eight SGen6-3000W genera-

tors, two SGen6-2000P generators,

and associated auxiliary equip-

ment.

The project includes long-term

maintenance agreements to support

the plants’ operational reliability

over the next 25 years.

MAN Energy Solutions has signed a

partnership agreement with EDF PEI,

involved in power generation in island

regions. The agreement runs until

2031.

MAN will be responsible for en-

gine and auxiliary maintenance op-

erations for EDF’s power genera-

tion plants on Guadeloupe,

Martinique, Reunion and Corsica.

There are three elements to the

partnership agreement: supply and

delivery of spare parts for the four

power plants; turnkey maintenance

services for engines, turbo-com-

pressors, alternators, and unit or

unit auxiliaries; additional mainte-

nance services, including corrective

maintenance, spare-parts refurbish-

ment, supervision of maintenance

operations, and the supply and de-

livery of spare parts.

The three power plants are pow-

ered by 12 × MAN 18V48/60 en-

gines, and the Corsican plant by 7 ×

MAN 18V51/60 engines.

will utilise Wärtsilä’s Quantum

High Energy technology and

GEMS Digital Energy Platform.

Vestas has won a contract for the 62

MW Profen II wind farm, located in

Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt, Germa-

ny. The order was awarded by MI-

BRAG GmbH, a subsidiary of Ener-

getick a prmyslov holding (EPH).

The contract consists of 10 V162-6.2

MW turbines.

The contract also includes a 20-

year service agreement. Delivery is

scheduled to start in Q1 2026, with

commissioning due by Q1 2027.

In addition, Vestas won an order

for 11 V150-6.0 MW units in 5.6

MW operating mode for Ørsted

Wind Power. The project is the 62

MW Bahren West II wind farm in

Brandenburg, Germany. The con-

tract includes a 20-year service

agreement.

Delivery is planned to start in Q4

2026, with commissioning sched-

uled for Q2 2027.

Andritz has secured an order to engi-

neer a 100 MW green hydrogen plant

in Rostock, Germany. The order was

given by Rostock EnergyPort Coop-

eration (REPCO). REPCO is a joint

venture of RWE Generation, EnBW

Neue Energien, RheinEnergie, and

Rostock Port.

Once the Notice-to-Proceed is re-

ceived, Andritz will deliver the

green hydrogen plant on an EPC

basis. The supply package encom-

passes the green hydrogen produc-

tion facility, supporting infrastruc-

ture and utilities, hydrogen

purication and compression sys-

tems, storage units, and a hydrogen

lling station. The plant is expected

to be commissioned in 2027.

REPCO’s green hydrogen plant

will be integrated with the Hydro-

gen Core Network, a dedicated

pipeline system designed for hydro-

gen transport across European na-

tions, set to become operational in

2028. Additionally, the plant will

serve local industries and the mo-

bility sector.

National Grid has awarded two parts

of a £59 billion High Voltage Direct

Current (HVDC) supply chain frame-

work to deliver the required works and

equipment needed for key energy

projects across the country.

Six HVDC cable suppliers have

been awarded positions on the

Framework Agreement totalling

£21.3 billion, and four suppliers

awarded places on the HVDC Con-

verter Framework totalling £24.6

billion.

The successful HVDC cable sup-

pliers are Hellenic & Jan De Nul

Consortium, LS Cable & System,

NKT Cables, Prysmian Group,

Sumitomo Electric and Taihan Ca-

ble & Solution. The HVDC con-

verter systems Framework has been

awarded to GE Vernova, Hitachi

Energy, Mitsubishi Electric and

Siemens Energy. Contracts have

been secured for a ve-year period,

with the potential to extend for a

further three years.

Suppliers on the framework will

support the delivery of early proj-

ects including Eastern Green Link

4, Sealink, Lionlink and other proj-

ects of a similar size and nature.

An order has been placed with the

Nordex Group for the supply and in-

stallation of 16 N163/5.X turbines.

The 94 MW order also includes the

servicing of the turbines for 25 years.

The project is located in Nova

Scotia for an undisclosed customer.

Nordex will supply the cold-climate

turbines for the project from mid-

2026, each with a nominal output

of 5.9 MW. The turbines will be in-

stalled on 125 m tubular steel tow-

ers and will be equipped with an

anti-icing system for the rotor

blades.

GE Vernova has won a contract from

RWE to supply 109 of its 2.8 MW-

127m onshore wind turbines to power

the Honey Mesquite wind farm in

Glasscock County, Texas, USA and to

repower the Forest Creek wind farm

near Big Spring, Texas.

Deliveries of the wind turbines for

both projects are scheduled to begin

later this year.

Brazil’s Auren Energia has commis-

sioned the Nordex Group to supply

and install 19 N163/5.X turbines at the

Cajuina 3 wind farm. The 112 MW

order includes the service for the tur-

bines for an initial period of 15 years,

with several options to extend up to

30 years.

The Cajuína 3 wind farm is part

of the Cajuína Wind Complex in

the state of Rio Grande do Norte in

the municipality of Lajes. The tur-

bines are due to be installed at the

start of 2026, with commissioning

scheduled later that year. The tur-

bines will be supplied in an operat-

ing mode of 5.9 MW on 120 m

concrete towers.

Wärtsilä has partnered with Brazil’s

Energetica Suape II, majority owned

by Grupo Econômico 4M, to conduct

a world-rst clean energy trial, which

will see ethanol produced from sugar

cane to generate power.

The trial will take place at the

Suape II power station in Recife,

Brazil. This will be the world’s rst

test of an ethanol-fuelled engine for

large-scale electricity generation.

Brazil is the largest producer and

user of ethanol from sugar cane.

This test aims to demonstrate the

potential for this fuel as a large-

scale power source.

The Indonesian Ministry of Public

Works has announced that it will de-

velop two oating solar power plants

at dammed reservoirs, due to be op-

erational in 2027.

The Jatigede hydropower plant at

the Jatigede Dam in West Java has

two 55 MW units, and has the po-

tential for a 100 MW oating solar

power plant.

Lilik Retno Cahyadiningsih, Di-

rector General of Water Resources

at the Ministry of Public Works,

said that the project will work in

conjunction with PLN, the state

electricity company. He said: “It

might take another two to three

years for the oating solar plant to

start operation. If there is a dam that

is important and prioritised for op-

eration by PLN, maybe the time can

be expedited.”

NTPC has signed two MOUs with the

Indian state government of Madhya

Pradesh to invest $23 billion in renew-

able energy projects in the state.

Under the terms of the rst MOU

signed with Madhya Pradesh Power

Generating Company (MPPGCL),

$13.8 billion will be invested in the

development of up to 20 GW of re-

newable energy capacity, including

pumped storage hydropower, wind,

and solar.

NTPC will also allocate $9.2 bil-

lion to develop non-fossil fuel pow-

er plants in the state, including $460

million to construct an 800 MW

pumped storage hydropower plant.

The timelines for these projects

have not been disclosed.

Siemens Energy is supplying two gas

turbines and related components for

the 1200 MW Kuo Kuang 2 power

plant in Taiwan.

Siemens Energy’s scope of supply

is a complete power island solution

including two SGT6-9000HL gas

turbines, one SST6-5000 steam tur-

bine, three SGEN6-2000P genera-

tors and the Omnivise T3000 con-

trol system.

Electricity demand in Taiwan is

expected to rise by 12-13 per cent

by 2030. Taiwan is expanding clean

power generation and upgrading the

grid to balance reliability and sus-

tainability. The commissioning of

the new power plant will allow for

older, CO

-intensive plants to be

taken off the grid.

Indian state-run Bharat Heavy Electri-

cals Ltd (BHEL) has received a Letter

of Intent (LOI) from Chhattisgarh

State Power Generation Company

(CSPGCL) for the EPC contract of the

2x660 MW Korba West Supercritical

Thermal Power Plant.

The project, valued at €1.27 bil-

lion, is located at the Hasdeo Ther-

mal Power Station in the Korba dis-

trict of Chhattisgarh.

The scope of the project includes

the supply of supercritical equip-

ment such as the boiler, turbine,

generator, and associated auxilia-

ries, along with electrical, C&I, and

balance of plant. BHEL will also be

responsible for erection and com-

missioning, as well as civil works.

The project is scheduled for com-

mercial operation by 2030.

EnergyAustralia has awarded a con-

tract to Wärtsilä for 350 MW/1474

MWh of storage capacity to the

Wooreen Energy Storage System

(WESS) in Victoria, Australia. The

system to provide grid stability and

support the integration of renewable

energy. The scope of the contract in

cludes engineering design, supply,

commissioning, and a 15-year service

agreement.

The site will be built adjacent to

EnergyAustralia’s Jeeralang Power

Station and become operational be-

fore the shutdown of the coal red

Yallourn Power Station due to retire

in 2028. Construction will begin in

2025 and the WESS will be com-

pleted in 2027.

The Wooreen energy storage system

Americas

sia-acic

Canadian 94 MW wind

farm order for Nordex

Brazilian wind farm order

for Nordex

Wärtsilä converts Brazilian

sugar cane to clean power

Indonesia to build two

oating solar poer plants

NTPC invests in 20 GW of

renewables

German 62 MW order for

Vestas

Andritz wins 100 MW

green hydrogen order

Saudi awards large CCGT

contracts

MAN Energy signs EDF

PEI maintenance contract

National Grid awards

framework contracts

Siemens supplying gas

turbines to Taiwan

BHEL wins €1.27 billion

Chhattisgarh contract

Energy storage system for

WESS in Australia

GE Vernova to equip two

Texas wind farms

International

Europe

Voith Hydro to lead

Lochay repowering

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Tenders, Bids & Contracts

cross Europe, governments

and businesses are moving to

adopt clean energy. But in the

Netherlands, a crisis-in-slow-motion

threatens to stall this progress – grid

congestion. Left unaddressed, this

challenge could derail economic

growth, jeopardise climate targets,

and set a dangerous precedent for

Europe.

Grid congestion arises when the

electricity infrastructure cannot ac-

commodate the inux of power, par-

ticularly from renewable sources like

wind and solar, and deliver it when

and where it’s needed. In the Nether-

lands, the grid is at capacity, with

operators like TenneT and Liander

estimating wait times of up to 10

years for businesses to secure a con-

nection or expansion. A study by

BCG and Ecorys calculates the dam-

age of grid congestion to the econo-

my of the Netherlands at up to €40

billion annually.

This isn’t just a Dutch problem –

it’s a warning for Europe at large.

A harbinger for Europe

As other European countries ramp

up renewables and electrication,

they risk falling into the same trap: a

grid unable to handle the future it

was built to power.

n Germany has seen renewable pro-

duction hit record highs, yet grid

limitations routinely force wind

farms in the north to curtail genera-

tion because the electricity can’t be

transported efciently to demand-

heavy regions in the south. In 2023

alone, these constraints led to the

curtailment of approximately 19

TWh of renewable energy – enough

to power over 5.6 million German

households for a year.

n France, traditionally reliant on nu-

clear power, faces a different chal-

lenge. While nuclear offers steady

supply, integrating decentralised re-

newable sources like solar and wind

requires a more exible, modernised

grid. Without signicant upgrades,

France risks grid congestion that

could stall its clean energy transition.

n In the UK, growing demand from

electric vehicle (EV) adoption and

home electrication is placing un-

precedented strain on the grid. The

UK’s National Grid forecasts that

peak electricity demand could rise

up to 50 per cent by 2035. Without

strategic investments in grid capacity

and energy storage, congestion will

become inevitable.

These examples underscore why

the Dutch crisis is a clear signal of

what’s to come across Europe. With-

out urgent action, economic growth

could slow, energy investments

could stall, and climate targets could

slip further out of reach.

Rethinking the grid

At the heart of this looming grid

congestion crisis lies the transition to

an increasingly variable and decen-

tralised energy system.

Wind farms, solar parks, large-

scale battery installations, and EV

charging infrastructure interact with

the grid, generating and consuming

clean electricity at scale. This in-

creases variability and spreads pow-

er generation more widely across

the network.

However, much of Europe’s grid

infrastructure was designed for a

centralised energy system, where

large power plants – coal, nuclear, or

gas – delivered electricity steadily to

homes and businesses.

This old-style infrastructure strug-

gles to cope with the surge of inter-

mittent renewable energy being fed

into the system, at ever more geo-

graphically dispersed points like re-

mote wind farms or rooftop solar in-

stallations all over the map.

The result is a grid ill-equipped to

transport power efciently from

where it’s generated to where it’s

needed most, leading to imbalances,

wasted clean energy, and, ultimately,

bottlenecks that stall progress and

economic growth.

While investments in grid upgrades

and cross-border infrastructure proj-

ects are underway, they remain in-

sufcient to meet the rapid surge in

demand and decentralisation of ener-

gy supply.

Eurelectric estimates that Europe

will need to double grid capacity by

2050 to integrate variable renewable

generation and decentralised assets.

Yet current investment levels fall far

short, with only 30 cents invested in

grid development for every euro

spent on clean energy generation –

when it should be closer to 67 cents.

To prevent grid congestion from

derailing the energy transition, Eu-

rope must look beyond large-scale

grid upgrades and embrace decen-

tralised energy solutions.

Decentralised solutions

First, technologies such as micro-

grids, battery storage, and behind-

the-meter systems allow businesses

and communities to generate and

store energy locally, easing pressure

on overstretched national grids.

By integrating renewable sources

like rooftop solar and pairing them

with on-site batteries, companies can

stabilise supply and increase inde-

pendence from grid infrastructure

constraints.

Second, an equally important strat-

egy is the adoption of intelligent

software to connect with all the ener-

gy system’s component parts and to

optimise energy ows and balance

supply and demand in real-time.

Combinations of such systems can

store surplus energy, such as excess

solar power generated during the

day, and release it during periods of

peak demand.

A prime example comes from the

Netherlands’ largest supermarket

chain, Albert Heijn, which faced grid

constraints as it electries its vehicle

eet, and turned to Univers, global

market leader in software to manage

advanced new energy systems.

To overcome its grid constraints

and electrify its eet, Albert Heijn

installed an energy infrastructure that

includes on-site power generation,

battery storage, and EV charging.

Univers deployed their software

platform to integrate the component

parts of Albert Heijn’s energy infra-

structure and provide automated,

real-time control. Connected through

IoT and orchestrated by AI, the sys-

tem not only ensures Albert Heijn’s

eet remains operational but also re-

duces strain on the national grid.

Such innovations not only maxi-

mise the efciency and effectiveness

of existing grid capacity but also cre-

ate more exible, resilient energy

systems capable of meeting the de-

mands of a rapidly electrifying and

growing economy.

A race against time

The Dutch case demonstrates what

happens when grid congestion reach-

es its breaking point.

Businesses face delays or outright

refusals for new power connections

or expansions. Industrial parks can’t

electrify operations, and companies

keen to scale up sustainable energy

projects are left in limbo and post-

pone or cancel their investments.

When businesses can’t access pow-

er, they cannot grow. When renew-

able energy is curtailed, their eco-

nomics become less favourable and

emissions targets slip further out of

reach.

For the rest of Europe, this is not a

distant issue. As renewable energy

adoption accelerates and electrica-

tion grows, policymakers, grid oper-

ators, and businesses must treat grid

modernisation as a priority, not an

afterthought.

The stakes are high: grid conges-

tion is not just about energy – it’s

about economic growth, environ-

mental progress, and Europe’s abili-

ty to lead the global transition to

clean energy.

Companies like Albert Heijn and

Univers are already tackling these

challenges by integrating decentral-

ised energy solutions that reduce re-

liance on overburdened grids.

As an independent investor, advi-

sor, and (non-) executive director in

climate technology businesses– and

a former Managing Director of Ac-

centure’s Sustainability Services – I

see rsthand how smarter energy

systems are critical to ensuring Eu-

rope doesn’t stagnate in its clean en-

ergy ambitions.

If we fail to heed the lesson from

the Netherlands, the annual cost

could reach tens of billions of euros

– and time that neither businesses

nor the climate can afford to lose.

Ynse de Boer is Global Sustainabili-

ty Lead at Univers.

The transmission grid congestion crisis in the Netherlands is a clear signal of what’s to come across Europe. Univers’

Ynse de Boer argues that without urgent action, economic growth could slow, energy investments could stall, and

climate targets could slip further out of reach.

Grids in crisis: a wake-up call

for Europe

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Industry Perspective

Failing to heed the lesson

from the Netherlands, could

cost Europe tens of billions of

euros annually, says de Boer

savings per year, Eurelectric’s ‘Grids

for Speed’ study demonstrates.

It is also an exciting opportunity

for consumers to enjoy the benets

of clean mobility while also contrib-

uting to grid stability and earning

monetary rewards as exibility pro-

viders. Through smart charging, a

driver of an SUV in France could

save on average 29 per cent – about

€2900 – every year on the vehicle’s

total cost of ownership.

To fully capitalise on this, we must

gure out ways to monetise exibility

and create a clear value proposition

for consumers.

Breaking down the barriers

Five key challenges currently stand in

the way of fully leveraging EVs as

exible energy assets:

1. Limited market readiness to inte-

grate exibility: Flexibility markets

and clear price signals are needed for

EV drivers to participate in smart

charging and V2G at scale. Yet, EU

countries are at different levels of mar-

ket readiness to integrate these ser-

vices. Some markets, for instance,

maintain very high minimum bid

sizes, restrictive aggregation condi-

tions and low remuneration potential,

hampering demand-side exibility.

The low-hanging fruit here would be

to swiftly implement the Electricity

Market Design reform (EMD) which

lowers the minimum bid size for the

day ahead and intra-day market, as

well as mandates energy suppliers to

offer Time-of-Use (ToU) tariffs.

Moreover, current taxation structures

can penalise EV owners by double-

taxing energy used for both stationary

and mobile storage. Revising the Eu-

ropean Taxation Directive (ETD) to

tax solely end use energy consumption,

matched by proper metering, will re-

move this disincentive. Phasing out

subsidies and scal incentives for fos-

sil fuels will further shift the economic

balance in favour of cleaner, more

exible energy solutions.

2. Low customer awareness: Provid-

ing exibility services through unidi-

rectional and bidirectional charging

can seem too technical for EV owners,

as it is asking them to be more active

participants in the electricity market

and turn their transportation mode into

an energy asset. Therefore, the role of

the customer cannot go understated,

making it imperative for greater sim-

plication and consumer awareness

raising.

3. Grid investments: A ro bus t, dig ital-

ised distribution grid is the backbone

of any exibility solution. Currently,

30 per cent of Europe’s low voltage

distribution grids are more than 40

years old. EVs and other distributed

energy sources will only increase com-

plexity to manage the electricity grid.

Distribution system operators (DSOs)

ast month I picked up my rst

electric vehicle. Was it expen-

sive? Yes, but I knew I would

recover part of the cost by saving on

fuel expenses for the rest of the vehi-

cles’ lifetime. What’s more, I knew I

could further reduce costs by smart

charging my vehicle and providing

exibility to the local grid. In time, I

should even be able to make money

out of my EV battery by selling stored

electricity back to the grid thanks to

bidirectional charging.

EVs are much more than merely a

means of transportation. Essentially,

they are batteries on wheels that can

be key exibility assets for the power

system and reward the owners. Their

batteries, when charged intelligently,

can serve as distributed energy stor-

age systems. Through unidirectional

smart charging, consumers can shift

their charging away from peak de-

mand, when electricity is more ex-

pensive, to when clean power supply

is abundant and prices are lower

based on time-of-use tariffs (ToU).

Vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology

goes one step further as it allows the

energy stored in the vehicle’s battery

to be fed back into the grid in ex-

change for nancial renumeration.

By 2030, EV batteries could make

available an estimated 114 TWh of

battery capacity to balance the grid –

shows Eurelectric’s recent report on

e-mobility conducted with EY. To put

numbers into perspective, this capac-

ity could meet approximately 4 per

cent of Europe’s projected annual

demand, enough to power 30 million

homes every year. Yet this potential

remains largely untapped today.

A new paradigm

Although the EV uptake is growing, it

has not yet reached mass market adop-

tion. EV sales registered a slowdown

in 2024, accounting for 22.7 per cent

of new car registrations and 8 per cent

of new vans. However, sales are al-

ready picking up in 2025 with battery

electric vehicles (BEVs) making up 15

per cent of the market share, up from

10.9 per cent in January 2024, accord-

ing to ACEA.

High upfront costs still represent a

key barrier for European consumers

vis-a-vis their fuel alternatives. For

this reason, the Commission’s initia-

tives to stimulate EV demand with a

corporate eet initiative and social

leasing schemes can help foster de-

mand for Europe’s electric cars in a

world where the competition is much

more erce.

As the pace of adoption acceler-

ates, tapping into Es exibility

potential means transforming mil-

lions of parked vehicles into decen-

tralised, exible energy storage solu-

tions. This is a transformative

opportunity for grid operators as

exibility needs in Europe will dou-

ble in the next ve years, with more

renewables entering the system and

end-use sectors electrifying. Their

exibility can help balance the grid

by smoothing out renewables’ inter-

mittency and even help mitigate the

need for new grid infrastructure in-

vestments to the tune of €4 billion

should therefore be able to make the

necessary investments to expand and

modernise the infrastructure. Invest-

ing in real-time digital monitoring and

network modelling will be especially

important to achieve granular visibil-

ity over the low-voltage grid to better

integrate EVs dispersed loads, man-

age local congestion and partially off-

set infrastructure buildout needs.

4. Siloed data: Data is the lifeblood of

the e-mobility ecosystem. Yet, regula-

tory and interoperability issues are

keeping part of this data in silos, pre-

venting seamless communication be-

tween EVs, charging infrastructure

and grid operators – reports Eurelec-

tric’s ‘Data Interoperability’ study.

Policymakers must establish uniform

data protocols and standards to pro-

vide full access to key in-vehicle data,

including battery state-of-charge, at no

additional cost. To this end, the in-

vehicle data act adopted last year

should be urgently implemented. This

will empower consumers to decide

who manages their EV charging and

ensure grid operators have reliable

information to optimise energy ows.

5. V2G compatibility issues: T h e a v a i l -

ability of V2G-compatible cars today

is limited, with V2G capable chargers

ve to ten times more expensive than

unidirectional chargers. Furthermore,

most V2G chargers on the market are

direct current (DC), which, as stan-

dard, have higher prices than alternat-

ing current (AC) chargers. Those re-

cently launched AC 2G-capable

chargers are only compatible with EV

models with a bidirectional onboard

charger. That’s why all new EVs

should be equipped with bidirectional

chargers that can both draw from and

feed energy into the grid. The new

network code on demand response,

currently being developed, will be

crucial to support V2G technologies

adoption, as it will set common techni-

cal rules for EVs to be integrated as

distributed energy resources into the

low-voltage grid.

The open road head

The evidence is clear: the exibility

potential of EVs is immense. Unlock-

ing it is not a question of if, but how

and when. With proactive policy mea-

sures and coordinated industry efforts,

the integration of unidirectional smart

charging and 2G can deliver signi-

cant environmental, social and eco-

nomic benets.

The path forward demands bold

action, clear regulatory direction and

a commitment to innovation. For the

energy industry, embracing the exi-

bility of EVs is not just an opportunity

– it is an imperative to drive home the

benets of Es for consumers.

Kristian Ruby is Secretary General at

Eurelectric.

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Energy Outlook

The exibility

potential of EVs is

huge. ut the roa

ahea emans

bol action clear

regulatory irection

an a commitment

to innovation says

Eurelectrics

Kristian Ruby

Unlocking EV exibility a win-win for

consumers and the grid

uby EVs are muc more

tan merely a means of

transport; they are batteries

on wheels that can be key

exibility assets for te power

system

he US has proven to be a high-

ly attractive destination for

clean energy investment capi-

tal over the past few years. The sec-

tor accounted for almost one-sixth of

global clean energy investment in

2023, according to the International

Energy Agency (IEA), though it re-

mains a major investor in oil and

gas. It amounted to $280 billion in

2023, up 40 per cent from 2020, says

the IEA.

Clean energy investments are com-

puted in slightly different ways by

different organisations. A report by

the Rhodium Group/MIT-Center for

Energy and Environmental Policy

Research calculated investment

reached $274 billion in 2024, up

from just $75 billion in 2018; the

data comprises clean technologies

investments in the retail, energy, in-

dustry, and manufacturing sectors.

Solar deployment and electric vehi-

cle sales in the US broke records in

2023 and 2024, and renewables now

dominate new power generation ca-

pacity, while new domestic clean en-

ergy manufacturing facilities are be-

ing constructed nationwide.

The massive number of clean en-

ergy investment opportunities creat-

ed in the US in recent years was

principally due to favourable poli-

cies by the Biden presidency. The

administration’s tenure had unprec-

edented policy support for such in-

vestments, exemplied by momen-

tous legislation such as the

Bipartisan Infrastructure Act and

the Ination Reduction Act. These

created a benecial environment for

signicant investments, offering -

nancial incentives and regulatory

support.

Under the new federal administra-

tion, several obstacles to the growth

of the clean energy sector have aris-

en. Three key examples highlight

these issues.

The rst challenge is high uncer-

tainty in federal policy. The Trump

2.0 presidency has kicked off with

policy rollbacks, especially in the

form of weaker renewables support,

including tax credit cuts, while fossil

fuel regulations are relaxed, focusing

on oil and gas expansion over feder-

al clean energy incentives. There is a

risk that Federal Energy Regulatory

Commission policies will favour fos-

sil fuels in transmission markets. Ad-

mittedly, it is still early days, and

sharp policy U-turns could be seen

in the future.

The second hurdle is whether there

will be legal battles between the fed-

eral government and some districts

and states over supporting policies

for clean energy – even by those dis-

tricts and states held by Republicans.

The Rhodium Group/MIT research

notes that from the third quarter of

2022 to the end of 2024, out of the

$289 billion in total clean energy-re-

lated investment, 77 per cent oc-

curred in districts represented by Re-

publicans. Furthermore, of the

anticipated outstanding investment

pipeline of $524 billion, $402 billion

is expected in these districts, also 77

per cent, up until mid-March 2025.

Legal battles will make domestic

and international investors nervous.

Some experts believe that some Re-

publican lawmakers could oppose

efforts that endanger clean energy

investments in their states. Will

they? At this juncture this is a real

uncertainty.

A third barrier is specic to wind

energy. Trump has often criticised

wind projects, especially offshore

ones. Trump’s executive order hurts

wind development as it calls for a

temporary stoppage on federal leases

and permit issuance. Projects will

probably face a slowdown in obtain-

ing permits, which will likely be ex-

acerbated as the new administration

sharply cuts stafng at various regu-

latory agencies.

The other more positive sign of the

coin is the counter-argument by

some experts that federal govern-

ment interventions may have limited

direct inuence on clean energy-re-

lated projects adoption. The primary

drivers should remain state-level

policies and market dynamics, with

local governments and private sector

actors playing pivotal roles in tech-

nological implementation and in-

vestment strategies. Additionally,

some observers note that the current

climate may foster acquisitions. Pri-

vate equity rms such as Brookeld

and KKR have already shown inter-

est, according to the media outlet

Semafor.

There are early signs of investor

nervousness. At a high level, the ex-

isting US macroeconomic and politi-

cal environment generates much un-

certainty. The Conference Board’s

US economic outlook for 2024 to

2026 points to a real GDP growth

rate slowdown by as much as one

percentage point compared to 2024

(quarterly growth in 2024: 2.5-2.9

per cent, 2025 estimated at 1.5-2.5

per cent, and 2026 at 1.5-1.8 per

cent). Current federal interest rates

of 4.5 per cent are 100 basis points

lower than the peak but still remain

high – they were just 0.25 per cent in

early 2022, while the number of fur-

ther cuts remains uncertain but

should surely be limited.

The well-publicised additional im-

port tariffs Trump wants to apply is a

concern to investors as well. While

stock markets are a very short-term

indicator, year to mid-March Euro-

pean stock markets (like the Stoxx

600 Index) and some Asian stock

markets (like the Hong Kong Hang

Seng Index) have substantially out-

performed US ones.

There has been a substantial out-

ow of capital from US stock mar-

kets in favour of European, Asian,

and others. As the Financial Times

noted on March 21, 2025: “Eu-

rope’s new growth story is coincid-

ing with a stumble, or worse, by the

US. America’s economy is slowing

while the Trump administration’s

chaotic policymaking, particularly

on taris as sapped condence in

the future of the much-vaunted ‘US

exceptionalism’.”

Could this be good news for clean

energy investments elsewhere? With

less clean technologies-focused capi-

tal dedicated to the US markets,

there could be more direct invest-

ment owing into Europe, Asia, and

other regions.

Also, if the US reduces its demand

for new clean energy-related projects

(including clean technologies manu-

facturing), could this alleviate cost

pressures on supply chains globally?

Especially equipment and input ma-

terials such as rare earths and other

commodities? Might this result in

lower costs for solar panels, wind

turbines, and batteries in Asia, Eu-

rope, and beyond? A positive answer

would not be far-fetched albeit there

is yet little evidence as it is still early

days.

There are some early signs that this

may be possible, especially on the

capital allocation front. Several large

clean energy projects in the country

have been cancelled or postponed.

On day one in ofce, Trump halted

construction of the nation’s largest

wind farm, the 1.2 GW Lava Ridge

Wind Project, a 104 000-acre wind

farm with 271 turbines in Lava

Ridge, Idaho.

Soon after the inauguration on 20

January, the New Jersey Board of

Public Utilities cancelled the bidding

process for the state’s fourth offshore

wind solicitation, which had aimed

at awarding between 1.2 to 4 GW of

capacity with a price tag of several

billion dollars. At the same time, 168

wind and solar projects permitting

was temporarily paused by the US

Army Corps of Engineers, which

oversees the nation’s wetlands.

French utility EDF wrote down $940

million in the value of its stake in the

Atlantic Shores wind energy project

off New Jersey in February. This

came after oil major Shell, its part-

ner, pulled out of its $1 billion in-

vestment in January. Another oil ma-

jor, BP, quit its application to

connect the 2.5 GW Beacon Wind

project to the grid in New York wa-

ters. In short, the picture is far from

positive.

It is still too early to conclude that

corporations, private equity rms,

infrastructure funds, and others will

refocus the deployment of capital in

clean energy-related investments to

Europe, Asia, or other jurisdictions.

Many factors prevail. The target

market must offer projects with at-

tractive returns on investment. Apart

from being consistent and transpar-

ent, regulation must be conducive to

reducing red tape. The capital cannot

wait around for months or years for

all of the necessary permitting to be

completed, something which many

countries are guilty of. EU countries,

as well as India, Indonesia, and Viet-

nam, are but a small sample in the

list.

Giuseppe ‘Joseph’ Jacobelli, head of

singleamily oce ougie mpact

Capital Ltd., has over 30 years in

energy marets. e raises climate -

nance awareness through his ‘Asia

Climate Finance Podcast’ and publi-

cations, including his upcoming

book, ‘Powering the Unstoppable

Green Shift’.

While the US’

discouraging stance

on renewables might

deter both local and

overseas investors,

as global clean

energy markets

surge it could

offer substantial

opportunities

elsewhere.

Joseph Jacobelli

US opposition to clean energy

could drive investment elsewhere

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Decarbonisation Series

Clean investments in the US 2018-2024. Investment reached $274 billion in 2024, up from just

$75 billion in 2018

Jacobelli: Legal battles will

make domestic and

international investors nervous

Decarbonisation Series April 2025

Clean Energy Investments Unwelcome in US: Who Beneﬁts?

THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - APRIL 2025

Final Word

n times past, when speaking about

energy and security, the conversa-

tion was all about system resil-

ience and ensuring safe and reliable

supply. How times change. While this

still holds true, it’s safe to say that as

the geopolitical risk landscape has

evolved, so too has the whole energy

security discussion.

Although energy security has always

been part of the trilemma of making

energy reliable, sustainable and af-

fordable, one speaker at the recent

Chatham House Climate and Energy

Summit in London pointed out that it

is now literally in “the crosshairs”.

Ben Parsons, a Partner at manage-

ment consulting rm, Oaklin, rst

posed the question of whether accel-

erating the energy transition will help

or hinder energy security. “For me, this

really gets to the heart of some of the

fundamental forces that have always

been behind this transition, as well as

some of the turbulence we’ve seen in

geopolitics recently.”

Taking us back some weeks to the

night of February 24th, the third an-

niversary of Russia’s invasion of

Ukraine, Parsons explained: “I was sat

in Kyiv train station that night with a

group of British MPs, waiting to board

a night train back to Poland. We’d been

in Ukraine talking about, amongst

other things, the critical role of energy

security in Ukraine’s war effort. That

night as we waited for the train, we

watched anti-aircraft re exploding in

the distance. It turned out to be one of

the heaviest nights of bombing in the

war so far and energy assets were

absolutely in the crosshairs. And you

need to ask why is that? I think it’s

because Russia has identied a strate-

gic vulnerability.”

Like so many countries around the

world, Ukraine largely has a central-

ised power system with large power

plants that make for large targets.

Notably, one of the rst items on the

agenda in talks about a ceasere, was

power plants.

Parsons commented: “It could be

different. Imagine a system that is

based around inherently distributed

decentralised renewables; one that’s

based on infrastructure alone and not

a constant supply of fossil fuels. The

fact that a sufciently accurate missile

to take out a wind turbine, costs far

more than the wind turbine – it’s a

losing game. No one can switch off

the sun and no country can stop the

wind. That shift is a fundamental

transition, not just about energy sys-

tems but in national security.

“Energy security was always there

as part of the trilemma but was perhaps

the least discussed and under-appreci-

ated. And when we did talk about it,

we often talked about security of fuel

supply or price shocks; it wasn’t about

the fundamental re-architecting of our

energy system.”

Governments have long realised that

power systems are potential targets,

but these dangerous times has put them

at the forefront of thinking. There were

initial questions as to whether the re-

cent re at a substation that left on-

don’s Heathrow airport without power,

was an act of terrorism. Although it

proved not to be the case, there is now

a rm link between power systems and

national security.

Last month Germany’s Bundestag

voted in favour of a multibillion-euro

package which loosens borrowing

limits and allows new investments in

defence, infrastructure and climate

change. Commenting on the an-

nouncement, Gareth Redmond-King,

Head of International Programme at

the Energy and Climate Intelligence

Unit (ECIU) said: “This is a clear

signal from the newly elected govern-

ment of the third biggest economy in

the world, that defence and climate are

not either/or, but two sides of the same

coin. This signicant change to Ger-

many’s scal rules, enabling urgent

investment in interconnected national

and global security threats could set a

precedent for other nations, including

the UK.”

It is the clearest sign yet that the need

for renewables is now recognised as

more than being just about tackling

climate change.

At COP28 in 2023, government

leaders pledged to work together to

triple the world’s installed renewable

energy generation capacity to at least

11 000 GW by 2030. The UK is among

the leaders in the clean energy charge.

Sanjeet Sanghera, Head of Strategic

Futures Strategy and Policy, National

Energy System Operator (NESO)

pointed to a recent report that explained

how the UK’s 2030 mandate connects

to that tripling.

NESO’s analysis indicates that re-

newable energy capacity must expand

signicantly, with offshore wind in-

creasing from 15 GW to 28-35 GW,

onshore wind doubling from 13 GW

to 27 GW, and solar power tripling

from 15 GW to 47 GW to meet clean

power goals by 2030.

The plan will mean reducing un-

abated natural gas red generation in

the system from about one third down

to 5 per cent.

“There are two challenges in doing

this,” said Sanghera. “One, is displac-

ing the TWh of energy with a clean

source. The second, is dealing with the

balancing problem. Natural gas has

very fast ramp rates, can supply peak

demand and deal with [times of] low

renewables. For the rst problem what

you nd is that you have to triple re-

newables… For the balancing ques-

tion… you have to ramp-up demand

side exibility, rather than solely rely-

ing on the supply side. This means

more batteries, more interconnectors,

more dynamic demand.”

Flexing the demand side was a large

part of the discussion at Eurelectric’s

EVision conference in Brussels last

month. The event saw the launch of a

report produced by EY in collabora-

tion with Eurelectric that, among

other things, showed how EVs can

help address the exibility problem.

According to the report, within ve

years Europe will need more than

double today’s exibility resources,

just to keep up with changing electric-

ity supply and demand. Compared

with 2021, demand for exibility re-

quirements will increase sharply, up

2.4-fold on a daily basis (from 153

TWh), 1.8-fold on a weekly basis

(from 137 TWh) and 1.3-fold on a

seasonal basis (from 132 TWh). From

2030 to 2050, the need for exibility

is projected to triple.

Serge Colle, EY Global Power &

Utilities Leader, said: “As our power

systems becomes more driven by re-

newables – intermittent or variable

generation – inevitably we need more

exibility. So, we’ve been looking at

our forecasts for where things will be

by around 2030. It’s very clear that the

need for exibility will at least double.

And between 2030 and 2050, exibil-

ity requirements will triple again

against the 2030 number. We believe

that [electric] cars are an incredible

asset to solving the problem of ex-

ibility.”

Yet Eur ope fac es c hall en ges in ac-

celerating EV adoption. Cost of pur-

chase still remains high and charging

infrastructure is inadequate. There is

also the issue of having to rely on

China and other countries for the

critical minerals needed for EV batter-

ies, and other clean technologies such

as wind and solar.

Several speakers spoke frankly un-

der the Chatham House Rule at the

summit in London, highlighting how

critical minerals are essentially being

weaponised by governments. It is

another issue that has brought a new

dimension to the energy security dis-

cussion.

Pointing to US President Donald

Trump’s aspiration to make Canada a

US state and also own Greenland, one

speaker said: “Why buy a country’s

minerals when you can buy the coun-

try itself Or at least attempt to buy the

country itself?” This, along with his

insistence on a minerals deal, includ-

ing oil and gas, with Ukraine, is evi-

dence of Trump’s desire to eliminate

any reliance on China, while giving

the US a key position in the global

market for critical minerals and rare

earths.

Critical minerals and energy com-

modities have long been part of trade

and investment deals. China has in-

vested in Africa in return for invest-

ment. But as the transition to clean

energy continues, there is every

chance that geopolitical tensions

around the sector will heighten. And

as those tensions intensify, energy

security and national security will

become increasingly inseparable.

Clean energy is now rmly centre

stage.

Time to amp up energy

security

Junior Isles

Cartoon by Jem Soar