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CCBJ News Update
May 17, 2013
EU ministers call for action on EU-ETS
European Commission to push duties on Chinese solar panels
DOE launches hydrogen infrastructure initiative
UNEP: global green trade to top $2.2 trillion
Siemens to build largest U.S. federal wind farm
BioAmber IPO raises $80 million
PPA adds biomass to Georgia Power portfolio
Company to develop solar array on Massachusetts landfill
BASF license Genomatica BDO process
Kuwait to finance wind, LNG projects in Jordan
Citizens Solar raises $26 million financing
EU ministers call for action on EU-ETS
Although hopes for the survival of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU-ETS) grow ever slimmer, the energy and environment ministers of nine EU member nations have issued a joint statement outlining the actions they would like to see taken this year to reform the carbon trading system. The statement calls for members of the European Parliament and the European Council to reach a new resolution on backloading—reducing the excess supply of carbon allowance and thereby boosting the price—by July 2013 at the latest. A previous backloading proposal was rejected in April. The ministers’ statement also calls for the European Commission to produce a legislative proposal on structural reform to the EU-ETS by the end of this year. “We are firmly committed to the EU Emissions Trading System as being at the heart of the EU’s climate change and low-carbon investment policies up to and well beyond 2020,” the statement said. “However, we remain deeply concerned that the ETS as currently designed cannot provide the price signals needed to stimulate the low-carbon investment needed now because the supply of allowances substantially outstrips demand, leading to a very low carbon price. This also threatens the credibility of carbon markets as the most flexible, cost-effective way to achieve emissions reductions.”
European Commission to push duties on Chinese solar panels
More than 100 Chinese solar photovoltaic (PV) panel and system makers could face tariffs ranging from 37.3% to 67.9% on sales into the European Union (EU) according to recommendations about to be issued by the European Commission (EC). Following an EC investigation of allegedly unfair trade practices by Chinese solar companies, the EC will recommend the imposition of duties averaging 47.6% on product sales by those companies that cooperated with the investigation and 67.9% on sales by those that did not. China is opposing the new tariffs and is pushing for more dialogue to resolve the issue, while the Alliance for Affordable Solar Energy has expressed its concern that punitive tariffs will “cause irreversible damage to the entire European photovoltaic value chain.” In addition, the Solar Trade Association, a coalition of solar industry associations in several EU nations, has voiced “deep concerns” and “overwhelming opposition” to the duties. The EC recommendation follows the imposition of import duties ranging from 24% to 255% on Chinese makers of crystalline silicon photovoltaic (PV) cells, modules, panels, and laminates by the United States in November 2012.
DOE launches hydrogen infrastructure initiative
In a move to support the transition to alternatively fueled vehicles in the United States, including fuel cell electric vehicles (FCEVs), the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has formed a new public-private partnership with several industry associations and companies to advance the deployment of the necessary hydrogen infrastructure. For the H2USA partnership, DOE has joined with the following industry groups and companies: the American Gas Association, the Association of Global Automakers, the California Fuel Cell Partnership, the Electric Drive Transportation Association, the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association, Hyundai Motor America, ITM Power, the Massachusetts Hydrogen Coalition, Mercedes-Benz USA, Nissan North America Research and Development, Proton OnSite, and Toyota Motor North America. The partnership will identify actions and initiatives designed to encourage the early adoption of FCEVs, conduct technical and market analysis, and evaluate cost-effective fueling infrastructure options aimed at achieving economies of scale. In its announcement, DOE said that it expects the recent boom in U.S. shale gas production will play a big role in the development of a cost-effective hydrogen infrastructure.
Read about European hydrogen infrastructure and the FCEV development program of Daimler in this free CCBJ excerpt.
UNEP: global green trade to top $2.2 trillion
The global market for renewable energy, energy efficient, and other low-carbon and sustainable technologies and products will triple from $62.9 billion in 2011 to $2.2 trillion by 2020, according to a recent report by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The report, titled Green Economy and Trade—Trends, Challenges and Opportunities, identifies six economic sectors of significant “green trade” opportunity—agriculture, fisheries, forests, manufacturing, renewable energy, and tourism—and notes that developing nations with abundant renewable resources are well-positioned to increase their share for sustainable goods and services in these markets. These countries will require public investment in infrastructure, technical assistance, targeted education and training programs, and access to sustainable resources such as renewable energy in order to take advantage of these opportunities, the UNEP report said.
Siemens to build largest U.S. federal wind farm
The largest wind farm ever to be located on U.S. federal property will be built by Siemens Government Technologies, Inc. under a contract awarded to the company by the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Under the 20-year contract, Siemens will construct and operate the Pantex wind farm on 1,500 acres of government-owned property east of DOE’s Pantex Plant near Amarillo, Texas. The facility will consist of five units of 2.3 megawatt (MW) turbines supplied by Siemens, which is building and operating the wind farm as part of an energy savings performance contract that is expected to save NNSA $2.9 million annually. The wind farm will generate approximately 47 million kilowatt-hours of electric power annually, more than 60% of the electric power requirement for the NNSA facility.
BioAmber IPO raises $80 million
In the first initial public offering (IPO) from an industrial biotechnology company in more than a year, BioAmber Inc. (Minneapolis, MN) has raised $80 million through an offering of 8 million units—stock and warrants—at a price of $10 per share. Credit Suisse, Barclays and Société Générale served as as joint book-running managers for the offering, while Pacific Crest Securities acted as co-manager. BioAmber will reportedly use the proceeds from the offering to complete the development of its first biosuccinic acid production facility. The company has been operating a demonstration plant in Pomacle, France, for three years and has been ramping up revenue over that period. “We have incorporated numerous lessons learned and improvements gained from operating the facility in France into our engineering design for our planned manufacturing facility in Sarnia, Ontario,” the company said in its S-1A filing. BioAmber claims that there is a market opportunity of $30 billion or more for the use of biosuccinic-based intermediates as replacements for petroleum-based chemicals.
PPA adds biomass to Georgia Power portfolio
Rollcast Energy, Inc. will deliver the 53.5 MW output of its Piedmont Green Power biomass-fired plant in Barnesville, Georgia, to Georgia Power under a 20-year power purchase agreement (PPA) announced by the companies on May 14. The newly completed plant, which started up commercial operations on April 19 after two years of construction, is utilizing locally sourced forestry by-products as feedstocks. The facility has the capacity to process up to 500,000 tons of woody biomass annually. Rollcast will retain all of the renewable energy credits (RECs) generated by the facility. The PPA is the latest addition to Georgia Power’s renewable energy portfolio. The company has announced plans to purchase output from two wind farms in Oklahoma with a combined capacity of 250 MW, and earlier this year, the Georgia Public Service Commission approved the Georgia Power Advanced Solar Initiative (GPASI), under which the utility expects to contract up to 210 MW of solar capacity.
Read about the challenges and opportunities in biomass power in this free CCBJ excerpt.
Company to develop solar array on Massachusetts landfill
Washington Gas Energy Systems, Inc. (McLean, VA) has signed a 20-year contract with the town of Brookfield, Massachusetts, to finance, own, and operate a 434 kilowatt (kW) ground-mounted solar array on a capped landfill. The Quaboag Street Landfill, located behind the town’s transfer station, will consist of 1,846 solar panels generating more than 500,000 kilowatt-hours of electric power during its first year, enough to power about 100 average-size single-family homes, according to the developer. “Small towns like ours were hit hard by the economic downturn, and anytime we can find a way to generate revenue for the town, it’s a plus,” said Brookfield Selectman Rudy Heller. “If at the same time we reduce our carbon footprint, everybody wins. We are very pleased that this project is coming to fruition.” Construction is expected to be completed in June.
BASF license Genomatica BDO process
Genomatica (San Diego, CA), developer of a technology that uses renewable feedstocks to make butanediol (BDO), has signed an agreement with BASF under which the German chemical giant will use the Genomatica process to produce BDO at commercial scale. BASF expects to build a “world-scale” production facility using the one-step fermentation process, which uses sugars as the feedstock, at a location yet to be determined. “We chose the Genomatica process because we consider it to be exceptionally advanced and reliable,” said Sanjeev Gandhi, president of BASF’s Intermediates Division. “In line with our ‘we create chemistry’ strategy, we aim to offer renewable BDO and create additional value for our customers in the plastics, textile, and automotive industries,” he added. BDO and its derivatives are used in the production of plastics, solvents, electronic chemicals, and elastic fibers.
Kuwait to finance wind, LNG projects in Jordan
Jordan’s Planning Minister Ibrahim Saif and Abdul Wahab Al Bader, director general of the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development (KFAED), have signed a pair of deals providing funding for two major energy projects involving wind and liquefied natural gas. Under one of the contracts, KFAED will finance the development of a $150 million wind farm in Jordan’s Maan Governate, a 65 MW facility that will reduce the nation’s over-reliance on fossil fuels. Under the other deal, KFAED will finance the construction of a $65 million LNG terminal in the Port of Aqaba. The terminal will handle the import of up to 715 million cubic feet of gas per day. The funding for the two projects is part of Kuwait’s $1.25 billion contribution to a $5 billion Gulf Cooperation Council grant to the nation, to be disbursed for various development projects over a period of five years.
The massive boom in LNG development is covered in depth in CCBJ's Jan/Feb 2013 edition on the future of conventional power.
Citizens Solar raises $26 million financing
Citizens Solar Holdings, the solar development energy arm of Citizens Energy Corp. (Boston, MA), has arranged for $26 million in financing through a senior secured credit facility to fund the development of five ground-mounted PV facilities in four Massachusetts municipalities. The credit facility was arranged by CIT Corporate Finance (New York, NY); CIT Bank is providing the financing, and Bostonia Partners served as financial advisor to Citizens Energy. The projects will be located in the municipalities of Devens, Holyoke, Whately, and Agawam. Citizens Energy is a 501(c)4 non-profit originally founded by Joseph Kennedy II in 1979 to use revenues from commercial enterprises to support charitable programs in the U.S. and abroad. “Citizens is a well-known and proven electric utility with substantial experience developing, owning and operating power projects,” said Mike Lorusso, group head of CIT Energy. “Completing this transaction further enhances CIT’s position in the project finance marketplace for renewable energy transactions while helping to grow the alternative energy sector.”
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