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☆ Governments take action to keep offshore wind projects on track
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Susanna Twidale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Scroby Sands offshore wind farm can be seen off of the coast at Great Yarmouth, Britain, October 24, 2018. Investors told Reuters governments have since shown willingness to pay higher prices, helping to restore confidence in the future of the industry. Britain's last auction in September failed to attract any offshore wind projects, with developers saying the guaranteed price on offer was too low. Britain's Octopus launched a dedicated fund with Japan's Tokyo Gas (9531.T) to invest 3 billion pounds ($3.7 billion) in offshore wind projects by 2030. Soeren Lassen, head of offshore wind Research at WoodMac said more than 50 GW of offshore wind tenders globally are planned for 2024.

Persons: Chris Radburn, ”, Jonathan Cole, Corio's Cole, Keith Anderson, Anderson, Marc Hedin, Nathalie Gerl, Germany's RWE, Soeren Lassen, WoodMac, Susanna Twidale, Nichola Groom, Scott DiSavino, Simon Webb, Jane Merriman Organizations: REUTERS, Governments, Investors, Corio Generation, Power, New York, Energy, New York State Energy Research, Development Authority, Aurora Energy Research, Research, Ireland, Aurora, Gas, Thomson Locations: Great Yarmouth, Britain, U.S, New York State, China

During Greece's peak power demand this year, also on July 24, solar photovoltaics covered 3.5GW of the total 10.35GW demand, grid operator IPTO said. Even in cooler and less sunny western countries such as Belgium, solar energy has covered more than 100% of the extra energy needed during midday spikes in power demand. Analysts say a second factor has helped to keep Europe's energy systems running this summer: overall, power demand has been relatively low. That has been the case since Europe's energy crisis last year, when Russia cut gas deliveries to Europe. "The only reason why this has been bearable is the low power demand environment that we're currently in," Refinitiv's Gerl said.

Persons: Nicolas Economou, Kristian Ruby, Electrica, Nathalie Gerl, IPTO, Spain's, Refinitiv's Gerl, Simone Tagliapietra, Kate Abnett, Susanna Twidale, Barbara Lewis Organizations: REUTERS, Analysts, Energy, European Commission, SolarPower, Thomson Locations: Rhodes, Greece, Europe, BRUSSELS, LONDON, Spain, Ukraine, Catania, Etna, Sicily, Athens, Belgium, Russia

☆ Strikes hit French nuclear output, disrupt EDF maintenance plans
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-24 | by ( Forrest Crellin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File PhotoPARIS, March 24 (Reuters) - Strikes in France are impacting maintenance plans at EDF's (EDF.PA) nuclear plants, curbing production just as the utility hoped to rebound from a 34-year output low last year. At least 14 nuclear reactors in EDF's fleet of 56 have suffered some delay affecting their maintenance plans, data from the CGT union showed. For EDF that has meant nuclear power output in 2023 even lower than last year when it had swathes of reactors offline for repairs and checks for stress corrosion cracks. EDF declined to comment on the impact of the strikes on its maintenance plans. French nuclear safety watchdog ASN requested EDF revise its maintenance program due to new cracks discovered this month in some reactors.

☆ Falling gas costs, rising carbon prices spur change in fuel dynamics
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Feb 21 (Reuters) - Falling gas prices over recent weeks have paired with rising coal and carbon costs to make European power generation from gas-fired power plants more economical, marking a trend reversal since coal took over as the cheaper fuel source last year. The clean-dark and clean-spark spreads are the prices paid for the operation of a coal- or gas-fired power plant respectively, when adjusted for mandatory carbon emissions permits and fuel purchases. However, the gas price would need to fall a bit more to replace more efficient coal plants, she added. Germany and other European countries relied heavily on both coal and gas power during the energy crisis last year, with coal's share of the power generation mix rebounding after mostly falling over the previous decade. The Dutch benchmark wholesale gas contract slipped to a new 17-month low on healthy supply earlier, while European carbon allowances (EUA) reached a record high over 100 euros per tonne.

☆ Winter freeze tests French power grid
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

PARIS, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Temperatures dropping close to zero in coming days will pose the first real test of the resilience of France's electricity grid amid warnings over possible power cuts, though President Emmanuel Macron urged the French not to panic. "Consumption is set to peak at 80 GW (versus 73 GW on Dec. 5), while wind power is expected to be below normal. Should the nuclear availability remain at 37-38 GW the supply gap risk would be much more acute than today." Meanwhile, further delays on nuclear reactors were announced at the weekend. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsReporting by Ingrid Melander and Forrest Crellin, editing by Mark HeinrichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Cold weather could cause French power cuts next week
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Electricite de France SA FollowPARIS, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Cold weather could lead to power cuts in France on Monday as delays to the restart of nuclear power following repair work leave supply lagging demand, analysts said. Nuclear power supply had been expected to reach around 40 gigawatts (GW) this week, but operator EDF's (EDF.PA) delay in restarting reactors meant it rose to only around 35 GW, leaving France more reliant on imports and gas-fired production. "If we remain at 35 GW, next week Monday could become quite tight: we expect the demand at otherwise seasonally normal levels, but 35 GW of nuclear would be too low to meet a possible demand peak at 73 GW," Gerl said. The current EDF schedule shows 3 GW of nuclear power returning to the grid next week, putting total capacity at 38 GW for the first cold spell of the peak demand winter season. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsGrid operator RTE said on Thursday France may face "some days" this winter when there was too little electricity supply.

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