THE ENERGY INDUSTRY TIMES - JANUARY 2018 Companies News 9 Siân Crampsie BP is once again hoping to become a major player in solar energy six years after abandoning its solar panel manufacturing business. The oil giant is to invest $200 million over three years in Lightsource, the largest solar energy developer in Europe. The two companies have agreed to form a strategic partnership “to drive further growth across the world” in solar energy. Octopus-backed Lightsource took just seven years to become Europe’s largest solar power company, with much of its operations developed during the UK’s solar energy boom. It will re-brand as Lightsource BP and BP will have two seats on the board of directors. BP said that the investment in Lightsource will complement its existing Alternative Energy business, which includes wind energy, biofuels and biopower. BP Wind Energy has interests in onshore wind energy across the US with total gross generating capacity of 2.3 GW. Lightsource has commissioned 1.3 GW of solar capacity to date and manages approximately 2 GW of capacity under long-term operations and maintenance contracts. Lightsource BP will target the growing demand for large-scale solar projects worldwide with a focus on gridconnected plants and corporate power purchase agreements (PPAs). The company will continue to develop and deliver Lightsource’s 6 GW growth pipeline, which is largely focused in the US, India, Europe and the Middle East. The companies also see opportunities to create additional value through integrating solar with BP’s other businesses and trading capabilities as well as through BP’s international scale and relationships. Dev Sanyal, BP’s Chief Executive for Alternative Energy, said: “We see significant opportunity to offer affordable, reliable, low-carbon power solutions by integrating solar alongside our existing Alternative Energy and gas business. We see Lightsource as a strategic partner with a similar vision and, with the benefits of BP’s global scale and relationships, we together plan to build the global market leader for solar.” Bob Dudley, BP Group Chief Executive, added: “BP has been committed to advancing lower-carbon energy for over 20 years and we’re excited to be coming back to solar, but in a new and very different way. While our history in the solar industry was centred on manufacturing panels, Lightsource BP will instead grow value through developing and managing major solar projects around the world.” Global installed solar generating capacity more than tripled in the past four years and grew by over 30 per cent in 2016 alone, according to BP’s Statistical Review of World Energy. BP’s Energy Outlook analysis sees solar as likely to generate around a third of the world’s total renewable power and up to ten per cent of total global power by 2035. Engie is to invest heavily in biomethane and hydrogen in order to turn its gas supplies renewable. The French utility says that all of its French clients will be supplied by 100 per cent renewable gas by 2050 and that its renewable gas investments will grow from tens of millions of euros to “a few hundred” million euros per year. In a press conference, Engie’s CEO Isabelle Kocher said the company is already working on some 40 biogas projects in France – facilities that turn waste, mostly agricultural waste, into methane. However it also wants to develop hydrogen production units, converting electricity produced by renewable sources into gas to power fuel cell vehicles. “We are going to gradually green our gas supply, so that by 2050 it can be 100 per cent green,” Kocher said. Engie sees renewable gas as a key element of the energy transition because of the flexibility that gas brings to the energy system and its ability to support the integration of intermittent renewable electricity generation. It estimates that green gas could represent ten per cent of French consumption by 2025 and 30 per cent by 2030. Engie said it is looking to produce hydrogen using solar energy and is therefore looking for large-scale solar power projects that would enable its strategy. “In places like Chile’s Atacama desert we could produce hydrogen on industrial scale and hopefully ship it abroad at a competitive price, transport included,” said Kocher. She also said the company was looking to acquire start-ups in hydrogen technology, especially electrolysis. In May 2017, Engie agreed to sell its oil and gas exploration business for $3.9 billion and in November last year sold its gas liquefaction, shipping and trading business to Total for $1.5 billion. The sale included a deal to make Engie Total’s preferred supplier of biogas and renewable hydrogen. BP switches on to solar BP’s foray into solar panel manufacturing failed six years ago, but the oil giant now believes success lies in partnership with solar power developer Lightsource. Arjun acquires Enviromena Arjun Infrastructure Partners (AIP) says it will “become part of the incredible story of clean energy” in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region with the acquisition of Enviromena Power Systems. AIP, an independent infrastructure investment advisory company, said that the purchase of Enviromena would give it access to over 175 MW of clean energy projects under operation and a further 500 MW under construction. UAE-based Enviromena has a project footprint spanning nine countries, it said. “We are very excited to complete this transaction and become part of the incredible story of clean energy in the MENA,” said Surinder Toor, Founding Partner of AIP. “We are firm believers in the solar opportunity presented in the region, and see Enviromena as the ideal platform to facilitate our strategy to deploy capital into renewable assets.” Sami Khoreibi, Chief Executive Officer of Enviromena, says: “This transaction comes at perfect time for Enviromena. The opportunity to deploy solar assets throughout MENA is happening now, and the strategic support and access to capital that AIP brings to the table enables us to enhance our position as the market leader. GFG pledges green strategies Industrial conglomerate GFG Alliance has inked new deals in the hydropower and tidal sectors as part of its strategy to become the UK’s largest provider of renewable energy. GFG, which is controlled by the Gupta family, last month struck a deal with global tidal power developers, Atlantis Resources Ltd, to buy a 49.99 per cent stake in the firm. The deal was made through Simec, part of the GFG Alliance, and includes the purchase of the coal fired Uskmouth power plant in South Wales by Atlantis. Simec has also signed an unconditional agreement to acquire Green Highland Renewables (GHR) from Ancala Partners, and has pledged to build 1 GW of renewable power generation capacity in the UK within three years. Atlantis will be renamed Simec Atlantis Energy and will spearhead a project to convert the 363 MW Uskmouth power plant to renewable energy as well as drive forward existing plans for the Meygen tidal stream project in Scotland and the Wyre Estuary tidal barrage project in Lancashire. The purchase of GHR from Ancala Partners includes 18 hydroelectric power stations in the Scottish Highlands and a team of 17 engineers, operators and designers. In addition, SIMEC said it will develop a further eight hydropower plants on its Lochaber Highland estate lands, with the planning process due to start in 2018. Engie takes gas green Centrica keen to sell nuclear stake Call on government: GMB says nuclear sell-off should be stopped Energy workers’ union, the GMB, has called on the UK government to step in and stop Centrica selling its 20 per cent stake in eight nuclear power stations. The GMB says that the possible sale – reported by the Times newspaper – would lead to the UK “relying on foreign powers” to keep the lights on and amounts to Centrica “selling off the family silver”. Centrica boss Iain Conn told the Times that the company is open to bids for its 20 per cent stake in EDF Energy’s UK nuclear fleet. The sell-off appears to have been sparked by Centrica’s share price plummeting to its lowest level in 14 years after its retail arm, British Gas, lost 823 000 customers in the three months to the end of September 2017. “This sale could see 20 per cent – a fifth – of the UK’s fleet of nuclear power stations end up in the hands of private equity and foreign investment vehicles,” said Stuart Fegan, GMB National Officer for Energy. “The Government needs to step in, block this sale and stop relying on foreign powers to keep Britain’s lights on.” Centrica is in the midst of a strategic transformation aimed at revamping its asset portfolio and becoming a more customer-focused organisation.
Energy Industry Times January 2018
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