Latest news with #energygeneration
Bloomberg
23-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Zelestra Plans to Invest $1 Billion in Renewable Energy in Peru
Spain's Zelestra is planning to significantly increase its investment in renewable energy generation in Peru over the next five years, partly thanks to a new legal framework. The company is planning investments of more than $1 billion, with a view of increasing its renewable output in the Andean nation to about 1 gigawatt. Spending would boost solar capacity and may include an incursion into wind.
South China Morning Post
23-07-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
China powers ahead in AI race as US struggles with energy constraints, Anthropic says
The US is falling behind China in energy generation, according to Silicon Valley start-up Anthropic , as the artificial intelligence company urges Washington to 'slash red tape' surrounding power infrastructure development amid escalating competition with China. Last year, China added 400 gigawatts of power capacity, while the US added only 'several dozen' – amounting to just one-tenth of China's total, Anthropic said in a report published on Tuesday, citing numbers from a report in February by Australian think tank Climate Energy Finance. Anthropic, the San Francisco-based firm behind the Claude large language models, noted that the AI sector in the US would require at least 50 gigawatts of power capacity by 2028, and the disparity in power capacity with China was 'concerning'. Energy has emerged as a critical battleground in the intensifying US-China AI race, where the world's two largest economies are engaged in fierce competition in fields ranging from AI algorithms to advanced semiconductor technology Wind turbines in Suichuan county in China's central Jiangxi province. Photo: AFP While US capital expenditure on AI was heavily focused on hardware like semiconductors, a significant portion of China's AI investment this year would go towards building data centres and the energy infrastructure needed to support them, said Matty Zhao, co-head of China equity research at Bank of America Securities, in an interview with the Post last month.
BBC News
10-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Plans for East Yorkshire floating power plant and nuclear reactor
The Humber Estuary could get a floating power station and possibly a small nuclear reactor to generate Energy Park near Saltend has signed an agreement to look at mooring a "power barge" on the water that would use liquefied natural gas (LNG) to produce electricity. The deal would also explore building a Small Modular Reactor (SMR) which generates heat from nuclear material to produce Energy Park said the proposed project would "address critical energy shortages currently facing UK industrial regions". "Grid connection delays can stretch into the 2030s," a spokesperson said"These delays are, in turn, leading to postponed and sometimes cancelled major investment decisions in crucial industries such as AI, advanced manufacturing and cyber security, all vital for the UK's economic growth and security."If it goes ahead, the park hopes to produce power from the LNG barge by month, the government signed a £2.5bn deal with Rolls Royce to develop and build the UK's first SMRs. Analysis There is much excitement about the potential of small modular reactors or SMR's to help address our energy Government says this developing nuclear technology offers a new golden age of nuclear in the UKOne of the UK's best known brands, Rolls Royce, has already been selected to build the country's first small modular use a process called fission to generate heat from nuclear material. A typical reactor can produce enough energy to power about 300,000 to the International Atomic Energy Agency there are about 80 SMR's in development around the worldBut SMR's use radioactive material and there have been concerns about its safety as an energy source and how it is disposed ofProponents of SMR technology say it offers relatively cheap, clean and reliable hope is that an SMR in the Humber will attract industry and inward investment. Hull East MP Karl Turner said he was working with government and industry to "support this effort"."The Humber has always been a national asset and with the right investment, it can now become a cornerstone of Britain's clean energy future," he said"It represents the kind of bold, regionally anchored project that creates skilled jobs, strengthens resilience, and drives growth where it's most needed."Chris Turner, chairman of the Yorkshire Energy Park, said: "Working with UK and international financial and technology partners offers a unique opportunity for the Humber to benefit from large-scale, long-term energy investment that will support new advanced manufacturing industries and skilled job creation on the Humber."Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Click here, to download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and here, to download the BBC News app from Google Play for Android devices.
Zawya
03-07-2025
- Automotive
- Zawya
US tariff deal with Vietnam set to expand trade but faces hurdles: Maguire
(The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters) LITTLETON, Colorado - The tariff deal between the United States and Vietnam sets the stage for a further climb in trade volumes between the countries and will also impact the energy generation mix that powers the fast-growing Vietnamese economy. U.S. President Donald Trump singled out U.S.-made SUVs as a potential beneficiary of the deal in a social media post, while U.S. energy firms will be hopeful that Vietnam will emerge as a key growth market for LNG. However, sellers of both bulky passenger trucks and pricey super-chilled gas may be disappointed over the near term as Vietnam's economy remains overwhelmingly reliant on cheap coal for domestic power and nimble motorcycles for transportation. Further, as Vietnam will remain saddled with 20% tariffs on goods sold to its top export market, corporate profits will remain compressed and may starve the economy of the funds needed to pay for the pricey goods the U.S. is hoping to sell. Below are key data points on vehicle ownership, power generation and manufacturing output to help monitor how trade and energy trends may evolve following the tariff agreements. 2 WHEELS BETTER THAN 4 While many in Vietnam may have ambitions to own one of the SUVs that President Trump hopes to sell more of, a vast majority of the vehicles in Vietnam are motorcycles, which make up more than 90% of all registered vehicles in the country. The motorcycle ownership rate is around 518 per 1,000 people, while car ownership stands at around 22 per 1,000, World Bank data shows. As Vietnam's economy continues to grow, car sales are expected to accelerate sharply, which bodes well for all global car exporters. However, the country's narrow streets and limited parking spaces in cities mean that finding space for even a small car can already be a challenge. What's more, automakers in China - the world's top car producer - along with Japan and South Korea already have a strong presence in Vietnam, and so will present stiff competition for U.S. SUV sellers hoping to grab market share. COAL CRUTCH U.S. sellers of LNG are also optimistic about Vietnam's growth potential, given the energy-intensive nature of its manufacturing-heavy economy. However, there are several reasons to expect Vietnam's LNG import appetite to only grow modestly from here. Firstly, coal currently generates around 50% to 55% of the country's electricity, and is far cheaper for cost-conscious utilities to burn compared to costly imported natural gas. The country relies on imports for over half of its coal needs, but is cheaply supplied by neighbour China and by top coal exporter Indonesia. Secondly, the country's domestic production of natural gas has steadily declined over the past decade due to depleting gas fields, and in 2024 was 40% less than was produced in 2015, according to the Energy Institute. The combination of an entrenched coal power system and declining gas reserves has served to squeeze natural gas out of the electricity mix, with gas's share now around 7% to 9% compared to around 12% to 15% in 2022, data from Ember shows. Reduced gas use has in turn stalled gas infrastructure development, with no gas power plants currently under construction in Vietnam, according to Global Energy Monitor (GEM). There is around 4 gigawatts (GW) of LNG import capacity under construction, and a further 17 GW in so-called pre-construction, GEM data shows, which is driving the optimism among LNG exporters. However, there is also an estimated 53 GW of wind power in pre-construction as well as 5 GW of utility-scale solar, which are being driven by clean energy policies set by the government and supported by civilians who want lower pollution. The country is also a major manufacturer of solar panels and components, which ensures that utilities have ready access to clean energy equipment that can be installed more quickly than any other power source. This may serve to curb future interest in building out more gas-handling capacity in Vietnam, regardless of U.S. hopes for higher LNG exports. MANUFACTURING DRIVE Vietnam's fast-growing manufacturing sector will play a big role in determining the country's energy needs and power mix. Rapid expansions to production lines over the past decade have resulted in total electricity demand more than doubling between 2014 and 2024, according to Ember. However, the need for manufacturers to remain cost competitive against peers in China and elsewhere has meant that power firms have been under pressure to keep energy prices as low as possible. That in turn has resulted in a strengthening of coal's grip on Vietnam's power sector, and the rapid uptake of cheap home-made solar systems. The country's heavy industry and producers of cars, chemicals and plastics will likely help sustain growth in gas demand over the coming years, and lift overall LNG imports. But with most manufacturers dependent on electricity rather than gas for power, most of the growth in future generation looks set to be a combination of coal and renewables, which are viewed as more economical than building new gas plants. The country has also sharply raised production of cables and other power sector components since 2022 as part of the global re-shoring of production outside of China. That in turn has only helped accelerate the drive towards electrification as cheaply as possible, and may also limit Vietnam's overall demand for LNG and other pricey U.S. exports. The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis of everything from swap rates to soybeans. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn and X. (Reporting by Gavin Maguire; Editing by Jacqueline Wong)
