focusIR May 2024 Investor Webinar: Blue Whale, Kavango, Taseko Mines & CQS Natural Resources. Catch up with the webinar here.
https://www.webpronews.com/whats-next-for-renewable-energy/
While the 2020’s are off to a tumultuous start, the renewable energy market is expected to make great strides. By mid-decade, renewable energy is set to be a $1.5 trillion industry globally. At the end of the previous decade, renewables powered the equivalent of 43.5 million homes in the US alone. The two biggest sustainable energy sources (solar and wind) boasted $18.7 and $14 billion in respective investments as well as over a hundred thousand jobs each.
Government incentives may play a part in this spectacular growth, but demand is also high for renewable energy. In American, 3 in 4 citizens want to reduce pollution, 71% think clean energy should be a priority, and nearly half of consumers would pay more per month in energy bills if it meant they got their electricity from a sustainable source. Their main reasons for supporting clean energy are wanting to provide a better life for future generations and acknowledging that sustainable energy is less harmful to people’s health.
The main problem renewable energy companies will need to solve before they can meet demand is their battery. As of 2019, less than 5% of behind-the-meter solar systems included a battery. Both wind and solar are intermittent in that both can only generate electricity under certain conditions. Electricity usage happens in any circumstance, so power needs to be stored for when it’s needed. The current system of net metering (in which residential solar users sell excess power to their utility company) is set to end soon in the US. Without batteries or net metering, residential solar will become less financially attractive across the nation.
RIght now, batteries of all stripes fall under the category of lithium-ion. Invented in 1912, lithium-ion batteries have not changed much over the past century. By next year, lithium-ion batteries are expected to fuel 61% of demand for renewable energy. Unfortunately, this class of batteries has several limitations preventing it from being a sustainable choice. Lithium-ion batteries degrade over time and quickly lose storage capacity. Their material extraction, production, and disposal can cause toxic water contamination. Also, their recycling process is difficult and costly due to variance in materials. The point of switching to renewable energy is to decrease pollution, not perpetuate it. While lithium-ion batteries are still the best available choice for mobile applications, companies should consider other options for long duration, energy intensive, stationary applications like solar and wind systems.
https://m.miningweekly.com/article/de-ruyter-backs-call-for-lifting-of-licensing-cap-on-embedded-generators-to-50-mw-2021-02-02
Eskom CEO Andre de Ruyter says the State-owned utility is fully supportive of moves by large customers to develop embedded generation plants to power their operations, as well as growing calls to lift the licensing threshold from 1 MW to 50 MW so as to accelerate these investments.
South Africa, he told participants in an ENSafrica webinar on Tuesday, faced an ongoing supply crunch that could not be closed by the procurement of 13 800 MW of new utility scale capacity alone, as catered for by the Ministerial determinations gazetted to unlock investments in line with the Integrated Resource Plan...
https://www.miningmx.com
THE mining industry is critical to the world’s transition to a low carbon future but it is highly under-capitalised because of a “deficit of trust” with general investors and faces the risk of not being able to meet future demand for critical “green minerals”.
Those are some of the findings of the 2021 edition of Deloitte’s ‘Tracking the Trends’ report on the global mining industry which said the industry was at an important juncture.
The report singled out “poorly performing transactions” resulting from “richly priced M&A (merger and acquisition) transactions that failed to deliver” during the last mining boom as one of the key issues.
It said “small and mid-sized miners on the hunt for capital have often struggled. This is doing more than obstructing market activity; it’s also leading to a limited pipeline of new projects being developed and put into production”.
Turning to the likely demand for the various green metals, the report said that ramping up renewable energy generation was bound to increase demand for nickel, cobalt, lithium, heavy rare earths, and copper.
“That list would further include graphite and manganese if lithium-ion batteries win the race for supremacy of the EV (electric vehicle) market,” it said. “Redox flow batteries – just one proposed alternative to lithium-ion batteries in stationary energy storage applications – would require a greater supply of vanadium and zinc.
“Conversely, if hydrogen fuel cells gain greater traction, demand for platinum seems likely to spike”.
According to Deloitte Consulting MD, Richard Longstaff, “… while there could potentially be dozens of minerals considered critical for the future, no one wants to take the risk of losing access to the commodities they deem essential. We’re already seeing a worldwide scramble by governments, state entities, and original equipment manufacturers to lock in supply”.
He cited agreements between Tesla and battery maker Samsung SDI to secure cobalt supply from Glencore and Tesla’s move to secure lithium mining rights in Nevada as examples.
The report highlighted a potential supply shortage in nickel because most nickel produced by the mining industry is destined for steel production and does not have the quality or correct chemical form to be used in batteries. Global demand for battery-grade nickel could rise 10 to 20 fold by 2030.
It pointed out that “… the production process is sufficiently different that miners cannot simply switch from producing lower-quality class two nickel to the higher quality class one nickel required for battery applications. There is currently little incentive to switch as battery makers now consume only 5% of global nickel output.
“While the industry could arguably meet this demand few mining companies may be prepared to assume the investment risk associated with building up significant capacity before it becomes clearer that the demand will materialise.”
https://www.argusmedia.com/en/news/2182438-chinas-pangang-rolls-over-weekly-vanadium-guide-prices
Chinese state-controlled vanadium producer Panzhihua Iron and Steel (Pangang) rolled over its weekly guide prices today on limited market activity, after it raised its reference price on 25 January on higher buying interest from steel mills.
The company's guide prices were unchanged at 106,000 yuan/t ($32.82/kg) for 50pc ferro-vanadium and Yn156,000/t for 77pc vanadium, 16pc nitrogen grade alloy.
Pangang launched weekly guide prices on 1 August 2016 to stabilise the market. The company adjusts its prices on Monday or Thursday depending on spot market conditions.
Argus assessed prices for 50pc grade alloy at Yn99,000-102,000/t ex-works today, unchanged from 25 January in line with stable pentoxide flake feedstock costs and unchanged offer prices from suppliers on limited demand from the steel sector.
Spot prices for vanadium-nitrogen alloy were stable at Yn148,000-150,000/t ex-works today given limited demand from steel mills and unchanged flake feedstock costs.
A Shaanxi-based vanadium-nitrogen alloy producer has maintained its offer prices in recent days in view of limited spot activity after many steel mills replenished sufficient alloy feedstock inventories in the last few weeks.
Pangang, with an output capacity of 40,000 t/yr, is forecast to produce 42,000t of vanadium in 2020, up by 2.44pc from 41,000t in 2019. China is expected to produce 135,000t of vanadium pentoxide equivalent in 2020, up by 7.48pc from 125,600t in 2019.
And another one;
https://www.cityam.com/renewables-firm-next-energy-set-for-london-ipo/
Renewables firm Next Energy has this morning announced that it will list on London’s main market.
The company is seeking to raise £300m at an issue price of £1 per share.
Founded in 2007, the investment company has around $2.3 in assets under management around the world.
It invests both in established renewable energy sources and new developments such as hydrogen and battery storage.
It has already set up a fund to focus on operating and new-build solar developments , with a target size of $750m.
Next Energy is targeting returns at a rate of 9-11 per cent per year, with an initial target dividend of 5.5p.
The firm intends to publish a full proposal for the IPO in February.
Chair Anne Wade said: “It gives me great pleasure to announce Next Energy Renewables Limited’s intention to float on the London Stock Exchange with an IPO which we believe offers a truly unique investment opportunity for the renewable and transition energy investment market.
“The Next Energy Renewables fund will provide the opportunity to immediately invest through our seed funding into the NextPower III ESG fund, which has a significant portfolio of international solar assets, and in time look to further diversify the portfolio through investment into both private platforms and direct investment through co-invested opportunities.”
https://www.tivysideadvertiser.co.uk/news/19042321.new-bid-tackle-agricultural-pollution-rivers-teifi/
NEW regulations to tackle agricultural pollution in Wales have been announced by Welsh Government to protect the health of Wales’ rivers such as the Teifi, lakes and streams.
The move comes as agricultural pollution incidents - which are widely accepted as being detrimental to human health, wildlife and tourism opportunities - remain very high, averaging over three per week in the past three years.
Some of these have led to the contamination of drinking water sources and the destruction of plant and aquatic life in parts of Wales’ waterways...
https://m.solarbe.com/21-0-334442-1.html
2021 is the first year that China embarks on the "carbon neutral" journey, and the construction of the domestic "carbon neutral" park has also taken the first step. On the morning of January 28th, China’s first renewable energy "carbon neutral" smart park certification ceremony was held in Xinjiang Goldwind Science and Technology Co., Ltd. Yizhuang Smart Park. Beijing Green Exchange awarded Goldwind Science and Technology Yizhuang Smart Park And certificates.
It is reported that the ecosystem of the Goldwind Yizhuang Smart Park integrates renewable energy, smart micro-grid, smart water, green agriculture, and sports health. By deploying 4.8MW decentralized wind power, 1.3MW distributed photovoltaic and vanadium flow, lithium batteries, supercapacitors and other forms of smart microgrid for energy storage, it will achieve 50% of clean energy in 2020; and through purchase China Certified Emission Reduction (CCER), offset all greenhouse gases emitted in the park.
This carbon neutral certification was conducted by a third-party certification body authorized by the China National Accreditation Service for Conformity Assessment (CNAS) to verify greenhouse gas emissions in the park in accordance with the ISO14064-1:2006 standard. According to the verification report, on the basis that the park’s self-generated electricity consumption in 2020 is not included in the carbon verification scope, the total greenhouse gas emissions generated by all other production and operation activities related to greenhouse gas emissions are approximately 11,937 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent. Carbon neutral.
In 2020, General Secretary Xi Jinping announced to the world twice at the UN General Assembly and Climate Ambition Summit: China will increase its nationally determined contribution, strive to reach the peak of carbon dioxide emissions by 2030, and strive to achieve carbon neutrality by 2060; 2020 The Central Economic Work Conference in 2016 also listed carbon peaking and carbon neutrality as one of the eight key tasks in 2021.
From the perspective of the emission reduction roadmap, it is only 30 years for my country’s carbon emissions from peaking to achieving neutralization, that is, net zero emissions. This also means that my country’s energy consumption and economic transformation, as well as the speed and intensity of greenhouse gas emission reduction, are compared to those of advanced The country is much faster and much bigger. According to estimates, after 2030, my country's annual carbon dioxide emission reduction will reach an average of 8% to 10%, far exceeding the speed and intensity of emissions reduction in developed countries.
https://seekingalpha.com/article/4401915-vanadium-miners-news-for-month-of-january-2021
Europe vanadium pentoxide spot prices were significantly higher in January.
Vanadium market news - Batteries based on vanadium or zinc bromide represent the cutting edge of redox flow storage tech.
Welcome to Vanadium miners news. January saw improving vanadium prices and some excellent results and interesting news from both the vanadium producers and the vanadium juniors. Hopefully 2021 will be the year that energy storage, and hence VRFBs, come into the spotlight as President Biden plans to get the US electricity grid to 100% carbon-free by 2035.
Alliance News) - Foresight Solar Fund Ltd on Thursday said it will seek shareholder approval to amend its investment policy to allow it to put money into battery storage systems.
The company has convened a general meeting, to be held February 15, where it will request shareholder approval for amending its investment policy and allowing as much as 10% of gross asset value at time on investment to be invest in utility-scale battery storage systems. Most of these will be located adjacent to Foresight's solar farms.
Since its October 2013 launch, the company has acquired 58 ground based solar plants, of which 50 are in the UK, and has paid all target dividends so far.
Foresight Solar Fund highlighted that since launch, renewable technology markets have "experienced a continuous period of growth" thanks to worldwide decarbonisation efforts and falling solar installation costs.
Benefits of the proposed change, according to Foresight Solar Fund, include that it will "provide increased scale, diversification and operating efficiencies to the company's portfolio" as well as providing attractive returns from battery storage system assets on a risk adjusted basis, supporting the firm's dividend policy.
Moreover, the change would let Foresight Solar Fund keep deploying funds in its core UK market through battery storage system acquisitions where possible without needing to take part in "competitive third-party sales processes".
This would broaden the base of the firm's renewable technologies, giving "access to asset level distributions within a short-period following investments". This period is usually between six and nine months for assets under construction.
Only one movement today on Asianmetal
Vanadium Pentoxide Flake 98% min EXW China +0.52% ??
https://www.aumanufacturing.com.au/redox-flow-giant-battery-a-triumph-and-tragedy-for-australia
South Australia, not content with having led the world when it installed the first grid-scale lithium ion battery is doing it again – this time installing the world’s largest vanadium redox flow battery.
But the installation of an 8 MWh vanadium redox flow battery (VFB) by Yadlamalka Energy Trust is both a triumph and tragedy for Australia.
The batteries use a different chemistry to lithium ion batteries, storing energy as free ions in an electrolyte rather than through repeated chemical reactions that lead to lithium battery degradation.
Developed by Professor Maria Skyllas-Kazacos at the University of New South Wales in the 1980s, the batteries do not degrade with the electrolyte reusable indefinitely.
Australia does have a position in the VFB value chain, with Australian Vanadium Ltd producing electrolyte in Perth and moving to develop a battery production system.
However our one advanced ASX listed battery manufacturer, Redflow, decided to make its batteries overseas.
So now we have an Australian business Yadlamalka Energy Trust installing a world-first battery supported by the country’s most renewably savvy state.
However the battery itself is being supplied by British-American manufacturer Invinity Energy Systems.
The $20 million installation is even being supported by the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to the tune of $5.7 million.
In short yet another great Australian technology supported in various ways over years by the Australian taxpayer where the bulk of the benefits are going to flow overseas (no pun intended).
If this installation is a success, as the Tesla big battery was, manufacturing will mostly occur overseas or profits go to foreign shareholders.
How many times are we going to let this happen?
When are we going to seriously reform our country’s innovation system which develops technology only to be commercialised by others?
When are we going to seriously reform our financial markets which are happy to pour money into construction and mining but shun technology and manufacturing?
The analysts said they do not believe the spinoff will have any strong fundamental impact given that the coal business is not a part of Evraz's profit and loss basis. They added that, due to falling steel prices globally, any positive sentiment from the deal may be short-lived.
Evraz has steelmaking, mining and vanadium operations in Russia, the US, Canada, the Czech Republic and Kazakhstan.
In Russia, long-rolled construction products comprise up to two-thirds of its finished steel output, with railway products making up a quarter.
In North America, tubular products represent roughly a third of the company's overall production, and flat-rolled steel and railway products just over 20% each.
https://www.spglobal.com/platts/en/market-insights/topics/2020-us-elections
London — Russian mining and steel company Evraz is considering spinning off its coal business and is in the process of assessing the strategic merits of a potential demerger and its possible structures, the company said in a statement.
The move, creating a purely steel business, would likely be a positive for the company in terms of environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns, analysts at Moscow-based investment bank VTB Capital said Jan. 27.
On Jan. 26, the company's board gave approval for Evraz to consider the move, which it said might have the potential to maximize long-term value for shareholders.
At this stage, there is no commitment that the demerger will be undertaken, and the company has provided no timing for the final decision and potential completion of any deal.
A demerger would allow Evraz to focus on developing its steel operations and establish its coal business, currently consolidated under Raspadskaya, as an independent leading regional producer of high-quality metallurgical coal, it said.
If undertaken, the move would be subject to regulatory, shareholder and other third-party approvals.
Evraz started optimizing the structure of its two coking coal assets under public company Raspadskaya (90.9% owned by Evraz) in November 2020. That envisaged Raspadskaya acquiring Yuzhkuzbassugol from Evraz, and the shares were transferred by the end of 2020.
The merged company has eight underground mines, two open pits and three washing plants in the Kemerovo region in the Kuzbass Basin and in the Tyva Republic, with a combined 1.9 billion mt of coking coal reserves and saleable output of 13.5 million mt in 2020.
Optimizing structure
Optimizing the structure of the coal assets would be a prerequisite for the potential demerger of the company's coal business, according to analysts at VTB.
"There is no final decision on the deal and no structure has been announced, so it is impossible to assess the fundamental effect on Evraz's equity value," they said.
There might be some focus on the security of coking coal supply after the potential demerger, but it should primarily improve the company's ESG positioning, according to VTB.
Analysts from Moscow-based BCS Investment Group said that, although Evraz has coal presence, which is a "no-go" for some investors, they do not see demerging as a major positive.
BCS analysts see the sale of Raspadskaya as the most viable option, and value its assets at $1.4-1.6 billion, noting their estimate represents 12%-13% of the current Evraz's enterprise value.
"After the deal, the company's coal integration will fall from 239% to zero with iron ore integration remaining at 79%," they said.
Have we heard anything regarding the Orion loan note conversion, could this be anything to do with recent fluctuations?
They have been busy;
http://m.bjx.com.cn/mnews/20210120/1130828.shtml
Two land-based grid-friendly wind farms + all-vanadium liquid flow energy storage supporting projects in Dalian are connected to the grid..
The windmill stands on the mountain with a height of 90 meters and an impeller diameter of 145 meters. It is tall, majestic and spectacular. In the northern areas of Wafangdian and Pulandian, these giant windmills have become a new urban landscape. When the strong wind drives the windmill to rotate, the wind energy is converted into electrical energy through the power generation device, stored in the all-vanadium liquid flow energy storage system, and then continuously delivered to thousands of households.
Recently, two grid-source-friendly wind farm demonstration projects of 100 MW in Wafangdian Zhenhai and 98.8 MW in Wafangdian Tuoshan have achieved full-capacity grid-connected power generation. The Dalian onshore wind power project was officially put into operation, marked with Dalian Power The structure was further enriched and optimized, and the development of renewable energy reached a new level.
The Wafangdian Zhenhai Net Source-friendly Wind Farm Demonstration Project was invested and constructed by Datang (Dalian) New Energy Co., Ltd. 46 wind turbines are designed and installed, including 40 2.2 MW wind turbines, totaling 88 MW; 6 2.0 MW wind turbines totaling 12 MW, with a total installed capacity of 100 MW. On December 18, 2020, the project achieved full capacity grid-connected power generation.
The Wafangdian Tuoshan Net Source-friendly Wind Farm Demonstration Project was invested and constructed by China Power Investment Corporation Northeast New Energy (Dalian) Tuoshan Wind Power Co., Ltd. A total of 31 Mingyang wind turbines were installed, with a total installed capacity of 98.8 MW. On December 31, 2020, the project achieved full capacity grid-connected power generation.
So far, two of the three grid-source-friendly wind power projects planned and constructed in Dalian have been put into production. The Pulandian Lejia 100MW grid-friendly wind farm demonstration project under construction has completed the hoisting of the first wind turbine. The grid-source-friendly wind farm adopts the complementary wind storage model, and the all-vanadium liquid flow energy storage system is built at the same time as the wind farm construction, which can effectively improve the consumption of renewable energy power.
The Dalian area has abundant land and sea wind energy resources. The grid-source-friendly wind farm can effectively use wind energy resources, increase the proportion of clean energy in Dalian, and promote local economic development. It has obvious economic, environmental and social benefits.
Chrome it;
http://mchuneng.bjx.com.cn/mnews/20210125/1132014.shtml
In the workshop of more than 4,000 square meters, there are about 5 meters high and 40 round metal cans arranged on both sides. Xie Guangguo, chairman of Pingfan Ruifeng Company, said that this is a vanadium electrolyte storage tank, and each tank can hold about 30 cubic meters of vanadium electrolyte. A 3-layer blue vanadium flow battery pack is installed next to the storage tank, and the battery packs are connected by pipes as thick as a baby's arm...
https://www.dw.com/en/eu-pins-hope-on-norway-raw-materials-discovery/a-56343829
Norway has discovered a huge deposit of rare earth minerals. It's hoped that this can make the EU less dependent on China and Russia and boost the bloc's energy transition. DW's Mikhail Bushuev has this exclusive report:..
https://www.energylivenews.com/2021/01/25/water-companies-pledge-to-provide-real-time-data-on-sewage-overflows/
The water industry has made new commitments to increase transparency and provide real-time data about the releases of sewage into rivers and inland waterways during and after periods of heavy rainfall.
The Storm Overflows Taskforce – made up of Defra, the Environment Agency, Ofwat, Consumer Council for Water, Blueprint for Water and Water UK – has agreed to set a long term goal to eliminate harm from storm overflows as part of efforts to tackle river pollution.
Water companies have also pledged to increase transparency around when and how storm overflows are used, following recommendations from the Taskforce.
Storm overflows were designed to be used during extreme weather to prevent sewers becoming overloaded with a combination of sewage and rainwater, releasing diluted wastewater into rivers rather than letting it back up into people’s homes.
However climate change has led to increased rainfall and water infrastructure has not kept pace with development growth over decades.
Water companies will make data available on sewage discharges at bathing sites all year around, meaning surfers, swimmers and other water users can check the latest information, especially after heavy rainfall.
They will also accelerate work to install monitoring devices to create a complete picture of their activity by 2023.
In addition, the Taskforce has agreed with water companies to publish annual monitoring data on their websites about their use of storm overflows so progress in reducing their use can be tracked.
Since 2010, 884 storm overflows have been improved to reduce their environmental impact and frequency of operation, with a further 798 improvements planned to take place by 2025.
MP for Ludlow Philip Dunne, who introduced the Sewage (Inland Waters) Bill to Parliament last year said: “I have been shocked to discover the extent of sewage routinely spilled in our rivers. Poor water quality has a very damaging impact on aquatic species which depend on clean rivers and risks healthy enjoyment of our rivers by the public.
“I am really pleased this government has recognised that this has got to change. I am delighted the Minister has responded so quickly to COVID restrictions interrupting progress of my Private Members Bill by agreeing to work with me to develop measures to improve water quality across England.”