As a result of the implementation of energy saving measures in all sectors of the economy, as well as the contribution of all debtors, 6,167 GWh of energy were saved in Bulgaria for the period 2014-2018. In doing so, the country has met 74.1% of its national energy savings target by 2020. This is recorded in the annual implementation report for 2018 of the National Energy Efficiency Action Plan 2014-2020, approved by the Council of Ministers. The report contains basic statistical information, analyzes on the state and trends of energy efficiency at national level in 2017 - the last year for which official statistics are available. The various sectors of the economy are examined, reflecting changes in the main indicators - gross value added, energy consumption and energy intensity. The annual report analyzes the implementation of individual energy savings targets for building owners and industrial systems, as well as the implementation of energy efficiency measures by energy traders.   Source： https://www.novinite.com/articles/201165/Bulgaria+Has+Met+74+of+its+National+Energy+Savings+Target+by+2020.

Revolta Egypt, a developer of electric vehicle (EV) charging stations and related projects, is planning to launch the first EV manufacturing factory and maintenance centre in the country. Revolta has tied up with Ukrainian firm Eco Factory to set up the factory by end of 2019, Ezz El Din Ibrahim, board member and Head of Business Development at Revolta Egypt, told Zawya. Eco Factory is an engineering company that specialises in manufacturing commercial vehicles as well as storage devices and control systems for EVs. “The factory will be launched by the end of 2019 in a facility that covers more than 10,000 sq m on 6th of October [a city in Giza]. It will manufacture all the charging station accessories needed for EVs,” Ibrahim said. REVOLTA’S SOLAR PLANT Revolta is also looking for funding for a solar plant to power its solutions for the country’s transportation sector. “Revolta plans to install a 5 MW solar plant in Egypt’s Ain Sokhna, in cooperation with a Chinese company,” Ibrahim said. “The company seeks to get the EGP 100 million funding from EFG Hermes, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and other international financial institutions that are interested in green energy projects.” “To date, we have established 25 charging points in Shell-authorized retailers and distribution centers, and we plan to reach 50 charging points by 2019-end,” Ibrahim added..     Source：https://energyegypt.net/revolta-to-set-up-egypts-first-ev-manufacturing-maintenance-facility/

Oil prices rose on Monday after the United States and China both suggested they could ease up in a trade war that has undermined the outlook for the global economy and crude demand. Brent was up 56 cents, or 0.9%, at $59.90 a barrel by 0950 GMT, while U.S. oil was up 66 cents, or 1.2%, at $54.83 a barrel. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday he believed China was seeking a trade deal after he said Beijing contacted U.S. officials overnight to say it wanted a return to talks. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said he had not heard about a phone call between the two sides. China’s top negotiator, Vice Premier Liu He, had earlier said Beijing was willing to solve the impasse through “calm” negotiations and opposed an escalation. Concerns for the global economy have increased as trade tensions between Beijing and Washington mounted in recent days. China’s Commerce Ministry said last week it would impose additional tariffs of 5% or 10% on a total of 5,078 products originating from the United States, including crude oil, agricultural products and small aircraft. In retaliation, Trump said he was ordering U.S. companies to look at ways to close operations in China and make products in the United States. SEB analyst Bjarne Schieldrop said the oil market was worried about “the secondary global growth effects of an upwards spiraling trade war between China and the U.S.” “The second concern for the oil market is that ... China is now ready to wrestle with the US in the global space of oil”. Investors were also left guessing about whether interest rates in the United States might be cut soon. U.S. Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell told a symposium the U.S. economy was in a “favorable place” and the Federal Reserve would “act as appropriate” to keep the economic expansion on track. But concerns about a possible recession were exacerbated by data showing U.S. manufacturing industries registered their first month of contraction in almost a decade. The Brent/WTI spread was at minus $5.26, after widening 60 cents to settle at minus $5.17 on Friday. The spread blew out after China included U.S. oil in its tariff moves. U.S. energy companies cut the most oil rigs in about four months last week, with the rig count falling to the lowest since January 2018, as producers cut spending on new drilling and completions.     Source：https://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/business/oil-down-nearly-2-as-trade-war-shakes-confidence-11841948

The Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources is preparing to drill two new wells in the Mediterranean fields of Atoll and Katameya in the North Damietta offshore concession in the East Nile Delta, with about $289 million in investments, Egypt Oil & Gas reports. The plan is to begin production from the two new wells by next year, which will help raise the production of the Atoll field by around 100 million standard cubic feet per day (mscf/d), and start production in the Katameya field at a rate of 60 mscf/d. Atoll’s fourth well is set to be completed by Q1 2020, as shown by the financial results of the Pharaonic Petroleum Company (PhPC) for 2018/19, which were presented by the company’s head, Hassan Abady to the Ministry of Petroleum, according to a ministry statement. Currently, Atoll is producing nearly 300 mscf/d of natural gas and 9,000 barrels per day (b/d) of condensates from three wells. Meanwhile, the Katameya field will come online, producing its first gas, in Q2 2020. It is worth noting that PhPC is a joint venture (JV) between BP and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS). During fiscal year (FY) 2018/19, PhPC has registered a daily production rate of 525 mscf/d of gas and 10,000 b/d of condensates from in the Mediterranean Sea fields, as per by the company’s records. The results reflect successful production increasing strategies while cutting production costs and reducing the natural decline in production rates to its minimum level. PhPC has also shown an outstanding record in health, safety, and environment (HSE) standards by completing a combined 18 million hours of work across the Mediterranean gas fields and production facilities. Egypt plans to increase natural gas output by 11.8% by the end of 2019, supported by the production of Mediterranean fields led by Zohr, in order to raise the level of imports, thus strengthening its position as a center for natural gas trade and a regional energy hub.     Source：https://egyptoil-gas.com/news/egypt-to-drill-two-new-gas-wells-in-north-damietta/

A draft law covering Spain’s approach to climate change and the transition from fossil fuels to clean energy is expected to reach Congress before the year is out. But the Ministry for Environmental Transition has already informed the country’s political parties of some of the key elements of this legislation. And among the proposals is a 2040 ban on the sale of all vehicles that use fossil fuels, whether they be powered by gasoline, diesel or natural gas. What’s more, in 2050 the government hopes to be working with local councils to prohibit the circulation of such vehicles, and is also proposing the obligatory installation of electric charging points in gas stations. Transportation in Spain – and in most of the European Union – is the straggler when it comes to the fight against climate change. While the use of renewable energy continues to grow in the power sector – with a realistic target of 100% of electricity coming from clean sources in the future – road transportation is not progressing at the same speed in the fight against climate change. Just over a quarter of all greenhouse gases emitted in Spain are from the transportation sector, and most of those come from the roads. Forecasts from the government suggest that if measures are not taken, these emissions will grow 15% from here to 2030. In the draft text presented on Tuesday, the 2040 ban on “passenger and light commercial vehicles with direct emissions of carbon dioxide” would also mean an end to the sale of hybrids, which also burn gasoline or diesel. This kind of veto has already been announced in other EU countries, such as the United Kingdom and France, which have also set a target date of 2040, and Denmark, Ireland, Germany and the Netherlands, which have set a date of 2030. The ministry’s proposal also includes measures that would see municipalities with more than 50,000 people have low-emission zones installed “no later than 2023.” The law, which also sets a 20% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels) will have to be negotiated in Congress, and given that the Socialist Party (PSOE) is governing in a minority, the process may take a long time as the government seeks cross-party support. The PSOE and the left-wing anti-austerity party Podemos have already created a work group in Congress, and the rest of the political parties received the draft document several days ago. The ministry claims that its objectives are very ambitious and go further than what has been demanded by the European Commission (EC). Among the measures in the draft is a plan to ban hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, a controversial process used to extract oil and gas from the ground by fracturing rock using pressurized liquid. What’s more, once the law comes into force the government will no longer issue new permissions for the prospecting and exploitation of hydrocarbons, neither on land nor at sea. Current licenses will not be valid from 2040 onward. The climate change law will be completed with the so-called Energy and Climate Plan, which Spain will have to present to Brussels in December. This plan will set out the energy sources that the country will count on over the next decade. For example, whether it will count on coal, nuclear or natural gas for its energy needs. This document is still being drawn up, but in the draft climate change law there are measures to encourage the use of renewables. Between 2020 and 2030, a total of 3,000 megawatts will have to be installed every year. Currently, the country counts on 48,000 megawatts, and in 2017 this clean technology generated 32% of all the electricity in Spain.     Source: El Pais https://elpais.com/elpais/2018/11/13/inenglish/1542118484_563478.html

Power Division has issued an official order to all the six power distribution utilities of the country, asking each of them to purchase rooftop solar power from at least 20 consumers within next three months under net metering system, reports UNB. The six distribution utilities are power Development Board (PDB), Rural Electrification Board (REB), Dhaka Power Distribution Company Ltd (DPDC), Dhaka Electric Supply Company (Desco), West Zone Power Distribution Company Ltd. (WZPDC) and North West Zone Power Distribution Company Limited (Nesco). According to official sources, the Power Division's renewable energy desk issued the order last week. "We have already received the Power Division order and started planning to implement it," WZPDC managing director Md Shafique Uddin told the news agency. He noted that now NWPDC will find out 20 potential consumers from within its command area in the next three months. On July 28, the Power Division unveiled "Net Metering Guideline 2018" in order to buy rooftop solar power from consumers. Under the proposed system, any consumer can set up rooftop solar system covering up to 70 per cent capacity of the sanctioned load and sell the additional or unconsumed solar power after meeting his/her demand through an exchange arrangement by a special meter. The idea is that the consumers will use their own solar power alongside the grid. But on holidays when solar power is not used, the consumers can sell it to the national grid. Even, on the working days, they can preserve their solar power to grid and sell it to his power supplying company or take it back for its own consumptions. After end of the month, bills will be adjusted on the basis of consumption and sale of solar power to the utilities and the consumer will get payment from the distribution company at bulk rate if his sale overruns the consumption. Unveiling this guideline, Power Secretary Dr Ahmed Kaikaus announced that each of the distribution companies must buy solar power from at least 20 consumers. It will be treated as a key target under their annual performance agreement (APA) signed with the ministry. Power Cell Director Md Abdur Rouf, who was involved in framing the guideline, said there is no lower limit of a consumer's solar capacity. But the upper limit of the capacity is three megawatt. He said the order on rooftop solar came as a follow-up of the Power Division's decision to buy rooftop solar power as part of its move to promote renewable energy across the country. Power Cell officials believe the government will be able to buy about 10-12 MW power from rooftop consumers as many large consumers like industries, apartment complex, shopping malls and hotels have already set up rooftop solar power plants for their own consumptions as part of the government policy.

South Africa’s green economy is partly driven by the country’s utility-scale Renewable Energy Independent Power Production Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), and is leading the way in some areas. According to Moody’s, South Africa had the fastest growing green economy in the world in 2015. However, globally renewable energy (RE) has gained momentum, with a significant rise in the uptake of various RE technologies such as solar photovoltaics (PV), wind energy, biogas and other biofuels, hydroelectricity, landfill gas, geothermal energy, and concentrated solar power (CSP). The key drivers of this global shift are also what are powering and providing a great deal of momentum to the evolution of South Africa’s energy sector: ■ Government policy support and procurement programmes; ■ Sustainability and energy security concerns; ■ Cheaper renewable energy technologies; and  conventional/ traditional electricity becoming more expensive.   Green energy capacity targets in South Africa South Africa planned to install 3.7GW of renewable energy by 2020, including 1.8GW of wind power under its Renewable Energy Independent Power Producer Procurement Programme (REIPPPP), and it is already over halfway there. Solar power is also doing very well. The programme has been successful in drawing investment into the sector, having attracted R193bn ($13.7bn) of private money so far. The total put South Africa in the top 10 countries for renewables investment in 2014. It has also been helped by the plunging prices of renewable energy over the same time. Both wind and solar can now sell energy to the grid at prices below that of coal power, gradually changing the coal-intense mix. The 2020 target is therefore being revised up. It stands at 7GW now and is set to move higher when a new Integrated Energy Plan is published. However, the new targets have not yet been finalised. South Africa has some way to go to reach its old 2030 target of 17.8GW4 which is estimated to account for 20% of its capacity in 2030. Following exponential recent growth in renewable capacity, the new 2030 target is expected to be significantly more ambitious. New 2050 capacity is envisioned at around 50GW for solar, 25GW for wind and 1GW for biomass, out of a total of around 140GW (depending on the scenario used).   Market opportunities Specifically solar PV and wind energy capacity are the dominant technologies and demonstrates significant market opportunity. This is presented in the Figures below, using historic procurement it is assumed that an average procurement per year is 670 MWp and 450 MWp for wind and solar PV respectively.  

Utility Iberdrola has announced a plan to expand its portfolio of renewable energy in Spain. The energy provider plans to expand its renewable energy portfolio by 52% from the current capacity by 2022 by investing up to 8 billion euros. Iberdrola will install an additional 3,000MW of wind and solar energy by 2022 and 10,000MW by 2030. The projects are expected to create 20,000 jobs. To date, the utility has up to 5,770MW of renewable energy capacity in Spain Recently, Iberdrola has filed proposals for the development of four renewable energy projects which will be integrated with energy storage technologies. The solar energy projects will add up to 250MW to the company's clean energy portfolio and will be developed in Castilla-La Mancha. This brings the total to over 2,200MW of renewables under construction or awaiting approval in Spain. Worldwide, Iberdrola's installed renewable capacity is over 30,300 MW, making its generation capability one of the cleanest in the energy sector.     Source：https://www.smart-energy.com/news/iberdrola-announces-8-billion-euros-clean-energy-plan/