Argentina says Chinese miner latest to bet big on lithium riches

Reuters | May 31, 2023 |

Salt flat in Argentina. Stock image.

Chinese miner Tibet Summit Resources will invest $1.7 billion to develop two lithium projects in Argentina, the economy ministry said on Wednesday, as the South American country eyes burgeoning demand for the metal used in rechargeable batteries.


The projects in the Arizaro and Diablillos salt flats in Salta province are expected to produce 50,000-100,000 tonnes of lithium, the ministry noted in a statement, without elaborating or saying when they would come online.

Tibet Summit did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Argentina is the world’s fourth largest producer of lithium, an ultra-light metal in high demand from makers of electric vehicles.

“We want a mining industry that takes advantage of our resources and generates added value and employment,” said Economy Minister Sergio Massa in the statement.

Massa is visiting China, where he met with executives from Tibet Summit.

Last year, Argentina exported around 40,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate, a processed product used in lithium-ion batteries. The country’s growing lithium sector expects to triple shipments in the next few years.

The growth is expected largely due to two lithium projects ramping up production in Jujuy province in Argentina’s arid northwest. One is operated by US-based Livent Corp in Catamarca province and the other by Australia’s Allkem.

The two companies expect to double their current output to about 42,500 tonnes of lithium carbonate each in the next few years, government data show.

Another major lithium project, Cauchari-Olaroz, is expected to come online in June, operated by local firm Exar, which is run by Canada’s Lithium Americas Corp, China’s Ganfeng Lithium and state producer JEMSE.

Exar expects to ramp up lithium carbonate production to around 40,000 tonnes annually beginning next year.

(By Lucila Sigal; Editing by David Alire Garcia and Richard Chang)

Argentina's Vaca Muerta Shale Play Could Produce 1 Million Bpd In 2030

By Rystad Energy - May 31, 2023,

• Crude oil production from Argentina’s burgeoning shale patch, Vaca Muerta, could surge in the coming years and top 1 million barrels per day by the end of the decade.
• 
  
• Lack of takeaway capacity and rig availability could curb production growth.
• 
  
• As of February 20223, Vaca Muerta’s gross oil production reached 291,000 bpd, an annual addition of 76,000 bpd.

Crude oil production from Argentina’s burgeoning shale patch, Vaca Muerta, could surge in the coming years and top 1 million barrels per day (bpd) by the end of the decade – but only if takeaway capacity and rig availability do not limit growth. Rystad Energy’s modeling shows that if production is relatively unimpeded, oil output could realistically grow from 291,000 bpd in February 2023 to more than 1 million bpd in the second half of 2030.

The forecast growth could lift Vaca Muerta’s profile and position it as a leading source of shale production, alongside the likes of the Bakken or Eagle Ford developments, two of the US’ world-class shale basins. It would also help the Neuquen region become a net oil exporter, potentially contributing $20 billion in total revenue by 2030. Crude exports could be making their way to South American neighbors Brazil, Chile and Peru, as well as the US and Europe.

Still, big question marks remain, which could potentially alter our long-term growth outlook. Takeaway capacity constraints linger, and rig availability remains an ongoing concern. The learning curve for operators in the basin has been steep, and they will need to continue this trend to maximize their production potential. If all industry participants work together to address these constraints before they become critical, output could top 1 million bpd sooner rather than later. 

“Vaca Muerta could hold the key to Argentina’s future energy economy following more than a decade of oil production declines. While major challenges lie ahead, reaching the important 1 million barrels per day threshold would change the country’s narrative, reduce its reliance on imports and become a key regional and global oil market player,” says Alexandre Ramos Peon, head of shale research at Rystad Energy.

State of the play

As of February, Vaca Muerta’s gross oil production reached 291,000 bpd, an annual addition of 76,000 bpd. Production from majors – Shell, Chevron, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies – increased by 62% in 2022 compared to 2021, followed by other local and international players and YPF, the nation’s state-run giant. Gas output from other local and international players (excluding Tecpetrol) and YPF grew 63% and 43%, respectively, followed by majors and Tecpetrol. In February, daily gas output rose to 1.84 Bcfd (billion cubic feet per day), 15% more than the same month in 2022.

Vaca Muerta's production growth is impressive but not extraordinary, considering it remains a relatively young development. Significant regional developments started just a few years ago and accelerated in 2021 as the industry recovered from the Covid-19 pandemic.

Path to 1 million bpd

Rystad Energy has modeled a theoretical scenario based on existing trends and technologies to forecast total oil production from the shale patch until the end of 2030. In this scenario, we assume new wells that start production from now onwards have the same performance per foot as the average completed and put-on-production (POP) in 2021-2022; oil production from gas wells is negligible; capital re-investment is assured until 2030; linear growth in POP activity in 2023 and onwards. For the operators, we assumed that they adopt two-mile laterals gradually within the next three years. Finally, we considered no downturns in the oil industry, global pandemics, significant macroeconomic changes or political unrest in Argentina until 2030. 

While concerns around growth persist, there are no issues with the quality of Vaca Muerta’s shale oil or its capacity to produce hydrocarbons at scale (after proper stimulation). Its shale is distinguished by its high pressures and substantial thickness. Its oil yield per foot is demonstrably superior to similar horizontal wells in major US shale plays.

Since the development of the play is relatively new, operators needed a period to adapt and find the ‘sweet spots’ when drilling and completing wells. For instance, Vaca Muerta operators have adopted US shale's proppant intensity and stage spacing trends in just a few years – going from 1,500 to 2,500 pounds of proppant per foot and from 250 to 210 feet stage spacing between 2018 to 2022. Additionally, simul-frac operations have been adopted by YPF and Pan American Energy, while Vista has created its first ‘hub,’ which processes hydrocarbons from two of their primary fields.

The next step for Vaca Muerta operators is to standardize using two-plus mile laterals. The caveat is that normalizing extended-reach wells requires drilling contractors to bring into the region high-spec rigs capable of handling that level of workload. This brings us to the first significant bottleneck that could upset Vaca Muerta’s growth potential.

With about 30 active rigs and an average drilling speed of 1.1 wells per rig per month, Neuquen’s Vaca Muerta could expect up to 400 new drilled wells in a year. Assuming the 70-30 oil-gas well completions ratio of 2022, the maximum possible number of oil wells drilled per year will, therefore, be 280. This ratio could, however, change soon, with the President Nestor Kirchner gas pipeline starting operations in June. If no new rigs are brought into the region, Vaca Muerta’s growth rate is set to slow in the next couple of years. Bringing in high-spec rigs could improve drilling rates to less than 20 days per well, like in the Permian Delaware and Bakken.

Neuquen’s oil takeaway capacity is saturated, but several projects are due in the short term. If all these projects materialize as announced, Neuquen should have more than 1 million bpd of evacuation capacity by 2025. It is worth noting that if Argentina wants to become a net oil exporter, the Puerto Rosales oil export terminal in Bahia Blanca – Buenos Aires operated by Oiltanking Ebytem might need to expand in the short term to keep up with Neuquen’s volumes.

By Rystad Energy

Visualizing All New Renewables Projects In The U.S. In 2023

By ZeroHedge - May 31, 2023

• Even though the majority of its power comes from natural gas, Texas currently leads the U.S. in planned renewable energy installations.
• 
  
• New solar power in the U.S. isn’t just coming from places like Texas and California. In 2023, Ohio will add 1,917 MW of new nameplate solar capacity.
• 
  
• According to the data, New Hampshire is the only state in the U.S. that has no new utility-scale renewable energy installations planned for 2023.Join Our Community

Renewable energy, in particular solar power, is set to shine in 2023. This year, the U.S. plans to get over 80% of its new energy installations from sources like battery, solar, and wind.

Visual Capitalist's Alan Kennedy created the map below, using data from EIA, to highlight planned U.S. renewable energy and battery storage installations by state for 2023.

Texas and California Leading in Renewable Energy

Nearly every state in the U.S. has plans to produce new clean energy in 2023, but it’s not a surprise to see the two most populous states in the lead of the pack

Even though the majority of its power comes from natural gas, Texas currently leads the U.S. in planned renewable energy installations. The state also has plans to power nearly 900,000 homes using new wind energy.

California is second, which could be partially attributable to the passing of Title 24, an energy code that makes it compulsory for new buildings to have the equipment necessary to allow the easy installation of solar panels, battery storage, and EV charging.

New solar power in the U.S. isn’t just coming from places like Texas and California. In 2023, Ohio will add 1,917 MW of new nameplate solar capacity, with Nevada and Colorado not far behind.

The state of New York is also looking to become one of the nation’s leading renewable energy providers. The New York State Energy Research & Development Authority (NYSERDA) is making real strides towards this objective with 11% of the nation’s new wind power projects expected to come online in 2023.

According to the data, New Hampshire is the only state in the U.S. that has no new utility-scale renewable energy installations planned for 2023. However, the state does have plans for a massive hydroelectric plant that should come online in 2024.

Decarbonizing Energy

Renewable energy is considered essential to reduce global warming and CO2 emissions.

In line with the efforts by each state to build new renewable installations, the Biden administration has set a goal of achieving a carbon pollution-free power sector by 2035 and a net zero emissions economy by no later than 2050

The EIA forecasts the share of U.S. electricity generation from renewable sources rising from 22% in 2022 to 23% in 2023 and to 26% in 2024.

By Zerohedge.com

Colombia Accuses U.S. Coal Miner Of Funding Paramilitary Group

By Charles Kennedy - Jun 01, 2023,

The current head of Drummond in Colombia and his predecessor will be tried on charges of financing a paramilitary group, Reuters has reported, citing the office of Colombia’s attorney general.

According to prosecutors, there was “abundant evidence” that Augusto Jimenez and Miguel Linares, who headed the company from 1990 and 2012, and from 2013 onwards, respectively, had used company funds for illicit support to a right-wing group.

"Linares Martinez and Jimenez Mejia, between 1996 and 2001, increased the value of a food provision contract with a provider company to obtain additional resources and use them to cover previously-agreed illegal obligations with...the United Self-Defense Forces of Colombia (AUC)," a statement by the attorney general’s office said.

The purpose of the illicit transfers was to secure mining assets operated by the company in areas where the paramilitary group had a presence.

"These accusations are not backed up with credible proof and are based, principally, on false declarations by convicted criminals, who receive payments for testimony," Drummond said in response to the news.

The U.S.-based company is the biggest producer of thermal coal in Colombia, Reuters noted in its report, with total exports of the commodity this year seen at 30 million tons by Miguel Linares.

The news of the charges against Linares and his predecessor comes a day after Drummond’s Colombian unit announced plans to become a net-zero company by 2050. Measures would include switching from gas to electricity at one mine in the country, switching from gasoline to gas for its light vehicle fleet, and emission offsets for the carbon dioxide the company cannot reduce.

"We're looking for projects to see where we can reduce our emissions, how to offset what we cannot avoid and include all our allies in a commitment to reaching carbon neutrality by 2050," Linares told media without mentioning the price tag of the push into carbon neutrality.

By Charles Kennedy for Oilprice.com

Colombia’s President May Have To Rethink His Oil And Gas Exploration Ban

By Matthew Smith - May 31, 2023

• Colombia’s oil and gas industry already suffers from a shortage of proven reserves, a fact that will be made worse if President Petro ends new exploration efforts.
• 
  
• The country’s President hopes to stop new exploration contracts from being awarded and plans to ban hydraulic fracturing in the country.
• 
  
• Colombia’s oil- and gas-dependent economy will face significant turmoil in the coming years if it is unable to replace its proven reserves.

Colombia’s economically crucial energy patch is facing a grave crisis due to its shortage of proven oil and natural gas reserves coupled with leftist President Gustavo Petro’s plan to end awarding new exploration contracts. The Andean country’s hydrocarbon sector was hit particularly hard by the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic and has yet to recover. March 2023 oil production of 771,732 barrels a day was significantly less than the 884,876 barrels per day pumped for the same month four years earlier. Latest developments indicate Colombia’s economically vital oil patch may never return to a pre-pandemic operational tempo and production volumes. As a result of Petro’s plans to end awarding new exploration contracts and ban hydraulic fracturing, investment is falling, drilling activity is in decline, and international energy companies are even exiting Colombia. 

The latest news, which represents a considerable blow to Colombia’s oil industry, is the disappointing announcement from the Ministry of Mines and Energy that the Andean country’s reserves are not growing at the pace required. According to the ministry’s statement (Spanish) oil reserves only expanded by 1.7% year-over-year to a meager 2.074 billion barrels of oil with a commercial life of 7.5 years at the current rate of production. Of greater concern is proven natural gas reserves, which plunged by 11% compared to a year ago to 2.82 trillion cubic feet, only enough to support production for 7.2 years. Those meager reserves are incapable of supporting Colombia’s economically crucial hydrocarbon sector over the long term. The lack of hydrocarbon reserves and their short production life has the potential to roil Colombia’s oil-dependent economy.

A key issue to emerge is that vital capital spending in Colombia’s energy patch is falling. According to the country’s leading industry body, the Colombian Petroleum Association (ACP – Spanish), private investment in exploration (Spanish) during 2023 will fall by a third compared to last year, hitting $650 million to $700 million. That decline is reduced to 4% year-over-year, when increased exploration spending by national oil company Ecopetrol is accounted for, or $1.24 billion compared to $1.29 billion during 2022. Such a sharp reduction in investment will lead to reduced exploration and oilfield development activity thereby weighing on reserves and production volumes at a crucial time for Colombia.

This has been an ongoing problem since the price of oil collapsed in late-2014. Colombia’s oil industry regulator, the National Hydrocarbon Agency (ANH – Spanish initials), released data showing the volume of wells (Spanish) being drilled in Colombia cratered after 2014. During that year, when Brent averaged $98.97 per barrel, 113 wells, 112 onshore and one offshore, were drilled. A year later, in 2015, when Brent averaged $52.32 a barrel, a mere 25 wells, 23 onshore and two offshore, were completed. The volume of wells being drilled plunged to an annual multiyear low of 20 during 2020 when the COVID-19 pandemic caused oil prices to plunge into negative territory for the first time ever and Brent averaged $41.96 a barrel. 

Drilling activity only significantly recovered when oil prices soared, after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, to a multi-year high of 68 wells, 66 onshore and two offshore. Regulator data shows that 10 wells were completed for the first two months of 2023, and industry body the ACP predicts 55 to 60 exploratory wells will be drilled in Colombia this year. According to the Baker Hughes Rig Count, by the end of April 2023, there were 31 active rigs in Colombia a decrease of three compared to a month earlier and the same number as a year earlier. Those numbers point to a sharp drop in activity in Colombia’s oil patch which doesn’t bode well for higher production or the ability to boost meager reserves. 

This is threatening Colombia’s long-term energy security and the future outlook for the hydrocarbon-dependent economy which is vulnerable to weaker oil prices and declining production. The considerable risks created by a lack of exploration success and meager proven reserves are magnified by many of Colombia’s primary producing oil fields being mature with rising decline rates. That means they are reliant on enhanced recovery methods such as waterflood, and gas injection to sustain production. This is impacting efforts by Bogota, the ANH, and ACP as well as other industry bodies to lift production so that it returns to pre-pandemic levels of nearly 900,000 barrels per day.

Colombian government as well as industry data underscores how dependent the economy is on oil. Official statistics agency DANE shows that petroleum was responsible for (Spanish) a third of exports by value during 2022, while for the same year the hydrocarbon sector was responsible for 2.6% of gross domestic product. Colombia’s oil industry is a key source of income for the national government in Bogota. A decade ago, petroleum, after including dividend income from 88% state-controlled Ecopetrol was responsible for a fifth of fiscal revenue, while that amount has fallen in recent years it amounted to 14% of fiscal revenue for 2022. The proportion of government revenue contributed by Colombia’s oil industry will only increase after Petro’s November 2022 tax hikes.

It is Bogota’s reliance on oil revenues that has sparked speculation that Petro will not proceed with his plan to end hydrocarbon exploration in Colombia. This was fueled by Energy Minister Irene Velez reportedly avoiding answering questions from journalists as to whether the Petro administration will issue new exploration and production contracts after the productive life of Colombia’s proven oil reserves declined. Any immediate move to end oil exploration and production has the potential to damage Colombia’s oil-dependent economy which is an important part of the Andean country’s post-pandemic economic recovery. 

According to the International Monetary Fund, Colombia’s gross domestic product grew by a stunning 11% in 2021 and then 7.5% during 2022, but that will fall to a mere 1% in 2023 with a lack of energy investment and dwindling oil production weighing on the economy. In an effort to assuage the worries of energy investors, the ANH has proposed expanding deadlines, for drilling timetables, for oil and natural gas exploration projects to attract greater interest from foreign energy investors. The regulatory agency also suggested providing energy companies with greater contractual flexibility when forced to declare force majeure. These latest developments indicate that Petro may be rethinking his plan with regard to ending hydrocarbon exploration in Colombia, and even may implement a more gradual and pragmatic policy.

By Matthew Smith for Oilprice.com

Norway's Wealth Fund  Sides With Activists Against Exxon, Chevron

By Alex Kimani - May 31, 2023

• The year 2021 proved to be a watershed moment for oil and gas companies in the global transition to clean energy, with Big Oil losing a series of boardroom and courtroom battles in the hands of hardline climate activists.
• 
  
• Norway’s giant sovereign wealth fund announced it will support proposals by ExxonMobil Corp. and Chevron Corp. shareholders at their annual general meetings (AGMs) on Wednesday to introduce emissions targets.
• 
  
• In May 2022, Exxon recorded a major victory after its shareholders supported the company's energy transition strategy at the annual general meeting.
• 
  

Climate activists have scored yet another victory against Big Oil after Norway’s giant sovereign wealth fund announced it will support proposals by ExxonMobil Corp. (NYSE:XOM) and Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) shareholders at their annual general meetings (AGMs) on Wednesday to introduce emissions targets. With $1.4 trillion in assets, Norway's wealth fund is the largest in the world, and its voice on matters like these carries plenty of weight. The fund is the sixth-largest investor in Exxon with a nearly 1.2% stake. The move comes barely a week after climate protesters unleashed chaos at TotalEnergies’ (NYSE:TTE) AGM in Paris which saw shareholders back a motion calling for the French energy giant to speed up cuts to its greenhouse gas emissions. Similarly, in what is now shaping up as another wave of climate fervor, protesters stormed Shell Plc’s (NYSE:SHEL) AGM last week, accusing the Dutch national oil company of "killing" the planet and calling for it to be "shut down".

It’s a startling turn of events for oil and gas shareholders considering that last year, there was a palpable shift in sentiment with climate activism and ESG taking a back seat amid the global energy crisis.

Shifting Sentiment

The year 2021 proved to be a watershed moment for oil and gas companies in the global transition to clean energy, with Big Oil losing a series of boardroom and courtroom battles in the hands of hardline climate activists.

In May 2021, ExxonMobil lost three board seats to Engine No. 1, an activist hedge, in a stunning proxy campaign. Engine No. 1 demanded that Exxon needs to cut fossil fuel production for the company to position itself for long-term success. "What we're saying is, plan for a world where maybe the world doesn't need your barrels," Engine No.1 leader Charlie Penner told the Financial Times. Engine No. 1 enjoyed a stunning victory thanks to support from BlackRock Inc. (NYSE: BLK), Vanguard and State Street who all voted against Exxon’s leadership.

Next was its close peer Chevron with no less than 61% of Chevron shareholders voting to further cut emissions at the company’s annual investor meeting and rebuffing the company’s board which had urged shareholders to reject it. 

Finally, a Dutch court ordered Shell Plc to cut its greenhouse gas emissions harder and faster than it had previously planned. Never mind the fact that Shell had already pledged to cut GHG emissions by 20% by 2030 and to net-zero by 2050. The court in The Hague determined that wasn’t good enough and demanded a 45% cut by 2030 compared to 2019 levels. The past two years have been especially challenging for Shell shareholders after the company announced a major dividend cut with the quarterly dividend falling to 16 cents from 47 cents, the first dividend cut since WWII. Meanwhile, the company’s debt had ballooned massively from $1bn in 2005 to $73bn in 2020.

Related: Oil Markets Shocked By Across the Board Inventory Builds

Luckily for these oil and gas supermajors, last year, investor sentiment shifted in their favor.

In May 2022, Exxon recorded a major victory after its shareholders supported the company's energy transition strategy at the annual general meeting. Only 28% of the participants backed a resolution filed by the Follow This activist group urging faster action to battle climate change; a proposal calling for a report on low carbon business planning received just 10.5% support while a report on plastic production garnered a 37% favorable vote.

Following in the footsteps of its larger peer, in June, Chevron shareholders voted against a resolution asking the company to adopt greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets, indicating support for the steps the company already has taken to address climate change.

Just 33% of shareholders voted in favor of the proposal, according to preliminary figures disclosed by the company, a sharp turnaround from last year when 61% of shareholders voted to support a similar proposal.

Encouraged by the previous year’s victories including rules that made it easier to put public policy-related questions on proxy ballots, an analysis by the Conference Board of data supplied by Esgauge revealed that last year, climate activists  filed nearly 400 environmental and social proposals with member companies of the Russell 3000 index. However, the share of support for environmental proposals dropped from 37% in 2021 to 33% in 2022, reflecting a growing aversion by asset managers to tying managers’ hands on climate-related issues. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has also forced investors and companies to think more about energy security.

But it’s now becoming increasingly clear that climate activists are not about to go down without a fight. And, more and more institutional investors are becoming powerful climate advocates. Two years ago, New York City’s Mayor Bill de Blasio and Comptroller Scott M. Stringer sent shockwaves through the oil and gas sector after they announced that the city’s $226B pension fund plans to divest majority of its fossil fuel investments over the next five years and also cut ties with other companies that have been contributing to global warming.

Around the same time, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, a family foundation built on one of the world’s biggest oil fortunes, followed suit by announcing that it would ditch its oil and gas investments and cease making any new investments going forward. The $5-billion foundation was initially carved from oil money in the 19th century by John D. Rockefeller’s son of Standard Oil fame.

Finally, BlackRock Inc.(NYSE:BLK) CEO Larry Fink said he would start to pressure companies to do a lot more to lower their carbon emissions by leveraging the massive weight of his mammoth asset base. BlackRock is the world’s largest asset manager with $9.1 trillion in assets under management (AUM).

As you might expect, opponents of boardroom activism have dismissed the latest move from Norway's wealth fund while clean energy buffs welcomed them as a beacon for the growing fossil fuel divestment movement. But at least oil and gas investors can take some comfort in that these companies are not likely to run out of backers any time soon, with private equity firms gladly stepping in as more traditional financiers balk. 

By Alex Kimani for Oilprice.com

 

Nucleoelectrica sets out plan for Atucha II repair

30 May 2023

A life-size mock-up of the reactor and special tools have been designed and built ahead of the repair procedure which the operating company hopes will take place next month at Argentina's Atucha II nuclear power unit.

The Atucha plant site (Image: Nucleoelectrica Argentina)

The reactor has been closed since October 2022 when a routine inspection "detected that one of the four internal supports of the reactor had detached and moved from its design location". Operator Nucleoelectrica Argentina (NA-SA) said that it is a "mechanical failure of the plant" but does not present a risk to the safety of people of the environment.

In a progress update the company said that a diagnosis of the failure was made by mechanical and hydraulic studies and "it was decided to extract the part and work began on the use of state-of-the-art engineering methods for the implementation of robotic and technological tools that allow optimising repair times, in order to return to service as soon as possible".

The detached separator is 14 metres deep inside the reactor so tools needed to be designed to adapt to those conditions, including a cutting tool, holding tool, gripper, a basket within which to extract the piece as well as lighting and vision tools to monitor the manoeuvre. "It was also necessary to develop a pressure welding tool and method to preventatively weld the three remaining spacers that did not come off," said NA-SA.

To practice the cutting and extraction manoeuvres and test the tools a full scale model of the reactor sector was designed - "the container used in the repair of the Atucha 1 Nuclear Power Plant in 1988 was reconditioned ...  all the internal elements were manufactured on a 1:1 scale and placed inside this chamber".

Argentina's Nuclear Regulatory Authority is currently reviewing the plan for the repair, which was submitted earlier this month. Its technical personnel have also been inspecting the work in the test facility "to validate the proposed method and the development of implementation procedures ... to verify compliance with nuclear and radiological safety premises". Nucleoelectrica Argentina is hoping to be able to begin the work in June.

Argentina's nuclear sector has three pressurised heavy water reactors with a total generating capacity of 1641 MWe across the Atucha 1, Atucha 2 and Embalse power plants. Atucha II's first grid connection was in 2014 - construction began in 1981 as a joint venture of CNEA and Siemens-Kraftwerk Union but work was suspended in 1994 with the plant 81% complete. It was restarted in 2006, entering commercial operation in May 2016.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

SCI FI TEK

Collaborations announced for fusion projects

30 May 2023

General Atomics (GA) of the USA and Tokamak Energy of the UK have agreed to collaborate in the area of high temperature superconducting (HTS) technology for fusion energy and other industry applications. Meanwhile, Germany's Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics will work with Proxima Fusion to further develop the stellarator concept.

Testing of an HTS magnet in liquid nitrogen (Image: Tokamak Energy)

GA - which began working on superconducting magnet technologies in the 1980s - and Tokamak Energy said the collaboration under a newly-signed memorandum of understanding would "leverage GA's world-leading capabilities for manufacturing large-scale magnet systems and Tokamak Energy's pioneering expertise in HTS magnet technologies".

Magnetic fusion uses a tokamak, which uses several sets of powerful electromagnets to shape and confine superheated hydrogen gas - known as plasma. To achieve fusion conditions relevant for energy production, tokamaks must heat the gas to temperatures exceeding 100 million degrees Celsius - more than ten times the temperature at the centre of the sun. This is the threshold said to be required for fusion to be a commercially viable energy source.

Strong magnetic fields are generated by passing large electrical currents around arrays of electromagnet coils that circle the plasma. The magnets are wound from ground-breaking HTS tapes, multi-layered conductors with a crucial internal coating of 'rare earth barium copper oxide' (REBCO) superconducting material. Developing more powerful HTS magnets will allow fusion power plants to use thinner magnetic coils while generating plasmas at greater densities.

"GA is excited to collaborate with Tokamak Energy on HTS magnets," said GA Senior Vice President Anantha Krishnan. "Tokamak Energy is a leader in HTS magnet modelling, design and prototyping and GA has expertise in developing and fabricating large-scale superconducting magnets for fusion applications."

"GA has significant experience, knowledge and facilities to produce large superconducting magnets at scale," said Tokamak Energy Managing Director Warrick Matthews. "Tokamak Energy has been developing HTS technologies for fusion for over a decade. The integration of these complementary capabilities promises to accelerate the development and production of HTS technologies in additional fields, such as aviation, naval, space and medical applications."

Tokamak Energy's roadmap is for commercial fusion power plants deployed in the mid-2030s. To get there the plan is for completion of ST80-HTS in 2026 "to demonstrate the full potential of high temperature superconducting magnets" and to inform the design of its fusion pilot plant, ST-E1, which is slated to demonstrate the capability to deliver electricity - producing up to 200 MW of net electrical power - in the early 2030s.

Collaboration in stellarators

The Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics (IPP) has signed a cooperation agreement with Munich-based Proxima Fusion - which was spun out of IPP earlier this year and was founded by a team which includes six former IPP scientists - to further develop the stellarator concept for fusion power. Proxima Fusion intends to design a nuclear fusion power plant based on IPP research.

"With this cooperation, Proxima Fusion will primarily advance technological approaches, while IPP will contribute its know-how as the world's leading institute in stellarator physics," IPP said.

The institute is the only institution in the world that carries out research on both essential concepts of magnetic confinement fusion with the help of large-scale experiments: it operates the ASDEX Upgrade tokamak in Garching near Munich, and the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator in Greifswald.

A tokamak is based on a uniform toroid shape, whereas a stellarator twists that shape in a figure-8. IPP notes the advantage of stellarators is that they can be operated continuously, unlike pulsed tokamaks, and with better plasma stability properties.

In February, the Wendelstein 7-X stellarator succeeded for the first time in generating a high-energy plasma that lasted for eight minutes. The facility is designed to generate plasma discharges of up to 30 minutes in the coming years. Scientists are also working in the field of stellarator optimisation at IPP's Stellarator Theory Division in Greifswald.

"With our research, we want to further develop stellarators towards application maturity," said IPP Scientific Director Sibylle Günter. "With Proxima Fusion's technological focus, we see great synergies in a collaboration and look forward to working together in a public-private partnership".

Researched and written by World Nuclear News

Vogtle 3 reaches full power

30 May 2023

The unit is now in the final stages of start-up testing ahead of starting commercial operation and is expected to be declared in service next month.

Vogtle 3 pictured in April (Image: Georgia Power)

The AP1000 unit reached first criticality in March and was connected to the electricity grid in April. It has been undergoing testing through the full range of plant operations at gradually increasing power levels in a process known as power ascension testing.

The operation of the reactor, control systems for the reactor and support systems, and integrated plant operations are tested at each power level, with plant performance monitored under various conditions. Now the unit has reached 100% power, further tests must now be performed before it is available for reliable dispatch in accordance with its combined operating licence, Southern Company said.

"As we enter the final stages of start-up testing, reaching 100 percent power for the first time is an exciting milestone. It tells us we're close to finishing the unit safely and bringing it online to power Georgia homes and businesses with reliable, emissions-free energy for decades to come," Georgia Power President and CEO Kim Greene said.

It is now just over 10 years since construction of two Westinghouse AP1000s began at the site near Waynesboro. Work started on unit 3 in March 2013 and unit 4 in November of that year. Unit 4 completed hot functional testing - which confirms the reactor is ready to be loaded with nuclear fuel - earlier this month. The first fuel for unit 4 was delivered on 3 May, ahead of fuel loading later this year. Vogtle 4 is expected to enter service late this year or early in 2024.

Southern Nuclear and Georgia Power, both subsidiaries of Southern Company, took over management of the construction project in 2017 following Westinghouse's Chapter 11 bankruptcy. The units are co-owned by Georgia Power, Oglethorpe Power, MEAG Power and Dalton Utilities, and will be operated by Southern Nuclear.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News