MOSCOW (MRC) -- Australia has moved into the three most attractive countries in the world for renewables investment for the first time due to rapid solar photovoltaic (PV) deployment, research shows, said Hydrocarbonprocessing.
In a bi-annual index of the top 40 renewable energy markets worldwide by consultancy EY, the United States held on to top spot, followed by China. Australia rose to third place, from fourth in the last ranking in May, while India climbed to fourth from seventh due to record low solar tariff bids and a new target for renewables generation, EY said.
Australia has deployed more than 10 gigawatts of roof-mounted solar PV, by far the largest per capita rooftop-PV deployment in the world. Its plans for renewable energy export links to Asia also helped elevate its position.
However, Australia’s renewables investment fell in the second quarter due to the COVID-19 crisis and policy uncertainty and the government continues to subsidize both the natural gas and oil refining industries as part of efforts to revitalize the economy.
“Despite policy uncertainty – and issues with grid stability and price volatility – the index indicates that Australia could be set to become a green energy exporting leader," EY said.
France sank to seventh place from third as renewable energy auctions were postponed indefinitely and planned retroactive cuts to solar subsidies. Other countries to rise up the rankings were Britain, Portugal, Morocco, Taiwan, Poland and South Korea, while Germany, Denmark and Mexico were among those which fell.
As MRC informed earlier, Borealis announces that its new naphtha cavern in Porvoo, Finland has now been safely commissioned as of October 2020. Having invested around EUR25 million in the construction of this 80,000 m3 facility, Borealis can now source and store naphtha for its Porvoo operations from the global market in a more flexible, cost-efficient, and secure way. The cavern can also accommodate renewable naphtha, making it possible for Borealis customers in future to draw on certified renewable polypropylene (PP) and polyethylene (PE), as well as renewable base chemicals, ethylene, propylene and phenol.
We remind that the light-feed 625,000-metric tons/year Borealis steam cracker at Stenungsund, Sweden, is expected to restart operations in the fourth quarter this year after a fire broke out at the plant in May, 2020. The cracker has been under force majeure ever since after the blaze at the plant on 10 May, which was subsequently brought under control the following day.
Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing PE and PP.
According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated PE consumption totalled 1,760,950 tonnes in the first ten months of 2020, up by 3% year on year. Only high density polyethylene (HDPE) and linear low density polyethylene (LLDPE) shipments increased. At the same time, PP shipments to the Russian market reached 978,870 tonnes in January-October 2020 (calculated using the formula: production minus exports plus imports minus producers' inventories as of 1 January, 2020). Supply of exclusively of PP random copolymer increased.
MRC