5 spunti per approfondire (settimana 9/2023)

La rubrica settimanale con i consigli di lettura di RivistaEnergia.it, dall’Europa e dal mondo. Forse non le notizie più eclatanti, ma proprio per questo interessanti da approfondire. Settimana 9/2023

It’s been a widely accepted trend in financial circles for nearly two decades. But suddenly, Republicans have launched an assault on a philosophy that says that companies should be concerned with not just profits but also how their businesses affect the environment and society. More than $18 trillion is held in investment funds that follow the investing principle known as E.S.G. — shorthand for prioritizing environmental, social and governance factors — a strategy that has been adopted by major corporations around the globe. Now, Republicans around the country say Wall Street has taken a sharp left turn, attacking what they term “woke capitalism” and dragging businesses, their onetime allies, into the culture wars.

How Environmentally Conscious Investing Became a Target of Conservatives
Articolo – The New York Times

“The effects of war, high inflation and heavily fluctuating energy prices demanded a lot from us — and they still do,” said Evonik’s chief executive Christian Kullmann. The company, which makes chemicals used in products ranging from tyres to animal feed and vaccines, said on Thursday that adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were expected to be in the range between €2.1bn and €2.4bn, compared to the €2.49bn it reported for 2022. Insulation foam specialist Covestro declined to give a range for its expected profits this year, saying only that they would be “well below” 2022. Last year, its earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation were €1.6bn, nearly half of what they were the year before. “The sharp rise in energy and raw material prices during the year, especially in Europe, put a strain on the company,” Covestro said. Evonik said that recovery in 2023 would depend on energy prices and inflation, but also the health of the global economy “especially with respect to China”.

Energy crisis prompts further warnings by German chemical groups
Articolo – Financial Times

France and Spain announced a breakthrough on Thursday in a long-running impasse over what would be their first undersea electricity link, a move that will nearly double the power exchange capacity between the two countries – from 2,800 to 5,000 megawatts (MW).Spanish competition watchdog CNMC and French energy regulator CRE gave the go-ahead to a new cost-sharing deal between the two countries for a project first broached in 2017 after a sharp increase in its estimated cost.The 400-km-long cable spanning from Spain’s northern coast to France’s western coast through the Bay of Biscay is now estimated at a total cost of around €2.85 billion, above the initial estimate of €1.75 billion, CNMC said.The European Union will contribute at least €578 million towards the cost, it said.

France, Spain announce breakthrough in undersea power link
Articolo – Euractiv

The massive additions of new coal-fired capacity don’t necessarily mean that coal use or CO2 emissions from the power sector will increase in China. Provided that growth in non-fossil power generation from wind, solar and nuclear continues to accelerate, and electricity demand growth stabilizes or slows down, power generation from coal could peak and decline. President Xi has also pledged that China would reduce coal consumption in the 2026–30 period. This would mean a declining utilization rate of China’s vast coal power plant fleet, rather than continued growth in coal-fired power generation. Even then, hundreds of brand-new coal power plants will make meeting China’s climate commitments more complicated and costly. The politically influential owners of the plants have an interest in protecting their assets and avoiding a rapid build-out of clean energy and a phase-out of coal.

China permits two new coal power plants per week in 2022
Analisi – CREA / Global Energy Monitor

Zentrale Treiber der Gasmärkte sind die Entwicklung der Nachfrage, Investitionen in LNG-Infrastruktur und (in Europa) die Verfügbarkeit russischer Gaslieferungen Eine Simulation der Gasmärkte bis zum Jahr 2035 zeigt künftige Marktgleichgewichte, Investitionsbedarfe, Handelsflüsse und Preise. Es werden Projekte mit Investitionsentscheidung (FID), die Verfügbarkeit russischer Lieferungen nach Europa (RU) und die Möglichkeit zusätzlicher Investitionen (Ausbau) berücksichtigt. Die ausgewählten Nachfrageszenarien bilden die Bandbreite von leicht steigender globaler Nachfrage bis zur globalen Erreichung von Netto-Nullemissionen im Jahr 2050 ab

Analyse der Globalen Gasmärkte Bis 2035
Ricerca – Energiewirtschaftliches Institut an der Universität zu Köln (EWI) gGmbH

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