Saudi Arabia Starts Operating First Wind Turbine In Al-Jouf Region

FILE PHOTO: A power-generating windmill turbine is seen at the Eneco Luchterduinen offshore wind farm near Amsterdam, Netherlands September 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A power-generating windmill turbine is seen at the Eneco Luchterduinen offshore wind farm near Amsterdam, Netherlands September 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
TT

Saudi Arabia Starts Operating First Wind Turbine In Al-Jouf Region

FILE PHOTO: A power-generating windmill turbine is seen at the Eneco Luchterduinen offshore wind farm near Amsterdam, Netherlands September 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A power-generating windmill turbine is seen at the Eneco Luchterduinen offshore wind farm near Amsterdam, Netherlands September 26, 2017. REUTERS/Yves Herman/File Photo

Saudi Arabia announced on Wednesday the operation of the first wind turbine to produce electricity in the Kingdom, marking a new era of serious transformation towards alternative and clean renewable energy.

The Saudi Ministry of Energy announced the start of the trial operation of the first turbine in the Dumat Al-Jandal project in Al-Jouf region (northern Saudi Arabia) to exploit wind energy in electricity production.

In a statement, the Saudi Ministry of Energy said that the step comes within the implementation of one of the goals of Vision 2030, represented by the production of 50 percent of the Kingdom’s electricity from renewable sources by 2030.

The Dumat Al-Jandal project in Al-Jouf region is a practical step to exploit wind energy in the production of electricity, and it is the first project in the Kingdom and the largest project of its kind in the Middle East.

The Ministry of Energy had earlier announced awarding the energy project to the alliance led by the French Electricity Company, EDF Energies Nouvelles, and the Abu Dhabi Future Energy Company (Masdar).

Saudi Arabia continues its endeavors towards the global race to adopt and develop work systems with renewable and alternative energy, at a time when it is leading giant projects that are environmentally friendly and enhance sustainability, such as the city of The Line in NEOM, and the Amaala and Red Sea tourism projects - the pillars of the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.



EUROPE GAS-Prices Continue to Decline

Model of natural gas pipeline and Gazprom logo, July 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Model of natural gas pipeline and Gazprom logo, July 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
TT

EUROPE GAS-Prices Continue to Decline

Model of natural gas pipeline and Gazprom logo, July 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Model of natural gas pipeline and Gazprom logo, July 18, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo

Dutch and British wholesale gas prices continued to declined on Tuesday morning on milder weather forecasts for next week, high wind speeds and stable supply.

The benchmark front-month contract at the Dutch TTF hub was down 0.61 euros at 46.65 euros per megawatt hour (MWh) at 0947 GMT, according to LSEG data.

The contract for March was down 0.52 euro at 46.63 euros/MWh.

In Britain, the front-month contract fell by 2.04 pence to 116.76 pence per therm.

In north-west Europe, although another cold snap is forecast from Friday over the weekend, the latest forecasts are showing milder temperatures than yesterday from Jan. 15, according to LSEG data, Reuters reported.

Wind speeds are expected to remain quite strong today, limiting gas demand.

However, in north-west Europe, gas-for-power demand is expected 36 million cubic metres (mcm) per day higher at 78 mcm/day on the day-ahead.

"Wind speeds are expected still high today, before dropping sharply tomorrow with the cold spell arriving," said LSEG gas analyst Saku Jussila.

In Britain, Peak wind generation is forecast at around 15.1 gigawatts (GW) today and 14.7 GW tomorrow, Elexon data showed.

Analysts at Engie EnergyScan said EU net storage withdrawals have slowed due to a more comfortable spot balance but the storage gap compared to last year remains high. On 5 January, EU gas stocks were 69.94% full on average, compared to 84.96% last year.

Looking further ahead, analysts at Jefferies expect a tight year for global gas markets due to project delays and higher-than-expected demand.

"European and Asian LNG spot gas prices in 2025 could surpass those of 2024, driven by Europe's increased gas injection needs and the loss of Russian exports outpacing the expected growth in global LNG supply," they said.

"Post 2025, the market is expected to loosen with an additional 175 million tonnes of new supply coming online between 2026 and 2030, primarily from the US and Qatar," they added.

In the European carbon market, the benchmark contract was down 0.91 euro at 73.45 euros a metric ton.