UPI Energy Watch

Russia to build 8 floating nuke plants

Russia's Rosenergoatom has said it will build eight floating nuclear power plants by 2015.

"In April 2007, the Sevmash shipyard will launch the construction of the first floating thermal power unit with the KLT40C reactor. It is planned to complete the deliveries of all the assembly parts by the end of 2008, and complete the pilot project in 2010," Sergei Krysov, deputy director general of the company, told an international conference.

The comments were reported by the Itar-Tass news agency.

The news agency said the floating reactor will have five radiation protection barriers, and can withstand a 6-magnitude earthquake and a plane crash.

Rosenergoatom said one floating plant saves about 150 million cubic meters of gas a year.

"Gazprom displayed considerable interests in floating nuclear power plants, as it needs at least five floating power units to develop new deposits in Yamal and the Kola peninsula," Krysov said, Itar-Tass reported.

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China looks at biofuels

China National Petroleum Corp. has made initial moves into the green fuels sector, the Xinhua news agency reported Friday.

CNPC, the country's largest oil producer, signed an deal with the Sichuan provincial government to develop biofuels in the southwestern basin. The region is famous for its agricultural industry and natural gas reserves, Xinhua reported.

CNPC plans to produce 600,000 tons of automotive-grade ethanol from sweet potatoes annually and 100,000 tons biodiesel from the seeds of jatropha curcas tree, the news agency said.

Other Chinese companies are also paying attention to the burgeoning biofuels sector.

China Petroleum and Chemical Corp., or Sinopec, a subsidiary of China National Petrochemical Corp., or Sinopec Corp., the country's largest oil refiner, is taking part in a coal chemical project in Erdos, in Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, the news agency said.

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RIL to get 7 key oil blocks

India's director general of hydrocarbons has recommended the government grant seven key oil blocks in the Krishna-Godavari basin to Reliance Industries Ltd.

The DGH has also dealt a severe blow to the plans of state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp. and rejected its bids for a dozen deep-water and four on-land blocks, despite the company being the top- ranked bidder in every asset.

The DGH said ONGC's bids were rejected because relinquished four on-land blocks earlier.

Instead, DGH wants the 12 deep-water blocks to be given to some of the international exploration firms that participated in the sixth round of the new exploration licensing policy, The Business Standard newspaper reported Thursday.

The DGH also suggested that four on-land blocks be allotted to second-ranked bidder -- Suiwah Corp of Malaysia, Kufec-NTPC, Adani Enterprises and HOEC-Tata-BPCL.

It has left the final decision to the empowered committee of secretaries, however. The DGH has given clear recommendations for the award of a total 36 exploration blocks of which nine are deep-water, 6 shallow and 21 on-land.

The recommendation also dealt a blow to the hopes of Essar Oil by rejecting its seven deep-water bids on the ground the company did not meet the eligibility criteria.

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Closing oil prices, Nov. 24, 3 p.m. London

Brent crude oil: $ 59.22

West Texas Intermediate crude oil: $ 59.91

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(Comments to energy@upi.com)

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(Energy Watch's regular writer, Andrea R. Mihailescu, is on vacation)