LATEST REPORT
Friday, June 25, 2004
Content
- DPRK Energy
- Power Grid Interconnection in the Russian Far East
- Energy Outlook and Security Issues
- Inter-Korean Power Connection
- US – ROK on Battery Systems
- KEPCO Split
- Climate Change in California
1. DPRK Energy
Compiler’s note: this first item is a reprint from our last bulletin which was never available on the web due to an oversight while we launched our new web site.
The Nautilus Institute (DPRK delegation, “PYONGYANG INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION CENTER OF NEW TECHNOLOGY AND ECONOMY (PIINTEC),” May 12th-14th, Beijing, China) released this brochure presented at the Institute’s Asian Energy Security Workshop 2004 in Beijing, China, hosted by the Energy and Environmental Technology Center (EETC) at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The brochure notes that “PIINTEC was founded in Oct. 2003, as a non-governmental and non-profit organization with the support and participation of a wide range of academic, industrial and social institutions of Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) and foreign NGOs to join a global partnership for development. PIINTEC aims to provide an opportunity for exchange and cooperation in the fields of economy, technology and science between universities, research institutes, enterprises, individuals and NGOs of the DPRK and other countries.”
2. Power Grid Interconnection in the Russian Far East
The Nautilus Institute (Sergei Podkovalnikov, “ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS AND BENEFITS OF REGIONAL POWER GRID INTERCONNECTION FOR THE RUSSIAN FAR EAST: GENERATION AND FUEL-SUPPLY-RELATED IMPACTS,” 10/01/03) released a presentation from the Nautilus Institute’s 3rd Workshop on Grid Interconnection in Vladivostok, Russia on September 31, 2003. The paper concludes that the benefits from grid interconnection include: “lessening environmental damage from construction and operation of power plants in countries importing electric power; and large non-fossil fuel power plants (hydraulic, tidal, nuclear) can be phased in and effectively and reliably operated within systems including power interconnections, where they can substitute for fossil fuel power plants and provide other benefits.”
Read the report.
3. Energy Outlook and Security Issues
The Asia Pacific Energy Research Centre (APERC) (“APEC ENERGY OUTLOOK AND SECURITY ISSUES”, 6/10/2004). Released this presentation from the 6th Meeting of APEC Energy Ministers in Manila, the Philippines. The report notes that “the oil import dependency of the APEC region is forecast to increase from 36 percent in 1999 to 55 percent in 2020. For APEC economies in Asia including Oceania it will rise from an already high 60 percent in 1999 to 80 percent in 2020, most of which will be sourced from the Middle East. In other words, APEC Asia will become more vulnerable to oil supply disruptions.”
4. Inter-Korean Power Connection
The Korea Times (“N. KOREA TO OFFER INFORMATION ON ELECTRICITY,” 6/4/04) reported that the DPRK has agreed to provide data on its electric power system, which is rarely released to the outside world, for a Seoul-initiated project to link electric systems between the two Koreas and Russia, the Korea Electrotechnology Research Institute (KERI) said on Friday (June 4). The state-run think tank headquartered in Changwon, said the DPRK officials agreed to provide basic data by the end of July, when they visited Changwon, an industrial city near Busan, last month for a conference on electricity cooperation between the Koreas and Russia.
5. US – ROK on Battery Systems
Clean-Edge News (“U.S. AND KOREA TO COLLABORATE ON ADVANCED BATTERY SYSTEMS FOR TRANSPORTATION,” 5/17/04) reported that the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) will collaborate with the Korea Automotive Research Institute (KATECH) on a project to test advanced battery systems that could be used in future generations of electric, hybrid and fuel cell vehicles. The research effort was announced following the formal signing of a memorandum of understanding by Stan Bull, NREL associate director of science and technology, and Young Wook Noh, president of the KATECH, at the main NREL campus in Golden. “We are pleased to join with researchers from Korea to seek new solutions to the transportation technology challenges that confront both our countries,” Bull said. The ROK delegation also met with NREL Director Richard Truly and researchers from NREL’s Advanced Vehicle Systems Group. During the past eight years, NREL has developed unique expertise and capabilities to work with industry partners on battery thermal testing, electric and hybrid vehicle simulation.
6. KEPCO Split
Korea Herald (Kim Ji-hyun “PANEL OPPOSES KEPCO SPLIT,” 6/2/04) reported that the ROK may have to consider scrapping its plan to break up state-run Korea Electric Power Corp.’s distribution business on the heels of a government-commissioned study concluding that the split would not result in lower electricity rates. Instead, a break-up and subsequent privatization could hurt supply stability, said the year-long study conducted by eight figures from the government, trade unions and academia. “We recommend the government abandon the split-up and privatization of the distribution businesses of Korea Electric Power Corp. as the process is seen to raise risks in regard to supply and prices,” the report said. However, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy called the findings invalid and cited conflicts between commission members in drafting the report. The ministry also claimed to have not been properly notified of the results.
Read the report.
7. Climate Change in California
California Climate Change Center (Arthur H. Rosenfeld, “DELAYING GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE: EFFICIENCY LESSONS FROM CALIFORNIA,” 6/9/04) released this presentation from the conference: From Climate To Economics: Anticipating Impacts of Climate Change In California, June 9-10, 2004 in Sacramento, California. The presentation features a comparison of California’s energy supply versus that of the rest of the US and a breakdown of emissions in California by sector.
Produced by the Nautilus Institute.