Demand and supply in the grid must be constantly balanced. Pumped-storage hydropower remains the only traditional and most cost-effective technology for large-scale balancing of power systems. Iberdrola has just opened Tâmega Gigabattery in Portugal. According to the European Energy Storage Association, the EU will need 200 gigawatts of energy storage by the end of the century and 600 gigawatts by 2050. Iberdrola's Tâmega Gigabattery is one of the largest pumped hydro storage projects in Europe for the past 25 years.

The facility, valued at 1.5 billion euros, has not yet been completed. It consists of two reservoirs connected to a tunnel, of which the engine room is located underground. Recently, another large pumped hydro storage facility came online in Switzerland.

Germany, Italy and Austria face the greatest risk of gas shortages in the EU due to uncertain supply prospects from Russia. The European Commission presented member states last week with a plan to reduce gas demand, triggering a special meeting of energy ministers. Hungary was the only EU member state to vote against it. The EU is united. Czech Industry and Trade Minister Josef Sikela said today's decision made it clear that member states would firmly oppose any attempt by Russia to split the EU.

Germany has agreed to buy a 30% stake in Uniper, the country's largest natural gas importer, which is suffering from severe liquidity shortages. The bailout may be just the beginning of a structural shift in the energy sector.

Nofar Energy, which is listed on the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange, intends to install a 255 MW solar power plant on 290 hectares of land in southern Romania. The utility said it expects annual revenue of 27 million euros. Nofar said it aims to start construction in 2023, pending the necessary permits. The investor revealed that it has a total of 579 MW in pipeline in Romania, including the Răteşti project with a planned installed capacity of 155 MW.

The Sauk Valley Hydrogen project in Illinois will produce green hydrogen using electricity from Invenergy's co-located solar power plant. Green hydrogen projects can scale quickly and efficiently to reach megawatt to gigawatt applications. The project will break ground in the coming months and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2022.

Upgrades allow older engines to be prepared for future climate-neutral operation. 80% of all necessary adjustments and changes are made during lifecycle upgrades. Based on 6,000 hours of full-load operation, users can save about 500 tons of fuel and 25 tons of lubricating oil per year. Newly modified engines can also be upgraded to run on synthetic fuels.

Peterhead International (PIL) has signed a contract with a Chinese shipyard for the progressive delivery of four 8,000 TEU LNG dual-fuel vessels in 2025. Lars Kastrup, chief executive of PIL, said the ships would help meet its decarbonisation target of achieving net zero emissions by 2050. The new vessel will be equipped with an ammonia intermediate-ready fuel tank and run on LNG and low-sulphur fuel oil.

A methanol dual fuel. The 300,000 dwt crude oil carrier has received approval in principle (AIP) from Korea Classification Society (KR). Methanol is considered to have high commercial potential because it offers less technical difficulty than LNG and is less toxic than ammonia. Methanol can be stored as a liquid at room temperature, similar to marine oil, making it easier to store and transport.

Norway-listed BW LPG has announced that it has converted the main engine of the 'BW Malacca' to dual-fuel operation. The last of its kind in a series of 15 LPG carriers that were refitted with MAN B&W 6G60ME-C9.2 engines. The work was carried out at Yaolian Shipyard in Shenzhen, China, while the vessel is scheduled for a five-year berth.

Wärtsilä will deliver the first engine for an offshore wind installation vessel ordered by Dutch contractor Van Oord. Expected to be delivered in 2024, Boreas will be ready to install the largest 25MW offshore windmill. Since there are not enough carbon-neutral fuels on the market, the engines can run on either green methanol produced using renewable resources such as biomass and solar energy, or regular marine fuels.

A large rooftop solar project has been completed at a healthcare distribution facility in Massachusetts. The 6.7 MW DC system is located on the roof of Medline's 820,000-square-foot facility in Uxbridge. The company has invested $34 million in renewable energy since 2016. Rooftop solar systems are now installed at five of the company's U.S. plants.