Money Buzz! Europa

Category: Infrastructure

  • Enel Green Power built a record 3,106 MW of renewable capacity in 2020

    Enel Green Power built a record 3,106 MW of renewable capacity in 2020

    Enel Green Power has set a new record in 2020 by building 3,106 MW of new renewable capacity all over the world, 77 MW more (+2.5%) compared to the renewable capacity built in 2019.

    The new renewable capacity built by Enel Green Power in 2020 includes around 46 facilities, mainly wind (2,284 MW) and solar (803 MW).

    Furthermore, the company refurbished and repowered about 1.2 GW of plants in operation (250 MW wind, 847 MW hydro and 73 MW geothermal) over the course of the year.

    This new capacity is distributed as follows:

    • 508 MW in Europe, mainly in Spain;
    • 879 MW in Latin America, mainly in Brazil;
    • 1,386 MW in North America, mainly in the United States;
    • 333 MW in Africa, Asia and Oceania.

    Enel Green Power now manages around 49 GW of total renewable capacity and is the largest private renewable player at global level.

  • Austria: New passenger car registrations in 2020 at the lowest level since 1987

    Austria: New passenger car registrations in 2020 at the lowest level since 1987

    According to Statistics Austria, a total of 353.179 new motor vehicles were registered in 2020, 19.0% fewer than in 2019.

    New registrations of passenger cars decreased by 24.5% to 248.740. The number of newly registered lorries fell by 16.7% to 40.042.

    Tractors used for agriculture and forestry increased again in 2020 (+6.9%, 6.446 vehicles). New registrations of two-wheelers also increased significantly (+13.4% to 46.099).

    Increases in new electric and hybrid cars

    In 2020, registrations of new passenger cars fell to 248.740, the lowest level since 1987 (243.221) and also well below the twenty-year-average (313.297).

    Compared to 2019 (329.363 newly registered passenger cars), this was the highest year-on-year decline ever observed.

    New registrations of petrol-powered passenger cars (share: 43.3%) fell by 39.0% and those of diesel passenger cars (share: 36.5%) by 28.0%.

    The share of alternatively powered passenger cars – electric, natural gas, bivalent drive, combined drive (petrol or diesel hybrid) and hydrogen (fuel cell) – reached 20.1% in 2020 with 50.060 vehicles (+90.0%) (2019: 8.0%; 26.346 and 2018: 4.9%; 16.807).

    With a share of 10.2% of all new passenger car registrations or 25.380 vehicles (+105.5% compared to 2019), petrol/electric hybrid vehicles are the most important group among alternatively powered passenger cars; they are followed by passenger cars with electric drives (share: 6.4%; +72.8% to 15.972) and diesel/electric hybrid drives (share: 3.3%; +99.4% to 8.287).

    Primarily legal entities, companies and local authorities are registering new electric cars (share of all new electric car registrations: 81.6% or 13.040 vehicles).

    The highest number of new electric passenger cars was registered in Vienna and Lower Austria (shares of 18.5% and 18.4%, respectively), followed by Upper Austria (17.6%) and Styria (13.0%).

    SUVs ahead of compact class and small cars

    The preferred segment for new passenger car registrations in 2020 is the off-road vehicle or SUV (sport utility vehicle) with a share of 31.5% and 78.403 vehicles.

    SUVs are followed by compact cars with a share of 25.5% (63.333 vehicles) and small cars with a share of 19.5% (48.480 vehicles). Increases compared to 2019 were observed for sports cars (+57.3%, 3.345 vehicles).

    VW remains market leader in Austria

    The Top 10 brands in 2020 represent 67.5% of all new passenger car registrations.

    VW remained the market leader with a share of 15.4%, followed by Skoda (share: 9.5%) and Seat and BMW (share 6.4% each).

    Compared to the previous year, all Top 10 brands had double-digit declines (Opel -43.7%, Ford -27.6%, VW -27.3%, Renault -24.0%, Hyundai -22.6%, Seat -19.7%, BMW -17.4%, Mercedes -14.8%, Skoda -13.5%, Audi -12.8%).

    More than 7 million motor vehicles are registered in Austria

    As of December 31 2020, the provisional stock of motor vehicles in Austria exceeded the 7-million mark (approx. 7.1 million) for the first time.

    That is 1.5% more motor vehicles than in the previous year.

    Passenger cars, the most important vehicle type in terms of share (71.7%), accounted for approx. 5.1 million vehicles, an increase of 1.0%.

    A total of 512.101 lorries (+3.5%), 472.467 tractors used for agriculture and forestry (+0.9%) and 19.388 articulated lorries (+0.3%) were in the stock.

    Campers reached 32.675, an increase of 8.4%. Among single-track vehicles, there were 570.747 motorcycles (+3.8%) and 274.433 scooters (+0.7%).

  • Alstom to supply metro trains, infrastructure and digital train control for the future Belgrade metro

    Alstom to supply metro trains, infrastructure and digital train control for the future Belgrade metro

    Alstom has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Government of Serbia for the construction of phase 1 of the first line of the future Belgrade metro.

    In this project, Alstom will be responsible for a wide scope of works including the metro trains themselves, digital train control systems, platform screen doors, the infrastructure (the track laying and the power supply solutions) and the transport system integration.

    The construction of the new metro network is expected to start at the end of this year, pending signature of the contract with the relevant Serbian authorities.

    The first two lines will cover a total of around 42 kilometres – the first 22 kilometres, the second nearly 20.

    The first line will run along the Sava river, crossing the Belgrade city centre, linking the Makisko Polje area in south part of the city, to the Mirijevo urban neighbourhood in the north-east.

    The second line will connect Zemun railway station crossing the New Belgrade urban municipality, with an interchange with the first line in Mirijevo.

  • Met Group acquires a 42 MW wind park in Bulgaria

    Met Group acquires a 42 MW wind park in Bulgaria

    Swiss-based European energy company MET Group has completed the acquisition of a 100% stake in Enel Green Power Bulgaria EAD, which owns a 42-megawatt wind park in Bulgaria.

    The 42 MW wind park located in North-eastern Bulgaria is now wholly owned by MET Group, following the successful completion of a share and purchase transaction with Italian Enel Green Power as seller.

    The transaction was completed on 20 January 2021, and was cleared by the Bulgarian and Serbian competition authorities.

    The wind park, the 5th largest in Bulgaria, is located in the municipality of Shabla and Kavarna, with 14 units of Vestas-V90 wind turbines (3 MW capacity each).

    The wind farm, operating since 2010, supplies power equivalent to the consumption of around 30,000 households.

  • Enel X will provide Bogota with 401 electric buses and two new electroterminals

    Enel X will provide Bogota with 401 electric buses and two new electroterminals

    Enel X was awarded by Bogota’s bus rapid transit system Transmilenioa contract to provide the Colombian capital’s Integrated Public Transport System with 401 full-electric buses and two brand new electroterminals for their charging.

    This award, which follows the contract signed at the end of 2019 with SITP for the construction of four electro-terminals that is currently ongoing, will bring to around 900 the number of e-buses served by Enel X in Bogota.

    Bogota is the second Latin American mega city – after Santiago de Chile – to benefit from a zero-emissions public transport initiative promoted by Enel X.

    This award brings the number of e-buses managed by Enel X globally to almost 1,400.

    The electric buses, which will be manufactured by the Chinese automakers BYD and are expected to be delivered to Bogota between the end of 2021 and early 2022.

    It will be charged with clean energy, coming from 100% renewable sources at the electroterminals built by Enel X.

    The buses will be equipped with security cameras, wi-fi and USB recharging hubs in order to provide a comfortable, sustainable and high quality service to all passengers.

    The two electroterminals, which are expected to be operational between November 2021 and April 2022, will be built in two different areas of Bogota (Usme and Fontibon) and will include approximately 200 e-bus chargers.

  • Tele2 and Telenor won 100 MHz in the Swedish 3.5 GHz spectrum auction

    Tele2 and Telenor won 100 MHz in the Swedish 3.5 GHz spectrum auction

    Tele2 and Telenor Sweden have together secured crucial spectrum in the 3.5 GHz spectrum auction.

    Combined with the frequencies already won in the 700 MHz auction 2018, this will make it possible to commence the nationwide rollout of 5G, as well a significant upgrade of the existing 4G network.

    The rollout will be conducted through Tele2’s and Telenor’s joint company Net4Mobility.

    The two companies have also finalized their vendor procurement and chosen Ericsson and Nokia as partners for the rollout of their joint nationwide 5G radio access network.

    The new 5G network will increase speed and coverage while lowering latency for both consumers and businesses.

    Tele2’s 5G vendors

    In connection to the auction, Tele2 and Telenor have also finalized their procurement of radio access network vendors and have signed with Ericsson and Nokia for their nationwide rollout.

    As previously announced, Tele2 has chosen Nokia as vendor for its core network in both Sweden and the Baltics.

    Tele2 will operate and monitor its Swedish 5G network from within Sweden.

  • Wi-Fi on A1 motorway between Salzburg and Vienna by 2022

    Wi-Fi on A1 motorway between Salzburg and Vienna by 2022

    ASFINAG wants to make Austrian motorways fit for Wi-Fi technology. The first test section is being set up between Salzburg and Vienna, Heute reports.

    175 first boxes will be installed on overhead indicators along the A1 motorway between Salzburg and Vienna.

    The system is intended to inform drivers of modern vehicles about accidents, construction works or speed limits and is intended to increase road safety.

    By 2023, all Austrian motorways will be equiped with a wireless network for mobile internet access.

    The company plans to install a total of 500 Wi-Fi boxes along all motorways throughout Austria.

    ASFINAG is a federal agency that plans, finance, build, maintain, operate and collect toll for 2,200 kilometres of motorways and expressways in Austria.

  • Greece started to receive natural gas from Azerbaijan

    Greece started to receive natural gas from Azerbaijan

    Greece started to receive natural gas from Azerbaijan, as the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is ready, the director of the national natural gas company DEPA, Konstantinos Xifaras, told DPA on Thursday.

    ”The start of deliveries is a turning point,” said Konstantinos Xifaras.

    Earlier, Bulgarian Prime Minister Boiko Borisov also announced that Bulgaria had begun receiving Azerbaijani natural gas from the Caspian Sea, an important step towards diversifying energy supplies.

    The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) is the first non-Russian pipeline to supply Europe after the Medgaz connection. In 2011 began delivering gas from Algeria to Spain.

    The $ 40 billion project, which stretches for 3,500 kilometers and connects the Shah Deniz II field in the Caspian Sea and Italy, passing through Georgia, Turkey, Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea.

    With a length of 870 kilometers, the Trans Adriatic Gas Pipeline (TAP) will be the last section of this corridor and will allow the transport of natural gas from Turkey to Italy, via Greece and Albania.

  • Norway keeps its leading position in the electric vehicle market

    Norway keeps its leading position in the electric vehicle market

    Electric vehicles sales in Norway surpassed those of hybrid vehicles last year, and Volkswagen has replaced Tesla in the top manufacturers of battery-powered cars sold in the country, Reuters reports.

    Last year, 54.3% of new cars sold in Norway were fully electric, a world record, compared to 42.4% in 2019 and about 1% a decade ago.

    Even more, in December, electric cars accounted for 66.7% of total new car registrations, the highest level in a single month.

    In addition to tax exemptions for electric cars, their owners also benefit from other facilities such as reduced tolls, free parking and in many places free charging.

    However, the challenge is the small number of fast charging stations to keep up with the rapid growth of the electric vehicle fleet.

  • Orlen’s service station chain in Slovakia has doubled in 2020

    Orlen’s service station chain in Slovakia has doubled in 2020

    With two new sites under the Benzina Orlen brand opened recently, Polish group has 20 sites in Slovakia.

    Even more, customers can use Stop Cafe offering at 13 locations. Another 7 stations will be upgraded to the Orlen’s standards in 2021.

    Food and store services are the fastest growing sales segment at the Benzina Orlen stations, its volumes in the Czech Republic having increased by 320% over the past eight years.

    It also enjoys considerable interest from Slovak customers.

    As in the Czech Republic, the chain’s offering in Slovakia includes Polish products, such as beverages, snacks, automotive oils and fluids.

    Currently, motorists in Slovakia can use Orlen stations located in the urban areas of Malacky, Holice, Lužianky, Šelpice, Šurany, Strečno, Tesárske Mlyňany, Senec, Ružomberok, Byteč, Dunajská Streda, Trebatice near Piešťany and Kysucké Nové Mesto.

  • Bulgaria to receive one bln cubic meters of gas per year from Azerbaijan

    Bulgaria to receive one bln cubic meters of gas per year from Azerbaijan

    Bulgaria will start to receive natural gas from Azerbaijan from January 1, 2021, Bulgarian authorities announced.

    According to the 25-year contract signed between Bulgargaz and the Azerbaijani company Socar, one billion cubic meters of gas per year will be delivered to Bulgaria from the Shah Deniz field 2.

    By October 2021, natural gas will reach Bulgaria through a temporary delivery point – Kulata – which connects the TAP gas pipeline to the Greek national system.

    Meanwhile, work will continue on the Greece-Bulgaria gas interconnector, which was delayed by the effects of the coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19).

  • Enel X reached more than 90,000 charging points on Juicepass App

    Enel X reached more than 90,000 charging points on Juicepass App

    Enel X further expands its electric vehicle charging network to more than 90,000 public charging points available to users of its JuicePass app.

    At the beginning of 2020 the network had around 10,000 charging points.

    Enel X has more than 12,500 charging points installed throughout Europe while the accessible network has been further enabled through interoperability via Hubject’s e-mobility platform.

    Interoperability allows Enel X JuicePass app users to charge their EVs throughout Europe with a single sign-on, without entering into new contracts with different providers.

    This network that now includes more than 90,000 public charging points, including alternating current (AC) charging up to 43kW, direct current (DC) fast charging up to 50kW, and High Power Charging (above 100kW) technologies.