Thursday, 30 June 2011
Business giants call on government to show more green ambition
Ricoh uses wind and solar power to put its name in lights
Jellyfish keep UK nuclear plant shut
Wednesday, 29 June 2011
Untitled
Untitled
However, nuclear power was one of the issues that divided Conservatives and Liberal Democrats formed a coalition after the May 2010 general elections.
The announcement comes three months after a powerful earthquake and its following tsunami triggered a radioactive disaster at Japan's Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant.
The government is planning to construct the new suite of reactors to maintain electricity supplies and cut greenhouse gas emissions after closing down an old generation of power stations, British media reported.
"Around a quarter of the United Kingdom's generating capacity is due to close by the end of this decade. We need to replace this with secure, low carbon, affordable energy," said Energy Minister Charles Hendry.
Ofgem Investigating The Big Six
Ofgem demands reforms to gas and electricity markets
Tuesday, 28 June 2011
Marks & Spencer and Co-op named greenest supermarkets
What Google's exit means for energy management in the cloud
Monday, 27 June 2011
Ofgem may be blown away by the power of the 'Big Six' energy companies
Sympathy towards British Gas, npower, E.ON, EDF, Scottish and Southern, and Scottish Power has not been forthcoming since Ofgem found that they raise bills quicker than they lower them when wholesale gas and electricity prices change. But can the regulator force change on these powerful companies?
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/utilities/8592736/Ofgem-may-be-blown-away-by-the-power-of-the-Big-Six-energy-companies.htmlSunday, 26 June 2011
Severn Trent faces paying £10m customer windfall
Friday, 24 June 2011
Green energy deal gets around solar FiT cuts
The initial £2 million deal will see ISIS Solar provide one megawatt’s (MW) worth of solar photovoltaic (PV) arrays to Borders Machinery Ring (BMR) members. Because the majority of the installations will be under 50 kilowatt (kW) in size, the deal will be unaffected by the recent FiT cuts announced by the Government on solar projects between 50 kW and 1 MW in size.
How the deal will workISIS Solar has structured the deal so that members of BMR, which represents some of Britain’s biggest landowners, will either be able to buy the solar systems outright or receive the energy free in return for providing land on which the solar arrays will be installed.
UK Water bills could increase by £4.2bn
UK Water bills could increase by £4.2 billion, the equivalent of £162 for every household in the country, following a decision to switch responsibility of sewers from individuals to water companies.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/personalfinance/consumertips/household-bills/8586652/Water-bills-could-increase-by-4.2bn.htmlIs Anaerobic Digestion The Ideal Sustainable Technology?
The Plan contains guidance on the cost and benefits of AD for developers and local authorities, and tactics for training and developing markets for the biogas and fertilisers produced by the technology.
″Getting rubbish and waste rot in landfill is madness when we can use it to power our homes and cars,″ said energy secretary Greg Barker. ″We are already making it financially attractive to turn waste into electricity under the Feed-in Tariffs scheme and soon there'll be similar incentives to generate heat too.
"The Anaerobic Digestion strategy and action plan will help us unlock the potential to get more energy from waste to reduce emissions in the fight against climate change.”
Thursday, 23 June 2011
Ofgem presses on with overhaul of gas and electricity markets
Ofgem, Britain's energy regulator, is to press ahead with plans for a radical overhaul of the gas and electricity markets to encourage competition at a time of rising energy prices.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/newsbysector/energy/8591067/Ofgem-presses-on-with-overhaul-of-gas-and-electricity-markets.htmlWinter of power bills discontent on the way as wholesale gas price rises 30%
We have a year to make a low-carbon future happen
We are rapidly approaching a tipping point in the energy story of this country. Eight years ago, the UK was self-sufficient in gas. Today we're importing about 50pc of our needs and that proportion will rise to 75pc by 2020.
Wednesday, 22 June 2011
New 'dash for gas' will cost consumers
Huhne under fire for hitting out at green law 'deregulation zealots' who want to bin costly red tape
Can Germany Really Turn Its Back on Nuclear Energy?
Monday, 20 June 2011
Wind-power bonds offer 7.5% return
Tesco and Asda urged to sell gas and electricity
Siemens bets on next big thing in solar PV
Thursday, 16 June 2011
Nearly half UK's biggest companies failing to act on carbon emissions law
ScottishPower says price hikes needed to fuel £15bn investment
http://business.scotsman.com/business/ScottishPower-says-price-hikes-needed.6785689.jp
Wednesday, 15 June 2011
Google's Biggest Clean Energy Investment Ever Is Going To Put Solar On Your Rooftop
Controlled' power cuts likely as Sun storm threatens national grid
The Golden Age of Natural Gas...
Drunk on Power: Scots Turn Whisky Waste Into Clean Energy
Tuesday, 14 June 2011
UK wind farms may shut when demand low: National Grid
CBI: Carbon floor price could "push industry over the edge"
Brent oil prices near $119, record spread against US contract
U.K. Gas Advances as Maintenance Curbs Supply, LNG Flows Fall
UK inflation remains at 4.5pc & energy price reaction
Inflation remained at a two-and-half year high of 4.5pc in May - more than twice the Bank of England's target - as rising food prices offset a fall in travel costs. This is how economists reacted to the data.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/economics/8574656/UK-inflation-remains-at-4.5pc-reaction.htmlIs Wales sitting on commercial gas reserves worth billions?
An Australian exploration firm which holds several licences to exploit the gas reserves trapped in the shale rocks deep beneath the UK believes the reserves in Wales are far larger than previously thought.
Shale gas is controversial as the method of extraction is complicated and has been accused by campaigners in the United States of polluting water supplies.
The company’s chairman Greg Soloman described the gas field under South Wales as potentially “colossal”.
“This has got the potential to literally transform the Welsh economy – no question at all. We’re talking about potentially huge quantities of gas,” Mr Solomon said.
IBM Launches Building IT; Cuts Energy Use ‘Up to 40%’
Monday, 13 June 2011
Power play over the 'energy crunch'
Following their sharp increases in energy prices, he says they need to explain themselves.
UK GAS: Prompt gains slightly on short system, curve moves up
Overall the prompt remains stuck in its range of recent weeks, just under 60 pence/therm.
On the forward curve the seasons were also showing gains Monday from last week's closing levels.
At around midday UK time Monday the UK within-day was at 59.55 pence/therm and the day-ahead at 59.50 p/th, compared with a day-ahead closing level last Friday slightly lower at 59.10 p/th.
National Grid, the UK gas system operator, showed supply for the day forecast at 194 million cubic meters, making the network 16 million cu m short against expected demand of 210 million cu m.
Recent cooler, gloomier weather in the UK had helped push heating demand up a bit, said one trader, but the weather would be moving more back to normal by Tuesday/Wednesday, possibly taking away that extra heating load.
Across all parts of the demand mix, the total demand is in any case relatively low, below National Grid's estimate for the seasonal norm, which would be 248 million cu m. Total demand includes not just heating, but industry, power stations
http://www.platts.com/RSSFeedDetailedNews/RSSFeed/NaturalGas/8990575
Wholesale British gas prices rose again on Monday
ISO launches ISO 50001 energy management standard
ISO 50001 will provide public and private sector organizations with management strategies to increase energy efficiency, reduce costs and improve energy performance.
Energy Minister Huhne advises consumers to switch utility suppliers
Statoil signs 10-yr gas supply deal with SSE
Deliveries are due to start in the final quarter of 2012, with an annual volume of 0.5 billion cubic metres of natural gas, Statoil said on Tuesday.
The Peterhead power station in Scotland's Aberdeenshire consumes 1.5 billion cubic metres of gas in a typical year, producing enough electricity for 2 million households.
Centrica boss warns of price hikes
Sir Roger Carr told The Sunday Telegraph that the wholesale cost of power has risen by more than 20% in recent weeks, making price hikes across the industry inevitable.
Friday, 10 June 2011
Toyota to reduce emissions by installing large solar array Read more: http://www.theengineer.co.uk/sectors/energy-and-environment/news/toyota-to-reduce-emissions-by-installing-large-solar-array/1008921.article#ixzz1Oc65odco
UK Gas prices still show upward trend
UK Utilities and Government Brainstorming Smart Meter Deployment
Anthony Pohl, the director of the annual Smart Metering UK & Ireland conference, says the confab was crucial for the successful roll out of 53 million smart meters being installed in 30 million homes and businesses across the country. The smart meters in the home will enable energy users and suppliers to have more control over usage and reduce waste.
Zoe McCleod, the energy expert for Consumer Focus, says smart meters can bring big benefits for the public if done correctly but the devices also pose potential big risks if done wrong. She believes the challenge was for industry to work with government and consumer groups to put the right protections in place and ensure that smart meters deliver for consumers.
Can Shale Gas Save the UK Energy Industry?
Is The Future Of Nuclear Power In Mini Reactors?
Thursday, 9 June 2011
UK supermarket Morrisons to make £1 million in energy savings with EDF
MOD turns to SMEs to cut energy and carbon emissions
"The MOD has done well against its energy targets, exceeding its original targets by 50 per cent, but the Prime Minister has set out a strong pledge that this will be the greenest Government ever, so this is not the time to rest on our laurels," said David Olney, DIO deputy chief executive.
UK running out of oil and gas, WikiLeaks reveals
Wednesday, 8 June 2011
Families Face £200 Hike As Energy Prices Rise
Families Face £200 Hike As Energy Prices Rise
Energy bills could rise by almost £200 per household this year if all six big suppliers follow the lead set by Scottish Power.
Read on Sky News
Ofgem shines spotlight on energy brokers
Industry backs gas as 'vital' to UK energy future
According to the Energy Networks Association (ENA) the UK needs a flexible energy mix and incentives for investment are 'essential' to meet future energy demands.
But, in the meantime gas will have to remain the power source of choice, despite a lack of investment in Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS), according to the ENA.
The plea came as the ENA gave evidence to the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee inquiry 'The UKs Energy Supply: security or independence?'
The Independence of Natural Gas
Tuesday, 7 June 2011
Energy Bills Set To Greatly Increase In UK
Energy Bills Set To Greatly Increase In UK
Households will have to deal with even bigger increases in energy bills this year if all six big suppliers follow the lead set by Scottish Power.
Read on Sky News
Scottish Power Gas Bills Up 19%
Scottish Power Gas Bills Up 19%
Energy companies will plunge half a million households into fuel poverty if they follow Scottish Power's decision to dramatically hike gas and electricity bills.
Read on Sky News
Siemens sues Samsung and LG over LED lighting patents
Monday, 6 June 2011
UK must ramp up renewables to stay competitive
Covanta Energy believes Britain may lose its competitive edge if it doesn't address some of the key barriers to renewables investment such as ambivalence among policy-makers and the cumbersome planning process.
The UK has a target of 30% of electricity to be produced from renewable sources by 2020, but currently only 6.6% of electricity is generated in this way.
Israel unveils first commercial solar power plant
Arava Power's 4.95 megawatt solar power plant at Kibbutz Keturah is the first of about 50 photovoltaic power fields to be built throughout the southern Negev desert by the end of 2014.
Israel's Arava Power unveiled the country's first commercial solar power plant on Sunday, showing it off to government ministers and dignitaries, and announced plans to erect dozens of other solar array fields, whose total cost could reach $2 billion. The announcement was appropriately made on UN World Environment Day.Energy Market Report June 2011
Trains Are To Go Solar - But Not In Britain
Trains Are To Go Solar - But Not In Britain
European solar energy experts have branded the UK's decision to cut financial incentives as "short-sighted".
Read on Sky News
Friday, 3 June 2011
Germany's costly decision to give up nuclear power
Pure and simple, politics drove Chancellor Merkel to this unwise policy reversal. She has ardently supported nuclear power, which generates 23 percent of Germany’s electricity. Earlier, she had decided to extend the life of Germany’s atomic plants until 2036, more than a decade longer than a scheduled phaseout agreed to in the previous center-left government.
But when Japan’s earthquake and tsunami caused a partial meltdown of nuclear reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in March, that also triggered earth-moving protests against nuclear power in Germany. In local elections, the issue caused Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrat party to lose political control of a state that it had historically dominated. Her nuclear “nein, danke” now opens the way to a possible coalition with the popular Green party after the next national election.
Thursday, 2 June 2011
Why the Cloud needs to be green
Centrica suspends South Morecambe gas field
Wednesday, 1 June 2011
Ruukki has Developed a Fully-Integrated Solar Panel Facade
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/ruukki-has-developed-a-fully-integrated-solar-panel-facade-122709228.html