The Spanish government adopted a plan to close all five nuclear power plants in the country in the period from 2023 to 2028.
The Siver Week 28th Nov 2018 read more »
News November 2018
Taiwan
Just as the sun seems to be setting on nuclear power in rich countries, Taiwan’s voters have delivered it a new lease on life. A plebiscite on whether to repeal a law requiring the country’s four operating. A plebiscite on whether to repeal a law requiring the country’s four operating reactors to switch off by 2025 passed with 59.5% of the vote in the country’s local elections on Saturday.
Bankok Post 30th Nov 2018 read more »
Nuclear Weapons
MANCHESTER City Council has become the first in Britain to formally support the UN International Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW). The unanimous decision was applauded by the Nuclear Free Local Authorities group (NFLA), which called on the government today to drop its boycott of the treaty and take part in talks on its process. Manchester’s NFLA representative councillor Eddy Newman, who proposed the resolution, said the decision “allies Manchester with prominent progressive cities around the world.” NFLA steering committee chair,Councillor Ernie Galsworthy said: “I am delighted to hear that Manchester City Council has unanimously passed a resolution supporting the Treaty for the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons. I know many other NFLA members will be proud to follow their lead. “Over two-thirds of the countries of the world took that brave first step when agreeing to the treaty last year. “I am delighted now that the great towns and cities of the world can show their solidarity with them by passing such resolutions, as I am sure they will do over the next few months.”
Morning Star 29th Nov 2018 read more »
Renewables – onshore wind
The UK’s onshore wind industry has been setting out its vision for the future at a conference and exhibition in Edinburgh today organised by RenewableUK. The event, “Growing Industry, Powering the Future”, was attended by more than 150 people including representatives from companies working in the sector, bodies such as National Grid, government officials and academics. Experts discussed how to deliver new projects at the lowest cost, as well as maximising opportunities for UK companies involved in the supply chain. They also focussed on the vital role of onshore wind as part of a flexible energy system, feeding power into local networks and helping to fine-tune the supply of electricity to ensure it meets demand. RenewableUK’s Executive Director Emma Pinchbeck said: “Onshore wind can make a major contribution to the UK’s clean growth ambitions. As the cheapest source of new power, we expect onshore wind projects to be delivered by a number of routes, and our members are active in bringing forward projects which can be backed by Corporate Power Purchase Agreements, Contract for Difference auctions, the wholesale price of electricity or other new market opportunities. “To take full advantage of the opportunities of cheap onshore wind for consumers, businesses and investors, and to close the gap to the 5th Carbon Budget in 2032, Government should support onshore projects in Contracts for Difference auctions. Poll after poll shows onshore wind has the overwhelming support of the British public”. Today’s event was organised in partnership with ESB, RES, ScottishPower Renewables and Vattenfall, and sponsored by GE Renewable Energy.
Renewable UK 27th Nov 2018 read more »
Renewables – offshore wind
Ørsted has promised an “extensive investment programme” of DKK200bn (£23.8bn) in green energy projects through to 2025, as it set out its plans to deliver more than 30GW of total renewables capacity by the end of the next decade. The Danish energy giant yesterday confirmed board approval for its new long-term strategic financial plan, which seeks to maintain its position as a market leader in offshore wind at the same time as growing its onshore wind, solar, energy storage and bioenergy activity in Europe, North America, and Asia.
Business Green 29th Nov 2018 read more »
Renewables – wave
A company with plans to manufacture a revolutionary new wave power device has held a series of meetings with MSPs to secure funding to allow testing and demonstration of the technology. Resen Waves, the Danish company behind the Resen Wave technology, is planning to open an office in Aberdeen soon. It is a novel approach since it hopes to go directly to market to provide wave-powered buoys to supply off grid sensors and instruments on the seabed and real-time data communication with the sensors. After completion of a successful two-year test and demonstration (T&D) programme the company intends to base manufacturing in Aberdeen to fulfil orders arising from industries such as offshore oil and gas decommissioning, geotechnical surveying and offshore wind. It is planned to do the T&D at the European Marine Energy Centre EMEC in Orkney, and the Scottish Government is being asked to grant £250,000 to fund this.
Dave Toke’s Blog 29th Nov 2018 read more »
A Danish energy firm is looking to make waves in the Scottish renewables sector with a new north-east premises.
Energy Voice 29th Nov 2018 read more »
Community Energy
CleanChoice Energy and New Columbia Solar have partnered to provide 1.825MW of proposed ‘Community Solar’ capacity available to residents of the District of Columbia, claimed to be the largest to date in the district. Tom Matzzie, CEO of CleanChoice Energy said, “Bringing Community Solar to the District is hugely important. For too long most Washington D.C. residents had no real way to go solar. Community Solar changes that. It means that anyone–including people that live in apartments, or rent, or can’t install their own solar for any reason can still choose solar.”
PV Tech 29th Nov 2018 read more »
Power to Gas
Dave Elliott: Hydrogen gas made via the electrolysis of water using surplus renewable electricity can be stored then used when needed for power production, heating, industry and in vehicles. It’s an ideal multi-purpose fuel; it only produces water, and some NOx, when burnt in air or used in a fuel cell to re-generate electricity. And now this power to gas (P2G) approach is becoming cheaper. Perhaps the most exciting prospect is that P2G offers a way to balance variable renewables. Indeed, it turns their variability into a solution rather than a problem. In order to meet demand most of the time, at non-peak demand times a power system based on renewables would be likely to have substantial overcapacity, so that there would be surplus renewables output. If that can be converted to storable hydrogen, it can be used to generate power later, when renewable supplies are low and power demand high. Since there could be a lot of this hydrogen, some of it could also offset fossil gas use, by being injected into the gas grid, possibly after conversion into methane. In addition, some of the hydrogen or methane could be used as a vehicle fuel. It all sounds wonderful, but is P2G really viable at scale? A recent report on green heating options from the UK’s Climate Change Committee (CCC) was unconvinced, but there are other views. So, despite the CCC’s reservations, P2G does look promising. Some say that, with renewable costs falling, we may reach the point where P2G becomes fully competitive. A recent study for Greenpeace Energy by Berlin-based Energy Brainpool claimed that hydrogen from surplus renewables will be cheaper than gas in the 2030s. It cites the International Energy Agency view that natural gas prices are set to rise steadily until the 2040s, from €0.017/kWh in 2020 to €0.032/kWh by 2030 and €0.041/kWh by 2040. By contrast, IEA analysts forecast that production costs for hydrogen generated by wind power are set to fall from “about €0.18/kWh” to €0.13/kWh by 2020, to €0.12/kWh by 2030, and to between €0.021/kWh and €0.032/kWh by 2040. As I have noted in earlier posts, there are other approaches. For example, the Leeds H21 100% hydrogen heating project is getting some support. But it is focused on SMR using fossil gas with CCS — P2G has been relegated to a possible longer-term option. However, the case for P2G is building up, not least since, unlike the H21 plan, it doesn’t need costly and uncertain CCS, and can deliver fully carbon-neutral hydrogen.
Physics World 28th Nov 2018 read more »
Energy Storage
DF Energy is to target the UK’s solar households with a discounted offer of battery units from Powervault in exchange for them signing up to a ten year contract allowing the supplier to use the storage capacity in the energy services market. The new partnership is offering existing solar PV owners as much as £2,000 off the cost of a home battery system if they sign up to EDF Energy grid services. If taken up, this will allow the energy stored in a Powervault 3 battery to form part of an aggregated network that can be used to help balance the grid.
Solar Portal 29th Nov 2018 read more »
Energy Efficiency
The government response sets out the policy decisions on amendments to The Energy Efficiency (Private Rented Property) (England and Wales) Regulations 2015 for domestic properties. The key decisions include: the introduction of a capped landlord contribution of £3,500 (inclusive of VAT) removal of the Consent Exemption currently available where a sitting tenant does not consent to a Green Deal charge inclusion of an evidential requirement for the registration of a ‘high cost’ exemption curtailment of the period of validity of previously registered ‘no cost’ exemptions Other policy decisions relate to the operational efficacy of the Regulations.
BEIS 29th Nov 2018 read more »
