Energy Bill
Labour challenged the “dearth of information” on support levels being negotiated for nuclear power and carbon capture and storage (CCS) in the Lords this week. Shadow energy minister Baroness Worthington appealed in vain to the government to break its silence on the status of discussions with EDF Energy over its proposed new nuclear plant at Hinkley Point. As the Energy Bill reached its final committee hearing in the Lords, she pointed out that EDF had not mentioned the project once in the 17 pages of its half-year 2013 results. Nor were details forthcoming in the government’s Electricity Market Reform draft delivery plan, published last month.
Utility Week 31st July 2013 read more »
Energy Policy
The Sun has a vision of Britain – and it wants to share it with you. The paper today set out where it stands “on the issues vital to us, to you our readers and to Britain” – including energy. Its manifesto contains a number of claims about the country’s energy sector, but is it a vision we recognise? Key to The Sun’s assessment is the fact that it’s unencumbered by considerations such as the existence of the UK’s climate policies, like the Climate Change Act. The Sun calls for the continuation of a fossil fuel economy, but the government has a number of legally binding emissions targets to hit. That’s something it won’t manage if coal and gas are used to supply the majority of the UK’s energy needs in coming years. So while Britain’s energy future may contain some of what The Sun hopes to see, it probably won’t be because policymakers wake up one day and realise there’s an imminent energy crisis that can only be solved by fracking. The Sun’s vision of the UK’s energy sector – while strident – is a little confused.
Carbon Brief 31st July 2013 read more »
Lomborg is still writing nonsense and junk economics, no surprise there. The real question is why is the FT still publishing him despite his claims being comprehensively debunked? Shame on you.
Tom Burke 31st July 2013 read more »
Energy Costs
As sure as night follows day, Centrica’s half-year profits announcement was greeted by a wave of criticism from those that appear to object to British Gas making a return on its investment. John Robertson MP called the 3.2pc rise in profits “disgusting and shameless” and accused the business of “profiteering”. The leader of the Unite trades union, Len McCluskey, demanded a price cut, arguing the profits would anger families after the utility raised prices by 6pc last year. Even the energy minister, Michael Fallon – a man who actually understands business – demanded Centrica “exercise restraint” and not implement price rises on a similar scale again. Of course, the truth is that electricity prices will inevitably rise, whether this year or next. And, in all probability, they will continue to rise for the rest of this decade. Why? Not because of energy profiteering or a lack of restraint but because of a painful combination of the necessary costs of building new power plants and the unnecessary costs of undeliverable and expensive green schemes and badly designed government policies.
Telegraph 31st July 2013 read more »
The boss of Centrica has claimed that he would “absolutely love” to spare customers a price rise this year for the first time since 2009 after the energy group boosted its first-half profits by 9 per cent. Sam Laidlaw said that British Gas would hold off as long as possible before making a move after three consecutive years of price rises, most recently last November. He warned, however, that with the cost of the Government’s environmental legislation spiralling and rising wholesale prices.
Times 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Energy Supplies
British Gas is considering the introduction of “Free Power Saturdays” to try to counter widespread anger over surging energy bills and utility company profits. Centrica, which owns British Gas, on Wednesday reported a 9% increase in group profits, after gas consumption jumped 13% following last winter’s record-breaking cold spell. It also refused to rule out a future price increase.
Guardian 31st July 2013 read more »
Independent 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Telegraph 31st July 2013 read more »
Times 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Nuclear Regulation
ONR Quarterly News April to June 2013. Includes: Belgian plant defects: what it means for the UK; GDA on ABWR reactors; Evaporator D Improvement Notice; UK/Norway Conference on Sellafield.
ONR 31st July 2013 read more »
Radwaste
An application to extend the life of the Lillyhall nuclear waste dump near Workington until 2029 DOES NOT MENTION NUCLEAR WASTE. This is because the law has been changed to classify High Volume Very Low Level Waste as “exempt”.
Radiation Free Lakeland 31st July 2013 read more »
Uranium
The World Heritage Committee agrees boundary change that will allow uranium mining at the Tanzania Selous Game Reserve – a World Heritage site. As in Cumbria the regulators and those who are supposed to be watchdogs are bending over backwards to accommodate the nuclear industry.
Radiation Free Lakeland 31st July 2013 read more »
US
After years of stalled negotiations and stalemates, legislators in the United States appear to be making some progress toward finding a solution for the country’s decades-old dilemma of where and how to store spent nuclear fuel. We look at some of the factors related to storage that could impede the industry’s long-term management and new-build plans as other competing energy fuels simultaneously influence financial decisions within industry and in politics. ‘Economic conditions primary challenge for nuclear, not the unsolved waste puzzle’
Nuclear Energy Insider 30th July 2013 read more »
Exelon Corp, the biggest nuclear power operator in the United States, said Wednesday that weak prices for power and for natural gas have pushed it to reduce operating and maintenance costs but the company is not yet giving up on any of its reactors.
Reuters 31st July 2013 read more »
Nuclear Weapons
BAE Systems Plc on Wednesday said it has won a long-term contract worth $535 million to maintain a share of the U.S. nuclear missile arsenal.
Reuters 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Nuclear War
Every new Cold War-era British prime minister was faced with a chilling decision the moment they took office: who should take over running the country if they were wiped out in a Soviet nuclear strike.
Telegraph 1st Aug 2013 read more »
It would have been the Queen’s Speech to end them all. At midday on Friday 4 March 1983, the monarch was due to address the nation to announce that Britain was at war and – due to the “deadly power of abused technology” – a nuclear conflict was at hand. The sobering speech, in which the Queen spoke of her “solemn and awful duty” of confirming an imminent Armageddon, was drawn up by senior civil servants. Fortunately for the rest of the population, its intended audience did not extend beyond Whitehall. The dummy broadcast was written for internal use as part of a government exercise in 1983 to mimic a crisis escalating to a nuclear conflict with an enemy named only as “Orange” but clearly intended to be the Soviet Union.
Independent 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Express 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Telegraph 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Mirror 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Guardian 1st Aug 2013 read more »
All the locks on US nuclear missiles based in Britain had to be changed after an RAF technician discovered that his launch key also fitted in the slot reserved for an American operator.
Telegraph 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Margaret Thatcher dismissed the Greenham Common women’s peace camp as an “eccentricity” but her Cabinet wrestled with winning the public around to having US nuclear cruise missiles sited in Britain.
Telegraph 1st Aug 2013 read more »
The secret file which would have been sitting on Michael Foot’s Downing Street desk if the Welsh anti-nuclear MP had led Labour to victory in the 1983 election has been published. The declassified papers show how civil servants prepared for the possible arrival in power of party that wanted to scrap nuclear weapons.
Wales Online 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Margaret Thatcher’s ¬government imagined rounding up and imprisoning Scottish nationalists in the event of a possible nuclear war, previously secret official documents show.
Herald 1st Aug 2013 read more »
Renewables
The European Union’s total electricity usage could be met — actually, it could be exceeded more than four times over — by floating offshore wind farms in the deep waters of the North Sea, according to a new report from the European Wind Energy Association. The report also urges the EU to set new renewable energy targets for the bloc, for the year 2030.
Renew Economy 1st August 2013 read more »
Good Energy has raised a further £882,000 through its latest share issue, providing it with fresh funds to support the development of new wind farms and solar power projects. The independent renewable energy supplier today confirmed the success of its latest share offering, which takes the total amount raised since its initial public offering to £2.68m.
Business Green 30th July 2013 read more »
Energy Efficiency
The government has announced long-awaited changes to energy efficiency rules for new buildings, putting the construction industry on track to deliver zero carbon homes by 2016. Communities Minister Baroness Hanham today confirmed a six per cent carbon reduction target for new build homes and a nine per cent cut for non-domestic buildings, compared to 2010 levels. The changes are due to come into force on 6 April 2014.
Business Green 30th July 2013 read more »
Energy Secretary Edward Davey has been vigorously championing a 40 per cent cut between 1990 and 2030 in CO2 emissions across the 28 countries of the European Union. This should rise to 50 per cent, if an “ambitious global climate deal is struck.” But that, he argues, does not mean that any related targets – whether covering renewable or energy efficiency – are necessary. “Adopting an ambitious and binding greenhouse gas target will provide a…compelling reason for us all to do more on energy efficiency. But we should not prejudge the balance between increasing efficiency and deploying other low carbon measures to meet the greenhouse gas targets.” At present, the European Union has three energy-related targets for 2020. Each is based upon an emblematic 20 per cent reduction. These are to cut carbon dioxide emissions by 20 per cent; to boost the proportion of renewable energy to 20 per cent; and to improve energy efficiency by 20 per cent. These targets may be equal in timescale and objective. But they are not equal in stature. The first two both have the force of Community law behind them, effectively compelling each government to adopt appropriate policies. In contrast, the energy-saving target does not have the same status at all. It is far from compulsory, just an indicative aspiration. Latest estimates from the European Commission maintain we are set to achieve less than half of that 20 per cent improvement, no more than 9 per cent. Even if all directives are implemented in full (chance would be a fine thing!), that figure would still only creep up to 17 per cent. And that matters: most of all for economic reasons. Every single objective commentator acknowledges that the cheapest and swiftest way to achieve carbon dioxide reductions is by minimising energy wastage. We have known for 30 years that rational investments aren’t being taken, and won’t be taken, unless market failures are corrected. We aren’t getting the least cost path to saving carbon during this decade. Nor will we in the next, unless there is a specific energy efficiency target.
ACE 29th July 2013 read more »
Fossil Fuels
The anti-fracking protest in Balcombe is just the tip of the iceberg. All over Britain, a new countryside rebellion is brewing.
Guardian 31st July 2013 read more »
Natalie Hynde, the daughter of Chrissie Hynde, has been arrested after supergluing herself to her boyfriend to form a “human lock” during a fracking protest.
Telegraph 31st July 2013 read more »
Michael Fallon, the Energy Minister, said today that the South East must accept shale gas exploration for the sake of Britain’s economic future. “It cannot be right to confine it to areas of the industrial North,” he told London’s Evening Standard. “Shale exists under towns, villages and countryside. Shale gas is everywhere and could well be in quantity under attractive areas of the country as well as industrial areas.” Mr Fallon said the South could become “the second biggest area of shale in Britain” The MP for Sevenoaks in Kent: “There’s certainly disturbance involved, especially in the very early years of fracturing, and it’s right the community should be compensated. “That’s why there is compensation to the community of £100,000 per exploration well and then 1 per cent of profits, which could amount to several million pounds.”
Times 1st Aug 2013 read more »
