Global use of hydropower increased more than 5 percent between 2009 and 2010, according to new research published by the Worldwatch Institute. Hydropower use reached a record 3,427 terawatt-hours, or about 16.1 percent of global electricity consumption, by the end of 2010, continuing the rapid rate of increase experienced between 2003 and 2009. The cost … Read more
ScottishPower Renewables is planning to develop a 10MW tidal power array in The Sound of Islay on Scotland’s west coast. The project, the first of its kind in the world, envisages generating enough renewable electricity to power the equivalent of the whole island. It is also the first tidal array project to be approved by … Read more
There has been a six-fold increase in the number of hydropower schemes planned in England and Wales since 2008, the Environment Agency has announced. In 2010 the Environment Agency granted licences for 65 schemes, compared with 10 in 2008. To assist the communities, developers and individuals looking to capitalise on Government incentives to produce renewable … Read more
Ireland is playing a lead role in Europe in adding wind power and other renewables to our energy supplies, a new report states. Ireland is on target to achieve its target of 40% of electricity from renewable sources by 2020, and in achieving that target, we will have one of highest levels of wind power … Read more
Cornwall Council has granted planning permission for the development of the UK’s first commercial deep geothermal power plant, near Redruth in Cornwall. Developed by British company Geothermal Engineering, the plant will provide both renewable heat for the local area, and renewable electricity, which will be fed into the National Grid. The plant is expected to … Read more
A record 27 local authorities have switched to leading independent energy provider Energia for their unmetered electricity supply since this market was opened last year. The local authorities making the switch include Dublin City Council, Cork City Council, Laois County Council, Louth, Carlow County Council, Kilkenny County Council, Monaghan County Council, Wexford County Council and … Read more