Wind power supplied an average of 5.3% of the UK’s demand for electricity for December and early January, reaching a record share of 12.2% on 28th December. As a result, carbon emissions from the UK’s electricity generators were cut by over 750,000 tonnes, equivalent to taking over 300,000 cars off the road. Dr Gordon Edge, … Read more
Safety reassessments undertaken at UK nuclear power stations in the light of events at Fukushima Dai-ichi have revealed no fundamental weaknesses. A report just published by the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the UK’s independent nuclear safety regulator, confirms that UK sites have identified and made improvements to enhance safety by learning from events in Japan. … Read more
The UK’s largest carbon capture (CC) pilot plant, built at the coal-fired power station at Ferrybridge in West Yorkshire and owned and operated by energy group SSE, has been officially opened. The project, which is a collaboration between SSE, Doosan Power Systems and Vattenfall, is the first of its size to be integrated into a … Read more
The Irish Wind Energy Association (IWEA) has welcomed the signing of an historic deal between Ireland and the UK Government that will potentially pave the way for exploiting Ireland’s unique wind energy resources. Both Governments have agreed to co-operate on developing the major wind and marine resource in and around Ireland, the Channel Islands and … Read more
Urgent action is required to protect the infrastructure which the UK national economy relies upon from the effects of climate change, warns British Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman. Planning and design will need to take into account the impact which more extreme weather will have on essential services such as transport networks and power supplies, otherwise … Read more
UK-based Enecsys, a leader in reliable, long-life solar micro inverter systems for residential and commercial applications, has secured a further £25 million in equity financing to invest in its growth plan, in what is the largest private equity raise by any European clean-tech company, so far, in 2011. Enecsys was founded in 2003 and its … Read more
The UK is failing to attract the level of investment needed to build low-carbon infrastructure, according to a new CBI report. With a third of UK energy supply due to close in the next decade and ambitious emissions reductions targets to meet, the UK’s power sector alone needs £150 billion of private sector investment over … Read more
UK businesses can now apply for green equipment finance from Carbon Trust and Siemens. Worth up to £550 million over the next three years, the dedicated low carbon finance scheme is the first of its kind and will enable UK businesses to invest in cost effective energy efficiency equipment and other low carbon technologies, such … Read more
Stuart Young Consulting, with support from the John Muir Trust, has released a report studying the ability of wind power to make a significant contribution to the UK’s energy supply. It concludes that the average power output of wind turbines across Scotland is well below the rates often claimed by industry and government. Indeed, says … Read more
UK regulators have given permission for the Lillyhall landfill site in Cumbria to start receiving and disposing of high volume very low level radioactive waste (HV-VLLW), the lowest level of radioactive waste. Waste Recycling Group (WRG), which owns and operates the site, will work with its partner EnergySolutions to safely dispose of the waste, providing … Read more