The surge in European carbon permit prices may just be beginning. The price of emission rights will rise 62% by June 30, according to the median of 16 trader and analyst estimates compiled. UBS Group AG says costs may more than double in 2015. Carbon already jumped 44% this year, while the 22-member Bloomberg Commodities Index (BCOM) slid 14%.
Electricity generated from renewables in Scotland has matched that produced from fossil fuels for the first time. Both sources accounted for 32% of total electricity generated in 2013, according to figures released by the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change. Scotland continues to be a net exporter of electricity, exporting 28% of generation compared to 26% in 2012.
Drilling service provider Mermaid has landed a $50million contract in the Gulf of Thailand. The two-year deal will see the firm's dive support vessel provide subsea constrcution support for a major oil and gas operator in the area.
The DECC (Department for Energy and Climate Change) has made £2.5million cash pot available to encourage the development of CO2 storage in the North Sea. The money will help companies to identify the next phase of sites under the sea to store C02 emissions from coal and gas power stations as well as heavy industry such as steel and cement factories. The DECC will provide the cash from its Innovation Fund, and it will be delivered by the ETI (Energy Technologies Institute).
EDF Energy Renewables has sold a majority stake in three of its UK onshore wind farms to CGN (China General Nuclear Power Corporation). The company said the money from the sale will be used to make further investments in renewable projects in the UK. It will continue to own a 20% share in the three wind farms and also continue to run, maintain and operate the sites and provide asset management services for the new owners.
A new plan to boost the economy by exploiting the energy, food and recreational resources of the sea while protecting the environment has been launched by the Scottish Government. The first national marine plan sets out the Scottish Government’s vision for the sustainable development and use of the marine environment. The plan aims to ensure sustainable economic growth of a range of marine industries and protect and enhance the marine environment.
Triodos Renewables has extended its crowd funding share issue until the end of January after receiving only £2million of the £5million that it aimed to raise to fund wind farms. The Dutch bank had been due to close its share issue on 30 November but extended the deadline after only 600 investors chose to pump cash into the offer. The lender’s renewable energy arm already owns and operates 11 projects in the UK, which together produce 53MW of power.
Almost 12 million tonnes of carbon emissions were displaced by green energy in Scotland last year. The reduction - an average of about a million tonnes each month - is the highest-ever recorded in the country. UK Government statistics show that Scotland’s renewable electricity industry displaced 11.9 million tonnes of CO2 in 2013, an increase of over 14% on the 10.4 million tonnes of CO2 displaced in Scotland by the sector in 2012.
The UK government has granted permission for an offshore wind project which is expected to create up to 2,500 jobs. Hornsea Project One in North Lincolnshire will be made up of three offshore wind farms with a maximum capacity of 1200MW. Once built, it will generate enough electricity to power more than 800,000 homes.
The drop in global oil prices has not dented the hiring intentions of businesses in Aberdeen, according to a jobs report. The city’s jobs market is still described as “very buoyant” in the latest Manpower Employment Outlook Survey despite oil prices tumbling since the summer. Brent crude fell to a five-year low of $66 at one stage yesterday amid fears of over-supply, with investment bank Morgan Stanley warning that prices could drop to as low as $43 a barrel next year.
SURF contractor Ceona has christened its flagship deepwater field vessels after successful sea trials. Ship building specialist Lloyd Werft delivered the Ceona Amazon to Bremerhaven, where it was christened. The device was built to perform in multiple pipelay and operational modes and features large storage capacity and heavy subsea construction.
Edgon Resources is set to explore a number of licences it acquired after striking a deal with the Scottish Power Generation (SPG). The UK-based company previously entered into a deal which meant it could farm into a number of onshore production licences.
TGS and Electromagnetic Geoservices (EMGS) have agreed to expand a recent $8million contract in the Barents Sea. The two will partner to acquire electromagnetic data over ten blocks in the Nordkapp and Tiddly areas. Stein Ove Isaksen, TGS senior vice president for Eastern Hemisphere, said: "TGS and EMGS are once again pleased to expand their cooperation in the Barents Sea.
The International Well Control Forum (IWCF) has launched a a certificate system aimed to combat fraud. The system includes increased security features to help combat faked qualifications such as holograms, serial numbers, watermarks and a QR code.
A former Scottish political leader has been defeated in his fifth attempt to win approval for a controversial windfarm in Aberdeenshire. Councillors have upheld the decision to throw out Lord Nicol Stephen’s plans to erect two masts near Blackhills Farm at Cushnie. Campaigners said they hoped the verdict would convince the one-time deputy first minister to finally drop the proposals for the site.
A future where electricity comes mostly from low-carbon sources is not only feasible in terms of material demand, but will significantly reduce air pollution, it is claimed. An international team led by Edgar Hertwich and Thomas Gibon from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) have conducted what is said to be the first-ever global comprehensive life cycle assessment of the long-term, wide-scale implementation of electricity generation from renewable resources. The study has assembled and scaled up the assessment of individual technologies to the whole world and assessed technology implementation to 2050, taking the environmental impacts of production into account.
Hopes have been raised that an innovative renewable energy scheme harnessing the tides could get the go-ahead, after the Government announced it was starting in-depth discussions on the project. The Treasury has announced it will start closer discussions with Tidal Lagoon Power Ltd, the company which is aiming to build the world’s first tidal lagoon power plant in Swansea Bay, to see if it is affordable and value for money for consumers. The developers of the £750-850 million project have said their application is the first step to developing lagoon technology that could meet 10% of the UK’s electricity needs from the tides.
A £100m facility that could help the industry's employment needs is to be developed by the University of Aberdeen. The Energy Building will be built close to the Sir Duncan Rice Library on the corner of St Machar Roundabout and Bedford Road.
China can double its use of renewable energy from 13% to 26% by 2030, according to research by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The growth in renewable energy use would represent nearly a fourfold increase in the share of modern renewables between 2010 and 2030. A study, Renewable Energy Prospects: China, prepared by IRENA in association with the China National Renewable Energy Centre, also says China can expand renewables from 20% to 40% by 2030, making it the world’s largest renewable energy power user.
Energy giant SSE’s electricity network supports almost 2,000 jobs across the north of Scotland and is expected to have contributed £287million to the economy by the end of this year, research has revealed. The Perth-based firm, which manages 77,000 miles of overhead lines and underground cables across the north of Scotland and through its network in the south of England, added that it has invested £126million this year in the Scottish network to increase its resilience. Through its subsidiary, Scottish Hydro Electric Power Distribution (SHEPD), SSE operates its electricity distribution network from John O’Groats through Perth and Dundee, as well as 89 Scottish islands, according to the report by Big Four accountancy firm, PwC.
A specialist oil and gas service company in Aberdeen has launched technology to help prevent potentially disastrous power failures on offshore platforms OEM Diesel Products, which is based at the Kirkhill Industrial Estate in Dyce, says its “pioneering” engine cleaning system is designed to stop contaminated fuel causing major problems for energy companies. Managing director Barry Park said: “This revolutionary product comes at a time where the industry has a growing problem with fuel contamination.
Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co has signed an agreement to promote 12 power projects in Thailand.
The coalition’s industrial strategy is little more than “economic tinkering“ that will fail to tackle the trade deficit, according to a report. Vince Cable’s plans lack ambition and will not tackle the structural problems in Britain’s economy, think tank Civitas claimed. It accused the Business Secretary of setting objectives that are too easy to achieve and failing to address the problems that need to be solved to make Britain’s recovery export-led.
Companies developing low carbon energy projects in generation will be given the chance to bid for £5million worth of funding. The fourth round of the government's Energy Entrepreneurs' Fund aims to help small and medium sized businesses bring low carbon products to the market. Half of the money in the latest round will prioritise carbon capture and storage, the process of caricaturing millions of tonnes of C02 from power stations and industrial facilities and storing the C02 under the sea bed.
Renewable power has overtaken nuclear to become the main source of electricity in Scotland, figures have revealed. In the first half of last year sources such as wind and hydro power produced 10.3 terawatt-hours (TWh) of electricity, figures from the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change showed. Nuclear power stations, which had been Scotland’s main source of electricity, generated 7.8TWh over the same period, according to data from the National Grid.