At least 1,000 jobs go as clean energy firms go into administration
Home insulation firm the Mark Group and energy efficiency firm Climate Energy have gone into administration within hours of each other with the loss of at least 1,000 jobs.
solar
Solar overtakes wind as renewable source in Australia
Solar power became Australia’s largest source of renewable energy in 2014, with a cumulative installed capacity of 4 gigawatts (GW), overtaking wind power.
School solar panel scheme threatened by cuts, charity says
A scheme which helps schools install solar panels on their roofs is under threat from drastic Government cuts to renewables subsidies, its backers have warned.
Renewables to lead world power market growth to 2020 says IEA
Renewable energy will be the largest source of new power generation capacity worldwide over the next five years, installing 700 gigawatts, which is more than double what utilities produce today in Japan, the International Energy Agency said.
Trade body warns solar jobs could be at risk
Over 100 jobs could be at risk in Aberdeen due to proposed cuts to the feed-in tariff for solar energy projects, a trade body has warned. The Solar Trade Association warned the jobs of up to 27,000 people employed in the solar energy sector and its supply chain are under threat around the UK, with as many as 2,400 of the 3,000 solar jobs in Scotland at risk. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (Decc) proposed at the end of August to cut the tariff paid for electricity generated by solar rooftop panels by 87% - from 12.4p to 1.6p.
Approval for solar park at site of exploratory oil drilling scheme
Plans for a community-owned solar park to help power a village which was at the centre of Britain’s biggest anti-fracking protests have been approved. Campaigners said the 5MW solar park would not only match the electricity demand of Balcombe in West Sussex but also the nearby village of West Hoathly. In the summer of 2013, thousands of protesters descended on Balcombe after energy firm Cuadrilla started exploratory drilling for oil, sparking fears that it would go on to frack there.
Ice-cream firm Mackies launches Scotland’s largest solar farm
A Scottish ice-cream firm has joined forces with Absolute Solar and Wind to create Scotland's largest solar farm. The 7000-panel facility in Aberdeenshire, which is capable of producing enough electricity to power 485 homes, is now ready to be connected to the national grid. A fourth 400kw wind turbine and a new biomass energy plant have also been constructed at the site as part of Mackie's plan to become a carbon-neutral business.
Government continues support for Scottish solar projects
The Scottish Government has confirmed solar PV projects below 5 Megawatts will continue to receive support following the UK Government’s decision to close the Renewables Obligation.
Rame grows strongly on Chilean renewable sector
Rame Energy, the UK-based power producer, reported grew its revenue more than six fold in the first half of 2015 as projects in Chile came on stream.
GE strikes export financing deal that could create 1,000 jobs
General Electric said it had struck an agreement with the Government to access export financing of up to 12 billion US dollars (£8 billion) in a deal that could create up to 1,000 jobs.
UK Government urged not to cut solar power subsidies
Businesses, energy sector bodies and unions have joined calls for the Government not to implement major cuts to solar power subsidies.
Proposed solar panel subsidy cuts ‘threaten tens of thousands of jobs’
Government plans to slash subsidies for solar panels on homes could cost more than 20,000 jobs, green campaigners have claimed. Ministers have announced proposals to cut the amount paid for domestic solar arrays from 12.47p per kilowatt hour to 1.63p for new systems from January 2016 - a fall of 87%. The plans could mean almost a million renewable installations will be prevented from going ahead over the next five years, according to the Government’s impact assessment of the move.
Commonwealth legacy lives on as Glasgow postcode becomes renewables hotspot
A postcode in Glasgow is the top mainland spot for small-scale renewables in Scotland, new figures have revealed. Scottish Renewables said the 2014 Commonwealth Games have made the G40 postcode in the city’s East End a hotspot. It comes as the body revealed the latest figures for how the sector fares in the country.
GE supports Japanese mega solar farm
GE Power Conversion has delivered conversion technology to support the Japanese solar industry.
Bluefield Solar acquires UK assets for £11.2million
Renewables investor Bluefield Solar has acquired 10MW of solar capacity in the UK for £11.2 million.
Video: Jeb Bush calls for energy subsidies rethink
Jeb Bush, the former governor of Florida and republican candidate for the US presidency, has told a group of voters he would favour ending government subsidies for all forms of energy. Bush said this would include oil and gas if he makes it to the White House next year. This video, which was posted online by environmental group 350 Action, shows the brother of former President George W. Bush saying that if he was elected, he would "phase out, through tax reform, the tax credits for wind, for solar, for the oil and gas sector, for all that stuff".
Billions in renewables investment at risk from Government shake-up
The Government's shake-up of the renewable sector could lead to billions of pounds of investment being put on hold it has been claimed.
US private investor snaps up Gestamp Solar
US private equity firm KKR has secured an 80% stake in Spanish solar developer Gestamp Solar.
Cutting solar energy subsidies ‘will reduce household bills’
Solar energy subsidies will be cut under plans set out by Energy Secretary Amber Rudd which she claimed would reduce household bills. The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is consulting on plans that would see subsidies for some small-scale new solar farms close by 2016. Ms Rudd said the renewable energy industry could not be given a “blank cheque” and the level of subsidies should be reduced because of a fall in the cost of delivering solar power.
Solar giant makes $2.2billion acquisition
Solar power company SunEdison aims to expand in the residential and commercial sector after buying Vivint Solar in a $2.2 billion deal.
Massive solar plant planned for Oman
The largest producer of oil and gas in Oman is to build one the world's largest solar plants.
Open day at Pitmedden Garden to showcase solar power
The benefits of solar power to business will be showcased today at Pitmedden Garden estate in Aberdeenshire while the UK swelters in the grip of heatwave. The event is part of the industry’s annual “solar independence day” scheme that opens a selection of UK solar-powered homes and enterprises to the public. The National Trust for Scotland (NTS) has installed a 115 panel array on the roof of the estate’s gardeners storage shed, which is generating power for the site’s museum of farming life and other buildings.
Renewables to beat fossil fuels with $3.7trillion solar boom
Renewable energy will draw almost two-thirds of the spending on new power plants over the next 25 years, dwarfing spending on fossil fuels, as plunging costs make solar the first choice for consumers and the poorest nations. Solar power will draw $3.7 trillion in investment through 2040, with a total of $8 trillion going toward clean energy. That’s almost double the $4.1 trillion that will be spent on coal, natural gas and nuclear plants, according to a forecast from Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
Oil billionaire makes $450 million bid on Russian solar ramp-up
Billionaire Viktor Vekselberg is out to prove that solar has a place in Russia, the world’s largest exporter of oil and gas. Hevel Solar, a venture between Vekselberg’s Renova and OAO Rusnano, plans 22.5 billion rubles ($450 million) of solar farms through 2018 and says diversifying power generation will benefit the country. “You don’t have to eat potatoes all the time,” Hevel Chief Executive Officer Igor Akhmerov said in an interview in Moscow. “You can have some salad as well.” At first glance, solar in Russia makes little sense. The country has surplus energy, and the sun barely crests the horizon in midwinter in Moscow. Yet it does shine along the nation’s southern border with Kazakhstan, where Hevel completed its second solar farm in the Orenburg region last week.
All-Energy 2015: Scotland could lead the way in renewables
Scotland has always led the way in renewables and All Energy has long been a showcase for the wide range of technologies which will enable the renewable and low carbon transition.