Renewable power generation of 119 TWh set new records in the UK last year, accounting for 37 per cent of electricity, up 4 percentage points on 2018. The output, detailed in the latest government figures, contributed to the nation’s homegrown carbon emissions dropping 3.6 per cent from 2018. Overall national electricity production was 323.7 TWh, Read more…

Deliveries of biomass feedstock to consumers including utilities, NHS hospitals and food producers must be safeguarded, if output is to be maintained as normal through the coronavirus crisis, a trade body has warned government. Biomass Heat Works has sought reassurances from ministers that some 700,000 tonnes a year of pellets can continue to reach industrial Read more…

Electricity from co-operatively owned wind farms powering thermal batteries to produce clean home heat on demand. That’s the vision of two energy firms, Sunamp and Ripple. Sunamp, which makes heat batteries, has signed a collaboration deal with Ripple Energy, a green power ownership platform and community wind farm developer, to provide heat batteries to Ripple’s Read more…

Greenhouse gas emissions linked to consumption by UK homes and businesses dropped by 21 per cent in the decade to 2017, according to latest government figures. Total GHG output linked to all forms of consumption in the economy stood at 772 million tonnes in 2017. Analysts at Defra said this was down over a fifth Read more…

French oil and gas giant Total is planning a 96MW floating offshore wind farm after setting up a joint venture with developer Simply Blue Energy. The two have submitted an application to the Crown Estate for the initial project, dubbed Erebus. They plan to use Principle Power’s Windfloat technology, first deployed off Portugal in 2011. Read more…

O2 has struck a deal with SSE Business Energy whereby its suppliers will get a discount on renewable power – and pay the same rate as the telco. The move represents shrewd business, given O2 has committed to decarbonising its operations by 2025 – and to make its suppliers cut emissions by 30 per cent. Read more…

Telco O2 has pledged net zero emissions from its operations within five years. The firm said it will also pressure suppliers to cut emissions by 30 per cent. It said major part of its plan is to switch third party landlords – i.e. phone shop owners – to renewable energy (though it probably means renewable Read more…

Onshore wind is set to be allowed to bid for government-backed revenue stabilisation contracts. The move has been welcomed by the industry, which has long argued that David Cameron’s administration was wrong to remove support for offshore wind in 2016, given its relatively low cost. Trade body Renewable UK said allowing onshore wind and solar Read more…

National Grid ESO has made Roisin Quinn its inaugural chief engineer. Quinn joined the electricity system operator’s graduate scheme in 2004 and has worked on a number of key projects since then. She also heads up the national electricity control centre. The ESO hopes creating a chief engineer role will help underline the importance of Read more…

Scottish Power parent Iberdrola’s 13 per cent surge in group profits to £2.89 billion (€3.4 billion) last year reflects its two decades of steady renewables investment, according to CEO Ignacio Galán. Galán said its push into clean generation puts Iberdrola “20 years ahead of the current energy transition.” The group’s full 2019 results reveal a Read more…

The failure of the high voltage undersea cable between west Scotland and north Wales last month resulted in National Grid ESO paying almost £31m for wind farm operators to curtail output. Consultancy Cornwall Insight calculated the figure based on Balancing Mechanism data and prices during what was an exceptionally windy month. The Western Link HVDC Read more…

Heathrow Airport says it has cut emissions 93 per cent since 1990 and has committed to offset the remainder. As such, the airport has achieved carbon neutral status. The firm said it has spent £100m on energy efficiency measures since 1990, plus investment in on-site generation. It also buys clean power. However, the most up-to-date Read more…

Facilities management firm Mitie has committed to achieving net zero carbon emissions by 2025. The firm now has five years to decarbonise, but says that by attempting to do so it can show other businesses, including existing and new clients, that decarbonisation is possible. Mitie said there are three pillars to its ‘Plan Zero’: Eliminate Read more…

Philipp Lukas, MD and founder of Future Biogas, says collaboration is key to achieving net zero. Hence the firm opening up its labs to other anaerobic digestion producers. With Australia burning and the deforestation of the Amazon rainforest accelerating, the urgency with which we need to reduce our carbon emissions to zero has never been Read more…

Scottish Power has upped the ante in green power supply, announcing that all its domestic fixed tariffs will be backed by power sourced from its own UK wind farms. The Iberdrola-owned supplier, which last year divested its remaining fossil assets to Drax, added to calls for the regulator to tighten up the current certification scheme, Read more…

Jeff Bezos, the world’s richest man, is donating $10 billion to causes combatting the climate emergency. The Bezos Earth Fund will award its first grants this summer, benefitting climate activists, researchers and NGOs. Announcing his fund yesterday via Instagram, the Amazon founder declared that the planet’s battle against climate change can still be won. “It’s Read more…

Government has awarded £70m of funding for hydrogen projects, including production and industrial fuel switching. It has also awarded £20m for smart and local energy projects. Recipients of of funds for hydrogen projects include the HyNet consortium, which aims to build hydrogen plus CCS infrastructure in the North West, piping out emissions to be buried Read more…