This week the Chancellor of the Exchequer in the UK, George Osborne, presented this year’s budget. Here is a startling quote from his speech in the House of Commons: We need to cut our energy costs. We’re going to do this by investing in new sources of energy: new nuclear power, renewables, and a shale … Continue reading Quote of the week
Category: energy policy
This will get the Irish singing – renewable energy playing key role in energy policy
Tina Costanza writes in siliconrepublic.com that the use of renewable energy has already saved importing more than €1 billion. This will definitely be welcome news to a country that has been making every effort to get out of the financial crisis that has punished the economy. Renewable energy has saved Ireland more than €1bn … Continue reading This will get the Irish singing – renewable energy playing key role in energy policy
Videos of the week
They may not qualify for the upcoming Academy Awards, but this has been a good week for new videos on aspects of sustainable energy. • Walt Patterson No one has analysed the electricity system more thoroughly than Walt Patterson, Associate Fellow at Chatham House and Visiting Fellow at the University of Sussex. Walt recently wrote … Continue reading Videos of the week
Quote of the week
The environmentalist and visionary, Amory Lovins, recently commented on the UK government’s recent decision to provide support for the expansion of nuclear energy said: "Britain's plan for a fleet of new nuclear power stations is … unbelievable," he says. "It is economically daft. The guaranteed price [being offered to French state company EDF] is over … Continue reading Quote of the week
Backlash in Germany’s industry to increased costs to support renewable energy
Australia’s Business Spectator provides an important article on how Germany’s heavy industry is being hit in the pocketbook to help fund renewable energy as part of Germany’s energy transition strategy. Surely there must be a better way to promote auto-production. The success of Europe’s energy policies will obviously have a big impact on Australia’s policies. … Continue reading Backlash in Germany’s industry to increased costs to support renewable energy
One more reason why we need to deal more effectively with fuel poverty
A new survey in the UK has given some unsettling results, showing that two thirds of adults questioned said they would not turn the gas or electricity on or up when feeling chilly. Is this the traditional British stiff upper lip to adversity or people simply making a choice between keeping warm or eating? Or … Continue reading One more reason why we need to deal more effectively with fuel poverty
Quote of the week
Willem Post recently wrote in The Energy Collective about how high energy costs are damaging the German economy. Gabriel has previously argued that Germany's energy transition poses a serious threat to the country's economy even though he was an early promoter of the International Renewable Energy Agency. More and more we are reading about the … Continue reading Quote of the week
Global markets in fossil fuels are curbing the development of renewable energy in Africa
Fossil fuels have dominated energy markets for decades and the industry has no intention of changing that. While there are efforts to transform our energy systems to low carbon energy sources, the road is not easy or straightforward. The Business Standard in India reports on the message from a UN official from the Economic Commission … Continue reading Global markets in fossil fuels are curbing the development of renewable energy in Africa
Unintended impact of renewable energy targets in Romania
We have seen many EU member states retreating from high feed-in tariffs for renewable energy. We see Germany bounding ahead with renewables as its centrepiece for its energy transition. We have seen the European Commission recently propose a binding target for renewable energy for 2030, but binding only EU-wide and not for individual countries, whatever … Continue reading Unintended impact of renewable energy targets in Romania
The roller coaster approach to renewable energy policy
This article by Colm Kelpie in the Irish Independent is quite disturbing because EU and national energy policies were supposed to develop a long-term policy framework that gave investors confidence and reduced risk. Instead, we are seeing the traditional stop-start approach to energy policy. If we are serious about 2030 or 2050 energy and climate … Continue reading The roller coaster approach to renewable energy policy
