The current heat wave is putting a strain on UK energy supplies, in part because France has had to reduce its nuclear power output, requiring it to import more of its electricity from Britain.
As reported in the Times Online, EDF has been forced to slow down many of its inland nuclear plants in France as warmer river temperatures have made it more difficult to provide adequate cooling for reactors. As a result, France has had to import as much as 1,000 megawatts of electricity from the UK at peak times to meet its own demand.
According to IT vendor F5 Networks, such circumstances are “only a taste of things to come, as temperatures continue to surge, and the global threat of climate change continues to hang over businesses.”
“The UK is keeping France running as a third of its nuclear power stations are switched off, there is already a debate around whether the UK faces a real electricity shortage in the near future,” said Owen Cole, technical director for UK&I at F5 Networks.
“Given that there is credible, independent research to suggest there is a real threat, enterprises have no choice but to incorporate this scenario into their business continuity and disaster recovery planning,” Cole said. “They cannot assume consistency of power supply. Strategic planning should incorporate a two-fold approach — working out firstly how to conserve energy, and secondly how to use energy more efficiently without affecting the business.”
He added, “Modern data centres can use the equivalent energy to small towns. Given the huge amount of power involved, heat efficient resources must be considered to allow power conservation, so if electricity supply is cut, backup generators can use this excess energy to help ensure critical operations are running. On the usage side, imperatives include reviewing options around the dynamic provisioning and de-provisioning of equipment on a per-need basis, thereby using only necessary power.
“On the national policy level, if we don’t make plans to cope with the possible restricted supply of energy, we face becoming more reliant on other countries — we might have to buy in our supply. This sort of loss of control over energy policy isn’t a favourable scenario. If the UK is helping other countries already, who’s going to be left to leave our lights on?”
The Zweckverband Restmuellheizkraftwerk Boeblingen (RBB) plant in Baden-Wuerttemberg completed successful trials this May.
Siemens’ Industry Solutions Division supplied a Reject Power system that enables the use of fuels with a high water content such as screenings from wood-chip processing. The new plant will be able to supply enough electricity to meet the needs of around 5,200 people. At the same time, the heat produced can be fed into the district heating network. Compared to the use of fossil fuels for the generation of electricity and heat, CO2 emissions are reduced by 10,200 metric tonnes per year.
The new power station supplements existing facilities for the thermal exploitation of residual materials. With the help of the Reject Power system for power generation, around 20,000 metric tonnes of finely chopped material that couldn’t otherwise be incinerated in conventional facilities can be utilised every year. The finely chopped material consists of natural-wood screenings that are produced when green waste, residual wood from forests and wood left over from landscape conservation, for example, are cut up into small chips.
“This facility is new territory for us,” said Wolf Eisenmann, managing director of RBB. “For the first time in Germany, we are producing electricity and heat from finely chopped material.”
The Reject Power system consists of the combustion chamber, the waste heat boiler, a flue gas cleaning unit and the chimney as well as the electrical equipment. The heart of the system is a spinning wheel, which throws the fine wood screenings into the combustion chamber at high speed, ensures better distribution of the combustion material and thus guarantees complete incineration. At a temperature of up to 950 degrees Celsius, the combustion chamber converts the screenings into usable energy. With the help of the spinning wheel method, fuels with a high water content can also be used.
The Reject Power installation is designed for the thermal conversion of around 20,000 metric tonnes of screenings, and produces 6.4 metric tonnes of steam per hour. A steam turbine uses the steam to generate electrical energy and provide heat for the district heating network. A power generator with an output of 700 kilowatts supplies the public grid of the community. The heat is fed into the district heating network via a district heat exchanger.
Due to the combination of power and heat that is produced, a fuel utilisation ratio of around 80 per cent is achieved.
Clean technologies and renewable energy — especially offshore wind and wave — could generate up to £70 billion for the British economy, according to new analysis from the Carbon Trust.
The study quantifyies for the first time the economic benefits of investing in a range of clean technologies.
By taking a bold new approach to commercialisation, the UK could not only rev up its economy but create almost 250,000 jobs in offshore wind and wave power alone, the research finds. Offshore wind and wave combined could deliver at least 15 per cent of the total carbon savings required to meet 2050 targets.
Launching the Carbon Trust’s “Clean Tech Revolution” campaign, Carbon Trust Chief Executive Tom Delay said a new strategy is required if Britain is to transform itself into a global hub of low-carbon innovation. He called for Britain to make smart investments through greater technology prioritisation and to move away from technology neutrality. This new approach, outlined in the report, means public support will be focused on emerging low-carbon technologies and industries that will have the maximum impact on cutting carbon and generating UK economic benefit.
In the first of a series of economic reviews, the Carbon Trust demonstrates that, by applying this new approach, the UK could seize 45 per cent of the global offshore wind market by 2020, delivering £65 billion of net economic value and some 220,000 total jobs by 2050. To do this requires a comprehensive package of technology-focussed support, including investment of up to £600 million in research and development, removal of regulatory barriers and new incentive mechanisms to accelerate deployment of offshore wind power.
Two-thirds of the economic benefits would come from the fast-growing low-carbon technology export market, which can be unlocked by ensuring that investment into the UK is made attractive, according to the Carbon Trust.
Analysis also shows that, with 25 per cent of the world’s wave technologies already being developed in the UK, Britain could be the “natural owner” of the global wave power market, generating revenues worth £2 billion per year by 2050 and up to 16,000 direct jobs. To generate maximum economic benefit, the UK must focus on addressing funding gaps in the wave sector, the study finds.
“These technologies are not green ‘nice to haves’ but are critical to the economic recovery of the UK,” Delay said. “To reap the significant rewards from their successful development we must prioritise and comprehensively back the technologies that offer the best chance of securing long-term carbon savings, jobs and revenue for Britain. We have known for a while that the UK has an important role to play in the clean tech revolution. But, rather than following in the footsteps of others, this new analysis shows it is an economic no-brainer to be leading from the front. The global race is clearly on and the clock is ticking.”
“The Government aims to secure Britain’s green future, and seize the economic benefits of the move to a low-carbon economy,” said Minister for Energy and Climate Change David Kidney. “We are determined to position our country as a hub of the advanced green manufacturing revolution. The £405 million towards investment in low-carbon industries secured in the recent budget is a strong signal of our intention to realise that vision. The commercialisation review is an important contribution from the Carbon Trust and I welcome their valuable insights.”
As part of the “Clean Tech Revolution” campaign, the Carbon Trust will be launching 15 new research and development and technology acceleration projects in 2009, in addition to over 40 projects that are already in place. The campaign is also being backed by leading innovators, businesses, investors, scientists and non-governmental organisations
“The UK’s greenhouse gas targets mean that by 2050 we must reduce our emissions to just one tenth of today’s levels, per unit of output,” said John Beddington CMG FRS, chief scientific adviser to HM Government and head of the Government Office for Science. “This is a formidable challenge, requiring step changes in the rate at which we improve our energy efficiency and in low-carbon innovation. The Carbon Trust’s proposals recognise the need for us to be smarter in focusing our investments, including to help businesses seize the economic opportunities of the transition.”
Among the researchers’ areas of focus: the selection of stocks, the optimisation of crop production systems (open, closed and mixed), and the optimisation of various operation variables in the harvesting and final treatment of the microalgae.
The energy unit is also studying other aspects, such as the capture of CO2 as a nutrient for the algae, the use of saline industrial effluents and the valuation of sub-products.
To mass-produce microalgae into biomass or bio-oils, a number of technological fields must be developed. The goal is to achieve great rates of productivity at low operational costs and investment, at the same time as studying the application of the best technologies available for harvesting and treating the microalgae crop in large, liquid-medium volumes until achieving the dry biomass itself or the bio-oils extracted from the microalgae are obtained at reasonable prices and which can be potentially used to produce energy and/or biofuels.
Microalgae — and its viability as a source of energy from biomass for energy use or by transformation into biofuels — is a field still in the research stage, but with interesting perspectives for the future. For the moment, the complete process has not yet been sufficiently developed at an industrial level to be exploited by industries in the sector. Nor has the viability of its application been adequately demonstrated, despite certain publicity by companies without any technological foundation.
For the moment, research is focused on developing viable processes and evaluating possible applications of interest to the industrial sector.
Enerqos Plc, an Italy-based designer and installer of photovoltaic plants, has just commissioned a new solar installation at the Viterbo BMW dealership near Rome.
The building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) installation, which covers the entire roof canopy of the showroom, has a maximum output power of 121 kilowatts.
“Choosing to install solar panels on the roof of our headquarters represents a significant investment,” said Fabio Lonardo, director of the Viterbo showroom. “In return, it enables us to reduce our energy spend and demonstrates both our own and the BMW brand’s commitment to environmental issues.”
The solar panels cover the entire surface of the roof canopy to maximise energy production. An integrated operating system enables the timely detection of operational anomalies, and performance can be monitored in real-time on a PC located within the building. This advanced system was implemented to guarantee efficiency and to facilitate the intervention of technical teams should any problems arise.
The integrated installation will benefit from preferential “Conto energia” buy-back tariffs approved by the Italian government in 2007. This fixed tariff is valid for 20 years and offers one of the highest rates in Europe.
The Scottish Government today published an action plan aimed at driving the development of renewable energy and capitalising on the country’s natural resources for maximum economic benefit.
The Renewables Action Plan identifies collective actions by government, its agencies and partners, to ensure at least a fifth of Scotland’s energy comes from renewables by 2020.
Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Sustainable Growth John Swinney said that developing the right renewables infrastructure and boosting skills will help Scotland to meet its climate change targets.
The plan aims to:
Kickstart a renewable heat industry to massively increase take-up;
Identify necessary infrastructure projects and options to deliver them; and
Get the skills mix right to maximise potential and attract investment.
“Moving to a low-carbon economy presents huge economic opportunities and our Climate Change Bill now commits us to action,” Swinney said. “Offshore wind, marine energy and renewable heat will now be a key focus due to the potential to generate clean energy, reduce emissions and the associated manufacturing and infrastructure opportunities. Scottish Enterprise and HIE will develop a clear framework for port and land infrastructure to support the manufacturing, construction, and operation of offshore wind, wave and tidal devices.”
Swinney continued, “Heat from renewables needs to rise tenfold in the next decade and we will investigate all options to boost the sector, from large-scale industrial plants, more energy from biomass and waste, through to microgeneration. We will support growth in, and diversification into, the renewable heat sector with further targeted inward investment.”
He concluded, “The plan requires long-term collaboration, and that process begins now. The pace of change demands a constantly evolving framework and the plan will be updated and refreshed every six months to take account of the latest developments. That is the way we will stimulate a leading renewables industry and play our part in tackling climate change.”
British Gas says it expects to create 2,600 new skilled jobs over the next three years as the UK moves forward with its planned nationwide rollout of smart energy meters.
The announcement came as British Gas opened its new Energy Academy in Leicester, which will train the engineers of the future — including the smart energy experts who will install British Gas smart meters in millions of homes.
“British Gas is committed to making our customers’ homes the greenest in Europe — cutting their carbon emissions and fuel bills,” said Phil Bentley, managing director of British Gas. “Today’s announcement of 2,600 new jobs by 2012 shows we are creating skilled green jobs in Britain and training the experts who will help customers become more energy efficient in the future.
New smart-energy experts will install smart meters and also help householders understand how smart meters give them the control to cut their energy use, reduce their carbon footprint, and save money on their fuel bills.
Among the services they will provide:
Advising customers on the range of tariffs available — such as time-of-use tariffs, which reward customers for using energy at off-peak times;
Conducting energy efficiency audits of customers’ homes;
Giving tailored advice on measures that could cut energy use, such as insulation;
Helping customers learn about ways to generate their own energy; and
Installing and maintaining the low-carbon microgeneration technologies of the future.
The new smart-energy jobs are in addition to 1,500 new green jobs British Gas announced earlier this year.
The report calls for a new vision for energy generation that is based on the long-term replacement of fossil fuels through the development and deployment of new technologies.
“For the sake of future generations we cannot afford to wait until our climate is changed dramatically or the oil runs out before we end our dependency on fossil fuels,” said lead author John Shepherd. “If the UK wants to provide global leadership it has to convert talk into action.”
Shepherd continued, “The world needs new ways to generate our electricity and the rate of progress over the last decade has been disappointing. It is difficult to predict what will be required in 50 years time or what breakthroughs will have been made but we must deploy the technologies we have now and not be afraid of being radical in our thinking about new sources of energy.”
The report, “Towards a low carbon future,” outlines a roadmap of the technologies that can play a part in the short (up to 2020), medium (2020-2050) and longer term (beyond 2050) in decarbonising electricity:
Short-term transition: deployment of renewables such as wind, tidal and biomass, carbon capture and storage (CCS), and the renewal of nuclear power if issues such as the safe disposal of waste can be addressed;
Medium-term transition: new marine, bio-energy and advanced solar technologies, synthetic fuels and wide spread deployment of CCS;
Longer-term transition: advanced energy storage and delivery technology to allow the wide spread use of intermittent energy from wind, the sea and the sun and potential deployment of nuclear fusion.
“It is time for us to break away from the endless debate which is so often dominated by vested interests and the search for a silver bullet,” Shepherd said. “The UK’s scientists are among the best in the world and we need to invest in them and their research. The UK could be at the forefront of one of the most fundamental changes in the world’s economy ever, but it will not happen if we take a half-hearted approach. Other countries are moving ahead with carbon capture and storage and new technologies for the large-scale storage of power … are we going to stand by and watch opportunities pass us by?”
Those findings, a result of the Government’s Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), will enable the Crown Estate to proceed with the third round of leasing in UK’s waters for offshore wind farms.
Officials say offshore wind has the potential to provide the UK with up to 70,000 new jobs and £8 billion in annual revenues.
The new licensing regime for the cables to connect offshore wind farms to the mainland also starts today. The competitive tender process, run by Ofgem, has the potential to save generators £1 billion, officials say. It will also attract new entrants with transmission expertise and offer longer-term stable investment opportunity.
“Offshore wind is fundamental to delivering our target of 15 per cent of renewable energy by 2020, and looking ahead to 2050 to reducing our carbon emissions by 80 per cent,” Lord Hunt was expected to say today in a prepared statement at the British Wind Energy Association wind conference. “We’re already the world’s number one offshore wind power. With the right support, we can grow the industry even further, supporting tens of thousands of high-value, green manufacturing jobs. This presents a huge opportunity for the UK industry.”
“The offshore transmission regime will deliver significant cost savings to current and future consumers and renewable generators and make a real impact in Britain’s drive to tackle climate change,” said Alistair Buchanan, CEO of Ofgem. “It’s a huge opportunity for investment under a long-term, low-risk regulatory regime.”
The Government today also published “A Prevailing Wind: Advancing UK Offshore Wind Deployment.” The document sets out work that will enable the necessary expansion of the industry.
The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) is launching two key reports today: “UK Offshore WInd: Staying on Track” and “Offshore Wind: Charting the Right Course.”
Both reports were released at the Offshore ‘09 Conference, the UK’s largest dedicated offshore wind energy event, which is taking place at the QE2 Centre in Westminster.
The reports set out the timetable and potential costs for a massive expansion of the UK’s offshore wind capacity. The offshore energy revolution that saw Britain become the world leader in 2008 in terms of installed capacity could eventually see every home in the UK powered by electricity from offshore wind by 2020.
“The report on offshore build-out predicts that we will have a cumulative installed capacity of up to 9 gigawatts by 2015,” said Maria McCaffery, the BWEA’s chief executive. “That these projections are credible is shown by our report from 2007 which accurately predicted the point at which we are today. Wind will overtake nuclear in terms of installed capacity within the next four to five years, as an important milestone in reaching 2020.”
The industry has grown through a series of development Rounds managed by the Crown Estate on behalf of the UK Government. However, the industry is still looking to the Government to create a policy framework, facilitate grid connections and ease supply chain pressures. While the measures introduced in the 2009 Budget have been praised by industry, wind-energy companies still expect leadership on creating the right “investment environment.”
“Our report on costs predicts that offshore prices over the next five years will depend on investor confidence,” said McCaffery. “It will take three to four manufacturers in the market to boost competition enough to start pushing down prices. If we achieve an annual deployment of around 4 to 5 gigawatts Europe-wide, then we could see prices fall by as much as 20 per cent from today’s £3.1 million per megawatt.”
The current heat wave is putting a strain on UK energy supplies, in part because France has had to reduce its nuclear power output, requiring it to import more of its electricity from Britain.
Germany has started operating a new biomass heating and power station that uses 
Clean technologies and renewable energy — especially offshore wind and wave — could generate 
The energy unit at Spain’s TECNALIA is researching the potential of mass production of microalgae as 
Enerqos Plc, an Italy-based designer and installer of photovoltaic plants, has just commissioned a new solar installation at the Viterbo BMW dealership near Rome.
The Scottish Government today published an action plan aimed at 
British Gas says it expects to create 2,600 new skilled jobs over the next three years as the UK moves forward with its planned 
The UK’s energy system
The UK’s shores could eventually provide 
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