David Willetts
Stable policy and massive infrastructure needs will limit the impacts of a looming double-dip recession in one of the world’s leading advanced economies, a government minister told Breaking Energy last week. Keep reading →
UK
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An ambitious plan by the UK government to replace aging power stations with low-carbon generation could be a model for other countries that are also searching for ways of hitting tough emissions targets while satisfying higher future demand for electricity.
On May 22, the government introduced its latest proposal for attracting the 110 billion pounds (roughly $171 billion) that it says is needed to build new generation including nuclear, offshore wind and carbon capture technology to take the place of the 20% of current capacity that will go off line over the next decade. Keep reading →
December was an extremely windy month in the United Kingdom, resulting in wind farms supplying a record high of 12.2% of the UK’s electricity demand on December 28, and an average of 5.3% of demand over the entire month. That surge in wind power helped the UK cut its carbon emissions by over 750,000 tons – equivalent to taking over 300,000 cars off the road.
Wind power is accounting for an increasing proportion of the UK’s energy supply (maybe that’s what inspired the recent, seemingly desperate high-profile attack on wind). Two UK wind power developers have already hit the 1-gigawatt (GW) mark in installed capacity, and the trend shows no sign of slowing. According to new figures released by the the Department of Environment and Climate Change (DECC), the UK now has enough wind power to keep the lights on at more than 3.3 million homes. Keep reading →
