Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Martyn1981

And another big off shore wind farm starts generating, with 20 of the 60 turbines now installed. So around 300MW of the 900MW beginning operations.

Ocean Winds delivers first power at Moray West

Ocean Winds has delivered first power from the 882MW Moray West offshore wind farm off north-east Scotland.

The milestone puts the scheme on track to become fully operational in 2025 in line with the projected commercial operations date, the EDPR and Engie joint venture said.

Around 40 Siemens Gamesa 14.7MW turbines remain to be installed at the 60-unit project in the Moray Firth.

silverwhistle

14.7MW! The ones on Rampion off Brighton are 3.4!

I don't know whether it was the wind, the simultaneous solar, lack of demand or whatever but the price on Agile this afternoon went negative so car, dishwasher, cotton wash, batch bake and hot water all benefited.

Shame my car battery was already so high. But this additional wind will hopefully maintain the frequency of such events even as more of us get EVs and heat pumps.

Coastalwatch

A truly positive move by the state finally recognising the importance of Renewable energy in the coming years giving a clear message to business of it's intentions. Something we could with here.

Australian state prioritizes pumped hydro projects

The New South Wales (NSW) government has identified six renewable energy projects, including three large-scale pumped hydro schemes and a trio of electricity transmission projects as high priority infrastructure projects that are essential to the state for economic reasons.

NSW Planning Minister Paul Scully announced that all six projects have now been declared Critical State Significant Infrastructure (CSSI) as “they are significant to the NSW economy, society and the environment.”

CSSI status means no third party can mount a legal appeal against the projects without the consent of the minister. The declaration also means the minister gives the project the green light once it has moved through the planning process.

“The substantive increase in renewable energy proposals signals trust from the wider industry in our government’s capacity to move projects through the planning system,” Scully said.

https://www.pv-magazine.com/2024/07/04/australian-state-prioritizes-pumped-hydro-projects/?utm_source=Global+|+Newsletter&utm_campaign=df2cb836f5-dailynl_gl&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_6916ce32b6-df2cb836f5-159300013

michaels

Do we think the new government will do anything at the national and or consumer level to support the transition to net zero?

Petriix

michaels said:

Do we think the new government will do anything at the national and or consumer level to support the transition to net zero?

I hope so. They could hardly do *less* than the previous government. 

silverwhistle

Given the example of pumped storage above, there is the Coire Glas scheme (1500MW pumped storage) in Scotland where ground has been broken and considerable planning and preparation work done. This year was when the final decision whether to go ahead was to be taken. I can't see it NOT going ahead now with an interested and engaged government.

EricMears

Would the "interested and engaged government" be the UK one or the Scots one ?

Coastalwatch

EricMears said:

Would the "interested and engaged government" be the UK one or the Scots one ?

Having just read the Labour party pledges on renewable energy, a bit late I know, then it may well apply to both.

Martyn1981

So, that de-facto ban on on shore wind that the Tories brought in, and have said they would remove every time they needed to look good for the last 4yrs ...... well Labour are lifting it.

Labour lifts Tories’ ‘absurd’ ban on onshore windfarms

The effective ban on onshore windfarms has been dropped by the Labour government, in news that has delighted environmental and energy experts.

The ban was caused by two footnotes to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF), the rules which govern the building of homes and infrastructure.

These footnotes applied only to onshore wind, no other type of infrastructure, and required such strong proof that there was no opposition locally that they made building turbines impossible, given there is nearly always some local resistance to any building proposal.

In Labour’s proposed new NPPF, these footnotes have been deleted in their entirety, meaning that onshore wind projects are now on an even footing with all other forms of infrastructure. The change will officially come into force when parliament resumes on 18 July.

Just an aside, I've also heard rumours/suggestions that the Gov should expand the funding pots for the current CfD round to allow more projects to pass. Given that the bids are in, being assessed, and appealed, for possibly a September announcement - then purely as a personal view, I'd suggest waiting for the next CfD round, as they are now annual.

silverwhistle

As commented in the article, they've moved very quickly. It must give investors more confidence that the government is so proactive.

It's amazing what a little bit of extra wind alongside some solar can do: last week my average price on Agile was 2.93p per unit and the week before 11.03p.