The Market Report – 30th April 2013

Find out the latest news on the energy market from Ben Spry, npower’s Client Portfolio Manager, in this weekly update.

Poland working on strategies for first nuclear plant

Poland has made “significant progress” in its programme for introducing nuclear power and is developing strategies for procuring the first plant. Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) reviewed the country’s nuclear infrastructure development and noted good practices and made recommendations for further actions. In a preliminary report, the Integrated Regulatory Review Service (IRRS) […]

Mixed profits for energy giants

Russian energy giant Gazprom’s net profit fell 10% in 2012 compared to the previous year due to rising costs and lower sales whilst its rival BP saw underlying profits of $4.2 billion (£2.7bn) in the first quarter of 2013. Gazprom’s profits last year totalled RUB1.183 trillion (£24.6bn) compared to RUB1.30 trillion (£27bn) in 2011. The […]

Solar groups glare at EU for Chinese solar meddling

Hackles are raised in solar trade groups around Europe after nine of them sent a tetchy letter to the EU’s Trade Commissioner begging him to stop meddling with Chinese solar panel sellers. In the letter to Karel De Gucht the trade groups from Italy, Romania, Sweden, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the UK express deep concerns […]

Abu Dhabi’s scorching ‘£1bn’ Green Investment Bank plans

Abu Dhabi is said to be planning a scorching amount of investment with the Green Investment Bank (GIB) in the UK’s clean energy sector. Tomorrow Masdar, Abu Dhabi’s state-backed renewable energy company will sign a Memorandum of Understanding with the GIB during a state visit to the UK by President of the United Arab Emirates, […]

Swedes lead EU’s green energy charge

The Swedes lead the European Union’s charge towards renewable energy, according to new figures from EU’s fact body Eurostat. While almost all member states increased their share of renewable energy in energy consumption between 2010 and 2011, the highest share is to be found in Sweden, Latvia, Finland and Austria. The Swedes final energy consumption […]

€115m aid for ‘largest’ wind power project in Africa

Renewable energy generation in Kenya (pictured) is set to increase, thanks to a €115 million loan for a wind power project, believed to be the largest in Africa. The African Development Bank (AfDB) will provide the cash for the Lake Turkana Wind Power project, which will add 300MW to the nation’s power generation capacity. It […]

Guest Blog – Mervyn Bowden: Where should energy sit?….

Where in your organisation should the energy function sit? This isn’t quite as daft a question as it may sound first time around when you consider the large number of variant functions within “energy” functions – from complex risk management processes to, literally, changing light-bulbs (energy efficient ones of course!). I’ve seen energy functions reporting […]

Brits show increased support for renewables

An increasing number of people – 82% – in the UK support the use of renewable energy sources to provide the country’s electricity needs. According to new data complied by the Government, around three quarters said they support wave, tidal and offshore wind, 85% solar and around two thirds for onshore wind (68%) and biomass […]

Bomb scare spooks npower HQ

Energy supplier npower was spooked this morning when there was a bomb scare at its headquarters in Swindon. Work was temporarily halted and the entire workforce evacuated when a “suspicious package” arrived, prompting the supplier to call in the bomb disposal experts. A spokesperson at first told ELN that it turned out to be a […]