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☆ Drax project for controversial ‘carbon negative’ power plant gets UK government green light
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-16 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The UK government approved a £2 billion (around $2.5 billion) project on Tuesday to create a “carbon negative” wood-burning power plant. Energy secretary Claire Coutinho’s decision greenlights a plan to bolt carbon capture units onto two generators at a power station in Yorkshire, northern England, run by Drax. Once the most polluting power station in western Europe, Drax switched from burning coal to burning biomass — mostly wood pellets — in 2019. The power station in Yorkshire, which produces around 4% of the UK’s power, mostly burns wood imported from North America. Some scientists have cast doubt on the climate credentials of burning biomass.

Persons: Claire Coutinho’s, Drax, “, ”, Tomos Harrison, Ofgem, ” Drax, Laith Whitwham, Ember, BECCS “, ” Will Gardiner, Gardiner Organizations: CNN, Energy, European Academies Science Advisory, Drax Group Locations: Yorkshire, England, Europe, North America, Canada

☆ Britain to boost offshore wind auction power price guarantees by 66%
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-16 | by ( Susanna Twidale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Companies Iberdrola SA FollowLONDON, Nov 16 (Reuters) - Britain will increase the guaranteed price offered for offshore wind projects in its next renewables auction by 66%, the government said on Thursday, as it seeks to spur more projects after its last auction failed to attract any offshore wind investment. Britain, which is already the world’s second largest offshore wind market after China, is seeking to ramp up its capacity to 50 gigawatts (GW) by 2030 from around 14 GW now, to help meet its climate targets and boost energy security. The offshore wind sector has been hit by surging supply chain and interest rate costs over the past year with some developers cancelling projects, while Britain's last auction yielded no offshore wind projects when the results were announced in September with developer saying the price offered was too low. The government said despite the absence of offshore wind, the last auction had succeeded in supporting other technologies such as solar, tidal and onshore wind projects capable of generating 3.7 GW, the equivalent to powering some 2 million homes. “The real test of that ambition will come when the overall budget for the next auction round is set next year.

Persons: Claire Coutinho, ”, ” Keith Anderson, ScottishPower, Susanna Twidale, Marguerita Choy Organizations: ” Energy, Thomson Locations: Britain, China

☆ UK gives approval for controversial Rosebank oil and gas field development
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Ruxandra Iordache | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

A view of Sullom Voe Terminal, an oil and gas terminal in the Shetland Islands on September 2021. LONDON — British regulators on Wednesday gave approval for Norway's energy giant Equinor to develop the controversial U.K. offshore Rosebank field in the North Sea, just off the northwest coast of the Shetland Islands. The North Sea Transition Authority said it has also given the necessary consent. Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt said: "We are accelerating renewables and nuclear power, but will still need oil and gas for decades to come — so let's get more of what we need from within British waters." The approval comes after Britain in July confirmed plans to issue hundreds of new oil and gas licenses in the North Sea, despite its stated target to decarbonize all of the national sectors of the economy by 2050.

Persons: Equinor, Claire Coutinho, Jeremy Hunt Organizations: LONDON, Transition, Ithaca Energy, . Energy Security Locations: Shetland Islands, North, Shetland

LONDON (AP) — British regulators on Wednesday approved new oil and gas drilling at a site in the North Sea, a move environmentalists say will hurt the country’s attempt to meet its climate goals. The U.K.'s North Sea Transition Authority said it had approved the Rosebank Field Development Plan, “which allows the owners to proceed with their project.”Britain’s Conservative government argues that drilling in the Rosebank field, northwest of the Shetland Islands, will create jobs and bolster the U.K.’s energy security. One of the largest untapped deposits in U.K. waters, Rosebank holds an estimated 350 million barrels of oil. The field is operated by Norway’s Equinor and the U.K. firm Ithaca Energy, which say they plan to invest $3.8 billion in the first phase of the project. The government says it still aims to reduce the U.K.’s carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.

Persons: ”, Norway’s Equinor, Caroline Lucas, Rosebank, Rishi Sunak’s, Sunak, Claire Coutinho Organizations: —, Transition, Conservative, Ithaca Energy, Green Party, Energy, Rishi Sunak’s Conservative Locations: North, Shetland, Ukraine

Energy Security Minister Claire Coutinho said that Rosebank would be less emissions-intensive compared with older oil and gas developments because they were designed with mitigations in place. Environmental campaigners had urged the government to halt development of Rosebank, saying it contravened the plan for a net-zero economy. Uplift, a campaign group opposed to Rosebank, said Britain would struggle to benefit from Rosebank as most of the oil would be processed abroad. "By approving Rosebank, Rishi Sunak has confirmed he couldn't care less about climate change," Uplift executive director Tessa Khan said. The North Sea Transition Authority, the UK regulator, said it had taken Rosebank's emissions into account in relation to Britain's climate plan.

Persons: Rishi Sunak, Claire Coutinho, Sunak, Caroline Lucas, Rosebank, Tessa Khan, Sarah Young, William James, Ron Bousso, Kate Holton, Jane Merriman Organizations: Energy, Environmental, Green Party, Labour Party, Ithaca Energy, Ithaca Energy's, Transition, Thomson Locations: Ithaca, Britain, Oslo, Rosebank, Equinor

☆ Rosebank: Britain approves huge, controversial oil and gas field in the North Sea
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-27 | by ( Laura Paddison | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —The British government approved the development of a huge oil and gas field in the North Sea Wednesday, sealing its commitment to keep producing fossil fuels for decades to come. “We have today approved the Rosebank Field Development Plan which allows the owners to proceed with their project,” said a spokesperson for oil and gas regulator the North Sea Transition Authority in a statement. The spokesperson added the decision had been made “taking net zero considerations into account throughout the project’s lifecycle.” Net zero is where the world removes at least as much planet-heating pollution as it emits. UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently said he wanted to “max out” oil and gas developments in the North Sea and issue hundreds of new licenses. “Even when we’ve reached net zero in 2050, a quarter of our energy needs will come from oil and gas.

Persons: “, ”, Rishi Sunak, Sunak, we’ve, ” Sunak, Tessa Khan, Lyndsay Walsh, Rosebank, Claire Coutinho Organizations: CNN, Transition, International Energy Agency, Oxfam, Shell Locations: Shetland, Scotland, Norwegian, North, Rosebank

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