Labour MP in call to introduce emissions taxes for buildings
Buildings should be subject to emissions taxes like cars to help Britain meet its climate change obligations, an MP has said.
Other News
Putin would see Brexit as ‘weakness’, says Hilary Benn
Russian president Vladimir Putin would see Brexit as a sign of “weakness”, shadow foreign secretary Hilary Benn has warned.
British Gas announces 5.1% cut in gas prices
British Gas and EDF Energy have become the last of the Big Six providers to lower prices, announcing moves to cut gas bills next month.
Rosneft and Pietro Barbaro strike MOU agreement
Rosneft and Pietro Barbaro have signed an MOU with the scope of creating a joint venture in the area of international shipping.
BP sees growth in renewables, expects energy demands to increase by 34%
Oil major BP said it expects energy demands to continue to grow over the next 20 years despite the current weaknesses in the global market and a slowdown in China’s growth.
Conservation groups call for US Bureau to halt oil and gas lease sales
Conservation groups in the US have called for the Bureau of Land Management to halt the sale of federal oil and gas leases on more than 36,000 acres in Texas, Oklahoma and Kansas.
Tidal lagoon energy review announced by government
A review into the potential for tidal lagoon energy in the UK has been announced by the Government amid negotiations on a “world first” project. Renewable energy firm Tidal Lagoon Power has been working to secure subsidies for a £1 billion scheme to build the world’s first lagoon power plant which would harness the energy of the tides in Swansea Bay.
Customer complaints against energy firms down 24%
Customer complaints to energy firms fell by almost a quarter last year to five million, but consumer groups said this figure is still too high. Regulator Ofgem said the number of grievances made by consumers fell by 24% to five million, from 6.5 million in 2014. Npower received the most complaints per 100,000 customer accounts with 13,966 grievances, less than half the 28,019 it received in 2014 when it was also the biggest offender.
PM claims full fiscal devolution would have caused “financial calamity” for Scotland
Prime Minister David Cameron has claimed Scotland would have been weeks away from a "financial calamity" if full fiscal devolution had been given to the country. Cameron said new funding arrangements for Scotland needed to be completed in a "fair and reasonable way" after the SNP asked why the UK Treasury was proposing plans that may cost Scotland £3billion.
Energy firms’ customer complaints down 24%
Customer complaints to energy firms fell by almost a quarter last year to five million, but consumer groups said this figure is still too high.
Husky Energy makes further job cuts
Husky Energy said it has made further job cuts as the oil price slide continues.
Report: McDermott considering closure of Aberdeen office
McDermott is said to be considering whether to close its office in Aberdeen.
Conman who committed AllSeas fraud jailed
A conman posing as a millionaire London trader who defrauded a Dutch shipping company of 100 million euros ($113 million) was sentenced to 14 years in prison by a UK court.
UK industry suffers worst monthly performance since 2012
UK industry suffered its worst monthly performance since 2012 in December in a tough end to the year for manufacturing firms and as record mild weather hit demand for energy. Official figures showed industrial production fell by 1.1% during December - the steepest fall in activity since September 2012 - which left the sector nursing a 0.5% drop in the final quarter.
Stavanger Offshore technical school sees drop from 400 to 20 applicants
An offshore technical school in Norway has seen a sharp decline in applicants since last year.
Bond Dickinson advises on REG portfolio sale to Blackrock
Bond Dickinson has advised client Renewable Energy Generation Limited (REG) on the sale of its entire operating and consented wind and solar portfolio to a fund managed by BlackRock.
Government accused of wasting opportunity for alternative future for North Sea
Pulling the plug without warning on a £1 billion competition for technology to cut climate emissions from power stations has damaged investment in the UK, MPs have warned. Scrapping the scheme to develop “carbon capture and storage” technology, which captures and stores permanently underground up to 90% of carbon dioxide from fossil fuel plants, will also make it more expensive for the UK to tackle climate change.
Fracking hearing told decision not about “rights or wrongs”
Cuadrilla has told a hearing a decision to refuse fracking was not about the “rights or wrongs” of shale gas extraction. A five-week hearing has begun in Blackpool after the energy company decided to appeal a refusal to frack in a number of licences. Representing the company, Nathalie Lieven QC, told the inquiry that the appeals over the two sites concerned applications relating to the exploration of onshore natural gas through hydraulic fracking of shale rock or related monitoring works.
North Korea restarts plutonium reactor
North Korea is said to have restarted a plutonium production reactor which could provide a stockpile for nuclear weapons.
Frontera Resource signs MOU with Naftogaz
Frontera Resource has signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Ukraine’s pubic joint stock company.
E.ON and Age UK suspend energy tariff offer
E.ON and Age UK are to temporarily stop offering a branded energy tariff following criticism of the deal, citing “continued speculation regarding the partnership”.
Russia begins appeal against $50billion payout
Russia has begun its appeal in the Netherlands against an international arbitration order that Moscow pay $50billion in damages to shareholders from the oil company Yukos.
Cuadrilla appeal against Lancashire fracking applications begins
An appeal by energy firm Cuadrilla has begun as it seeks to gain permission for fracking at two sites in Lancashire.
Britons believe local authorities should have fracking power
Nearly two thirds of people think local councils, not the Government, should decide if fracking goes ahead in their area, a poll suggests. The survey of 1,055 people for Greenpeace which found that 62% of people were in favour of the decision being made locally comes as a public inquiry begins into whether the go-ahead should be given for shale gas exploration at two sites in Lancashire.
Greenpeace stages ‘fracking’ at Westminster
Greenpeace has erected a life-like drilling rig outside the Houses of Parliament in London.