As I reflect on the first couple of days at the Global Wind Summit in Hamburg, the two main considerations are the sheer scale of the opportunity in offshore wind and the similarity of the challenges now facing this industry as it moves into a more mature phase.
Big U.S. oil companies like Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp., which have lagged their European rivals in venturing into renewable energy, are likely to increasingly make room for cleaner energy in their portfolios, said Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
The UK’s richest citizens are so worried what Brexit will do to their portfolios that they are steering away from more unconventional green investments.
An innovative partnership between gas platforms and wind farms could generate more power and lower costs, the Oil and Gas Authority said in a new report.
Global Energy Group chairman Roy MacGregor has called for government and public sector backing to see the north designated as a specialist hub for development of the offshore renewables sector.
The UK’s renewable energy sector continues to adjust to the post-subsidy environment. The ending of onshore wind farm subsidies in 2016 and the closure of the renewables obligation (RO) mechanism for new solar capacity a year earlier has significantly affected financing within the sector. Earlier this year it was reported that investment into these areas of renewable energy fell by 56 per cent in 2017.
Increased renewable energy sector activity has seen the number of vessels using port facilities in Invergordon rise sharply in the first six months of this year.
The UK Government’s decision to end certain renewable energy generation subsidies, including the closure of the Renewables Obligation to all new generating capacity from March 2017 and the intention to close the FIT scheme to new applicants from 1 April 2019 (with some exceptions), has necessarily triggered a reduction in the pipeline of new onshore projects across the nation’s renewable energy sector. As the Scottish Government strives to reach its target of generating 100 per cent of its electricity consumption and 11 per cent of its heat demand through renewable sources, the sector’s long term viability is more dependent than ever on its ability to continue to adapt to this more challenging environment, in order to secure external investment.
China’s dash for world leadership in clean energy technologies has been one of the most significant developments in the global energy scene over the past few years and its implications are insufficiently recognised.
Major developments in the fishing, agricultural and renewables sectors are being hailed as examples of what the north-east can do – and why more businesses should invest in the region.