Commission recommends 33-point plan to ensure oil giant complies with state climate commitments
The French government should intervene in TotalEnergies and spur faster climate action, a senate inquiry commission has concluded.
The commission, set up to explore ways the state could guarantee that the oil conglomerate complies with French climate commitments, recommended 33 steps the government should take to “encourage a rapid, orderly and effective transition”.
Continue reading...Increasing use of fans, air coolers and air conditioners is placing ‘serious’ strain on grid in north of country
Engineers in India have warned of the possibility of prolonged power outages in the north, where a heatwave has brought misery for millions of people.
Demand for electricity has soared due to fans, air coolers and air conditioners being run constantly, placing a strain on the grid in Delhi and elsewhere in the north. Manufacturers of air conditioners and air coolers report sales rising by 40-50% compared with last summer.
Continue reading...New policy follows sacking of ex-CEO Bernard Looney with top managers given three months to report all relationships in past three years
BP employees will have to disclose intimate relationships with colleagues or risk losing their jobs, according to a new policy brought out after the dismissal of former boss Bernard Looney for failing to tell the board.
Employees must disclose “familial and intimate relationships at work” without exception, the FTSE 100 oil company said on Monday. That is a tougher stance than before, when they only had to disclose relationships if they thought there was a a conflict of interest risk.
Continue reading...Party has put state-owned power company at centre of its plans for decarbonisation, security and energy bills
Labour is to put a government-owned power company at the heart of the UK’s energy system for the first time since the privatisation of the industry in 1990, in one of Keir Starmer’s boldest pledges so far.
Great British Energy, with £8bn of investment, forms the centrepiece of Labour’s promise to decarbonise the electricity supply by 2030. This would stop well short of any form of renationalisation: GB Energy would be a state-owned investment vehicle and company working alongside and often in partnership with the existing private sector suppliers. The plan is for it to be largely invisible to households, not offering electricity directly to consumers but financing and helping to build low-carbon infrastructure, from windfarms to – potentially – nuclear reactors.
Continue reading...Labour leader says PM’s tactics in Tuesday night TV debate show he is dishonest when put under pressure
Ed Davey, the Lib Dem leader, has been fined for speeding after being caught doing 73mph in a 60mph zone on the M1, PA Media reports. PA says:
Details of the case, dealt with under an administrative system called the single justice procedure, were revealed by the Evening Standard newspaper.
Davey wrote a letter of explanation in which he said he had tried to pay a speeding ticket issued by Bedfordshire police after he was caught speeding on the M1 near Caddington.
Continue reading...Charity says tech problems and poor customer service mean millions in Great Britain missing out on promised benefits
The number of gas and electricity smart meters that are not working properly is likely to be higher than government figures suggest – possibly 20% to 30% of the total – according to research from Citizens Advice.
The charity said millions of households were missing out on the promised benefits from smart meters due to “problems with technology” and poor supplier customer service.
Continue reading...Kepco has held discussions about developing Wylfa Newydd site on Anglesey
South Korea’s state-owned nuclear developer has discussed building a multibillion-pound power plant in Wales with the UK government, it has emerged.
Kepco, the largest utility provider in South Korea, has held early-stage discussions with Westminster officials about developing the Wylfa Newydd site on the island of Anglesey (Ynys Môn), the Financial Times reported.
Continue reading...Aberdeen-based firm listed on FTSE 250 knocked back unsolicited approach from Dubai-based Sidara
The British oil services company John Wood Group has rejected a £1.4bn takeover offer from a Dubai-based rival, Sidara, which “fundamentally undervalued” the company.
Aberdeen-based Wood is the latest British company on the London Stock Exchange to face takeover speculation amid deepening concerns that UK-listed stocks are undervalued compared with other markets.
Continue reading...£2.2bn-worth of oil processed in China, India and Turkey – to whom Russia supplies crude – was imported in 2023, data shows
The UK has been accused of “helping Russia pay for its war on Ukraine” by continuing to import record amounts of refined oil from countries processing Kremlin fossil fuels.
Government data analysed by the environmental news site Desmog shows that imports of refined oil from India, China and Turkey amounted to £2.2bn in 2023, the same record value as the previous year, up from £434.2m in 2021.
Continue reading...In the UK, anxiety over the crisis after Iran’s missile strike on Israel drives down UK shares
An escalating Middle East conflict risks leading to higher oil prices, a reversal of the recent fall in inflation and a puncturing of the optimistic mood in financial markets, the International Monetary Fund has warned.
The Washington-based IMF said it was closely monitoring events in the region after Iran’s missile strike on Israel at the weekend and stressed the possibility that a war between the two countries could lead to higher interest rates.
Continue reading...Supplier mistakenly charged direct debit customers at rate meant for those who pay when they get bills
Scottish Power is to pay £1.5m in refunds and compensation after overcharging nearly 1,700 households at the height of the energy crisis and in previous years, paying out an average of £294 to each customer.
The energy regulator, Ofgem, said it agreed the redress package with the supplier after it confirmed that, between 2015 and 2023, it mistakenly charged 1,699 direct debit customers at a higher rate that should only apply to those who pay when they receive their bill.
Continue reading...Andriy Kobolyev calls for more weapons after Russia destroys one of Ukraine’s largest power plants
A dramatic rise in European energy prices is inevitable if the Russian destruction of Ukrainian energy infrastructure continues unabated, the former chief executive of Ukraine’s state-owned oil company has warned.
Andriy Kobolyev, a former head of Naftogaz, said in an interview with the Guardian: “Russia is trying to wage a global energy war and Ukraine is part of that war and if the markets perceive that Russia is winning that war the consequences will be very serious. You will see a spike in prices all round the globe”.
Continue reading...Adnoc decided move was not right fit but it is latest sign of foreign buyers circling UK firms
Abu Dhabi’s state-owned oil company reportedly recently explored a multibillion-pound bid for BP, in a sign that depressed share values in London are making even the biggest British businesses takeover targets.
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) considered options including buying BP or acquiring a large stake before deciding it was not the right fit and abandoning preliminary discussions, according to Reuters.
Continue reading...Regulator says energy firms planning payments for another 1,000 customers after reviewing 150,000 forced installations
Only 1,500 people have been compensated by energy companies for the forced installation of prepayment meters over the past year, figures show.
The energy regulator, Ofgem, said that initial information from gas and electricity suppliers showed that 1,502 customers had received compensation totalling £342,450.
Continue reading...Recent $74m investment made alongside assessment that 10% of electricity could be generated by geothermal by 2050
A limitless supply of heat exists beneath our feet within the Earth’s crust, but harnessing it at scale has proved challenging. Now, a combination of new techniques, government support and the pressing need to secure continuous clean power in an era of climate crisis means that geothermal energy is finally having its moment in the US.
Until recently, geothermal has only been viable where the Earth’s inner heat simmers near the surface, such as at hot springs or geysers where hot water or steam can be easily drawn to drive turbines and generate electricity.
Continue reading...Despite a 12.3% cut in April’s energy price cap, there is an important fixed element in your bill that is rising again
“Great news! Your unit rates are going down.” E.ON’s letter to customers starts with glad tidings – but, as it soon admits, there is an element of their bills that is set to go up in most parts of the country.
Despite a headline cut of 12.3% in April’s energy price cap, yet again standing charges are rising. In E.ON’s case, on its Next Flex tariff, electricity charges are due to rise from 62.205p to 67.9041p – an increase of just over 9% – while for gas, charges go up from 29.595p to 31.894p (up almost 8%).
Continue reading...Details of Chris O’Shea’s ballooning package emerge in Centrica’s annual report after company reports bumper profits
The boss of the British Gas owner, Centrica, has seen his earnings nearly double to £8.2m, despite having admitted that his smaller pay packet the previous year was “impossible to justify”.
Chris O’Shea earned a basic salary of £903,000, which was topped up by cash and share bonuses worth an extra £7.3m.
Continue reading...States including Texas, Louisiana and Florida say federal government lacks authority to broadly deny permits
Sixteen US states, including Texas, Louisiana and Florida, have filed a lawsuit to challenge the US federal government’s ban on approving applications to export liquefied natural gas, the office of Texas attorney general Ken Paxton said on Thursday.
The lawsuit argues the federal government lacks the authority to broadly deny those permits.
Continue reading...China’s Longi looks to slash costs as renewable energy sector faces tough headwinds from inflation
The world’s largest solar manufacturer has slashed nearly a third of its workforce after a cost-cutting drive that included telling staff to only print in black and white fell short and as a chill ripples through the renewable energy sector.
China’s Longi is to cut as much as 30% of its workforce, in an acceleration of cost reductions that began late last year, Bloomberg reported.
Continue reading...Blockades at facilities in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, with protests in Scotland and action expected in Denmark
Climate activists in four countries are blocking access to North Sea oil infrastructure as part of a coordinated pan-European civil disobedience protest.
Blockades have been taking place at oil and gas terminals, refineries and ports in Germany, the Netherlands, Norway and Sweden, in protest at the continued exploitation of North Sea fossil fuel deposits.
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