Category Archives: Utilities

Calls to cut bonuses for UK water bosses until reservoirs built and leaks fixed

Posted on by

Multimillion-pound payouts should be shelved until investment put in to help country recover from drought

Water company bosses should be stripped of their multimillion pound bonuses until they fix leaks and build reservoirs, politicians and campaigners have said as the country is gripped by drought.

The current drought, in which parts of England are the driest they have been since records began after five consecutive months of below average rainfall, have led to homes running out of water, rivers turning dry and farmers facing crop failures, causing many to be outraged at the companies that have failed to invest in reservoirs, fix leaks and stop sewage pollution from their pipes.

Continue reading...

As drought hits, what are UK water company chief executives paid?

Posted on by

Anger is growing over the huge sums handed to shareholders and executives

Britain’s biggest water companies have come under the spotlight as the nation swelters during what could become the worst drought in 500 years, with hosepipe bans introduced across much of England in an attempt to fend off shortages.

Anger is growing over the huge sums handed to their shareholders and executives, given the companies’ record on tackling leaks and pollution and their failure to build more reservoirs. Politicians and campaigners are now calling for water company bosses to have their bonuses banned until they tackle these issues.

Continue reading...

Yorkshire Water announces hosepipe ban after record-low rainfall

Posted on by

Ban begins from 26 August and follows similar moves by four other water firms in England and Wales

Yorkshire Water has become the fifth water company in England and Wales to announce a hosepipe ban owing to the hot and dry conditions.

The company, which has more than 5 million customers, said the restrictions would come into effect from 26 August.

Continue reading...

Environment Agency pension fund criticised for owning stakes in UK water firms

Posted on by

Campaigner Feargal Sharkey says profiteering from firms that dump raw sewage into rivers an ‘obscenity’

The Environment Agency’s pension fund owns stakes in a string of British water firms – despite the watchdog calling for industry bosses to be jailed over shocking pollution levels, the Guardian can reveal.

An analysis of the Environment Agency Pension Fund’s investments shows it holds shares or bonds worth £28m in six of the largest water companies.

Continue reading...

UK braces for even higher bills as Norway threatens electricity export cut

Posted on by

Water levels in southern Norway so low domestic consumers may be prioritised over international customers

British consumers could face even higher bills and potential energy shortages this winter after Norway threatened to ration electricity exports.

The UK receives hydroelectric power from Norway through a subsea interconnector cable running beneath the North Sea.

Continue reading...

Ofwat extends sewage dumping inquiry to include South West Water

Posted on by

Regulator expands investigation after suggestions water firm was not complying with legal obligations

The regulator Ofwat has expanded its investigation into the dumping of raw sewage to include South West Water after finding “shocking” failures in the way the majority of water companies run their waste treatment works.

Ofwat said on Tuesday it had extended its inquiry after heightened concerns about South West Water’s environmental performance and suggestions it was not complying with its legal obligations.

Continue reading...

British Gas owner signs deal with Norway firm for extra UK supplies

Posted on by

Centrica says Equinor will deliver enough gas for next three years to heat 4.5m extra homes

The British Gas owner, Centrica, has signed a major supply deal with the Norwegian state oil company, Equinor, as ministers scramble to secure domestic energy supplies.

Equinor has agreed to deliver an additional 1bn cubic metres of gas supplies to the company for each of the next three years, enough to heat an additional 4.5m UK homes.

Continue reading...

British Gas owner says windfall tax will dent investor confidence

Posted on by

Centrica boss also defends Amber Rudd’s appointment to its board as a non-executive

The British Gas owner, Centrica, has warned that Rishi Sunak’s windfall tax will “damage investor confidence” as Britain attempts to build up green energy supplies.

The Centrica chairman, Scott Wheway, and its chief executive, Chris O’Shea, hit out at the chancellor’s 25% levy on oil and gas operators’ excess profits, which will be used to pay for measures to reduce soaring energy bills.

Continue reading...

UK should expect high fuel bills for at least 18 months, E.ON boss says

Posted on by

Michael Lewis calls for substanstial government intervention to help people deal with costs

Consumers will have to cope with extraordinarily high fuel bills for at least another 18 months, the boss of Britain’s biggest energy supplier has said.

Michael Lewis, the chief executive of E.ON UK, called for “very substantial” government intervention to help people with escalating fuel bills, one of the biggest factors in the cost-of-living crisis.

Continue reading...

Use England’s plentiful brownfield sites for windfarms, urge scientists

Posted on by

Experts site Scottish example, with turbines along roads and rail lines, as a way to make better use of ‘cheap, clean’ energy source

Onshore windfarms need not blight the most beautiful parts of England because there is plenty of room for them next to rail lines and on brownfield land, leading scientists have said.

The government decided to keep the curbs on onshore wind, introduced by David Cameron, in the recent energy strategy. This means that it will be difficult to expand onshore wind in England.

Continue reading...

National Grid to be partly nationalised to help reach net zero targets

Posted on by

Electricity System Operator, the division that keeps the lights on in Great Britain, will form part of a new public body

The job of keeping the UK’s electricity and gas flowing will be returned to public control by 2024, under government plans for the effective nationalisation of a division of National Grid.

A new public body, the “Future System Operator”, will have responsibility for planning and managing energy distribution, with a focus on the challenges posed by decarbonisation.

Continue reading...

Severn Trent and Anglian Water pledge to do more to protect rivers

Posted on by

Water firms commit to improving sewage discharge practices after government pressure

Severn Trent and Anglian Water say they will accelerate efforts to protect rivers after the government and regulators called on the sector to do more.

Last month, the environment minister Rebecca Pow called on water companies to significantly improve their practices in England and Wales to support the local environment.

Continue reading...

Northern Powergrid accidentally sends out compensation cheques for trillions of pounds

Posted on by

Energy meter numbers were used instead of amount payable in 74 Storm Arwen compensation cheques

An energy company has thanked “honest” customers who did not try to cash compensation cheques for trillions of pounds sent out in error.

Compensation is being paid to tens of thousands of people who were left without power when severe “once in a generation” winds swept across the UK in November last year during Storm Arwen.

Continue reading...

Global demand for coal could hit all-time high in 2022

Posted on by

Electricity from coal plants has risen by 9% this year to fuel economic recovery from Covid, says watchdog

Coal power is on track to hit a new global record this year after an economic rebound that could drive worldwide coal demand to an all-time high in 2022, according to the International Energy Agency.

The amount of electricity generated from coal power plants has soared by 9% this year after a surge in fossil fuel demand to fuel the recovery from Covid lockdowns, a report by the watchdog says.

Continue reading...

Fire shuts one of UK’s most important power cables in midst of supply crunch

Posted on by

Coal plants being warmed up as market prices surge to £2,500 per MWh from a norm of £40

A major fire has forced the shutdown of one of Britain’s most important power cables importing electricity from France as the UK faces a supply crunch and record high market prices.

National Grid was forced to evacuate staff from the site of the IFA high-voltage power cable, which brings electricity from France to a converter station in Kent, where 12 fire engines attended the blaze in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Continue reading...

Jersey hits back at ‘disproportionate’ French threat to cut electricity

Posted on by

Paris threatens to take retaliatory measures in row over post-Brexit licences for French fishing boats

Jersey has accused France of making “disproportionate” threats after Paris warned it could cut off electricity to the island in a row over post-Brexit fishing rights.

The maritime minister, Annick Girardin, warned on Tuesday France was ready to take “retaliatory measures” after accusing the Channel Island of dragging its feet over issuing new licences to French boats.

Continue reading...

‘Monster’ fatberg blocks Birmingham sewer

Posted on by

Mass weighing 300 tonnes not expected to be cleared until June, says water company

Engineers are working around the clock to clear a “monster” fatberg 1km long which is clogging a sewer in Birmingham.

The blockage is not expected to be removed until June, water services company Severn Trent said in a statement, adding that the fatberg was about four miles east of the city centre in Hodge Hill.

Continue reading...

Thames Water hopes to harness human ‘poo power’ to heat homes

Posted on by

Company says sewage plan would avoid 105,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions over 30 years

Thousands of homes in south-west London could soon be warmed by the waste from their local sewage works as part of England’s first poo-powered district heating scheme.

Thames Water hopes to harness the heat of human waste from its treatment plant in Kingston upon Thames to warm more than 2,000 new homes that form part of a regeneration plan for the borough’s Cambridge Road estate.

Continue reading...

Raw sewage dumped into English and Welsh beaches ‘2,900 times this year’

Posted on by

Exclusive: public health and environment at risk as water companies overuse emergency overflows, says pressure group

Water companies discharged raw sewage into bathing water beaches almost 3,000 times in the past year, polluting the environment and risking public health, new analysis shows.

Related: Face masks and gloves found on 30% of UK beaches in clean-up

Continue reading...

Revealed: raw sewage poured into Olympic Park wildlife haven

Posted on by

Thames Water overflow pipe pumped waste for 1,000 hours into London wetlands last year

Raw sewage was discharged for more than 1,000 hours from a Thames Water overflow pipe into an environmental wetland at the Olympic Park last year, the Guardian can reveal.

The combined sewer overflow (CSO) at Mulberry Court pumped untreated waste 91 times into the waterway that feeds into the River Lea. To April this year, the same CSO has so far discharged for 34 hours in 20 incidents.

Continue reading...