Category Archives: Energy

‘Obsessed by coal’: former Queensland LNP minister hits out at Morrison government

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Bundaberg mayor Jack Dempsey says voters in his region ‘oppose coal’ and want no new mines

Bundaberg mayor and former Queensland LNP minister Jack Dempsey has described the Morrison government as being “obsessed by coal” and out of step with almost everybody on the climate crisis “except the big polluters”.

Dempsey also alleged federal resources minister and member for Hinkler, Keith Pitt, who has strongly advocated for the coal industry, was out of step with his electorate, which stretches from Hervey Bay to Bundaberg – an area he called the “heartland of Queensland”.

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Everything you need to know about Guardian Australia’s state news coverage

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A team of nine has been appointed to extend our reporting of state politics and issues such as education, health, transport and energy

Guardian Australia is expanding its coverage of state news via a new section of the homepage in New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland.

The expansion, which is being funded by the Google News Initiative, will allow a team of nine to extend the Guardian’s rigorous, progressive reporting of state politics and issues such as education, health, transport and energy.

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‘We’re ready’: UK anti-fracking activists prepare to fight resurgence plans

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Boris Johnson’s suggestion practice could re-emerge after invasion of Ukraine has rallied campaigners

Anti-fracking campaigners have vowed to give energy firms “no peace” if the government lifts the moratorium on fracking, pledging “inconvenient and noisy” protests at every site.

Steve Mason, campaign director of Frack Free United, said there was an army of retired “geri-activists” ready to lie down and face prosecution for the cause again.

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Australia news live updates: Palaszczuk says too late for emergency declaration in Qld; Rio Tinto ditching Russia; 21 Covid deaths

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Palaszczuk rejects Morrison’s move to declare national emergency in Queensland, where flood costs are ‘well into the billions’; Rio Tinto will terminate all contracts with Russian businesses; nation records at least 21 Covid deaths amid concerns over Omicron subvariant. Follow all the updates live

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is being questioned about his promises to keep the cost of living down as he chats to ABC News Breakfast:

Well, we have been making policies that have been driving down the cost of living, for example, around electricity prices which are down by 8% in the last two years.

They doubled under our political opponents, but what I was referring to last night is the international events in the Ukraine have seen a spike in oil prices, and that is flowing through with some people paying more than $2 a litre.

This high and increasing burden of skin cancer emphasises the need for continued investment in skin cancer education and prevention.

We know what needs to be done. Now is the time to do it so that one day Australia is no longer considered the skin cancer capital of the world.

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Stranding of three whales in Corfu raises alarm over seismic testing for fossil fuels

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While cause remains unconfirmed, green groups fear the three whales could be the ‘tip of iceberg’ with many more animals hurt

Environmental groups have linked the beaching of three whales in Corfu to seismic testing for oil and gas in the waters off the Greek island.

Two Cuvier’s beaked whales were found stranded at Arillas and Agios Gordios beaches on the west of the island on 20 February. A third beaked whale ran ashore on Agios Gordios beach the day after.

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Energy crisis: UK could learn from Fukushima response, MPs told

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Japanese measures including turning down the heating and slower trains could ease pressure on British households, say experts

Britain could learn from Japan’s response to the Fukushima nuclear plant disaster by reducing energy consumption to deal with soaring global gas prices after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, academics have said.

Suggesting a coordinated response to record gas prices could help ease the pressure on households, experts told MPs on the Commons business committee that steps to reduce national demand for gas-fired power next winter could be deployed.

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Democrats and Republicans agree on plan to suspend trade relations with Russia and Belarus – live

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Federal prosecutors were expected to make closing arguments today in the first jury trial of someone charged with joining in the 6 January attack of the US Capitol.

Guy Reffitt of Texas, the first of some 750 people charged with joining the riot to face trial in Washington, has been charged with carrying a semi-automatic handgun while on Capitol grounds and obstructing justice by threatening his children with harm if they reported him to authorities.

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Australia news live updates: weather warnings stretch from NSW mid-north coast to Victoria border; ‘rain bomb’ set to cost Queensland billions

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Severe weather to affect coastal areas from Coffs Harbour to Bega; Queensland estimates ‘rain bomb’ will cost state more than $4bn; two NSW residents among Japanese encephalitis patients in Victoria; ADF defends NSW flood response; PM speaks on east coast floods, Ukraine crisis; nation records at least 32 Covid deaths with 23 in South Australia. Follow all the day’s news

As expected, AGL Energy has formally rejected the takeover bid by billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and Canadian asset manager Brookfield, posting an ASX statement this morning.

AGL, the country’s largest electricity generator, received a revised bid late on Friday, offering $8.25 a share, up from an initial unsolicited bid of $7.50 a share.

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Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant seized by Russians after shelling, say authorities

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Overnight shelling at plant sparked fire that prompted Volodymyr Zelenskiy to issue stark warning

Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant has been seized by Russian military forces, according to regional authorities, after a fire sparked by overnight shelling burned for several hours at the largest facility of its kind in Europe.

The Ukrainian state inspectorate for nuclear regulation said in a statement on its Facebook page the plant had been “captured by the military forces of the Russian Federation”, but added that employees were continuing to work on the premises.

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How can Europe wean itself off Russian gas?

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Analysis: whether tapping other suppliers or switching energy sources, there is no quick and easy option to loosen Putin’s economic grip

As Boris Johnson told parliament that Europe must wean itself off Russian gas – to loosen Vladimir Putin’s “grip on western politics” – the Nikolay Zubov tanker was making its way back from British waters to the port of Sabetta, in northern Siberia.

The 300m-long vessel had recently dropped off a consignment of liquefied natural gas (LNG) at the Isle of Grain terminal, in the Thames Estuary, operated by the National Grid.

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Why is Mike Cannon-Brookes trying to buy Australia’s dirtiest energy company? – video explainer

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Last week tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes and Canadian asset management company Brookfield launched their extraordinary takeover bid for energy generator and retailer AGL. AGL is Australia's largest energy provider as well as largest polluter. Guardian Australia's environment editor Adam Morton breaks down the elements in the proposal and explains the strategy behind the consortium's offer


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Can Germany function without Vladimir Putin’s gas?

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Analysis: Nord Stream 2 was meant to deliver 70% of country’s gas and switch to renewable energy has been slow

The Ukraine crisis has plunged Germany into an intense debate about how it will heat its homes and power its industry in future, summed up in the short question: can Europe’s largest economy function without Vladimir Putin’s gas?

The Green federal economics minister, Robert Habeck, answered with a decisive “yes it can”, a day after the chancellor, Olaf Scholz, announced the suspension of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, which was meant to deliver from Russia as much as 70% of Germany’s gas requirements. There are considerable doubts as to whether the $11bn project will ever now go ahead.

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Night-time attack on controversial Canadian gas pipeline site

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Police release video of attack on workers’ equipment at camp of Coastal GasLink, a 400-mile pipeline opposed by First Nation groups

Police in Canada have released footage of axe wielding attackers as they investigate a “calculated and organised” night-time raid on a remote work camp.

Up to 20 people are believed to have attacked Coastal GasLink’s pipeline construction camp last week on Marten Forest Service Road in British Columbia.

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Black carbon pollution from tourism and research increasing Antarctic snowmelt, study says

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Pollution generated by burning fossil fuels causes snow to darken, absorb more solar energy and melt faster

Black carbon pollution from tourism and research activities in Antarctica is likely increasing snowmelt on the continent by an estimated 83 tonnes for each visitor, according to new research.

Scientists have estimated that the black carbon produced by vessels, planes and diesel generators results in 23mm of additional snowmelt each summer in the most frequently visited areas of the ice-covered landmass.

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Kenya to use solar panels to boost crops by ‘harvesting the sun twice’

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Successful trials found growing crops beneath panels – known as agrivoltaics – reduced water loss and resulted in larger plants

Solar panels are not a new way of providing cheap power across much of the African continent, where there is rarely a shortage of sunshine. But growing crops underneath the panels is, and the process has had such promising trials in Kenya that it will be deployed this week in open-field farms.

Known as agrivoltaics, the technique harvests solar energy twice: where panels have traditionally been used to harness the sun’s rays to generate energy, they are also utilised to provide shade for growing crops, helping to retain moisture in the soil and boosting growth.

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Australia news live updates: Queensland and Victoria to lift mask rules as nation records 33 Covid deaths

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Clive Palmer cancels press club appearance; foreign minister condemns Russia’s declaration of Ukranian separatist independence as PM says Russia should ‘step back’; defence responds to China’s claim about laser incident; NSW and Victoria both record 14 Covid deaths, Queensland records five; mask rules lifted in Victoria from midnight Saturday and in Queensland next week. Follow the latest updates live

Jumping back to the Sydney train situation for a moment and the Rail, Tram and Bus Union state secretary, Alex Claassens, is discussing the return of limited train services with ABC News Breakfast:

Apparently, where we ended up late last night was we negotiated an outcome where trains will run today. We finally managed to get the management team to see some common sense and today they will be operating a service roughly around the half-hour to 15-minute mark.

They will then try and improve on that during the day. We will work together as much as we can to try to get as many trains on the tracks as we can, and you can imagine our disappointment yesterday morning when we got up like everybody else in Sydney to realise some genius had made a decision to cancel all of our train services.

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Florence asks residents to pay utility bills of struggling pensioners

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Social impact of Italy’s 50% energy price rise is evident in city where 27.6% of the population is over 65

Florence residents are being asked to pay the utility bills of elderly people living alone and struggling to make ends meet as the city’s leaders seek to shield the most vulnerable from soaring energy costs.

The “adopt a bill” initiative begins in the next few days and comes as the social implications of a more than 50% hike in gas and electricity bills in Italy this winter start to manifest.

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Saudi Arabia transfers $80bn in shares to wealth fund for green projects

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Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman said move was part of efforts to recalibrate the oil-led economy

Saudi Arabia has transferred shares worth $80bn to its sovereign wealth fund as the oil-rich nation hopes to rival Norway and Singapore’s state-managed funds and invest in green projects.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, said 4% of shares in Saudi Aramco, the world’s biggest oil exporter, would be transferred to the kingdom’s sovereign wealth fund as part of efforts to recalibrate the oil-dominated economy.

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Nuclear fusion heat record a ‘huge step’ in quest for new energy source

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Oxfordshire scientists’ feat raises hopes of using reactions that power sun for low-carbon energy

The prospect of harnessing the power of the stars has moved a step closer to reality after scientists set a new record for the amount of energy released in a sustained fusion reaction.

Researchers at the Joint European Torus (JET), a fusion experiment in Oxfordshire, generated 59 megajoules of heat – equivalent to about 14kg of TNT – during a five-second burst of fusion, more than doubling the previous record of 21.7 megajoules set in 1997 by the same facility.

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Can bitcoin be sustainable? Inside the Norwegian mine that also dries wood

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Kryptovault’s operation is part of a fightback against criticism of the famously energy-intensive industry

A line of large blue skips full of chopped wood sit at the back of a site belonging to Norway’s biggest bitcoin mining operation, a 5,000 sq metre warehouse on the outskirts of Hønefoss, a small town 40 miles west of Oslo.

Hot air is being pumped into the 12 skips through bendy corrugated pipes curling out from the warehouse. Despite the snow, it will take a few days for the logs to be dried out, after which a local lumberjack, grateful for the free service, will take them away for sale.

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