Looking at the selections this week, two kinds of innovation are featured: First are the “out of the box thinking” type such as the burying of biomass and the fracking energy storage. The second is the Government sponsoring the long term ambitions of the fusion industry, and trying to pick winners. COMPANY NEWS AstraZeneca Partners … Read More
geothermal
Batteries/ev charging/pumped storage/enhanced geothermal & focus on oil states and the energy transition
We are now officially in La La Land. This week Antonio Guttieres, the UN Chief suggested that we are now entering the era of “Global Boiling”, and according to the Guardian water temperatures in the Florida Keys Ocean were recorded at 38.43C, a temperature you would expect in a hot tub. Meanwhile in an alternate … Read More
UK-Morocco cable/EV fires/solar & battery/hot rocks/Shanghai Auto Show & focus on UK energy transition
The top two stories suggest that there is a reasonable secondary market in renewable assets. More mature projects being sold into long term funds. That is encouraging. COMPANY NEWS NextEnergy Solar Fund to sell some PV farms to invest in storageNextEnergy Solar Fund has announced plans to sell a 236MW portfolio of subsidy-free UK solar … Read More
Battery recycling/CCS/folding solar/algae & focus on Geothermal Energy Storage
Two stories today about drilling holes in the ground: This is just my view, but I suggest that the Government would be better advised to support Enhanced Geothermal that CCS. If CCS was really the answer it would have been built years ago. I shall watch with interest to see how enthusiastically the Harbour/BP venture … Read More
Geothermal/capacity market/home solar/seaweed/lithium/microgrid in a box
Everyone has a view on Elon Musk, he’s hard to ignore. But I do like the description of him by Charlie Munger as “gifted but weird”. Charlie has earned the right to his views as it was him who suggested to Warren Buffet that he invest in $232m in a then unknown Chinese battery company … Read More
Solar thermal/rooftop solar/HVO/methane/volcano/perovskite solar
COMPANY NEWS UK solar innovator Naked Energy continues European expansion with new partnershipsBritish solar thermal design and engineering company Naked Energy has announced further international expansion after partnering with two leading European engineering-led firms.Portuguese business Tech4Food will now offer Naked Energy’s cutting-edge solar thermal and photovoltaic thermal (PVT) products as part of its engineering solutions … Read More
Cathodes/geothermal/ev charging/CO2 battery/wetlands & focus on tidal power
If the objective is to confuse us, they have certainly succeeded. Which leading member of our government is in favour of onshore wind and which is against and which similar for ground mounted solar. I am very confused about something which should have been beyond doubt years ago. It is painful to watch. COMPANY NEWS … Read More
blue hydrogen/fracking/EGS/private equity & focus on virtual power plants
Does the Government really want to restart fracking in their Red Wall constituencies, or is it all just a ruse, a virtual stick to poke us Woke-y’s with? COMPANY NEWS Iberdrola sells share of wind farm for €700mIberdrola has signed an agreement with Swiss investment firm Energy Infrastructure Partners (EIP) for the sale of a … Read More
private wire/BECCS/landfills/the Arctic & focus on nuclear fusion
Will the real Kwasi Karteng please stand up: this week our Energy Secretary has bemoaned the use of imported biomass at Drax saying that it is not sustainable and “makes no sense to me”. The next day he announces a new consultation from the govenment to encourage Bioenergy with carbon capture (see below). His stance … Read More
electrolysers/ccs/waste-to-fuel & focus on UK nuclear power costs
One beneficiary of the change in views on energy costs and energy security has been sentiment towards nuclear power. My “focus” today may serve as a reminder that nuclear is a far from perfect solution especially as regards costs Company news 5MW gigastack project awarded £9.3m in UK Government fundingITM Power announced it had won … Read More