Chief Scientist & Professor of Exploration Geoscience, Heriot-Watt University
Assistant Professor, Durham University
Chair of Urban & Regional Planning and Director of Canberra Urban & Regional Futures, University of Canberra, Visiting Professor, University of Warwick
Associate Professor in Biophysics, University of Pretoria
Production
Irish oil firm wins funding for offshore drilling
Dublin-based oil producer Providence Resources says it has secured a loan to fund drilling off the Irish coast this year amid parliamentary anger as the government killed off a bill that would have banned new drilling projects. The firm said it was due to receive an €8.9-million loan to fund drilling at Barryroe, 50km off […]
Transmission
Armenia probes power shutdown
Armenia’s Infrastructure Ministry has blamed massive power outages and voltage drops this week on a voltage drop in the national grid. “There are no frequency fluctuations in the system, stability has been restored,” the ministry said. “Efforts continue and the power supply is gradually being restored.” The ministry said an investigation would identify the cause of the […]
Storage
Ford and Volkswagen sign electric car deal
Ford and Volkswagen are due to deepen their alliance with an extensive agreement on driverless and electric vehicles. Under the cost-saving move, Volkswagen will invest US$2.6 billion in Argo AI, the autonomous tech firm, which is mostly owned by Ford and is now valued at US$7 billion. The need for cost-sharing partnerships is underlined by […]
Consumption
Spanish coal use sinks to new low
Spain’s use of coal, the most polluting fossil fuel, has hit a historic low and not since the first official records began in 1990 has coal constituted such a small percentage of the electricity mix on the mainland. The minority Socialist government can claim credit for the increasing abandonment of coal. The government of Prime […]
Policy
Poland eyeing energy commissioner role: reports
Poland reportedly says it wants the right to appoint an important commissioner in exchange for Polish support for Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen as European Commission president. Polish Deputy Prime Minister Jacek Sasin told broadcaster TVN24 that Warsaw wanted to take responsibility for energy issues. The idea of coal-dependent Poland having a leading role in […]
Environment
Wind powers 182% of Scottish homes: study
Scotland’s wind energy output soared in the first half of this year, generating enough electricity to power 4.47 million homes, according to WeatherEnergy. The energy agency said wind output over the six months generated at a load factor of 40 per cent, and could have powered 182 per cent of Scottish households. “These are amazing […]
Industry
Legal action between Nord Stream 2 and EU looms
The consortium behind the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is facing legal arbitration with the EU amid growing uncertainty for the Gazprom-led project. The Nord Stream 2 company gave the European Commission a deadline to settle the dispute, which expired last week. Arbitration under the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT) could jeopardise the €11.5-billion Baltic pipeline […]
Opinion
2050 Carbon Neutrality Target in Doubt after Eastern European Opposition
The European Commission’s proposal for a bloc-wide 2050 zero-net-emissions target failed to garner unanimous approval after Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and Estonia vetoed the plan during the June 21st EU summit. The summit concluded with a commitment to stay in line with the Paris agreements. But the 2050 carbon target was relegated to a […]
The Stark Truth About UK Government Climate Action: There is no one in Charge
Steve Allen / Shutterstock The UK’s climate change targets are world-leading. Yet there is no clear plan in place to achieve them. That is the stark message of a new progress report from the government’s official advisers, the Committee on Climate Change. The Committee is forthright in its criticism of government. On its report card, […]