Low-carbon generation

Ofgem criticised for handling of SSE investigation

Drax gets green light for pumped storage hydro plant

Repower up

Rate of solar refusals ‘deeply problematic’, says Labour

Sending the right signals

‘Significant issues’ with government’s major energy schemes

Vattenfall halts offshore wind project due to surging costs

SSE reports 29% renewables output shortfall

SSE’s renewable assets generated 29% less power than forecast during the first quarter of the financial year. In total, SSE’s renewable energy sources produced 624GWh. This represents a 5% shortfall on total planned output for the year. SSE attributes the drop in output to “dry and still weather patterns” during the three months until the end of June.

Call to tie renewables consents to community packages

Onshore renewables and transmission developers should be forced to pay financial packages to local communities to help smooth away opposition to their projects, an influential Conservative-allied thinktank has urged. Polling carried out by Onward for its new report, entitled ‘Power to the People’, shows that providing packages of community benefits are more popular among rural voters than offering discounts on their energy bills.

Government signals caution on local wholesale power prices

The government has signalled that it doesn’t want reform of the wholesale electricity prices, such as by creating a patchwork of local markets, to undermine investment in renewables. Its response to the now defunct BEIS (business, energy and industrial strategy) committee’s report on decarbonisation of the power sector, confirms that the government wants to significantly narrow the options when it publishes the second consultation on its Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) this autumn.

Shortlist revealed for biggest ever offshore transmission contracts

Four bidders have been shortlisted by Ofgem for the UK’s biggest ever offshore transmission tender round. All four bidders will be able to bid for the three offshore transmission assets of Dogger Bank A Offshore Wind Farm, Neart na Gaiothe Offshore Wind Farm and Moray Offshore Wind Farm (West), estimated to be worth a combined total of around £2 billion.

New funding to cut UK nuclear fleet’s reliance on Russian fuel

Grant Shapps has announced the launch of the government’s mini-atomic reactor competition while unveiling funding for projects designed to reduce the UK’s reliance on Russia for nuclear fuels. The secretary of state for energy security and net zero said the UK is seeing the “first brush strokes of our nuclear power renaissance” with the opening of the government’s new agency Great British Nuclear (GBN).

‘Final piece in the jigsaw’: Orkney link gets green light

Grid connection woes hold up over 1,000 shovel-ready projects

Shapps overrules planning inspectors by approving giant wind farm

Grant Shapps has given the go ahead for the final phase of Orsted’s mammoth Hornsea offshore wind farm, despite planning inspectors warning that the scheme goes against wildlife protection regulations. The energy secretary has confirmed that a development consent order (DCO) has been granted for Hornsea Project Four, paving the way for construction to begin.