wind energy
The UK’s shores could eventually provide up to 25 gigawatts of additional offshore wind energy, in addition to the 8 gigawatts already built or planned, according to Energy Minister Lord Hunt. Those findings, a result of the Government’s Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA), will enable the Crown Estate to
electric vehicles
Four companies have been selected to begin supplying low-carbon and all-electric vans to some public-sector organisations starting later this year. Ashwoods, Allied Vehicles, Smith Electric Vehicles and Modec will initially supply the first 100 – 150 vans for use across the country. The programme is part of a £20 million Department
wind energy
France’s EDF Energies Nouvelles has commissioned a first round of bond funding to cover 30 megawatts of development (EDF) at the Thorntonbank offshore wind farm being built in Belgium. Once completed, the installation is set to be one of Europe’s largest offshore wind farms. As part of the
wind energy
The British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) is launching two key reports today: “UK Offshore WInd: Staying on Track” and “Offshore Wind: Charting the Right Course.” Both reports were released at the Offshore ’09 Conference, the UK’s largest dedicated offshore wind energy event, which is taking place at the QE2
global warming
Coming on the heels of a report with dire climate projections for the UK, the Government has created a new sub-committee focussed on climate adaptation strategies for the country. Environment Secretary Hilary Benn named the first six members of the sub-committee, to be chaired by Lord John Krebs: * Sam Fankhauser;
Technology
GE Energy has opened a new Technology Centre in Belfort, France, that will focus on finding advanced ways to help customers address environmental and energy challenges. The new centre in Belfort, which has been the company’s European headquarters for the past 10 years, will house up to 400 engineers
waste heat
A first-of-its-kind water-cooled supercomputer will send out its excess heat to warm buildings on the campus of the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich (ETH). The ETH and IBM today announced plans for the innovative system — “Aquasar” — which is expected to decrease the carbon footprint of the institute by up
electric vehicles
Eight new low-carbon vehicle projects have been selected to run real-life trials supported by £25 million in Government funding, Science Minister Lord Drayson and Transport Secretary Lord Adonis announced today. The project — the largest of its kind to date — is aimed at accelerating the availability of innovative low-carbon cars to
cleantech
Outside of the dismal finance situation at the moment, the daily news from the world of cleantech tends to sound overwhelmingly positive: Researchers here have made a breakthrough that could lead to super-batteries. Scientists there have found a way to potentially produce hydrogen fuel cheaply and easily. A startup here
Jurdy’s recycling efforts get a gentle nudge …
eco homes
Buyers of Scotland’s first New Energy Homes will receive a different sort of gift set from the welcome wagon: a fruit bush, laundry pulley, composting bin, raised growing bed, water butt, bird/bee/bat box and potato barrel. Backed by Scottish Government funding of £300,000, the development of
water
The city of Rotterdam is working with IBM to become the world’s first “Smart Delta City” by collecting and analysing real-time data on the rivers, ocean, weather and mroe. A key player in the Dutch economy and the largest port in Europe, Rotterdam aims to design and test a
