Third Update of August 2020 – An overview of last week’s Energy news

Below is this week’s summary. It should be a one minute read relevant to UK energy with links to documents for those who wish to read more.

(Click a bullet point to open the relevant article)

Monday – 17th August

• This article describes a report which recommends UK Government uses its Contract-for-Difference (CfD) scheme, similar to those applied to wind power generation, in order to stimulate development of hydrogen production. CfD guarantees a pre-agreed minimum price for production.

Tuesday – 18th August

• A company is making progress in developing biomass for fuel in Teesside, North East England.

Wednesday – 19th August

• The Scottish Government has announced a scheme to support local authorities’ purchase of low emissions buses, such as hydrogen fuelled, with £9 million towards meeting 50% of extra purchase cost compared with a standard diesel vehicle.

Thursday – 20th August

• In southern England (Oxfordshire) scientific research is making progress towards the goal of nuclear fusion which has the potential to generate power without creating nuclear waste. This article from WIRED describes the research in detail.

Friday – 21st August

• A plant at Middlesbrough in North East England will become the first to create pellets from waste which cannot be recycled and would otherwise go to landfill or other countries. Pellets can be used for fuel to produce cement and steel.

• A UK firm is converting 30 vintage Rolls-Royce cars into electric-fuelled models. Rolls-Royce previously announced that all its production will be Electric Vehicles by 2040.

Saturday – 22nd August

• The operator of approximately 80% of California’s electricity supply has imposed ‘rolling’, scheduled blackouts for customers for the first time in 19 years. This author suggests that this is partly due to an over-dependence upon renewable energy and insufficient natural gas backup.