Alistair Osborne, Business Editor
Last Updated: 1:20am BST 01/07/2008
Forth Ports unveiled a renewable power joint venture with Scottish and Southern Energy and said it was seeing no impact on volumes from slowing economic growth.
The owner of seven UK ports said the first project for the new venture, called Forth Energy, would be a £12m investment in four 2MW wind turbines at Tilbury.
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Charles Hammond, the ports group's chief executive, said Forth Energy had identified possible projects with a total installed capacity of more than 150MW.
They are all located on the Forth port estate, which also includes Dundee and Leith, Rosyth and Grangemouth in the Firth of Forth.
"There's a lot of potential on our sites and there's a good fit between energy and some of our core businesses," Mr Hammond said, adding that future investment could run to "tens of millions of pounds".
More on energy
He said the joint venture was also looking to participate in a project by Tilbury Green Power to develop a "multi-fuel" plant in the docks, where a planning application is under way.
The new joint venture was unveiled alongside a bullish first-half trading statement, flagging that interim results were likely to show "strong growth". The shares rose 72p to £17.35.
Mr Hammond said problems in the banking and financial services markets were yet to feed through into lower volumes on the quayside.
"There is still a need for importing and exporting basic commodities. We are not seeing any downturn in demand," he said.
Ro-ro traffic and containers through Tilbury are ahead of last year, while piped cargoes through the Scottish ports were at their highest level for four years.
Containers at Grangemouth rose 10pc from the first six months of 2007.
Tuesday, 1 July 2008
India announces a climate change plan
By Heather Timmons
Published: June 30, 2008
NEW DELHI: The Indian government pledged Monday to devote more attention to renewable energy, water conservation and preserving natural resources in the country's first-ever climate change plan, but it did not set any concrete goals or pledge to cap harmful emissions.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh acknowledged that climate change was a dangerous problem during a speech in New Delhi on Monday, but the plan he introduced reinforced India's long-held stance that developed nations created the bulk of the mess and should be responsible for cleaning it up.
"There is a real possibility of catastrophic disruption of the fragile life-sustaining ecological system that holds this world together," Singh said. India traditionally "treats nature as a source of nurture and not as a dark force to be conquered and harnessed to human endeavor. There is a high value placed in our culture to the concept of living in harmony with nature," he said.
India is the fourth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide, the main gas linked to climate change, after the United States, China and Russia, according to the most recent World Bank data. On a per person basis, though, Indians emit far less carbon dioxide than people in those countries and European nations.
How much the Indian government will spend on these missions, who will staff them and how they will be evaluated was unclear. A spokesman reached in Singh's office said he could not answer questions about the plan.
"Every citizen of this planet must have an equal share of the planetary atmospheric space," Singh said. Therefore, he said, "long-term convergence of per capita emissions" is the only equitable base for a global plan on climate change. According to the report, the average Indian generates about one-tenth the amount of carbon dioxide as someone in Japan or Europe, and one-twentieth that of an American.
Blistering economic growth and huge populations in India and China mean these countries are contributing more to the growth of emissions than developed countries. But, on a per-person basis, these nations still produce far fewer pollutants and gasses than developed countries, and China and India argue that this is how their contribution to climate change should be judged.
Scientists in the West and international bodies set up to address climate change say that meaningful change can not happen without the robust participation of India and China, which needs to come well before per capita emissions reach those of developed countries.
In April, President George W. Bush pledged that the United States would halt the growth of greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, without giving any specifics about how that would happen. The promise was an about-face for the current U.S. administration, which has long resisted emission caps and refused to join the Kyoto Protocol on limiting such emissions.
India's climate change plan comes weeks before the government attends a meeting of the Group of 8 in July in Japan. Climate change is expected to be a main topic of the talks.
India will pursue eight national "missions" for sustainable development, Singh said Monday. These include: solar energy, energy efficiency, creating a sustainable habitat, conserving water, preserving the Himalayan ecosystem, creating a green India, creating sustainable agriculture and, finally, something establishing what he called a "strategic knowledge platform for climate change."
Singh particularly emphasized the solar mission, saying that in India's plan the "sun occupies center stage, as it should, being literally the original source of all energy." The plan will "look beyond" government to try to expand solar power in India, he said, a sign that the country will welcome private companies as well.
The plan "reiterates India's position that the country is looking for technology as a solution, and not any mandatory cuts" in carbon dioxide emissions, said Anshu Bharadwaj, the director of the Center for Science, Technology and Policy in Bangalore. There were no specific targets set for energy efficiency, solar power use or water conservation.
China's first climate change plan, released last year, called for improved energy efficiency and expansion of renewable and nuclear energy sources. China set some goals in areas like energy efficiency, but it has already fallen short of them, some analysts contend.
Published: June 30, 2008
NEW DELHI: The Indian government pledged Monday to devote more attention to renewable energy, water conservation and preserving natural resources in the country's first-ever climate change plan, but it did not set any concrete goals or pledge to cap harmful emissions.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh acknowledged that climate change was a dangerous problem during a speech in New Delhi on Monday, but the plan he introduced reinforced India's long-held stance that developed nations created the bulk of the mess and should be responsible for cleaning it up.
"There is a real possibility of catastrophic disruption of the fragile life-sustaining ecological system that holds this world together," Singh said. India traditionally "treats nature as a source of nurture and not as a dark force to be conquered and harnessed to human endeavor. There is a high value placed in our culture to the concept of living in harmony with nature," he said.
India is the fourth-largest emitter of carbon dioxide, the main gas linked to climate change, after the United States, China and Russia, according to the most recent World Bank data. On a per person basis, though, Indians emit far less carbon dioxide than people in those countries and European nations.
How much the Indian government will spend on these missions, who will staff them and how they will be evaluated was unclear. A spokesman reached in Singh's office said he could not answer questions about the plan.
"Every citizen of this planet must have an equal share of the planetary atmospheric space," Singh said. Therefore, he said, "long-term convergence of per capita emissions" is the only equitable base for a global plan on climate change. According to the report, the average Indian generates about one-tenth the amount of carbon dioxide as someone in Japan or Europe, and one-twentieth that of an American.
Blistering economic growth and huge populations in India and China mean these countries are contributing more to the growth of emissions than developed countries. But, on a per-person basis, these nations still produce far fewer pollutants and gasses than developed countries, and China and India argue that this is how their contribution to climate change should be judged.
Scientists in the West and international bodies set up to address climate change say that meaningful change can not happen without the robust participation of India and China, which needs to come well before per capita emissions reach those of developed countries.
In April, President George W. Bush pledged that the United States would halt the growth of greenhouse gas emissions by 2025, without giving any specifics about how that would happen. The promise was an about-face for the current U.S. administration, which has long resisted emission caps and refused to join the Kyoto Protocol on limiting such emissions.
India's climate change plan comes weeks before the government attends a meeting of the Group of 8 in July in Japan. Climate change is expected to be a main topic of the talks.
India will pursue eight national "missions" for sustainable development, Singh said Monday. These include: solar energy, energy efficiency, creating a sustainable habitat, conserving water, preserving the Himalayan ecosystem, creating a green India, creating sustainable agriculture and, finally, something establishing what he called a "strategic knowledge platform for climate change."
Singh particularly emphasized the solar mission, saying that in India's plan the "sun occupies center stage, as it should, being literally the original source of all energy." The plan will "look beyond" government to try to expand solar power in India, he said, a sign that the country will welcome private companies as well.
The plan "reiterates India's position that the country is looking for technology as a solution, and not any mandatory cuts" in carbon dioxide emissions, said Anshu Bharadwaj, the director of the Center for Science, Technology and Policy in Bangalore. There were no specific targets set for energy efficiency, solar power use or water conservation.
China's first climate change plan, released last year, called for improved energy efficiency and expansion of renewable and nuclear energy sources. China set some goals in areas like energy efficiency, but it has already fallen short of them, some analysts contend.
Wind farms 'repay lost C02 in 3 years'
Published Date: 01 July 2008
By Jenny Haworth
IT TAKES just three years for a wind farm to pay back the carbon dioxide released from peat land damaged during construction, according to a new report.
There have been concerns that draining peat land to build wind farms causes irreversible damage, releasing huge quantities of C02 that has been stored there.Struan Stevenson, MEP, has called for a moratorium on building wind farms on peat land, which he calls Scotland's rain forests because of their importance for storing damaging C02.Now research for the Scottish Government has found that, with good practice, the benefits of building a wind farm will overtake the carbon lost from peat in between 1.8 and 2.6 years.Jason Ormiston, the chief executive of Scottish Renewables, said the research discredits the "myth" that wind farms cannot be built on peat land without releasing carbon. He added: "This research shows that by using good practice we can responsibly develop on peat soils and still slash the emissions that cause climate change."Calls for a blanket moratorium on all peat-land areas have now been shown to be misguided and are blocking effective action on climate change."However, Mr Stevenson hit back, saying it was "fatuous" to think the damage can be reversed within three years. He added: "For anyone to suggest that beggars belief."At a seminar of experts earlier this year, Mr Stevenson said all agreed that wind farms should not be built on peat land.The report, "Calculating carbon savings from wind farms on Scottish peat lands – A new approach", was produced by the Macaulay Institute and Aberdeen University for the Scottish Government.
Electric scooters whizz off the forecourts as fuel prices climb
By Harry Wallop, Consumer Affairs Correspondent
Last Updated: 6:48AM BST 01/07/2008
Hundreds of electric scooters have been sold in the last month, as commuters look to cut their travel costs by investing in rechargeable machines.
This week, Harry and Claudine live the electric dream - whizzing round the streets of London on the Ego Electric Street Scoota. ; http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1494875123/bctid1640111350 http://www.brightcove.com/channel.jsp?channel=1139053637
Electric scooters, which run on batteries that can be recharged from a domestic socket, are predicted to take off this year, as the price of fuel leaves many commuters with increasingly high transport costs.
Two companies have entered the market in the last month in a hope to cash in drivers that are being hit by the high price of petrol, combined with the increasing desire to cut down their carbon emissions.
Ego and E-Max, both of whom launched their scooters last month, have had great success since they started selling their vehicles.
Firebox, the website that has the rights to the Ego Electric Street Scoota , has sold out of the £999.95 machine.
Meanwhile, E-Max has sold about 200 of its more powerful £2,760 vehicle in the last three weeks.
Simon Small, a spokesman for the Motor Cycle Industry Association, said: "People are fed up with the price of fuel and sitting in traffic jams.
"As a result, there is a definite trend towards smaller engine bikes, and that includes electric bikes, which have only just really started to come onto people's radar.
"But I think they could take off this year."
In China, electric scooters sell at the rate of 13 million every year.
The benefit of the electric bikes is that they should cost a fraction of the cost of running a car, or even a small engine bike.
The Ego claims that a full 8-hour charge, which should give it enough juice to last 40 miles, costs just 8p from a domestic plug socket – or the equivalent of just 0.5p a mile.
This compares to about 15p a mile for a small engine scooter, according to the motoring group RAC, and about 20p for a small car.
On top of this most cities in the UK have started free parking for electric vehicles, and drivers are exempt from any vehicle excise duty.
Kevin Ash, the Daily Telegraph's motorcycle writer, said that he was sceptical that electric scooters would become mainstream because most can not travel further than 40 or 50 miles on a full charge.
However, at £999, the Ego's bike "looks astonishingly cheap. At that price it could do very well," he said.
Last Updated: 6:48AM BST 01/07/2008
Hundreds of electric scooters have been sold in the last month, as commuters look to cut their travel costs by investing in rechargeable machines.
This week, Harry and Claudine live the electric dream - whizzing round the streets of London on the Ego Electric Street Scoota. ; http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1494875123/bctid1640111350 http://www.brightcove.com/channel.jsp?channel=1139053637
Electric scooters, which run on batteries that can be recharged from a domestic socket, are predicted to take off this year, as the price of fuel leaves many commuters with increasingly high transport costs.
Two companies have entered the market in the last month in a hope to cash in drivers that are being hit by the high price of petrol, combined with the increasing desire to cut down their carbon emissions.
Ego and E-Max, both of whom launched their scooters last month, have had great success since they started selling their vehicles.
Firebox, the website that has the rights to the Ego Electric Street Scoota , has sold out of the £999.95 machine.
Meanwhile, E-Max has sold about 200 of its more powerful £2,760 vehicle in the last three weeks.
Simon Small, a spokesman for the Motor Cycle Industry Association, said: "People are fed up with the price of fuel and sitting in traffic jams.
"As a result, there is a definite trend towards smaller engine bikes, and that includes electric bikes, which have only just really started to come onto people's radar.
"But I think they could take off this year."
In China, electric scooters sell at the rate of 13 million every year.
The benefit of the electric bikes is that they should cost a fraction of the cost of running a car, or even a small engine bike.
The Ego claims that a full 8-hour charge, which should give it enough juice to last 40 miles, costs just 8p from a domestic plug socket – or the equivalent of just 0.5p a mile.
This compares to about 15p a mile for a small engine scooter, according to the motoring group RAC, and about 20p for a small car.
On top of this most cities in the UK have started free parking for electric vehicles, and drivers are exempt from any vehicle excise duty.
Kevin Ash, the Daily Telegraph's motorcycle writer, said that he was sceptical that electric scooters would become mainstream because most can not travel further than 40 or 50 miles on a full charge.
However, at £999, the Ego's bike "looks astonishingly cheap. At that price it could do very well," he said.
You Can't Get There From Here
The problem: Much solar and wind power are generated far from the people who use it
By JONATHAN SHIEBER: June 30, 2008; Page R8
Utilities are moving to harvest more power from renewable-energy sources like the wind and sun. The problem is getting that power to the places that need it.
A series of laws passed in recent years by state legislatures across the country require utilities to generate a certain portion of their power from renewable resources. The standards vary from state to state.
THE JOURNAL REPORT
• See the complete Energy report.
But the best resources for generating large amounts of wind and solar power are located in remote areas. One California utility, for instance, is developing a cluster of wind farms along the Tehachapi mountain range that separates the San Joaquin valley from the Mojave Desert. Across the desert, from California through Arizona and New Mexico, independent power producers are looking to build thousands of megawatts of solar farms that would sit on acres of land.
"There's enough solar potential in the whole southwest of the U.S. to equal the power of all of the oil in Saudi Arabia," says David Hawkins, lead industry-relations representative for the California Independent System Operator, a nonprofit that supervises the distribution of power for the state.
So utilities are embarking on the costly and lengthy process of building or upgrading long-distance transmission lines to get new power to customers in population centers -- and meet an expected rise in demand. New and upgraded lines would facilitate the transmission of power from new remote sources as well as renewable-energy projects that already have been developed. New far-reaching lines also could allow utilities to boost the amount of renewable power available across broader swathes of the country.
"Essentially you need to get a line out of the supplying regions to the consuming regions," says Mike Niggli, chief operating officer of San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Gas Co., subsidiaries of Sempra Energy.
Years in the Making
Edison International Inc. has plans for a renewable-energy transmission line that would stretch from the Tehachapi Mountains to the outskirts of Los Angeles. But because of the cost and regulatory oversight involved, it's taking years of planning and development to get the project approved.
FAR FROM HOME A wind farm (left) and transmission lines in the Mojave Desert and a solar farm operated by Southern California Edison
The Rosemead, Calif.-based company first made a deal in December 2006 with Alta Windpower Development LLC, a subsidiary of Australian financial-services firm Allco Finance Group, for 1,500 megawatts of wind power generated from sites in the Tehachapi Mountains over a 10-year period.
Then in March 2007, the California Public Utilities Commission approved plans for Southern California Edison, an Edison International subsidiary, to build the first 82-mile segment of a transmission line that would bring more renewable power to California's grid. That segment is expected to be completed in early 2009. But it still needs final approval from the U.S. Forest Service, which oversees some of the land that would be used for new transmission lines and upgrades.
The full $1.8 billion project, which Southern California Edison has proposed constructing in 11 segments, is slated for completion by 2013 -- the same time the additional 3,000 megawatts of power would be ready.
New and upgraded high-voltage transmission lines will be able to transmit as much as 4,500 megawatts of wind power for northern Los Angeles and eastern Kern counties -- enough to power approximately three million homes.
While states like California look to transport power from new sources, others are planning to install new transmission lines to cope with the massive amount of power coming from existing renewable-energy projects.
In 2005, the Texas Senate directed the state's Public Utility Commission to designate what it called Competitive Renewable Energy Zones, which would concentrate the wind-power projects within certain resource-rich areas. The thinking was that once the zones were established, developers could begin planning projects, and transmission and distribution providers would know where to begin planning transmission infrastructure development.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which manages the state's utility grid, offered up several plans in April to address the bottleneck of power created by all the wind projects producing power in West Texas and the Texas panhandle.
The plans address how to get 6,903 megawatts of existing wind resources moved to load centers, where power is used, while simultaneously adding transmission capacity for the next 6,000 to 18,000 megawatts of power that might be developed in the region.
The council's plans, which range in cost from $2.95 billion to $6.38 billion, have been submitted to the commission for approval. The cost would be rolled into ratepayers' monthly bills.
'The Green Highway'
Another factor driving the construction of transmission lines is a push from utilities for greater interconnection between regions to boost the amount of renewable power available across the country.
MAKING A CONNECTION
• What's Happening: Utilities are looking to harvest more wind and solar power. But they lack a way to easily transport that renewable energy from its remote sources to population centers.
• The Fix: Utilities are planning to build or upgrade long-distance transmission lines for both new and existing renewable-energy projects.
• The Burden: The proposed lines are costly and will take years to build.
A loose confederation of Western utilities from Washington State through Southern California -- including Portland General Electric Co., Avista Corp., Pacifcorp, PG&E, and British Columbia Transmission Corp. -- are considering building and upgrading transmission lines that would potentially link renewable power generated in Canada through the Western region of the U.S.
"You could think of it as the green highway," says Mr. Hawkins of the California Independent System Operator.
The $3.2 billion plan is being led by PG&E, which would like to use the line to meet its renewable-portfolio standards. The utility has received partial approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to recover some costs in the form of rate increases. The commission cited in its decision the need to encourage companies to explore new ways of delivering power from renewable resources.
Utilities involved in the project say that given all the players the challenge is daunting. "It's difficult to do really large projects involving multiple utilities because the question of which customers support the line and with how much is very difficult," says David Eskelsen, a spokesman for Pacificorp.
Some Opposition
Environmentalists have problems with some transmission projects, saying utilities are using the popularity of renewable power to get projects approved.
Sempra Energy wants to build a more-than-100-mile transmission line from California's Imperial Valley region to San Diego, through its San Diego Gas and Electric subsidiary. The energy firm says the Sunrise Powerlink project, estimated to cost as much as $1.4 billion, will transmit renewable power from new sources like the solar thermal power plant it has entered into a power-purchasing agreement with.
But the Sierra Club opposes construction of the line, contending it would be used mainly to bring electricity generated at natural gas-fired plant that Sempra owns in Mexicali, Mexico.
"It appears to be a bait and switch," says Micah Mitrosky, an organizer for the Sierra Club in San Diego. "They talk about this line as a renewable-energy project. But when you peel away the PR, it is designed to tap into Sempra's liquefied natural-gas terminal in Mexico."
Sempra says electricity from its Mexico facilities are being delivered to California using existing transmission lines. It said in public statements earlier this year that it can't meet the California clean-energy mandate without the power line.
The Sierra Club also opposes a project proposed by Sierra Pacific Resources Group, which operates utilities in Nevada. The project combines a new 250-mile transmission line to connect planned and existing wind and solar plants and a new 2,500-megawatt coal-fired power plant. The Sierra Club says new coal generation is unnecessary and the development of solar and wind power meet the needs of most communities.
Sierra Pacific says the project, called the Ely Energy Center, needs to combine renewable- and fossil-fuel plants because it can't pay for the transmission piece with solar and wind power alone.
"This is the catch-22," says Roberto Denis, senior vice president of energy supply for Reno, Nev.-based Sierra Pacific. "Yes, we need the line. But no, we can't justify the line by economics. The way the line becomes economical is by siting this coal project between the two utilities."
--Mr. Shieber is a reporter in Jersey City, N.J., for Clean Technology Investor, a newsletter published by Dow Jones & Co.
Write to Jonathan Shieber at jonathan.shieber@dowjones.com
By JONATHAN SHIEBER: June 30, 2008; Page R8
Utilities are moving to harvest more power from renewable-energy sources like the wind and sun. The problem is getting that power to the places that need it.
A series of laws passed in recent years by state legislatures across the country require utilities to generate a certain portion of their power from renewable resources. The standards vary from state to state.
THE JOURNAL REPORT
• See the complete Energy report.
But the best resources for generating large amounts of wind and solar power are located in remote areas. One California utility, for instance, is developing a cluster of wind farms along the Tehachapi mountain range that separates the San Joaquin valley from the Mojave Desert. Across the desert, from California through Arizona and New Mexico, independent power producers are looking to build thousands of megawatts of solar farms that would sit on acres of land.
"There's enough solar potential in the whole southwest of the U.S. to equal the power of all of the oil in Saudi Arabia," says David Hawkins, lead industry-relations representative for the California Independent System Operator, a nonprofit that supervises the distribution of power for the state.
So utilities are embarking on the costly and lengthy process of building or upgrading long-distance transmission lines to get new power to customers in population centers -- and meet an expected rise in demand. New and upgraded lines would facilitate the transmission of power from new remote sources as well as renewable-energy projects that already have been developed. New far-reaching lines also could allow utilities to boost the amount of renewable power available across broader swathes of the country.
"Essentially you need to get a line out of the supplying regions to the consuming regions," says Mike Niggli, chief operating officer of San Diego Gas & Electric and Southern California Gas Co., subsidiaries of Sempra Energy.
Years in the Making
Edison International Inc. has plans for a renewable-energy transmission line that would stretch from the Tehachapi Mountains to the outskirts of Los Angeles. But because of the cost and regulatory oversight involved, it's taking years of planning and development to get the project approved.
FAR FROM HOME A wind farm (left) and transmission lines in the Mojave Desert and a solar farm operated by Southern California Edison
The Rosemead, Calif.-based company first made a deal in December 2006 with Alta Windpower Development LLC, a subsidiary of Australian financial-services firm Allco Finance Group, for 1,500 megawatts of wind power generated from sites in the Tehachapi Mountains over a 10-year period.
Then in March 2007, the California Public Utilities Commission approved plans for Southern California Edison, an Edison International subsidiary, to build the first 82-mile segment of a transmission line that would bring more renewable power to California's grid. That segment is expected to be completed in early 2009. But it still needs final approval from the U.S. Forest Service, which oversees some of the land that would be used for new transmission lines and upgrades.
The full $1.8 billion project, which Southern California Edison has proposed constructing in 11 segments, is slated for completion by 2013 -- the same time the additional 3,000 megawatts of power would be ready.
New and upgraded high-voltage transmission lines will be able to transmit as much as 4,500 megawatts of wind power for northern Los Angeles and eastern Kern counties -- enough to power approximately three million homes.
While states like California look to transport power from new sources, others are planning to install new transmission lines to cope with the massive amount of power coming from existing renewable-energy projects.
In 2005, the Texas Senate directed the state's Public Utility Commission to designate what it called Competitive Renewable Energy Zones, which would concentrate the wind-power projects within certain resource-rich areas. The thinking was that once the zones were established, developers could begin planning projects, and transmission and distribution providers would know where to begin planning transmission infrastructure development.
The Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which manages the state's utility grid, offered up several plans in April to address the bottleneck of power created by all the wind projects producing power in West Texas and the Texas panhandle.
The plans address how to get 6,903 megawatts of existing wind resources moved to load centers, where power is used, while simultaneously adding transmission capacity for the next 6,000 to 18,000 megawatts of power that might be developed in the region.
The council's plans, which range in cost from $2.95 billion to $6.38 billion, have been submitted to the commission for approval. The cost would be rolled into ratepayers' monthly bills.
'The Green Highway'
Another factor driving the construction of transmission lines is a push from utilities for greater interconnection between regions to boost the amount of renewable power available across the country.
MAKING A CONNECTION
• What's Happening: Utilities are looking to harvest more wind and solar power. But they lack a way to easily transport that renewable energy from its remote sources to population centers.
• The Fix: Utilities are planning to build or upgrade long-distance transmission lines for both new and existing renewable-energy projects.
• The Burden: The proposed lines are costly and will take years to build.
A loose confederation of Western utilities from Washington State through Southern California -- including Portland General Electric Co., Avista Corp., Pacifcorp, PG&E, and British Columbia Transmission Corp. -- are considering building and upgrading transmission lines that would potentially link renewable power generated in Canada through the Western region of the U.S.
"You could think of it as the green highway," says Mr. Hawkins of the California Independent System Operator.
The $3.2 billion plan is being led by PG&E, which would like to use the line to meet its renewable-portfolio standards. The utility has received partial approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to recover some costs in the form of rate increases. The commission cited in its decision the need to encourage companies to explore new ways of delivering power from renewable resources.
Utilities involved in the project say that given all the players the challenge is daunting. "It's difficult to do really large projects involving multiple utilities because the question of which customers support the line and with how much is very difficult," says David Eskelsen, a spokesman for Pacificorp.
Some Opposition
Environmentalists have problems with some transmission projects, saying utilities are using the popularity of renewable power to get projects approved.
Sempra Energy wants to build a more-than-100-mile transmission line from California's Imperial Valley region to San Diego, through its San Diego Gas and Electric subsidiary. The energy firm says the Sunrise Powerlink project, estimated to cost as much as $1.4 billion, will transmit renewable power from new sources like the solar thermal power plant it has entered into a power-purchasing agreement with.
But the Sierra Club opposes construction of the line, contending it would be used mainly to bring electricity generated at natural gas-fired plant that Sempra owns in Mexicali, Mexico.
"It appears to be a bait and switch," says Micah Mitrosky, an organizer for the Sierra Club in San Diego. "They talk about this line as a renewable-energy project. But when you peel away the PR, it is designed to tap into Sempra's liquefied natural-gas terminal in Mexico."
Sempra says electricity from its Mexico facilities are being delivered to California using existing transmission lines. It said in public statements earlier this year that it can't meet the California clean-energy mandate without the power line.
The Sierra Club also opposes a project proposed by Sierra Pacific Resources Group, which operates utilities in Nevada. The project combines a new 250-mile transmission line to connect planned and existing wind and solar plants and a new 2,500-megawatt coal-fired power plant. The Sierra Club says new coal generation is unnecessary and the development of solar and wind power meet the needs of most communities.
Sierra Pacific says the project, called the Ely Energy Center, needs to combine renewable- and fossil-fuel plants because it can't pay for the transmission piece with solar and wind power alone.
"This is the catch-22," says Roberto Denis, senior vice president of energy supply for Reno, Nev.-based Sierra Pacific. "Yes, we need the line. But no, we can't justify the line by economics. The way the line becomes economical is by siting this coal project between the two utilities."
--Mr. Shieber is a reporter in Jersey City, N.J., for Clean Technology Investor, a newsletter published by Dow Jones & Co.
Write to Jonathan Shieber at jonathan.shieber@dowjones.com
Power Plays
The latest on alternative-energy deals from Dow Jones Clean Technology Investor
By YULIYA CHERNOVA and JONATHAN SHIEBERJune 30, 2008; Page R12
Moving Beyond Corn
Investors are pouring new money into companies developing alternative ethanol-production technologies.
Sources like paper pulp and barley are gaining attention as the merits of corn-based ethanol as an alternative fuel source is being questioned by environmentalists and politicians because of the fuel's link to rising food prices.
THE JOURNAL REPORT
• See the complete Energy report.
In May, oil-and-gas giant Marathon Oil Corp. led an $81 million debt-and-equity funding round for Mascoma Corp., a Boston-based company making ethanol from cellulosic plant material. General Motors Corp. is among the investors in that round and it also has partnered with Mascoma to test biofuels. It was the second investment this year by the auto maker in a cellulosic-ethanol company.
Mascoma uses various feedstocks such as woody biomass, corn stover, and paper pulp to make ethanol.
Cliff Cook, Marathon's senior vice president of supply and distribution planning, says the investment stemmed from the need to comply with a federal mandate requiring the use of ethanol, biodiesel, cellulosic ethanol, and advanced biofuels in fuels. Mr. Cook will take a seat on Mascoma's board as a result of the investment.
All major U.S. refiners are required to blend about 78% of their gasoline with ethanol at the E10 level, which has 10% ethanol blended into gasoline, by 2008. That proportion is set to increase to 91% in 2009.
Bruce Jamerson, Mascoma's chief executive, says the new funds would support a demonstration plant under construction in Rome, N.Y., scheduled to begin production by year end. Future plans include a small commercial facility near Knoxville, Tenn., that will produce less than 10 million gallons of ethanol from cellulosic feedstock. The firm also is developing a larger project in Michigan, he says.
Meanwhile, Osage Bio Energy LLC is using barley as the feedstock to produce ethanol. The Glenn Allen, Va.-based company recently received a $300 million investment from First Reserve Corp., the first ethanol investment by the private-equity firm. Using barley means Osage Bio Energy can sidestep the cost pressures of rising corn prices and the food vs. fuel debate, says Glenn Payne, a director at First Reserve.
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Here's a look at other recent deals reported by Clean Technology Investor:
• Sapphire Energy, San Diego, Calif., landed $50 million of investment for its "green crude," a direct gasoline replacement produced using genetically altered algae.
• Lehigh Technologies Inc., Naples, Fla., closed a round of financing to build its second rubber-recycling plant. The company aims to capitalize on rising rubber prices by turning old tires into a powder that can be reused in rubber manufacturing.
• Icynene Group Ltd., Mississauga, Ontario, raised $15 million to develop its business making water-blown foam insulation, which it says is more environmentally friendly than traditional fiberglass insulation materials.
Osage plans to use the funding to build four ethanol and protein-feed production facilities in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, he says.
By YULIYA CHERNOVA and JONATHAN SHIEBERJune 30, 2008; Page R12
Moving Beyond Corn
Investors are pouring new money into companies developing alternative ethanol-production technologies.
Sources like paper pulp and barley are gaining attention as the merits of corn-based ethanol as an alternative fuel source is being questioned by environmentalists and politicians because of the fuel's link to rising food prices.
THE JOURNAL REPORT
• See the complete Energy report.
In May, oil-and-gas giant Marathon Oil Corp. led an $81 million debt-and-equity funding round for Mascoma Corp., a Boston-based company making ethanol from cellulosic plant material. General Motors Corp. is among the investors in that round and it also has partnered with Mascoma to test biofuels. It was the second investment this year by the auto maker in a cellulosic-ethanol company.
Mascoma uses various feedstocks such as woody biomass, corn stover, and paper pulp to make ethanol.
Cliff Cook, Marathon's senior vice president of supply and distribution planning, says the investment stemmed from the need to comply with a federal mandate requiring the use of ethanol, biodiesel, cellulosic ethanol, and advanced biofuels in fuels. Mr. Cook will take a seat on Mascoma's board as a result of the investment.
All major U.S. refiners are required to blend about 78% of their gasoline with ethanol at the E10 level, which has 10% ethanol blended into gasoline, by 2008. That proportion is set to increase to 91% in 2009.
Bruce Jamerson, Mascoma's chief executive, says the new funds would support a demonstration plant under construction in Rome, N.Y., scheduled to begin production by year end. Future plans include a small commercial facility near Knoxville, Tenn., that will produce less than 10 million gallons of ethanol from cellulosic feedstock. The firm also is developing a larger project in Michigan, he says.
Meanwhile, Osage Bio Energy LLC is using barley as the feedstock to produce ethanol. The Glenn Allen, Va.-based company recently received a $300 million investment from First Reserve Corp., the first ethanol investment by the private-equity firm. Using barley means Osage Bio Energy can sidestep the cost pressures of rising corn prices and the food vs. fuel debate, says Glenn Payne, a director at First Reserve.
WHAT ELSE IS NEW
Here's a look at other recent deals reported by Clean Technology Investor:
• Sapphire Energy, San Diego, Calif., landed $50 million of investment for its "green crude," a direct gasoline replacement produced using genetically altered algae.
• Lehigh Technologies Inc., Naples, Fla., closed a round of financing to build its second rubber-recycling plant. The company aims to capitalize on rising rubber prices by turning old tires into a powder that can be reused in rubber manufacturing.
• Icynene Group Ltd., Mississauga, Ontario, raised $15 million to develop its business making water-blown foam insulation, which it says is more environmentally friendly than traditional fiberglass insulation materials.
Osage plans to use the funding to build four ethanol and protein-feed production facilities in Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina, he says.
Chasing the Sun
The solar-energy market is getting some new participants.
Memory-chip makers are turning to the manufacture of solar products because of similarities between the products and the ability to reuse raw materials.
Munich-based Qimonda AG says it will branch into making solar cells and expects to begin production in the second half of 2009. Qimonda partnered with Centrosolar Group AG, a German maker of solar modules, to set up a 100-megawatt solar-cell factory in Portugal, where Qimonda already has a semiconductor facility. The companies signed a deal with LDK Solar Co., which will supply 540 megawatts worth of wafers and polysilicon over five years starting in 2009.
"Barriers to entry are quite low, with an expected high return," says Henry Becker, president of Qimonda North America, about getting into the solar business. "That makes for a great business case." The new initiative also could make up for Qimonda's current tough times in the chip market.
Other beneficiaries of the solar boom include makers of parts used in solar cells. GT Solar International Inc. has a $1.1 billion in order backlog for its furnaces and reactors. Ceradyne Inc. expects a fivefold increase in the sales of its ceramic crucibles to the solar industry this year to between $50 million and $60 million. The Costa Mesa, Calif., company makes ceramic materials for such applications as armor on military vehicles. In the solar industry, ceramic crucibles are used to cast solar cells.
"We could sell more if we could make more right now, and so we are expanding both in Atlanta [where the firm has a plant] and in China," Joel P. Moskowitz, Ceradyne's chairman, CEO and president, said on a recent earnings call with investors.
Newport Corp. expects to triple sales of lasers and other tools this year to $30 million, as it struggles to keep overall margins from falling. Prices of other types of lasers have been falling, making the solar market attractive to laser makers. The Irvine, Calif., firm is due this year to open a plant in Germany, focused on instruments for the solar market.
Another maker of solar equipment seeing rapid expansion is MKS Instruments Inc. of Andover, Mass. The firm expects revenue from solar equipment this year to rise to double or triple its 2007 level of $17 million. The move comes as demand for MKS's products is declining in the semiconductor market because of decreased spending in the industry.
--Ms. Chernova and Mr. Shieber are reporters in Jersey City, N.J., for Clean Technology Investor, a newsletter published by Dow Jones & Co. They can be reached at yuliya.chernova@dowjones.com and jonathan.shieber@dowjones.com.
Memory-chip makers are turning to the manufacture of solar products because of similarities between the products and the ability to reuse raw materials.
Munich-based Qimonda AG says it will branch into making solar cells and expects to begin production in the second half of 2009. Qimonda partnered with Centrosolar Group AG, a German maker of solar modules, to set up a 100-megawatt solar-cell factory in Portugal, where Qimonda already has a semiconductor facility. The companies signed a deal with LDK Solar Co., which will supply 540 megawatts worth of wafers and polysilicon over five years starting in 2009.
"Barriers to entry are quite low, with an expected high return," says Henry Becker, president of Qimonda North America, about getting into the solar business. "That makes for a great business case." The new initiative also could make up for Qimonda's current tough times in the chip market.
Other beneficiaries of the solar boom include makers of parts used in solar cells. GT Solar International Inc. has a $1.1 billion in order backlog for its furnaces and reactors. Ceradyne Inc. expects a fivefold increase in the sales of its ceramic crucibles to the solar industry this year to between $50 million and $60 million. The Costa Mesa, Calif., company makes ceramic materials for such applications as armor on military vehicles. In the solar industry, ceramic crucibles are used to cast solar cells.
"We could sell more if we could make more right now, and so we are expanding both in Atlanta [where the firm has a plant] and in China," Joel P. Moskowitz, Ceradyne's chairman, CEO and president, said on a recent earnings call with investors.
Newport Corp. expects to triple sales of lasers and other tools this year to $30 million, as it struggles to keep overall margins from falling. Prices of other types of lasers have been falling, making the solar market attractive to laser makers. The Irvine, Calif., firm is due this year to open a plant in Germany, focused on instruments for the solar market.
Another maker of solar equipment seeing rapid expansion is MKS Instruments Inc. of Andover, Mass. The firm expects revenue from solar equipment this year to rise to double or triple its 2007 level of $17 million. The move comes as demand for MKS's products is declining in the semiconductor market because of decreased spending in the industry.
--Ms. Chernova and Mr. Shieber are reporters in Jersey City, N.J., for Clean Technology Investor, a newsletter published by Dow Jones & Co. They can be reached at yuliya.chernova@dowjones.com and jonathan.shieber@dowjones.com.
Solar Industry Gets Aid to Fight Shade
By DON CLARKJune 30, 2008; Page B6
Shade is a perennial problem for the solar-power industry, but a Silicon Valley chip maker thinks it can help.
National Semiconductor Corp. on Monday plans to announce technology that is designed to sharply reduce the impact of partial shading on solar panels, which generate electricity from sunlight.
National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor says these devices recoup power lost when solar panels are partially shaded.
The technology, dubbed SolarMagic, is being tested by REgrid Power Inc., a company in Campbell, Calif., that installs solar panels. Tom McCalmont, REgrid's chief executive officer, estimates SolarMagic can recoup as much as 40% of the power that otherwise would be lost to partial shading. "We've seen a really dramatic difference," he said.
Partial shading -- often caused by trees, nearby buildings or other obstacles -- has a pronounced impact because of the way solar panels are arrayed. A string of panels is typically attached to a device called an inverter that converts the direct current the panels generate into the alternating current used by appliances in the home and required to return power to the utility grid, said Mark Culpepper, vice president of enterprise solutions at SunEdison LLC, a solar-energy-services provider based in Beltsville, Md.
Inverters typically require a minimum threshold of voltage to operate. Partial shade on just one panel of a string of them can bring their combined output below that minimum threshold. "It can effectively knock out an entire string of panels," Mr. Culpepper said.
National -- a Santa Clara, Calif., company that makes chips that manage power in cellphones and other products -- is developing small modules that attach to each solar panel and compensate for variations in voltage caused when shade or dirt block light from hitting parts of panels. The company isn't disclosing many details about how the technology works.
Brian Halla, National's chief executive, said he expects the modules to cost about 10% of the price of a solar panel. He expects to begin selling the modules in early 2009, assuming they pass tests to certify they are safe to use with other electrical products.
National isn't the only one trying to attack the partial-shading problem. Some companies are developing "microinverters," which perform electrical conversions for each solar panel and thereby avoid the problem of one shaded panel disrupting the output of others.
But REgrid's Mr. McCalmont said microinverters contain circuitry that may be impacted by the harsh environment of a sunny rooftop. He said he believes National's technology will be more reliable.
National is one of many longtime chip makers that are diversifying into solar-power initiatives. Mr. Halla estimated that the SolarMagic product line could eventually grow to account for 25% of his company's sales. "It is the single most important and highest-prioritized initiative in the company today," he said.
Write to Don Clark at don.clark@wsj.com
Shade is a perennial problem for the solar-power industry, but a Silicon Valley chip maker thinks it can help.
National Semiconductor Corp. on Monday plans to announce technology that is designed to sharply reduce the impact of partial shading on solar panels, which generate electricity from sunlight.
National Semiconductor
National Semiconductor says these devices recoup power lost when solar panels are partially shaded.
The technology, dubbed SolarMagic, is being tested by REgrid Power Inc., a company in Campbell, Calif., that installs solar panels. Tom McCalmont, REgrid's chief executive officer, estimates SolarMagic can recoup as much as 40% of the power that otherwise would be lost to partial shading. "We've seen a really dramatic difference," he said.
Partial shading -- often caused by trees, nearby buildings or other obstacles -- has a pronounced impact because of the way solar panels are arrayed. A string of panels is typically attached to a device called an inverter that converts the direct current the panels generate into the alternating current used by appliances in the home and required to return power to the utility grid, said Mark Culpepper, vice president of enterprise solutions at SunEdison LLC, a solar-energy-services provider based in Beltsville, Md.
Inverters typically require a minimum threshold of voltage to operate. Partial shade on just one panel of a string of them can bring their combined output below that minimum threshold. "It can effectively knock out an entire string of panels," Mr. Culpepper said.
National -- a Santa Clara, Calif., company that makes chips that manage power in cellphones and other products -- is developing small modules that attach to each solar panel and compensate for variations in voltage caused when shade or dirt block light from hitting parts of panels. The company isn't disclosing many details about how the technology works.
Brian Halla, National's chief executive, said he expects the modules to cost about 10% of the price of a solar panel. He expects to begin selling the modules in early 2009, assuming they pass tests to certify they are safe to use with other electrical products.
National isn't the only one trying to attack the partial-shading problem. Some companies are developing "microinverters," which perform electrical conversions for each solar panel and thereby avoid the problem of one shaded panel disrupting the output of others.
But REgrid's Mr. McCalmont said microinverters contain circuitry that may be impacted by the harsh environment of a sunny rooftop. He said he believes National's technology will be more reliable.
National is one of many longtime chip makers that are diversifying into solar-power initiatives. Mr. Halla estimated that the SolarMagic product line could eventually grow to account for 25% of his company's sales. "It is the single most important and highest-prioritized initiative in the company today," he said.
Write to Don Clark at don.clark@wsj.com
Bovine growth hormone 'could cut CO2 emissions'
By Steve Connor, Science EditorTuesday, 1 July 2008
The use of bovine growth hormone to boost milk production – a bête noire of the organic food movement – could cut emissions of greenhouses gases substantially, according to a study that makes a strong environmental case for the controversial cattle injections.
Bovine growth hormone has been used extensively in the US for the past 14 years but is subject to a moratorium in the EU on animal welfare grounds. But now a team of American scientists has argued that its widespread adoption could help to feed a growing human population as well as helping to combat global warming.
The findings are likely to be used by the biotechnology industry, and in particular Monsanto, the US manufacturers of bovine growth hormone, to argue for the lifting of the EU moratorium on environmental grounds.
A dairy cow given bovine growth hormone produces between 10 and 16 per cent higher milk yields over a given lactation cycle, the study said. This would reduce "inputs" in the form of feedstuffs, fertilisers and fuels as well as waste "outputs" such as methane and carbon dioxide.
"Supplementing cows with [growth hormone] on an industry-wide scale would improve sustainability," said Judith Capper, of Cornell University in New York, the lead author of the study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Robin Maynard, of the Soil Association, said: "Routinely shooting up cows with a genetically modified hormone to squeeze more milk from them offers no sustainable solution to intensive farming's carbon footprint, nor for animal welfare."
The use of bovine growth hormone to boost milk production – a bête noire of the organic food movement – could cut emissions of greenhouses gases substantially, according to a study that makes a strong environmental case for the controversial cattle injections.
Bovine growth hormone has been used extensively in the US for the past 14 years but is subject to a moratorium in the EU on animal welfare grounds. But now a team of American scientists has argued that its widespread adoption could help to feed a growing human population as well as helping to combat global warming.
The findings are likely to be used by the biotechnology industry, and in particular Monsanto, the US manufacturers of bovine growth hormone, to argue for the lifting of the EU moratorium on environmental grounds.
A dairy cow given bovine growth hormone produces between 10 and 16 per cent higher milk yields over a given lactation cycle, the study said. This would reduce "inputs" in the form of feedstuffs, fertilisers and fuels as well as waste "outputs" such as methane and carbon dioxide.
"Supplementing cows with [growth hormone] on an industry-wide scale would improve sustainability," said Judith Capper, of Cornell University in New York, the lead author of the study published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Robin Maynard, of the Soil Association, said: "Routinely shooting up cows with a genetically modified hormone to squeeze more milk from them offers no sustainable solution to intensive farming's carbon footprint, nor for animal welfare."
Global warming: Government puts carbon capture on fast track
· Four energy groups to bid for demonstration project · E.ON's Kent coal-fired station may use system
Terry Macalister
The Guardian,
Tuesday July 1, 2008
The government has stepped up the pace of change in the battle against global warming by announcing a shortlist of four bidders pre-qualifying for its carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration project and outlining a proposed new legislative framework for "clean coal".
Among the bidders are E.ON, which wants to use CCS for its controversial Kingsnorth coal-fired station in Kent, and BP, which recently scrapped plans to develop a trial project in Scotland because ministers appeared to be moving too slowly to meet its own internal timetable. Scottish Power and Peel Power are also included.
John Hutton, the industry secretary, said CCS had the potential to capture 90% of carbon emissions from coal-fired power stations and its deployment would dovetail with a wider strategy which included renewable and nuclear generation.
"The progress we are making with the CCS demonstration competition and on developing a sound legislative and regulatory framework will help to deliver our ambition to see CCS ready for commercial deployment by 2020," Hutton said.
The minister, who announced a radical renewable energy strategy at the end of last week, will be pushing for CCS to be recognised by the European Union's emissions trading scheme and the clean development mechanism at the forthcoming meeting of G8 leaders. He said he wanted other countries to make similar commitments to what he said was a vital tool for tackling global warming.
CCS is a system whereby carbon usually emitted from power stations is removed and transported to a place for indefinite storage. Different stages of the process have been demonstrated but the whole process has not yet been applied to power plants on a commercial scale. There are questions about the technology and cost. Most interested companies say they would need financial incentives.
BP welcomed the decision last night but said it would probably be too late for planned trials with a plant to be built at Peterhead and using the North Sea Miller oil field for storage. It said it remained committed to developing alternative technologies. "We have always seen this [CCS] as a serious option," a spokesman said. Bob Taylor, managing director of generation at E.ON UK, said it was vital to develop a large-scale carbon capture project in the UK, to ensure the country could reduce carbon emissions while maintaining security of supply and keeping energy as affordable as possible.
"We firmly believe that our Kingsnorth project, which is the only modern, highly efficient coal-fired power station currently in planning, is a strong candidate for this competition," he said. "We look forward to supplying the government with more detail about our plans and hopefully to making Kingsnorth into the world's first large-scale CCS demonstration plant."
Independent experts said carbon capture was an exciting opportunity. "It is the great panacea. It would mean not having to do the hard things like changing the way we live," said Michael Grubb, chief economist at the Carbon Trust. "The trouble is that while everybody says it can be done, no one has yet done it. There are very big companies out there with very deep pockets but even they are not doing it."
Meanwhile E.ON yesterday welcomed a high court decision to award legal protection for part of the Kingsnorth power station site ahead of the 2008 protest Camp for Climate Action. Climate campaigners fear E.ON will construct a new coal plant there with or without CCS.
Terry Macalister
The Guardian,
Tuesday July 1, 2008
The government has stepped up the pace of change in the battle against global warming by announcing a shortlist of four bidders pre-qualifying for its carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration project and outlining a proposed new legislative framework for "clean coal".
Among the bidders are E.ON, which wants to use CCS for its controversial Kingsnorth coal-fired station in Kent, and BP, which recently scrapped plans to develop a trial project in Scotland because ministers appeared to be moving too slowly to meet its own internal timetable. Scottish Power and Peel Power are also included.
John Hutton, the industry secretary, said CCS had the potential to capture 90% of carbon emissions from coal-fired power stations and its deployment would dovetail with a wider strategy which included renewable and nuclear generation.
"The progress we are making with the CCS demonstration competition and on developing a sound legislative and regulatory framework will help to deliver our ambition to see CCS ready for commercial deployment by 2020," Hutton said.
The minister, who announced a radical renewable energy strategy at the end of last week, will be pushing for CCS to be recognised by the European Union's emissions trading scheme and the clean development mechanism at the forthcoming meeting of G8 leaders. He said he wanted other countries to make similar commitments to what he said was a vital tool for tackling global warming.
CCS is a system whereby carbon usually emitted from power stations is removed and transported to a place for indefinite storage. Different stages of the process have been demonstrated but the whole process has not yet been applied to power plants on a commercial scale. There are questions about the technology and cost. Most interested companies say they would need financial incentives.
BP welcomed the decision last night but said it would probably be too late for planned trials with a plant to be built at Peterhead and using the North Sea Miller oil field for storage. It said it remained committed to developing alternative technologies. "We have always seen this [CCS] as a serious option," a spokesman said. Bob Taylor, managing director of generation at E.ON UK, said it was vital to develop a large-scale carbon capture project in the UK, to ensure the country could reduce carbon emissions while maintaining security of supply and keeping energy as affordable as possible.
"We firmly believe that our Kingsnorth project, which is the only modern, highly efficient coal-fired power station currently in planning, is a strong candidate for this competition," he said. "We look forward to supplying the government with more detail about our plans and hopefully to making Kingsnorth into the world's first large-scale CCS demonstration plant."
Independent experts said carbon capture was an exciting opportunity. "It is the great panacea. It would mean not having to do the hard things like changing the way we live," said Michael Grubb, chief economist at the Carbon Trust. "The trouble is that while everybody says it can be done, no one has yet done it. There are very big companies out there with very deep pockets but even they are not doing it."
Meanwhile E.ON yesterday welcomed a high court decision to award legal protection for part of the Kingsnorth power station site ahead of the 2008 protest Camp for Climate Action. Climate campaigners fear E.ON will construct a new coal plant there with or without CCS.
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