www.windaction.org

UK renewables costs exceed gas by over 100 bln pounds
September 2, 2011 in Thomson Reuters

The extra investment cost of building power plants such as offshore wind farms is equivalent to nearly 10 percent of overall British business investment in the next 10 years, Gordon Hughes of the University of Edinburgh said in his study "The Myth of Green Jobs." "It is clear that the public and its political representatives have never signed up to the proposition that the UK should sacrifice a minimum of 4-5 percent of GDP annually in order to meet climate change targets," Hughes said.

Green ‘stealth tax to encourage wind farms and nuclear power will hit poor the hardest'
June 28, 2011 by Fiona Macrae in Daily Mail

But the IPPR, a centre-left think-tank, says that householders, many of whom are already struggling to pay their fuel bills, will also suffer. It estimates that 30,000 to 60,000 more households will be pushed into fuel poverty - defined as spending more than 10 per cent of your disposable income on heat and light.

Also filed under [ Tax Breaks & Subsidies]

UK faces job losses as businesses threaten to flee abroad to escape green energy levies
June 12, 2011 by Robert Mendick, Edward Malnick and Andrew Cave in Sunday Telegraph

"Not every country in the world has the same commitment to climate change [as the UK] and therefore you may feel commercially disadvantaged," Sir Roger says, adding: "That gives you cause for thought as to where you want to invest." ...Dr Constable said last week: "The consumer interest is being sacrificed in efforts to meet arbitrary targets, apparently at any price. This is not a sustainable policy."

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

Study says green sector costs more jobs than it creates
February 28, 2011 in BBC News

A study by consultants Verso Economics found there was a negative impact from the policy to promote the industry. It said 3.7 jobs were lost for every one created in the UK as a whole and that political leaders needed to engage in "honest debate" about the issue.

Customers face huge bill for wind farms that don't work in the cold
January 8, 2011 by Tom Mcghie in The Daily Mail

Jeremy Nicholson, director of the Energy Intensive Users Group, which represents major companies employing hundreds of thousands of workers. He was speaking after new figures showed that during the latest cold snap wind turbines produced less than two per cent of the nation's electricity.

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

Fluor announces that cost escalation on offshore wind project will impact third quarter results
October 18, 2010 in Market Watch

Fluor Corporation today announced that its third quarter results will include a charge of approximately $163 million, or $0.90 per share, for estimated cost increases on the Greater Gabbard Offshore Wind Project. During the third quarter, the project experienced a variety of execution challenges, including material and equipment delivery issues.

Reap what you sow
September 30, 2010 in Port Strategy

Among those the Chamber is very concerned about are the Thanet extension, Greater Gabbard and extensions, and three projects in Scotland that threaten to block approaches to the Forth, he says. The map of Round 3 proposals shows the full extent of offshore wind farms: "If that was to be proposed on land, people would be on the streets. But that is the problem - out of sight, out of mind, do what you like."

Also filed under [ Impact on Landscape]

UK offshore wind costs unlikely to fall much-report
September 28, 2010 by Daniel Fineren in Reuters

Britain is banking on a big expansion of relatively expensive offshore wind power over the next decade to help meet its 2020 renewable energy targets set by the European Union and the consumer will have to pay for it through subsidies to encourage new green technologies. But, contrary to expectations that costs would fall as offshore technology develops, prices have soared because of a lack of competition.

Revealed: Wind farm power twice as costly as gas or coal
September 27, 2010 by David Derbyshire in Daily Mail

Hope now pinned on offshore economy
June 22, 2010 by Stefan Morkis in The Courier

The Leader of Dundee City Council has said it is now imperative that the city does not lose out on the offshore wind farm jobs bonanza. Estimates suggest anything up to 145,000 manufacturing jobs could be created in the UK to make offshore turbines while another 10,000 posts will be needed to maintain them.

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

RBS cuts loans to clean energy, snubbing Brown's goal
March 19, 2010 by Alex Morales in Business Week

Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc, historically the biggest commercial lender for renewable energy projects, has scaled back loans to the industry since the U.K. government bailed out the company in 2008. ..."The government of course will get pilloried for it -- you say you're a green government, you're running the banks, and they're not lending enough," Keith Pilbeam, professor of financial economics at London's City University, said in a telephone interview.

National Grid 'unable to cope with wind farm expansion' as nine new sites get go-ahead
January 8, 2010 by Anny Shaw in Daily Mail

A major expansion of wind farms around the coast has been called into question due to a shortage of engineers and fluctuations in wind levels. The plan was to power every home in Britain with electricity generated by 6,000 new wind turbines, mostly in the North Sea. The Prime Minister announced today nine new farm zones today.

Also filed under [ Tax Breaks & Subsidies]

Householders to pay £500 each for tide and wind power
December 3, 2009 by David Derbyshire in Daily Mail Online

Households will be paying £500 a year to subsidise wind turbines and tidal power stations by 2025, the energy regulator warned yesterday. Almost a third of the average domestic fuel bill will be siphoned off to fund the construction of renewable energy sources and other Government green initiatives, according to Ofgem chief executive Alistair Buchanan.

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

£250BN: The real cost of wind power
November 15, 2009 by Eugene Henderson in Daily Express

The Government's renewable energy strategy is in tatters after a report exposing the true costs of generating electricity by wind power. An internal document from the National Grid, seen by the Sunday Express, says wind turbine energy will at times cost over 3,000 per cent more than conventional power. Industry experts say over-reliance on wind power could mean fuel poverty for consumers, as older power plants reach the end of their working lives while Britain's new generation of nuclear stations is still a long way off completion.

Also filed under [ General]

MP wants more information on proposed wind farm
November 6, 2009 in Arbroath Herald

Arbroath fishermen voiced their concerns with regard to proposals for the creation of a wind farm in the Bell Rock area off Arbroath when they met with Angus MP Mike Weir. They had expressed worries that the wind farm could interfere with their traditional fishing grounds. After the meeting Mr Weir said it was vital that the interests of fishermen be taken into account in planning offshore wind farms.

Also filed under [ Impact on Landscape]

Councillor claims more wind farms will adversely affect Borders tourism
November 5, 2009 by Andrew Keddie in Southern Reporter

Leaderdale and Melrose councillor John Paton-Day has called for a halt to wind farm developments in the Borders. The Lib Dem from Earlston was reacting to a letter in TheSouthern last week (October 29 issue) from Mr S. Wilson from Blairgowrie, who described how he had advised a party of 20 hillwalkers from Austria not to visit the region because "the hills have been destroyed by numerous wind farms with a lot more to come".

Also filed under [ Tourism]

Developers of windfarm deny tourism threat; Distillery boss rebuffs Champagne argument
September 17, 2009 by Emma Christie in Press and Journal

The firm must apply to the Scottish Government rather than the local authority because of the scale of the plan. But Moray Council must be consulted and, if it objects, a public inquiry will be held. The government is due to make a decision on September 29.

Also filed under [ Tourism]

Government's green energy plan may cost 17 times more than its benefits
August 10, 2009 by Edmund Conway in Telegraph.co.uk

Sit-in turbine workers fenced in
July 22, 2009 in BBC News

Danish company Vestas Windsystems, the owners of a wind turbine factory on the Isle of Wight have fenced off the entrance to the site, where about 25 staff are on the third day of a sit-in. ...The company said the factory was being closed next week due to reduced demand for wind turbines in northern Europe. ... A spokeswoman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change said the plant made blades for the US market which were not the right specification for onshore or offshore wind farms in the UK.

Also filed under [ Denmark]

Energy bills will rise in low-carbon economy, admits Ed Miliband
July 15, 2009 in Telegraph.co.uk

On Wednesday Mr Miliband acknowledged that low-carbon energy would be more expensive for consumers, but pointed out that high-carbon fuels like coal and gas could also be expected to get more expensive because of increased demand from China and India. "We are going to minimise the costs as much as possible, but it is true there is not a low-cost energy future out there.

Also filed under [ Energy Policy]

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