Irish renewable energies firm BNRG has begun construction of its 15MW solar plant across 85 acres of land in Bilsham Farm in West Sussex, UK, at a cost of €25m.

In terms of benefit for the area, the plant will have the capacity to power more than 4,950 homes for 30 years.

BNRG, which is based in Dublin and backed by IDA Ireland, is constructing the project through a joint venture with the Langmead Group.

Langmead Group is one of the UK’s largest fresh produce suppliers. Its company policy includes working towards sustainability and promoting clean-energy use within the company and on farms across some 2,500 hectares in West Sussex, Scotland and Suffolk and Spain.

To date, BNRG has developed and constructed solar farms with a combined value of more than €170m and has completed 11 utility scale solar projects in the UK since 2011.

The company also recently received planning approval for the first utility scale solar PV plan on the island of Ireland near Downpatrick in Co Down.

BNRG has also confirmed it has lined up a number of similar projects across the UK and Europe for construction in 2015 and the following years after.

The UK Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem) has proposed new price control settlements for five of six electricity network operators, aimed to spur investment in network upgrades and help lower energy bills.

Effective from April 2015 and running until 2023, the proposals will enable the five companies, which transport energy into homes and businesses, to invest £17bn to upgrade and maintain Britain’s local electricity network.

The five companies, include UK Power Networks, Northern Power Grid, SP Energy Networks, SSE Power Distribution and Electricity North West, were selected since they failed to deliver enough value for customers.

Western Power Distribution was the only company to have its price control agreed in 2013 by the regulator.

Since then, a total of £2.1bn was cut from the business plans.

Companies have also identified £700m of savings and Ofgem cancelled a further £1.4bn following cost analysis.

Ofgem chief executive Dermot Nolan said: “This is the only part of the energy bill Ofgem directly controls and our plans today will deliver better customer service and efficient investment at a lower cost for the customer.

“Today’s announcement is all part of Ofgem’s consistent drive to get the best deal for consumers while maintaining a stable regulatory regime, which attracts investment as cheaply as possible.

“During the course of the price control there is expected to be an increased take-up of low-carbon technologies, including heat pumps, solar panels and small-scale renewable generation.

“Ofgem’s regulation focuses companies’ attention on connecting these low carbon technologies in a timely and cost effective way, using smart solutions where appropriate.”

The proposals are under consultation for the next eight weeks and the final decisions will be unveiled in November 2014.

In addition to requiring efficient investment, the companies will improve customer service and will enable new customers, such as businesses, new renewable generation and housing developments, to get connected to the network faster.

Dalkia, together with Fengate Capital Management, will build a 40MW biomass power plant in Canada.

To be located in Merritt, British Columbia, the power plant is claimed to be the largest in North America along with the Fort St James plant, also developed by Dalkia and Fengate Capital Management.

To be built under a design, finance, build, operate and maintain (DFBOM) contract, Dalkia will be responsible for industrial management and maintenance of the facilities, biomass supply and preparation services.

The plant will produce electricity by consuming 307,000kg of biomass a year, which will mainly be sawmill waste. Supply will be managed by Dalkia and sourced from local sawmills.

Power generated from the project will be supplied to BC Hydro & Power Authority to power almost 40,000 Canadian households.

During the construction phase the project will create around 250 jobs and 80 new direct and indirect jobs during the plant’s 30-year operation.

Fengate Capital Management will provide financing for the plant, together with a number of international and Canadian banks. As for Fort St James, Dalkia and Fengate Capital Management have contracted Iberdrola Engineering & Construction to build the plant.

Dalkia expects the project to generate cumulative operating and biomass sales of more than €540m (CAD790m) over the contract’s 30-year term.

Veolia chairman and CEO of Antoine Frérot said: “After Fort St James, construction of which started at the end of 2013, the Merritt biomass power plant will be one of the largest and most efficient in North America. Here again, Dalkia has confirmed its globally unparalleled expertise in biomass plants. Our cooperation with Fengate Capital Management enables us to provide our customers with the best of our combined expertise: the design and operation of the most complex facilities on the one hand, and asset financing on the other.”

Dalkia is a subsidiary of Veolia Environnement and Electricité de France.

Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC) has invested more than $900m in the 2013-14 financial year in projects worth more than $3bn in total value.

The investments cover a diverse range of economic activity such as agribusiness, waste coal mine gas-to-energy, wave energy, bioenergy, energy efficiency projects in local government and the community sector, and efficiency upgrades across the full spectrum of the property sector.

CEFC CEO Oliver Yates said the CEFC is demonstrating the potential that its activities offer to catalyse greater private sector investment into the sector, with its current portfolio achieving matched private sector funds of more than $2.20 for each $1 of CEFC investment.

“The CEFC invests for a positive return, with its investments presently expected to earn an average yield of approximately 7%, which is more than 3.5% above the government’s cost of funds prevailing when the investment were made,”Yates said.

“Through this portfolio of 40 direct investments and a further 25 projects co-financed under aggregation partnerships, the CEFC is delivering abatement estimated at more than 4.2 million tonnes of CO2e p.a., with a benefit to the taxpayer of around $2.40 per tonne of CO2e abated (net of government cost of borrowing).”

The CEFC has partnered with all four major banks and more than ten other domestic and international banks for the investment.

The CEFC will also finance $227m, of which around $133m is for new solar programmes and projects, which will bring its total commitment to solar to more than $200m.

Some of the investments of the CEFC include up to $120m for three new Solar PV financing programmes, up to $70m for a programme by SunEdison, up to $20m for a programme offered by Tindo Solar, up to $30m for a programme by Kudos Energy and $13m under a structured project finance facility.

The Logan Botanic Garden’s new conservatory, built in the Victorian style and thought to be the first public glasshouse in the UK to be entirely heated by green energy sources, has been officially opened by Dr Aileen McLeod MSP.
The Conservatory, which is also the south west Scotland garden’s first public glasshouse, generates its own heat using the latest sustainable technologies.
It features solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, providing a supply of around 3700KW a year, and air-source heat pumps generating enough energy to sustain year-round environs of 8°C / 46.4°F temperate, which are ideal conditions to house a rare collection of South African plants.
Extending the exotic theme of the Garden, the Conservatory’s display of tender plant species will add to Logan’s world renowned plant collection.
Both a practical and elegant building, it is a welcome addition for visitors and a chance for Garden staff to engage with audiences on issues of plant diversity, green power and climate change.
Dr McLeod said: ““The Logan Conservatory is an outstanding example of how we can harness Scotland’s own natural resources, the latest sustainable technologies and modern construction techniques to reduce carbon emissions and generate cost savings, while enhancing the facilities here at Logan Botanic Garden where we can see so many beautiful plant species from overseas.”
The project cost approximately £345,000, with financial support to the tune of £145,800 received from The Monument Trust and ScottishPower Green Energy Trust.
Further contributions were received from the Landfill Communities Fund from Solway Heritage, through Shanks Waste Solutions, and South West Environmental Action Trust (SWEAT) through Armstrong Waste Management.
The project, which took two years to complete, was supported by Alitex, the makers of the 22m x 7m Victorian greenhouse structure which is constructed from wood-effect powdered aluminium to ensure its longevity.

Irish construction company Cygnum has been awarded the €12.5m contract to build the UK’s largest sustainable commercial building, the University of East Anglia’s (UEA) new enterprise centre.

Due to be completed in 2015, the building to be known as the Norwich Research Park (NRP) Enterprise Centre will be a 4,600 metre-square timber frame building, to be delivered by UEA’s Adapt Low Carbon Group.

Morgan Sindall will construct the building, which is to be the UK’s first commercial building to achieve both Passivhaus and BREEAM Outstanding standards, the most rigorous, sustainable built environment standards.

Estimates for the lifecycle of the building is about 100 years, and it will be considered a carbon sink for the area, drawing carbon dioxide into the building’s structure as a further carbon offset.

As part of the contract, Cygnum will be installing cellulose insulation manufactured from recycled newspaper, while Morgan Sindall will be using a low embodied energy alternative to standard insulation sourcing the used newspaper from local schools to further reduce environmental impact.

The Irish company has previously worked in the UK Cygnum through its UK office since 2007 and has delivered a number of low-energy buildings, including houses, apartments, care homes and schools, including the award-winning Passivhaus Oakmeadow Primary school. The firm is currently building London’s first Passivhaus school.

Spain set new rates for electricity suppliers that use renewable sources, waste and co-generation based on a “reasonable return,” formally ending a subsidy system dating to the 1990s that had spun out of control.

The US Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has proposed the lease sale of the largest area of offshore Massachusetts for offshore wind energy projects.

The proposal for more than 742,000 acres lease sale is a part of the US President Obama’s Climate Action Plan to create American jobs, develop domestic clean energy resources and cut carbon pollution.

The 742,000-acre zone, which will be auctioned as four leases, is expected to double federal offshore acreage available for commercial-scale wind energy projects.

US Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said Massachusetts is heading towards developing a clean and sustainable energy future which creates jobs, cuts carbon pollution and develops domestic clean energy resources.

Jewell said, “Thanks to Governor Patrick’s vision and leadership, the competitive lease sale in Massachusetts will reflect the extensive and productive input from a number of important stakeholders.

“This includes interests such as commercial fishing, shipping, cultural, historical, environmental and local communities to minimise conflicts and bring clarity and certainty to potential wind energy developers.”

Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick said, “Through our investments and proactive planning, Massachusetts is poised to lead the charge in offshore wind energy development, with the economic and environmental benefits that come with it.”

Located approximately 12 miles offshore from Massachusetts in its northern boundary, the Massachusetts Wind Energy area extends 33 nautical miles southward and has an east / west extent of approximately 47 nautical miles.

BOEM acting director Cruickshank said, “The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has been working hand in hand with BOEM to foster responsible commercial wind development in federal waters off Massachusetts.”

LONDON — Meeting the world’s energy supply needs by 2035 will require $40 trillion of investment, as demand grows and production and processing facilities have to be replaced, the International Energy Agency said.

Toshiba has been awarded a contract from Hokkaido Electric Power (HEPCO) to provide a high efficiency combined-cycle thermal power generation system for the Ishikariwan Shinko Power Plant Unit 1.

The Ishikariwan Shinko Power Plant Unit 1 is the HEPCO’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) fueled thermal power plant.

Expected to achieve a thermal efficiency of 62%, the combined-cycle thermal power generation system will feature GE’s high efficiency 9HA gas turbine and Toshiba’s most advanced steam turbine.

Toshiba and GE, through the alliance, will further strengthen cooperation, and their plans to develop highly efficient and environmentally friendly low-NOx and CO2 emission combined-cycle thermal power generation systems while expanding their thermal power generation business globally.

Toshiba Power Systems Company Thermal & Hydro Power Systems & Services Division vice-president Yoshihiro Aburatani said: “Toshiba and GE’s LNG fueled combined-cycle thermal power generation system contributes to achieving the balanced power supply mix, essential for securing long-term stable power supply.”

Toshiba will serve as prime contractor for the project.

Scheduled to begin construction in October 2015, the plant is expected to have an output capacity of 569.4MW.

Toshiba and GE will use their experience to promote combined-cycle systems joint marketing to offer the world’s highest level of thermal energy efficiency.

GE Power & Water power generation products vice-president Victor Abate said: “As the centerpiece of Toshiba’s power generation system, GE’s 9HA Gas Turbine provides the highest combined cycle efficiency, power plant availability and unprecedented operational flexibility, while also being more economical in construction, operations and maintainability over the product lifecycle.”