A wind turbine installed by a community in a remote part of Wester Ross has begun generating electricity. Coigach Community Development Company’s turbine is believed to be the first large community-owned turbine in mainland Highlands. Power generated is sold to the National Grid. The company, which is supported by Highlands and Islands Enterprise, hopes to raise £2m over 20 years to help support local projects. Often referred to by the name of its main village, Achiltibuie, the Coigach Peninsula covers 38,301 acres (15,500 ha) including around 20 small islands known as the Summer Isles. The peninsula has a population of about 271 people.
BBC 24th April 2017 read more »
Ramped up co-ordination between the public and private sector is “crucial” if global carbon emissions are to be halved by 2040 to help keep global warming below 2 degrees Celsius. Lord Turner, co-chair of the Energy Transitions Commission, said a major issue with tackling climate change was dealing with parts of the economy which cannot easily use electricity generated from renewable resources, such as steel making, cement production and long-distance travel and freight. To reduce carbon emissions in these sectors, major developments are needed in areas such as bio-energy and carbon capture, Lord Turner argued in a report. But there has been a lack of technological advancement in these areas, he said, which in turn has kept the cost of developing them stubbornly high, especially against the plunging price of wind, solar and battery storage technologies.
Telegraph 25th April 2017 read more »
Conservative opposition to windfarms risks the UK missing out on one of the cheapest sources of electricity, according to the head of a Shell-funded industry group. Adair Turner, chair of the Energy Transitions Commission, said wind and solar power costs had fallen dramatically globally and urged the government to rethink its ban on subsidised onshore windfarms. “We have to at least understand that a ban on doing onshore wind is giving up the opportunity of what is increasingly the cheapest form of electricity. I would not personally have that ban on onshore wind,” Lord Turner told the Guardian. A report by the commission found that the cost of wind power had fallen by 60% in the past five years. The analysis predicted that by 2040, wind and solar would account for 45% of the global power mix, with hydro and nuclear making up another 35%. The group said that by 2035, wind and solar could provide 98% of power in developed countries such as Germany and the UK, with gas power stations or batteries providing backup. Nuclear would not grow its share because of cost, while progress on carbon capture and storage of emissions from coal and gas power stations had been “too slow”.
Guardian 25th April 2017 read more »