Exploring this week's industry updates with ?????? ???????????????? as we take a look into the latest industry developments. Fossil Fuels take a step back as Renewable energy increases. The UK see's a record number of BESS installations, The National Grid supports solar installations within schools and new technology aids sustainable aviation. Were taking a look at the key trends and developments that have happened this week which promise to shape the landscape of sustainable energy. ??????
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Catch up on the latest news, policy changes and trends.
- MCS: Battery storage installations rise by 707% in March - According to the latest statistics from the Microgeneration Certification Scheme (MCS), battery storage installations rose by 707% year-on-year in March 2024, exceeding 1,000 installations for just the second month in the scheme’s history. MCS’ research also outlined that 68% of the total battery storage installations in 2023 were completed in just Q1 2024 alone. Read the full article.
- UK Closing In on Clean Power Goal - Wind and solar are continuing to push fossil fuels off the U.K. power grid. So far this year wind is the nation’s leading source of electricity, and for brief periods, the island of Great Britain has scarcely needed coal or natural gas. For one hour on April 15, fossil fuels supplied just 2.4 percent of electricity to England, Scotland, and Wales, an all-time low, according to an analysis from CarbonBrief. Read the full article.
- Wales Strengthens Position As The UK's Leading Nation For Renewable Energy Uptake - According to new data from MCS, Wales remained top of the UK nations for the installation of small-scale renewables in the first three months of 2024. Wales and Scotland continue to battle for the top spot when it comes to renewable uptake, but MCS data shows there has been a total of 117,804 installations in Wales since records began in 2008, accounting for 8.74% of households with a renewable installation. This puts it ahead of Scotland’s 8.47%, leaving England and Northern Ireland further behind with uptakes of 5.86% and 4.41% respectively.?Read the full article.
- Demand for Eco Home Jobs Surges - Demand for ‘green jobs’ has increased by 14% over the past six months according to leading tradesperson platform Checkatrade. Searches are up for three of the most favoured eco jobs – electrical vehicle chargers (8%), ground source heat pumps (14%) and solar heating (12%), among other categories. This interest in sustainable jobs has been steadily growing over the past few years, and no wonder, with many jobs potentially adding thousands to a home’s value. Read the full article.
- High Interest Rates Could Add Billions to UK Green Energy Transition - Resolution Foundation calls for fourfold increase in renewable power investment to reduce pressure on household bills. A permanent shift to higher interest rates could add billions of pounds to the UK’s renewable energy transition, a leading thinktank has warned. Borrowing costs have soared since the easing of pandemic lockdowns and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as the world’s leading central banks raised interest rates to tackle inflation – pushing up the costs of investment in infrastructure across advanced economies including for green power generation schemes. Read the full article.
Discovering the cutting-edge technologies and innovations that are driving sustainability and reshaping the industry.
- Ultra-thin Solar Cells for Self-Sufficient Drones and Sustainable Aviation - Researchers at the Johannes Kepler University Linz (JKU) in Austria have created ultra-thin and lightweight solar cells to give energy autonomy to drones. According to the JKU researchers, whether on Earth or in space, autonomous energy is critical in keeping power systems running independently for extended periods of time, particularly in remote or unpredictable environments. Read the full story.
This weeks projects and initiatives that are making a positive impact.
- Woodland Group Unveils its Largest Solar Project - Supply chain firm Woodland Group has announced its largest solar installation to date, set to contribute 60% of its Doncaster site’s electricity demand. In collaboration with the company’s customer, an ‘eco-friendly’ toilet paper maker fittingly called Who Gives A Crap, more than 526 solar panels have been installed over the past six months at the Hayes facility in Doncaster, England. Read the full story.
- National Grid Allocates ￡2.3m to Support Solar at Schools - National Grid has launched a new ￡2.7 million venture to provide grants for solar projects to schools in South Wales, the South West and the Midlands. Being explored in partnership with Solar For Schools, which supports installing solar panels on school rooves, the funding will help the organisation raise additional funding to enable around ￡10 million worth of solar projects to be installed on schools that would otherwise not be eligible for solar projects. Read the full story.
- Green Volt Floating Wind Farm Secures All Planning Approvals - Offshore wind developers Flotation Energy and V?rgr?nn, a joint venture between Plenitude (Eni) and HitecVision, have secured the offshore planning approval for their 560 MW Green Volt floating offshore wind project. With onshore consent issued earlier in April, Green Volt has now received all its planning approvals and remains on track to be the first commercial-scale offshore wind farm in Europe. Read the full story.
- Atlantic Green Energises its First BESS - Battery energy storage developer Atlantic Green has successfully energised its first project, a 30MW/61.8MWh battery asset in Buxton. According to the company, the battery energy storage system (BESS) achieved energisation on 11 April. The company has two other BESS projects in development, including Project Cellarhead (300MW/600MWh), expected to be energised in Q2 2026, and Project T (130MW/270MWh), expected to be energised in Q4 2028. Read the full story.
- New National Grid Substation Fully Operational, Transmitting Clean Power to 1.5m Homes - National Grid’s new Littlebrook 400kV substation in Dartford, Kent is now fully energised.?The facility enables the transmission of 2GW of low carbon and renewable energy from interconnectors and offshore wind farms off the coast of Kent?to power around 1.5 million homes. New technology deployed to reduce emissions at the site. Read the full story.
- Scottish Solar and Battery Project gets Greenlight - Renewco Power and development partner Locogen announced today (23 April) that planning permission has been granted for a new solar and battery storage project in Fife, Scotland.?The ￡50 million project, dubbed Glenniston Solar Farm, was greenlit after a detailed consultation period with the local community and experts across various councils. The solar and co-located battery storage site will have a generating capacity of 39MW.??Read the full story.
- University in ￡3.3m Scheme to Cut Carbon Emissions - Solar panels are being installed on the roof of the University of Bradford, as part of a ￡3.3m project to make the campus more environmentally friendly. The work is taking place at the JB Priestley Library and Student Central buildings. It is the latest phase of a "decarbonisation" scheme, which has been mainly funded by the government. Read the full story.
- Fred Olsen Renewables Unveils Plans for First Hybrid Project in Scotland - Oslo-headquartered renewable developer Fred. Olsen Renewables has unveiled plans to develop a hybrid onshore wind, solar, and battery energy storage project in Scotland. The project, capable of generating 100MW of green energy, will be located in the Scottish Borders and see the implementation of a ￡7 million community benefit fund. Read the full story.
Highlighting this weeks hottest jobs in the renewable industry.
- Planning & Environmental PM | Cornwall | Up to ￡28k - View Job
- Solar O&M Engineer | Cornwall | Up to ￡40k - View Job
- Planning & Admin Assistant | Cornwall | Up to ￡23,400 - View Job
- Solar Project Manager | Cornwall | Up to ￡50k - View Job
- Solar Electrical Installer | Cornwall | Up to ￡38k - View Job
- Senior Power Electronics Engineer | Oxfordshire | Up to ￡65k - View Job
- Head of EHS | Oxfordshire | Up to ￡80k - View Job
- EHS Business Partner | Oxfordshire | Up to ￡55k - View Job
For all the latest roles, updates and help with hiring specialist, cleantech talent check out Zero Global - Shaping the future #WithPurpose
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