Utility Week articles from February 2009

Utility Week archives from February 2009

waterWatchdog 'should stay independent'.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... A group of MPs has written to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) to request that the Consumer Council for Water (CCWater) remain an independent watchdog until at least after the current price review is finalised in...

ENERGYNorthwest is 'hot spot' for use of biomass.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Industry in northwest England could take advantage of a biomass supply chain that will provide two million tonnes of fuel a year to replace gas-fuelled process heat, a study has suggested. The research, carried out by Envirolink Northwest...

Features.(proposed spending on offshore windfarm )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Commission reveals planned energy spending The European Commission has announced that it wants [euro]3.5 billion of the general European Union economic recovery plan announced in November to be spent on energy investment. It has...

News.(Lord Truscott resigns from Landis+Gyr Inc.)(United Kingdom. Office of Water Services's price control)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Truscott resignation Lord Truscott, the former Labour minister at the centre of allegations about "cash for amendments", has resigned from Landis+Gyr, a multinational energy company that specialises in smart meters, which had hired him as...

ENVIRONMENTProjects hit as price of carbon collapses.(Features)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... by Janet Wood Plans to build new low-carbon generation are being hit by a collapse in the price of emissions allowances in the EU's Emissions Trading Scheme, industry figures have warned. The price of carbon emissions under the scheme,...

Calculated risks.(Features)
February 6, 2009... In the face of new threats, the government has compiled a national risk register . Paul Bell says utilities should do likewise on a corporate basis Last August the Cabinet Office published the first UK-wide National Risk Register, setting...

Features.(conferences)(Calendar)
February 6, 2009... THE 9 February Sir Michael Pitt gives evidence to the Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Utilities Intermediaries Association members forum and AGM, London 9-11 February European renewable energy policy...

gasGrid connections deadline extended.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Operators of gas distribution networks (GDNs) have been given an extra two weeks by Ofgem to submit revised methodologies for connection charging. The deadline is now 30 January. The regulator has been consulting on options for extending...

ENERGYDenmark approves new grid funding.(Features)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Denmark's parliament has provisionally approved a plan to invest [euro]3.5 billion to upgrade the country's electricity grid between 2009 and 2016. The upgrade is to be carried out in three phases, with the first involving investment in...

News.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Philip Fletcher, chairman of Ofwat, has admitted that the he was caught off-guard by the fierce opposition to changes in drainage charges. He said the change for United Utilities customers had been exacerbated by the way the company had treated...

energyUnder-used plant 'to escape EU law'.(Features)
February 6, 2009... A move has been made at the European Parliament to exclude some medium-sized power plants that generate less than 50MW from planned revised European Union pollution legislation. The parliament's environment committee has passed amendments...

energyCentrica chief fears for green investment.(News)
February 6, 2009... by Roger Milne Centrica chief executive Sam Laidlaw has become the latest senior UK energy figure to voice concern over the credit crunch and investment in new generation, particularly offshore wind. His comments came in an interview...

ENERGYEon to market fuel cell-based domestic CHP.(News)(combined heat and power)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... UK has joined Ceramic Fuel Cells (CFC) in a three-year programme to commercialise a micro-combined heat and power (microCHP) unit for domestic use in the UK. The project hardware is based on CFC's Gennx fuel cell. The partners said a...

Features.
February 6, 2009... French nuclear EDF's next nuclear reactor will be at Penly, near Dieppe, where two reactors are already in operation, the French government has announced. The reactor will be part-owned by GDF-Suez. Cash boost Gas Natural has...

Landing a fat profit on nuclear.(News)
February 6, 2009... Now here's an intriguing tale. It turns out that a Lancashire-based land development company is among the bidders for Nuclear Decommissioning Authority land now on the market as possible sites for new nuclear reactors. Nigel McGurk,...

News.
February 6, 2009... Hanging around: our pic shows a crack team from vegetation management specialists BTS Group. They are celebrating the fact that the company is moving in on the domestic market. It is already responsible for protecting over 40 per cent of the...

waterUsers 'will expect action on sewers'.(News)
February 6, 2009... The chairman of Ofwat has warned that customers will expect private sewers to be brought up to scratch quickly when they are transferred to water company ownership, and that this will increase the cost to bill payers. Giving evidence to...

ENERGY28pt headline in here like this.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Cold start to the week: engineers spent the beginning of the week reconnecting more than 1,000 households and businesses in Rothbury, Northumberland, that lost their gas supply on Monday after water got into the town's gas network. Specialist...

ENERGYScotland pins recovery hopes on green jobs.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Green industries will be essential to economic recovery in Scotland, John Swinney, cabinet secretary for finance and sustainable growth in the Scottish Government, said this week. He claimed that up to 16,000 jobs could be created in green...

environmentGrid biogas could help UK meet green target.(News)
February 6, 2009... by Janet Wood Nearly half of domestic heat demand could be met by biogas produced from waste streams and injected into the existing gas network, National Grid has suggested. The grid operator said that two-thirds of the UK's 2020 renewable...

pan-utility2010 debut for planning body.(News)
February 6, 2009... by Roger Milne The independent Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) should be ready to handle its first proposals in the first half of 2010, possibly by the end of April, the government has signalled. The Department for Communities...

United we stand.(Features)
February 6, 2009... A cross-sector initiative involving utilities, contractors and local authorities is trying to cut the amount of waste going to landfill, says Mervyn Jones The utility industry currently produces 4.8 million tonnes of trench arisings each...

ELECTRICITYRWE to put renewables output online.(News)
February 6, 2009... RWE's renewable energy company Innogy is to publish live data on the internet showing the design capacity of each power plant and the current output. Figures will be updated every minute. Fritz Vahrenholt, chairman of the board of directors...

ENERGY28pt headline in here like this.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Ratings row: Energy Saving Trust chairman Eddie Hyams has hit out at the European Commission over its plans to change the existing Europe-wide energy-efficiency labelling scheme for light bulbs and white goods. The Commission is proposing to...

There is more to energy than generating electricity.(Features)
February 6, 2009... This week National Grid has put forward new proposals for generating biogas. It could be fed into the natural gas network, and would replace nearly half the gas used to heat the country's homes. The company may be right about the potential...

Domestic disconnections fall.(Features)
February 6, 2009... Disconnection rates for domestic gas and electricity customers fell overall by 30 per cent during the third quarter of 2008 compared with the rate during the second quarter of the year, according to the latest figures released by Ofgem. ...

ENERGYWarm Front needs rethink, says NAO.(News)(national Audit Office)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Many customers receiving help from the government's Warm Homes scheme are not in fuel poverty, the national Audit Office (NAO) has declared in a report. Warm Front is a major plank of the government's policy of eliminating fuel poverty by 2010....

waterOfwat makes its policy on insets clear.(News)(Office of Water Services )(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Ofwat has clarified its policy on applications for inset appointments, before a consultation starts on revised guidelines for licence variations. Jerry Bryan, chief executive of inset appointee Albion Water, welcomed the clarification of...

energyRecalibration delays cost suppliers [pounds sterling]10m.(News)
February 6, 2009... NEWS IN BRIEF Photo: Anna Gowthorpe/PA Photos by Roger Milne During the last six months of 2008 three major energy suppliers wrote off more than [pounds sterling]10 million of domestic customer debt accrued because of delays...

Points of view.(Features)
February 6, 2009... The water industry will be in the public eye a great deal over the coming year when it will be the subject of two government reviews, one draft bill and a price review. As chief executive of Water UK, Pamela Taylor is the public face of the...

Ministers upbeat on energy spend.(Features)
February 6, 2009... Ministers remain upbeat on energy investment in spite of the effects of the credit crunch The beginning of the year has brought little cheer for the government. Depressing polls, wildcat strikes over foreign workers and gloomy economic...

energyPost-Ukraine strategy unveiled.(Features)
February 6, 2009... by Keith Nuttall The Czech presidency of the European Union (EU) has said it will redouble its efforts to push ahead with planned energy reforms and strengthen the EU's ability to withstand the recurrence of a crisis such as the recent...

ENERGYNpower expands services offer.(News)
February 6, 2009... Npower has added building services company SPI Group to its energy services business Npower Hometeam. SPI provides services to the social housing market and its commercial arm serves public buildings including schools. Npower said the...

News.
February 6, 2009... Communities secretary Hazel Blears has turned down a planning appeal by RWE Npower, which wants to redevelop a former power station site in south Derbyshire. She acted on the advice of a planning inspector. The scheme refused was on land...

ENERGYRWE invests in Luxembourg group.(Features)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... RWE has emerged as a leading strategic investor in the integrated gas and power group being created in Luxembourg. RWE will take a 19.8 per cent stake in the firm, Cegedel, formed by a merger of Luxembourg suppliers Cegedel and Soteg and...

Beyond repair?(Features)
February 6, 2009... WRc has devised a new, web-based system for assessing the risk of sewer service failure . John Wood and Joanne Hulance explain how it works We all own assets, ranging from mobile telephones to cars and homes. With any of these assets there...

Service industry?(Features)
February 6, 2009... Energy suppliers must do more than just ship units of energy - they must also offer services . It requires fundamental change, says Alaric Marsden The sustainability of the traditional utility business model - where value is driven by the...

electricityProbe starts into Sicilian power prices.(Features)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Italian energy regulator AEEG has started an enquiry into electricity prices on Sicily. An AEEG statement said that average hourly and daily power prices in the Sicily area market zone were much higher than on the mainland, and that "the...

Utilities are still a safe haven for investment.(Features)
February 6, 2009... Global economic recession, oil price volatility, increasing costs of funding and political pressure are the key challenges for European utilities in 2009. The dramatic shift in utilities' corporate strategies away from expansionary policies...

News.
February 6, 2009... Policy statements key to new arrangements Key to the new planning arrangements will be the preparation of a series of so-called National Policy Statements (NPS) that will be subject to parliamentary scrutiny. They will set out...

News.(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Economic crisis being used as 'cover' to cut jobs Steve Bloomfield, head of utilities at Unison, has expressed concern that Ofwat's 2009 price review will lead to job cuts across the water industry. Last week, Thames Water cut 300 jobs...

energyStrikers target energy sites.(News)
February 6, 2009... by Annabel Andrews Electricity generation and gas infrastructure were hit by striking contract workers as the focus of a dispute over foreign workers shifted to government policy. Power stations including Longannet, Cockenzie, Fiddlers...

ENERGYSuez cuts costs as revenue falls.(Features)(Suez Environnement )(Financial report)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... Suez Environnement has said it will cut capital expenditure in the short term and extend planned cost cuts in response to the impact of the economic turndown on its European profits. The business, Europe's second largest water and waste...

waterCompetition saves Scots firms [pounds sterling]4m.(News)(Brief article)
February 6, 2009... The competitive water market has saved Scottish businesses [pounds sterling]4 million, but two-thirds have yet to change their supply contract and the economic regulator estimates that a further [pounds sterling]5 million could be saved if they...

WaterYorkshire sets efficiency benchmark.(News)(Brief article)(Company rankings)
February 6, 2009... Yorkshire Water has been chosen as the benchmark company for Ofwat's relative efficiency assessment for operating expenditure in 2007/08. The most efficient company for water service was Portsmouth Water, but with just 664,100 customers it...

waterCatchment fixes not in firms' plans.(News)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... A lack of understanding and a culture of quick fixes is reducing the number of catchment management solutions put forward by companies, according to Ofwat and the Drinking Water Inspectorate (DWI). Speaking at a conference organised by...

Ticking the right boxes.(Features)
February 13, 2009... In an occasional series, customers tell Utility Week what they want from their utility suppliers . This week, Tricia Holly Davis talks to AstraZeneca As one of the world's largest pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca's energy and utility...

WATERSouthern fined for polluting newt habitat.(News)
February 13, 2009... Southern Water has been fined [pounds sterling]12,000 and ordered to pay costs of [pounds sterling]2,528 by Sevenoaks magistrates after pleading guilty to polluting a pond in Tunbridge Wells with sewage last April. Sewage escaped into...

News.(briefs)(Financial report)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Eon takes hit Eon group has revealed that it has taken a hit of [euro]3.3*billion as a result of write-downs for its US midwest market subsidiary and the revised valuation of the operations in Italy, Spain and France it acquired from...

Get set for the CRC.(Features)
February 13, 2009... The Carbon Reduction Commitment starts in 2010, but key questions remain for participants . Janet Wood investigates Half-hourly metered customers who used more than 6GWh in 2008 are included, as are all those using meter classes 5-8, daily...

ENERGYBrussels probes cable 'price fixing'.(Features)
February 13, 2009... European Commission officials have raided companies manufacturing high-voltage undersea cables, seeking evidence of anti-competitive behaviour. A Commission communique said it had "reason to believe that the companies may have violated EU...

ENERgyEuropean Parliament urges security clause.(Features)
February 13, 2009... by Keith Nuttall The European Parliament has called for a trilateral deal between the European Union, Ukraine and Russia that would "secure gas supply from Russia via Ukraine to the EU in the coming years". A comprehensive energy...

Frame of mind.(Features)(Industry overview)
February 13, 2009... Debajyoti Chakraborty and Rohit Banerji say it is time the gas industry followed the water sector with a common framework for investment The gas and water sectors operate and maintain huge networks of assets to serve their customers across...

ENERGYCommission launches new energy inquiry.(Features)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... by Janet Wood The European Commission is to launch a new probe into the European Union's energy market, this time sparked by consumer affairs commissioner Meglena Kuneva. Kuneva announced the probe as she launched the Commission's...

News.(The Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee )(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Power probe: Parliament's newest select committee has decided to hold an inquiry into the future of the UK's electricity networks. The Commons Energy and Climate Change Committee will start taking oral evidence in late spring/early summer....

GASEWE ready to pass on VNG takeover.(Features)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... German regional supplier EWE is ready to abandon its hostile takeover of gas importer VNG and sell its 48 per cent stake in the east German firm to EnBW. The [euro]1.2 billion deal would make EDF holding EnBW a leading gas market player. ...

Features.
February 13, 2009... INA to be unbundled MOL and the Croatian government have agreed to unbundle incumbent energy group INA's gas trading division. The new firm, which inherits all INA's supply contracts, will be sold to state-run gas pipeline company...

Don't drink the snow, it's dirty.(News)
February 13, 2009... Just for the record - and in the interests of public safety and hygiene - Disconnector is pleased to contribute to the debate swirling around that important topical question: can we eat or drink snow? Thanks are due to The Independent's hacks...

News.(Technocover supplied doors to Southern Water )(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Bolt hole: does this picture show the water industry's until now secret hidey hole in case the row over drainage charges gets really nasty? Just kidding. Southern Water has replaced doors to hillside tunnels leading to a disused water borehole...

GASDutch/German alliance eyes RWE gas grid.(Features)(Gasunie)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Netherlands firm Gasunie and a consortium of German regional and municipal suppliers in North Rhine-Westphalia are preparing a joint bid for RWE's gas grid. A Gasunie spokesman has confirmed that talks are under way between the potential...

ELECTRICITYGreen suppliers fall out over guidelines.(News)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... by Janet Wood New guidelines on green energy tariffs for small businesses and domestic users, published by regulator Ofgem, have prompted a war of words between green energy suppliers. Juliet Davenport, chief executive of Good Energy,...

ELECTRICITYItaly to adjust balancing by year end.(Features)(Autorita per l'energia elettrica e il gas)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Italian energy regulator AEEG expects to finalise a new power market balancing system by the end of 2009. A consultation document will appear in the next few weeks. A decree on incentive systems designed to reward investments for the...

More interventionist government on the way.(Features)
February 13, 2009... The next general election is probably still more than 15 months away, but the Conservatives, who look increasingly like the next winners at the hustings, are beginning to firm up policies. What were previously just aspirations now have delivery...

Warm Front changes needed.(Features)
February 13, 2009... A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) has voiced concern about some aspects of the government's main initiative for reducing fuel poverty, Warm Front. The independent spending watchdog highlighted a number of issues and said Warm...

ENERGYNational Grid workers ban overtime.(News)
February 13, 2009... Electricity control room staff at National Grid have started an overtime ban this week as part of a dispute over discrepancies between the overtime pay of the company's gas and electricity control room staff working shifts. National Grid...

ELECTRICITYSlowdown hits renewables deals.(News)
February 13, 2009... Acquisitions in the renewables sector were constrained in the second half of last year by the economic downturn, but "there is a significant build-up of investment and pension fund money seeking to invest in the sector", according to Renewables...

waterNorthumbrian sees revenue fall by [pounds sterling]4m.(News)(Northumbrian Water Group PLC)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... The economic downturn continued to hit the water industry this week as Northumbrian Water Group said its revenue for the second half of 2008 was down 1*per cent, [pounds sterling]4 million, compared to the first half of the year. ...

ELECTRICITYNuclear on schedule, says de Rivaz.(News)
February 13, 2009... EDF Energy wants to begin work on its first UK nuclear reactor, at Hinkley Point in January 2013, chief executive Vincent de Rivaz told British Energy customers at the combined company's first Talk Energy forum. The company has set that...

waterOfwat audits will verify data accuracy.(News)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Ofwat has moved to improve data quality in company submissions by introducing audit visits as part of the cost base setting process. Duncan Michie, director of energy, utilities and infrastructure for PricewaterhouseCoopers, told Utility...

News.
February 13, 2009... In recession, job cuts may not be enough . A focus on 12 "people cost areas" will help utilities survive, say Michael Rendell and Mark Hughes Survival of the quickest After a long period of growth, the current economic climate is...

waterBills must fund resilience, says Pitt.(News)(Michael Pitt)
February 13, 2009... The government's flooding adviser, Michael Pitt, told MPs this week that the power to boost spending on critical infrastructure resilience was in the hands of Ofwat and Ofgem. Talking to the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee,...

Access all areas.(Features)
February 13, 2009... Bruce Fowler and Sarah Youren look at how recent and proposed legislative changes will affect utilities' access to land for infrastructure projects Accessing land to deliver a major utility scheme inevitably involves navigating your way...

Tories play energy security card.(Features)
February 13, 2009... The role of regulators comes under increasing scrutiny - they may even have to consider national security MPs made it clear last week that they expect swift action on the issue of drainage charges, which has generated a huge amount of...

ENERGYTwo of the big six promise price cuts.(News)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Consumer Focus said it was disappointed that customers of Scottish and Southern Energy (SSE) would have to wait until the end of next month before their bills fall. SSE was the second of the big six energy suppliers to commit to cutting...

ENErGYHome heat and energy savings plan tabled.(News)
February 13, 2009... by Roger Milne The government was due to launch an ambitious heat and energy saving strategy this week, which would give local authorities a significant role in improving the energy efficiency of homes and involve suppliers and generators...

waterWater UK calls for plumber recognition.(News)
February 13, 2009... Industry body Water UK has called for a national accreditation scheme for plumbers, to stem customer confusion, stop misconnections and help with water efficiency. Deputy chief executive Phill Mills said the current system of accreditation...

ELECTRICITYSSE hit by flue gas delays and turbine failure.(News)
February 13, 2009... Output at Scottish and Southern Energy's (SSE's) coal-fired power stations halved during par of 2008 because it had to operate under strict limits while waiting for flue gas desulphurisation to be commissioned, the company reported in a trading...

ELECTRICITYNew plant plans fail to allay supply fears.(News)
February 13, 2009... by Janet Wood Three new power stations totalling 4GW of generation have gained Section 36 planning consent. However, fears remain about the scale of investment required in new generation and especially capacity for peaking and balancing...

News.
February 13, 2009... Slugging it out: manufacturers are due next month to publish new guidelines on the use of slug pellets. Metaldehyde from slug pellet run-off has been causing concern for water companies after new detection methods discovered it in raw water...

Smart meters can't come soon enough.(Features)
February 13, 2009... Another week, another survey showing energy companies are not matching up to the high standards of customer service set by department stores, supermarkets and the like - or so it seems. While work can always be done to improve customer...

ELECTRICITYSweden reopens door for nuclear.(Features)
February 13, 2009... Sweden's centre-right government has opened the door to the construction of new nuclear reactors. Nuclear power accounted for almost 50 per cent of Sweden's generation in 2008. Applications can be made to build new units on the site of...

waterThames Water delays WRMP response.(News)
February 13, 2009... Thames Water has blamed "unforseen factors" for a further delay in publishing its response to the public consultation on its draft water resource management plan. All water companies were given a 13 week extension until 4*February for...

ELECTRICITYAliens found innocent over turbine failure.(News)
February 13, 2009... Mechanical failure was the cause of the UK's most high-profile turbine failure so far, according to owner Ecotricity. The failure, of an Enercon turbine at Ecotricity's Conisholme windfarm, hit the headlines when the Sun newspaper led...

ENVIRONMENTVattenfall to invest [euro]700m in biomass.(Features)(Brief article)
February 13, 2009... Vattenfall plans to re-engineer its coal-fired power plants in Denmark with the aim of replacing 730,000 tonnes of coal annually with biomass. The long-term plan will reduce annual carbon dioxide emissions by 1.5 million tonnes and fits...