Could Britain scrap offshore wind power?

Rising energy bills or putting increasing pressure on operators and government s to cut power prices. there is increasing talk that socalled eco friendly offshore power is too expensive for both both customers and taxpayers. Could we see many planned offshore wind projects never built as european governmenst switch to gas and more coal power stations as the politically and economically expediant thing to do.

Offshore wind is one of the most talked-about forms of renewable energy. No doubt when the European Commission will publish its Energy Roadmap 2050 in December, it will be crucial in reaching the EU's renewable energy and climate targets. Yet in practice not too many offshore wind parks have been built as yet. At the end of 2010, barely 3,000 MW of offshore wind capacity had been installed in Europe, mostly in the UK and Denmark, according to figures from the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).

 Countries like Spain (number two in onshore wind power), Portugal, France, Greece and Italy have not built a single offshore wind turbine yet. Germany (number one in onshore wind) has built just 92 MW. This picture, however, is set to change drastically. Many European countries have highly ambitious expansion plans in offshore wind. Germany wants to scale up its capacity to 8,000 MW, France to 4,000 MW, the UK to 13,000 or maybe even 20,000 or 25,000 MW. Countries like Denmark, Ireland, Sweden and Belgium also have ambitious plans.

In all, according to EWEA, by 2020 some 40,000 MW of offshore wind power capacity will have been built in Europe. That's the equivalent in capacity of some 40 coal-fired power stations.

That is, of course, if all plans go through, which is still an "if". The first country to have scrapped its offshore wind power plans is, a bit ironically, Holland, the country of windmills. The reason: the high costs. So far the Dutch are the exception, but in the UK too a political discussion has started. The UK government has now set up a panel that will investigate how the costs of offshore wind farms can be brought down. To read more http://www.europeanenergyreview.eu/site/pagina.php?id=3299

Poland plans to veto EU proposals to apply environmental legislation to shale gas.

Nicholas Newman http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Freelance-Journalist.html

EU Commissioner has declared that it is investigating how the European Commission can apply its strict Environmental regime to Europe’s infant shale gas industry. The EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger seeks to create a common set of European wide standards to regulate the safety and environmental issues that face policy makers and regulators concerned with the development of shale gas. Such a common set of standards would the Commissioner hope promote a high level of environmental security, safety and energy independence.

Such ambitions have caused serious concern to the Polish government, with September 30, Maciej Olex-Szczytowski, a special adviser on economics and business to Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said the country would veto any new EU legislation. Poland is concerned that such proposals would handicap its ambitions to  develope the country’s estimated 5.3 trillion cubic metres of shale gas.EU Energy Commissioner Guenther Oettinger has announced that his proposals should be ready for consideration by member states in Spring 2012.

 However, despite Poland’s concerns many of Europe’s investors in shale gas E&P would welcome the Commission’s moves to create a European common set of standards to apply to the industry, rather than the rather chaotic situation where every member state has its own set of regulations. http://www.oxfordprospect.co.uk/Energy-Features.html