The EU has been urged to set more ambitious targets for renewables in meeting Europe’s future energy needs. Speaking at a recent conference in the European Parliament, Mihai Paun, of the Romanian Energy Centre, said he believes a 100 per cent target is possible by the year 2030. At present, the EU has set a…
An international expert has defended the upcoming launch of the world’s first ever floating nuclear power station. Despite attracting criticism from some green activists, the massive vessel, called “Akademik Lomonosov”, is due to be launched on 23 August. Oscar Voss, of the University of Aberdeen in Scotland, said that any perceived risks involved may be…
In its yearly opinion on the State of the Energy Union, the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has taken stock of the progress made so far and calls on the European Commission to focus more on social aspects. It says, “The Energy Union is not a reality yet. It may be a reality in…
The European Parliament was the venue last week for a roundtable discussion highlighting the potential health risks of mineral wool, or Man-made Vitreous Fibres (MMVF) as it is also known. Mineral wool is a type of thermal insulation made from rocks and minerals. After asbestos was banned in most countries in the 1990s, the de facto replacement…
The most urgent issue in EU-Ukraine relations today is the protection of Ukraine’s nuclear power industry from a conspiracy of the oligarchs, writes James Wilson. Energoatom has been starved of a fair share of market revenues for years by the unfair Rotterdam Plus formula to calculate tariff shares for producers, ostensibly to take account of…
EU ministers meeting at an Energy Council and a General Affairs Council this week will discuss respectively the priorities for the future energy infrastructure and for the future EU Cohesion Policy funding for climate action in the regions. According to the current state of play of negotiations, EU Member States, as they plan to continue investments…
Holtec, Energoatom and SSTC have entered into a Trilateral Consortium Partnership to advance the SMR-160 nuclear reactor for deployment across Ukraine. Mitsubishi Electric has also committed to stage two of the SMR-160 Alliance with Holtec with a large resource commitment. Earlier this week in New Jersey Ukraine’s national nuclear operator Energoatom, the Ukrainian State Scientific…
The UK Government must act on today’s report by parliament’s Environmental Audit Committee about UK Export Finance, which calls for an end to UK taxpayer support for overseas fossil fuel projects by 2021. UK Export Finance (UKEF), the UK’s export credit agency, underwrites loans and insurance for export deals as part of efforts to help…
Ukraine’s leader is now the overwhelmingly popular comedian Volodymyr Zelenskiy, who was in Brussels today (4th June) for his first official visit. His election winning strategy was built on opposition to the oligarchs and criticising Ukraine’s dependence on the West. Zelenskiy began his presidency by dissolving the Parliament and calling for snap elections. If these…
It’s a sight that is causing increasing concern across the globe. The melting icecap in the Arctic is widely seen as a serious threat to civilisation as we know it. A recent study suggests that if the current trends are not changed, the sea level rise would exceed 2 metres leading to the loss of…
