The UK is continuing to keep renewable energy investors at arms length by backing shale gas at the expense of developing biomass. That is the verdict of analysts at consultancy Ernst & Young (EY), who warn that the British government “is now playing catch-up with investors who are not short of opportunities in other countries.” EY also highlights that dedicated biomass power plants were conspicuously absent from the strike price package and notes that the government’s “controversial move toward shale gas appears to be at the expense of biomass power, which arguably still has a critical role to play in expanding the UK’s low carbon base-load power.” And EY also concludes that the government’s failure to set a 2030 decarbonisation target has “undermined confidence in its commitment to renewable energy.” “The government must come up with a credible and consistent energy plan that offers in a timely manner the clarity and information required to make long-term investment decisions.” He warned that “the government is now playing catch-up with investors who are not short of opportunities in other countries. This is no time for complacency, as important pieces of the jigsaw are still missing if we want to produce an attractive framework.” Warren was speaking as EY today released its Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Indices (RECAI), which does what it says on the tin – ranks countries on how attractive they are to investors in terms of their political and regulatory landscape. The US and China retain the number one and two slots respectively, and Germany remains in third place, despite a bleak outlook for the renewables market. EY states that despite strong public support for a green economy, rising political tensions ahead of next month’s election “are paralysing investment in the sector.” “Calls to reform the feed-in tariff scheme ignore the relatively small impact of new renewable plants on the consumer surcharge, while rhetoric about the ‘affordability’ of Germany’s energy supply has not translated into policy statements.” Australia drops from fourth place to sixth – replaced by the UK – because of Prime Minister Kevin Rudd’s plans to scrap the country’s fixed carbon price a year ahead of previous proposals – a move EY states “would cost A$3.8 billion (€2.5 billion) and take the price of carbon from A$25 (€17) to just A$6 (€4), potentially delaying investments.” The RECAI also states that last year, €9.6 billion of renewable energy assets were sold by major utilities, representing a third of total merger and acquisition activity globally in 2012, with European utilities accounting for 87 percent – or €8.2 billion – of this divestment value.  

  A Meter Operator agreement or (MOP contract) is a legal requirement for all half hourly electricity supplied meters. This contract covers the supply of the meter, maintenance and the necessary telecommunications for sending your consumption data to your energy supplier. As part of the UK de-regulated energy market you now have the right to appoint your own meter operator as apposed to letting your current energy supplier appoint there preferred supplier as the cost is often hidden in a suppliers standing charge. The subject of metering is often confusing for customers since privatisation, particularly since the meter operator contract is no longer part of the supply agreement. Many customers are unaware of required legislation such as the statutory requirement that sites with a maximum demand in excess of 100kW should have half-hourly metering installed as standard, and are unsure of who to contact. The process of managing the relationship between the Supplier, Meter Operator and Local Distributor is often a minefield, and is an area where many customers choose to outsource. If you are unsure if you have a MOP agreement in place for your half hourly site please call Samantha Jones on 0161 237 3333.

  August has been a tremendous record breaking month for D-ENERGi. As we have grown our market share in various sectors. This is all down to the determination, and professionalism  of our account managers. As an Investors in People company we pride ourselves on rewarding our staff for their hard work and creating a real sense of team work and pride in our achievements as a business. So  to celebrate our advancements the New Business Team we went on a team building pizza making party at Pizza Express! All took part in a Calzone making competition, followed by creating their own pizzas to take home and enjoy. Senior account manager said of the experience “It’s great fun to be rewarded for saving our customers dough by making pizza dough!”, the winner of the Calzone Competition stated “Bellissimo!”

  Prominent hoteliers, World-renowned chefs, hospitality gurus and key industry media all descended within London on Monday to celebrate the Automobile Assocation’s (AA) 14th annual hospitality awards. Hosted by Chanel 4 presenter Kirishnan Guru-Murthy. 22 UK establishments were awarded for excellence and success within their chosen categories. D-ENERGi Director Zico Ahmed was on hand to give out the award for AA Group Hotel Of The Year which went to the Macdonald Hotel & Resorts, which is one of UK’s largest privately-owned hotel group. A spokesman for D-ENERGi stated “Our congratulations go to Chief Executive David Guile and the rest of his team at Macdonald Hotels and Resorts, obtaining this award is af fantastic achievement for the hotel group. The D-ENERG team had an excellent evening and is a event which is keenly look forward too by D-ENERGi staff each year” To find out more please visit http://www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/