Lots of lovely stories about lots of lovely reactors
Posted: 9th February 2025
Nuclear Sites
More nuclear power plants will be approved across England and Wales as the Prime Minister slashes red tape to get Britain building – as part of his Plan for Change. Reforms to planning rules will clear a path for smaller, and easier to build nuclear reactors – known as Small Modular Reactors –to be built for the first time ever in the UK. This will create thousands of new highly skilled jobs while delivering clean, secure and more affordable energy for working people. This is the latest refusal to accept the status quo, with the government ripping up archaic rules and saying not to the NIMBYs, to prioritise growth. It comes after recent changes to planning laws, the scrapping of the 3-strike rule for judicial reviews on infrastructure projects, and application of common-sense to environmental rules. Today’s plan will shake up the planning rules to make it easier to build nuclear across the country – delivering jobs, cheaper bills in the long term, and more money in people’s back pockets. This will be achieved by: Including mini-nuclear power stations in planning rules for the first time – so firms can start building them in the places that need them. Scrapping the set list of 8-sites – which meant nuclear sites could be built anywhere across England and Wales. Removing the expiry date on nuclear planning rules – so projects don’t get timed out and industry can plan for the long term. Setting up a Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce – that will spearhead improvements to the regulations to help more companies build here. This will report directly to the PM. Alistair Black, Senior Director, UK at X-energy said: Opening up new siting opportunities for a fleet of advanced reactors will help unlock tens of billions of pounds of investment and growth across the country, bringing clean secure electricity and heat for industry. We welcome this step today, and the intent to streamline assessment processes whilst ensuring robust regulatory standards continue to be met. We look forward to reviewing this in detail and responding to the consultation.
DESNZ 6th Feb 2025
The government has announced plans to make it easier to build mini nuclear power stations in England and Wales, as part of its efforts to boost UK economic growth. It said it will reform the “archaic” planning rules which ministers believe have held Britain back in the global race for clean, secure and affordable energy. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said the country had been “let down and left behind” because it had not built a nuclear power station in “decades” – and the plans will create thousands of highly skilled jobs. Unions and business groups welcomed the move, but environmentalists criticised the government, saying it had “swallowed nuclear industry spin whole”. Nuclear power provides around 15% of the UK’s electricity but many of the country’s ageing reactors are due to be decommissioned over the next decade. Mini nuclear power stations – or small modular reactors (SMRs) – are smaller and cheaper than traditional nuclear power plants, and produce much less power. The plans announced on Thursday will mark the first time SMRs will be included in planning rules. A list of the only places a nuclear reactor could be built will also be scrapped. The list was made up of just eight sites. Sir Keir said Britain’s energy security had been “held hostage” by Russian President Vladimir Putin for “too long”, which has resulted in prices “skyrocketing at his whims”. Doug Parr, policy director of Greenpeace UK, claimed the government had not applied “so much as a pinch of critical scrutiny or asking for a sprinkling of evidence”. “The Labour government has swallowed [the] nuclear industry spin whole,” he said, adding: “They present as fact things which are merely optimistic conjecture on small nuclear reactor cost, speed of delivery and safety.”
BBC 6th Feb 2025
Edie 6th Feb 2025
Sir Keir Starmer will on Thursday announce changes to the planning system designed to speed up the delivery of new nuclear power stations in England and Wales. The British prime minister will claim that the planning reforms will “clear a path” for the introduction of small modular reactors, which are faster to build than existing larger reactors. The shake-up will involve the scrapping of a list of eight favoured sites for larger nuclear schemes, giving developers more flexibility in where they can build. Ministers will remove the expiry date on nuclear planning rules so projects no longer get “timed out”. They will also announce plans to set up a new Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce to oversee improvements to regulations to help more companies build nuclear projects. Meanwhile plans by EDF and the British government to build a second project in Suffolk at Sizewell are also behind schedule as they try to persuade institutional investors to commit billions of pounds of private funding. The government has so far equivocated over whether or not they want a third project to be built at Wylfa in Anglesey, despite the last Tory government purchasing the site from Japanese developer Hitachi early last year.
FT 6th Feb 2025
Keir Starmer will unveil plans for a historic expansion in nuclear power across England and Wales, pledging to use Labour’s large majority to make new sites across the country available for new power stations. The announcement follows the prime minister’s call for tech companies to work alongside the government to build small modular reactors (SMRs) to power energy intensive AI datacentres across Britain. Speaking on Wednesday, Starmer vowed to “push past nimbyism” and warned his new rural and suburban MPs that he would “break through” if there was resistance and use his party’s big majority to ensure there could be no dissent. The prime minister said that he anticipated smaller reactors could be built by 2032 and could become commonplace across Britain. He hinted the government was keen to offer consumers lower bills if they lived close to new obtrusive nuclear construction. As well as a signal to business, Labour strategists also see the drive for nuclear as a useful political dividing line on growth – with the Greens, Liberal Democrats and the SNP all opposed to nuclear. “Instead of rolling up our sleeves and unlocking the potential of nuclear power, Britain has endured a decade of delay under successive Tory governments,” a government source said. “Even now, the SNP flat-out refuse to support it. As for the Greens – they are against both nuclear and pylons that carry renewable energy.” While the announcement was welcomed by key industry figures, Greenpeace said it was “nuclear industry spin … given that not a single one has been built, and with the nuclear industry’s record of being overtime and over-budget unmatched by any other sector. “And as for the unsolved problem of nuclear waste management, government don’t see the need to mention it at all.”
Guardian 6th Feb 2025
Sir Keir Starmer will vow to “push past the Nimbyism” as he lifts restrictions on where nuclear power plants can be built. The Prime Minister hopes the rewriting of planning rules will see approval for a wave of “mini” nuclear plants, with the first up and running in 2032. It is part of a wider drive from Sir Keir to overrule the “blockers” and ensure more homes, pylons, data centres and wind turbines are built in Britain. The push against planning red tape is fast emerging as a central plank of his premiership. There has not been a new nuclear power station built in the UK since 1995, and under current rules, the plants can only be built in eight designated areas of England and Wales. This restriction will now be lifted.
Telegraph 6th Feb 2025
Times 5th Feb 2025
The government has announced plans to make it easier to build nuclear power stations in England and Wales, as part of its efforts to boost UK economic growth.
ITV 6th Feb 2025
City AM 6th Feb 2025
Yorkshire Post 6th Feb 2025
Daily Mail 6th Feb 2025
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-14365491/Labour-minister-red-tape-NIMBYs-nuclear-power.html
Business Green 6th Feb 2025
In response to the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announcing their plans to ‘rip up rules to fire-up nuclear power’, Policy Director for Greenpeace UK, Dr Doug Parr, said: “The Labour government has swallowed nuclear industry spin whole, seemingly without applying so much as a pinch of critical scrutiny or asking for a sprinkling of evidence. They present as fact things which are merely optimistic conjecture on small nuclear reactor cost, speed of delivery and safety. Which is courageous – or stupid – given that not a single one has been built, and with the nuclear industry’s record of being overtime and over budget unmatched by any other sector. And as for the unsolved problem of nuclear waste management, government don’t see the need to mention it at all. Meanwhile there’s a renewables revolution taking place across the planet using established technology that is continually coming down in price, and can already deliver secure energy at lower cost than fossil fuels.”
Greenpeace 6th Feb 2025
Commenting on the announcement that the Prime Minister has updated planning rules for nuclear sites and created a Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce. Chris Curtis MP, Co-Chair of Labour Growth Group said: “Under the Tories the UK became one of the most expensive countries in the world to build nuclear power in, driving up bills and putting our energy security at the mercy of Putin. That’s why the Labour Growth Group has been clear that removing the barriers to new nuclear should be an immediate priority for the Government. The Prime Minister’s bold and decisive action today will have a direct impact on both unleashing the potential of Small Modular Reactor (SMR) technology and supporting the delivery of new Gigawatt nuclear power plants. The Nuclear Regulatory Taskforce should rapidly examine the requirement for Regulatory Justification on each new SMR built, a duplicative process which could damage our chance to lead globally in this technology. It should also look quickly at encouraging the regulator to recognise the safety of Gigawatt reactor designs that have been approved by partner countries such as France and South Korea, where they are being built safely but far more quickly and cost effectively.”
Labour Growth Group 6th Feb 2025
Nuclear reactors are coming to countryside near you – but could cut your bills. Sir Keir Starmer warned his MPs not to stand in the way of new mini reactors as he pushes for growth.
iNews 6th Feb 2025
New Nuclear
There is talk of a nuclear energy ‘revival’ to help cope with rising electricity demand, but do the costs and – crucially – the timescales required for new nuclear plant building add up to a fix for reducing carbon emissions by 2030? Not compared to cheaper and quicker-to-build renewables, writes Dr Paul Dorfman, Chair of the Nuclear Consulting Group.
Energy Institute 5th Feb 2025
Nuclear Taxonomy
NFLAs convinced new government taxonomy will greenwash nuclear. Treasury officials and ministers are looking to officially rebrand nuclear power as ‘green energy’ in their latest taxonomy plan; a move the NFLAs will continue to expose and oppose. Mirroring moves first made by the European Commission, and mooted by the previous Conservative Government, a consultation has now concluded on whether Ministers should establish a new ‘UK Green Taxonomy’ which is described as a ‘useful tool’ in the UK’s ambition ‘to be the world leader in sustainable finance’. The consultation document describes a taxonomy as ‘a classification tool which provides its users with a common framework to define which economic activities support climate, environmental or wider sustainability objectives’. In essence, it is a mechanism to judge whether an investment is deemed to be ‘green’; if in the case of energy, the technology is judged ‘green’ financial bodies will be better able to justify investing in it to their share- or bondholders. It would be easy to miss the oblique reference buried in the document where it states that ‘the government proposes that nuclear energy will be classified as green in any future UK Green Taxonomy’. This proposal will be the subject of a further consultation.
NFLA 6th Feb 2025
Wylfa
Wylfa B hopes as UK Government vows to slash nuclear red tape and build more plants. UK Government is pledging to create thousands of highly skilled jobs by reforming planning rules to make it easier to build new nuclear reactors. Anglesey has twice seen proposals for a Wylfa B plant scuppered in recent years due to investors withdrawing from the schemes. Despite strong campaigning from the previous Ynys Mon MP Virginia Crosbie and local backing for a new nuclear plant there is still no new developer in place for the site, which was bought by the last UK Government. Now Prime Minister Kier Starmer has announced that more nuclear power plants will be approved across England and Wales as red tape will be “slashed”.
Daily Post 6th Feb 2025
Sizewell
The Sizewell C nuclear power plant project in the UK is progressing as planned, without delays or cost overruns. Project leaders presented an initial progress report to parliamentarians, highlighting significant financial and industrial advancements. According to an assessment commissioned by HSBC Bank and conducted by consultancy firm Enco, Sizewell C is one of the best-prepared nuclear projects in modern history. The independent study highlights rigorous project management, which minimizes the risks of cost overruns and delays, unlike other similar projects that have faced significant setbacks.
Energy News 4th Feb 2025
Together Against Sizewell C (TASC) have written the attached letter to Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Darren Jones, urging government to cancel Sizewell C, saying TASC are “pleased to acknowledge your recent statement to Parliament affirming that you will ”undertake a zero-based review of every pound of public expenditure” as this will enable HM Treasury to carry out a full appraisal of the billions of public funds that the government are sleepwalking into committing to the Sizewell C project” TASC claim “Sizewell C is a project progressing by stealth, spending money aggressively and at pace, with long lead items being ordered, acting, with taxpayer money, as if a final investment decision has already happened, even though without full financial backing Sizewell C will not be built. There has been no regard to the environmental cost if Sizewell C is not completed.”
Essex TV 5th Feb 2025
Unite, the UK’s leading trade union representing workers in construction, engineering and energy, welcomes the government’s announcement on increasing nuclear power and building new nuclear power stations. A properly funded nuclear expansion programme will ensure energy resilience, drive forward industrial growth, and provide high-quality employment opportunities across the country. Unite has made it clear to government that the nuclear programme must also include the complete go ahead for Sizewell C and that it swiftly followed by other large scale nuclear power plans as well.
Unite 6th Feb 2025
Hinkley
TUNNELLERS contracted to work on the Hinkley Point C nuclear project have been warned they will be “assumed as partaking in unlawful industrial action” over a tax issue dispute. More than 100 workers contracted by TG Tunnelling (TGT) are said to be affected by the obligations stipulated by Balfour Beatty – the company leading the discussions to resolve the dispute for workers as part of their “continued loyal service.”
Burnham & Highbridge Weekly News 5th Feb 2025
GDA
As the UK government takes forward its plans for a low carbon future, the regulators of the nuclear industry, the Environment Agency, Office for Nuclear Regulation and Natural Resources Wales are currently assessing three new nuclear reactor designs. Teams of nuclear regulators and specialists at the Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales and the Office for Nuclear Regulation are working together, scrutinising Rolls-Royce’s SMR, Holtec’s SMR 300 and GE-Hitachi’s BWRX-300 small modular reactor designs. Our enabling and innovative Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process also allows anyone to get involved by asking questions about the designs through the GDA comments process. In this blog Mike Webley and Andrew Pynn share insights from a recent ‘joint regulators’ trip to the United States, highlighting that assessment of nuclear reactor designs isn’t just a desk-based exercise. Nuclear power is likely to play a key role in decarbonisation and the Environment Agency is central to this. We want nuclear power to contribute to the government’s strategy in a way that embeds sustainability principles, considers the whole lifecycle of the power station, is designed to be decommissioned and protects people and the environment. The GDA process enables the UK’s nuclear regulators to assess new nuclear power station designs at an early stage of the regulatory process and crucially it provides an opportunity for us to feed back our views to the design companies. It is viewed as a world-leading process to provide reactor designers with early regulatory scrutiny. Our interaction with designers through GDA helps to support growth and fulfils one of our duties; to support sustainable development. GDA can be carried out at a fundamental assessment level or at a detailed assessment level.
Environment Agency 5th Feb 2025
Last Energy
Opponents of mini nuclear power station question lacklustre consultation. Greens oppose Llynfi power station plans; say Last Energy aren’t doing enough to seek local views. Although we’re still a long way away from anything official – planning-wise – groups are beginning to organise against a proposed 80MW modular “mini” nuclear power station in the Llynfi Valley. The proposal by American start-up, Last Energy, arrived out of the blue in October 2024 and has certainly generated lots of interest, both in favour and against. In the last few days, the Bridgend branch of the Green Party issued a statement opposing the power station. The Greens have questioned the need for a nuclear power plant, the potential safety and waste risks and the untested technology proposed at the site.
Oggy Bloggy 5th Feb 2025
Dounreay
Painters are wanted for a job worth up to £500,000 at the Dounreay nuclear power site’s “golf ball”. Also known as the “dome” and the “sphere”, the 41m (135ft) diameter structure contained the world’s first fast breeder nuclear reactor. Nuclear Restoration Services (NRS), the company leading the decommissioning of Dounreay, has sought specialist contractors to paint easy to reach parts of the sphere that have become rusty. The last time the entire dome was painted was about 25 years ago, with a decision taken around 2011 not to repeat this work due to cost and the structure being earmarked for demolition. The reactor was shut down in 1977. There was a plan to possibly keep the golf ball as a landmark to recall the local area’s role in the development of nuclear power, but the idea was later scrapped. It was decided to stop repainting the entire structure every 10 years due to cost. The site’s operator at the time, DSRL, said the steel was deemed thick enough to last as a protection until the reactor inside was dismantled.
BBC 5th Feb 2025
Nuclear Waste
Four Committee on Radioactive Waste Management (CoRWM) members travelled to Andalucia to visit the El Cabril low and intermediate level nuclear waste disposal facility. The true extent of the 29 October floods on the Spanish regions of Valencia and Andalucia did not become immediately apparent, but the flood waters caused the death of over 230 people and was one of the deadliest natural disasters in Spanish history. On what became one of the most devastating weeks in history for Valencia and Andalucia, 4 CoRWM members travelled to Andalucia to visit the El Cabril low and intermediate level nuclear waste disposal facility. These sobering statistics added a pertinence to our visit. Spain is currently decommissioning all their nuclear energy plants in the wake of a decision to discontinue nuclear energy production. Wastes described as very low, low and intermediate level wastes, in the Spanish categorisation of radioactive waste as described on the ENRESA website, can be disposed of at El Cabril. These wastes are similar to low and intermediate level wastes in the UK, but high-level wastes and some special wastes will need to be disposed of in a geological facility. Therefore, the process of designing and delivering a geological disposal facility is now starting in Spain.
CoRWM 6th Feb 2025
Climate Policy
The UK Government has relaunched the Net Zero Council, aimed at accelerating the country’s clean energy transition and fostering economic growth by bringing together leaders from the public and private sectors in a collaborative coalition. The Net Zero Council was originally launched by the Tory-led UK Government in 2023, under the leadership of Energy Minister Graham Stuart. The new council will be co-chaired by Energy and Net-Zero Secretary Ed Miliband and the Co-operative Group’s chief executive Shirine Khoury-Haq. Following its relaunch, the Council will focus on three primary functions: providing expert advice on government strategies for achieving net-zero, driving decarbonisation across high-emitting sectors and engaging with the wider business community to promote climate leadership.
Edie 5th Feb 2025
DESNZ 5th Feb 2025
Fukushima
The operator of Japan’s crippled Fukushima nuclear plant said Wednesday it will start dismantling treated water tanks next week to clear space needed to store nuclear fuel debris to be extracted from the reactors. The step is a milestone of a sort as Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO) moves ahead with a decades-long project to dismantle the entire plant in northern Japan, which went into meltdown after it was hit by a catastrophic tsunami in 2011.
Daily Mail 5th Feb 2025
Iran
Donald Trump has said he wants a “verified nuclear peace agreement” with Iran and denied he wanted to blow Iran to smithereens, describing such reports as “greatly exaggerated”. But he said it was essential that Iran did not have a nuclear weapon, adding “we should start working on it immediately”. His remarks on his social media site, Truth Social represent the clearest sign that Trump is willing to hold talks with Iran to try to replace the nuclear deal signed in 2015, but from which Trump pulled the US out in 2018.
Guardian 5th Feb 2025
Belgium
The Belgian government wants to extend the lives of its five nuclear reactors and start building their replacements, repealing a 2003 law banning new nuclear construction, the Belga news agency reports. But the company that owns the reactors – France’s Engie – is not interested. The country is governed by a five-party coalition that formed in January after seven months of negotiations. It’s led by prime minister Bart De Wever.
Global Construction Review 5th Feb 2025
Renewables & Storage
A report by trade association Renewable UK has made a case for reforming the planning system and financial support mechanisms to encourage more battery projects to co-locate with offshore wind. Currently, just 3MW of operational battery storage is co-located with offshore wind in UK waters. Flexibility in the form of battery energy storage and green hydrogen could prevent wind curtailment, which sees the National Energy System Operator (NESO) pay wind plants to turn off their generation when too much electricity is available to the grid. According to Renewable UK, co-located business models will help use offshore wind generation more efficiently, helping smooth variability and reduce curtailment—this applies to all modes of renewable generation, but offshore wind generation is at particular risk of curtailment losses.
Current 5th Feb 2025
Offshore Wind
World’s biggest offshore wind developer Ørsted slashes investment by 25%. Danish company attempts to recover from botched US expansion and restore struggling share price. Ørsted is slashing investment and dropping its targets for developing new renewable energy as part of a second drastic attempt to restore its struggling share price and boost confidence in its strategy. The world’s largest offshore wind developer said it would cut planned investment to 2030 by 25 per cent, less than a week after it replaced predecessor Mads Nipper with new chief executive Rasmus Errboe. The state-backed company announced on Wednesday plans to prioritise building existing projects as it tries to recover from a troubled foray in the US. It also faces a difficult environment for offshore wind with the election of Donald Trump, while attempting to maintain its investment-grade rating and avoid new fundraising to shore up its balance sheet. The announcement came hours after Equinor, Norway’s state-owned energy group and a major Ørsted shareholder, said it was also cutting renewables targets and instead planned to pump more oil to boost shareholder returns and cash flow. Nipper presided over a nearly 80 per cent slump in Ørsted’s share price over the past four years as interest rates rose and hype over green stocks faded.
FT 5th Feb 2025
Solar & Batteries
Plans have been submitted for a solar farm and battery energy storage park opposite the Knockhill Motor Racing Circuit in Fife. Developers behind the project said the site had been “carefully selected” to ensure it complied with “technical and environmentally sound criteria”. Grupotec and REG Power Developments have now submitted their proposals for Nettly Burn Renewable Energy Park to Fife Council and the Scottish Government’s energy consents unit.
Scotsman 5th Feb 2025
Solar energy could play a huge part in the drive to cut emissions in Scotland and create thousands of jobs in the process, sector champions have claimed as the SNP Government appears focused on wind power. The debate about the value of solar has been put in the spotlight by the importance attached to the energy source at Westminster. ScottishPower plans to develop a solar power generation and battery storage plant at Whitelee windfarm near Glasgow after building a similar facility at Carland Cross in Cornwall.
Herald 6th Feb 2025
Pumped Hydro
A family-owned firm is to bring forward “the UK’s largest and most efficient” hydropower project on its own estate above one of Scotland’s most famous lochs. The Glen Earrach Energy company is weeks away from submitting its blueprint for the £3 billion plan for Loch Ness. It will include how the estate operator is broaching concerns around salmon welfare and how the long-term community benefit might look.
Herald 6th Feb 2025
The UK is on the cusp of a hydropower revolution, with the potential to transform our energy landscape and make significant strides toward achieving our net zero targets. As the oldest form of renewable energy, hydropower is stepping into the spotlight once again, demonstrating its enduring relevance and adaptability to modern energy challenges.
Herald 6th Feb 2025
EVs
Figures from New Automotive, an independent transport research organisation, show that EVs had their strongest start to any year on record in 2025. Typically, January is a slow month for car sales, but the share of EVs sold by automakers was only just below the overarching target for 2025 under the zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate. In the best-ever start to a year, 27,700 battery EVs—21.5% of the market—were registered in January 2025, despite some concern renewed hope for tax incentives later in the year could have deterred some buyers.
Current 5th Feb 2025
Fossil Fuels
Norwegian energy giant Equinor is halving investment in renewable energy over the next two years while increasing oil and gas production. Chief executive Anders Opedal said that the transition to lower carbon energy was moving slower than expected, costs had increased, and customers were reluctant to commit to long term contracts. Mr Opedal told the BBC he was confident that Rosebank – a giant new oil field in the North Sea – would go ahead, despite a recent court ruling that consent had been awarded unlawfully. He also warned that gas prices could rise next winter as European gas storage levels were lower now than this time last year.
BBC 6th Feb 2025
We are about to see the Prime Minister’s commitment to growth “above all else” put to the test. A decision is needed soon on whether to proceed with new offshore oil and gas projects in the North Sea, which environmentalists in the Labour Party are determined to block. The Rosebank and Jackdaw schemes, which together will produce close to 10 per cent of the country’s energy needs, were rendered void by a Scottish court last week on technical grounds. It ruled that the consents given by the last government failed to take into account the emissions from burning the fossil fuels, not just those generated by their extraction. However, this did not invalidate the licences already granted and Labour in its manifesto pledged to honour those while stopping future schemes. The Prime Minister is believed to have assured Equinor, the Norwegian majority state-owned company behind Rosebank, that permission will be granted once the proper consents have been sought.
Telegraph 5th Feb 2025
Ed Miliband risks destroying the UK’s reputation if he blocks Britain’s two biggest offshore oil and gas developments, the boss of energy giant Equinor has warned. Anders Opedal, chief executive, said the Energy Secretary had to issue new permits for the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields to ensure the UK is a “predictable country for investors”. Equinor, Norway’s state-controlled oil company, is the lead developer on Rosebank in the North Sea which is expected to generate nearly £7bn of investment and hundreds of millions of pounds in taxes for the UK.
Telegraph 6th Feb 2025
Stop giving in to eco-nutters, Badenoch tells Starmer. The Tory leader has called the prime minister ‘weak’ and ‘waffly’ over delays to approving new North Sea oil and gas fields.
Times 6th Feb 2025
The Norwegian state-backed energy group that dropped oil from its name as part of a push into renewables is pivoting back to fossil fuels in the hunt for shareholder returns. Equinor, renamed from Statoil in 2018, said on Wednesday that it was planning to increase production of fossil fuels and halve its spending on renewables, with chief executive Anders Opedal saying it was aiming to “create shareholder value for decades to come”. Under its new targets, the company plans to produce 2.2mn barrels of oil equivalent a day by 2030, 10 per cent higher than previous expectations. It lowered its target for renewables capacity to 10GW-12GW from a previous target of 12GW-16GW. Investment in renewables and other low-carbon technology between 2025 and 2027 will be cut to $5bn, down from about $10bn previously, excluding project financing.
FT 5th Feb 2025
Redundancy letters have been sent to workers at the Grangemouth oil refinery, with more than 400 people set to lose their jobs when it closes. Petroineos, the owner, had announced last year it planned to shut down the facility and turn it into an import terminal for fuels. That change is expected to take place between April and June, with only 65 staff being retained from an existing workforce of about 500. It is understood voluntary redundancy packages have been agreed with a large proportion of those affected with the departures being phased over the next three to 18 months. Other parts of the petrochemicals complex are not directly affected by the closure.
Times 6th Feb 2025
Climate
Last month was the world’s warmest January on record and raised further questions about the pace of climate change, scientists say. January 2025 had been expected to be slightly cooler than January 2024 because of a shift away from a natural weather pattern in the Pacific known as El Niño. But instead, last month broke the January 2024 record by nearly 0.1C, according to the European Copernicus climate service.
BBC 6th Feb 2025
Independent 6th Feb 2025
Last month was the hottest January on record, surprising scientists who expected the cooling La Niña weather cycle in the tropical Pacific to slow almost two years of record-high temperatures. The warming, despite the emergence of La Niña in December, is set to fuel concerns that climate change is accelerating at a time when countries such as the US, the world’s largest historical polluter, pull back on commitments to reduce emissions. Bill McGuire, emeritus professor of geophysical and climate hazards at UCL, said the January data was “both astonishing and, frankly terrifying”, adding: “On the basis of the Valencia floods and apocalyptic Los Angeles wildfires, I don’t think there can be any doubt that dangerous, all-pervasive, climate breakdown has arrived. Yet emissions continue to rise.”
FT 6th Feb 2025
Scientists have warned of an “extremely concerning” collapse in the wintering population of monarch butterflies in the western United States after numbers fell to a near-record low. Experts say that pesticides, diminishing habitat and climate change have all taken a toll on the species, an important pollinator.
Times 5th Feb 2025