Technology

The Government has decided not to proceed with a Carbon Capture and Storage demonstration project in Scotland, following conclusions to negotiations, and says the money can be better spent.

A $1bn project to fit solar panels to military housing in the US has been announced.

Researchers at the University of Surrey believe they have found a way to increase the efficiency of solar panels, with the potential of developing a low cost, lightweight renewable energy source.

A new software package which tells installers the best kind of renewable technology to install for a particular area has been launched this month.

Green Deal work undertaken by Birmingham City Council is to extend to non-domestic public buildings, spending £1.2bn on retrofitting over eight years.

The Government has insulated over 2.6m homes in the UK across three years, under its national energy saving scheme.

A survey of small and medium enterprises has revealed that while many are interested in energy efficiency and have made moves to implement such measures, a lack of information, cost and red tape are barriers to SMEs being able to take full advantage.

Plans to build to biomass stations in Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire have this month been approved by energy minister Charles Hendry.

The Australian state of Canberra has entered the next phase of the development of national legislation which would see minimum energy efficiency standards implemented across the country.

Cuts to subsidies for solar projects over 50 kw have been announced by the Department of Energy and Climate Change, a move which has been labelled by industry commentators as one which will “effectively kill the UK solar industry”.

A heritage listed house in Sydney is to be redeveloped as a carbon neural building, Grocon and GPT Group have announced.

The UK must provide clarity in its renewable energy intentions to be an attractive contender for future investment, a survey has warned. 

The Government is committed to a carbon emission reduction of 80% by 2050. For the construction sector this means tackling the 26m homes and 2m other buildings that exist today and that will still be standing in 2050. Paul Appleby, a consultant in sustainable building design, looks at the challenges in line with the recently published IGT report.

A new report by Barclays has found that building retrofits will require the largest amount of procurement capital of €600bn by 2020.