1-DSO Investments required for Energy Transition in Europe
2-National Grid offers incentives for off-peak electric vehicle charging
Massachusetts utility National Grid has launched a new initiative to give drivers rebates for charging their electric vehicles during off-peak hours, but some advocates worry the incentives aren’t high enough to propel meaningful change.
The new program rewards customers who charge their vehicles between 9 p.m. and 1 p.m., when demand on the grid is lower and the power flowing into the system is generally cleaner and less expensive. The goal of the program is to ease the burden on the grid, help reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and motivate more drivers to consider switching from gasoline-fueled cars.
3- A plan to rapidly reduce dependence on Russian fossil fuels and fast forward the green transition
The European Commission has today presented the REPowerEU Plan, its response to the hardships and global energy market disruption caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine. There is a double urgency to transform Europe's energy system: ending the EU's dependence on Russian fossil fuels, which are used as an economic and political weapon and cost European taxpayers nearly €100 billion per year, and tackling the climate crisis. By acting as a Union, Europe can phase out its dependency on Russian fossil fuels faster. 85% of Europeans believe that the EU should reduce its dependency on Russian gas and oil as soon as possible to support Ukraine. The measures in the REPowerEU Plan can respond to this ambition, through energy savings, diversification of energy supplies, and accelerated roll-out of renewable energy to replace fossil fuels in homes, industry and power generation.
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https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/IP_22_3131
https://www.elder.org.tr/Content/files/f98da063-b0d3-43de-bd47-4403035f2b24.pdf
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4- Enough time to wash your hair in 5 minutes ?
Dutch government’s short-shower campaign urges a splash and dash to burn less natural gas to heat water.
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https://archive.md/GDiCT#selection-117.0-117.103
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5- Emergency EU measures immediately needed to overcome life-threatening energy crisis for European steel industry
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Brussels, 09 September 2022 – On the occasion of the extraordinary Energy Council, the European steel industry calls on EU policymakers to provide immediate relief against high energy prices and costs also for energy-intensive industries exposed to international competition. Conventional trade and energy policy measures are clearly insufficient and would seriously put at risk of survival these sectors, which are the backbone of the EU’s value
chains.
6- Volkswagen AG is set to receive hundreds of millions of euros in trading profits as it offloads a massive natural-gas hedge, selling large amounts of fuel it previously purchased back into the German market.
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Europe’s largest car-maker has directed the sale of 2.6 terawatt-hours worth of gas contracts, according to a document seen by Bloomberg News. That’s enough gas to run about 200,000 normal, gas-heated homes for a year.
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7- Energy Minister Tinne Van der Straeten puts a crisis contribution of 4.7 billion euros on the table for energy producers.
Tinne Van der Straeten (Groen) has a proposal ready for the crisis contribution of energy producers. The federal energy minister wants to skim off all income above 130 euros per MWh for a period of two years and asks for a solidarity contribution of 1.5 cents per liter on petrol and diesel. That should generate a total of 4.7 billion euros. This makes Van der Straeten a lot more competitive than the EU, which proposes 180 euros per MWh for a period of seven months.
8- The current analysis by the IWH shows that the number of bankruptcy of partnerships and corporations in September was 34% higher than in the previous year. A further increase in the number of bankruptcy is to be expected for the autumn.
9- To help protect consumers, OFGEM has announced the Energy Price Guarantee which comes into effect on 1 October 2022.
This new scheme will reduce the unit cost of electricity and gas so that a household with typical energy use in Great Britain pays, on average, around £2,500 a year on their energy bill, for the next 2 years.
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On average usage a household will save £1,000 a year (based on current prices from October). Energy suppliers will be fully compensated by the government for the savings delivered to households.
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For an individual customer, the amount paid under the Energy Price Guarantee will vary depending on how much energy they use, where they live, how they pay for their energy and their metering arrangement. The £2,500 figure is based on a household with typical consumption on a dual electricity and gas bill paying by direct debit.
10- Germany plans 1,800 km hydrogen pipeline network: draft government paper
BERLIN, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Germany plans to develop an 1,800 kilometre (1,118 miles) hydrogen energy pipeline network by 2027 with state participation, according to an economy ministry draft strategy paper seen by Reuters on Friday.
The paper also envisages Germany fostering the use of blue hydrogen and importing it during a transition period towards green hydrogen.
Europe's largest economy wants to pivot towards cleaner energy sources and diversify its supplies, especially after the invasion of Ukraine underscored the pitfalls of a heavy reliance on Russian natural gas.
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