Good morning, welcome back - it's time for the morning round-up. I'm sorry to say there is - again - quite a lot of shale news today, but scroll down and we'll get to stories about something else...
UK
Telegraph: Cuadrilla and Centrica unveil fracking programme
Emily Gosden reports that the companies want to frack Cuadrilla's existing exploration well at Grange Hill near Singleton and to drill and frack six new wells together at yet-to-be-confirmed locations. They also plan to drill but not to frack at three further sites to take rock samples. The paper also reports on concerns in the Netherlands that gas extraction has led to earthquakes damaging houses. However the process involved is different to that in Lancashire.
Guardian: Will Fracking solve our energy crisis?
Robin McKie travels to Lancashire to look at the prospects for a shale gas revolution - including new local power plants to use the gas. He speaks to Bob Ward of the Grantham Institute who says shale gas could be useful from a climate change viewpoint - by replacing coal - if it does not permanently establish a fossil fuel infrastructure. Here are some good facts and figures.
UTW: Energy intensives to be exempted from clean energy costs
Energy Intensive Industries (EIIs) will be protected from higher energy costs caused by subsidies for nuclear and renewables through contracts for difference (CfDs).
Guardian: Ed Davey won't give inch on nuclear
The Secretary of State for energy and climate, Ed Davey, has said that as a former nuclear sceptic he 'won't give an inch' on the cost of nuclear power from EDF's proposed Hinkley point C plant. Mr Davey also said that costs from rival firms such as Hitachi looked to be lower than those from EDF. Utility Week reported, however, that the negotiations were now down to just 'one or two issues', albeit one of those was the price.
Times: Consumers to pay for energy in Spain
UK consumers could face paying for renewable energy credits from Spain if the UK fails to meet its targets domestically - according to Tim Webb in The Times. The paper also reported on the rise of privately owned wind-turbines in the UK.
WORLD
FT: Crude oil train explodes in Canada
A run-away train laden with crude oil exploded after derailing in a small town in Canada.
Bloomberg: RWE profits fall on renewables surge
Low-cost power from renewable energy is undercutting profits from the major German utilities. Whilst renewable energy attracts subsidies to meet their construction costs the cost of the power they sell is very low, undermining even German Nuclear power which also has low running costs.
Reuters: Polish shale gas dreams fade
Red tape and unfortunate geology are holding back the development of Poland's shale gas industry - according to industry executives. 46 wells have been drilled so far in what was once Europe's best shale gas prospect but none have yet produced commercial quantities of gas. Energy firms says the government's latest attempts to ease the regulatory burden do not go nearly far enough.
Bloomberg: Biofuel investment at 7 year low
Investment in the next generation of biofuels has fallen from $7.6bn at the end of 2007 to just £56m in the first quarter of this year. “This is very capital intensive,” Phil New, head of BP’s biofuels program, said in an interview. “There’s lots of difficult engineering. It will take time for scale-up.”
And finally: Solar plane completes journey
The Solar Impulse plane has landed at New York's JFK airport, completing the final leg of a journey across the US on solar power alone. The Across America transcontinental bid began in San Francisco in early May - at a top speed of 70km/h (45mph).
