From Energydesk
Can you freeze bills and tackle climate change at the same time?
As the Prime Minister and Opposition leader clash again on energy bills we look at the options open to Mr Milliband, and anyone else, who may want to stabilise power bills and cut carbon emissions at the same time.
If you read three other stories
1) Shale gas could create "100,000 jobs" says Poyry - but not for at least a decade
Poyry Management Consulting said that the shale gas industry could eventually employ between 40,000 and 60,000 people and a “much larger” number of indirect jobs for workers in the supply chain and service sector. However in remarks to a Lords Committee Poyry's John Williams warned significant production(and jobs) would not come onstream until the mid-2020s. Production was unlikely to even start before 2017, he added, even in an optimistic scenario. “A lot of things could happen in the process to delay that further — it depends on lots of things going well,” he told the committee.
2) EU opts against rules allowing state aid for nuclear
The European Commission's decision to drop a reference to subsidies for nuclear power from its guidelines on state aid for energy production would not block Britain's nuclear expansion plans, the British government said on Wednesday. However the move is likely to feed uncertainty over whether and how long approval for the UK's nuclear programme may take - especially if it includes support from the taxpayer.
3) German coal surges on
Germany's coal-fired power plants increased their dominance in the generation mix in the first nine months of the year as output from natural gas-fired power plants and wind turbines dropped, according to an analysis of data that German think tank Fraunhofer Institute (ISE) collected.
And in other news
UK drillers offered water cheaper than other residents
Shale gas drillers in the UK are to be offered water at a lower cost than residents nearby - according to research by Bloomberg.
EU to force shale drillers to conduct Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA's)
The European Parliament today voted to revise EU legislation on environmental impact assessments (EIAs).
UK could experience solar power boom
More than 2,000 solar farms could be built by 2020 under a government plan to subsidise an eight-fold increase in solar power - increasing installed capacity from around 2.4GW to 20 GW.
