Damian's energy dispatch

ENERGYDESK

Three of the big six drill in the Arctic
British Gas, EON and RWE have bought rights to drill in the Norwegian arctic. The rights were issued in areas where Norwegian environmental watchdogs warned there should be a full or partial drilling ban. Shell also bought rights during the 22nd Licensing round for an area where the Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management advised against drilling.

ElSEWHERE TODAY

David Cameron and Gregg Barker open the world's largest offshore wind farm - the Thames Array. Here is a picture, bizarrely tweeted by the, um, embassy of the United Arab Emirates.

And whilst we're on the topic The Telegraph reports on a study by the Taxpayer alliance and Liberum capital which claims green energy will add a third on to energy bills by 2020. I'd suggest a health warning on these kinds of calculations which differ hugely from those produced by regulators and the government.

UK

Cuadrilla argues shale gas will transform britain
Writing in the Telegraph Francis Egan says shale could meet current gas demand for more than 40 years. Writing in The Independent Tony Juniper argues shale should be a Plan Z.

Guardian: How fossil-fueled is your university
Alice Bell looks at the links between fossil fuel firms and Universities and recommends a investigative, crowd sourced, approach. 

WORLD

Reuters: India resumes coal mining rights for power firms
India has granted coal mining rights to state-run power producers for the first time in nearly five years in another attempt to speed up sputtering domestic production and investment in the sector
.
Guardian: ETS reforms raise price of permits
Reforms to the European Unions carbon trading scheme, agreed by the European Parliament yesterday, have pushed up the price of carbon permits - but not by enough to deter coal burning. 

Germany industry complains about power costs
In the build up to the German election various trade bodies have spoken out in bid to secure promises of cheaper power. The latest is the German plastics industry.