While the UK needs to accelerate its energy transition, targets are being missed, projects run into delays, and the public wonders why progress feels so slow. The temptation is to blame politics, funding or technology. Yet there is a deeper reason the road to net zero keeps stalling.
Battery trains are gearing up to replace much of Britain’s ageing diesel fleet. Andrew Wade reports on the technology set to power the transition.
The growth in sales of electric vehicles is a positive step in the UK’s journey to net zero. They are cleaner, quieter and better for the environment.
Prof Christian Brand, a researcher from the University of Oxford’s Environmental Change Institute (ECI) has led the transport analysis for a major new study exploring how the UK could reach its net zero targets faster, at lower cost and without risky tech by reducing overall energy demand.
Around a quarter of UK homes lie on disused coalfields. These abandoned coal mines are flooded with water that is naturally heated by the Earth.
Imagine powering long-haul aircraft and heavy ships with fuels derived from just air, water and renewable electricity. This is moving from science fiction to the verge of reality, thanks to the falling price of renewables like wind and solar.
The Didcot upgrade will add 650MW of battery connections and SF6-free switchgear to support Oxfordshire’s digital growth.
Rahmat Poudineh, Honorary Research Associate, Oxford Sustainable Finance Group, writes in The Conversation about how the international effort to cut emissions is failing, with emissions being about 10% higher since the Paris agreement in 2015.
Jan Rosenow is Professor of Energy and Climate Policy at the University of Oxford and the Leader of the Energy Programme at the Environmental Change Institute. He has been recognised by Stanford’s University database of the top 2% most cited scientists worldwide, which is a great acknowledgemen...