Utility Week

4 | 14TH - 20TH SEPTEMBER 2018 | UTILITY WEEK Seven days... No-deal Brexit could shut down N Sea oil A no-deal Brexit risks causing labour shortages in North Sea oil and gas facilities serious enough to force production shutdowns, the main industry body has warned. Oil and Gas UK said that reduced access to skilled labour, with EU workers making up 5 per cent to 7 per cent of the total oil and gas workforce, threatened emergency response systems, without which platforms could not operate. Financial Times, 11 September Water supply alert in Brescia, Italy Authorities in northern Italy have issued a health alert aer 150 cases of pneumonia were recorded in a week. A pneumonia-causing virus is thought to be lurking in the water supply in Brescia, located in the region of Lombardy. Autopsies will be carried out on a 69-year-old woman and an 85-year-old man to determine whether they died from pneumonia, according to local media reports. Samples have been taken from the water supply network for analysis, but results are not expected for several days. Sky News, 9 September Shetland may become global centre for oil decommissioning Shetland is in line to become an international hub for decommis- sioning work as concerns emerge over the health of the wider North Sea industry. A report by trade body Oil and Gas UK has suggested that explora- tion drilling on the UK continental shelf this year could be at the lowest level in more than 50 years. The restructuring efforts of many companies to survive the most recent price downturn has led to concerns that they will be unable to cope if activity starts to improve. The Times, 11 September STORY BY NUMBERS National media World's largest offshore windfarm commissioned T he world's largest offshore windfarm was officially opened this week at a ceremony in Cumbria. The Walney Extension project in the Irish Sea features 47 MHI Vestas 8.25MW V164 turbines and 40 Siemens Gamesa 7MW SWT154 turbines – giving it a total capacity of 659MW. The previous record was held by the 630MW London Array. The windfarm is jointly owned by the renewable devel- oper Orsted (50 per cent) and the Danish pension funds PKA (25 per cent) and PFA (25 per cent). The project was awarded a contract for difference at a strike price of £150/MWh (2012 prices) through a one-off non- competitive process prior to the introduction of auctions. Matthew Wright, manag- ing director of Orsted UK, said: "The UK is the global leader in offshore wind and Walney Exten- sion showcases the industry's incredible success story. "The project, completed on time and within budget, also marks another important step towards Orsted's vision of a world that runs entirely on green energy." Energy and clean growth min- ister Claire Perry said: "Record- breaking engineering landmarks like this huge offshore windfarm help us consolidate our global leadership position, break records for generating renewable energy, and create thousands of high-quality jobs. "As part of our modern industrial strategy we've set out a further £557 million of funding for new renewable projects, helping to tackle climate change and deliver clean growth to local economies." • In Scotland, first minister Nicola Sturgeon opened an offshore windfarm boasting the world's most powerful turbines. Vattenfall's European Off- shore Wind Deployment Centre in Aberdeen Bay comprises 11 V164 turbines supplied by MHI Vestas with a rotor diameter of 164m – larger than that of the London Eye. With a combined capacity of 93.2MW, they will produce enough electricity to meet 70 per cent of Aberdeen's annual needs. TG EV sales hit record high in August Sales of electric vehicles (EVs) reached a record high in August and accounted for one in every 12 cars purchased in the UK, according to the Society of Motor Manufactur- ers and Traders. 7,500 Almost 7,500 hybrid, plug-in hybrid and pure electric cars were registered during the month. 89% increase on the same period last year. 8% Proportion of new cars purchased that were EVs. 91,000 Number of EVs registered since the beginning of 2018, giving them a 5.8 per cent market share for the year to date, up from 4.4 per cent last year. "You could take a nuclear plant operator who retired in 1980 and he would know exactly what to do" William D Magwood IV, director general of the OECD's Nuclear Energy Agency, says the nuclear industry lags behind other industries in terms of technological innovation over recent decades.

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