THE HARD LESSON OF THE LATEST OIL CRISIS

In May 2023, Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, declared that the fossil-fuel-based growth model is “simply obsolete.” The partial blockade of the Strait of Hormuz starkly exposes the irony of that statement. Today, roughly 75% of the primary energy consumed in the European Union comes from fossil fuels, while the global share remains about 87%. It is illusory to believe that “renewable” electricity can meet basic needs, let alone drive growth. 

Strait of Hormuz Exposes Europe’s Energy Vulnerability

MIDDLE EAST WAR CAUSES A SHIFT TO COAL

Paying lip service to saving the planet is simple when there is no shortage of oil and gas, but as soon as that changes, panic sets in and net zero starts taking a back seat. Governments have to concentrate on the here and now or they soon find themselves out of office.

 Activists fear long term shift to coal, as Italy, Germany talk of keeping coal plants open for years now… « JoNova

MILIBAND CHEATS TO GET TO NET ZERO

 Ed Miliband faces cheating accusations over plans to exclude emissions generated in foreign gas-fired power stations from UK totals.

He has pledged to make the grid 95pc gas-free by 2030 – but 15pc of UK power comes from neighbours like Belgium, the Netherlands and France, which have coal and gas-fired power stations.

Mr Miliband has ruled that all such imported power is be classed as zero carbon – making it look as green as wind or solar – because the emissions occur outside UK borders.

The decision will bring his target of a “95pc gas-free” grid by 2030 within much easier reach because it means electricity generated overseas will all be deemed to be carbon free – even if it comes from burning coal.

Mr Miliband’s approach was described as “cheating” by energy analyst Kathryn Porter of Watt-Logic.

“It is misleading to describe the power delivered by subsea interconnectors from Europe as zero carbon,” she added.

“These countries use gas-fired power plants, so clearly the power we are using is generating greenhouse gas emissions. You can’t use an accounting trick to avoid that fact.”

Britain is increasingly reliant on energy imports, especially when wind and solar output plummets.

On such days the UK’s reliance on imports surges to more than 20% – pushing up CO2 emissions. If overseas emissions incurred in generating power for the UK were included, it would potentially undermine the 95% carbon-free target.

Omitting foreign energy supplies from UK carbon accounting is widely deployed.

Last week, the National Energy System Operator (Neso) said that the UK’s combined solar, wind and nuclear fleet had reduced gas-fired generation to just 2.3% of UK power.

The announcement omitted to mention that Britain was also getting more than 12% of its electricity from overseas – potentially including foreign coal and gas-fired power stations.

It also omitted the contribution of Drax, the UK’s most controversial power station, which is powered by burning wood chips imported from forests in North America. It typically generates 4% to 5% of UK electricity.

Full story here.

MET OFFICE RECORDS CANNOT BE TRUSTED - HERE'S THE PROOF

Independent researcher Dr Eric Huxter has taken a year to examine the unnatural sudden rises that supply many daily ‘records’, and compared the overall spike averages with a pristine first class control station. He concludes that it “could well explain the step change in rate of temperature change, and the marked increase in the step of new daily maximum records since 1990”.

 Researcher Finds Proof The Met Office is Inflating UK Maximum Temperature Records – The Daily Sceptic