The European Union is seeking to speed up the creation of a common energy market to help its shift to a low-carbon economy and boost security of energy supplies amid a natural-gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine.

In a previous article, I had a conversation with former-CIA chief Jim Woolsey to discuss one of America’s greatest national security vulnerabilities, its power grid. The issues that Woolsey has been concerned with for over a decade has been the ease in which a terrorist group or other actor (think North Korea for example) could attack the grid and plunge the country into darkness for months, if not years. And if that seems far-fetched, just recall how a tree limb fell in Ohio in 2003 and blacked out the entire Northeast and part of Canada for several days.

The Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has amended Russia’s federal law on the electric power industry. Ordinance No47 lays out a number of measures aiming to stimulate renewable energy sales in the national retail market.

Austrade has strengthened its partnership with Australia’s cyber security Industry Growth Centre, AustCyber – enhancing support for Australia’s cyber security ecosystem.

Corporations signing PPAs with renewable energy power producers have been on the rise for quite some time but in 2018, the group as a whole purchased more than double the clean energy they purchased in 2017.

GE announced today that it sees a future in housing its renewable generation businesses (onshore and offshore wind, hydropower) alongside its grid businesses which include substations and transformers plus solar, storage and distributed energy resource (DER) control software. GE Renewable Energy CEO Jerome Pecresse said in a press conference that the move will simplify the lives of GE’s customers by giving them one point of contact for all of their renewable energy power needs.

This week global energy and infrastructure group, Eversheds Sutherland, announced that it helped Ball Corporation secure two virtual power purchase agreements (VPPAs) – one wind and one solar – for a total of 388 MW of new renewable energy. According to Ball, these agreements will allow the company to power 100 percent of its corporate, packaging and aerospace operations electricity load in North America with renewable energy by the end of 2021.

Renewables energy investment in Asia excluding China will overtake spending on upstream oil and gas projects in the region as soon as next year, according to Rystad Energy.

The Lockett Wind farm in Wilbarger has the potential to generate more than 700,000 MWh of renewable energy per year, enough to power the equivalent of 70,000 homes. 

In recognition of the widely acknowledged studies that show that organizations with gender equality perform better financially, this year POWERGEN International, along with partner UL, is launching a new awards program that seeks out women of good character.

The use of innovative technology in agriculture – agtech – has fundamentally disrupted conventional production techniques and market linkages in the Indian agricultural sector.

Recent changes in the Indian Government’s approach to mining has opened up opportunities for private sector involvement in the sector, including international METS firms.

Recent changes in the Indian Government’s approach to mining has opened up opportunities for private sector involvement in the sector, including international METS firms.

An Indian university in Mysuru, Karnataka seeks research collaborations across pharmacy, medicine, dental and life sciences. Opportunities also exist for short term training programs and fellowships abroad.

With more than 300 million domain names registered globally, there are numerous examples of trending keywords reflected by domain name registrations. We have shown in the past that there is a correlation between domain name registrations and newsworthy and popular events, as well as anticipated trends. Keeping in the spirit of the zeitgeist that .com and […]

The post Top 10 Trending Keywords in .com and .net Registrations in July 2019 appeared first on Verisign Blog.

Today, we released the latest issue of the Domain Name Industry Brief, which shows that the second quarter of 2019 closed with 354.7 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs),  an increase of  2.9 million domain name registrations, or 0.8 percent, compared to the first quarter of 2019.1,2 Domain name registrations have grown by […]

The post Verisign Q2 2019 Domain Name Industry Brief: Internet Grows to 354.7 Million Domain Name Registrations in the Second Quarter of 2019 appeared first on Verisign Blog.

With more than 300 million domain names registered globally, there are numerous examples of trending keywords reflected by domain name registrations. We have shown in the past that there is a correlation between domain name registrations and newsworthy and popular events, as well as anticipated trends. Keeping in the spirit of the zeitgeist that .com […]

The post Top 10 Trending Keywords in .com and .net Registrations in August 2019 appeared first on Verisign Blog.

We have made some exciting enhancements to the NameStudio API, including the launch of the Online Presence Endpoint (OPE) feature. The OPE feature allows for even more personalized domain name suggestions based on information users choose to share with registrars and resellers about their online presence, such as: Marketplace store and business social media account […]

The post NameStudio® API Enhancement Enables Registrars and Resellers to Drive Domain Name Registrations appeared first on Verisign Blog.

Today, we released the latest issue of the Domain Name Industry Brief, which shows that the third quarter of 2019 closed with 359.8 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 5.1 million domain name registrations, or 1.4 percent, compared to the second quarter of 2019.1,2 Domain name registrations have grown by […]

The post Verisign Q3 2019 Domain Name Industry Brief: Internet Grows to 359.8 Million Domain Name Registrations in the Third Quarter of 2019 appeared first on Verisign Blog.

Today, we released the latest issue of the Domain Name Industry Brief, which shows that the fourth quarter of 2019 closed with 362.3 million domain name registrations across all top-level domains (TLDs), an increase of 2.4 million domain name registrations, or 0.7 percent, compared to the third quarter of 2019.1,2 Domain name registrations have grown by […]

The post Verisign Q4 2019 Domain Name Industry Brief: Internet Grows To 362.3 Million Domain Name Registrations In The Fourth Quarter Of 2019 appeared first on Verisign Blog.

Renewable Energy Generation Ltd., a British low-carbon asset developer backed by BlackRock Inc., will build six waste-to-power plants with Caterpillar Inc. and Finning U.K. Ltd. in an expansion of plans published last month.

U.K. renewable power generation rose 28 percent last year as more wind farms and solar plants came online, the Department of Energy and Climate Change said.

A first-of-its-kind study of net evaporation at a hydroelectric facility reveals that the project has very little effect on the loss of water to the atmosphere as compared with pre-impoundment conditions.

Billionaire Rubens Ometto’s Cosan SA has the potential to triple its power generation by burning sugar-cane leftovers if the government offers power-purchase contracts for biomass producers.

The European Union is seeking to speed up the creation of a common energy market to help its shift to a low-carbon economy and boost security of energy supplies amid a natural-gas dispute between Russia and Ukraine.

In many countries, needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions have led to increased installation of intermittent renewables such as wind and solar.

Executives from 13 major U.S. corporations are announcing at least $140 billion in new investments to decrease their carbon footprints as part of a White House initiative to recruit private commitments ahead of a United Nations climate-change summit later this year in Paris.

Companies including Apple Inc., Berkshire Hathaway Energy Co., and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. will join Secretary of State John Kerry and top administration officials at the White House for the announcement. In addition to pledges to cut emissions, provide financing to environmentally-focused companies, and reduce water consumption, the companies have said they will procure at least 1,600 MW of new, renewable energy. The White House said in a statement that it expects to announce a second round of similar pledges later this fall from additional companies.

The commitments are being announced as President Barack Obama is looking to build momentum toward a legacy-defining global climate accord in Paris. In addition to company-specific commitments, the corporate leaders on Monday will signal their support for a strong climate agreement out of the United Nations talks. They administration is using the pledges to set an example for companies to find ways to eliminate their carbon emissions.

Climate Talks

“As the world looks toward global climate negotiations in Paris this December, American leadership at all levels will be essential,” the White House said in a fact sheet detailing the announcement.

The administration’s actions are pushing the issue into the 2016 presidential debate. Hillary Clinton, the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, released an energy strategy saying she would both defend and go beyond Obama’s efforts. Republican candidates have criticized the administration’s initiatives as costly to the economy and unnecessary.

Among the pledges, aluminum manufacturer Alcoa Inc. has agreed to reduce emissions by 50 percent from its 2005 levels, while agricultural giant Cargill Inc. says 18 percent of its total energy use will come from renewable sources.

Coca-Cola Co. said it would drive down the carbon footprint of its beverage production by 25 percent over the next five years, while Google says it plans to triple its purchases of renewable energy over the next decade. Berkshire Hathaway says it plans to invest up to an additional $15 billion in the construction and operation of renewable energy generators, while Bank of America Corp says it will increase its environmental business initiative by $75 billion over the next decade, according to the White House

Other participating firms include Wal-Mart, United Parcel Service Inc., PepsiCo Inc., Microsoft Corp., General Motors Inc.

The corporate commitments won’t be the administration’s only major climate announcement in the next few weeks. The Environmental Protection Agency is set to present final regulations that aim to reduce carbon emissions from power plants by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030 later this week.

While visiting Kenya over the weekend, Obama repeatedly praised the country for its efforts to address climate change, saying its efforts tor educe emissions “has put it in the position of being a leader on the continent.” And next month, the president will travel to Alaska for an international summit on Arctic climate issues.

©2015 Bloomberg News

For more, see Big Companies, Big Renewable Investments.

Chile's Schwager Energy and China-based Shenyang Yuanda Commercial & Investment Co. signed a memorandum of understanding on Nov. 3 to build the 3-MW Los Pinos run-of-the-river hydroelectric plant in southern Chile's Lagos region, according to BN Americas.
 

Check here each week to keep up with the latest from John MacArthur's pulpit at Grace Community Church.

In the same week that the Recast Markets in Financial Instruments Directive (MiFID 2) and its companion Regulation (MiFIR) were ...

At the end of last year the High Court was asked to decide the proper meaning of a rent deposit deed relating to a deposit of over £2 million. The deposit allowed the landlord security for, amongst others, "any proper loss which the landlord m...

 Amy Sadro, Principal Associate in Eversheds Sutherland’s Environment, Health and Safety Team and Dr Chris Nelson, a Principal Consultant and specialist in noise and vibration at Finch Consulting give their views on recent HAVS prosecutio...

COVID-19 is creating a fast-changing and uncertain landscape. Many prospective tenants will be undertaking fit out works under their agreements for lease. Our webinar held on 31st March highlighted some important practical steps that could be taken ...

  For landlords involved in construction works, COVID-19 is creating a fast-changing and uncertain landscape. Whilst many things are beyond a landlord's control, there are some important practical steps that can be taken to maximise control ov...

Two important announcements this week will be relevant to the UK’s immigration requirements for several years. Brexit is, of course, scheduled for 11PM on 31st January. In addition, a report published yesterday provides a blueprint for the fut...

The Government has provided its initial policy guidance regarding the new Points Based System of immigration. This is set to be implemented in January 2021 and follows advice provided by the Migration Advisory Committee (“MAC”) last mont...

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In preparation for the forthcoming withdrawal of the UK from the EU, the Government has been amending legislation and regulations relevant to town and country planning, infrastructure planning, environmental protection, air quality, environmental im...

In preparation for the forthcoming withdrawal of the UK from the EU, Scottish Ministers have been amending legislation and associated regulations controlling the requirements and processes of town and country planning and environmental matters. The ...

A Planning Inspector has decided that ‘event fees’ should be taken into account in assessing the viability of retirement living developments and their ability to contribute to planning gain. Usually due on the death of a resident, the In...

Wesley Pydiamah, Partner in our Litigation and International Arbitration department and Manuel Tomas, Counsel, recently contributed to the 4th edition of The Guide to Advocacy published by Global Arbitration Review. In the chapter "Cultural Consider...