EUAs might be undervalued, but the fact that their prices are far higher as compared to last year is adversely affecting the profits of power generators. The first phase of EU ETS (2005-07) contended with abysmally low EUA prices owing to excessive supply of free allowances. But now with the reining in of free EUAs in the second phase (2008-12), average price for the first 6 months has shot up to

Tags: Coal Power Plants, Drax, EU ETS, EU ETS second phase, RWE

A report released by a group of environmentalists – Friends of the Earth Scotland, Platform and People and Planet has tarnished the green reputation of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), Barclays and HSBC by bringing to light the fact that these financial institutions continue to undertake heavy investments in high carbon projects, including coal plants.

The report brings to the fore the inconsistency that plagues the actions of the banks, who on the one hand invest in renewable energy in a bid to better the environment but on the other , shell out huge loans to coal-related firms.

RBS argued that investing in coal projects gave the bank the opportunity to ensure that such projects adopt eco-friendly practices. However, Friends of the Earth were not satisfied :

“Arguing that you are pushing for firms to embrace carbon capture is not enough

Tags: Barclays, Coal Power Plants, Friends of the Earth, HSBC, People and Planet, Platform, RBS

It seems that opposition against coal power plants is gaining momentum. We reported earlier that the UK government is under pressure to take strict action against coal-fired plants and now it looks like US coal plants are having a tough time as well.

NRG Texas LLC, a subsidiary of NRG Energy had come under fire for wanting to add a third plant to its Limestone Station near Houston. Initially, the Texas Clean Air Cities Coalition and the Environmental Defense Fund were planning to thwart its expansion plans. But now NRG has reached an agreement with the two groups wherein the power generator will go ahead with the third unit and has pledged to partially offset its carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions.

Among other measures, NRG will offset or sequester fifty per cent of the additional unit’s carbon emissions; invest in solar energy project or energy-efficiency projects in Texas and reduce water usage at the new unit by sixty per cent.

Jim Marston of Environmental Defense Fund applauded NRG’s efforts, he said :

“Offsets, such as the projects that NRG has committed to invest in, are a low-cost way to get the large reductions in greenhouse gases that are necessary to prevent catastrophic impacts of global warming..”

Tags: Carbon Cuts, Carbon Offsets, Carbon Sequestration, CO2 Cuts, Coal Power Plants, Emissions Reductions, Energy Efficiency, Energy Firms, Energy Sector, NRG Energy Inc., NRG Texas LLC, Solar Energy, UK