Total officially loses Flandres refinery to economic crisis

March 15th, 2010

Total Back to Work was the title of a recent Utility Exchange Business Energy News article (http://www.utility-exchange.co.uk/2010/02/total-back-to-work/ ) concerning the workers at some of Total’s French refineries – operations at Donges, Feyzin, Gonfreville, Grandpuit and the Provence refineries stopped when staff went on strike in support of fellow workers at Total’s Flandres refinery – which Total, one of the world’s biggest oil and gas companies, was threatening to close after suspending service in September 2009 as a result of market conditions.

Utility Exchange reported how the workers at the five refineries returned to normal production after taking part in local assembly votes – however, Total has since announced that they are now going to permanently shut down the 137,000-barrel-per-day Flandres Refinery in France’s Nord-Pas-de-Calais region – as a result of the six months of unplanned downtime.

Although the strikers went back to work, their actions forced Total to present the Central Works Council with a definitive response to the situation at its Flandres site and on March 8, 2010 Total officially announced the closure decision.

However, at the same time, Total has guaranteed that there will be no job losses as the facility will be turned into an industrial centre, and utilised for three new business activities: a refining operations support centre, a refining training centre, and a logistics depot – allowing employees to retain their jobs.

Source: industrialinfo.com

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Toyota Measures Wind Speed At Derby Plant

March 15th, 2010

After recent bad news in the press concerning faulty cars and job losses, Toyota may be hoping its attempt to be green will be seen as good news. The car manufacturer is to measure wind speeds at its Derbyshire plant to see if the site would be suitable for a wind farm, reports thisisderbyshire.co.uk.

Toyota has applied for permission from South Derbyshire District Council to install a 60 metre mast at its Burnaston site. The mast would be in position for a year and while it’s there it will record data enabling the car company to get a better idea of whether the plant would be a suitable location for wind turbines.

The mast has already been used at Toyota’s Deeside plant where a wind farm is also being considered. However, because of the economic climate those plans have been delayed.

Toyota said the mast would be hardly visible at the site and planners are now looking at Toyota’s application.

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Source: thisisderbyshire.co.uk

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Clean, Mean Marine Energy – Press Release

March 15th, 2010

The Department of Energy and Climate Change – DECC, has issued a press release today concerning Marine Energy and its potential to provide enough power for up to 15 million homes as well as save up to 70 million tonnes of C02 by 2050 in accordance with the Government’s Marine Energy Action Plan. The document further highlights the potential for the marine energy sector to provide up to 16,000 jobs.

Launching the plan at Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland, home to the 1.2MW (Megawatt) SeaGen turbine – the world’s first operating, commercial-scale tidal stream turbine, Lord Hunt, Minister of State for Energy, remarked:

“Harnessing the power of our seas will help us reduce our carbon emissions, provide clean, green, secure and reliable energy, create jobs and provide export opportunities… This Action Plan sets out our vision for what marine energy can do for the UK and what we need to do to make it happen. I look forward to working with industry and other partners to get the most out of our waters and build a new, world-leading energy generation sector in the UK”

Working together, the Government and industry devised the Marine Energy Action Plan to set out what actions are required to push the marine energy sector forward.

The plans key recommendations are as follows:

• Forming a UK-wide strategic coordination group to develop a planning and consenting roadmap for all types of marine renewables;
• Consideration of support levels for marine technologies under the review of banding of the Renewables Obligation in Autumn;
• Ensuring that the appropriate levels of targeted funding are available to bridge the technology market failures that exist in this developing sector, subject to the budgets in the next public spending round;
• Leveraging private equity, and in the longer term, project capital into the sector;
• Establishing guidelines and best practice in the development of new technologies; and
• Building a UK marine energy supply chain and utilising the current skills base already established from the offshore wind, oil and gas, and maritime industries.

Source: decc.gov.uk

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Compare the Market for Electricity and Gas

March 15th, 2010

All the ‘big six’ energy suppliers, which consists of British Gas, EDF, E.ON, npower, ScottishPower and Scottish and Southern Energy, have recently lowered their gas prices as they compete to become the UK’s cheapest energy provider – see Utility Exchange ‘s Business Energy News section for related articles…

However, a Sunday Times article is urging consumers – who want to lower their energy bills – to still research all the options available to them becasue despite the gas price cuts by the ‘big six’ there is another player on the market offering the best duel fuel option – independent supplier first:utility is currently the cheapest supplier for gas and electricity with its duel fuel tariff, acknowledges Gareth Kloet, head of energy at confused.com.

It is all these different energy options that are leaving consumers confused and unsure whether to fix their rates now or wait and see who is going to revise their prices next…

A good strategy to ensure you are on the cheapest energy option is to review your utility tariff online, where for example, by simply switching to an online pay-monthly tariff you could save up to £300 against a standard quarterly billing option.

People should compare energy tariffs to ensure they have found the most suitable deal – and more recent is the ability to manage and submit your own meter readings with online energy management tariffs which can significantly reduce your energy bills when you switch from your current supplier.

Gas and electricity prices can vary according to region as well as annual consumption. Here at Utility Exchange we do all the work for you, comparing business electricity prices and business gas prices so you can be assured you’re paying the best rates available.

We research the utility markets every day to ensure you receive the most up-to-date advice and the best possible energy deals – Request a FREE quote online or call Utility Exchange on 0800 411 8830.

Source: Sunday Times (March 14, 2010)

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Apple Has Little Power Over Taiwanese Firms

March 15th, 2010

Apple is being practically held to ransom by three Taiwanese companies which dominate the manufacture of laptops, mobile phones and MP3 Players. Foxconn makes all Apple iPhones, Quanta is the largest manufacturer of laptops and makes 90% of Apple’s MacBooks while Pegatron makes some of Apple’s iPods, reports The Daily Telegraph.

But you may ask why are they holding Apple to ransom? The problem for Apple is that it has nowhere else to go for the manufacture of its products. But if it did, these companies are so big that they would simply go out and buy the competitor that Apple had chosen over them.

These Taiwanese businesses are very secretive but there are concerns that they bully employees, use child labour, implement long working hours and pay only very low wages.

Only last year a young 25 year old employee of Foxconn who was working on the Apple iPhone, committed suicide. It came after an iPhone prototype went missing on his watch. Before he jumped to his death from his apartment block, Sun Danyong sent a message to a friend saying he had been beaten by Foxconn security staff.

The news led to investigations by Apple’s management and executives flew out to review the case. China Labour Watch described Foxconn as “inhumane and militant” and while Apple are aware of the poor conditions people work in there’s ultimately not a lot they can do.

Many analysts say that rather than Apple holding any power here it’s these three businesses that have the upper hand. These companies are the only ones in the world capable of quickly mass producing Apple products of the right quality. There really are no other companies who could deliver the product on time and to the highest standard. One expert said that if Apple tried to move products away from Foxconn then Foxconn would simply buy whichever supplier Apple turned to.

Apple is aware of the way in which these companies treat their employees and the company’s 2010 Supplier Responsibility report listed the many concerns they have but if Apple wants to continue to mass produce these devices it looks like they have nowhere else to turn.

Meanwhile the relationship between these three businesses and Apple rivals in the electronics business is even more difficult. Apple still controls its own research and development and its suppliers make what they ask them to make. However, companies such as Dell, HP and Acer are in the hands of Quanta and Foxconn. A technology analyst at UBS, Edward Yen, said Dell et al “pretty much say to Quanta and Foxconn: “Show us what you’ve got””. Basically, it’s the suppliers who are coming up with the new technology – not Dell and HP.

Yen says it would be possible for a company like Apple to build up the capabilities of another supplier but he added it’s not something that could happen overnight – it going to take several years. Until that happens it looks like the poor treatment of workers in China is set to continue.

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Source: The Daily Telegraph (06.03.10)

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Unified Communications Benefits for Business

March 15th, 2010

Unified Communications – UC, simplify and incorporate all forms of communications to optimise business processes as well as reduce response times, help manage flows and eliminate device and media dependencies. Computing expert, Martin Courtney, a former systems support analyst at the Home Office, has outlined why unified communications could be so important to businesses…

In an article for computing.co.uk, Mr. Courtney explains some of the benefits of UC including the fact that it provides is a wide variety of benefits which go beyond just telephony, including voicemail and mobility.

This is because UC integrates real-time communication services, like instant messaging, presence information, Telephony (including IP telephony), video conferencing, call control and speech recognition with non real-time communication services, such as unified messaging – integrated voicemail, e-mail, SMS and fax.

Businesses can also improve their training by implementing unified communications systems which integrate video conferencing, thus saving precious time and money, for example, on travelling and accommodation expenses.

The potential return on investment is also an advantage – Courtney cites two NHS primary care trusts that were able to achieve a payback from the transition in approximately 18 months.

In addition, a survey conducted by Siemens reveals that 51% of communication professionals believe unified communications systems will be widely implemented by 2012 – with a recent investigation by Wainhouse Research estimating that the global unified communication market could be worth approximately $30 billion in 2015.

Source: outsourcery.co.uk – a unified communications and hosted IT company

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Opec Worried About Increase In Iraq Oil Production

March 15th, 2010

Opec is worried that it may not be able to control the world supply of oil as Iraq’s oil fields start to pump out more and more, reports The Times Online.

Oil exports from Iraq were at their highest for 20 years in February at 2.08 million barrels a day and the plan is to increase that to 2.15 million barrels per day for the remainder of the year.

 Iraq has recently signed deals with a variety of multinational oil companies including Shell, BP and ExxonMobil raising the prospects of an even bigger surge in oil production in the next few years.

Iraq was suspended from Opec quotas in 2003 but with increasing oil production the cartel wants to bring the country back under their influence. The Centre for Global Energy Studies said ““If [Iraq] enjoys a period of stability, it could have a major destabilising effect on Opec and the oil price”.

Opec really wants to keep the price of oil at around $70-$80 a barrel and an increase in oil production in Iraq could mean oil prices fall as the amount of oil available on the market increases.

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Source: The Times Online

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New EU Emissions Targets Will Mean Energy Bills Rise

March 15th, 2010

The European Union is planning to implement the strictest greenhouse gas emissions in the world and in doing so, The Times Online reports, energy bills will rise.

The EU had set a target of reducing emissions by 20% on 1990 levels by 2020, but under new proposals the target could be set at 30%. The Government is set to support the proposals which could raise energy bills but will, it is argued, mean the creation of thousands of jobs in green industries.

To put it in perspective the American government is considering whether or not to cut emissions by 4% on 1990 levels by 2020, showing that the EU decision would be radical to say the least.

A policy document from the European Commission says the EU should adopt the 30% target “if conditions are right”. This differs from previous years when the EU said it would only adopt a higher target if other nations agreed to a legally binding treaty on emissions.

In order to achieve the 30% cut there may have to be higher taxes on fuel and flights and the European Commission is carrying out a study of potential policies. This study is set to be ready for the EU to make its decision on the higher target in June.

The Liberal Democrat MEP for the North West of England, Chris Davies, said the higher target would mean higher gas and electricity bills in order to pay for renewable energy which costs more. He went on to say, “That’s a price worth paying because it drives forward low-carbon investment and creates jobs in a green economy. The 30 per cent target has become much more achievable anyway because emissions have fallen in the recession”.

However, the Taxpayers’ Alliance said that by meeting the 30% target the economy would shrink meaning Britain’s GDP would be cut by 30% or £500 billion by 2020. But the Climate Group says the higher target would stimulate investment in the green industry therefore increasing GDP and creating over a million jobs across Europe.

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Source: The Times Online

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The Business Desk iPhone App

March 15th, 2010

Providing business news to the North West, Yorkshire and the West Midlands, TheBusinessDesk.com sends out over 500,000 email bulletins to business readers every month and in an attempt to make it even easier for users to get access to all three business news sites – it has just become the first regional business publisher to offer a free iPhone ‘app’.

The application will nicely complement the company’s service’s websites, confirms Chris Barry, North West editor of TheBusinessDesk.com:

“When we launched three years ago, we were the first regional provider of online business news…

… Having built up more than 35,000 registered users across our sites, it is important that we continue to innovate and make it as easy as possible for our users to access up to the minute regional news whether in the office or out and about…

…We have been receiving more and more requests for an app since the iPhone was released to more networks last year and we are all about giving users the best information in whatever format they want. We will be following this launch with an app for the Blackberry and other platforms too”

TheBusinessDesk.com was launched in 2007 by former Yorkshire Post business editor David Parkin. The North West site was then launched in September 2008 and subsequently the West Midlands site was launched in January 2010. The company now employs 17 journalists and support staff and is set to turnover £1 million this year.

The BusinessDesk.com app is available now for free download from the iTunes store.

Source: thebusinessdesk.com

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Norfolk Village Fights Giant Wind Farm Substation

March 15th, 2010

Residents of a village in Norfolk have signed a petition against the construction of a giant electricity substation which will process electricity from an offshore wind farm, reports The Daily Telegraph.

The Little Dunham residents say the plan for the substation will be one of the biggest of its kind in Europe and warn other coastal communities that they could face similar battles as Britain expands its wind farm industry.

However, the company behind the substation, Warwick Energy, says it won’t “have a significant impact on the local environment”.

But local campaigners say the site which has been set aside for the substation would fit Wembley stadium and would occupy as much as 22 acres. Campaigners are angry that they’ve not been consulted.

Warwick Energy said the substation would transfer power generated from the proposed offshore wind farm at Cromer and applied for planning permission for the site in December.

Warwick Energy said they had held exhibitions locally and handed out questionnaires which they said showed that 69% “of people supported the specific onshore proposals”. They also showed that 23% were undecided and 8% were against the proposed substation.

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Source: The Daily Telegraph

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