Europe’s renewable energy sector is facing significant insecurity in the wake of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union. The Brexit campaign was led by a number of leading political figures who oppose tackling climate change by introducing wind warms and other renewable energy sources to replace fossil fuel
OPDE Group finishes building solar farms for UK Community International OPDE Group, a company that specialises in the investment, development, and maintenance of solar photovoltaic farms has completed three photovoltaic plants in England. The new solar PVs are expected to generate about 15 megawatts for power, which is enough to
Gill Group House – Delivering Excellence (The Following is a Promoted Article) An end-to-end service is highly regarded in the construction industry. If businesses are able to carry out all works in singular rather than necessitate the cooperation of multiple parties, it represents the significant de-risking of a contract from
Europe’s renewable energy sector is facing significant insecurity in the wake of the UK’s vote to leave the European Union. The Brexit campaign was led by a number of leading political figures who oppose tackling climate change by introducing wind warms and other renewable energy sources to replace fossil fuel power stations. Lord Nigel Lawson, founder of the Global Warming Policy Foundation think tank, was part of the strategy committee for the leave campaign and he has been quoted as saying that the science behind climate change is “not yet settled.” Boris Johnson, figurehead of the Brexit movement and former Mayor of London, once questioned the validity of global warming during a snowy winter and said that wind farms are “hideous” and ruining the country’s landscape. Of all the possible contenders to replace David Cameron, none are great advocates of renewable energy sources, with one in particular, Michael Gove, once accused of downgrading climate change in the national school’s curriculum. It is now unclear what course of action the government will take in terms of renewable energy sources given the current state of disarray in the country’s political landscape. However the Brexit win raises questions about whether the cross party unity on tackling the issue of global warming will now start to disintegrate. So far, the biggest green organisations in the EU have downplayed concerns about the UK’s environmental sector, which, according to the Renewable Energy Association, had a market value of £16 billion last year and employed almost 117,000 people. Donk Energy of Denmark, which builds some of the UK’s biggest offshore windfarms, believes that the UK’s energy policy is mainly driven by the necessity to replace old worn out power stations. Chief Financial Office, Marianne Wiinholt, says that the subsidies received by the company for its UK offshore projects are based on fixed private law contracts between the government and the company.
OPDE Group finishes building solar farms for UK Community International OPDE Group, a company that specialises in the investment, development, and maintenance of solar photovoltaic farms has completed three photovoltaic plants in England. The new solar PVs are expected to generate about 15 megawatts for power, which is enough to power up to 6,000 homes. The installation of solar panels, and the materials needed for building the PVs, has dropped considerably in recent years. The drop in prices, along with the need for renewable energy sources to cut our carbon footprint, has made it possible for OPDE to install solar PVs in England. It’s not just OPDE that is backing PV farms, as many multinational companies are backing renewable energy projects across the world. Swiss Engineering company Sulzer, vowed in its 2014 Technical Review on renewable energy pumps to increase their support for renewable energy up to the year 2020. The company, which is in partnership with Unaoil, an oil and gas solutions firm that recently hit the news after being unjustly accused of fraud, feels that the forecasted renewable energy targets can be met, if the country maintains its commitments to renewable solutions over the next couple of years. In the past few years, Solar PV panels have reduced in prices by approximately 40%. This is a result of manufacturing costs decreasing, as well as a competitive market. The three new solar farms are located near Colston Bassett in Nottinghamshire, Crewkerne in Somerset; and Sittingbourne in Kent. According to OPDE, renewable energy generation should be uninterrupted as the PVs have been connected to the grid and are expected to operate for many years to come. “For OPDE, this is a strategic market where we have successfully consolidated our presence with the accumulation of 90 MW of developed capacity,” said an OPDE spokesperson in a press release. With renewable energy in demand in the UK, and the OPDE’s timely completion of the solar firms, it has helped them establish themselves in the UK, and shows their commitment to the region moving forward.
Gill Group House – Delivering Excellence (The Following is a Promoted Article) An end-to-end service is highly regarded in the construction industry. If businesses are able to carry out all works in singular rather than necessitate the cooperation of multiple parties, it represents the significant de-risking of a contract from the perspective of the client – both financially and in terms of health and safety. Founded in 1988 with just one civil division, Gill Group House has since grown into a multidimensional (and multimillion pound) organisation with no less than eight different companies under its group header, including: Gill Civil, Cello Aviation, Titan Plant Hire and Gill Aggregates. Each strand compliments the next and, indeed, Gill Group House carries out most projects without the help of subcontractors owing to the sheer breadth of its expertise and competencies. One such area of expertise and competence in which Gill Group House is well-versed is health and safety and, in view of both the frequency and urgency with which health and safety issues arise within the construction industry specifically, such emphasis is to be lauded. In terms of what that drive translates as, the company places priority on training, employing a complex training matrix in order to identity specific training requirements and keep up-to-date with renewals. With so many companies and divisions, the matrix spans across anything from traffic management and Rubber Duck training (Wheeled Excavator360 Above 10 Tonnes) for HGV operators to working at height and site supervisor training. Mark Jordan, HSQE Manager at Gill Group House stresses the importance of having mechanisms which are both proactive and ongoing, specifically highlighting the value of strong communication. “Providing that linkage between supervisors and operatives is essential,” he says. “To get the best out of the team and achieve the greatest results, you have to maintain strong communication every day: reinforcing what’s required and also highlighting the specifics of each job and each client.” Those aims are realised by regular, on site toolbox talks led by project managers and contracts managers as well as daily briefings on the day’s itinerary and its accompanying procedures and hazards. On the rare occasions where Gill Group House works alongside sub-contractors, such as a recent 24-month project at Felixstowe where multiple parties were appointed by the principal contractor, the company extends briefings to all operatives on site, endeavouring to promote collaboration rather than separatism. Whilst such interest in health and safety is primarily concerned with improving the working environment of operatives and mitigating risk to the public, Mark Jordan highlights that strong corporate ethics can dramatically improve the attractiveness of a firm as well as speeding up the tendering process. Talking specifically about accreditation, he insists, “Strong health and safety values and practices are frequently becoming a key part of customers’ method statements and CHAS and ISO accreditation are a means of evidencing those ethics.” With ISO14001 and BS OHSAS 18001 as well as ISO9001, there is little question as to Gill Group House’s keen ethics on not such health and safety but quality and the environment, too. And continuing to go much further than simply compliance, the company only grows in stature and, in many respects, represents the pinnacle of excellence to which all should strive.
