Ineos is aiming to accelerate its shale gas development in the UK by lodging up to 30 planning applications to drill test wells over the course of the next six months. The $50 billion petrochemicals firm is controlled by British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe, and one of its directors, Tom Crotty, said that the company has plans to begin drilling in the north of England early in 2017, while gas extraction could start in 18 months through the controversial fracking process. The plan has been announced at a time when the group is ending a six year tax exile with the opening of a new London headquarters for its upstream oil and gas operations which are based primarily in the UK. Ratcliffe was the UK founder of the company, which he took to Switzerland in 2010 as it was struggling to pay its taxes following the global financial crisis, while he has now also returned to live in the UK. Ineos’ primary concern now is to continue its free trade with the EU, in particular with Norway, where the firm has a significant petrochemical business, which Ratcliffe says “is a model that works for us.” The company has been built up over more than a decade through a number of acquisitions and last year moved into gas production after its $750 million acquisition of 12 North Sea fields from Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman. The group also owns the Grangemouth refinery in Scotland and has ambitions of becoming a major producer of oil and gas, in particular shale gas. Over the last year, Ineos has backed a very public campaign to persuade the Scottish government to remove its moratorium on fracking. However, the campaign was unsuccessful and has resulted in the group bidding for licenses in England and now has rights covering 1m acres, primarily in North Yorkshire, the North Midlands and the Cheshire basin.

In an attempt to boost their business and tap into a new market, Calor is urging rural installers to become qualified LPG tumble dryer installers. Research has recently shown that LPG tumble dryers cost about 25% less to run that standard electric dryers, which makes them a suitable appliance for the two million homes in the UK that are off the main gas grid. In its recommendation of switching from solid fuel, oil and electricity to LPG home heating, Calor says that installers would benefit from the extra work along with this conversion, such as fitting a new LPG tumble dryer and boiler, along with other LPG appliances such as cookers and fires. The laundry is dried by the LPG tumble driers using the gas to hear the air inside the dryers and although they still use a small amount of electricity to power the control panel and turn the drum, this is still less than 10% of the full amount of electricity used by a standard electric dryer. Along with being cheaper to run in the long term, LPG models are also more energy efficient with Calor’s LPG dryers having an ‘A’ energy rating, whereas most common electric dryers have a ‘C’ energy rating. This means that they are more efficient than electric dryers by around 40%. Calor Appliance Manager, Teresa Wafer, commented: “Installers should arm themselves with these statistics about the cost and energy saving benefits of LPG tumble dryers, and inform their off-grid customers about these benefits in order to gain new LPG installation work.” Furthermore, Calor says that gas tumble dryers also help to reduce the static build up in fabrics, which can damage clothes, while the reverse tumble action reduction means that items are less likely to become creased and tangled. Calor LPG dryers can either be fuelled by Calor gas from bottles or a larger storage tank.

British Telecom has been once again been prosecuted for dangerous and disruptive roadwork failings in London. This is the second occasion in three weeks that BT has faced action from Transport for London and the 41st time in total in the last six years. The latest prosecution against BT comes after the work carried out close to Victoria Station on Victoria Station on January 26, 2016. On July 6, the company pleaded guilty to four offences at Westminster Magistrates’ court, which were: failing to serve necessary statutory works notices following completion, failing to serve necessary statutory works notices before commencement, unsafe execution of works and conducting street works without a permit. For these offences, the telecommunications giant was hit with a £3,250 fine and ordered to pay court costs of £1,800. In passing the sentence, the judge explained that this is not a one off breach of regulations; rather the records show that the company has frequently been in breach of them despite TfL issuing a large number of fixed penalty notices. The judge went on to say: “I understand no injuries occurred on this occasion but clearly more needs to be done to avoid these embarrassing prosecutions.” In June, BT was issued with a £4,500 fine along with £3,916 in costs for the dangerous street works on Brixton Road and Clapham Road in South London earlier in the year. Chief Operating Officer for Surface Transport at TfL, Garrett Emmerson, said that their priority is to make sure that roadworks are carried out safely in such a busy city, which is why BT has been prosecuted for the second time in three weeks. He added: “BT is a repeat offender – having failed to manage roadworks properly on a number of occasions. We will always push for the strongest possible action in order to ensure London’s streets are safe and free from unnecessary congestion.”

The failing standard of drinking water in many UK homes is being caused by poor plumbing, according to the annual report from the Drinking Water Inspectorate for England and Wales (DWI). The study has shown that almost a third of water that has failed the quality tests has come as a result of below standard fittings and poor plumbing practices in private pipes and properties after it has been transferred from the public water mains. The DWI annual report revealed that odour, taste, nickel and lead are among the problems with the deteriorating quality of drinking water in UK homes, primarily caused by incorrect fittings and materials or a lack of protection from water ‘flowing back’ into the internal pipework from household appliances. Marcus Rink, DWI Chief Inspector, commented: “A skilled and competent plumber using approved materials provides confidence in water remaining wholesome right up to the tap.” The national register for plumbers, WaterSafe, has urged homeowners to only use approved plumbers to make sure that their supply of drinking water remains safe. Julie Spinks, WaterSafe Director, said that UK water supplies are among the best in the world and the group will aim to maintain those standards by making sure that drinking water in homes is of the same standard as when it leaves the water treatment works at the water companies. She added: “The use of a nationally registered plumber such as the WaterSafe scheme goes towards securing safe clean water for all, delivering the high quality of water we have come to expect.” Every year, water samples are taken from customers’ taps, water mains, pumping stations, water treatment works and reservoirs to test for a number of substances which are then measured against the standards outlined by the World Health Organisation. In England and Wales, the overall pass rate for drinking water was 99.96%.

Oil and gas giant Shell is preparing for strike action across seven of its platforms in the North Sea as part of the largest UK oilfields industrial dispute for ten years. Earlier in the week, workers at Wood Group, the company which provides Shell with maintenance services, voted in favour of strike action in protest at the changes to working conditions and pay. The dispute is a reflection of the increasing tensions in North Sea industrial relations as businesses struggle to keep the basin competitive in the face of low oil prices, high costs and declining production. Shell says that it is not expecting disruption to hit immediately and has put contingency plans in place to make sure that essential maintenance would carry on as normal if the strike goes ahead as planned. Shell has been accused of recruiting “scab labour” by trade unions after advertisements were posted to a job agency website which offered maintenance work on week by week contracts. RMT and Unite union leaders said that their members had voted overwhelmingly in favour of strike action. Head of Shell’s upstream business in the UK and Ireland, Paul Goodfellow, said that he was disappointed with the outcome of the vote and was hopeful that the Wood Group and its employees would be able to resolves their issues without the need for a walkout. Goodfellow commented: “Our priority is to ensure that the safety of our people and assets will not be compromised during any industrial action.” Meanwhile, Head of Wood Group’s Eastern Region, Dave Stewart, said that the company was hopeful of reaching an agreement with the unions that “meets our mutual goal of safeguarding these jobs in the North Sea now and in the future.” On average, Wood Group employees are facing a basic salary reduction of 3%.

The UK’s roads watchdog has warned Highways England that it must change its planning processes if it is to be successful in delivering its £15 billion Road Investment Strategy. If the agency is to meet its delivery targets for the rest of the programme, the Office of Road and Rail said that the agency would require a more “robust internal planning process.” The comments came in the ORR’s first yearly review of the performance of Highways England which stated that the agency has made a “good start” to RIS by spending in line with the agreed funding and meeting all of its performance targets. However, there were concerns raised over the ability of Highways England to deal with “future risks” including skills shortages as workloads increased. In 2015/16, Highways England spent just more than £1.7 billion on renewals and enhancements, which will rise to £2.2 billion the following year and £3 billion in 2020. Joanna Whittington, Chief Executive of ORR, warned that most of its delivery targets had been set for the latter stages of its five year funding period and the agency required “more work to do to demonstrate how it will ensure delivery of its capital investment plan.” Whittington added: “The company needs to be clear about how it will manage some specific risks, such as those associated with the availability of skilled workforce and capacity of the supply chain to deliver.” The report also stated that the sector’s “strongest capacity constraint” was its ability to attract people with the appropriate skill set. Earlier in the week it was revealed that Highways England was to replace the current Collaborative Delivery Framework with a £7 billion framework. As part of its plans, Jim O’Sullivan, Chief Executive, outlined plans for a “route to market” initiative that would consult suppliers on how the framework should be shaped moving forward.

The ‘Gas Transportation Company’ (GTC), a utilities infrastructure provider, has signed a deal to provide fibre networks, electricity and has to a Bovis Homes development in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire. The Stanton Cross site is a £900 million development of 144,000 m2 of commercial space and almost 4,000 homes. GTC will make the connection of electricity from the main substation which is expected to serve all the planned commercial properties and homes. The company will also install a second duct which will allow them to install a new, GTC owned, primary substation on site in order to provide for more homes if they were to go ahead. Every home will be equipped with fibre optic cabling, with unlimited upload and download speeds, with no television aerial or satellite dish required. GTC will also install FIRS, a fibre integrated reception system, which will allow digital and satellite television to be received through an aerial and community dish, while the television signal will be transmitted via the ‘fibre to the home’ network. John Lougher, Land Director at Bovis Homes Group, said that technology is playing a more and more important role in our lives, in particular in our businesses and homes where super-fast internet connection and high speed fibre is in very high demand. Lougher added: “We are delighted that future businesses and residents of Stanton Cross will benefit from this very latest technology by GTC.” Meanwhile, Tom Brough, GTC Sales and Marketing Director, said: “It is crucial for GTC to be able to offer multi-utility solutions that will stand the test of time in order to benefit new communities for future decades. He added: “It also makes a great deal of sense for house builders  to be able to obtain all essential utilities through one reliable provider in order to ensure new home completions are delivered on time and on budget.”

Welsh Water says it will give its three million customers a chance to voice their opinions on how the company should invest in services in the future. The non-profit water and sewerage firm does not have shareholders but will permit customers to offer views on how the company board should prioritise the spending of the company’s financial gains, which are forecast to be £30 million next year. The consultation process will last for 10 weeks and will offer various options for customers to choose from on the organisation website, including money off water and sewerage bills, more help for those who are struggling to pay their bills, investing in more pumps and water treatment works and support for educational and recreational schemes in communities. Chris Jones, Chief Executive at Welsh Water, said that the move is an unparalleled one as it gives people a real say in how they should spend any returns they achieve, which he believes reflects how their non-profit status is rooted in its work with customers and for customers. He added: “As we do not have any shareholders, we reinvest money in our network, support our customers and embed innovation to keep our service modern, efficient and at an affordable price.” The water supplier announced last month that it was to invest a further £32 million into its services in 2016, along with helping lower income homes after is recorded its best year in overall performance since it became non-profit in 2001. The consultation will be launched on July 11 and will run through until September 19. Last month, Welsh Water’s Head of Energy, Mike Pedley, said that “Companies need to be prepared to use their assets as flexibly as possible.” He believes that the company should provide a service that not only benefits themselves but also the country in general.

The National Grid has said that it is confident of having the required power supplies to keep the lights on this coming winter, but only because of the introduction of emergency measures to avoid blackouts. The operator of the UK’s electricity transmission system has forecast that it will have enough power and predicts that the buffer between supply and demand in the winter months is likely to average around 5.5%, which is similar to last year’s margin, stating that this was “manageable.” However, without the spare capacity that power generators are paid to keep on standby, the margin would have been just 0.1%, along with a scheme to pay industrial users to cut demand during peak times. The National Grid has given lucrative contracts to a number of energy firms to keep mothballed coal fired power stations available to use at short notice as the electricity network in the UK has come under more and more strain. National Grid Director of UK Market Operations, Cordi O’Hara, said she was confident that the organisation is equipped with the right services and tools, including more power that can be called upon if needed for the highest demand periods. However, blackout fears have been increased by a number of major supply crunches caused by fires and breakdowns at power stations in the UK over recent years; however Hugo Chandler, a director at New Resource Partners, an energy consultancy service said that the National Grid deserved credit for ensuring that the system is strong enough to cope. Mr Chandler commented: “We are moving towards a decentralised, flexible grid with a diverse mix of generation capacity, and increasingly smart methods of balancing supply and demand.” However, the National Grid stated earlier in the week that the big new capacity sources were needed in the coming years to make sure that the UK has an adequate electricity supply.