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[BusinessGreen.com > News > Politics]
Greens enjoy kingmaker role as Australia heads for hung parliament
Climate change policy likely to play key role in coalition negotiations as Greens and Independents are thrown into the spotlight
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
Australia's climate change policy is resting on a knife edge after both leading parties failed to secure a working majority in Saturday's election, leaving the future make up of any government resting in the hands of a small band of Green and independent MPs.
With just a small number of seats yet to declare both the ruling Labor party and the opposition Liberals are expected to fall short of the 76 seats they need to form a working majority - resulting in the first hung parliament in the country since 1940.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott both flew to Canberra today to begin days, if not weeks, of negotiations as they attempt to stitch together a coalition government.
Gillard insisted Labor had the right to try and form a government first after securing the majority of the two party preferred votes under Australia's preferential voting system.
However, Abbott countered that a huge swing away from Labor meant it was " almost inconceivable that any Labor government emerging from this election could deliver competent and stable government".
Attention has now turned to a small handful of independent MPs - Bob Katter, Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott, who have formerly had ties to the Liberal Party – who have said they will stand "shoulder-to-shoulder" in talks with both main parties, and Green MP Adam Bandt, who is expected to support Labor.
A fourth independent MP who was previously a member of the Green Party, Andrew Wilkie, is expected to win the Tasmanian seat of Denison. It had been thought he could side with Labor, but in comments to news agency AAP he insisted he was no longer tied to the Green Party and would make an independent decision on which party to work with.
"I am genuinely independent," he said. "I am going to put it to the Labor Party and the [Liberal-led] coalition to convince me that you can deliver stable government for three years, competent government for three years and ethical government for three years."
Depending on the final vote tally, Labor and the Liberals are expected to need the backing of between two and four independents to secure a majority.
Climate change policy is set to play a key role in the political horse-trading with the Greens likely to try and drive a hard bargain in return for their support.
The Party has been emboldened after seeing its share of the vote hit record levels in what party leader, Bob Brown, described it as a "Greenslide". The Greens are now expecting to have between eight and 10 seats across the two houses of parliament by the time all votes are counted.
The Party refused to back the previous Labor government's controversial climate change bill on the grounds that it did not go far enough and it is now likely to demand a more ambitious set of proposals for curbing carbon emissions in return for its support.
However, at the same time the Liberal Party remains fiercely opposed to the previous government's proposals for a climate change bill that would put a price on carbon and if Abbot secures the right to form the next government Australia's climate change policy is likely to be put on ice for the next four years.
[BusinessGreen.com > News > Risk]
UK government held secret peak oil talks
Observer obtains documents showing that Whitehall privately accepts its response to the threat of peak oil has not been good enough
Danny Bradbury, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
The UK Government has been holding secret talks to assess the potential impact of peak oil, according to reports, suggesting that it is seriously concerned about the issue.
According to reports in the Observer newspaper, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Bank of England, and the Ministry of Defence participated in talks over the issue.
Documents, obtained by the newspaper under the Freedom of Information Act, revealed that the departments believe the Government's policy on peak oil is " not quite right" and needs to "take account of climate change and put more emphasis on reducing demand and also the fact that peak oil may increase volatility in the market".
DECC, which has been asking industry leaders for their views on peak oil, refused to release details about current policy discussions, in spite of having written privately that secrecy around the topic is "probably not good".
Peak oil, a phenomenon first posited by Shell geoscientist Marion King Hubbert, suggests that oil production will reach a maximum level, after which point it will go into decline. The concept has been controversial, with industry commentators varying wildly on the timing of the peak.
Airline magnate Richard Branson predicted an oil crunch within five years in February, while others, particularly the International Energy Agency, have predicted sustained production for several decades more. Some experts even believe oil production may have already peaked and oil prices have only been kept low over the past few years as a result of the global recession.
In February this year, the UK Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security - a group of companies including Virgin, Scottish and Southern Energy and the StageCoach Group - released a report criticising the UK Government for not taking peak oil seriously.
The report called on the UK Government to prepare for peak oil, which it said could have economic, political and social impacts from as early as 2015.
The group is now preparing a follow up report, which is expected to be released in October and will assess how the BP oil spill in the Gulf and the resulting cuts in anticipated output from deepwater oil rigs will impact global production and potentially lead to oil supplies peaking even earlier.
In the US, the Joint Operating Environment within the Department of Defense, published a report on peak oil in February warning that peak oil could have an effect within a few years.
It warned that "a severe energy crunch is inevitable without a massive expansion of production and refining capacity", adding that "by 2012, surplus oil production capacity could entirely disappear, and as early as 2015, the shortfall in output could reach nearly 10 MBD[Millions of Barrels per Day]".
[BusinessGreen.com > News > Technology]
ULTRaMo seeks funding to jump-start green engine design
UK start-up details plans to develop an ultra-efficient internal combustion engine which could halve fuel consumption
Jessica Shankleman, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
A British clean tech start-up is seeking funding to roll out a highly efficient internal combustion engine, which it claims could halve fuel consumption compared to conventional engines.
ULTRaMo Engines says its new design could reach about 70 per cent overall efficiency, compared to 30 per cent efficiency for traditional engines, by capturing energy usually lost as heat through the engine's exhaust and radiator.
The company is closely guarding the precise details of its technology, but claims to have developed an approach that "re-addresses the thermodynamic cycle in internal combustion engines" in a way that delivers sizable improvements in thermal efficiency.
The Sussex-based firm is looking to secure up to £400,000 to fund the development of three prototype engines and begin commercialising the technology, explained project and finance manager Chrissi Wilkins.
The company was approved for a £100,000 R&D grant from the South West Regional Development Agency before the election, but the funding has been put on hold until after the spending review report in October.
Wilkins said the move had forced the company to delay work on its prototype engines. "It's an 18-month programme [to develop three prototypes] which we were hoping to start in September or October, but now we're looking at starting at the end of the year," she said.
Despite the obstacles thrown down by the government's austerity measures, the three-person ULTRaMo team is looking at a number of other funding options, including the Carbon Trust's Entrepreneurs Fast Track scheme and private equity funding through Angels Den. The company is also in talks with the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts about possible funding.
ULTRaMo expects the product to appeal to a wide range of motor markets, including transport and agriculture, although it plans to initially target the technology at the energy generator market.
Wilkins revealed the firm is in talks with a number of generator firms with a view to securing a licensing deal by the end of the first year of the research and development programme.
[BusinessGreen.com > News > Politics]
Greens enjoy kingmaker role as Australia heads for hung parliament
Climate change policy likely to play key role in coalition negotiations as Greens and Independents are thrown into the spotlight
James Murray, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
Australia's climate change policy is resting on a knife edge after both leading parties failed to secure a working majority in Saturday's election, leaving the future make up of any government resting in the hands of a small band of Green and independent MPs.
With just a small number of seats yet to declare both the ruling Labor party and the opposition Liberals are expected to fall short of the 76 seats they need to form a working majority - resulting in the first hung parliament in the country since 1940.
Prime Minister Julia Gillard and opposition leader Tony Abbott both flew to Canberra today to begin days, if not weeks, of negotiations as they attempt to stitch together a coalition government.
Gillard insisted Labor had the right to try and form a government first after securing the majority of the two party preferred votes under Australia's preferential voting system.
However, Abbott countered that a huge swing away from Labor meant it was " almost inconceivable that any Labor government emerging from this election could deliver competent and stable government".
Attention has now turned to a small handful of independent MPs - Bob Katter, Tony Windsor and Rob Oakeshott, who have formerly had ties to the Liberal Party – who have said they will stand "shoulder-to-shoulder" in talks with both main parties, and Green MP Adam Bandt, who is expected to support Labor.
A fourth independent MP who was previously a member of the Green Party, Andrew Wilkie, is expected to win the Tasmanian seat of Denison. It had been thought he could side with Labor, but in comments to news agency AAP he insisted he was no longer tied to the Green Party and would make an independent decision on which party to work with.
"I am genuinely independent," he said. "I am going to put it to the Labor Party and the [Liberal-led] coalition to convince me that you can deliver stable government for three years, competent government for three years and ethical government for three years."
Depending on the final vote tally, Labor and the Liberals are expected to need the backing of between two and four independents to secure a majority.
Climate change policy is set to play a key role in the political horse-trading with the Greens likely to try and drive a hard bargain in return for their support.
The Party has been emboldened after seeing its share of the vote hit record levels in what party leader, Bob Brown, described it as a "Greenslide". The Greens are now expecting to have between eight and 10 seats across the two houses of parliament by the time all votes are counted.
The Party refused to back the previous Labor government's controversial climate change bill on the grounds that it did not go far enough and it is now likely to demand a more ambitious set of proposals for curbing carbon emissions in return for its support.
However, at the same time the Liberal Party remains fiercely opposed to the previous government's proposals for a climate change bill that would put a price on carbon and if Abbot secures the right to form the next government Australia's climate change policy is likely to be put on ice for the next four years.
[BusinessGreen.com > News > Risk]
UK government held secret peak oil talks
Observer obtains documents showing that Whitehall privately accepts its response to the threat of peak oil has not been good enough
Danny Bradbury, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
The UK Government has been holding secret talks to assess the potential impact of peak oil, according to reports, suggesting that it is seriously concerned about the issue.
According to reports in the Observer newspaper, the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC), the Bank of England, and the Ministry of Defence participated in talks over the issue.
Documents, obtained by the newspaper under the Freedom of Information Act, revealed that the departments believe the Government's policy on peak oil is " not quite right" and needs to "take account of climate change and put more emphasis on reducing demand and also the fact that peak oil may increase volatility in the market".
DECC, which has been asking industry leaders for their views on peak oil, refused to release details about current policy discussions, in spite of having written privately that secrecy around the topic is "probably not good".
Peak oil, a phenomenon first posited by Shell geoscientist Marion King Hubbert, suggests that oil production will reach a maximum level, after which point it will go into decline. The concept has been controversial, with industry commentators varying wildly on the timing of the peak.
Airline magnate Richard Branson predicted an oil crunch within five years in February, while others, particularly the International Energy Agency, have predicted sustained production for several decades more. Some experts even believe oil production may have already peaked and oil prices have only been kept low over the past few years as a result of the global recession.
In February this year, the UK Industry Taskforce on Peak Oil and Energy Security - a group of companies including Virgin, Scottish and Southern Energy and the StageCoach Group - released a report criticising the UK Government for not taking peak oil seriously.
The report called on the UK Government to prepare for peak oil, which it said could have economic, political and social impacts from as early as 2015.
The group is now preparing a follow up report, which is expected to be released in October and will assess how the BP oil spill in the Gulf and the resulting cuts in anticipated output from deepwater oil rigs will impact global production and potentially lead to oil supplies peaking even earlier.
In the US, the Joint Operating Environment within the Department of Defense, published a report on peak oil in February warning that peak oil could have an effect within a few years.
It warned that "a severe energy crunch is inevitable without a massive expansion of production and refining capacity", adding that "by 2012, surplus oil production capacity could entirely disappear, and as early as 2015, the shortfall in output could reach nearly 10 MBD[Millions of Barrels per Day]".
[BusinessGreen.com > News > Technology]
ULTRaMo seeks funding to jump-start green engine design
UK start-up details plans to develop an ultra-efficient internal combustion engine which could halve fuel consumption
Jessica Shankleman, BusinessGreen, 23 Aug 2010
A British clean tech start-up is seeking funding to roll out a highly efficient internal combustion engine, which it claims could halve fuel consumption compared to conventional engines.
ULTRaMo Engines says its new design could reach about 70 per cent overall efficiency, compared to 30 per cent efficiency for traditional engines, by capturing energy usually lost as heat through the engine's exhaust and radiator.
The company is closely guarding the precise details of its technology, but claims to have developed an approach that "re-addresses the thermodynamic cycle in internal combustion engines" in a way that delivers sizable improvements in thermal efficiency.
The Sussex-based firm is looking to secure up to £400,000 to fund the development of three prototype engines and begin commercialising the technology, explained project and finance manager Chrissi Wilkins.
The company was approved for a £100,000 R&D grant from the South West Regional Development Agency before the election, but the funding has been put on hold until after the spending review report in October.
Wilkins said the move had forced the company to delay work on its prototype engines. "It's an 18-month programme [to develop three prototypes] which we were hoping to start in September or October, but now we're looking at starting at the end of the year," she said.
Despite the obstacles thrown down by the government's austerity measures, the three-person ULTRaMo team is looking at a number of other funding options, including the Carbon Trust's Entrepreneurs Fast Track scheme and private equity funding through Angels Den. The company is also in talks with the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts about possible funding.
ULTRaMo expects the product to appeal to a wide range of motor markets, including transport and agriculture, although it plans to initially target the technology at the energy generator market.
Wilkins revealed the firm is in talks with a number of generator firms with a view to securing a licensing deal by the end of the first year of the research and development programme.
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