Europe and US
BP settles Gulf of Mexico oil spill lawsuit
BP will pay out $7.8 billion (£5 billion) to settle a lawsuit with thousands of individuals from the Gulf of Mexico oil disaster. The settlement was reached just ahead of the trial held earlier this month in a New Orleans court. In a statement the oil company said it would use the remainder of the $20 billion compensation fund raised in the summer of 2010 to settle claims with tens of thousands of shrimp boat captains, condo owners and others who suffered losses in the spill.
The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2012/mar/03/bp-settles-gulf-mexico-spill?cat=environment&type=article
Global development: UK and US renew aid partnership
Prime Minister David Cameron and President Barack Obama renewed their commitment to change the lives of 1.2 billion poor people in the world through the US-UK Partnership for Global Development during Mr Cameron’s visit to the United States earlier this month. This Partnership aims to advance economic growth; prevent conflict in fragile states; improve global health, particularly for girls and women; strengthen mutual accountability, transparency, and measurement of results; and mitigate the effects of climate change. The United States and UK are collaborating closely to increase resilience of communities to climate change and supporting the development and deployment of clean energy technologies as part of our collective commitments to global action.
DFID http://www.dfid.gov.uk/News/Latest-news/2012/Global-development-UK-and-US-renew-aid-partnership/
Asia
China world’s wind power leader
China consolidated its position as the world’s wind power leader in both newly and cumulative installed capacities in 2011, according to official figures released by the China Wind Energy Association (CWEA). The CWEA says that China had 17.6 gigawatts (GW) of wind turbines installed in 2011. Li Junfeng, director of the China Renewable Energy Industries Association, said the Chinese wind power industry met with many challenges in 2011, including slower wind farm construction and many accidents in the sector, but nevertheless managed to overcome all the hardships and demonstrated excellent performance by the end of the year.
Eco-Business http://www.eco-business.com/news/china-worlds-wind-power-leader/
India backs clean energy with new wave of tax breaks
India’s latest budget includes souped-up subsidies and tax breaks for clean energy in a bid to boost the country’s economy. Budget documents reveal the government’s intention to launch the Twelfth Five Year Plan later this year with the aim of “faster, sustainable and more inclusive growth”. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said that under the plan India would exempt clean energy technologies such as solar equipment from taxes as part of a package designed to boost infrastructure spending.
Business Green http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2163348/india-backs-clean-energy-wave-tax-breaks
Africa
Carbon finance bankrolls world’s largest water treatment programme in developing country, Kenya
A pioneering sustainable water programme which aims to tackle global water, climate and health challenges has successful used carbon finance to fund a water treatment project in western Kenya. The LifeStraw ‘Carbon for Water’ programme, which was launched last year by water disease control technology company Vestergaard Frandsen (VF), is thought to be the world’s largest water treatment project in a developing country. As a result of the project VF said that more than 90% of Kenya’s western province now has access to safe drinking water at no additional cost to local communities or the Government.
Times CEO summit highlights the growing opportunities in Africa
The Times Africa CEO Summit which gathered Africa’s leading CEO’s and chairmen was held on 19th March 2012 in London and discussed the growth of economic opportunities in Africa. Topics that were raised include: the importance of transport for African prosperity and the implications of Africa’s natural wealth. Phillip Ihenacho, chairman of Nigerian oil and gas producer Seven Energy, acknowledged the huge potential for private sector investment into power plants. The issue of greener energy was also discussed. Ben Good, chief executive of GVEP (Global Village Energy Partnership), a charity which works with local businesses in developing countries to increase access to modern energy, said: “Awareness in Africa about alternative energy is rising among consumers. Consumers are doing it to save money not to be green.”
The Times* http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/public/ceo-summit-africa/
http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/business/ceo-summit-africa/article3353439.ece
Latin America
Coke and Heineken drink to Latin America’s largest wind farm
Vestas , a Danish wind turbine company and the largest in the world, has won a deal to supply 132 turbines to what is set to become the biggest wind power project in Latin America, supplying electricity to Coca-Cola and Heineken bottling plants. The Danish company will supply turbines with a total capacity of 396MW to the Mareña Renovables project in the south-eastern region of the Mexican State of Oaxaca.
Business Green http://www.businessgreen.com/bg/news/2159211/coke-heineken-drink-latin-americas-largest-wind-farm
Brazil’s economy overtakes UK to become world’s sixth largest
Brazil has claimed the UK’s spot as the world’s sixth largest economy after official figures showed its economy rose 2.7% last year. The per capita income of Brazilians remains less than a third of that enjoyed in the UK at $11,000 (£7,000) per head, but the situation is improving all the time while western economies largely stagnate. Top of the list of economic attractions in Brazil is agriculture and the processing of foodstuffs, which account for about a quarter of Brazilian GDP and 36% of exports. Oil is expected to become the next big commodity for export, as the country’s reserves are believed to equal those shared by Norway and the UK in the North Sea.
The Guardian http://www.guardian.co.uk/business/2012/mar/06/brazil-economy-worlds-sixth-largest?newsfeed=true