Turner Power Systems Ltd
Commissioning Procedures and O & M manuals prepared - plant inspection of new factory buildiing phase as well as preoperated plant with full inspection, analysis of plant records and reports. Spare parts can be sourced or supplied including preowned gas turbines, steam turbines and diesel sets.
E-mail- jturnereng@aol.com
Fax (+44) 0141 634 4074 ........ Phone (+44) 0860-856567.........
(+44) 0870-1322767 E-fax /E-Voice
See www.idgte.org.....The Institution of Diesel and Gas Turbine Engineers
Also www. freespace.virgin.net/ian.avis
U K
A C T I V I T Y
R E P O R T
By John B Turner Technical Director Turner Power Systems Ltd.
Power / Energy 2000-01
TotalFinaElf has awarded a £3m contract to Morrison for the refurbishment
of its Aberdeen office. 12-Jan-01
Shell is planning to build 500 petrol stations in China in partnership with
Sinopec by 2004, at a cost of £100m. 11-Jan-01
MacGregor Energy Services of Invergordon is to recruit a further 300 engineers,
welders and other workers, having secured a number of offshore drilling
rig refit contracts. 10-Jan-01
Tendring District Council has confirmed that Enron is considering the possibility
of reviving plans to build one of the world's largest offshore wind farms
at Clacton, at a cost of up to £35m. 10-Jan-01
Fife Council is to consider plans from the Murray Group of Edinburgh for
the development of an opencast coal site in Kirkcaldy, which would create
34 jobs. 05-Jan-01
Allerdale Borough Council is to consider plans from National Wind Power
to build eight turbines at Wharrels Hill, Bothel. 05-Jan-01
RJB Mining is considering plans to revive the Thorne colliery near Doncaster
with the creation of hundreds of jobs, and has also identified 450m tonnes
of coal reserves at Witham on the Nottinghamshire border. 02-Jan-01
Lasmo, the oil exploration company, has accepted a £2.7bn takeover
offer from Eni of Italy, which beats a rival bid from Amerada Hess of the
US. 22-Dec-00
PowerGen has sold the Rye House power station in Hertfordshire to Scottish
Power for £220m. 22-Dec-00
BP is to provide £2.5m for the foundation of a new academic discipline
- low-energy building design - at Cambriidge University. 20-Dec-00
Enterprise Oil is to acquire a stake in the South Pars gas field development
in Iran, in partnership with the Petropars subsidiary of the National Iranian
Oil Company. 20-Dec-00
Rugby Cement has won government approval to build a 14MW gas-fired combined
heat and power station at its South Ferriby plant in North Lincolnshire.
19-Dec-00
PGS Atlantic Power of Norway is to create 60 new jobs at its Aberdeen operation,
having won a contract to operate an offshore support vessel for Kerr-McGee.
18-Dec-00
PowerGen has sold its option to build a 800MW power station in Cologne to
the Intergen joint venture between Shell and Bechtel for undisclosed terms,
and has also announced a £300m securitisation programme to reduce
financing costs. 18-Dec-00
BP is planning to build a £320m pipeline between Shetland and the
Magnus field which will secure 1,000 jobs, and the company will also invest
£210m in the Foinaven field. 18-Dec-00
Sibir Energy has increased its stake in its Russian subsidiary to 98% following
the purchase of a further 20% from Gazprom, and is also planning to develop
new fields in western Siberia in partnership with Sibneft. 18-Dec-00
Ramco Energy is planning to form a partnership with RWE-DEA of Germany to
drill for oil and gas in southern Poland. 15-Dec-00
Scottish & Southern Energy has won government permission to build a
gas-fired combined heat and power station at Northfleet in Kent. 15-Dec-00
Scottish Coal has won EU approval for a £17m government aid package
for the Longannet deep coal mine in Fife, which will secure more than 500
jobs. 14-Dec-00
ICI is selling its Teesside oil refinery joint venture to Petroplus of the
Netherlands for £110m. 14-Dec-00
Centrica has taken full control of its US energy supply joint venture Energy
America, with the £38m purchase of Sempra Energy's 72% stake in the
company. 13-Dec-00
Rigblast is to acquire Meaux Services of Texas for £5.5m, in order
to expand its oil industry support services with the creation of 200 new
jobs, including 100 in Aberdeen and 100 in the US. 13-Dec-00
Aupec, the petroleum economics and benchmarking consultancy created at Aberdeen
University, has undergone a management buy-out. 13-Dec-00
PowerGen has sold a 49.9% stake in Turbogas Produtora Energetica, a Portuguese
gas-fired power station, to RWE of Germany for £110m. 13-Dec-00
BP is opening its first internet-enabled Connect petrol station at Hammersmith
in west London, the first of a nationwide chain of 80 outlets being planned
for next year. 12-Dec-00
National Grid is to open up the 2,000MW electricity interconnector between
England and France to competition from next April, which will involve the
auction of 50MW blocks. 11-Dec-00
PowerGen has sold its majority power plant stakes in Asia and Australia
to CLP for £286m, and is now looking to sell power stations at Rye
House in Hertfordshire and Connah's Quay near Chester. 08-Dec-00
Innogy is considering plans to float its Regenesys electricity storage business
in 2002, and has also announced its first overseas contract to supply a
15MW power storage system to the Tennessee Valley Authority. 08-Dec-00
Conoco has confirmed oil and gas finds at Kappa in the central North Sea,
and hopes to start production by 2004. 07-Dec-00
British Nuclear Fuels is looking to play a major role in the liberalisation
of the French nuclear market, which will involve the 58 nuclear power plants
seeking tenders for all fuel assembly supplies. 07-Dec-00
Guardian iT is linking up with PowerGen to build a 24MW gas-fired power
plant at a planned £50m internet co-location facility near Heathrow,
in order to avoid electricity supply problems. 07-Dec-00
Atlantic Electric & Gas is to set up a call centre in Cardiff for its
new energy supply service in early 2001, with the creation of up to 250
jobs. 04-Dec-00
Blue Circle Industries and Michelin are forming a joint venture called Sapphire
Energy Recovery, in order to burn used tyres at Blue Circle's cement kilns
and save up to £6m a year. 04-Dec-00
AEA Technology is planning to sell off its nuclear technology operations
over the next few years, in order to focus on rail and environment services.
28-Nov-00
Scottish Power is to revive plans to build a £400m gas-fired power
station at Enderby in Leicestershire, which would create 40 jobs. 27-Nov-00
Viridian has commissioned Siemens to build a £100m power station near
Dublin by 2002. 24-Nov-00
Logica is acquiring Esis and Energy Pool Funds Administration from National
Grid for £38m. 22-Nov-00
Stroud District Council is to consider plans from Next Generation for the
development of a wind farm at Nailsworth. 21-Nov-00
British Energy is considering plans for a quotation on the Toronto Stock
Exchange next year, in order to reflect the increasing importance of the
Canadian market to its expansion strategy. 21-Nov-00
Sibir Energy has announced plans to develop three onshore oil fields in
western Siberia in partnership with Sibneft of Russia. 21-Nov-00
Invensys has acquired Meterpoint Data Services, the provider of meter reading
services, from Seeboard for £37m. 21-Nov-00
Scottish Enterprise is launching a new campaign to help Scottish companies
secure new business by supplying equipment to the wind energy sector. 17-Nov-00
BP is planning to sell three US oil refineries in order to raise up to $500m
and increase the focus on its more profitable exploration and production
activities. 17-Nov-00
The government has won European approval to provide a £110m subsidy
to the coal industry, which means that six gas power station schemes can
go-ahead at Spalding, Fleetwood, the Isle of Grain, Plymouth, Manchester
and Raventhorpe. 16-Nov-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is planning to build a £4m hydro-electric
plant near Ullapool in Wester Ross. 15-Nov-00
Conoco has won government approval for a £300m project on the Humber
Bank, which will include a new 475MW gas-fired power plant and should attract
companies looking for cheaper power to the area. 15-Nov-00
International Power has bought a further 20% stake in the coal-fired Hazelwood
power station in Australia from Scottish Power for £32m, taking its
stake to 92%. 14-Nov-00
British Gas is to recruit 120 staff at its telesales division in Cardiff,
as part of a £4m investment at the Helmont House site. 13-Nov-00
Alkane Energy is planning to raise £30m in a flotation in order to
fund the development of methane extraction plants at about 100 abandoned
coal mines by 2005. 13-Nov-00
Scottish Coal has submitted plans for an open cast mine project at Glenmuckloch
near Kirkconnel, which could create 80 jobs. 09-Nov-00
Aberdeenshire Council has approved plans from Mobil to build a new boiler
house at the St Fergus gas terminal near Peterhead, in order to process
gas from a new pipeline from the Britannia field. 09-Nov-00
Maxol has acquired a controlling stake in Connors Fuels, the Belfast-based
home heating oil company. 07-Nov-00
Lasmo, the oil exploration and production company, has received a £2.4bn
takeover offer from Amerada Hess of the US, which is expected to lead to
the loss of 150 jobs from the combined group's worldwide workforce. 07-Nov-00
British Gas is seeking 100 additional staff for its customer service centre
in Southampton. 03-Nov-00
Caradon Council is considering plans from Scottish & Southern Electricity
for the construction of a 10MW mini power station at Saltash in Cornwall
to supply local companies. 02-Nov-00
Centrica is to acquire Avalanche Energy, the Canadian oil and gas explorer,
for £115m, as part of a strategy to expand its customer base in North
America. 02-Nov-00
EnergieKontor of Germany has set up a UK subsidiary in Knaresborough to
identify and develop potential sites for wind farms. 01-Nov-00
AEA Technology is considering plans to set up a wood energy supply business
in Rotherham, and is in discussions with the local council about setting
up wood chip boilers at the former Dinnington pit site. 30-Oct-00
Innogy is considering plans to bid for Yorkshire Electricity's supply business,
in order to increase its share of the electricity and gas market following
its demerger from National Power. 26-Oct-00
PowerGen has sold its LG Energy power project in South Korea for £38m,
as part of an ongoing disposal programme to reduce debt. 26-Oct-00
Billiton is linking up with Rio Tinto and Anglo American to develop an online
trading exchange for coal called Global Coal, and other commodities could
be added later. 24-Oct-00
PowerGen is to open a new call centre at Uddingston near Glasgow next month
with the creation of 100 jobs, while a further 40 field sales advisers will
be recruited throughout Scotland. 23-Oct-00
British Nuclear Fuels is planning to recruit about 200 electrical and mechanical
apprentices at Sellafield over the next five years. 23-Oct-00
PowerGen is in negotiations to sell its Indian electricity operations for
up to £300m, and is also considering offers for the Rye House and
Connah's Quay power stations in the UK. 19-Oct-00
PowerGen is to sell the Cottam power station in Nottinghamshire to London
Electricity for £398m, as part of a strategy to reduce debt. 17-Oct-00
Northern Electric is planning to relocate its administration centre from
the centre of Newcastle-upon-Tyne to the Cobalt Business Park in Wallsend.
12-Oct-00
Coalite is to start commercial production of oil from rubber car tyres next
year, using a carbonisation process previously used to convert coal into
a smokeless fuel. 12-Oct-00
Shell is planning to acquire Fletcher Challenge's oil and gas interests
in New Zealand and Brunei for £715m. 11-Oct-00
The UK Atomic Energy Authority has announced a £4.5bn plan to decommission
the Dounreay nuclear site in Scotland, which will involve the construction
of about 10 new plant facilities. 10-Oct-00
Boots is considering plans to install solar power systems in its stores,
and is testing a unit made by Solel Solar Systems of Israel. 09-Oct-00
Shell is planning to invest £4bn in the development of large-scale
gas-to-liquid plants using its proprietary Shell middle distillate synthesis
process, and the first projects will be in Egypt and Trinidad and Tobago.
06-Oct-00
Amec's Agra-Birwelco subsidiary has won a £45m contract from Sita
Holdings to build a waste-burning energy plant in Sittingbourne. 05-Oct-00
The government is telling electricity suppliers to buy up to 10% of their
power from renewable sources by 2010, which should provide a boost to wind,
hydro-electric and methane gas projects. 05-Oct-00
Sheffield City Council has agreed a deal with Combined Landfill Projects
to build a generator to produce electricity from waste methane gas at the
city's Beighton tip. 29-Sep-00
Swansea Council is to consider plans from Tidal Electric of the US for the
development of an artificial island in Swansea Bay to generate electricity
from tidal power. 28-Sep-00
Cornwall County Council is seeking potential sites to build an energy from
waste plant. 27-Sep-00
Energy Power Resources is planning to build a £32m power station fuelled
by unwanted tyres at Four Ashes in south Staffordshire. 26-Sep-00
Paladin Resources is acquiring Petro-Canada's Norwegian offshore oil assets
for £54m. 25-Sep-00
Edison First Power is planning to invest up to £60m at the Fiddler's
Ferry coal-fired power station near Warrington, in order to reduce pollution
and to use the exhaust gases to produce gypsum. 22-Sep-00
Soco International is to acquire a 50% stake in an offshore exploration
licence in Vietnam's Cuu Long basin. 22-Sep-00
TXU Europe and Anglian Water have submitted plans to Northamptonshire County
Council to build a "green" energy plant at an existing sewage
treatment works in Corby. 21-Sep-00
BP and RWE are considering plans to combine their petrol station and refining
operations in Germany, as RWE is looking to focus on its electricity business.
20-Sep-00
British Energy has re-mortgaged the Eggborough coal-fired power station
in Yorkshire, which will add £550m to its war chest for acquisitions.
15-Sep-00
TXU Europe is planning to shed about 200 jobs in the North West following
the acquisition of Norweb's electricity supply business, in order to transfer
the work to East Anglia. 15-Sep-00
National Power's Innogy division is to buy Independent Energy's electricity
and gas business out of receivership for £10m, while Independent's
network of 12 small power stations and three inland gas fields will be sold
off separately. 15-Sep-00
Shetland Islands Council is to consider plans from Sea Power International
of Sweden for the development of a £2.7m wave energy power station
at Dale of Walls. 12-Sep-00
BP and Shell have confirmed plans to acquire a combined stake of 28% in
Sinopec of China, with each investing £300m in the forthcoming sale
of shares. 12-Sep-00
National Power's Innogy division has announced a £52m deal to develop
the Indian Mesa wind farm in Texas. 12-Sep-00
BP has announced a £2.7bn investment package for the North Sea over
the next four years, including the imminent award of drilling contracts
for the Clair Field west of Shetland and the go-ahead for the £300m
Magnus Field enhancement project. 11-Sep-00
Cairn Energy is planning to drill 13 exploration prospects in India over
the next 12 months, at a cost of £40m. 08-Sep-00
Shell has announced plans to increase capital expenditure in the UK North
Sea by 50% to £820m in 2001, which will involve the development of
smaller fields that were not previously considered to be economic. 05-Sep-00
National Grid is to acquire Niagara Mohawk, the New York state electricity
company, for £2bn, which will double the size of its US business.
05-Sep-00
Matrix Corporate Finance is to sponsor a £5.6m Ofex flotation by StrataGas,
a new energy company that is planning to drill wells at the Silverdale colliery
in Staffordshire to extract methane gas. 04-Sep-00
British Energy is considering plans to build new offices at Barnwood in
Gloucester, which will help to secure 1,000 jobs. 30-Aug-00
TXU Europe is considering plans to sell off its North Sea gas production
operations in order to focus on energy trading and supply, and talks are
said to be taking place with four potential buyers. 30-Aug-00
BP and Ford are discussing plans for an alliance to collaborate in the development
of new fuel technologies, traffic management systems and environmental policy.
29-Aug-00
Auiron Energy of Australia has prepared plans for the development of a £400m
lignite mine and power station in Ballymoney, with the creation of 500 jobs.
22-Aug-00
Shell is considering plans to invest about £250m in the initial public
offering of China National Offshore Oil Corp, which should improve its chances
of participating in future oil retail and exploration projects in China.
22-Aug-00
National Power's Innogy division is to build a £15m commercial fuel
cell energy storage facility at Little Barford in Cambridgeshire later this
year, claiming the technology will lead to major changes in power trading
over the next 10 years. 22-Aug-00
Shell is seeking clearance from the New Zealand competition authorities
to acquire the energy division of Fletcher Challenge, in order to expand
its exploration and production operations in the region. 22-Aug-00
Bayford Thrust has completed the acquisition of a northern fuel oil business
from BP, including oil depots, road tankers and the transfer of employees
at offices in Halifax, Sheffield and York. 18-Aug-00
BG's Premier Transmission subsidiary and ESB of Ireland have won approval
to build a £250m gas-fired power station near Londonderry. 18-Aug-00
BP is expected to announce plans within a month for a £300m Enhanced
Oil Recovery project west of Shetland, which will involve laying a gas pipeline
from the Schiehallion field to Sullom Voe. 16-Aug-00
Aker McNulty has won a £20m contract to build a floating production
and storage vessel for Talisman Energy, which will create about 400 jobs
at its South Shields shipyard. 16-Aug-00
RJB Mining has received a takeover approach from Renco, the US industrial
conglomerate. 14-Aug-00
RJB Mining is looking to recruit 150 ex-mineworkers for collieries in the
Midlands, Yorkshire and the North East. 11-Aug-00
Conoco is to invest more than £10m in new energy infrastructure on
the South Bank of the Humber, in order to supply local industry with steam
and electricity from its proposed new gas fired combined heat and power
plant at Killingholme. 11-Aug-00
B&Q is planning to power its two head offices with eco-friendly fuel
supplied by Stroud-based Ecotricity, with the electricity being generated
from recycled waste. 11-Aug-00
PowerGen is understood to have shortlisted five international energy companies
for the sale of three of its UK power stations, including Centrica, Scottish
& Southern, Scottish Power, Electricite de France and NRG. 10-Aug-00
BP has announced plans to increase capital expenditure in the North Sea,
investing £600m in the area in 2000 and even more in 2001. 10-Aug-00
British Energy is selling the Swalec retail electricity and supply business
to Scottish & Southern for £210m, and the proceeds will be invested
in North America. 08-Aug-00
BP is to build two new gas pipelines in Holderness next year, as part of
a project to scale down the gas terminal at Easington and move some of the
operations to Dimlington. 07-Aug-00
TXU Europe is to acquire Norweb's electricity supply business from United
Utilities for £310m, and will subcontract customer services to United's
Vertex division. 04-Aug-00
Lasmo is looking to dispose of some of its North African oil acreage and
reduce the size of its Venezuelan operation. 04-Aug-00
Shell is considering plans to increase its capital expenditure in areas
such as upstream oil and gas exploration and production, as well as in some
major liquefied natural gas projects. 04-Aug-00
Texaco has confirmed a deal to exchange 375 petrol stations and two fuel
terminals in Greece for 80 Shell petrol stations in the UK and Shell's 54%
stake in the Plymouth fuel terminal. 02-Aug-00
BP is selling a package of North Sea gas assets to Tullow Oil for £201m,
including shares in a number of fields, pipelines and terminals. 01-Aug-00
PowerGen has sold the former East Midlands Electricity Security Services
Division to a management team for undisclosed terms, and the new Leicester-based
business will be called Secure One. 01-Aug-00
RJB Mining is planning to build a £30m power generation plant at Malty
colliery near Rotherham, fuelled by coal slurry and waste methane gas extracted
from the mine. 31-Jul-00
National Power has put its former Pembroke Power Station site up for sale,
and the 500-acre site could be split into smaller packages. 31-Jul-00
Anglesey Aluminium and Burlington Resources of the US have won government
approval to build a new gas-fired power station in Anglesey by 2004. 28-Jul-00
Transco is to invest £60m over the next two years on five major pipeline
projects to cope with rising gas demand in Wales. 27-Jul-00
Texaco is planning a £44m investment to produce cleaner fuel at its
Pembroke refinery in west Wales, which will involve a new desulphurisation
plant and the safeguarding of 750 jobs. 27-Jul-00
Johnson Matthey is forming an alliance with TXU to build and evaluate a
new fuel cell energy system to power homes and offices. 27-Jul-00
PowerGen has announced a deal to sell its packaged gas, electricity and
telephony service to 2m customers of Legal & General, while Legal &
General will offer stakeholder pensions to PowerGen's 250,000 business customers.
26-Jul-00
Ambient Energy is seeking permission to build a £10m timber-fuelled
power station at the former Eye airfield in Suffolk. 25-Jul-00
BP Amoco has launched a new global brand to bring the group together under
a single identity, which will involve a new logo, dropping Amoco from its
name and the conversion of 28,000 retail sites over the next four years.
24-Jul-00
Carlisle City Council has approved plans for the development of a Border
Biofuels wood-burning power station at Kingmoor Park. 21-Jul-00
Energy Power Resources is seeking contractors to help with the development
of a number of biomass power plant projects, each worth between £20m
and £100m. 20-Jul-00
John Wood Group is planning to acquire 80% of Mustang Engineering, the US
oil engineering and design company, for £74m. 19-Jul-00
Scottish Power has sold its Hamilton-based electrical contracting business
to Alstom for undisclosed terms. 19-Jul-00
Enterprise Oil has acquired R&B Falcon's exploration interests in the
Gulf of Mexico for £84m. 18-Jul-00
Ramco Energy has raised £100m from the sale of its 2% stake in a petroleum
consortium in Azerbaijan to Amerada Hess of the US, and the proceeds will
be invested in other projects. 18-Jul-00
Soco International is considering plans to build a £33m oil pipeline
between Mongolia and China, following the discovery of two wells in Mongolia's
Tamtsag Basin. 14-Jul-00
BP Amoco is selling its Alliance refinery in Louisiana to Tosco of the US
for £437m, and a related pipeline complex is being sold to an undisclosed
buyer. 14-Jul-00
British Gas is planning to recruit 250 service engineers in the North West
over the next five years, as part of a national drive to take on 1,000 adult
recruits and another 1,000 apprentices. 14-Jul-00
Save Group, the independent petrol station group, is in talks with a number
of potential bidders. 13-Jul-00
BP Amoco is to increase capital expenditure to £8.9bn a year, including
a 30% rise in spending on oil and gas exploration and production, as part
of a plan to focus more on organic growth following a period of rationalisation.
12-Jul-00
British Energy is to acquire a lease on a nuclear power complex at Lake
Huron in Canada at a total cost of about £1bn, which should help to
reduce its vulnerability to falling electricity prices in the UK. 12-Jul-00
Centrica is to acquire Direct Energy, the Canadian natural gas retailer,
for £406m, and will use it as a platform for further North American
growth. 07-Jul-00
British Energy has been granted 10-year life extensions by the nuclear regulator
on its Torness and Heysham power stations. 06-Jul-00
Transco has awarded a contract to Murphy Pipeline for the construction of
a £13m high-pressure pipeline from the Huntingdon compressor station
to a gas installation near Bedford. 05-Jul-00
BG is to install automatic gas and electricity meter reading equipment in
about 50,000 homes in Manchester and London, in a pilot scheme with BCN
Data Systems. 30-Jun-00
BP Amoco is to acquire a 2.2% stake in Sinopec in order to strengthen its
position in the Chinese oil market, and further deals are expected to involve
the import and distribution of natural gas. 22-Jun-00
Hampshire County Council is to consider plans from Hampshire Waste Services
for the development of a £40m energy-from-waste plant at Marchwood,
with the creation of 26 jobs. 21-Jun-00
The government is said to be planning to allocate a further £25m to
invest in green energy research projects such as offshore wind power over
the next three years. 20-Jun-00
Northern Electric Generation has won approval to build a gas-fired combined
heat and power station at Avonmouth, near Bristol. 19-Jun-00
Independent Energy has said it would consider accepting a takeover offer,
in order to solve the problems caused by billing difficulties and the recent
fall in its share price. 16-Jun-00
North Devon District Council is considering plans from Barnstaple-based
Farm Energy for a £4m project to build two wind farms near Ilfracombe
and Bratton Fleming. 16-Jun-00
RJB Mining has received a preliminary bid approach from an unnamed company
that is said to be interested in its mining assets, which could lead to
its land bank being sold off to a property company. 15-Jun-00
PSL, the Aberdeen-based oil services group, has acquired the AGR Ability
Group of Norway for £20m, in order to expand its well services and
subsea products business. 13-Jun-00
RJB Mining has announced plans to create 100 new jobs at its collieries,
following the recent rise in world coal prices. 12-Jun-00
PowerGen is to pay £33m for a 50% stake in Corby Power, the 350MW
gas-fired power station in Northamptonshire, while the other 50% will be
owned by ESBI Engineering. 09-Jun-00
Transco is investing £10m in a partnership with the government to
improve energy efficiency in about 1m homes, which will involve the creation
of about 3,000 jobs and training people to install new gas central heating
systems and insulation. 09-Jun-00
BP Amoco is forming a joint venture with Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation
on two gas projects in Egypt, which will include the development of a liquefied
natural gas plant. 08-Jun-00
Shell is planning to nearly double its liquefied natural gas production
capacity over the next four years, including the possibility of building
an LNG import terminal near Shenzhen, China. 08-Jun-00
Virgin is forming a joint venture with London Electricity to offer electricity
and gas to households via the internet. 06-Jun-00
Midlands Electricity could be put up for sale, following a decision by US
owner GPU to conduct a review of its businesses. 05-Jun-00
PowerGen is looking to sell three UK power stations - Rye House in Hertfordshire,
Connah's Quay at Liverpool Bay and Cottam in Nottinghamshire - in order
to fund acquisitions in the US. 05-Jun-00
BP Amoco is forming an alliance with the Epower consortium to become Ireland's
leading supplier of electricity and gas, which will include the development
of the 400MW Powerstown power station. 02-Jun-00
Shell is planning a number of asset swaps with Marathon Oil in the UK, Russia,
and the Gulf of Mexico, which will involve Marathon acquiring Shell's 28%
stake in the Foinaven field west of the Shetlands. 02-Jun-00
RJB Mining has won a £700m contract from AES to supply coal to the
Drax power station in Yorkshire, which will secure 2,500 jobs at its Selby
coalfield. 01-Jun-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is looking to spend up to £3bn on the
acquisition of a UK electricity company, and is also planning to build about
12 gas-fired power stations. 01-Jun-00
Shell has agreed to sell its coal assets, which are mainly in Australia,
to Anglo American for £608m, as part of a strategy to focus on oil,
gas and power, petrochemicals and renewables. 01-Jun-00
National Power is to close the coal-fired Blyth Power Station with the loss
of 131 jobs, having failed to find a buyer. 01-Jun-00
Solar Century, the London-based solar energy company, is planning to expand
its staff from 12 to 30 by the end of the year, having received a £6m
cash injection. 30-May-00
United Utilities is to reorganise its business into five separate divisions
- water and electricity infrastructure iin the north-west, retail water supply,
water asset management, Vertex IT management and Norweb Telecom. 26-May-00
ICI Chemicals & Polymers has won government approval to build a £110m
combined heat and power plant at Runcorn, Cheshire. 26-May-00
Transco is to build a £52m gas pipeline between St Fergus and Aberdeen
with the creation of about 450 construction jobs, and the contract has been
awarded to a joint venture of Lawrence and Nacap. 25-May-00
British Nuclear Fuels has announced closure dates for its Magnox power stations,
with five closing at the end of their licensed lifetimes and one closing
early, while the company will apply for licence extensions at Oldbury and
Wylfa. 24-May-00
Scottish Hydro-Electric is to upgrade Stonehaven's electricity network at
a cost of £0.8m, and will also add fibre-optic cable for a new telecoms
link. 24-May-00
RJB Mining is to mine 7m tonnes of coal between Thoresby Colliery and the
former Ollerton pit in Nottinghamshire from 2003, creating work for 550
miners. 23-May-00
Centrica is to relocate its Wharf Lane site in Solihull to Blythe Valley
Park, with the transfer of up to 1,000 staff. 22-May-00
British Energy is considering plans to acquire another UK energy supply
company, and is also seeking acquisitions in Canada and the US. 19-May-00
Shell is in discussions to sell oil and gas assets to Woodside in return
for a majority stake in the Australian energy company, and the deal could
be worth up to £3bn. 18-May-00
National Power is to invest £16m in a new combined heat and power
station at Grimsby's Huntsman Tioxide site, which will involve about 100
construction jobs over the next 18 months. 18-May-00
National Power has announced £1.37bn of asset write-downs in preparation
for the demerger of its UK and international power businesses in October.
17-May-00
Scottish Hydro-Electric is planning to shed about 70 jobs at its IT facilities
in Perth, and some of the work will be transferred to offices in Havant.
17-May-00
BG is planning to invest £300m in new gas production and exploration
projects in Tunisia over the next nine years. 17-May-00
BP Amoco has announced a major natural gas discovery off the coast of Trinidad.
11-May-00
East Midlands Electricity is to relocate 400 staff to its new office building
at the Pegasus Business Park near junction 24 of the M1 during the summer.
10-May-00
BP has announced plans to restructure its operations in Northern Ireland,
which will involve the sale of 20 forecourt sites over the next two years.
10-May-00
TXU Europe is discussing the possibility of Anglo-French power station swaps
with Electricite de France, which could lead to the first significant opening
of the French power market. 09-May-00
Scottish Power is planning to make annual savings of £190m at its
recently-acquired PacifiCorp business in the US, with 1,600 jobs being lost
by the end of 2004. 05-May-00
Calor Gas is to close operations at its Millbrook plant in Southampton with
the loss of 35 jobs, in response to a shift in consumer demand from cylinder
products to bulk storage installations. 05-May-00
PowerGen is planning to create up to 500 jobs at a new call centre in Wath
upon Dearne, near Rotherham, in July. 04-May-00
Independent Energy is planning to become the first nationwide multi-utility
provider by adding water supply to its offering, and talks are under way
with two water companies. 03-May-00
Scottish Power is planning to set up a new company called Calanais to provide
a global e-business service for the utility sector, and it will employ about
600 people at offices in Glasgow and Chester. 02-May-00
Shell has awarded a contract to Scottish Knowledge to set up a global e-university
to provide online education and training services for its workforce. 02-May-00
Shell is planning to make LPG available at four petrol stations in the Highlands
by the end of this year, and wants the Scottish Parliament to persuade motorists
in rural areas to switch to this cheaper fuel. 28-Apr-00
BP Oil UK has appointed Tankfreight to handle its third-party fuel distribution,
in a contract worth about £80m over five years. 26-Apr-00
PGS Atlantic Power of Aberdeen has won a £150m contract to supply
support services to Kerr McGee's oil assets in the North Sea, which will
involve about 500 staff and the integration of their onshore support teams.
25-Apr-00
Allerdale Borough Council is considering plans from Cumberland Coal for
the construction of a new coal-handling plant at the Port of Workington.
25-Apr-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is planning to build a 100MW gas-fired power
station at Britannia Zinc's smelting operation in Avonmouth. 25-Apr-00
Just2Clicks has acquired Granite Rocks, the supplier of geophysical services
to oil companies, for £0.7m, in order to start online trading in the
energy sector. 20-Apr-00
EA Technology, the energy consultancy, is to split its business into two
divisions - Process Innovation and Utilities - with the loss of 60 jobs
at its headquarters in Capenhurst, Cheshire. 20-Apr-00
Ramco Energy is forming an alliance with TotalFinaElf to develop the shallow
water Gunashli oil field in Azerbaijan. 19-Apr-00
Severn Trent is forming an alliance with Amerada Hess to offer electricity
and gas to its 3.5m water customers. 18-Apr-00
The government is to provide a £100m subsidy to the coal industry
to prevent further pit closures, and has also announced that restrictions
on the development of new gas-fired power stations will be lifted in the
autumn. 18-Apr-00
Shell is forming a joint venture with Halliburton to develop intelligent
well systems in Aberdeen, and has also announced an alliance with Beacon
Group to invest in companies producing new technology for the oil industry.
13-Apr-00
Maxol is to reorganise its Northern Ireland-based oil business by transferring
its bulk fuels administration and accounts to its Dublin office, with the
loss of 14 jobs. 13-Apr-00
Amec is to acquire the windfarm developer Border Wind, in response to the
government's recently-announced commitment to both onshore and offshore
wind-energy projects. 12-Apr-00
Cobex is to close its Climpy opencast coal mine in Lanarkshire with the
loss of 30 jobs, following the company's move into administration. 12-Apr-00
TXU Europe, the US owner of Eastern Group, is considering plans to sell
some of its coal-fired power stations, having appointed Morgan Stanley Dean
Witter to examine the state of the market. 12-Apr-00
BP Amoco and Shell are linking up with 12 other companies to establish an
e-procurement portal for the energy and petrochemicals industries. 12-Apr-00
AWE has confirmed that 400 jobs will be cut at its nuclear weapons plant
in Aldermaston over the next year. 11-Apr-00
National Power is planning to set up a customer service centre in Peterlee
later this year, with the creation of 375 jobs. 11-Apr-00
Shell is in discussions with a shortlist of potential bidders for its coal
assets, and hopes to finalise a deal later this year. 10-Apr-00
Save Group is considering sale-and-leaseback deals to exploit the development
potential of its 25 petrol stations within the M25 area. 10-Apr-00
Scottish Power is linking up with United Utilities and Northern Electric
to create an internet-based procurement operation, in order to combine their
purchasing power and achieve savings of at least 10%. 06-Apr-00
Viridian has been selected to build and operate a £4.8m combined heat
and power plant for Sonoco Board Mills near Halifax. 06-Apr-00
Cairn Energy has announced a new gas find in the Dutch North Sea that will
add £13m to its portfolio over the next ten years. 06-Apr-00
Yorkshire Electricity has put its Parkway site in Sheffield up for sale,
following a decision to set up a centralised warehouse in Bradford. 06-Apr-00
British Energy is to invest £8m upgrading the training simulator at
the Sizewell B nuclear power station in Suffolk. 06-Apr-00
Weatherford is to create 150 jobs at a new £7.6m manufacturing facility
for the oil industry in Arbroath, and a further 30 jobs will be created
at a research centre in Aberdeen. 31-Mar-00
British Gas is planning to create 220 new jobs at its customer service centre
in Southampton. 31-Mar-00
British-Borneo Oil & Gas has accepted a £788m takeover bid from
Eni of Italy, saying it does not have the financial resilience to continue
as an independent company. 30-Mar-00
Premier Power has won permission to build a £200m power station at
Ballylumford, which will be capable of supplying up to 50% of Northern Ireland's
electricity needs. 30-Mar-00
BP Amoco is acquiring a 3% stake in Altra Energy Technologies, the wholesale
energy exchange, in order to increase its web trading of oil and gas. 29-Mar-00
Shell International is linking up with Lend Lease for the £100m redevelopment
of its Shell Centre site in London, which will involve a mix of entertainment,
residential and commercial uses. 28-Mar-00
Alta Gas of Liverpool has received a £20m cash injection to fund the
nationwide expansion of its gas cylinder products business. 27-Mar-00
JKX Oil & Gas has won approval from the Italian authorities to start
drilling at the Colombo exploration well near Rome. 24-Mar-00
BP Amoco is planning to buy a £600m stake in PetroChina, and the two
companies have also announced a natural gas and retail fuel marketing joint
venture. 24-Mar-00
RJB Mining is said to have secured a deal to sell 6m tonnes of coal a year
to the Drax power station in Yorkshire, provided that the sale price is
subsidised by the government to make it competitive with imported coal.
23-Mar-00
BG has announced plans to separate its UK gas pipeline business from its
international gas exploration and production activities, and both arms of
the demerged company will seek investment opportunities in telecoms. 23-Mar-00
Scottish Coal has secured a £1.5m investment package to safeguard
the future of its Longannet deep mine in Fife. 23-Mar-00
Sita Holding is planning to build a number of energy-from-waste plants at
sites throughout the country. 23-Mar-00
TXU Europe is planning a £4.5m wind turbine project at Chatteris in
Cambridgeshire. 23-Mar-00
BG has announced plans to create a further 500 jobs at its customer service
call centre in Leeds. 21-Mar-00
Anglesey County Council has agreed to sell the former Shell oil depot at
Rhosgoch to Burlington Resources for £4m, in the first step towards
winning government approval for the development of a gas-fired power station
on the island. 21-Mar-00
National Grid is linking up with Nordpool to develop an online electricity
and gas trading market called the UK Energy Exchange, with the creation
of an unspecified number of new jobs at the Nottingham office of its ESIS
division. 20-Mar-00
BP Amoco is planning to revert to its former name of BP, as part of a rebranding
exercise that will also result in the shield logo being dropped. 17-Mar-00
National Grid has won US regulatory approval to acquire New England Electric
System for £2bn. 17-Mar-00
Hunting is to conduct a review of its oil services and defence operations,
which could lead to the company being broken up. 17-Mar-00
Rigblast of Aberdeen is to create up to 400 jobs, having won contracts worth
£20m to supply maintenance and support services to the North Sea oil
and gas industry. 17-Mar-00
National Grid has awarded a £12m contract to Balfour Kilpatrick to
upgrade 79km of transmission line in the Pennines. 16-Mar-00
Transco is considering bids from eight teams of contractors to build a £12m
gas pipeline between Huntingdon and Bedford. 16-Mar-00
Northern Ireland Electricity is planning to build a £38m converter
station and associated buildings in Ballantrae. 16-Mar-00
Aberdeen City Council is linking up with the Brazilian state of Rio de Janeiro
to co-operate in deep-sea oil exploration, drilling and engineering, as
part of a strategy to encourage oil companies to expand globally from their
North Sea base. 15-Mar-00
BP Amoco is to acquire Burmah Castrol for £3bn in order to expand
its lubricants business, but Burmah's chemicals business is expected to
be sold off for about £800m. 15-Mar-00
Shell Expro is considering plans for a multi-million-pound gas development
linking fields in the outer Moray Firth with the St Fergus terminal on the
Buchan coast. 15-Mar-00
Shell is planning to double its oil output in Nigeria to 1.5m barrels a
day within three years. 14-Mar-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is building a £9.3m 25MW gas-fired
power station adjacent to its existing Keadby Power Station, in order to
restore electricity to the National Grid in the event of a national power
failure. 13-Mar-00
BP Amoco and Shell are to sell their Altura Energy joint venture in the
US south-west to Occidental Petroleum for £2.3bn. 09-Mar-00
Scottish Power is planning to vacate its Borders depot in the centre of
Galashiels and relocate most of the 70 administrative staff to new offices
out of town. 09-Mar-00
Sappi Europe has awarded a contract to ABB Power Generation for the development
of a £20m gas-fired heat and power plant at its Blackburn mill. 09-Mar-00
BP Amoco is discussing plans to sell Atlantic Richfield's Alaskan oil properties
for over £3bn, in order to secure approval for its acquisition of
the US oil group. 06-Mar-00
Forsyths is to create 30 new jobs at its fabrication facility at Buckie
Harbour on the Moray Firth, having won contracts from the oil and gas sector
worth more than £2m. 06-Mar-00
Aberdeenshire Council is to consider plans from Renewable Energy Systems
for the development of a wind farm at Stonehaven. 03-Mar-00
Scottish & Southern Energy has won approval to build a £5m hydroelectric
power station at Abhainn Culeig in Ross-shire. 03-Mar-00
Scottish Power is planning to build a processing plant and underground natural
gas store at Middlewich, in partnership with ICI Chlor-Chemicals. 03-Mar-00
United Utilities has put its Norweb Energi electricity and gas supply business
up for sale, and is expected to raise up to £400m. 02-Mar-00
Lasmo, the oil company, is in discussions with a number of venture capital
groups that are said to be interested in taking the company private. 02-Mar-00
National Power is planning to build a £1.5m hydroelectric power scheme
at Strontian in the Highlands. 02-Mar-00
PowerGen is to create up to 300 customer service jobs in Nottingham over
the next year, in order to reach its target of 5m customer accounts by the
end of 2002. 01-Mar-00
National Grid has won a £200m contract to build and operate the Basslink
electricity interconnector project across the Bass Strait in Australia.
01-Mar-00
British Energy has announced plans to review its coal suppliers following
the acquisition of the Eggborough power station, prompting speculation that
the company will switch to cheaper imports. 29-Feb-00
PowerGen is acquiring LG&E, the Kentucky-based electricity and gas supplier,
for £1.8bn, in its first major move into the US market. 28-Feb-00
BP Amoco is to proceed with the £1.6bn development of the In Salah
natural gas field in Algeria, in partnership with state energy group Sonatrach.
24-Feb-00
Mission Energy has unveiled plans to spend up to £100m on the installation
of desulphurisation equipment at the Ferrybridge power station in Yorkshire.
24-Feb-00
Scottish Power has won government approval to build a 45MW combined heat
and power station at SmithKline Beecham's factory in Irvine, Ayrshire. 24-Feb-00
University of Birmingham is planning to build a £3m combined heat
and power system, and tenders will be issued in March. 24-Feb-00
Scottish Power is planning a £20m project to build 50 wind turbines
and associated infrastructure at Campbeltown. 24-Feb-00
Morrison Construction has won contracts worth £150m to replace and
maintain Transco gas pipelines in the south of England. 23-Feb-00
Knowsley Council is considering plans from US-based Evergreen Resources
to drill for methane under fields near the village of Tarbuck. 22-Feb-00
PowerGen is to invest £10m in a 50% stake in the TeleCentric Solutions
subsidiary of Affinity Internet, in order to develop new internet products
and multi-utility billing. 22-Feb-00
Shell Exploration & Production has won government approval for a £70m
project to develop the Skiff gas field in the southern North Sea, which
will create up to 100 jobs. 21-Feb-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is forming a £30m alliance with IBM
to develop e-commerce opportunities and to improve the energy group's customer
services. 18-Feb-00
Centrica is forming a joint venture with Essent, the Dutch multi-utility,
to develop wholesale energy trading in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
18-Feb-00
Transco has submitted proposals to Aberdeenshire Council for the development
of a £50m pipeline between two gas stations at St Fergus and Garlogie,
which could create up to 400 jobs. 18-Feb-00
Independent Energy is forming an internet-based alliance with the Easier
online estate agency to sell gas and electricity to homebuyers. 17-Feb-00
Plymouth City Council and IVO Energy are to consider the possibility of
building a waste-burning power station at the Chelson Meadow landfill site,
in order to burn up to 150,000 tonnes of rubbish a year. 16-Feb-00
RJB Mining is seeking £70m in government aid in order to prevent the
closure of further coal mines such as the Ellington colliery near Morpeth.
16-Feb-00
BP Amoco has announced plans to accelerate the development of new projects
in a $24bn investment programme, and will sanction about 1.5bn barrels of
new oil reserves in Angola, Vietnam, Trinidad and Azerbaijan. 16-Feb-00
Yorkshire Electricity is to close its Grimsby depot with the loss of up
to 47 jobs. 15-Feb-00
Norsk Hydro has put its UK energy assets up for sale, including three offshore
oil and gas fields - Britannia, Alba and Gryphon. 15-Feb-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is to start selling white goods on the internet,
supported by its chain of 52 retail outlets. 11-Feb-00
PowerGen has sold East Midlands Electricity Contracting to ABB for undisclosed
terms. 10-Feb-00
BP Amoco's recently-appointed human resources contractor Exult is to set
up a new business management centre in Glasgow with the creation of 150
jobs, in order to supply accountancy, training, cell centre, and IT services
to the energy group. 10-Feb-00
National Grid is to sell 30m Energis shares in order to reduce its stake
in the telecoms business to 36% and raise about £825m to fund acquisitions
and a buy-back of its own stock. 10-Feb-00
Kelda has acquired a 31% stake in Fibrowatt, the operator of three power
stations that use chicken litter as fuel, for £6m. 09-Feb-00
British-Borneo Oil & Gas is looking to sell more than 50% of its assets
in the Gulf of Mexico and half of its 8% stake in the North Sea's Elgin/Franklin
field. 08-Feb-00
Saga Petroleum of Norway and IVO Energy of Finland have announced plans
to build a £140m 215MW combined heat and power station at Purfleet
in Essex. 03-Feb-00
Scottish & Southern Energy is to refurbish the Clachan hydroelectric
power station in Argyll at a cost of £4.2m, and the contract has been
awarded to a consortium comprising Weir Engineering Services and Dowding
& Mills. 02-Feb-00
National Power is planning to build a £1m hydroelectric plant at Auchtertyre
in Perthshire. 02-Feb-00
Shell and PowerGen are planning to build two of the world's largest wind
turbines off the Northumberland coast at Blythe, at a cost of £4m.
02-Feb-00
United Utilities is considering plans to sell its Norweb electricity supply
business, due to the tough price controls in the sector. 02-Feb-00
BG's Premier Transco subsidiary has announced plans to build a £100m
gas pipeline between Belfast and Dublin, but rival proposals are expected
from Viridian and Questar. 01-Feb-00
PowerGen is said to be interested in buying LG&E, the Kentucky-based
energy group, as its first large-scale acquisition in the US. 31-Jan-00
Scottish Power is planning to open at least 12 electrical superstores this
year. 31-Jan-00
Transco has awarded a £26m contract to Murphy to build a 25km gas
pipeline between Derbyshire and Staffordshire. 28-Jan-00
Elf is to offer voluntary redundancy to up to 300 Aberdeen-based workers,
as a result of a deal with Talisman to offload certain North Sea assets.
28-Jan-00
Shell is introducing an internal market to reduce carbon emissions, in which
its operations will commit to an annual 2% carbon reduction target. 27-Jan-00
Edinburgh Oil & Gas is planning a £2m capital expenditure programme
that will see it return to North Sea drilling with a venture in the Outer
Moray Firth. 26-Jan-00
Manchester City Council is considering plans from Organic Wastes Management
to build a pilot plant to transform household waste into energy and fertiliser.
26-Jan-00
BP Amoco has awarded a contract to Bovis Lend Lease to manage the construction
of fuel retail outlets worldwide over the next five years, which will involve
the development of 1,300 new service stations in 15 countries. 26-Jan-00
PowerGen is to build a 60MW combined heat and power gas-fired power station
in Stoke-on-Trent, in order to supply energy to a Michelin tyre plant. 25-Jan-00
British Nuclear Fuels is to close a nuclear fuel manufacturing plant at
Sellafied for a number of weeks, in order to make modifications required
for the retention of its quality assurance accreditation. 22-Jan-00
National Grid is seeking permission to connect its network to Wainstone
Power's proposed new gas-fired generating station at Langage near Plymouth.
21-Jan-00
John Wood Group has sold its North Sea cased hole electric wireline operations
to Orwell Group of Aberdeen. 19-Jan-00
Yorkshire Electricity has announced plans to cut 350 jobs, in response to
the price cuts imposed by the industry regulator. 19-Jan-00
Aberdeen City Council is looking to establish a windpower industry in the
city, and discussions are being sought with companies interested in renewable
energy. 14-Jan-00
BG International has won approval for the £158m development of the
Blake oilfield in the North Sea, and production will start in August 2001.
14-Jan-00
Halliburton has won a pipeline fabrication contract from BHP for the Keith
field, which will help to secure 230 jobs at its Rockwater plant in Wick.
13-Jan-00
Clugston Construction has been appointed main contractor on a £33m
scheme to build a waste-to-energy plant for Kirklees Metropolitan Council
in West Yorkshire. 13-Jan-00
British Energy has bought a £5m stake in HomeDirectory.com, the internet
property company, in order to market its utility services to prospective
home buyers. 08-Jan-00
Transco is to award three contracts worth up to £72m for the upgrade
of its gas pipeline network, including a £40m project to build a 70km
pipeline from Aberdeen to St Fergus. 08-Jan-00
National Power is planning to spend $600m on the construction of power stations
in the US, including a 550MW gas turbine plant in Texas and a 570MW facility
in Massachusetts. 07-Jan-00
Nigen is to cut 40 of the 190 jobs at Kilroot power station in Carrickfergus,
in order to improve efficiency and cut costs. 06-Jan-00
International Energy Group, the gas producer, is to buy land at les Banques
in Guernsey from Blue Diamond Group for £7m, in order to control more
than 25 acres of the Bouet Mixed Use Redevelopment Area. 06-Jan-00