Sandy Kerr

Petroleum industry and renewables

In this paper, we review activity by the large petroleum majors in the renewables sector. Oil companies have traditionally invested in other energy sectors (e.g., coal, nuclear) but in recent years the trend has been to concentrate on the petroleum sector. The low price of oil throughout the last decade of the 20th century limited the scope for speculative investments outside the core oil and gas business. Most majors sold off other ventures, although there were some notable long term investors in solar. As we enter the new century certain major oil and gas companies are once again investing in alternative energy to become broader ‘energy’ companies. This trend is the result of greater awareness of future energy demand, greater pressure and incentives to reduce emissions in their own operations, and the promotion of social responsibility and other general sustainability issues.

Willingness to Pay for Gold Standard Carbon Credits

It is increasingly clear that carbon credits generated by clean development mechanism projects do not all deliver the same sustainable development (SD) benefits, as intended by the Kyoto Protocol. Independent certification has now been developed to meet the needs of buyers searching for carbon credits with high levels of SD benefit. This article uses the contingent valuation method to investigate buyers’ willingness to pay a price premium for Gold Standard (GS) carbon credit in recognition of SD benefits. This study finds that 56.4% of the buyers are willing to pay a price premium for GS carbon credits. Charity groups and governments are more likely to place a price premium on certified credit than private sector buyers. On average, buyers are willing to pay a price premium of €1.12 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent for GS carbon credit in recognition of SD benefits.

Wave and Tidal Energy

Wave and tidal energy is a visible expression of the power of nature. Ambition to convert the natural energy bound up in marine systems into something useable by mankind goes back a long way and practical measures date from at least the 1940s. In the twenty-first Century efforts have increased enormously in response to the search for clean energy sources, a reduction in emissions of greenhouse gases and the mitigation of the effects of climate change. Hundreds of millions of Euros have been invested in research and development and much has been learned. However, the solutions to a viable Ocean Energy industry remain elusive. The outstanding challenges are daunting in scale: 1. The engineering challenge in the search for a device technology which will convert marine energy to usable energy with a degree of operational and economic efficiency. 2. The operational challenge of installing, servicing and maintaining thousands of floating and fixed structures in high energy marine environments. 3. The environmental and social challenge of understanding and managing the ecosystem and spatial impacts of such a heavy industrial intrusion into mainly coastal waters.

Shaping Blue Growth: Social Sciences at the Nexus Between Marine Renewables and Energy Policy

The development of the Marine Renewable Energy (MRE) industry is part of the EC Blue Growth Strategy. It brings together a range of relationships across people, sea, and energy, from developers to local communities and policymakers. This calls for diverse approaches, moving beyond an oppositional mindset to one that can establish an inclusive community around MRE development. Ownership of the marine environment is a legal issue, but MRE devices operate within a cultural and emotional sense of place. Early, sustained community engagement and advocacy is crucial to developing an industry whose impacts are likely to be felt before its social benefits materialise. Crucially, local communities could be supported by Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) research in creating new mythologies and imaginaries through which MRE technologies become an integral part of their culture, as well as part of their biophysical environment. A complex physical, political, and legal environment provides the context for these new marine energy technologies, and its development provides opportunities for SSH research to address issues around the sea and to integrate into the design of new marine energy seascapes.

Development of an Effects-Based Approach to Reporting Environmental Performance for the E&P Sector

Environmental reporting is widespread across industrial sectors and is virtually universal in the E&P sector. The quality of reporting is, however, mixed and is dominated by the reporting of waste steams. Communication of environmental performance is therefore poor. This paper proposes the adoption of an effects-based environmental reporting system, aggregating emissions data by their contribution to environmental themes. It is concluded that such a system would improve the clarity and resonance of environmental reporting within organisations and with external stakeholders. It is felt that this would improve strategic environmental management and would be of commercial benefit to companies as approaches to environmental regulation develop towards self-regulation.

THE QUANTIFICATION OF ENERGY CONSUMPTION AND GASEOUS EMISSIONS ASSOCIATED WITH DECOMMISSIONING OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS INSTALLATIONS

Abstract Following the failure to implement the proposed deep-sea disposal of the North Sea Brent Spar oil installation the UK oil industry has identified energy consumption and gaseous emission as a key determinant of environmental impact associated with the abandonment of offshore facilities. In the absence of a standardised methodology this paper describes the approach adopted and results achieved using the North Sea Heather platform as a case study. The study develops and then applies a set of rules for conducting such analyses. Results show that in terms of energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions there is little to choose between most partial and complete removal options. The energy cost advantages of recycling are largely offset by increased transport costs returning materials to shore. The study also highlights the importance of case specific variables, in particular, marine vessel fuel consumption.