| Archive for Downsizer For an ethical approach to consumption |
| snozzer |
If we sell our Electricity generation to a foreign country?With EDF being basically owned by the french government, does it make sense to allow them to buy and operate British generating stations and build and run british nuclear power stations? |
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| cab |
Re: If we sell our Electricity generation to a foreigh countAs they've decided not to do so because they don't see any profit in dealing with us narrow minded islanders, its rather a redundant question.But, otherwise, no, it doesn't matter. Unless you'd also like British companies to stop trading abroad? |
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| Treacodactyl |
I think it's more complicated than that. The deal may not be off they could just be arguing over the price.
Could a British Company take over EDF? I'm not sure as it's 85% owned by the French Government. On the other hand I'd rather a French Company ran our power stations than an American one because they'd have more to lose if one had a serious accident. |
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| vegplot |
The deal's off, for now at least. | ||||
| snozzer |
Still on going Linky Can we British Energy buy EDF instead? |
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| Maxwell Smart |
I don't know what the situation is in the UK. But in Canada we had an agreement to sell electricity to the Americans - If I recall the catch was that we had to guarantee supply to them, even if it meant that we couldn't supply ourselves.
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| Behemoth |
AFAIK the French power market is not as open to competition as ours is. W've been swapping electricity with the French for years through that cable under the channel. In practice I think we take more cheap nuclear electricity than they take. Multinational ownership now means little in terms of nation states. Most of our water is owned by foreign companies, I think Northumbrian's major shareholder is the Canadian Teacher's Pension Fund. | ||||
| dpack |
they seem to have less" incidents "than some
i dont want the previous brit/us groups running any new ones as they have shown they take risks and make mistakes at a level that is unacceptable ,given they were in the plutonium business rather than the energy business spose it is understandable . the french reactors are built for energy production nuclear is about 20% at the mo iirc and as this is retired we could turn a few things off |
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| vegplot |
The natural progression is from state to corporate. Countries mean less and less in the world of energy market so defining 'we' and 'our' is a little more difficult than just where the generator is built. |
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| Quail By Mail |
Loads of huge, famous Brit companies and brands are owned by foreigners. The French even own B&Q and Beefeater Gin.
I absolutely can't wait for the Indians to do something with Jaguar!!!! |
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| Treacodactyl |
Although there has been a number of leaks recently: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7522712.stm What concerns me is the possibility that a state owned company controlling a large amount of our power infrastructure. I'm not that keen on a Foreign government having a say in something like the sighting and running of our nuclear reactors. |
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| oldish chris |
Looks like you can join the "Buy British" campaign and the "Buy Nothing for a Year" campaign with a clear conscience 
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| snozzer |
B&Q and Nuclear power are hardly the same thing. Putting the very future of Britians energy production into foreign hands is a worrying issue. Something as basic as energy production should not be contolled by a foreign power. On the bright side, a troop of boy scouts could always just threaten the French and the white flag would be out so quick it would be back in British hands before they had chance to say "nous remettre" 
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| dpack |
they may have considered they build em we nationalise em
im not responsible enough for nuclear power but it is part of the power strategy maybe we should put up an alternative bid |
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| tahir |
B & Q is owned by Kingfisher, a UK compnay that owns Castorama, a French DIY company |
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| Behemoth |
Oh Snozzer, you old socialist you! |
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| snozzer |
NEVER |
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| Aeolienne |
If we sell our electricity generation to a foreign country?Two from the Sindie's business section...Middle East to fund Scotland's £5bn power grid Holyrood in talks with sovereign wealth funds to build offshore network to transmit wind, wave and tidal energy to the UK By Mark Leftly Sunday, 10 August 2008 The Scottish government is in talks with two Middle Eastern sovereign wealth funds to provide the cash for a £4.8bn offshore energy grid, to be built off the east coast of the UK. Scottish Development International (SDI), the government's inward investment agency, has been in discussions with the funds for two months. One is known to be from the United Arab Emirates, and SDI is opening an office in Dubai to tap into the region's vast funding potential. Paul O'Brien, SDI's senior executive for renewable energy development, said that the grid would "accelerate offshore wind, wave and tidal energy projects in Scotland". The move would help meet the European Union's strict sustainable energy targets, although a deal is unlikely to be agreed until next year, according to Mr O'Brien. "The point we have to address," he said, "is finding a way of sparking their interest. They could be joint venture partners or at least part of a wider consortium." The transmission grid would stretch from Shetland and the Orkneys on the east coast of Scotland down to Norfolk. Mr O'Brien said that there was 60GW of "untapped potential" from offshore energy that could be accessed only through establishing the grid. A spokeswoman for the Crown Estate, which owns the seabed, said that SDI and any Middle Eastern partner would have to apply for a licence to undertake the development. However, the Crown Estate is likely to approve the idea, having published a feasibility study in January, looking at a power grid on the east coast seabed. The cost of the core part of the project was estimated at around £1.7bn, but was expected to rise to £4.8bn as more phases were added up to 2020. The Crown Estate has awarded a number of offshore wind farm contracts, including a £900m agreement in May with the US engineering and construction conglomerate Fluor to build a farm off the coast of Suffolk. The grid would provide links between these wind farms. SDI has launched a feasibility study into a similar project on the west coast. This is being run in conjunction with the governments of the Irish Republic and Northern Ireland, and is funded by the European Union. The governments hope that the west coast scheme could ultimately be joined up with the proposed grid to the east. |
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| Aeolienne |
If we sell our electricity generation to a foreign country?Simon Evans, Deputy Business EditorSunday, 10 August 2008 Johnny Foreigner's funds are welcome. Patriotism just makes you poorer Thank heavens we're not Americans. Yes, I know it's become something of a national sport to slate the Yanks, but our front page story would cause outcry across the Atlantic. Imagine if it turned out, for example, that Oregon was in negotiations with Middle-Eastern sovereign wealth funds to be a joint venture partner on its offshore energy needs. If you can't imagine, just look back to 2006, when Senator Hillary Clinton and Congress got into a protectionist tizz over Dubai Ports World's proposed takeover of US ports owned by P&O. The fact that the friendly nation of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) might own a few ports was declared a scandal by a war-on-terror obsessed media and over-zealous politicians alike. Investing in a new energy grid, as a UAE sovereign fund might well do off the east coast of the UK, has even more security implications, if you think in that way. Couldn't those foreigners shut down our power grid, leaving us easy prey for attack? It's nonsense, of course. By freeing up our markets to these incredibly successful investors, the UK is tapping into funds that it would otherwise struggle to raise. Sovereign wealth makes the creation of this hugely complicated offshore national grid all the more likely. Similarly, it was refreshing that there were so few jingoistic objections to the idea of French utility EDF taking over British Energy, despite its vital importance to the future of nuclear new build. That said, Ed Mayo, the chief executive of the National Consumer Council, made a good point last week. He argued that overseas owners of British Energy companies, such as Spain's Iberdrola controlling Scottish Power, should find ways of making it clear that they are not raising prices as a result of price caps in their own country – in effect, to ensure that UK customers are not subsidising people in other countries. But even if we are, the benefits of our free market are clear. We have an encouragingly ambivalent attitude to overseas ownership, and that means we get access to their cash and expertise. |
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| Shane |
Several years ago, the EU decreed that all European companies must open up their domestic utility markets to competition from companies in other EU states. Naturally, the British immediately did so, meaning that French and German companies quickly moved in and snapped up several of our gas, electricity and water companies. However, when our companies attempted to do the same, the French kicked up an absolute storm and refused to cede control of any of their utility companies. The end result is that the French and German utility companies have grown so strong that even if the EU forced them to open up to overseas competition, there's unlikely to be any UK firms able to take them on. And the point about subsidising their markets is a very valid one; there is a suggestion that the French government's 5% cap (or whatever it is - it's low, anyway) on utility companies' annual price increases results in them having to put up prices in the UK by a disproportionate amount in order for them to make any money. The cynics say that the only reason that they bought into the UK at all was to give them a revenue stream to subsidise their obligations on the continent. |
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| Treacodactyl |
And it's back on: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/7632853.stm |
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| Aeolienne |
Electricité de France bought Sweb and got Princess Anne to open their new building on the Exeter Business Park. Just down the road the Met Office had to make do with, er, Sir Robert May of the Royal Society to do the honours. Where are the royals when you need them?! | ||||
| Andy B |
Wont their fist duty be to the french and if their is ever a problem with supply they will look after their home market first. Leaving us in the doops! A bit like russian gas. | ||||
| Ginkotree |
I think it is sad we own less than 50 percent of our own power now....we can be out voted... | ||||
| gnome |
we dont own any power - the rich capitalists own it all. a crook is a crook, does it really matter what nationality they are? | ||||
| Behemoth |
Bricks and mortar, steel and bolts are here. Board rooms can be anywhere. |