Britannia Radio

John Dunlop, the head of energy for HSH Nordbank, the world's largest 
financier of renewable energy projects, said that the outlook 
appeared increasingly tough. "There is a long queue of wind and solar 
projects in Europe and the US that are looking for debt finance that 
are not getting it," he said. "Debt is what drives the market, so 
2009 will be a very difficult year."  [Oh goody! -cs]

The warning of a steep downturn in activity comes as Ed Miliband, the 
Energy Secretary, is on Friday set to appeal for greater investment 
in low-carbon sources of energy at a meeting of oil-producing and oil-
consuming countries in London.

The UK passed legislation this year to cut greenhouse-gas emissions 
by 80 per cent by 2050, becoming the first country to impose a 
legally binding national emissions-reduction target. [The law is an 
ass then!  For it binds nobody but the government and no government 
can speak for the next one.  Anybody thinking of meeting that target 
can say to the state -" Well, you pay for it , then" but the state 
hasn't  got the money -cs] European Union leaders also reaffirmed 
their commitment to cutting EU carbon emissions by 20 per cent by 
2020, and to obtaining at least 20 per cent of energy from renewable 
sources and to achieving an overall 20 per cent reduction in energy use.

The British Government views a huge expansion of offshore wind and 
tidal energy schemes as a key priority. However, the problems in the 
industry could leave governments struggling to hit these ambitious 
goals.

On Thursday, the price of a barrel of US crude oil slipped to $38 a 
barrel, its lowest since July 2004, after a record output cut from 
Opec of 2.2 million barrels on Wednesday failed to bolster prices, 
which have plunged more than $100 from a peak of $147 in July