Jeff Hardy

It is fascinating to see how Poland 🇵🇱, once an unlikely leader in the energy transition, is increasingly giving the green light to smart use of renewable energy.

Dynamic energy contracts make smart energy use attractive to consumers. Supportive optional network tariffs offer an additional boost.

🧵

Reminder that electricity is stacked with levies and a carbon tax and gas gets a free pass, fundamentally imbalancing the market.

While a heat pump specific payment might deliver a few heat pumps, it won't solve fundamentals and is at risk of cancellation. Wider reform needed.

Good thread by @guynewey.bsky.social.

I remain in the camp that I do not understand the problem that zonal pricing aims to fix.

But, I do agree that change is needed, and soon.

We need to have markets that work for the future energy system. Especially local heat, power, transport and people.

Context. . .

I'm humbled to be appointed for this role leading a great team of researchers and experts focused on having policy impact through rigorous research and analysis.

Congrats Jan! I love the work of the ECI and you'll have plenty to do.

📢 Big Personal News!

At the end of April, I’ll be leading the Energy Programme @ecioxford.bsky.social @ox.ac.uk @oxfordgeography.bsky.social.

I’m excited to build on its legacy of world-leading energy research and create a global powerhouse on energy demand.

👇
www.eci.ox.ac.uk/news/global-...

I know everything feels grim right now but let's be realistic. These people are idiots. They're going to tank their economy. They're going to fuck-up every deal they sign. They're going to leave America looking shattered and deranged. And all those who supported them will look as idiotic as they are

It's been a long time since Private Eye's satire has made me audibly wince, but this is so to the point if it were a knife people would demand it be banned.

Two crucial features of this fascinating chart:
1. Starmer is preferred as PM to every other leader, despite Labour's polling woes
2. Farage loses to both Starmer and Davey, and ties with Badenoch despite Reform's polling surge

He makes himself big

Government suspends installers over ‘sub-standard’ ECO and GBIS work - Utility Week A total of 39 businesses have been suspended from installing new insulation in people’s homes under government schemes after inspections revealed they had performed sub-standard work. Routine checks c...

This is tantamount to a revolution in regulatory affairs, inasmuch as Government is actually imposing consequences for poor work. If this were applied to the housebuilding sector, many companies would disappear overnight.
utilityweek.co.uk/government-s...

Thames Water rescuers seek clean break before committing fresh funds Exclusive: Some bidders demand temporary renationalisation to help cut debts and oust bosses

This article makes no sense. It asks the reader to believe that people who want to put capital into Thames demand a SAR to get rid of poor performers and bad debt, and simultaneously to believe that Reeves thinks a SAR would be bad for investment. /1
www.theguardian.com/business/202...

You must earn and energy nerd badge.

You cannot blurt your way to an energy nerd badge.

These look pretty sensible to me.

Helen and I were married in the Horniman Museum and insisted on a wedding photo under this #absoluteunit

One week in the life of Kemi Badenoch She might be the single worst opposition leader we've seen in our lifetime. She makes Michael Foot look like Barack Obama.

One week in the life of Kemi Badenoch. She may well be the most hapless opposition leader we've seen in our lifetime. She makes Michael Foot look like Barack Obama. iandunt.substack.com/p/one-week-i...

Bat chart shows how much daylight is gained or lost in minutes per week through the year, for 51 degrees North latitude (southern Britain). January shows relatively small increases, rising from 10 mins per week at the start to 20 mins per week by the end. February, March and April show the fastest gains, around 25 mins per week, peaking in mid March. The pattern is mirrored in daylight losses in the Autumn, with September and October seeing the fastest loss of daylight.

Ah man getting up in the dark is tough. My son is furious about it this morning.

I’ve seen some efforts to launder January’s reputation on here, but I’m not having it. Things get better so slowly in Jan - February is the truly underrated, fastest improving month

What are people's theories about why uk productivity growth collapsed in 2007?

Grateful for any suggestions.

Added bonus points for reconciling dire outcomes with very good inputs on things like regulation, universities, talent, openness etc?

Excited to announce that the Energy Demand Research Centre (EDRC), which I direct together w. Prof Sara Walker, is now on BSky. Follow @edrc-uk.bsky.social for updates on how we address #energydemand in buildings, transport & industry. Updates to come on research themes, findings, news & events.

‘Why Reform poses a threat to Labour among young men’ – LabourList With Reform rising in the polls, we asked a 19-year-old first-time voter, who backed Labour at the election, for his perspective on the threat Reform…

My 19 yo son wrote for @labourlist.bsky.social on why young men are attracted to Reform. The commentariat talk a lot about this phenomenon, but we rarely hear from the young men themselves. What struck me was that although "anti-woke" is part of it, so is economics. labourlist.org/2025/01/news...

…morning has broken

A minimalist illustration showing a packaged charger box labeled "one Union one Charger." The box features an image of a blue charger with the European Union flag symbol and a USB-C cable. The scene is set within a holiday theme, with decorative Christmas trees, ornaments, and gift boxes surrounding the charger box. In the top right corner, there is a small EU flag symbol.

It’s time for THE charger.

Today, the USB-C becomes officially the common standard for charging new mobile electronic devices in the EU.

It means better-charging technology, reduced e-waste, and less fuss to find the chargers you need!

#DigitalEU

Having not read the sentencing remarks, I’m cautious about rushing to conclusions, but on its face Feathers McGraw appears to be a prime example of the rampant sentence inflation that has led to chronic overcrowding in our zoos and the unedifying spectacle of animals being released early.

big news: from 8 Jan 2025, the absolute unit tweet will be on show in an actual museum (the National Science and Media Museum).

"Back then people didn't have deal with NIMBY's". I hear that a lot.
The first ever National Grid involved negotiations with 222k landowners and tenants. The Central Electricity Board appointed thousands of officers to persuade. Astonishingly, only 600 cases (0.27%) needed compulsory purchase.

Sorry to say we're closed today (Tuesday) 😔
Someone has bricked our window, robbed the cash drawer and, bizarrely, the Bluetooth speaker 🎶

All the books are safe! Turns out robbers dont read. If you wanna help out this struggling queer bookshop our website is still open

Merry bloody Christmas 😥

UK ministers consider biggest ever renewable subsidy auction Discussions come as government seeks to meet 2030 clean power target

This is all well and good. But Ministers are risking holding a party and having no-one turn up. I now understand a decision on locational pricing has been delayed until next summer. This means investors won't know what returns they'll make - and won't be able to bid. /1

www.ft.com/content/4f16...

This solar scheme in Hackney is a nice example of local energy projects benefiting a wider range of people, including flats in city centres, which normally send power straight to the grid with no benefit to tenants. www.ianvisits.co.uk/articles/hac...

Any Powervault P3 battery owners out there?

I've had a unut for a few years and it has caused me no end of trouble and is currently broken again.

Powervault say they are very reliable and I want to check if that is the universal user experience?