LONDON: Britain is set to miss its 2020 European renewable energy targets, a parliamentary committee report said on Friday, setting a poor example for less wealthy countries as the world tries to rein in global warming.
Britain has a target to meet 15 percent of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2020, but had achieved just over 8 percent by the end of 2015.
"The UK will miss its 2020 renewable energy targets without major policy improvements," said Angus MacNeil, chair of the cross-party Energy and Climate Change Committee.
Britain's electricity sector is on course to meet its expected contribution to the target but energy used in transport and for heating homes and buildings is well behind what is needed, the committee report said.
The renewable target is a legally binding commitment set by the European Union.
"Our priority is providing secure, affordable and clean energy for families and businesses. Renewable energy already makes up around 25 percent of our electricity and we're on track to hit our overall targets," a spokeswoman for the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) said.
Britain could be fined if it misses the target, although Britain's decision earlier this year to leave the European Union means the status of such targets is unclear.
However, the lawmakers said a lack of clarity should not deter the country from trying to meet the goal.
"We agreed our 2020 renewable energy targets as part of the EU but they still have many merits, even as the UK Government prepares for Brexit," MacNeil said.
"If the UK reneges on these targets, it will undermine confidence in the Government's commitment to clean energy and the climate targets agreed in Paris," he said.
Last year, more than 190 countries agreed at climate talks in Paris to limit increases in global temperatures to well below 2 degrees.
Britain has been seen as a leader in efforts to fight climate change and has a domestic target to cut emissions by 80 percent compared with 1990 levels by 2050.
"The latest Climate Change Performance Index shows the UK is the second best country in the world on tackling climate change," the BEIS spokeswoman said.
Meanwhile, the head of euro zone finance ministers Jeroen Dijsselbloem said on Friday Britain must make up its mind on the start of formal divorce procedures with the European Union as its economy stands to lose the most from the prolonged uncertainty.
EU leaders have pressed Britain to initiate formal exit talks as soon as possible after voters chose to split from the bloc in a referendum in June, although the government plans to take until at least the end of the year to form a negotiating stance.
"For the Brexit process, it really is up to the British to make up their minds, in terms of when to start and how to get it on the road," Dijsselbloem told reporters in Bratislava before a meeting of the Eurogroup countries using the euro currency.
"I think, in the end, it will be the British economy that is damaged most, which I don't hope for but, I mean, this is my concern."
He also said he felt there was a strong political commitment from the EU's remaining 27 members to move forward together.
Other ministers said the so-called Brexit would be part of talks that should focus on improving the EU.
Britain is set to miss 2020 renewable energy target
Britain is set to miss 2020 renewable energy target
Aramco rises nearly 3% as Gulf stocks fall on Middle East tensions
RIYADH: Saudi Arabian Oil Co. shares rose nearly 3 percent in intraday trading on March 1, outperforming regional markets as escalating tensions in the Middle East weighed on Gulf equities.
The stock climbed as much as 3.2 percent to SR25.76 ($6.87) before easing slightly to SR25.64, up 2.72 percent from the previous close of SR24.96, according to Tadawul data. More than 12 million shares were traded, with turnover exceeding SR306 million as of 12:20 p.m. Saudi time.
The gains came even as most Gulf markets declined after Israel and the US launched strikes on Iran, triggering retaliatory attacks and raising fears of a broader regional conflict.
The Kingdom’s benchmark Tadawul All Share Index dropped as much as 4.6 percent in early trading, putting it on track for its sharpest intraday fall since April, Reuters reported.
Elsewhere in the region, Boursa Kuwait suspended trading as a precautionary measure. Oman’s main index trimmed losses to 1.5 percent after falling more than 3 percent earlier, while Bahrain’s benchmark slipped 0.6 percent. Qatar’s market was closed for a bank holiday.
Investors are now closely watching oil markets, particularly the Strait of Hormuz, a key shipping route that carries about 15 million barrels of crude per day, nearly 30 percent of global seaborne oil trade.
“The most immediate and tangible development affecting oil markets is the effective halt of traffic through the Strait of Hormuz,” said Jorge Leon, senior vice president and head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy.
“Unless de-escalation signals emerge swiftly, we expect a significant upward repricing of oil at the start of the week,” he added.
Leon said some supply could be rerouted through alternative pipelines, including Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline to the Red Sea, which has a capacity of about 5 million barrels per day, and the UAE’s Abu Dhabi pipeline, with a capacity of around 1.5 million barrels per day. Even so, he estimated the disruption could temporarily remove 8 million to 10 million barrels per day from global supply.
Barclays raised its Brent crude forecast to about $100 a barrel from $80 a day earlier, while analysts expect prices could jump by as much as $20 per barrel when trading resumes on March 2 if tensions escalate further, Reuters reported.
“Should the Strait remain effectively closed or energy infrastructure be confirmed as damaged, the upside risks to prices would increase further,” Leon said.
Even a short disruption in Hormuz traffic could lead to tanker delays, cargo rescheduling, and supply bottlenecks, keeping energy markets volatile in the near term.
