Environmental interactions of tidal lagoons: A comparison of industry perspectives

Tidal lagoons are an attractive renewable energy option that could aid the UK in meeting its ambitious renewable energy targets. One of the main barriers to tidal range development in the UK to date has been regulatory environmental concern. In order for the nascent lagoon industry to move forward into development, the views of the developers and other influential stakeholders such as government bodies, regulators, conservationists and practitioners (herein referred to as 'influencing stakeholders' or 'influencers') need to be aligned. This study is the first of its kind using online questionnaires and semi-structured interviews to present and compare the views of both developers and influencing stakeholders on the environmental interactions of tidal lagoons. We find that, whilst both influencers and developers are working towards the common goal of a good environmental outcome for tidal lagoons, there are mismatches in their views in terms of the priorities given to the key environmental impacts, benefits and potential solution options. The work provides insight into what is at the forefront of developers' and influencers' minds, highlighting the key themes within their views and transforming this information into policy recommendations that will help the industry's development move forward

Effects of self-generation in imperfectly competitive electricity markets: The case of Spain

[EN] Domestic rooftop photovoltaic (PV) energy can reduce net electricity demand, and therefore reduce energy prices through a merit-order effect. This reduces profits of all incumbents in the electricity markets. In addition, in imperfectly competitive markets, PV self-generation reduces prices through a reduction in market power. The first effect may warrant additional policy interventions to maintain cost recovery, but the second is much more desirable, as it simultaneously helps increase sustainability and competition. However, unlike a simple reduction in market prices, the competition effect affects all incumbents differently. Since resistance from incumbents can be a significant barrier to energy policy change, it is important to understand the distribution of effects. This paper does so for the Spanish market. A Nash-Cournot model and a simplified representation of the Spanish electricity market is used to determine the merit-order and competition effects of an increase in solar self-generation. We conclude that both are important, and that their analysis is essential to inform the social debate around PV policy.Financial support from the UK Engineering and Physical Research Council through grant EP/P001173/1 (Centre for Energy Systems Integration) and from the Friedrich-Alexander-Universitat Erlangen-Nurnberg through a Scholler Fellowship held by Dr. van der Weijde is gratefully acknowledged. Financial support from the Spanish Ministry of Education under the scholarship FPU16/00962 is thankfully acknowledged.Ribó-Pérez, DG.; Van Der Weijde, AH.; Álvarez, C. (2019). Effects of self-generation in imperfectly competitive electricity markets: The case of Spain. Energy Policy. 113:1-12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.enpol.2019.110920S11211