Top UK firms miss energy goals

Five out of the UK's 'big six' energy suppliers failed to invest the £30 per customer per year required to help the UK hit renewables targets, according to new analysis from renewable energy firm Ecotricity, reports Computing.co.uk.

The accusation drew a strongly worded response from energy giant Centrica, which accused Ecotricity of using "highly misleading" figures.

According to Ecotricity's analysis of publicly available investment plans, only nPower hit the £30 per customer target in 2009, investing more than £65 for each customer on renewables. In contrast, ScottishPower spent £16, EDF Energy £9, Scottish and Southern £8, and Centrica and E.ON nothing at all.

Google has developed a prototype for a new mirror technology that could cut by half the cost of building a solar thermal plant, says the company's green energy czar, according to CNET News.

Bill Weihl says if development and testing go well, he could see the product being ready in one to three years. "Things have progressed," states Weihl. "We have an internal prototype."

The Internet search engine company, which has been investing in companies and doing research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy, wants to cut the cost of making heliostats, the fields of mirrors that track the sun.

The Queensland Government has introduced an interactive online map showcasing the state's renewable energy resources to attract more green technology companies to invest in the state, says Computerworld.

The Queensland Wind Map, developed by Hydro Tasmania Consulting, is available through the Queensland Government's Interactive Resource and Tenures Maps system.

According to the Queensland Department of Employment, Economic Development and Innovation's Office of Clean Energy, the state has the natural resources necessary to become a renewable energy leader.