Archive for December, 2011
Church and National Trust attack solar cuts
A workman installs solar panels on a roof
Two of the nation’s most trusted institutions, the National Trust and the Church of England, have rounded on the government over its troubled efforts to cut subsidies for household solar panels.
“Sudden lurches in policy and support send a bad signal,” said the two groups, which have helped put solar power systems on castles, schools, churches – and even a cathedral.
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In a joint letter to ministers, they call for community solar projects to be protected from cuts, warning that the viability of many of their planned installations has been cast into doubt by the government’s efforts to rein in the soaring cost of supporting solar energy generation.
The National Trust said it had 57 prospective solar sites in Yorkshire and the north-east that were being reassessed in light of ministers’ plans to cut subsidies under the so-called feed-in tariff scheme.
The Church of England, which has backed more than 200 solar power installations on vicarages, churches and other buildings, said the government’s move was “seriously damaging” efforts by local energy groups working with churches to expand such activities.
Their opposition creates a fresh problem for ministers after an embarrassing High Court defeat on Wednesday to groups arguing that the proposed reductions were unfairly rushed through.
The government originally gave six weeks’ notice that, because of an unexpected rush of installations, it intended to halve solar support rates from December 12, nearly two weeks before a consultation period ending on Friday.
That prompted a panic at solar companies, with some working seven-day weeks to beat the deadline. A record 29,880 installations were recorded in the week ending December 11, and just 812 in the following week, official figures show.
The High Court ruled the process unlawful on Wednesday. The Department of Energy and Climate Change said it would appeal, leaving the industry uncertain about how long the old, higher rate of subsidies will last.
“The effect of the judgment is unclear,” said Chris Paul, a partner at the Trowers & Hamlins law firm. “It could mean that DECC has to restart the consultation process, or otherwise amend the proposed date for implementation of the proposed changes from 12 December.”
Some fear a delay could lead to more severe cutbacks for all renewable energy suppliers eligible for subsidies under the so-called feed-in tariff scheme, which also covers wind, hydroelectric and other forms of generation.
The scheme, which is similar to ones many European countries have launched to encourage low-carbon electricity generation, pays households or businesses for renewable energy they use themselves, as well as any power exported to the grid.
Although the money paid comes from a small charge on consumers’ electricity bills, not government coffers, ministers have capped the amount that can be spent at £867m up to 2015. If more solar systems are fitted, some worry the government might impose broader cuts, or even end the scheme altogether.
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China / Portugal: bail-out?
So it’s true – China is going to bail out the eurozone, after all. This week’s sale of a stake in Energias de Portugal to China Three Gorges Corp for €2.7bn offers one route to doing so: a resource-hungry Chinese energy producer looking for a bargain (as Beijing sees it) from the sale of state assets that the debt crisis has provoked. Portugal was lucky – rich buyer, attractive target. Other governments may not be.
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FROM Lex
CTG is paying the equivalent of €3.45 a share for its 21 per cent stake in EDP – a 53 per cent premium over the pre-announcement close. That is because EDP offers the buyer two valuable assets – renewable energy technology, and the prospect of expansion into Latin America. About 40 per cent of EDP’s earings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation in the first nine months of 2011 were from wind power and Brazil. CTG is also offering a further €2bn investment in wind farms and a €2bn credit facility for EDP, enhancing its bid’s attractions.
This transaction is no template for future eurozone privatisations, however. Electricity producers in other debt-laden countries such as Ireland or Greece lack EDP’s international profile, for starters. Even China would balk at buying small operators entirely dependent on domestic markets. EDP is also arguably Portugal’s most attractive asset; from now on Lisbon is more likely to be competing with Athens for buyers’ attentions. Greece is currently trying to sell a €50bn portfolio of state assets, but it mainly includes buildings, ports and an abandoned airport. Nor is privatisation necessarily the answer to indebted countries’ problems. In many cases, it will provide the cash to service rather than pay down debt. For example, Portugal needs €39bn of financing in 2012, according to the International Monetary Fund.
The eurozone’s new year sale will not be a bargain for anybody.
E-mail the Lex team in confidence at lex@ft.com
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South African converter to install three more Atlas slitters
CTP flexibles, a Cape Town, South Africa-based converter of flexible packaging materials, will install three Titan ER610 compact slitter rewinders from Atlas Converting Equipment early in 2012. The first Titan slitter will be installed during January, with the second and third machines following closely behind.
‘With the three new Titan slitters we will have ample capacity to cope with both current demand and also future expansion of our business,’ commented Gary Seale, managing director of the company. ‘We had already installed one 1650mm and one 1350mm wide Titan ER610 slitter during 2010, which gave us every confidence to invest again with Titan. For our production requirements, this slitter really is the perfect solution.’
CTP flexibles manufactures specialized plastic extrusion and flexible packaging for the food, beverage, confectionery, industrial and general merchandise industries. With advanced technology and part of Caxton & CTP Publishers & Printers, the company has been producing and converting packaging for South Africa’s blue chip companies since 1971.
‘We produce everything here,’ Gary Seale continued. ‘We extrude high-density, low-density and linear low-density polyethylene films and produce cast polypropylene films. We also manufacture a comprehensive range of sophisticated products – from laminations, multi-layer films and shrink films to bags, pouches and shrink sleeves.’
The Titan ER610 compact slitter rewinder has been a great success for Atlas Converting Equipment, with sales of more than 100 machines worldwide. It is available in two web widths – 1350 and 1650mm (53 and 65in) – with a maximum rewind diameter of 610mm (24in). It also features a 10in touch screen control system and an integral edge-trim extraction system. The pneumatically controlled braking system provides accurate web tension control and a digital edge-guide system controls lateral movement of the unwind reel to +/- 50 mm (2in).
Slitting systems available include shear knives, rotary razor (burst) or razor slitting in air or groove. Optional features include an anti-static control system, laser (line) core positioning and a new option for shaftless unwind roll pick-up from floor. This option is included in the technical configuration of the three Titan ER 610 slitters for CTP flexibles and will also be retro-fitted to the two existing Titan ER610 models installed last year.
The Titan ER610 slitter can process a wide range of flexible materials including plain, printed, coated or metallized film from 20 to 200 micron, a wide range of laminates and paper from 30 to 200 gsm at speeds up to 450 m/min (1,500 ft/min). The minimum slit width can be as narrow as 25mm (approx 1in).
Pictured: CTP flexibles will have a total of five Titan ER610 compact slitter rewinders in operation at its production facility in Cape Town
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Two more solar groups add to sector’s woes
The troubled solar industry had another week of bad news, as BP announced it was closing down its solar energy business and Solar Millennium became the second German solar company to file for insolvency in eight days, after Berlin-based Solon did the same last week.
“Over the last six months we have realised that we simply can’t make any money from solar,” said BP, whose solar business was once regarded as one of its flagship alternative energy divisions.
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The industry has been buffeted by oversupply and low-cost Chinese competition that has seen the spot price of a solar cell plunge from $1.30 per watt at the end of 2010, to just 70 cents in mid-November. Three US solar businesses filed for bankruptcy in August alone, including California’s Solyndra.
With the Eurozone crisis expected to keep demand subdued in one of the world’s biggest solar markets, some analysts believe 2012 could see an industry “bloodbath”.
Still, there was better news for the sector this week in the UK. Plummeting solar cell prices helped cause such a rush to install subsidised household solar panels there that the government had hastily moved to slash subsidies from December 12, nearly two weeks before the end of a consultation period on the plans.
A High Court judge ruled the move unlawful on Wednesday, prompting relief in the industry. But the government plans to appeal the ruling, meaning the cuts are likely to be deferred rather than killed off completely.
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UK converter installs Nilpeter and Kodak technology
UK converter OPM Group has installed a 7-color Nilpeter FA-4 UV flexo press at its main plant in Keighley, West Yorkshire. The company has also become the first UK label converter to adopt Nilpeter’s CleanInking anilox system.
Furthermore, OPM Group is the country’s first user of Kodak’s Spotless Flexographic Solution, a software package integrated with its Prinergy system designed to work with Kodak Flexcel NX plates.
The independent OPM Group was established nearly 40 years ago and now has around 60 employees. Current group production divides equally between flexible packaging and label products. Besides commodity food and beverage labels, the company serves added-value markets such as the automotive, security, data processing and industrial sectors. A new project involves producing packaging products, including laminates for pouches and sachets, with low migration properties using dedicated UV-cured inks.
The new servo-driven FA-4 has a web width of 420 mm (16.5 inches) and top speed of 175 m/minute (575 feet/minute). OPM’s version is fitted with the new energy-saving MBS-6 lamp modules from IST Metz. The press replaces an existing Nilpeter press and complements a 9-color FA-4 installed two years ago at OPM Flexibles. Formed eleven years ago as separate division, it is located outside nearby Bradford. This plant also includes a servo-driven FA-3300S and an FA-3300, both with nine UV flexo units. The group has a total of six Nilpeter presses.
OPM and its repro partner, Reproflex3, were the UK beta testers for Kodak’s Spotless color management software. It accurately predicts spot color requirements to help reduce press downtime, based on Delta E Value 1 to calculate highlight and shadow color differences. Spotless leverages the extended color gamut of the Flexcel NX plates. OPM can therefore obtain 95 percent of all Pantone colors from CMYK, which meant it could specify seven flexo print units for its latest FA-4, whereas nine were required before.
‘One of our objectives in testing the system was to achieve accurate spot colors based on constant density and constant dot gain. We wanted to achieve absolute repeatability at print speeds of 120 m/minute or so,’ said Chris Ellison, managing director. ‘With high press speeds there is often the risk of slight plate lifting. You can overcome it with higher plate press pressures, but you lose repeatability.’
This factor was among the issues which led the company to adopt Nilpeter’s CleanInking anilox system, launched at the recent Labelexpo Europe. It features an open/close doctor blade chamber with two blades in contact with the anilox roll. The Dynamic Print Adjustment applies pressure – measured in microns – to the impression cylinder acting against the substrate and anilox roll. The system therefore ensures constant overall inking, so avoiding ink density problems with solids even when plate lifting occurs. As a sealed anilox system, ink supply can remain in the press or stored in the chamber off-press. This arrangement facilitates easier job changes; only the plates are changed.
‘Today’s trading conditions demand that converters like us must have the right kind of equipment to achieve a lean manufacturing approach to improving margins. Our latest FA-4 setup represents a phenomenal piece of technology in this respect. We can achieve a near offset standard of printing, aided by 275 line/inch screen counts from the Flexcel NX plates, at relatively high press speeds. The press control system allows us to recall all settings covering all functions, which makes the production of repeat jobs more efficient,’ Ellison added.
Pictured: Nilpeter’s CleanInking system
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