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    Nick Butler

    Energy Commentator

    This blog is on the relationship between energy and power, plus the global trends and influences on the industry. It usually appears on Monday.

    Nick Butler is visiting professor and chair of the Kings Policy Institute at Kings College London. He spent 29 years with BP, including five years as Group Vice President for Policy and Strategy Development at BP from 2002 to 2006. He has also served as Senior Policy Adviser at No 10, Chairman of the Centre for European Reform and Treasurer of the Fabian Society.

    Nick Butler is an investor in, and an adviser to a number of companies and institutions in the energy business. The views expressed are solely his. This material is not intended to provide and should not be relied upon for investment advice or recommendations. Readers are urged to seek professional advice before making any investment.

    @nickb2211  on Twitter (link opens in a new browser window)

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    • Tuesday, 8 November, 2022
      Climate change
      European crisis risks climate action reputation

      The energy transition and the cause of energy security have merged into one

      a huge pipeline being lowered into the ground using heavy equipment
    • Monday, 6 December, 2021
      Electric power
      Solution to wasted energy lies in improved distribution

      The scope for efficiency gains is enormous, even without more technology or scientific breakthroughs

      Carbon challenge: A US coal power station along the Allegheny River, near Pittsburgh
    • Wednesday, 11 November, 2020
      Energy sector
      Pandemic shock to energy use risks undermining efficiency gains

      Using only existing technology, consumption could be reduced by at least 20% without difficulty

    • Wednesday, 15 July, 2020
      Renewable energy
      How oil majors bought into green energy

      A tipping point has been reached as investment in renewables technology gathers pace

    • Monday, 23 March, 2020
      Energy sector
      Climate change is still with us

      The fundamentals of energy use have not changed, even if the focus of attention has

      Undated handout image issued by Tidal Lagoon Power of a visualisation of the wall at Swansea Bay, as a review commissioned by the Government into the potential for tidal lagoon energy in the UK is to be published. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Issue date: Thursday January 12, 2017. If the independent review, conducted by former energy minister Charles Hendry, backs the technology, it could provide a boost to a "world first" project to harness the power of the tides in the Severn Estuary. See PA story ENERGY Lagoons. Photo credit should read: Tidal Lagoon Power/PA Wire NOTE TO EDITORS: This handout photo may only be used in for editorial reporting purposes for the contemporaneous illustration of events, things or the people in the image or facts mentioned in the caption. Reuse of the picture may require further permission from the copyright holder.
    • Monday, 16 March, 2020
      Coronavirus
      Expect the oil price to rebound — but with a low ceiling

      Coronavirus has caused economic damage but not changed the market fundamentals

      Mandatory Credit: Photo by CHRISTIAN BRUNA/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock (10574736d) Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman Al Saud, Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, arrives for the 178th Extraordinary Meeting of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) conference and 8th OPEC and non-OPEC Ministerial Meeting at the OPEC headquarters in Vienna, Austria, 05 March 2020. Due to the ongoing SARS-CoV-2 epidemic, the OPEC Secretariat has decided to reduce the number of participants to a minimum and members of the press are not allowed to enter the OPEC headquarters. Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meeting in Vienna, Austria - 05 Mar 2020
    • Monday, 9 March, 2020
      Energy sector
      Is 2020 the year for regime change in Venezuela?

      Falling oil prices could spell doom for President Nicolás Maduro

      Handout picture released by Miraflores Presidential Palace showing Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro speaking during a television programme at the Miraflores Presidential Palace, in Caracas, on February 27, 2020. (Photo by Marcelo Garcia / Venezuelan Presidency / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT AFP PHOTO / PRESIDENCIA VENEZUELA - NO MARKETING - NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS (Photo by MARCELO GARCIA/Venezuelan Presidency/AFP via Getty Images)
    • Monday, 2 March, 2020
      Energy sector
      Look beyond European oil majors’ steps to net zero

      The climate change targets are good but celebration at this stage is misplaced

      Demonstrators stand next to a wooden model of the Trojan horse during a protest against BP sponsorship of British Museum in London, Britain February 7, 2020, in this picture obtained from social media. HUGH WARWICK/@HEDGEHOGHUGH/via REUTERS THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. MANDATORY CREDIT. NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. - RC2SVE9937A9
    • Monday, 24 February, 2020
      Energy sector
      We need a world institution for climate and energy

      Establishing a structure to direct the green transition is key to success

      A woman carries a dog as she wades through a water-logged neighbourhood during rains in Chennai, India, November 1, 2017. REUTERS/P. Ravikumar TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC1C98089000
    • Monday, 17 February, 2020
      Energy sector
      New head of Sonatrach is an opportunity for Algeria

      The state oil and gas company needs radical reform to attract foreign investment

      View of the headquarter of the state energy company Sonatrach in Algiers, Algeria june 26, 2016.Reuters/Ramzi Boudia - D1AETMMRJWAB
    • Monday, 10 February, 2020
      Energy sector
      The threats to energy security have changed

      The focus now is on low oil prices, China’s imports and the climate emergency

      A general view shows a palm field suffering from desertification on October 27, 2016 near Morocco's southeastern oasis town of Erfoud, north of Er-Rissani in the Sahara Desert. The oasis of Tafilalet near Er-Rissane is at risk of disappearing as the area is drying up due to global warming. / AFP / FADEL SENNA / TO GO WITH AFP STORY BY JALAL AL-MAKHFI (Photo credit should read FADEL SENNA/AFP via Getty Images)
    • Monday, 3 February, 2020
      Energy sector
      It is time to unlock the potential of hydrogen

      Even with industrialisation, renewables cannot solve the climate change challenge

    • Monday, 27 January, 2020
      Energy sector
      The disruptive effects of Europe’s Green Deal

      The strategy will affect many established businesses and change the pattern of trade

      dpatop - HANDOUT - 20 January 2020, Switzerland, Davos: Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Comission, delivers a speech during the 26th Annual Crystal Award Ceremony, ahead of 50th World Economic Forum Annual Meeting, which will run between 21 and 24 January 2020. Photo: Valeriano Di Domenico/World Economic Forum/dpa - ATTENTION: editorial use only and only if the credit mentioned above is referenced in full
    • Monday, 20 January, 2020
      Energy sector
      The loss of corporate influence on energy policy is dangerous

      Oil majors and utilities must regain trust to meet the challenge of climate change

      An EDF worker is seen on the construction site of the third-generation European Pressurised Water nuclear reactor (EPR) in Flamanville, France, November 16, 2016. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier - D1BEUNETQJAA
    • Monday, 13 January, 2020
      Energy sector
      Britain is ripe for a radical shift in energy policy

      The objectives are not in question but a strategy for achieving them is needed

      Demonstrators take part in a mass climate march to demand urgent action on the climate crisis from world leaders attending the COP25 summit, in Madrid, on December 6, 2019. - The main march takes place in Madrid on the sidelines of the UN climate conference, with a simultaneous rally in the Chilean capital, which had been due to host the 12-day gathering but was forced to pull out due to deadly anti-government protests. (Photo by CRISTINA QUICLER / AFP) (Photo by CRISTINA QUICLER/AFP via Getty Images)
    • Monday, 6 January, 2020
      Energy sector
      Gas deal with Ukraine is a boon for Russia

      Details of the agreement show that Vladimir Putin understands the energy market

      Vladimir Putin, Russia's president, pauses during his annual news conference in Moscow, Russia, on Thursday, Dec. 19, 2019. A year ago, Putin said Russia needs an “economic breakthrough,” telling his countrymen in his annual press conference that the outlook was finally turning up. Photographer: Andrey Rudakov/Bloomberg
    • Monday, 30 December, 2019
      Energy sector
      The three key things to watch on energy in 2020

      The influence of politics around climate change is probably the most uncertain element

      U.S. President Donald Trump covers his face from TV lights as he walks towards the media on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, U.S., before his departure to New York, November 2, 2019. REUTERS/Yuri Gripas TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC14FC3F1330
    • Monday, 23 December, 2019
      Energy sector
      George Mitchell, transformer of the energy market

      The late father of fracking is my industry personality of the decade

      George P. Mitchell...George Mitchell, Chairman and CEO of The Mitchell Family Corporation, is seen in a Nov. 11, 2009 photo, in his downtown Houston office. Mitchell, Texas oil man, real estate developer, and one of Houston's wealthiest businessmen, died Friday, July 26, 2013 at his home in Galveston, a spokeswoman said. He was 94. (AP Photo/Houston Chronicle, Nick de la Torre)
    • Monday, 16 December, 2019
      Energy sector
      The energy surprises of 2019

      The uncertainty that prevails in the industry has been underlined by events of the year

      (FILES) In this file photo taken on September 13, 2019, Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg speaks at a climate protest outside the White House in Washington, DC. - US President Donald Trump on December 12, 2019, slammed Time magazine's naming of Thunberg as 2019 Person of the Year, saying the climate activist should "chill" and go see a movie. "So ridiculous. Greta must work on her Anger Management problem, then go to a good old fashioned movie with a friend! Chill Greta, Chill!" he tweeted. (Photo by Nicholas Kamm / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)
    • Monday, 9 December, 2019
      Energy sector
      Moscow is being forced to change its energy strategy

      Russia’s power in oil and gas is curtailed by the buyer’s market

      FILE PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin waves to the media prior to a meeting of leaders of the BRICS emerging economies at the Itamaraty palace in Brasilia, Brazil, Thursday, November 14, 2019. Pavel Golovkin/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
    • Friday, 6 December, 2019
      News in Focus podcast15 min listen
      UK parties are missing the mark on climate change

      What are the promises on climate change in the UK general election?

    • Monday, 2 December, 2019
      Climate change
      Election rhetoric that damages the climate debate

      The core issue is missed when politicians focus on the wrong agenda

      WEST DES MOINES, IOWA - NOVEMBER 25: Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) speaks to guests during a campaign stop at the Val Air Ballroom on November 25, 2019 in West Des Moines, Iowa. The 2020 Iowa Democratic caucuses will take place on February 3, 2020, making it the first nominating contest for the Democratic Party in choosing their presidential candidate. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)
    • Monday, 25 November, 2019
      Energy sector
      US energy independence has its costs

      As the country exports more oil than it imports, global balances shift

      The Silver Cindy tanker sails out of the Citgo Refinery dock bound for Mexico with a load of gasoline at the Port of Corpus Christi in Corpus Christi, Texas, U.S., on Thursday, Jan. 7, 2016. Crude oil slid Thursday to the lowest level since December 2003 as turbulence in China, the worlds biggest energy consumer, prompted concerns about the strength of demand. Photographer: Eddie Seal/Bloomberg
    • Sunday, 17 November, 2019
      Energy sector
      Energy transition is only part of the change in electricity

      Production and distribution is being disrupted in what is becoming a buyer’s market

      A picture taken on October 16, 2017 in Nordheim, eastern France shows an electrical pylon raising up from the mist. / AFP PHOTO / PATRICK HERTZOG (Photo credit should read PATRICK HERTZOG/AFP via Getty Images)
    • Monday, 11 November, 2019
      Oil & Gas industry
      Is digitisation the fourth stage of the hydrocarbon revolution?

      Why oil and gas 4.0 is really better described as oil and gas 1.4

      The Nabors Alaska Drilling Inc. CDR2 AC oil drill rig is moved along a road in the North Slope in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, U.S., on Thursday, Feb. 16, 2017. Four decades after the Trans Alaska Pipeline System went live, transforming the North Slope into a modern-day Klondike, many Alaskans fear the best days have passed. Photographer: Daniel Acker/Bloomberg
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