UK OK on fracking: Germany grids for grids

Today the UK government moved to allow fracking (Hydraulic fracturing) with the hopes of plentiful supply being recovered.

A brief exchange of pros and cons is at the Guardian with statements from Mark Lynas (for) and Greenpeace's David Santillo (against).  The article seems unfair as Lynas knows particulars and Santillo knows no particulars but demands more be known - but perhaps Lynas simply has a much stronger position to argue.
Other 'environmentalist' wanted to change the channel to a claim of lower costs for renewables, and another Guardian article appeared, Gas 'will add more to energy bills than renewables' – government advisers.  The original story was quite wrong, using figures for a scenario where a £500/tCO2 existed, in 2050, to report on what would happen 'by the end of the decade'. 
The tweets that exploded from the ENGO twitterverse are being quickly deleted now.


It does bring to mind some other costs of renewables which may be of some additional concerm in Germany following a report by the German Energy Agency (Dena).

Dena: Need to Expand and Modernise Distribution Grids – Returns on Equity Not Always Sufficient

The German distribution networks need to be extended by 135,000 to 193,000 km until 2030. In addition, some 21,000 to 25,000 km of the existing grids need to be modernised. Costs will range between EUR 27.5 and 42.5 billion, the German Energy Agency (dena) said yesterday, presenting a study on the need for expansion and modernisation of the low-, medium- and high-voltage grids until 2030.
The need for extension and modernisation and the associated costs depended on the share of renewable energy in the German energy mix in 2030, dena pointed out.

Continue Reading at the German Energy Blog