Clarke Energy signs Memorandum of Understanding with NEC Energy Solutions related to the supply of GSS® grid storage solutions

CLARKE Energy, a KOHLER Company, has signed a memorandum of understanding with NEC Energy Solutions, Inc. (NEC) with respect to the supply of their GSS® Grid Storage Solution products and warranty service offering.  Energy storage products are highly complementary to Clarke Energy's existing product offering which includes gas engines and biogas upgrading technology. Energy storage systems have a range of applications including peak shaving, frequency response, demand management, transmission and distribution support or as a replacement to a diesel back up generator. Energy storage systems can also be combined with power generation technology such as gas engines as a hybrid, or as part of a microgrid. Ben Wilson, Managing Director, Clarke Energy UK and Ireland commented:- "We are excited to be cooperating with NEC Energy Solutions in the supply of their GSS® Grid Storage Solution products. This technology is highly complementary to our existing product offering, building on our existing energy project delivery capability. We look forwards to continuing to provide the most appropriate technologies to our customers, from equipment supply only right through to full EPC project delivery." Steve Fludder, CEO of NEC Energy Solutions added:- "Clarke Energy have an excellent reputation for delivering quality, localized power generation systems backed by reliable aftersales support. We know they will be a great partner to supply and service our GSS® grid storage solutions in the UK and Ireland. This is an exciting international expansion of our channel partnership strategy."

Clarke Energy, a KOHLER company, is a leader in the engineering, design, installation and long-term maintenance of gas engine-based power plants. Clarke Energy is a globally localised company with operations spanning 27 countries. Clarke Energy employs over 1,200 staff and has sold or installed over 7.0 GW of power generation capacity globally.

Local Government Association's response to ONS figures

THE latest figures show there were an estimated 771,000 young people (aged 16 to 24 years) in the UK who were not in education, employment or training (NEET) in January to March 2020; an annual increase of 6,000 compared with January to March 2019. Responding to the new Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures, Cllr Kevin Bentley, Chairman of the Local Government Association's People and Places Board, said:- "While the real impact of the COVID-19 crisis on young people is not yet visible, it is concerning that the number of young people not in education, employment or training has increased in the past year, many of whom will have been unable to receive face to face advice, guidance and support during this pandemic. Councils and combined Authorities are already working closely with employers, Colleges and many others involved in education and job training to make sure that nobody is left behind after we get through this crisis, as they are ideally placed to bring employment and skills initiatives together. As part of the national recovery effort, it is vital that young people have the opportunities to increase their skills and retrain. This means providing the right careers advice and guidance, and holistic support needed for every young person. Local Government is best placed to lead on this, and we look forward to working with Government and local and national partners to plan this. Devolving careers advice, post 16 and skills budgets and powers to local areas, would allow Councils, schools, Colleges and employers to work together to improve provision for young people so that they can get on in life."

Is your dog Pooch Perfect?

FELLOW colleagues at Seven Studios UK, the production arm of Australia's Seven Studios have contacted us for help. They are getting ready to film the BBC 1's new primetime TV series 'Pooch Perfect' that celebrates our Nation's love of dogs and will be hosted by multi awarding winning actress and multi dog owning star, Sheridan Smith OBE. The series searches for the UK's Top Professional Dog Groomer. "We will see groomers with passion, flair and a high level of technical expertise battle it out each week in a series of highly imaginative and testing technical grooming challenges. As well as amazing:- 'transFURmations,' each episode will also be packed full of useful information for dog lovers and owners, delivering top tips on responsible ownership, fun facts about dog breeds and a guide to at home pooch pampering techniques. We will be filming this throughout August in Salford. We are looking for dogs of all breeds, who would be happy to be groomed on the show, we will need lots and lots of dogs who might enjoy a bit of pampering! So if you would like to register your interest in having your scruffy hound turned into a perfect pooch then please apply online. If anyone has any questions, they can get in touch with us by emailing:- Dogs@SevenStudiosUK.Com.." said the studio.

Letter to Paper:- "Bins and Littering in Lockdown."

"IT strikes me that the ability of the local Councils to deal with the overflow of rubbish seen being left at local beauty spots and even on the high street has been dysfunctional at best. I see a lot of it strewn where it shouldn't be left and applaud the hard work of volunteers who find time and energy to visit the dunes and parks and pinewoods and gather and dispose of this errant waste. It strikes me that the wanton perpetrators find it easy enough to carry their cans and bottles and recreational drugs in canisters to these spots but are incapable of taking the empties away with them. I'd love their parents to follow them one time and see what they do, although sadly, it can be that they too were previously irresponsible and lazy too. We need a better means of eco-education. I saw a post with a Pringles tube left out in the pinewoods, and a dead hedgehog that had crawled in and been constricted and unable to reverse out. A tube with a metal rim does not have the flexibility of a burrowed hole in soil. But, to my point about the Councils, whilst it maybe 'advice' that has caused them to festoon their waste bins with:- 'Do not use - Covid 19' I see no logic in their procedure, the refuse collections have still been undertaken every week and therefore I think with sensible Health and Safety practices that they could easily have administered to these empty bins; which would be full of course. The logic says equip the refuse collectors with adequate PPE, most of the workers are pretty much used to dealing with disgusting messes left by tax payers anyway and the poo bags dangling in trees is the one that disgusts and frustrates me the most, if you are grown up enough to own a dog and they are licensed of course, you really are grown up enough to take the poo away and dispose of it safely. Also, the other point is there are not enough bins anyway, it was easy to criticise huge piles of rubbish by bins on beach fronts in Ainsdale etc recently, but the bins are too small, it's obvious there will always be numbers of people using these amenities and they need to be supported with decent bins. We need adequate mini skips maybe, it would be far better to have one big bin that can be craned away easily, we need to start developing better facilitation to cater for use. Last night I took my 79 year old father to the Marine Gardens in Waterloo, there was a huge pile of cans and bottles abandoned on a lawn, now, whether that was what they intended or whether they had seen the bins all declared unsafe and not to be used is a question I cannot answer, but I'd like to think if folks were educated to make a short walk to a bin and use it that some would not feel like they can only leave their waste abandoned and endangering others such as small children and wildlife. Maybe tube waste bag dispensers near bins would be a good idea, ask and encourage folks to pull a bag and use it. A very small lift in Council Tax could easily accommodate this scheme. But, back to the Councils, they must take some responsibility and start monitoring and dealing with waste, we'll soon be worried about rats and infections generally, common problems without a virus. Seriously they need to be more focussed on solutions that work rather than implementing restrictions that compound a big problem generally. If folks can be educated then overall, you'd like to think they'll eventually become better citizens, we all live together in an area and should care for it and others as much as we can. Trialling a spare bag for waste on poles by bins might just work, no harm in trying. I hope the waste collectors and refuse collectors are being supported and enabled by PPE and suchlike, in the age of CCTV maybe we do need to use it as a see and follow up with an educational offer, rather than fines of ₤500 for those who actually can't pay anyway, fines are not the answer in my opinion." TH, Crosby.