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BP names Meg O’Neill as new CEO after incumbent ousted

O’Neill, who has led Woodside Energy since 2021, will be oil and gas company’s first female chief executive

BP’s board has appointed its first female chief executive in a move to revive the oil company’s fortunes, after ousting Murray Auchincloss less than two years into his role.

In an unexpected leadership shake-up, Auchincloss will step down as chief executive with immediate effect, but remain in an advisory role until the end of next year.

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© Photograph: Darren England/AAP

© Photograph: Darren England/AAP

© Photograph: Darren England/AAP

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Government invests £120m to save UK’s last ethylene plant

Funding for billionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos site in central belt of Scotland will help safeguard 500 jobs

Jim Ratcliffe’s chemicals company Ineos has been granted £120m of government funding to help save the UK’s last ethylene plant at Grangemouth, in a deal expected to protect more than 500 jobs.

The investment in the Scottish plant was necessary to preserve a vital part of the country’s chemicals infrastructure, the UK government said. The ethylene produced there was essential for medical-grade plastics production, water treatment and in aerospace and car-building, it added.

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© Photograph: Valéry Hache/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Valéry Hache/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Valéry Hache/AFP/Getty Images

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Drax plans to convert part of its North Yorkshire power plant into datacentre

Plans are response to surge in demand for AI capability and come after government signalled it would curb subsidies

Drax has revealed plans to convert part of its power plant in North Yorkshire into a datacentre as soon as 2027 in response to the increase in demand for AI capability.

The FTSE 250 company behind Britain’s biggest power plant told investors on Thursday that it had applied for planning permission to build a 100-megawatt datacentre at its site near Selby.

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© Photograph: SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

© Photograph: SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

© Photograph: SOPA Images/LightRocket/Getty Images

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Will net zero really cost UK households £500 a year?

An official report lays out different scenarios for the cost of transitioning away from fossil fuels to net zero by 2050

Britain’s official energy system operator has attempted to work out what achieving net zero carbon emissions will cost, with its figures showing surging spending in the coming years.

The scale and speed of the shift to a low-carbon economy, and how to fund it, are hotly debated by political parties.

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© Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA

© Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA

© Photograph: Neil Hall/EPA

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Ofgem approves early investment in three UK electricity ‘superhighways’

Green light intended to limit amount consumers pay for windfarms to turn off during periods of high generation

Three major UK electricity “superhighways” could move ahead sooner than expected to help limit the amount that households pay for windfarms to turn off during periods of high power generation.

Current grid bottlenecks mean there is not enough capacity to transport the abundance of electricity generated in periods of strong winds to areas where energy demand is highest.

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© Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

© Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

© Photograph: Nathan Stirk/Getty Images

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Home movers in Great Britain could get just £30 of energy use without account

Ofgem proposes cutting debt by giving new residents with no supply deal limited credit before they are cut off

Consumers in Great Britain moving to a new home will have about two weeks to set up an energy account before their lights go out, under plans to cut growing gas and electricity debt.

Energy meters could soon be remotely switched to prepayment mode when the previous resident moves out, under proposals put forward by the industry regulator, leaving the next resident £30 of credit to settle into their home.

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© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

© Photograph: Westend61/Getty Images

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