This game is for two players. Each player takes a role - either 'BP' or 'The Public' and each player has two cards that represent two possible strategies. BP is trying to shore up its dwindling share price, while the public just want the leak plugged. Both players pick a strategy and play it face down, simultaneously. These are then revealed and the effects on the share price and the leak are worked out. This action is then repeated until the game ends. It's very simple, takes just a few minutes to play, but is also quite devilish and deceiving.
Bristol Residents Parking Scheme connoisseurs may spot elements of the Prisoner’s Dilemma in the design.
The end of term is approaching, and so the Council will be carrying out additional rubbish collections from the 3rd week in June until the end of July, for any rubbish dumped outside student properties.
The telephone number to report dumped rubbish is 0117 922 2100. Please identify the properties as being student occupied, and if there are several addresses where rubbish has been left, please report all of them!
Following on from yesterday’s post, here’s an interview with Vestas workers/protestors Sean and Matt by Kirstie Paton.
In the video they explain their business plan, demand the creation of a workers cooperative. They also helpfully explain that the machinery in the occupied factory is pretty run down, and there is only one carbon-fibre mould (Mould No.8) that’s much use, whereas the other Vestas IoW factory does the assembly (but not manufacture) of some of the mechanical components in the main turbine nacelle.
Before further discussion of the occupation of the Vestas Wind Turbine Blade factory on the Isle of Wight, it’s worth clarifying something important.
This is not a dispute between capitalism and socialism or between capital and workers; the factory in question has only ever produced significant quantities of goods in response to political patronage.
The main product of Vestas IoW factory is the 40 metre carbon-fibre blade for the V82 1.65 MW Turbine. (see below)
The V82 is quite advanced. It gets about as close to the Betz limit for turbine efficiency as is currently possible, and has some clever innards to improve Low Voltage Ride Through (LVRT) and offer Grid Code Compliance.
But it is still a wind turbine, and if they wind ain’t blowing you need a base load electricity generating capacity otherwise the lights will go out. And if you already have a base load, then frankly you don’t need wind turbine generation (WTG). Potentially WTG is useful for ad-hoc generation in support of non-grid-connected industrial processes (water desalinisation for example) but for national electricity supply the technology is worse than useless.
So why do energy companies buy and install them? For three reasons:
Energy companies may be required by statute to supply a portion of their output from accredited renewable sources, or pay a penalty.
National Distribution Grids are genereally expected to absorb the external costs of balancing unreliable renewable power inputs.
I suppose it is a bit ironic that this factory closure was announced a few months after the UK government commissioned a report on “Cost of and financial support for offshore wind” which contains lots of recommendations of how to support (i.e. subsidise) Wind Turbine Generation (WTG), but frankly it is ridiculous to be considering further shovelling of taxpayers’ money into a pit when the UK already has an unprecedented budget deficit for a period of nominal peace in Europe.
(Counterpoint) Vestas – the boss speaks
An interview with Vestas Wind boss Ditlev Engel from 12 months ago, for Bloomberg TV.
