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Thousands of new offshore wind turbines could power every home in Britain by 2020, the government announced today, as it set out new wind-energy plans. John Hutton, the business secretary, proposed the creation of up to 33 gigawatts of offshore wind energy. He called for companies to invest in large-scale farm development to generate enough power for up to 25m homes in the next 12 years. That would require around 7,000 turbines, or one every half-mile. He admitted that "tough choices" would have to be made if the UK wanted to respond to climate change and become more self-sufficient.

The South African government has told millions of people left in the dark by rolling power cuts that have swept the country over the past week, and which are likely to go on for years, to look on the bright side. The blackouts are the result of surging demand for power caused by a booming economy, it says. But as the lights go off more frequently and for longer periods, the national mood has darkened.

The EU yesterday denounced a House of Commons report calling for a moratorium on the increased use of biofuels and made plain it would stick to mandatory targets for the use of biofuels in transport when it unveils a climate change package today. Yesterday's report from the Commons environmental audit committee warned that biofuels were too expensive, environmentally damaging and making a negative contribution to cutting greenhouse gases, and said British government and EU plans to force greater use of biofuels should be rethought. In an unusually strong criticism of the Commons committee, Andris Piebalgs, the EU commissioner for energy, insisted that biofuels had to be supported as the "most immediately feasible way" of reversing greenhouse gas discharges from cars. "The [European] Commission strongly disagrees with the conclusion of the British House of Commons report," said Piebalgs.

UK and European governments should not have pursued targets to increase the use of biofuels without putting in place "robust" measures to prevent environmental damage, MPs said today. [Follow 'Are biofuels sustainable?' near bottom of page for full report (45pp)

Householders have all but abandoned their efforts to go green by using renewable technologies such as solar power, because the government's tightening of the rules has made grants almost impossible to obtain. As a result, the government's much-criticised Low Carbon Buildings Programme (LCBP) will not run out of funding for 15 years, even though the money was supposed to be used up by mid-2008, according to a Labour MP.

Eon UK is developing a giant battery designed to store electricity generated by wind farms and solar panels. Scientists at the energy group's technology centre in Nottingham aim to build a large-scale prototype that would be able to store one megawatt of electricity for four hours - the equivalent to 10m AA batteries and the same size as four articulated lorry containers.

Last week's news that widening a stretch of the M6 motorway will cost £3bn, or £1,000 an inch, was depressing not just because of the huge sum but for what it says about the government's spending priorities.

Last week's news that widening a stretch of the M6 motorway will cost £3bn, or £1,000 an inch, was depressing not just because of the huge sum but for what it says about the government's spending priorities.

"Is solar power a bright investment? It costs £12,500 to install solar cells on your roof, but new tariffs should give you a return of at least £25,000. So what's the catch? There isn't one, says Miles Brignall"

It was supposed to be a great leap forward in Britain's green energy revolution. Three of Labour's biggest beasts - the prime minister, Lord Mandelson and Ed Miliband - lined up in London on Friday to launch a new wave of offshore wind turbines the government hopes will create up to 70,000 "green collar" jobs over the next decade. But as snow brought Britain to a halt, the green dream had little hope of dominating the headlines.

It was supposed to be a great leap forward in Britain's green energy revolution. Three of Labour's biggest beasts - the prime minister, Lord Mandelson and Ed Miliband - lined up in London on Friday to launch a new wave of offshore wind turbines the government hopes will create up to 70,000 "green collar" jobs over the next decade. But as snow brought Britain to a halt, the green dream had little hope of dominating the headlines.

South Africa's power crisis today forced the world's three largest gold mining companies to shut down their operations as the government called the rolling blackouts across the country a "national emergency" and threatened to ration electricity.

Watch what happens if you give a microphone to environmentalists.

Shell will no longer invest in renewable technologies such as wind, solar and hydro power because they are not economic, the Anglo-Dutch oil company said today. It plans to invest more in biofuels which environmental groups blame for driving up food prices and deforestation.