The EU has made remarkable progress in improving its security of supply over the last decade and should not worry that Russia will cut off its gas supplies, says Professor Samuele Furfari in an interview with Energy Post Brussels Correspondent Hughes Belin. A long-time senior advisor at the European Commission, Professor Furfari, author of a brandnew provocative book in French - "Vive les Ă©nergies fossiles!" - says the world has entered a new … [Read more...]
Trouble in oil paradise: domestic challenges in Saudi Arabia and their global implications
Saudi Arabia, the mainstay of the world’s oil system, is faced with mounting problems in its domestic energy market which affect its ability to function as the global swing producer, warns Eckart Woertz in a policy brief written for the Norwegian Peacebuilding Resource Centre (NOREF). The country is faced with such a severe natural gas shortage that half of its electricity production now comes from oil. As a result, its ability to export oil may … [Read more...]
The vision of Peter Terium, CEO of RWE: “We want to be the holistic energy manager of the future”
RWE, the German utility known for its reliance on large lignite, coal and nuclear power stations, and its high CO2 emissions, is undergoing a fundamental transformation. “We want to use our leading market position to take our customers into a new future”, explains RWE’s Dutch CEO Peter Terium in an exclusive interview with Energy Post. “My dream, my vision is that RWE will put solar panels on your roof, a battery in your shed, a heat pump in your … [Read more...]
China’s continuing renewable energy revolution: global implications
China’s renewable energy revolution is powering ahead, with the year 2013 marking an important inflection point where the scales tipped more towards electric power generated from water, wind and solar than from fossil fuels and nuclear. This means that its energy security is being enhanced, while carbon emissions from the power sector can be expected to soon start to fall. … [Read more...]
There’s only one roadblock to European shale gas: NIMBY
We have seen a spate of think tank publications and opinion pieces doubting the economic and geological potential of shale gas in Europe. According to Nick Grealy, these are all based on outdated statistics and overly conservative assumptions. The US example shows shale gas resources are much larger than the sceptics claim. There is really only one obstacle to exploiting Europe’s shale gas potential: we don’t want it in our backyard. But then do … [Read more...]
World Energy Council study highlights need for integration of energy markets in Latin America and the Caribbean
The Latin American and Caribbean region must optimise its energy supply options nationally and across the region in order to support the needs of its growing economies and increasing population, according to a new World Energy Council (WEC) report. The report, “World Energy Scenarios: Composing energy futures to 2050”, finds that meeting the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) region’s growth in energy demand will be a significant … [Read more...]
Pursuit of phony energy “security” leads to world of diminishing returns
Policymakers in the US, UK and elsewhere are increasingly receptive to the idea that they should be pursuing unconventional oil and gas and nuclear power in the name of "energy security". But according to John Mathews and Erik Reinert, such a strategy misses an essential point of economic history: relying on commodities retrieved by drilling and mining leads only to stagnation, rising costs and environmental damage. The way to growth, innovation … [Read more...]
Interview Arthur Berman: “Shale is not a revolution, it’s a retirement party”
How much faith can we put in our ability to decipher all the numbers out there telling us the US will soon be cornering the global oil market? There's another side to the story of the relentless US shale boom, one that says that some of the numbers are misunderstood, while others are simply preposterous. According to energy expert Arthur Berman, a geological consultant with thirty-four years of experience in petroleum exploration and production, … [Read more...]
Can Germany survive the Energiewende?
The German Energiewende is a heroic but – as it’s conceived now – increasingly disordered effort for unshackling industrial society from the chains of fossil fuels. Due to mistaken assumptions and unrealistic scheduling, it is now confronted with persistent obstacles. The new Merkel government has introduced some changes, but they won’t be enough to sustain the Energiewende, argues independent energy consultant (and renewable energy sympathizer) … [Read more...]
How the IEA exaggerates the costs and underestimates the growth of solar power
The International Energy Agency (IEA) consistently entertains much too pessimistic assumptions about the growth potential and cost development of solar power,  writes Terje Osmundsen, Senior Vice President of the Norwegian-based international solar power company Scatec Solar. According to Osmundsen, the cost assumptions used by the IEA are 100% higher than even current market prices. He notes that as a result of the IEA’s misleading information, … [Read more...]
It’s Scotland’s oil – and it will need a lot of investment
With the Scottish referendum campaign about independence from the rest of the UK in full swing, UK Prime Minister David Cameron has been foolish to try to make North Sea oil a reason for the Scots to stay. There are plenty of good reasons to keep the UK united, but oil is not one of them, except perhaps that Scotland is going to be far too dependent on it, if it leaves. Energy journalist Chris Cragg explains the real issues the UK oil and gas … [Read more...]
Interview Adam Sieminksi, Chief EIA: “Gas production in the US will keep growing”
The Energy Information Administration (EIA), part of the US Department of Energy, predicts that natural gas production in the US will continue to grow at an impressive pace – regardless of what shale gas and environmental critics believe. Right now output is close to 70 billion cubic feet a day and it is expected to reach over 100 billion cubic feet per day by 2040. “In our view, those production trends are going to continue without the … [Read more...]
An investor speaks: the oil party is almost over
The fact that environmental activist Bill McKibben is waging a relentless “fossil fuel divestment campaign” may not worry established oil and coal companies too much. But he is joined by an increasing number of mainstream investors and analysts. The latest investor to warn that fossil fuel assets may be overvalued is the famous hedge fund manager Jeremy Grantham, owner of the major US asset-management firm GMO. In a thoughtful piece for the GMO … [Read more...]
Three signs of retreat in the global war on climate change
A series of recent developments "highlight the way the world is losing ground in the epic struggle to slow global warming", writes Michael Klare. One of them is what he calls the "evident slackening in Europe’s climate commitment". According to Klare, "the pressures to keep burning fossil fuels are too great to be overcome in piecemeal fashion.  Rather, these forces must be met head-on, with the institutionalization of equally powerful … [Read more...]
WWF: Groundbreaking analysis shows China’s renewable energy future within reach
By embracing conservation measures and renewable energy, China can transition to an 80 percent renewable electric power system by 2050 at far less cost than continuing to rely on coal, according to a new report from WWF-US. As a result, China’s carbon emissions from power generation could be 90 percent less than currently projected levels in 2050 without compromising the reliability of the electric grid or slowing economic growth. The … [Read more...]
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