The idea of a hydrogen-based economy has been around since the oil crises of the 1970s, but it has not materialised up to this point. Yet according to Jan Cihlar of Ecofys, a Navigant company, hydrogen could still become a key enabler of the low carbon transition, if it is produced with renewable electricity. The potential of further cost reductions make this a possibility in some applications in transport and industry. … [Read more...]
Why solar keeps being underestimated
There are competing ideas on the best technologies to rapidly decarbonise the energy system. Some scenarios emphasise the role of carbon capture and storage to render coal- and gas-fired power plants more climate-friendly. Others point to nuclear energy and a third group is more optimistic on renewable sources. But it’s plausible that even these more optimistic outlooks have greatly underestimated the potential of solar power, writes Dr Felix … [Read more...]
IEA underreports contribution solar and wind by a factor of three compared to fossil fuels
The International Energy Agency’s (IEA) statistics underreport the role of wind and solar in the world’s energy mix by a factor of three, writes Erik Sauar. This gives policymakers, investors and the public the false impression that wind and solar are insignificant. According to Sauar, the counting method must be changed to reflect how close the world really is to a transition to renewables. Article courtesy Energi og Klima. [See note at the end … [Read more...]
100% renewable energy for 139 nations detailed in Stanford report
Mark Z. Jacobson, the famed professor at the Stanford School of Earth, Energy, and Environmental Sciences, and 26 of his colleagues have compiled a report that shows exactly how 139 nations could transition to 100% renewable energy by 2050 without throwing millions of people out of work. In fact, they contend that the changeover would actually spur job growth while dramatically reducing carbon emissions, writes Steve Hanley. Article courtesy of … [Read more...]
Here are the results from Brussels: energy efficiency zero points
The results of the European Council’s proposals on energy efficiency are in: they will reduce the current EU energy efficiency target from 1.5% per year to less than half of that. That is, in the most optimistic scenario. In a worst-case scenario, the target could plummet to 0.04%, writes Jan Rosenow of the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP). According to Rosenow, this will make it nearly impossible for the EU to deliver on "Paris". … [Read more...]
Why the next oil price spike may cripple the oil industry
Two diametrically opposed views dominate the current debate about where the oil price is heading: one says lower for longer, the other says up. According to Andreas de Vries and Salman Ghouri, both are right. But the next oil price spike may prove to be the last gasp of the oil industry. Article courtesy Oilprice.com. … [Read more...]
Battery storage is becoming a built-in product feature
Batteries will increasingly be built into power generating systems and other infrastructure, writes John Massey, a UK-based business trainer who gives workshops for energy investors, policymakers and energy companies worldwide. According to Massey, the integration of batteries into products and systems will create an entirely new value chain that will partially come to replace standalone grid-scale and household batteries. … [Read more...]
If we keep subsidizing wind, will the cost of wind energy go down?
The learning rate for wind power is in the range of 7.7%-11%, researchers Eric Williams and Eric Hittinger of Rochester Institute of Technology found. This means the cost should go down from 5.5 cts/kWh today to 4.1-4.5 cts/kWh in 2030, cheaper than conventional power sources. Does this mean we should stop subsidizing wind? Article courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
The perils of falling in love with energy technology
Renewable energy and fossil fuel advocates have one thing in common – an unhealthy tendency to fall in love with a particular energy technology, writes Hal Harvey, founder and CEO of think tank Energy Innovation. Policymakers for their part often fall in love with particular policies. But according to Harvey, what matters is setting ambitious goals, adopting policies that reward performance and let the dynamics of the market work out how to get … [Read more...]
The five key characteristics of the future energy company
Energy markets are in the middle of a revolution, triggered by decarbonisation and innovation. History suggests that this is not a safe place to be, not even for the revolutionaries, but especially not for the ‘old guard’. Stephen Woodhouse and Simon Bradbury of Pöyry Management Consulting investigate the key characteristics necessary for a successful future energy company. (This article was adapted from a new book, Innovation and Disruption at … [Read more...]
How electricity will be priced in the future
The rapid transformation of the electricity sector will make it necessary for utilities to adopt radically new pricing methods, writes Fereidoon Sioshansi, publisher of newsletter EEnergy Informer and editor of a new book, Innovation & Disruption at the Grid’s Edge. According to Sioshansi, existing volumetric tariffs will increasingly be replaced by fixed service fees. … [Read more...]
Nuclear and coal lobbies threaten to scupper renewables in South Africa
South Arica’s state utility Eskom is undermining the development of renewable energy in South Africa, writes Professor Hartmut Winkler of the University of Johannesburg. According to Winkler, the country’s coal and nuclear lobbies are behind the opposition to renewables. The struggle is part of a wider political confrontation over control of key parts of the South African economy. Courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
The renewable energy auction revolution
What’s up with record low renewable energy prices? Policy innovation is key to harnessing renewable energy potential, writes Meredith Fowlie, Assistant Professor of Agriculture and Resource Economics at the University of California at Berkeley. Article courtesy Energy Institute Blog, Energy Institute at Haas School of Business. … [Read more...]
Petrol car ban won’t work without a huge investment in electric infrastructure
The UK government is proposing a ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel vehicles by 2040, in a move that echoes a recent announcement in France. Setting this sort of media-friendly target is a positive and welcome response to the challenge of air pollution across UK cities, write Richard Brooks and Jason Begley of Coventry University. But delivering the infrastructure, research and development support and incentives to switch to greener cars … [Read more...]
Does the 2040 ban on new petrol and diesel cars mean the death of biofuels?
One question that arises from the announcement by the UK government that new diesel and petrol cars will be banned by 2040 is what it means for biofuels. According to Raffaella Ocone of Heriot-Watt University, co-author of a recent UK-government-funded report into the biofuels industry by the Royal Academy of Engineering, the 2040 ban could be viewed as an opportunity for the biofuels sector. Article courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
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