Badly looking for a political win that would both fulfill some campaign promises to his political base and satisfy the demands of rank-and-file Republicans in Congress, President Trump on March 28 signed an Energy Independence and Economic Growth Executive Order. According to Henrik Selin, Associate Professor in the Frederick S Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, the order is just an opening salvo in what is destined to become a … [Read more...]
Western Balkans are massively expanding coal power – but the new plants may have to be closed again soon
At least 9 new lignite power plants are being planned in Bosnia-Herzegovina, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, and Serbia, but according to a new report from CEE Bankwatch Network their feasibility studies do not take into account the effect of CO2 prices. As a result, when these countries join the EU, the plants will not be competitive anymore and will need to be closed down, writes Pippa Gallop, research coordinator at CEE Bankwatch Network – just … [Read more...]
Politics and economics clash over Nord Stream 2
At a dinner debate in Brussels on European relations with Russia, members of the European Parliament made it clear they regard Russia as an enemy which should be opposed in any possible way. That includes projects such as Gazprom’s planned Nord Stream 2 pipeline. Whether EU institutions have the means to stop Nord Stream 2, remains to be seen. … [Read more...]
Energy Post debate: Nord Stream 2 and the future of the European gas market
Video: On 8 March Energy Post held a conference in Brussels, sponsored by Nord Stream 2, moderated by our EU correspondent Sonja van Renssen, where Gazprom's pipeline project was debated in the context of the future of the European gas market. The panellists are: Tim Boersma (Columbia University), Paul Corcoran (Nord Stream 2), Jean-Arnold Vinois (Jacques Delors Institute) and Katja Yafimava (Oxford Institute for Energy Studies). … [Read more...]
Debate over capacity markets heats up in Brussels
Member States, MEPs and other stakeholders in Brussels are getting ready to develop rules for capacity markets in Europe. Some argue that countries should resort to capacity mechanisms only as a last resort. Other such as France insist on strong capacity markets: they are afraid of blackout risks. And there is disagreement over whether to allow coal power stations to play a role as backup source. Sonja van Renssen reports from Brussels. … [Read more...]
Why oil price forecasting is so difficult now
Analysts have rarely been so divided on their views of where the oil price is going, writes Geoffrey Styles, Managing Director of independent US-based consultancy GSW Strategy Group. This is because the market is in the grip of a number of contradictory trends. Styles takes a closer look at what they are and how they might play out. … [Read more...]
Peak oil? Sooner than you think
The London-based investment advisory firm Redburn thinks that global demand for oil could peak around 2026, writes Fereidoon Sioshansi, President of Menlo Energy Economics and publisher of the newsletter EEnergy Informer. The implications for oil majors are ominous. … [Read more...]
South Australia makes fresh power play in bid to end blackouts
Blackouts in South Australia have focused the world’s attention on this state which has lots of renewable energy. South Australia’s government has now unveiled a keenly anticipated new energy plan, with the aim of making itself more self-sufficient. Hugh Saddler of the Centre for Climate Economics and Policy at Australian National University explains what it is about. Courtesy of The Conversation. … [Read more...]
Six years after Fukushima, much of Japan has lost faith in nuclear power
The Japanese government should consider a fundamental change in its current nuclear energy policy if it wants to recover the public's trust in nuclear power, writes Tatsujiro Suzuki, Director of the Research Center for Nuclear Weapons Abolition at Nagasaki University. According to Suzuki, staying on the current path will undermine Japan's economic and political security. Courtesy of The Conversation. … [Read more...]
Wind power blows away opposition in U.S.
What many regarded as unthinkable just a few years ago, is happening today: U.S. utilities are almost effortlessly handling ever increasing levels of intermittent wind power, writes Washington DC-based energy author Dennis Wamsted. What is more, Democratic and Republican politicians are lauding the unprecedented way in which wind and solar resources are transforming low-income rural areas. Wind power is here to stay, regardless of who sits in the … [Read more...]
Energy efficiency needs “historic level of public-private cooperation”
From a banking perspective, energy efficiency is difficult to classify in terms of business opportunities because its benefits are so widely dispersed,  writes Stephen Hibbert, global head of Energy & Carbon Efficiency at ING Wholesale Banking. For this reason, to close the “investment gap” in energy efficiency, “a historic level of public-private cooperation” is needed, according to Hibbert. He sees many signs that this is happening. … [Read more...]
The great battery race
The coming of cheap and effective lithium-based batteries will cause the greatest changes in the energy and automobile sector since Henry Ford built the model T, writes Gerard Reid, founding partner of Alexa Capital, financial analyst and co-founder of the Energy and Carbon blog. But European countries like Germany and France have no significant production, in contrast to China, which views batteries and their raw materials as key factors in the … [Read more...]
UK’s French Connection shows: cross-border links are the way to go
Few people realise that despite Brexit, the UK is embarking on a large expansion of its electricity interconnections with the European mainland. Is this a good idea, asks energy finance consultant Gerard Wynn? Wynn, who has just co-written a report on the Electricity Grid Transition in the UK, points out that the UK-France interconnector came under tremendous pressure last year, but in the end proved its usefulness. Courtesy Energy & Carbon … [Read more...]
French election 2017: where the candidates stand on energy and climate change
The French presidential elections are fast approaching with the first voting round set to be held on 23 April and the run-off between the top two candidates – if neither wins a majority – on 7 May. Jocelyn Timperley of Carbon Brief takes a look at where the major candidates stand on energy and climate change. Courtesy Carbon Brief. … [Read more...]
How much will it really cost to decommission the aging French nuclear fleet?
A recently published French governmental report has blown a significant hole in the French nuclear decommissioning strategy, writes Paul Dorfman, Honorary Senior Research Associate at the Energy Institute, University College London and founder of the Nuclear Consulting Group. According to Dorfman, the report found that the clean-up of French reactors will take longer, be more challenging and cost much more than French nuclear operator EDF … [Read more...]
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