Press releases this week from Friends of the Earth Europe and the European Greens highlight energy poverty levels on our doorstep in Europe. This followed the publication of new research on OpenEXP. It reminds you of the vital benefits of maximising energy efficiency - getting the same for less energy or getting more from the same. Amory Lovins (Rocky Mountain Institute) called upon us to "Imagine being able to save half the electricity for free … [Read more...]
articles, events and other posts from the Energy Post community
Driving energy efficiency investment beyond 2020
With rising GDP, the European Union is once again at risk of missing the 2020 targets for energy efficiency, and yet more ambitious targets for 2030 lie ahead. Regulation, especially for energy efficiency in buildings, is already driving demand, according to the European Investment Bank, with commercial banks acting as aggregators. Peter Sweatman, rapporteur of the Energy Efficiency Financial Institutions Group is optimistic on the future … [Read more...]
Greece: lignite asset sale failure could shift focus to electricity market reform and renewables
This month Greece’s Public Power Corporation (PPC) admitted its effort to sell a third of its lignite assets had failed. Dr. Nikos Mantzaris, of the think tank The Green Tank, gives his explanation for why the numbers never added up for the buyers. He now fears the PPC will simply sweeten the deal. Instead, Greece should abandon failing lignite assets, reform the electricity market and refocus on renewables. … [Read more...]
WWF: A Just Transition needs a Just Facilitation
Katie Treadwell at the WWF European Policy Office says to successfully transition to a green and sustainable economy, the EU and its Member States must heed warning signs given by their constituents, such as at the Yellow Vests protest in France. They must ensure their approach to the transformation is ambitious, inclusive and facilitates a just and local transition. Just Transition policies are typically referred to in the context of coal … [Read more...]
EU energy sector set for crucial state aid decisions in 2019
2018 was a watershed year for state aid regulations in the EU energy sector. A number of landmark rulings by the European Commission towards different member states have challenged the legality of various state aid measures and prompted governments to reconsider mechanisms for supporting domestic energy sectors. In particular, early-stage capacity mechanism procedures for many member states have been scrutinised, albeit favourably, and … [Read more...]
Renewables for remote mines power supply in Africa gaining momentum
In the last few years, more and more mining companies have adopted wind and solar systems to reduce their energy costs at remote off-grid mines. In this first phase, the initial focus was on the integration capabilities as miners were afraid that adding intermittent renewables such as solar and wind could affect the reliability of power supply and even lead to production losses. In various microgrid applications, renewables combined with … [Read more...]
Cañete: CCS will play a vital role in delivering a net-zero emissions economy
Commissioner Cañete confirmed this week that natural gas and Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) will be central to achieving a competitive and climate-neutral economy, notably in closing the circle for the energy intensive sectors for which other solutions for decarbonisation do not exist. Moreover, combined with renewable biomass, CCS could create negative emissions compensating for remaining CO2. Eurogas Secretary General, James Watson, … [Read more...]
Online condition monitoring: making sense of sensors in the age of the Smart Grid
Grid operators across Europe are experiencing higher maintenance and reinforcement costs than ever before and, without significant increases in funding, are realising that they must fundamentally change the way that their assets are operated, maintained and replaced. This means running assets closer to their operational limits, performing predictive rather than corrective maintenance and replacing assets as close to the end of their useful life … [Read more...]
New tool to show whether companies’ climate strategy matches their public ambitions
By now we’re used to stats that show what would happen if everyone in the world had the same carbon footprint as a European, or an American, someone in China, or indeed anywhere. According to the consultancy right. based on science, they have now created a way of modelling the same projections, except for specific companies. The model also number-crunches a company's climate strategy to work out whether they are going to help or hinder the race … [Read more...]
SUNRISE, a preparatory action towards a European large-scale research initiative
The European project SUNRISE, “Solar energy for a circular economy”, has been selected as one of the six Coordination and Support Actions (CSA) within the Horizon 2020 programme. Funded with €1M, it will last one year (starting in spring 2019), setting the basis for a European large-scale research project. The SUNRISE Vision is a radical and ambitious scientific and technological approach for solar energy conversion and storage to provide a … [Read more...]
BIOFUEL: to burn or not to burn – Juncker’s palm oil conundrum
If you’d ask ordinary citizens, environmentalists, farmers, business leaders or scientists the answer would invariably be a resounding “of course we shouldn’t”. However, it increasingly looks as if the EU executive is about to give the green light for another decade of uncontrolled palm oil burning by Europe’s diesel fleet. Not because it’s good for the climate or because Europeans want it – 70% are against – but because the Commission is afraid … [Read more...]
Too “low-hanging fruit” is not sweet enough (and eventually neither clean nor cheap)!
At a lunch debate organised by the European Heat Pump Association (EHPA) on “The costs of a low level of ambition in greening the heating and cooling sector” and hosted by EUFORES President MEP Jeppe Kofod on 30 January, representatives from industry, civil society, the European Commission (EC) and MEPs from several countries and political groups (Jeppe Kofod, Bendt Bendtsen, Theresa Griffin, Jo Leinen, Gesine Meissner and Paul Rübig) … [Read more...]
The contribution of the Polish energy sector to the implementation of global climate policy
PKEE is the Polish Electricity Association. Poland is an active party to the UN Climate Convention. It implements commitments to reduce CO2 emissions and supports processes of global and international agreements. For the third time, Poland organizes the Conference of the Parties to the Convention – the first UNFCC Climate Summit in Poland was held in 2008 in Poznań, the second in 2013 in Warsaw. In Poland, since 1990, CO2 emissions have been … [Read more...]
End of the road for the sale of Greece’s dirty fuel of the past
Greece’s economy was once powered by lignite. Today, continuing to invest in this most polluting fuel threatens to render Greece’s energy market uncompetitive, writes Eleni Diamantopoulou and Simon Holmes. Greece is at an energy crossroads. Decisions taken by the Greek government and the European Commission in the coming weeks and months will decide whether Greece is locked into an anti-competitive lignite world until at least 2030, or whether … [Read more...]
Five similar Climate Resolutions for BP, ExxonMobil, Chevron, Equinor, and Shell
In 2019, five oil and gas companies face five similar climate resolutions requesting to set Paris-aligned long-term targets for operations and products. This briefing serves to provide you with an overview of these five resolutions and Follow This' considerations to withdraw resolutions. Shareholder Resolution at the 2019 AGM of BP plc, Royal Dutch Shell plc, and Equinor ASA (“the company”) Shareholders request the … [Read more...]
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