Berkeley Lab has released an annual status report on U.S. renewables portfolio standards (RPS), providing an overview of key trends associated with state RPS policies. The report, U.S. Renewables Portfolio Standards 2021 Status Update: Early Release, published in slide-deck form along with accompanying data files, describes recent legislative revisions, key policy design features, compliance with interim targets, past and projected impacts on … [Read more...]
articles, events and other posts from the Energy Post community
Retail real estate needs Paris-Proof decarbonisation strategy to ensure contribution to global and EU emissions targets, the Buildings Performance Institute Europe says
The report marks the launch of Paris-Proof Retail Real Estate, an initiative that looks to develop a vision and strategy to support the European retail real estate sector reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, in line with the Paris Agreement. … [Read more...]
SMEs key to Europe’s decarbonisation efforts
The Horizon 2020 funded project, LEAP4SME – Energy audit policies to drive energy efficiency – aims to enhance effective policies for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to undergo energy audits and implement cost-effective, recommended energy-saving measures. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), SMEs account for at least 13% of global final energy consumption annually and energy efficiency improvements are to … [Read more...]
New Berkeley Lab Report Documents Trends in System Impacts, Reliability and Market Value of Solar in the United States
By Andrew Mills and Joachim Seel, Berkeley Lab As solar generation increases, it is expected to progressively impact the bulk power system—changing prices for energy and other grid services. Solar generation is driven by sunshine and thus often highly correlated over the course of a day within a region. Without the deployment of storage or an increase in price-responsive load, growth in solar capacity is … [Read more...]
A people-powered energy system: activating the community energy market for bioenergy
Among others, lack of preparedness for communities to tap the full bioenergy market potential[1], lack of bioenergy stakeholders’ awareness of the potential of communities and missing/ unsupportive (local, regional and national) framework and policy conditions. For a people-powered energy system, the Horizon 2020-funded project BECoop (2020-2023) aims at putting communities in charge of their local renewable (bio)energy generation. … [Read more...]
Five countries to become the field of behavioural experiments to encourage energy efficiency habits
The EU has ambitious targets for increasing energy efficiency and mitigating climate change, aiming that there are no net emissions of greenhouse gases by 2050. To achieve this and other targets, much effort and investment are focused on digital infrastructure (e.g., smart meters) that enables energy consumers to monitor and manage their energy usage more actively and efficiently. … [Read more...]
Guiding SMEs and national authorities through the energy transition by taking profit of multiple benefits and energy management approaches
Improving energy efficiency is the most cost-effective way to reduce energy-related emissions, improve economic competitiveness and increase energy security. In the European Union, several pieces of legislation aimed at guiding states and companies, regardless of their size, on ways to improve their energy efficiency: one of them is the Energy Efficiency Directive, establishing a common framework of measures and requirements with the goal to … [Read more...]
Sustainability after COVID-19: Four scenarios of the world after the crisis
Foreword:Â The COVID-19 virus which began in China and spread around the world has wreaked havoc on economies and caused the life of millions of people to come to a standstill. With health and GDP dominating the world agenda, entrepreneurs wishing to navigate the turbulent waters of opening a new enterprise focused on sustainability will need to keep an eye on where the world is heading to. This analysis is an attempt to speculate which directions … [Read more...]
The renewable electricity market in Ukraine: answers to the key questions
Tetiana Mylenka at Hillmont Partners law firm (Kyiv, London) answers key questions about the prospects for renewable energy in Ukraine. Is there any hope that the renewable energy sector in Ukraine is coming out of its crisis? As of today, it is too early to say that the renewable energy sector in Ukraine is coming out of its crisis. The adoption of the long-awaited Law No. 810-IX should resolve the situation and partially … [Read more...]
The importance of energy efficiency for a carbon neutral society
Energy efficiency has proven to be an effective solution for curbing carbon emissions from fossil fuels. But what if we imagined a future energy system without fossil fuels, will it still make sense to invest in energy efficiency or will it be sufficient to develop enough renewable energy to cover demand? A recent COGEN Europe study, conducted by consultancy Artelys, underscores the importance of energy efficiency for a cost-effective energy … [Read more...]
Why Autogas Could Help Us All Breathe More Easily
Since the COVID-19 crisis and subsequent lockdowns, many cities around the world experienced a marked improvement in urban air quality, but with traffic getting back to “normal”, air pollution is rebounding and, alongside the continued public health crisis, we are now facing an economic recession. Mobility is essential to securing jobs and getting the economy back on track, but it should not come at the expense of the environment. Filipa Rio, … [Read more...]
Green Ammonia Market: a New Era for Energy and Power Industry
Green ammonia uses renewable energy instead of natural gas or coal for producing hydrogen; hence, is an effective way to reduce greenhouse emissions. The electrochemical Haber-Bosch process produces ammonia without any greenhouse emissions. Green ammonia refers to ammonia, which has been produced through a process that is 100% renewable and carbon-free. Reducing the carbon dioxide emissions during the production process is essential to achieve … [Read more...]
Anna Zalewska MEP Q and A: “We cannot drop coal from our energy mix in a decade”
Over the past twelve months Energy Post has provided readers with two well-attended panels (Modernisation Fund, Just Transition Fund), sponsored by PGE Poland, focussing on EU mechanisms and policies designed to support countries like Poland (plus other carbon-intensive and/or lower-gdp Member States) with their decarbonisation strategy. Today, Anna Zalewska MEP (ECRG and member of the ENVI committee of the European Parliament) makes use of … [Read more...]
Hydrogen, Renewables and Open Borders [VIDEO]
On July 15th 2020, Energy Post hosted an online panel discussion with Dr. Florian Ermacora (European Commission), Professor Ad van Wijk (TU Delft), Marcel Steinbach (BDEW) and Giulia Branzi (SNAM). At the event, video recording below, readers heard a summary of the proposals for Europe's new Hydrogen and Sector Integration strategies direct form the Commission, insights from van Wijk on how supply will come as much from outside as from within the … [Read more...]
Europe’s new Hydrogen Strategy: the questions that still need answering
Yesterday saw the launch of the EC’s new Hydrogen Strategy, the focus of our next live online discussion and Q&A. Register now to join us at the event next Wednesday at 12.45 CEST on Zoom to hear direct from the European Commission's Dr. Florian Ermacora, Future Energy System expert Prof. dr. Ad van Wijk, Giulia Branzi - Head of Regulation at event partner SNAM and trading specialist Marcel Steinbach of BDEW. Here, to set the scene, Gökçe … [Read more...]