To address the crisis in the EU power sector, the European Commission has embarked on a fundamental reform process â the Market Design Initiative. However, according to Michael Hogan, Senior Advisor at the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP), the problem with the EU power sector today is not so much market design as a glut of old, inflexible baseload generation. … [Read more...]
National climate policies undermine European Emissions Trading Scheme
National subsidies and other forms of support for renewable energy and energy efficiency have seriously undermined the functioning of the EUâs Emissions Trading Scheme (EU ETS), writes Arnold Mulder of the University of Groningen. His PhD research, supervised by professors Catrinus Jepma, Steven Brakman and Erik Dietzenbacher, shows that current efforts to reform the system and increase CO2 allowance prices will not work if this adverse policy … [Read more...]
The end of coal: good riddance or dangerous gamble?
Scotland has become the first part of the UK to stop burning coal to supply electricity following the closure of Longannet, its largest power station, on March 24. According to Paul Younger, Professor of Energy Engineering at University of Glasgow, the closure of coal-fired power plants in the UK may lead to serious problems with voltage control. Prepare for power interruptions and flickering lights. … [Read more...]
European dash for gas at odds with climate ambitions
European energy and European climate policies, although often portrayed as being two sides of the same coin, are still not sufficiently harmonised, writes Stefan BöĂner, Research Fellow at the Stockholm Environment Institute. The EUâs new LNG and gas storage strategy serves as a prime  example where EU energy security concerns work against climate protection efforts. The strategy is likely to lead to costly investments into infrastructure which … [Read more...]
The German conundrum: renewables break records, coal refuses to go away
Last year was undoubtedly historic for the German power sector â for the first time in GermanyÂŽs modern history renewables accounted for a third of the countryÂŽs electricity consumption and secured their position as the number one power source defeating lignite (but not lignite and coal together). If nothing untoward happens and the Germans stick to their plans, bituminous coal and lignite will never be restored to their former glory, writes … [Read more...]
Barclays: Germany’s coal generation may be worthless by 2030
Reneweconomy.com The 46,000MW of black and brown coal fired generation currently in service in Germany will be worthless in little more than a decade if the country adopts the targets embraced at the Paris climate change conference, a new analysis from Barclays says. … [Read more...]
Brexit Britain: the balance sheet on energy and climate policy
In the energy sector, the disadvantages of EU membership overwhelmingly outweigh the advantages, the Business for Britain lobby group has argued. David Buchan and Malcolm Keay of the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies (OIES) and authors of a new book on the Energy Union, conclude, however, that EU constraints on UK energy policy have been minimal and benefits have been many. The consequences of a Brexit for the UK energy sector are not clear, … [Read more...]
National Parliaments should approve Paris Climate Agreement before it is a done deal
The European Commission is taking steps to have the Paris climate agreement ratified and signed at EU level, without involving the parliaments of the Member States. Although this may be formally acceptable, it is a bad idea, writes Lucas Bergkamp, Partner at the Brussels-based law firm Hunton & Williams: it will aggravate the EUâs âdemocratic deficitâ, weaken popular support for climate action and will leave intact key weaknesses in the … [Read more...]
Europeâs energy investment crisis: âthe EU energy market needs a makeoverâ
Europeâs electricity market, which has some of the highest renewable energy shares in the world, is suffering from a profound investment crisis. Sonja van Renssen spoke with top experts from government, business and academia about the causes and possible solutions. Conclusion: âtinkering around the edgesâ wonât do - âa complete makeoverâ of Europeâs market design is needed. Courtesy of World Energy Focus. … [Read more...]
viEUws video: Brussels Briefing on Energy for February 2016
In this latest Brussels Briefing on Energy, journalist Hughes Belin introduces the European Commission's "winter package" on energy security. This is the first real test of the European Energy Union. He describes two sensitive legislative proposals to give the Commission more scrutiny powers over intergovernmental agreements on energy and to improve gas security of supply through more reverse flows, a regional approach and a new solidarity … [Read more...]
Biofuels are back on the EU agenda
Biofuels are returning to the political agenda in Europe as EU policymakers start to shape a strategy for reducing greenhouse gas emissions from transport after 2020. Biofuels producers continue to argue that they are an essential part of the solution, even as the low oil price puts an end to several cutting-edge projects, the European Commission prepares to publish a new report about indirect land-use change (ILUC) and some stakeholders urge a … [Read more...]
EU insists energy security is about more than gas
âWhen it comes to energy security in the long term, there is no better antidote than focusing on sustainable energy,â said EU Climate and Energy Commissioner Miguel Arias Cañete at the launch of a new EU energy security master plan in Brussels on 16 February. The Commission defended its proposals â which focus on safeguarding gas supplies â as an aid to moving Europe along to a low-carbon economy as well as preparing it for possible supply … [Read more...]
How Russia can make Nord Stream-2 acceptable to the EU
The financial viability of Gazpromâs Nord Stream 2 pipeline may be threatened if the EU imposes restrictions on its use, as many EU Member States advocate. According to Danila Bochkarev, Senior Fellow, EastWest Institute in Brussels, the Russian government could circumvent this hurdle if it allows independent Russia gas producers, such as Novatek and Rosneft, to use 50% of its capacity. Such a move, not unlikely, could usher in a new Russian gas … [Read more...]
Behavioural change could deliver half of industry energy saving potential
Expert studies show that there is still vast untapped energy efficiency potential of up to 25% in European heavy industry. Moreover around half of that, or 10-15%, could be delivered through behavioural change at zero capital cost. So far, the EU has mandated energy audits for large companies, but not application of their results. Energy Post looks at how a new heating and cooling strategy due on 16 February and a review of the EUâs energy … [Read more...]
Cost of capital for renewables varies hugely across EU
It is much more expensive to undertake onshore wind projects in some European countries than others, according to the first-ever study of these costs for the entire EU-28. The EU-funded âDiacoreâ project finds moreover that market actors single out the design and reliability of renewable support schemes as the single biggest risk (after generic country risk) driving up the cost of capital. Best practice policy design could cut support costs for … [Read more...]
- « Previous Page
- 1
- …
- 13
- 14
- 15
- 16
- 17
- …
- 38
- Next Page »
![](https://energypost.eu/wp-content/themes/dynamik-gen/images/content-filler.png)