The Energy Community High Level Reflection Group has issued a report on how the work of the Energy Community - an international organisation comprising the European Union and eight neighbouring countries (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Moldova, Montenegro, Serbia and Ukraine) – may be improved. The Report contains proposed solutions to the most pressing challenges facing the Energy Community, … [Read more...]
Perspectives on Obama’s clean power plan: small step for US, big step for mankind?
The proposal made by the US Environmental Protection Agency to reduce CO2 emissions from power stations in the US by 30% has been hailed by many as a historic breakthrough in US climate policy. Others, however, argue that the proposal is quite moderate. Some even say the plan will do nothing for the climate at all. Supporters say the main benefits of the plan is the precedent it sets and the message it sends. Energy Post editor Karel Beckman … [Read more...]
VIDEO: High hopes for UN Environment Assembly’s first meeting, states UNEP Executive Director
Achim Steiner, Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) meets with viEUws.eu's leading environment journalist Sonja van Renssen to discuss post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the inaugural UN Environment Assembly (UNEA) meeting in Nairobi, Kenya from 23-27 June. Key issues for for the UNEA meeting will be the SDGs and illegal wildlife trade. According to Steiner, countries cannot solve … [Read more...]
Heat pumps: waiting for the final push
As gas faces a reputational challenge from Ukraine, electric heat pumps are emerging as a promising alternative source of heating. Heat pumps can also make an important contribution to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Oddly enough, although heating and cooling accounts for 45% of the EU’s final energy consumption there is no EU-wide heating and cooling strategy. Some countries such as UK and Italy are introducing support for individual … [Read more...]
VIDEO: Brussels Briefing on Energy: All you need to know for June 2014
In this Brussels Briefing on Energy, viEUws.eu's leading energy journalist Hughes Belin provides an overview of the European Union’s most pressing energy issues: - EU Summit on June 26 & 27: Commission’s strategic plan to enhance the European Union’ssecurity of supply in light of the ongoing crisis in Ukraine - Energy Council on June 13: Commission’s report on the internal energy market & the 2030 climate and energy package - New state … [Read more...]
VIDEO: Effective recycling at heart of Commission’s waste and circular economy package
Karl Falkenberg, Director-General for Environment at the European Commission meets with viEUws.eu's leading environment journalist Sonja van Renssen to discuss the Commission’s upcoming waste and circular economy package. The European Union has set an ambitious goal to recycle half of all household waste by 2020, however the door to landfill is still open. The Director-General for Environment argues that to increase recycling, member states need … [Read more...]
Ten take-home messages from the new European Energy Security Strategy
On 28 May the European Commission published a new energy security strategy for the EU that sets out a long list of short-, medium- and long-term actions to reduce dependence on Russian gas. These range from regional “stress tests” for supply disruptions to new priority gas infrastructure projects to serious examination of centralised gas purchases. For many however, it is energy efficiency that will make or break this strategy. Sonja van Renssen … [Read more...]
The case for allowing negative electricity prices
Negative electricity prices have become an increasingly frequent occurrence on the power exchanges that allow them. However, there are still many power exchanges, both within and outside of the EU, that do not allow negative prices. Simona Benedettini and Carlo Stagnaro of the Italian think tank Istituto Bruno Leoni argue that, with a booming renewable sector and a weak demand outlook, negative prices are an important tool for the market to … [Read more...]
How to design a successful auction for renewable energy projects
In its new State Aid guidelines, the European Commission presents auctioning as the standard procedure for allocating support for renewable energy. Member States may deviate from this rule, but only for very good reasons. Although auctioning can in theory be a useful instrument, experience all over the world shows mixed results. It is crucial that auctions are adapted to the specific market context. If not, they will deliver sub-optimal results … [Read more...]
VIDEO: Brussels Briefing on Environment: All you need to know for May & June 2014
In this Brussels Briefing on Environment by viEUws.eu leading environment journalist Sonja van Renssen provides an overview of the latest developments in the field of European environment policy. Topics discussed include: - CO2 emissions from trucks: first-ever European Commission strategy - Circular economy & waste: Green Week (June 2-5) and upcoming policy package including on food - June Environment Council: air quality and 2030 … [Read more...]
Policy failures have turned Belgium into high-price electricity island in Europe
Wholesale power prices in Belgium are now considerably higher than in its big neighbour Germany. In addition, Belgium is the only country in North West Europe to be faced with an electricity supply shortage. This situation is caused by a long series of policy failures on the part of the Belgian government, which has failed to create stable investment conditions, a competitive market and adequate interconnections, argues Benedict de Meulemeester, … [Read more...]
IEA review of Dutch energy policy: the real work still lies ahead
The Dutch energy sector is proud of the broad National Energy Agreement which was signed on to last year by representatives of the energy industry, consumer and trade associations and NGO’s, and which is now being implemented. But concluding an agreement is one thing, implementing it is another, notes the International Energy Agency (IEA) in an instructive review of Dutch energy policy. The Netherlands still relies heavily on fossil fuels and is … [Read more...]
The stolen fruit of the Energiewende: German suppliers are not passing on lower wholesale prices to consumers
Complaints about the high costs of the Energiewende are misguided. The primary reason German users pay high electricity prices is not the government’s support scheme for renewable energy. It is rather the fact that energy suppliers are not passing on to consumers the large drop in wholesale prices that results from the rapidly expanding wind and solar generation capacity. This is evident from an analysis of German prices. A similar situation … [Read more...]
Biomass: the hidden face of the Energiewende
When people think about the “energy transition” in Germany and elsewhere, they tend to think of the success of solar and wind power. However, of all forms of renewable energy it is biomass that has seen the largest absolute growth and supplies by far the most renewable energy, writes Robert Wilson. In Germany biomass has grown three times as much as wind and solar combined. 17% of the country’s arable land (6% of total land) is now devoted to … [Read more...]
IEA: electricity will rival oil as dominant energy carrier
Electricity will increasingly power the world's economies in the 21st century, rivalling oil as the dominant energy carrier, according to a new report by the International Energy Agency. Actively managing this transformation is the only way to ensure we meet global energy security and climate goals economically, the report says. The report, Energy Technology Perspectives, offers a comprehensive, long-term analysis of trends in the energy … [Read more...]
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