Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) will do well to take more than 10% of global light duty vehicle market share by mid-century, writes research scientist Schalk Cloete. This is because BEVs with the large battery pack needed for broad consumer acceptance will remain more expensive than internal combustion engine (ICE) cars. According to Cloete, this price premium is unlikely to be accepted by the mass market even under optimistic future BEV … [Read more...]
Injecting energy into the agenda of trade negotiators
Barriers to trade and investment in energy goods and services, long neglected, are starting to  be addressed by trade negotiators in the World Trade Organisation and outside of it. The process of integrating the energy dimension to trade policy is however still in its infancy. An upcoming report from the World Energy Council aims to offer trade officials a policy agenda. Iana Dreyer, editor of Borderlex.eu, a newsletter specialised in EU trade … [Read more...]
Wake up call for oil companies: electric vehicles will deflate oil demand
The major oil companies greatly underestimate the impact electric vehicles will have on their market, write independent energy advisors Salman Ghouri and Andreas de Vries. According to Ghouri and De Vries, the trends currently underway in the auto industry are likely to have a substantial impact on oil demand in the medium term, and even a devastating impact in the longer term. … [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 Germany´s modern history renewables accounted for a third of the country´s 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...]
Dispelling the nuclear baseload myth: nothing renewables can’t do better
The main claim used to justify nuclear is that itâs the only low carbon power source that can supply âreliable, base load electricity. But not only can renewables supply baseload power, they can do something far more valuable: supply power flexibly according to demand, writes Mark Diesendorf, Associate Professor of Interdisciplinary Environmental Studies at UNSW Australia. That, says Diesendorf, makes nuclear power really redundant. (This article … [Read more...]
How much can the next president influence the US energy system?
There have been dramatic changes in the U.S. energy system under our current president â a big drop in the use of coal, a boom in domestic oil and gas development from fracking, and the rapid spread of renewable energy. But in terms of influencing energy technology deployment, the next president will have a lot less influence than you might expect, writes Carey King, Research Scientist at the University of Texas. … [Read more...]
How can we move beyond oil?
The US is moving beyond coal, but when it comes to oil, the energy transition has only just begun, writes Justin Guay, Program Officer, Climate at the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Oil still dominates the transport market â and the political landscape. According to Guay, to move beyond oil, there is only one solution: to embrace the opportunity of shared, autonomous, electrified mobility. Article co-authored with Anthony Eggert of … [Read more...]
New data debunks clean energy claims Apple, Amazon, Google
Recent claims by owners of large data centers that a large part of their operations are powered by renewable energy have skeptics coming out of from under their solar panels. Now, there is hard data proving that skepticism is valid, writes energy consultant and author Jim Pierobon. He applauds the efforts of companies like Amazon, Apple and Google to strive for clean energy, but calls for more transparency on their actual practices. … [Read more...]
BPâs view of electric cars looks unrealistic
BPâs latest long term outlook for the energy sector looks particularly unrealistic in its projection of a âmost likelyâ case of almost no uptake of electric vehicles by 2035, writes independent energy expert Adam Whitmore. According to Whitmore, even very moderate assumptions lead to substantially higher growth rates for EVs. … [Read more...]
Wind top new power capacity source in Europe
In 2015 12,800 MW of new wind power capacity was installed in the EU, an increase of 6.3% over 2014, and more than any other form of power generation, according to recent new figures from the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA). Wind power accounted for over 44% of total power capacity installations in the EU last year. … [Read more...]
Corporate interest in green energy requires new thinking from electric utilities
Corporate America is going green, writes Dennis Wamsted. Electricity companies had better take notice: they can offer their customers what they ask for - or watch them contract for it on their own. … [Read more...]
What comes after solar PV? BIPV
The time of ugly solar panels is over. Make way for building-integrated photovoltaics. Fereidoon Sioshansi, president of Menlo Energy Economics and publisher of the newsletter EEnergy Informer, notes that BIPV not only look stunningly better, they also reduce costs. They can even lead to energy-producing buildings. … [Read more...]
Four trends to watch in US renewable energy finance in the US
Dan Scripps of Advanced Energy Perspectives, describes the four major trends taking place in renewable energy finance in the US. Green Banks are scaling up, Yieldcos are shaping, green philanthropy is on the rise and energy efficiency investments are picking up. … [Read more...]
The moral case for fossil fuels? Let them eat solar panels!
In the wake of the Paris climate accord, there has been much discussion of the so-called âmoral caseâ for fossil fuels, particularly in countries such as India. But according to professor John Mathews of Macquarie University in Australia, rolling out renewable energy in developing countries should be the real legacy of the Paris climate agreement. Renewables offer them the best chance to break into manufacturing value chains. … [Read more...]
How far can renewables go? Pretty darn far
This is part 4 of a series looking at the economic trends of new energy technologies by the famous author and thinker Ramez Naam. Part 1 looked at how cheap solar can get (very cheap indeed). Part 2 looked at the declining cost and rising reliability of wind power. Part 3 looked at how cheap energy storage can get (pretty darn cheap). Now Naam discusses how far renewables can go. … [Read more...]
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