Oil companies like Shell have unique skills that make them ideally placed to help build the energy world of the future. Yet they seem unable to look beyond their own interests, says Adriaan Kamp, former Shell manager and founder of Oslo-based consultancy Energy For One World. “Like the banks, they can’t change their ways. They are still making too much money with oil and gas.” According to Kamp, the growth strategy of the oil companies is still … [Read more...]
Everything you always wanted to know about carbon trading in China
China is moving rapidly towards a national carbon emission trading market. Currently there are seven regional carbon markets operating in China, and these will be merged into a national one in 2016. … [Read more...]
Big Oil’s broken business model: the real story behind the oil price collapse
The underlying cause of the oil price collapse is to be found in the collapse of Big Oil’s production-maximizing business model, writes Michael Klare, professor at Hampshire College and author of many books on the geopolitics of energy. According to Klare, the oil companies were operating according to a business model that assumed an ever-increasing demand for their products, no matter their cost. They also assumed that concern over climate … [Read more...]
Interview chief climate negotiator for France Paul Watkinson: “COP21 will not solve everything”
The COP21 climate conference in Paris in December needs to lead to a “binding agreement” that will provide “a long-term basis for the future”, says Paul Watkinson, head of the Climate Negotiation Team of France, in an interview with Energy Post. “We cannot continue negotiating. We need to decide on something that will last and will become stronger as time goes on”. But Watkinson warns that COP21 will “not solve everything.” It will also be “a … [Read more...]
Statoil’s big dilemma: should it continue to go for oil and gas – or transform itself into an energy service provider?
Norwegian oil giant Statoil, owned 67% by the Norwegian State, readily acknowledges the need to take drastic measures against climate change. But it nevertheless persists in a strategy aimed at expanding its oil and gas production globally. According to Anders Bjartnes, editor of the website Energi og Klima, the company cannot forever embrace these opposing views, “where verbal concerns go in one direction while strategy and cash go in the … [Read more...]
More coal plants are being cancelled than built
The global coal boom has started to slow, a new  report says, as more plans for new power plants are now being shelved than completed. The number of cancelled coal projects across the world has outstripped those completed at a rate of two to one since 2010, according to Sierra Club and CoalSwarm - two campaign groups that have tracked the progress of 3,900 intended plants since 1 January 2010. Article by Sophie Yeo of The Carbon Brief. … [Read more...]
At the tipping point: will Obama stop Shell from despoiling the Arctic?
Shell is trying to establish itself as a leader in Arctic exploration and drilling, despite the company’s poor safety record in the region, writes Subhankar Banerjee, author of the new book Arctic Voices: Resistance at the Tipping Point. According to Banerjee, Shell’s activities are a mortal threat to one of the last untouched environments on the planet. President Obama still has a choice: to stop Shell – or to let it go ahead and become … [Read more...]
Waiting for the next oil crisis
Many commentators have pointed out that, as current low oil prices make it difficult for oil companies to invest in exploration and production, we can expect lower supply in future, and therefore a return to high prices. But according to Nick Cunningham of Oilprice.com, the reality is much worse. He notes that even when oil prices were high, over the past years, oil companies were struggling to replace their reserves. The world, he warns, will … [Read more...]
The significance of the UK party leaders’ joint climate pledge
The UK's three main political leaders have pledged to tackle climate change after the next election, whatever the outcome. Simon Evans of the Carbon Brief assesses the significance of the unusual joint pre-election pledge. He concludes that the substance of the agreement is not new, but it will “prevent backsliding on climate policy by future governments”. It will also serve as an example to countries across the world.  … [Read more...]
The implications of $50-a-barrel oil for the world’s energy mix
Oil prices keep sliding, sending economic shockwaves around the world. Analysts are scrambling to try and understand what it means for the world's future energy mix and efforts to cut emissions. But the relationship between oil prices and energy investments is complex, writes Mat Hope for The Carbon Brief. Much depends on how low the price goes as, beyond a certain point, lots of projects are no longer economically viable. … [Read more...]
Scientists: large fossil reserves must stay in ground
Christophe McGlade and Paul Ekins of the Institute for Sustainable Resources at University College London have published a paper in the scientific journal Nature presenting their research on "the carbon bubble" aka as "stranded assets". They come to alarming conclusions for fossil fuel producers: no new exploration should be undertaken anymore if climate change is to be contained. … [Read more...]
What is the ideal oil price for the energy transition?
Does the energy transition benefit from low or high oil prices? Proponents of a swift energy transition have debated this question for a long time. Most believe high oil prices are beneficial, because they make alternatives more competitive. But high oil prices also lead to huge profits for fossil fuel businesses, while low prices make the more costly (and often dirtiest) projects unprofitable. According to Rick Bosman and Derk Loorbach of the … [Read more...]
Why oil price crash is good news for climate, and clean energy
According to analysts from UK investment bank HSBC, the low oil price is on balance good for the climate. French private investment firm Kepler Chevreux goes a step further and sees the oil price collapse as one of a number of signals indicating a global energy transition is underway. "The debate over fossil fuels now touches not only on the climate, but on global financial stability." Giles Parkinson of Reneweconomy.com.au has the story. … [Read more...]
World Energy Council: Germany and Spain less energy secure, UK and Japan on watch list
The new release of the World Energy Council’s annual Energy Trilemma Index, a ranking of countries based on their energy security of supply, affordability and sustainability, shows that Germany and Spain have gone down in their ratings. The UK and Japan have been placed on “negative watch”, showing a downward trend in energy security. In an interview with Energy Post, Joan MacNaughton, Executive Chair of the World Energy Trilemma work, notes that … [Read more...]
King Coal dethroned: future looks black
New research by the Carbon Tracker Initiative (CTI), the London-based NGO that invented the concept of “stranded assets” (aka the “carbon bubble”), claims that “the tide is turning against coal exporters”. After taking on the oil and gas industry, CTI has for the first time calculated the risks faced by the coal sector from slowing demand in combination with climate change policies. It concludes that most new coal mines will not be economic. … [Read more...]