The EU has been one of the front-runners on climate policy ever since the Kyoto Protocol was adopted in 1997. However, according to geologist and energy author Euan Mearns, who runs the blog Energy Matters and is a former editor of the famous "peak oil" website The Oil Drum, Kyoto has been an outright failure and current EU energy policy is futile and counterproductive. He wonders why EU governments "continue to pursue this futile course of … [Read more...]
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IEA in World Energy Outlook: no oil abundance in sight
Technology and high prices are opening up new oil resources, but this does not mean the world is on the verge of an era of oil abundance, according to the International Energy Agency’s (IEA) 2013 edition of the World Energy Outlook (WEO-2013). Although rising oil output from North America and Brazil reduces the role of OPEC countries in quenching the world’s thirst for oil over the next decade, the Middle East – the only large source of low-cost … [Read more...]
Why a carbon tax is a bad idea
With the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) struggling and “carbon credit frauds” in the news, many analysts argue we should get rid of carbon trading and opt for carbon taxes instead. But according to Alex Trembath and Matthew Step, carbon taxes will do nothing to cut emissions because they don’t lead to innovation. “Steve Jobs didn’t develop the PC because the price of typewriters went up.” … [Read more...]
German Environment Ministry says CO2-neutral Germany “almost possible”
Can an industrialized country such as Germany avoid nearly all of its man-made greenhouse gas emissions? “Clearly yes”, answers a new study by the German Federal Environment Agency (Umweltbundesamt). And it can be done without carbon capture and storage, nuclear power and first generation biomass. However, energy demand must be reduced by half and “unnecessary transport” must be avoided. “It is technically possible to reduce greenhouse gas … [Read more...]
Peak Coal in China – or long, high plateau?
Recent reports predicting a "peak" in Chinese coal power consumption are misleading, Armond Cohen and Kexin Liu of the Clean Air Task Force (CAFT) point out. The amount of Chinese coal-fired power generation will "continue to skyrocket". The same goes for other parts of Southeast Asia. The only way to prevent climate disaster is by scaling up carbon capture and storage (CCS). (Photo from Shanxi province by Bert van Dijk) … [Read more...]
Top climate scientists call on environmentalists to support nuclear
In an open letter addressed to "those influencing environmental policy but opposed to nuclear power", four top climate scientists in the US have called on world leaders and environmental activists to support the developmnet of nuclear power to protect the climate. The scientists are James Hansen, Ken Caldeira, Kerry Emanuel and Tom Wigley. Here is their letter, published by CNN: "As climate and energy scientists concerned with global climate … [Read more...]
A future for CCS? Set emission performance standards
Carbon capture and storage (CCS) has come to a dead end in Europe. Although the EU is carrying out a consultation to revive the CCS programme, it is already evident that the EU Emission Trading Scheme is too uncertain to provide a clear business case for CCS. If it wants to revive CCS, the EU should follow the US example and implement emission performance standards for power plants, argues energy consultant Vincent Swinkels. Photo: … [Read more...]
Fossil fuel euphoria: oil and gas forever!
A European country like Germany may have embarked on an energy transformation away from fossil fuels - with major German energy companies like RWE following suit - worldwide there is no such trend, notes US energy expert and author Michael T. Klare. On the contrary, countries and companies, particularly in the US, are euphoric about all the new "unconventional" oil and gas coming on the market. "What we're seeing is a sea change in elite thinking … [Read more...]
Europe is not alone on climate
Cynics claim that the EU has failed in its attempt to achieve a worldwide climate policy and is only hurting its own economy by insisting on highly ambitious CO2 emission reduction targets. But this is a far too simplistic view of how the world works, argues Liz Gallagher of E3G. According to Gallagher, Europe has achieved much more than most observers realise. Countries across the world are increasingly modelling their policies on the EU … [Read more...]
Deepening democracy: scientists must guide, not usurp, climate policy
Scientists and other experts must become more attuned to the different roles that they play in broader society, especially what it means to be facilitators of democracy rather than advocates for more authoritarian political systems. In practice this means recognizing that the main function of expert advisory bodies is not to tell the public what should be done, but rather what could be done. Experts, such as the Global Challenges Foundation … [Read more...]
Biofuels: regulatory uncertainty threatens to derail a fledgling European industry
The European Parliament and EU member states are completely deadlocked over new biofuels legislation. Although the Parliament may decide this week to start negotiations with member states, the two camps are so far apart that a deal seems almost inconceivable before 2015. The regulatory uncertainty is threatening to paralyse the European biofuels sector – and even to kill off progress in “advanced” (climate-friendly) biofuels. Sonja van Renssen … [Read more...]
The Dutch Energiewende
With the National Energy Accord, signed on 6 September, the Netherlands has its own version of the Energiewende. Or has it? Energy Post editor Karel Beckman explains the ins and outs of the Accord and discusses its implications for the future of Dutch energy policy. His verdict: despite the hype that has surrounded the Accord, it does not come anywhere near an “energy transition” in the German style. … [Read more...]
Christoph Frei, World Energy Council: “Resilience will rise to top of agenda”
The chances that we will be able to meet our climate targets are becoming increasingly slim, notes Christoph Frei, Secretary-General of the World Energy Council (WEC) in an interview with Energy Post. The main reason for this is that CCS (carbon capture and storage), a crucial element in any emission reduction strategy, “is not happening”. This means, says Frei, that “if no radical policy shift takes place, concerns will shift from mitigation to … [Read more...]
World Energy in 2040: Our fossil-fueled future
What sort of fabulous new energy systems will the world possess in 2040? Which fuels will supply the bulk of our energy needs? And how will that change the global energy equation, international politics, and the planet’s health? If the experts at the U.S. Department of Energy are right, the startling “new” fuels of 2040 will be oil, coal, and natural gas -- and we will find ourselves on a baking, painfully uncomfortable planet. Famous energy … [Read more...]
How much energy does the world need?
Although global energy consumption is expected to rise dramatically, established projections don’t even come close to accounting for the additional capacity it will take to ensure modern energy access for all. Most scenarios presume that 1  to 2 billion people will still be living without electricity in 2035. That, says environmental policy expert Roger Pielke, Jr., is unacceptable. Pielke calculates how much energy the world needs if we assume … [Read more...]
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