In the OECD, since 2000, electricity sector emissions have fallen by 8% while transport emissions have actually increased by 5%. The best performers like the UK recorded drops in both: 40% and 6% respectively. In the U.S. itâs 25% and 0%. Catherine Wolfram at the Haas School of Business asks why transport is still going in the wrong direction, given the power sectorâs progress. She posits three theories. Rich nations are outsourcing … [Read more...]
Quantum Well solar cell sets new record for converting light to energy
Thereâs a new world-record for two-junction solar cells, converting 32.9% of sunlight into electricity. Although itâs only a small improvement on the previous record of 32.8% it uses a design that should lead to even greater performance. NREL, in collaboration with the University of New South Wales (Australia), has built a cell consisting of a series of more than 150 ultrathin layers of alternating semiconductors that create quantum wells which … [Read more...]
Coal regions are ideally suited for utility-scale Wind, Solar and jobs
Over 15% of total greenhouse gas emissions in the EU come from coal-fired energy generation. 18 EU countries still use coal for electricity production. The argument goes that the phasing out of coal threatens the livelihoods of coal workers and their regional economy. But it should be the opposite, argue Elif GĂŒndĂŒzyeli and Jörg MĂŒhlenhoff at CAN Europe. Coal regions are ideally suited for new gigawatt-scale wind and solar. They already have the … [Read more...]
How do we get EV payback periods down to 4 years?
The take-off of EVs will happen when the lifetime cost of ownership falls below that for a conventional car. But letâs remember that âlifetimeâ for a Brit means 4 years as thatâs the average period of ownership. Gerard Wynn and Arjun Flora at IEEFA show how the payback period on Gerardâs Renault Zoe ZE50 has been cut by over a fifth simply by signing up to a smart meter tariff. Itâs dropped from 10 to 8 years. The UK is nearing the universal roll … [Read more...]
IEAâs âaccelerated caseâ becoming the norm? Global Wind + Solar to overtake Gas and Coal by 2024
The IEAâs 2019 âaccelerated caseâ for renewables is turning into this yearâs âmain caseâ. It predicts that Wind and Solar capacity combined will overtake both Gas and Coal globally by 2024. Josh Gabbatiss at Carbon Brief summarises the IEAâs Renewables 2020 report. Within five years, renewables will constitute 1/3 of all electricity generation, equivalent to the combined demand of China and the EU. Virtually all global growth in electricity … [Read more...]
Solar is displacing Coal in Indiaâs electricity market
India is the worldâs third largest electricity market and as a fast-growing economy can, according to the IEA, lead the recovery of global energy demand out of the pandemic for the coming decade. Kashish Shah at IEEFA runs through solarâs prospects in India, which hopes to build 450GW of renewable energy by 2030. Solar is getting cheaper. A 2GW auction in June delivered Indiaâs lowest-yet renewable energy tariff at US$31/MWh. That figure could … [Read more...]
Which sectors need Hydrogen, which donât: Transport, Heating, Electricity, Storage, Industry?
Which sectors are most suited to hydrogen, and which are not? For the answer, six academics from the UK and the Netherlands - Tom Baxter, Ernst Worrell, Hu Li, Petra de Jongh, Stephen Carr, and Valeska Ting â use their areas of expertise to neatly summarise hydrogenâs pros and cons in Road and Rail, Aviation, Heating, Electricity and Energy Storage, and Heavy Industry. Their general message seems clear: hydrogen is still very expensive, so it can … [Read more...]
5 charts show the rapid fall in costs of renewable energy
Plenty in the energy sector already know about the impressive declines in renewable energy costs since 2010, particularly solar (down 82%), concentrated solar (47%), onshore (39%) and offshore wind (29%). For those of you putting together presentations to people whose buy-in you need - citizens, public officials, investors, customers, etc. - these graphics should come in useful. It looks like a tipping point is being reached, says Douglas Broom … [Read more...]
The benefits of Peer-To-Peer Electricity Trading for communities and grid expansion
The adoption of peer-to-peer (P2P) electricity trading will turn individual consumers from passive to active managers of their networks. Such a marketplace can relieve constraints on the growing system and offer an alternative to costly grid reinforcements. Arina Anisie and Francisco Boshell at IRENA run through the benefits, including investment costs, bills, resilience, congestion, mini-grids, energy access, and more. They note that very few … [Read more...]
Battery innovation must drive the 50-fold increase in storage capacity needed by 2040
The IEA has set the storage sector a challenge. It says the world will need 10,000 GW-hours of batteries and other forms of energy storage by 2040, a 50-fold increase on today. The good news is that a joint study by the European Patent Office and the IEA reveals electricity storage patenting activity has grown 14% a year over the past decade. Here the IEA summarises the findings of its comprehensive report. It explains that Japan and Korea lead, … [Read more...]
ELCC: how to measure grid stability as renewables are added
We cannot just swap 24/7 fossil fuel power plants for intermittent renewables. To prevent electricity shortfalls the capacity of a solar or wind plant must exceed that of the fossil fuel plant it replaces. But by how much? Thatâs the question that the Effective Load Carrying Capability (ELCC) metric is designed to answer. Itâs not a new concept, but is now becoming very important. Mark Specht at the Union of Concerned Scientists explains the … [Read more...]
How ready is the switchgear industry to abandon SFâ, the worst greenhouse gas?
Are firms in the switchgear industry - power utilities, industrial sites, and related service and infrastructure sectors - happy to switch from using the gas SF6Â and use alternatives that are less harmful to the climate? This is the question Marie-Charlotte Guetlein and Carine Sebi at the Grenoble Ăcole de Management asked over 400 switchgear customers to find out whatâs needed to make the change. SF6 has 23,500 times the impact of CO2Â Â and an … [Read more...]
Why promote Rooftop Solar when the Grid is so much cheaper?
Is rooftop solar in the U.S. getting more support than it deserves? One main argument from its advocates is that it will cut grid transmission and distribution costs that total hundreds of millions. Severin Borenstein at the Energy Institute at Haas crunches some numbers to try to uncover the true âavoided costsâ. He shows that any savings wonât come even close to making up for the higher cost of rooftop electricity. Itâs no match for the gridâs … [Read more...]
Teslaâs BEVs vs. Toyotaâs hybrids: the battle for the future of low emission cars
Which car firm will dominate the future? Tesla and its BEVs or Toyota with its hybrids? Schalk Cloete looks at the cost reductions coming down the line. He says that the hybrids have many more improvements on the way, whereas in terms of performance and efficiency the BEVs are already reaching their peak. Though further and considerable progress in battery technology is coming, it will benefit both. For city driving both will rely on battery … [Read more...]
Swedenâs new âprosumersâ: electricity generation at the city, village and residential level
54% of Swedenâs power already comes from renewables â the target is 100% by 2040 - and more and more is being generated locally on a small distributed scale, says Harry Kretchmer writing for the World Economic Forum. âDistrict Heatingâ plants are today using excess heat to warm over 75% of Swedish homes. Residential generation is happening too, creating âprosumersâ who both produce and consume. In Ludivika, 1970s flats have been retrofitted with … [Read more...]
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