The new EU Emissions Trading System, ETS 2, covers emissions from buildings, road transport, and additional sectors such as fuel use in small industrial installations. It’s designed to reduce emissions by 42% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. Florian Schlennert, Simon Göss and Hendrik Schuldt at carboneer describe how it works, and what firms must do to comply. Comprehensive monitoring, reporting, and verification (MRV) must be implemented at the … [Read more...]
EVs made of 40% Green Steel will add just €57 to the price of a new car
There are three big reasons why Europe’s auto industry should be given binding targets to increase the green steel content of their cars through to 2040. First, conventional steel production is a high-emissions activity, and both users and producers are struggling to bring it down. Second, emerging green steel producers need to secure major guaranteed users (the auto industry is steel’s second biggest customer) as this is their greatest … [Read more...]
EU ETS: what happens when rising Carbon Prices start to hurt low income groups?
The main purpose of the EU Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) is to put a price on emissions and generate revenues from companies buying allowances for creating those emissions. Right now energy, manufacturing and aviation are covered. From 2027, maritime transport will be added to the existing EU ETS, while buildings and road transport will be regulated in the upcoming ETS2. From then, nearly 80% of total EU emissions will be under the ETS and … [Read more...]
Hemp-based building materials: a low-carbon substitute for timber, concrete
How can we lower the lifetime emissions of building materials? Bernardino D'Amico at Edinburgh Napier University references his research to show how hemp-based materials can substitute for concrete. And it’s even more effective than timber, a popular low-carbon alternative. Growing industrial hemp can absorb twice as much COâ‚‚ compared to growing trees. Raw hemp fibre can be processed into panels and mats for thermal or acoustic insulation. Hemp … [Read more...]
Investors beware: per € of revenue, truckmakers are more carbon intensive than oil, steel, cars (but not coal!)
Truckmakers are a more carbon intensive investment, per € of revenue, than oil, steel and cars. The only major sector that's worse is coal mining, says a new study by T&E. For investors that are counting the emissions of their investments, this will become clear when truckmakers are forced to report their Scope 3 emissions next year. Truckmakers therefore risk losing access to these investors. Until now, truckmakers have got away with it … [Read more...]
When can Bioenergy be truly green? 5 key questions for every project
Is bioenergy green? It depends, says Jessica Allen at the University of Newcastle. She lays out five key questions that should be asked about every bioenergy project. What is its source? Native forest residues, dedicated fast-growing biomass species, agricultural residues and “waste” biomass: all have pros and cons that must first be carefully measured. How many emissions are embodied in the collection and transport of the biomass to the plant? … [Read more...]
Green Steelmakers’ global future: importing the Iron from where Renewables are cheap, the Ore abundant
Governments in Europe have allocated around €5bn to 10 commercial-scale hydrogen-ready DRI (direct reduced iron) facilities for steelmaking, but even with these generous subsidies steelmakers are struggling to reach final investment decisions, citing high costs for domestic hydrogen as a barrier. And when you consider that over €400bn is needed to transition the entire European sector to hydrogen-based steelmaking, a totally new way of thinking … [Read more...]
Why isn’t Methane included in the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism?
Robert Kleinberg at CGEP explains why methane isn’t included in the EU’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) which imposes a carbon tax on imported goods. Basically, CO2 emissions are easy to estimate accurately, whereas methane emissions are not. Many methane emissions, even the largest ones, are intermittent and of highly variable duration. Gas leaks vary over many orders of magnitude, and once diffused in the atmosphere leave no local … [Read more...]
Carmakers must stop complaining and meet the 2025 EU CO2 target (like they did in 2020, and profitably)
In 2025, the EU’s car CO2 regulation will require a 15% reduction of fleet emissions from new passenger cars sold in Europe, compared to 2021 figures. But some carmakers are saying this target is unfair, claiming that they cannot control the consumers’ appetite for EVs. They want targets relaxed or fines waived. Julia Poliscanova at T&E explains why their complaints are unwarranted for a number of reasons. Previous deadline dates show that EV … [Read more...]
Green Steel: pathways for the new hydrogen-powered DRI-EAF projects
H2-DRI-EAF uses hydrogen (H2) to produce direct reduced iron (DRI), which is then processed in an electric arc furnace (EAF) to produce steel. The two main challenges are ensuring an adequate supply of DR-grade iron ore, and cutting the end-to-end cost of making hydrogen. But right now, clean green hydrogen production is in its infancy, and therefore so are green steel plans. Soroush Basirat at IEEFA surveys the landscape, looking at the U.S., … [Read more...]
Credit Rating Agencies downgrading Coal, Oil, Gas: climate change is now a clear risk category
Credit rating agencies now clearly recognise that climate change has become its own risk category, explains Tom Sanzillo at IEEFA who summarises his 43-page report. Financially, the coal, oil and gas sectors have served the world for decades. But due to regulatory, legal, economic, financial, political and social concerns, coal is credit negative and oil and gas is no longer positive. Sanzillo’s report charts the gradual erosion of the sector’s … [Read more...]
Euro 2024: what’s being done to make it “the most sustainable football championship of all time”?
UEFA and the German Football Federation (DFB) have promised that EURO 24 will be “the most sustainable European championship of all time.” As Ruby Russell writing for CLEW explains, plans extend across 10 energy-hungry stadiums, travel to and between 51 games (80% of emissions!), merchandise and catering. To tempt people off budget airlines, train fares are being subsidised and extra trains scheduled in. There are plans to use renewable power in … [Read more...]
Biomass: new “CELF” process can turn waste lignin into useable fuels, chemicals
A new process can turn the lignin portion of biomass into affordable fuels. Lignin provides rigidity to a plant cell wall, but that rigidity makes it suitable only for burning for generating heat. Wayne Hicks at NREL describes how the new “CELF” pre-treatment process deconstructs and fractionates the lignin and other parts of biomass to yield a diverse range of products: alcohols, esters, carboxylic acids, and hydrocarbons. It could enable the … [Read more...]
Half of fossil fuel Methane reduction targets can be met at no net cost. Why isn’t it happening?
We need to cut global methane emissions from fossil fuels by 75% by 2030 to be on target to limit warming to 1.5°C. That equates to 90 Mt of the current total of 120 Mt of annual fossil fuel methane emissions. The IEA says 80 Mt can be avoided through the deployment of known and existing technologies, often at low – or even negative – cost. And the 75% cut needs $170bn in spending to 2030, a very achievable sum given it represents less than 5% of … [Read more...]
How can Biomass fulfil its potential in EU carbon markets?
In carbon markets such as the EU ETS participants must monitor and report their emissions and ultimately pay for them. Biomass occupies a unique place. It is well positioned to be a net-zero emissions energy source for hard-to-abate sectors. Coupled with effective on-site carbon capture technologies, it can be carbon negative. And there is a great diversity of project types involving forestry, biochar kilns, waste-to-energy, carbon capture and … [Read more...]
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