We all know that GDP measures everything that’s been paid for, both the good and the bad. There have already been studies that try to account for the “bad” GDP that costs us in the long run and so adds less value than stated. Catherine Wolfram, at the Haas School of Business, takes a thoughtful look at Gross Environmental Damage which separates out the kind of GDP that we’re going to have to spend money cleaning up in the future. The GED concept … [Read more...]
Time for tech-neutral incentives if renewables growth won’t stop climate change?
In 2018 energy use grew 2.9% and emissions 2%. That means renewables are not keeping up with energy’s growth: it will need a four-fold increase in wind and solar’s growth to do so, says Schalk Cloete. There’s more: to cut global CO2 emissions by the 3% per year we need to meet the Paris goals wind and solar growth rates must increase by over an order of magnitude. He reviews the evidence and concludes that current technology-forcing policies – … [Read more...]
Carbon-emitting gas, not renewables, is replacing U.S. nuclear
Ohio, USA, subsidises renewables. Now the Ohio State Legislature is fighting over a bill that will re-shape and extend that support to all clean energy, including nuclear. That’s how it should be, says Jim Conca. He reviews a report by regional transmission organisation PJM that says keeping nuclear plants open is far cheaper. Moreover, it’s far better for emissions. That’s because whenever a nuclear plant is shut down in the U.S. it is replaced … [Read more...]
France and Britain race for carbon neutrality by 2050
Inspired by the UK’s independent Committee on Climate Change (CCC) and the progress it has enabled in that nation’s acceleration to net-zero, France set up its equivalent Haut Conseil pour le Climat. Its first report is launched tomorrow (June 25th). The CCC certainly has made a difference, as this month the UK enshrined in law its goal of net-zero by 2050. The French parliament is in discussions to do the same. CĂ©line Guivarch and Corinne Le … [Read more...]
BP Review of 2018: record CO2, energy use as gas outstrips wind & solar
Energy use grew at 2.9% in 2018, the largest rise since 2010. It’s what happens when economies grow. But gas, oil and coal's contribution to that growth saw global CO2 emissions rise by 2% in 2018, the largest year-on-year increase in seven years. Wind and solar growth, driven by China though slowing in the US, EU, and India, achieved its second fastest rate on record - but still lagged behind gas additions. These are not the trends we need to … [Read more...]
Advanced Aviation Biofuels: ready for take-off?
A survey by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) of leading biofuel investors and producers worldwide reveals that they are still struggling to get governments to deliver the right regulatory framework – and carbon pricing – to ensure biojet fuel’s rapid growth. Scaled up, the fuel also needs to come down in price to compete with jet fuel’s 50 eurocents per litre. Technological progress is being made. But biofuel investment has … [Read more...]
New gas-to-methanol technology OxE could end oil well “flaring”
Oil wells also release natural gas. But it’s burnt off on site whenever the economics of collecting and piping it don’t add up (gas can’t use the existing petroleum infrastructure). What if it could be converted into methanol, says Nichole Liebov at the University of Virginia. She describes a new process called oxyesterification (OxE) that converts methane (the main constituent of natural gas) into methanol cost effectively at low temperatures … [Read more...]
China’s industry: Deep decarbonisation progress and challenges
Across the world, industry is regarded as a hard-to-decarbonise sector, and an emissions priority. In China it’s responsible for over 65% of its energy consumption and 70% of carbon emissions. Ji Chen and Shuyi Li of the Rocky Mountain Institute (RMI) look at the highlights of China’s efforts, and reference them against the RMI’s Reinventing Fire: China analysis. Efficiency, electrification, CCUS, hydrogen and “recycle and reuse” all play an … [Read more...]
India aims for competitively priced superefficient ACs
Cooling represents over 6% of the world’s total final energy consumption, and growing. Of the 2.8bn people living in hot tropical regions only 8% have air conditioners (ACs) - it’s 90% in the US and Japan. With growing affluence, most will buy cheap entry-level ACs, with their low efficiency and polluting refrigerants. To cope, India will need 600GW of new power generation capacity by 2050 – equivalent to the installation of 1,200 coal power … [Read more...]
EU plans first satellite fleet to monitor CO2 in every country
The speed and policies required for a successful transition depend on our ability to measure emissions accurately and globally. That’s why Europe is readying a new fleet of three satellites to monitor CO2 emissions at every point on earth, creating the first worldwide system capable of measuring at city and even power plant level in close to real time, reports Karl Mathiesen at Climate Home News. It will mean, for example, a city can measure how … [Read more...]
Solar intermittency: upbeat “annual” carbon reduction estimates miss the “hourly” reality
There is a maximum speed at which solar capacity can expand. You know you’ve passed it when insufficient storage means solar curtailment, or selling the daytime excess means curtailment of other clean energy generators. As solar grows, so too will this problem. Vincent Xia, at the Precourt Institute for Energy, Stanford University, reports on a new Stanford study which says emissions predictions are not taking this into account, thus … [Read more...]
The Clean Hydrogen revolution: how, by whom, when?
Hydrogen rivals oil and gas for storage and hard-to-decarbonise sectors (industry, heavy and long distance transport). But it isn’t all carbon free. “Grey” hydrogen – the cheapest at €1.50/kilo - is made from gas. “Blue” hydrogen depends on the fortunes of carbon capture technology. “Green” hydrogen is CO2 free, but needs further cost reductions in the green electricity used in the electrolysis process. NoĂ© van Hulst, at the Netherland’s Ministry … [Read more...]
UK oil & gas keeps rising. Clean Energy blueprint can reverse it
In the UK the ÂŁ2.3bn (=$2.9bn / €2.6bn) in new oil and gas subsidies introduced since 2014 will state-fund the addition of twice as much carbon as its coal phaseout saves, says a new report “Sea Change: Climate Emergency, Jobs and Managing the Phase-out of UK Oil and Gas Extraction”. Can the UK call itself a climate leader if its existing policies push it over its emissions limits? It can, if you consider this: the UK took 16 years to become the … [Read more...]
UK’s net-zero ambition: counting all emissions, not just in-country
The UK’s Committee on Climate Change (CCC) has advised its government to go zero-carbon by 2050. But, say Joe Blakey and Marc Hudson of the University of Manchester, counting all emissions means counting the carbon footprint of imports too. Including these (and excluding emissions from exports) the UK’s footprint is 70% higher than the figure used by the CCC. The same is likely true for all high income economies. And the cost of successful … [Read more...]
Carbon Capture: Can CO2-EOR really provide carbon-negative oil?
Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR) injects CO2 into oil reservoirs, increasing the pressure and forcing the oil out. 20% of global oil production uses EOR. But if that CO2 doesn’t stay underground it hasn’t been captured. If it was itself extracted from natural underground CO2, there is no benefit – or worse. Ideally, it should come from already captured CO2. But most oil wells are nowhere near a CCUS (carbon capture, usage and storage) facility: in the … [Read more...]