About a third of European grids are over 40 years old. A rapid physical overhaul would be impossible, so the addition of a layer of digital technologies is the key to preparing them for the distributed and intermittent generation from renewable sources, the increased electricity demand from transportation, heat pumps and other sectors, and for ensuring energy efficiency at all levels. Itâs why the EC expects about âŹ584bn of investment in Europeâs … [Read more...]
$7tn investor BlackRock announces Coal divestment, but not across all funds
BlackRockâs decision to divest from coal, as the world's largest asset manager with a long shareholder history of voting against climate action, sends a powerful signal. By mid-2020 BlackRockâs $1.8tn of actively managed funds will divest from any firm generating more than 25% of revenue from thermal coal. Further reviews of sectors heavily reliant on thermal coal will also take place. Tim Buckley, Tom Sanzillo and Melissa Brown at IEEFA welcome … [Read more...]
Smart Charging: parked EV batteries can save billions in grid balancing
95% of a carâs time is spent parked. Itâs why parked and plugged-in EVs could be the battery banks of the future, stabilising grids powered by wind and solar. More than 1bn EVs could be on the road by 2050, their 14 TWh of EV batteries dwarfing the projected 9 TWh of stationary batteries, according to the IRENA report âInnovation Outlook: smart charging for electric vehiclesâ. Smart charging could therefore save billions of dollars in grid … [Read more...]
