The Energy Union package recently announced by the European Commission is a step forward in that it puts market liberalization and integration at the centre of European energy policy, writes Carlo Stagnaro, senior fellow at the Italian free market think tank Istituto Bruno Leoni. At the same time, it is still strongly influenced by the idea that government intervention is required to ensure both security of supply and sustainability. As a result, … [Read more...]
Meet the worldās number 1 R&D player in sustainable energy: the Chinese Academy of Sciences
In a global study of top academic and research centers in a wide range of sustainable energies, the surprising winner is the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Among industrial innovators the number 1 is engineering company ABB. The in-depth study, conducted by KIC InnoEnergy and Questel Consulting, shows that Chinese research institutions are considerably ahead of their European and US peers in sustainable energy innovation, including wind, ocean and … [Read more...]
In the oil heartlands of the planet, solar now beats oil and gas
One of the biggest banks in the Middle East and the oil-rich Gulf countries says that fossil fuels can no longer compete with solar technologies on price, and that the vast bulk of the $US48 trillion needed to meet global power demand over the next two decades will come from renewables. Meanwhile, in Dubai, Saudi Arabiaās ACWA Power, has won the worldās largest ever solar tender with the cheapest ever price: one-third below the cost of gas-fired … [Read more...]
IRENA pushes for 160 GW energy storage plan
A group of experts is expected to finalise details this week of a road map to install 160 Gigawatts (GW) of battery storage worldwide in 2030, reports Jason Deign of Energy Storage Report. The plan, being developed by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), would see nearly four times as much battery storage being deployed in the next 15 years as all the solar power installed worldwide to date. … [Read more...]
Interview Johannes Teyssen, CEO Eon: āFuture energy world has drifted far apart from the classical oneā
In the first in-depth interview given by Johannes Teyssen, CEO of Eon, after the company announced its radical new strategy in December last year, Teyssen says that āthe energy world of the futureā and āthe classical energy worldā have ādrifted so far apart that they require different entrepreneurial approachesā. He notes that the companyās new strategy is not based on German or even European politics, but āon more fundamental, global trendsā. … [Read more...]
Study: Local electricity can meet half UK needs ā if consumption is cut by half
Research conducted by nine leading UK universities has found that up to 50 per cent of electricity demand in the UK could be met by distributed and low carbon sources by 2050. This does require a reduction in demand of over 50% as well as increased regional, national and international connection. … [Read more...]
To make European climate policy work, we need to put a carbon price on imports
European institutions are struggling to reform the failing EU Emission Trading System (ETS) ā āthe cornerstone of EU climate policyā. But all reforms will be inadequate, writes Emil Dimantchev, senior carbon market analyst at Thomson Reuters, unless we address the systemās key defect: the failure to impose equal rules on all producers, including those from outside the EU. According to Dimantchev, EU policymakers will never allow carbon prices to … [Read more...]
Offshore wind in the Kattegat: a unique opportunity for Europe
New figures show that the Anholt offshore wind farm in the Kattegat between Denmark and Sweden had an impressively high capacity factor of 50% last year. This is all the more impressive since, as Mike Parr, Director of energy consultancy PWR points out, 2014 was a year with unusually low wind speeds. In an average year the capacity factor would have been more like 75%. This means, writes Parr, that if just 10% of the Kattegat region were … [Read more...]
Experts from World Energy Council highly critical of Energiewende
The German Energiewende cannot serve as a model for other countries. It is a threat to European security of supply, will have a negative impact on German growth prospects in the short term and is too costly. Thatās the opinion of a majority of experts from 35 member organisations of the World Energy Council from across the world.Ā … [Read more...]
Brussels tests limits of its powers with Energy Union
Energy Post takes stock of what the proposals for an Energy Union mean and ponders the key question: can Brussels deliver? The Commission is pushing hard on a far-reaching redesign of the electricity market, which is to be driven by the EU Emission Trading Scheme and increasingly run by EU institutions. In gas Brussels also wants to take a central role. When it comes to climate policy, the Commission has some substantial new proposals on energy … [Read more...]
Highlights from the Energy Union package – and responses
The European Commission announced its plans for a far-reaching Energy Union for Europe on 25 February, with a work package full of legislative and non-legislative actions for the next two years. Brussels also presented a strategy for the UN climate talks in Paris in December and a paper on how to meet electricity interconnection targets inside the EU. We present the highlights plus some responses. For a detailed analysis, see the accompanying … [Read more...]
EU turns up the heat: finally, a policy push for heating and cooling (half our energy use) Ā
Heating and cooling accounts for almost half of primary energy consumption in Europe, yet it has been largely ignored in the EUās climate and energy policies. This is now starting to change. At the end of this year, member states in the EU must submit an assessment of the low-carbon potential provided by co-generation and district heating systems. Clare Taylor looks at some of the EU-funded district heating and co-generation projects that are … [Read more...]
Brussels goes green in key EU ETS and biofuels votes
The European Parliament voted in favour of a much-needed reform to the EU Emission Trading Scheme (ETS) and new rules to guard against indirect land-use change (ILUC) from biofuels on Tuesday, opening the door to deals with member states on both files before the summer. … [Read more...]
DNV GL: 60% integration of renewables in European distribution grids feasible by 2030
The integration of approximately 60% of renewables into the European electricity system will be feasible by 2030, but will come with an extensive expansion of infrastructure, including transmission and distribution networks as well as conventional backup generation. The challenges of grid integration of renewables can be mitigated by a number of technical and regulatory measures. These are the findings of a DNV GL study for the European … [Read more...]
Interview Jean-Michel Glachant: āTo get an Energy Union, you need new institutionsā
The āEnergy Unionā for Europe is a dream that the European Commission will find hard to realise with its existing powers limited to the internal market and competition law, says Jean-Michel Glachant, Robert Schuman Chair, Director of the Florence School of Regulation and Director of the Loyola de Palacio Energy Policy Programme at the European University Institute. In an interview with Energy Post, he applauds the ambition behind this creative … [Read more...]
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