Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has boosted anxiety and therefore action on energy security and dependence on oil and gas. Sanctioning Russian oil and gas imports is an opportunity to replace fossil fuels with low or no carbon alternatives, an opportunity that is being taken. And renewables like wind and solar are by their nature local and therefore good for energy security (though with notable exceptions). Charles Hendry, Ellen Wald, Olga Khakova, … [Read more...]
Gulf States are investing in Carbon Capture to maintain Hydrocarbon business
The Gulf region wants to maintain their substantial revenues from hydrocarbons in a decarbonising world. One way to do that is to invest in carbon capture, to make cleaner and more marketable fossil fuel products. Megren Almutairi and Karen Young at CGEP look at their current plans and future prospects. Right now, about 10% of CO2 captured globally is in the industrial facilities of the Gulf States. Their national oil companies boast some of the … [Read more...]
Deadly loophole: third countries are refining Russian oil and exporting it to EU and G7 perfectly legally
There is a loophole in the sanctions imposed by EU/G7 countries that prohibit the importation of Russian crude oil and oil products. Third countries not imposing sanctions can import Russian crude, refine it into oil products and legally export them to price cap coalition countries (PCC). An analysis by CREA reveals that €8.5bn of PCC imports of oil products in the 13 months to the end of 2023 were made from Russian crude. Also, in 2023, there … [Read more...]
Hydrogen: most nations’ plans to export to Europe don’t match reality. The EU should make it itself
The EU’s RePowerEU plan, quickly made in response to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, aims to produce 20m tonnes of renewable hydrogen by 2030, with half coming from imports. Here, T&E summarise their report that concludes this is unrealistic. The report looks at six key countries with plans to export hydrogen to the EU: Norway, Chile, Egypt, Morocco, Namibia and Oman. T&E says these countries combined would only be able to deliver a quarter … [Read more...]
Eleclink: what can be learned from this innovative private European interconnector?
Europe has put in place a specific regime to incentivise private investors to build, own and operate new interconnectors. Jean-Baptiste Vaujour at the Emlyon Business School looks at Eleclink, a private interconnector built to connect the UK with France. It uses the existing Channel Tunnel infrastructure. But the most disruptive side of Eleclink is not its smart use of the tunnel but its innovate business and regulatory model. The 1,000 MW DC … [Read more...]
The link between global GDP growth and CO2 emissions is weakening rapidly. Will emissions peak well before 2030?
Economic growth has been closely tied to rising greenhouse gas emissions since the industrial age. But data now clearly shows that that GDP growth and CO2 emissions are diverging. Siddharth Singh at the IEA presents the numbers. In advanced economies that divergence now seems locked in, with 2007 marking the moment of peak emissions (and not simply because of offshoring manufacturing). Even in developing economies GDP growth is far outpacing … [Read more...]
Will EU decarbonisation policies shift the Fertiliser industry into making Ammonia for energy (but outside the EU)?
The EU’s fertiliser industry must face up to the region’s ambitious decarbonisation rules, making its carbon-intensive processes much more costly. But a door of opportunity is also being opened: the industry already produces ammonia which is increasingly being seen as an alternative clean fuel, explains Hyung-Ja de Zeeuw at Rabobank. The problem for EU nations is that it will be cheaper for the industry to relocate and make that ammonia somewhere … [Read more...]
Italy: Capacity Auctions for 71 GWh of additional Grid Storage
Italy needs 71 GWh of new utility-scale electricity storage capacity by 2030 to meet EU targets to cut emissions by at least 55% by 2030, according to Terna which manages Italy’s transmission grid. ***STOP PRESS*** This Tuesday at 11:00 CET, Energy Post is exclusive media partner to a dedicated webinar (organised by ATA Insights/RENMAD) on Capacity Market Auctions REGISTER FREE HERE. In this article, Sara Stefanini summarises the Terna study, … [Read more...]
Just Transition: UK’s Port Talbot steelworks are closing. What can be learnt from the Netherlands and Sweden?
A classic “just transition” story is being played out in the UK, a high income nation and Europe’s second biggest economy. Tata Steel plans to cut almost 3,000 jobs at the UK’s largest steelworks. The location, Port Talbot, is one of the most deprived places in the UK and the steelworks there are its largest private sector employer. Tata is under pressure to decarbonise its steel production, so will switch to an electric arc furnace that recycles … [Read more...]
EU’s fossil fuel CO2 emissions drop to levels last seen in the 1960s
The EU’s CO2 emissions from fossil fuels (including power generation, industry and transport) dropped 8% in 2023 year-on-year, reaching levels last seen in the early 1960s, reveals an analysis by CREA. More than half of that decline came from an impressive 25% year-on-year reduction in CO2 emissions from power generation. The cleaner electricity mix is thanks to the continuous rise of wind and solar as well as a rebound in hydropower and nuclear. … [Read more...]
EU ETS or national climate targets? We need both
The choice between using the EU ETS or national climate targets to decarbonise is a false dilemma. We need both, explains Chiara Corradi at T&E writing for the Florence School of Regulation. There are plenty of examples where a carbon market and national targets have delivered good results together, as in Germany, Finland, Denmark and Portugal. And, looking ahead over the next few decades, the right policies should be able to cope with ETS … [Read more...]
U.S. and EU: vastly different approaches to trade and climate put a transatlantic deal at risk
Uncertainty over the results of this year’s elections in the U.S. and the EU have effectively postponed trade deals between the two blocks. That means when talks restart in 2025 there will be even less time to find the best compromises. As Gautam Jain, Noah Kaufman, Chris Bataille and Sagatom Saha at the Center on Global Energy Policy explain, it’s why this time should be taken to better understand the differences and lay out the possible … [Read more...]
France is subsidising made-in-EU EVs with low carbon footprints. Europe must follow
Last year, France announced new green eligibility rules for awarding subsidies to EVs. Starting this year, an incentive of €5,000-€7,000 will only be awarded to electric cars with a production carbon footprint below 14.75 tonnes of CO2. It’s a first in environmental policymaking which the EU should be delivering across the region, says Lucien Mathieu at T&E. And not just for environmental reasons. It will promote EVs made in Europe where … [Read more...]
EU Elections 2024: the Green Deal can be an emblem of what Europe is for
It’s a European election year, which means all of us - not just the politicians and policy-makers – need to get our heads around what the EU is for. SĂ©bastien Treyer at the IDDRI lays out the challenges faced in a moment of climate crises, war and high inflation, when voters are prone to polarisation and manipulation. He asks the difficult questions over economic security, inequalities between Member States, global influence, engagement with … [Read more...]
Chemicals Industry needs Sustainable Feedstocks to complete their net-zero journey
The chemicals industry is crucial to decarbonisation because it’s a major supplier of products to other industries. Many are very high profile - such as automotive, construction, food, and personal-care – so scrutiny will be high. It’s why two-thirds of Europe’s largest chemical end users in Europe are committed to reducing greenhouse-gas emissions by 2030, and over a third have pledged net-zero targets by 2050. But although chemicals industry … [Read more...]
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