As the largest emitter of carbon dioxide in the world, how much coal China is burning is of global interest, writes Valerie J. Karplus of the MIT Sloan School of Management. According to Karplus, an expert on Chinese energy, China's reported leveling off of coal use may be both real and sustainable. Nevertheless, there is one scenario in which coal use could easily go back up again: high oil and natural gas prices. In addition, it is likely that … [Read more...]
Phasing out fossil fuels for renewables may not be a straightforward swap
To have any chance of preventing dangerous climate change, the world needs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to net zero or even negative by mid-century. Many experts suggest this means we need to completely phase out fossil fuels and replace them with renewable energy sources such as solar and wind. But according to Anthony James, lecturer with the National Centre for Sustainability, Swinburne University of Technology in Australia, new … [Read more...]
Globalisation of the gas market: it has been going on longer than you think
The general view among analysts is that gas prices in North America, Europa and Asia diverged in the period 2005-2014. This was always a bit odd, since regional markets were becoming more interconnected in those years through increased LNG trade, increased market related pricing and gas hub development. Now it turns out that, according to new research from Floris Merison at the Energy Delta Institute, the conventional view of price divergence is … [Read more...]
Why EU renewable energy figures are misleading: Europe requires 150% renewable energy to become fossil-free
The EU is confident it will reach its target of 20% renewable energy by 2020. But according to Martien Visser, professor at the Hanze University of Applied Sciences in Groningen (The Netherlands), this 20% is in reality more like 14%. This is because a large part of our energy consumption is simply ignored in the calculations for renewable energy. “Even with 100% renewables, we would still need a lot of fossil fuels”, Visser notes. … [Read more...]
Russia: a global energy powerhouse that’s much more than a petro-state
Russia is not what you think. Most discussion about its energy influence has focused on oil and gas, particularly gas, and Russia and is routinely described, as a petro-state. But this is only partly accurate, writes Scott L Montgomery, Lecturer at the University of Washington. According to Montgomery, Russia has been building an altogether new kind of energy state, one with more global influence than even OPEC. This has profound implications for … [Read more...]
California cleans up the natural gas sector – a model for the rest of the world
If natural gas is to be a bridge to a future of low greenhouse gas emissions, the problem of methane leakage has to be tackled. The State of California is taking measures that will mean a sea change in the way utility companies deal with methane leakage, writes Tim O’Connor, California Director Oil & Gas at the Environmental Defense Fund (EDF). According to O’Connor, this should be a model for other States and countries to follow. … [Read more...]
Can Nord Stream 2 be stopped?
Nord Stream 2, the controversial Russian-German pipeline project, is generating fierce opposition in Central and Eastern Europe as well as from the European Parliament and the European Commission. But could the opponents of the pipeline, owned 50% by Gazprom and 50% by some of the largest Western European companies, stop the project? They may be able to follow a complex legal route that could place formidable obstacles in the way of the pipeline. … [Read more...]
Understanding the UK’s capacity market
According to a new report from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR) the UK’s government capacity market is not working. With a consultation from the UK Department of Energy and Climage Change (DECC) just finished, Byron Orme, research fellow in energy, transport and climate policy at IPRR explains what the capacity market was supposed to achieve, where it has gone wrong and how it could be fixed. Courtesy of Carbon Brief. … [Read more...]
Wind and solar’s Achilles heel: what the methane meltdown at Porter Ranch means for the energy transition
Utitlity-scale wind and solar power are typically backed up on-site by gas peakers, or backed up indirectly by gas-fired power plants. These gas plants lead to significant greenhouse gas emissions in the form of methane. So at what point does a renewable-plus-gas combination become worse for the climate than coal-fired power? Mike Conley and Tim Maloney, long-time members of the Thorium Energy Alliance, have calculated what they call a “Worth-It … [Read more...]
Jeroen van der Veer, ex-CEO Shell, Chairman ING: “Moving away from fossil fuels presents great opportunities for oil companies”
“The energy transition presents great opportunities for oil and gas companies to develop new forms of energy and gradually move away from fossil fuels”, says Jeroen van der Veer, former CEO and Chairman of Shell in an exclusive interview for World Energy Focus, a monthly publication of the World Energy Council produced by Energy Post. But the former Shell boss rejects the idea that the oil companies are in danger of ending up with large “stranded … [Read more...]
The hypocrisy of French shale gas policy: France bans, imports and profits from shale
France has issued a radical ban on the exploitation of shale gas. Yet French companies ENGIE, in which the State has a large share, and EDF, which is 75% state-owned, will soon import and handsomely profit from shale gas imported from the United States, notes UK-based shale gas expert Nick Grealy. This is like banning sweatshops but importing cheap clothes made by child labour, says Grealy. … [Read more...]
Carbon capture for natural gas as the missing climate solution
Natural gas with carbon capture and storage could be an ideal long-term cheap and reliable low-carbon energy source, writes Albert Gilbert, cofounder of US-based energy research platform Spark Library. Compared to coal, using carbon capture for natural gas is both cheaper and cleaner. However, much more needs to be done to make commercial development of natural gas with CCS possible. … [Read more...]
The inexorable shift of the US power sector
The growth of renewable energy in the US is based on fundamental economic, environmental and security benefits that it provides, writes David Littell of the Regulatory Assistance Project. This is why the renewables train can’t be stopped anymore. … [Read more...]
How much can the next president influence the US energy system?
There have been dramatic changes in the U.S. energy system under our current president – a big drop in the use of coal, a boom in domestic oil and gas development from fracking, and the rapid spread of renewable energy. But in terms of influencing energy technology deployment, the next president will have a lot less influence than you might expect, writes Carey King, Research Scientist at the University of Texas. … [Read more...]
US shale oil: the day of reckoning will come
The financial state of the US shale oil industry is much worse than the still impressive production figures would lead us to believe, writes energy expert Jilles van den Beukel, a former geophysicist with Shell. Shale oil producers and investors have managed to postpone the day of reckoning, but the fundamentals of the industry make a shake-out inevitable. … [Read more...]
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