The UK's energy security will increasingly depend on large scale offshore wind power, write Ian Broadbent and Peter Strachan. But while energy secretary Amber Rudd talked the sector up in a recent speech, she revealed feeble ambition. Worse, with its premature cutbacks on onshore wind, and its obsession with nuclear power, the government is undermining confidence among investors. … [Read more...]
The Chinese model: backing up climate policy with green growth
With the climate plan it has submitted to the United Nations, China demonstrates that it is prepared to back up its commitments to carbon reduction with real investments in green energy, writes John Mathews, Professor of Strategic Management at Macquarie University in Australia and author of a recent book on the Asian renewables revolution. It also shows it recognizes the authority of the UN - and provides a model for other developing countries … [Read more...]
EU electricity market redesign: a protean moment
The EU is on the verge of a full redesign of its electricity market. Market rules need to be updated to the reality of a much more decentralised system where renewables and the consumer are king. This is the essential next step in the European energy transition. It is an opportunity for policymakers to shape the future. What will they do? Based on leaked documents and conversations with Brussels insiders, Sonja van Renssen explains what choices … [Read more...]
Lignite in Europe: fighting back renewables
With an output of 350 million tonnes, four EU countries – Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, and Greece – account for over a third of the world’s lignite production. Renewable energies have cut into their profitability, but lignite producers are fighting back with increased deliveries and exports to third-party customers. In addition, they avoid CO2 penalties under the EU Emission Trading Scheme by  building plants below the 20 MW threshold. … [Read more...]
On the road: EU goes for efficient and electric, ponders biofuels
The European Commission’s strategy for decarbonising the road transport sector is finally taking shape: Brussels wants efficiency first, electrification second. But it doesn't know what to do about biofuels. “There is no appetite for [new] targets”, says Commission Director Marie Donnelly. Sonja van Renssen takes us on the bumpy road to a climate-friendly European transport sector. … [Read more...]
Unique: Dutch court orders government to do more against climate change
In a unique decision, the district court of The Hague has ordered the Dutch government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 25% in 2020 compared to 1990. Current ambitions of the Dutch government amount to a reduction of around 17%. The case was brought by Dutch NGO Urgenda and nine hundred co-plaintiffs. … [Read more...]
The grid will not be disrupted: why Tesla’s Powerwall won’t catalyze a solar revolution
When Tesla Motors debuted the Powerwall home storage battery at a glitzy launch at the end of April, the press and blogosphere hailed CEO Elon Musk as the inventor of the Holy Grail of renewable energy storage – and the nail in the coffin for the centralized grid. But does all the messianic talk of battery-powered “disruption” and solar triumphalism stack up? Hardly. For all their ballyhooed price reductions, Tesla batteries are still too … [Read more...]
Dimitri Pescia, Agora Energiewende: “No more baseload in 2030, no case for new nuclear in Europe”
There will be no more baseload power in Germany in 2030 and possibly not anywhere in Europe. There is no business case for new nuclear power in Europe. Renewables, not thermal power, should get capacity payments - and be responsible for balancing. These are some of the explosive messages from a new report from the influential German think tank Agora Energiewende, which represents government, industry and NGO's. In an exclusive interview with … [Read more...]
Brussels, don’t leave customer participation in the electricity market to the incumbents!
Consumer participation in the electricity market is essential to make the energy transition possible. However, writes Philip Baker of the Regulatory Assistance Project (RAP), a think-tank specializing in regulatory and market policy, incumbent suppliers cannot be relied upon to make this happen. Â Therefore, the European Commission needs to ensure that new players can enter the market. … [Read more...]
Danish offshore wind: it’s getting better all the time
Denmark continues to set the pace in driving down the cost of offshore wind. In its latest tender for 350 MW of near-shore wind farms the maximum price has again been reduced. Danish offshore wind now costs roughly half of what the new nuclear plant at Hinkley in the UK will cost. … [Read more...]
Good luck G7 leaders – we won’t be off fossil fuels by 2100
The most powerful leaders in the West used the G7 summit in Germany to make a big statement on the environment. Their stated goal is to cut carbon emissions by 40% to 70% by 2050 and then end all fossil-fuel use by 2100. They announced a US$100bn (ÂŁ65bn) fund by 2020 comprising public and private money to help smooth the transition. My response to David Cameron, Angela Merkel and the rest is pretty simple: good luck with that. … [Read more...]
Solar power passes 1% global threshold
Solar power now covers more than 1% of global electricity demand. In three countries in Europe – Italy, Germany and Greece - solar PV supplies more than 7% of electricity demand. This is reported by Solar Power Europe (previously EPIA – European Photovoltaic Industry Association). China is the fastest growing market. Research company GlobalData has adjusted projected new capacity in China for 2015 upwards. … [Read more...]
IEA sees “harsh reality” for gas industry
From a Golden Age of Gas to a “harsh reality” in just a few years - the 2015 “Gas medium-term market report“ released by the International Energy Agency (IEA) on 4 June in Paris sounded a warning note to anyone who believes gas is bound to conquer the world. That can still happen - but only if gas drastically improves its competitiveness, said the IEA. … [Read more...]
The West must do as the Chinese: build renewables systems for energy security and abundance
In the western world renewables are burdened by the idea that they are a moral imperative, essential to fight global warming, writes professor John Mathews. By contrast China is building renewables systems as an economic imperative. Unless Western countries follow the Chinese model and intervene in their economies to build green energy and resource systems, they will continue to be defeated by China. … [Read more...]
The mixed outlook for new nuclear power plants
Nuclear power has had a makeover. What was once seen as a futuristic source of limitless energy has been reframed as a response to global warming, an ideal solution for countries looking for a continuous source of low-carbon power. Nuclear advocates claim that nuclear power capacity is expanding, but according to Paul Dorfman, Honorary Senior Research Associate at the Energy Institute at University College London, in reality the global picture is … [Read more...]
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