In Texas, income from electricity sales does not even cover the direct costs of coal power plants. But their hidden costs are much higher, explains Daniel Cohen of Rice University in Houston. Courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
Taxing carbon may sound like a good idea but does it work?
Exxon Mobil is financing lobbying for a US plan to tax oil, gas and coal companies for the carbon they emit. But do carbon taxes work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions? The evidence is underwhelming and support for the proposal is not down to altruism, says Paul Griffin of the University of California, Davis. In his view, what would impact climate change is for energy companies to disclose their carbon risks and footprints. … [Read more...]
Khashoggi and Skripal: wake-up calls for European energy policy
The apparent brutal murder of Jamal Khashoggi in Turkey by the Saudi Arabian regime and the equally brazen attempted murder of Sergei Skripal in England should serve as wake-up calls for European energy policymakers, writes Karel Beckman, editor-in-chief of Energy Post. These misdeeds demonstrate the aggressive nature of the Saudi and Russia regimes and underline the necessity for Europe to reduce its reliance on oil and gas much more rapidly … [Read more...]
Methane is a potent pollutant – let’s keep it out of the atmosphere
The US’s intended relaxation of rules for the oil and gas industry on methane emissions could to lead to more being released. Since the country’s fracking boom began, evidence of a significant increase of methane in the atmosphere has already been seen as far away as Switzerland. As well as impacting climate change, this policy change may increase pollution, and damage the health of both humans and crops, say Alastair Lewis and Lucy Carpenter. … [Read more...]
How do ambitious climate pledges impact economic growth?
At the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco, delegates from all over the world made ambitious commitments to tackle climate change. But how will their actions impact economic growth? Chris Busch of think-tank Energy Innovation compares manufacturing and employment data from climate leader California to laggard Texas and the US as a whole. His findings suggest that climate actions are affordable and even provide a boost to economies. … [Read more...]
Nuclear activist Shellenberger learns to love the bomb
For decades, the nuclear energy industry denied any connection between nuclear power and nuclear weapons. In recent years, however, writes Jim Green, nuclear campaigner with Friends of the Earth Australia, the industry has turned around and started openly acknowledging that there is a connection, hoping that this will secure political support. Prominent nuclear activist Michael Shellenberger has even gone a step further, notes Green: he welcomes … [Read more...]
An evening with ecomodernist Michael Shellenberger (or: a defence of nuclear power you have not heard before)
Pro-nuclear activist Michael Shellenberger, founder of the California-based global citizens movement Environmental Progress (“not paid by the nuclear industry”) was in Amsterdam recently, where he gave a very personal “Ecomodernist” defense of why nuclear power is good and how it should be supported. “It is about protecting the natural environment by concentrating human activity.” This article was first published on Energy Post Weekly. … [Read more...]
Exclusive – top energy influencer Jan Vrins, Navigant: “Europe not looking enough behind-the-meter”
Europe is focused too much on expanding renewable energy generation, and is threatening to miss out on the huge opportunities in the energy market that are emerging behind-the-meter, says top influencer Jan Vrins, Managing Director at the U.S.-based global consultancy Navigant, in an exclusive interview with Energy Post. According to Vrins, who is leading a practice of 600 energy experts, North America is forging ahead of Europe. “We are seeing a … [Read more...]
Trump’s grand strategy: a tripolar world order
Most commentators seem to believe that President Trump lacks a coherent vision on foreign policy, but energy expert and author Michael Klare disagrees. According to Klare, an examination of his speeches and actions shows that he is out to establish a tripolar world order, in which Russia, China and the U.S. control their respective spheres of influence. Article Courtesy Tom Dispatch. (Editor’s note: this article deals with broader geopolitical … [Read more...]
Economic slowdown poses higher risk to oil price than decarbonization and EVs
Most people seem to believe that oil prices will go down in the long run because of climate policies and the growth of electric cars. Friedbert PflĂĽger, Director of the European Centre for Energy and Resource Security (EUCERS), argues that this view is far too simplistic. The only constant in energy markets, he writes, is that they are cyclical – and we seem to be poised for a sharp downturn right now. … [Read more...]
US nuclear power is on the verge of collapse – and there are no solutions on the horizon
Nuclear power appears on the verge of collapse in the US. This has profound environmental implications, writes Ahmed Abdulla of the University of California, San Diego. Yet, he adds, there are no simple solutions – and no signs that the trend can be reversed. Courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
The US natural gas industry is leaking way more methane than previously thought
How big is the methane problem? A five-year research effort shows it’s much bigger than has been assumed so far, write Anthony J Marchese and Dan Zimmerle of Colorado State Universtiy. They add that if the problem is not tackled, the climate benefits of gas will largely evaporate. Technology is not the bottleneck, though – the government will have to adopt the right regulations. Courtesy The Conversation. … [Read more...]
Why US shale will crash and UK will fail: a history of shale oil & gas production in pictures & charts
With fracking about to recommence in the UK after 8 years, social entrepreneur and writer Jeremy Leggett reviews the short but troubled history of fracking in the U.S. In a devastating slide presentation, he pictures the shale gas industry as a dirty, multi-hundred-billion-dollar doomed-to-burst debt bubble. And he predicts a similar fiasco in the UK. Courtesy Future Today. … [Read more...]
Un-SAFE: Trump clean cars rollback could cost $450 billion, increase emissions 11%
Trump’s fuel economy standard rollback will be a disaster for the United States, write Jeffrey Rissman and Robbie Orvis of California-based think tank Energy Innovation. It will harm American consumers and the transport sector and sharply drive up emissions. The only winners will be oil companies. … [Read more...]
The risks of the Trump Administration’s whiplash policy on Iranian oil
As the Trump Administration prepares to re-impose nuclear-related sanctions on Iran following the president’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), its treatment of Iranian oil sales could dramatically impact both the United States’ Iran strategy and the global oil market, write David Mortlock and Ellen Wald of the Atlantic Council Global Energy Center. According to the authors, the … [Read more...]
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