Tag Archives: energy
The Global Outlook For Renewable Power In One Graph
By Share Print Energy produced from hydro, wind, solar, and other renewables sources is expected to exceed that from natural gas and double that from nuclear sources by 2016 – becoming the second most important energy source behind coal. Speaking at the 10 th Annual Renewable Energy Finance Forum in New York City last month, International Energy Agency (IEA) Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven said the global outlook for renewables is “robust”, with total renewable generation capacity expected to grow to nearly one-quarter of the global electricity generation capacity by 2018. Ms. van der Hoeven points to two main trends driving the renewables outlook: renewable deployment is expanding across the globe and renewables are becoming cost competitive versus fossil fuels in many circumstances. Led by investment and deployment in China, non-OECD countries are expected to account for two-thirds of the global increase in renewable power generation between now and 2018. This rapid deployment is “mainly driven by fast‐rising electricity demand, energy diversification needs, and local pollution concerns, while contributing to climate change mitigation”, according to Ms. van der Hoeven. China is expected to account for 40 percent of the global growth in renewable power capacity between 2012 and 2018. Although a large portion of China’s renewable portfolio is hydro and onshore wind, the country could have the largest deployment of solar PV systems if financial incentives and a stronger policy push are made. In addition to China, there is significant renewable deployment in Brazil, India, South Africa, and the Middle East. The IEA expects this growth to more than compensate for slower growth in Europe and the United States. COE) for onshore wind is competitive or close to competitive versus new coal or gas-fired plants in Australia, where wind is competitive versus the generation costs of new coal- and gas-fired plants with carbon pricing, and the best wind sites can compete without carbon pricing. In Turkey and New Zealand, onshore wind has been competing well in the wholesale electricity market for several years. Despite the healthy growth prospects, renewable energy deployment is becoming more complex and needs policy certainty to be successful. “To get investment at favourable rates, risks must be reduced and shared. Even for less deployed technologies such as concentrated solar power and offshore wind, technology risk is no longer seen as the main barrier to investment”, Ms. van der Hoeven explained. “The main challenge, the public enemy #1 for investors and the most important barrier to renewable energy deployment is policy uncertainty.” Countries such as Spain , Czech Republic , and Bulgaria have adopted retroactive policy changes that shake investor confidence. In the United States, uncertainty over Production Tax Credits at the end of 2012 provided little confidence for the renewable industry and investors. Reducing incentives for renewable projects is a legitimate policy action as long as the reductions “reflect cost reductions of technologies to maximize benefits to customers and tax-payers.” The IEA Medium-term Renewable Energy Market Report Executive Summary can be found here . Related reading: U.S. energy transitions in one graph Graph: IEA Continue reading
Second Gen Biofuels Most Efficient Use Of EU Bioenergy
July 10, 2013 | By Barbara Vergetis Lundin Bioenergy should be produced in line with EU objectives to use resources more efficiently, according to the European Environment Agency (EEA), including reducing the land and other resources needed to produce each unit of bioenergy and avoiding environmental harm from bioenergy production, extracting more energy from the same material input, and avoiding negative environmental effects potentially caused by bioenergy production. In 2010, bioenergy comprised approximately 7.5 percent of energy used in the EU and is expected to rise to around 10 percent by 2020, according to EU Member States’ National Renewable Energy Plans. According to the EEA analysis, the most efficient energy use of biomass is for heating and electricity as well as advanced biofuels or second generation biofuels. The research shows that the current energy crop mix is not good for the environment and recommends a broader mix of crops to reduce environmental impacts, including perennial crops which are not harvested annually like energy grasses or short rotation willow plantations to enhance ecosystem services such as flood prevention and water filtration. Bioenergy is often considered carbon neutral, as the carbon dioxide released in combustion is assumed to be compensated by the CO 2 absorbed during plant growth. However, the research shows that indirect land use change can negate any greenhouse gas savings from biofuel production based on energy crops due to the displacement of crop production onto previously unused land, which can lead to the conversion of forests and savannah to agriculture ultimately harming biodiversity and increasing greenhouse gas emissions. “Bioenergy is an important component of our renewable energy mix, helping to ensure a stable energy supply. But this study highlights the fact that forest biomass and productive land are limited resources, and part of Europe’s ‘natural capital,'” Hans Bruyninckx, EEA executive director, said. “So it is essential that we consider how we can use existing resources efficiently before we impose additional demands on land for energy production.” For more: – download the report Read more: Second gen biofuels most efficient use of EU bioenergy – FierceEnergy http://www.fierceene…0#ixzz2YfQfXVKy Subscribe at FierceEnergy Continue reading
BP, Shell Biofuel Investments Hit Seven-Year Low
July 9, 2013 Big oil companies in Europe including BP and Royal Dutch Shell have cut back on biofuel research , which will slow efforts to find a sustainable alternative to gasoline that does not involve food-based supply, Fuel Fix reports. BP and Shell have stopped funding four different projects because they say the technology to generate fuel from woody plants and waste will not be economically viable until 2020 or later. This funding cut brought biofuel investments from a high of $7.6 billion in the last quarter of 2007 to a low of $57 million for the first quarter of this year — the lowest it has been since 2006. Such reductions will make it unlikely that the US and the EU will meet their targets to wean people off of gasoline any time soon, Fuel Fix says. The International Energy Agency says biofuels must supply 27 percent of the fuel for vehicles by 2050 so the US and EU can meet climate change targets. So far, most of the 1.9 million barrels of biofuel produced daily comes from corn or sugar, which in turn has pushed corn prices up and led to food-versus-fuel worries that this will take away food supplies from the poor. Research into next-generation biofuels may open up opportunities to tap non-food sources like jatropha, switch grass and corn stalks, and waste sources like paper. But BP and Shell, both considered among the most open to alternative fuels, scuttled their programs because they found their technologies could not be scaled up to commercial production levels in an economical manner. However, BP says it will continue to work with DuPont on biobutanol and has jointly opened a $520 million wheat-to-ethanol plant in the UK. In a parallel situation in the US, Exxon and Chevron have also cut back on biofuel spending . Chevron explored 100 feedstocks for viability before it shelved plans, while Exxon invested $100 million on algae but could not find a commercially viable solution, Fuel Fix reports. Global biofuels output last year fell for the first time since 2000 due to weakness in the US, BP reported last month. In May, the EPA proposed changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard program that include new renewable fuel pathways aimed at enhancing the ability of the biofuels industry to supply advanced biofuels, including cellulosic biofuels, to the market. Cellulosic biofuels will likely remain well below targets set by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 , according to a February statement by the US Energy Information Administration. Continue reading
