At the COP28 climate summit in Dubai in 2023, nearly 200 countries committed to tripling global renewable energy capacity – measured as the maximum generating capacity of sources like wind, solar and hydro – by 2030, in an effort to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius.

According to figures published on Thursday by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), renewables are the fastest-growing source of power worldwide, with new global renewable capacity in 2023 representing a record 14% increase from 2022.

But IRENA’s analysis found that even if renewables continue to be deployed at the current rate over the next seven years, the world will fall 13.5% short of the target to triple renewables to 11.2 terawatts.

A higher annual growth rate of at least 16.4% is required to reach the 2030 goal, IRENA said.

Renewable electricity generation by energy source

Chart courtesy of IRENA

IRENA Director-General Francesco La Camera warned against complacency. “Renewables must grow at higher speed and scale,” he said in a statement, calling for concrete policy action and a massive mobilisation of finance.

The United Arab Emirates’ COP28 President Sultan Al-Jaber called the report “a wake-up call for the entire world” and urged countries to add strong national energy targets to their updated national climate action plans (NDCs) due by early next year.

Geographical disparities

Bruce Douglas, CEO of the Global Renewables Alliance, a coalition of private-sector organisations working on renewable technologies, highlighted imbalances in the global picture of record renewables deployment.

“We shouldn’t be celebrating,” he said. “This growth is nowhere near enough and it’s not in the right places.

Africa saw only incremental growth of 3.5% in new renewables capacity last year compared with around 9% growth in Asia and North America, and 12% growth in South America.

And despite those higher increases in Asia and South America, data released last month by international policy group REN21 shows that less than 18% of renewables capacity added in 2023 was in Asia (excluding China), South America, Africa and the Middle East, despite these regions collectively representing nearly two-thirds of the global population.

A simmering conflict over one of Latin America’s biggest wind hubs confronts Mexico’s next president

Slow growth in Africa is failing to live up to the huge potential for renewables on the continent, whose leaders last year pledged to scale up renewables more than five-fold by 2030, to 300 gigawatts.

“The justice piece is huge and too often overlooked,” Douglas said, adding that finance is “by far” the biggest challenge to getting renewables off the ground in the Global South.

Africa, for example, has received less than 2% of global investments in renewable energy over the past twenty years, according to IRENA.

“That’s not acceptable in terms of an equitable transition,” Douglas said, noting that when countries miss out on renewables financing, they are also missing out on the development benefits, jobs creation and improved access to affordable energy that clean energy can bring.

Finance not flowing

The scarcity of financing for renewables in developing countries is in large part due to investors being put off by the high borrowing costs and risk profiles of many such markets, Douglas said.

William Brent, chief marketing officer at Husk Power Systems, which installs and runs solar micro-grids in rural communities in Nigeria and Tanzania, explained: “Most sources of big capital in the West seem largely uninterested in Africa.”

“Despite being home to some of the fastest growing economies in the world, Africa is perceived as having a much higher risk profile and returns that cannot match the Americas, Asia or Europe,” Brent said.

New South African government fuels optimism for faster energy transition

Sonia Dunlop, CEO of the Global Solar Council, a body that represents the solar industry, told Climate Home that financial incentives provided by the public sector could help de-risk renewables projects for private investors.

“We need to get MDBs (multilateral development banks) leaning into big renewables projects and taking on some of the risk, which can then attract private finance,” she said, adding that governments in all countries must also play their part in creating policy environments that support and incentivise investment.

Grids and permitting barriers

Grids and permitting for renewables projects also pose major practical challenges, particularly in developed countries.

According to REN21, the potential renewable capacity that is ‘stuck’ waiting to be connected to grids around the world is equivalent to three times the amount of wind and solar power installed in 2023.

For Dunlop, the solution to grid congestion is more storage – batteries for short-term storage and other technologies for longer-term storage, such as storing electricity as heat or pumping water uphill that can then be released to produce hydroelectricity.

Beyond lithium: how a Swedish battery company wants to power Europe’s green transition with salt

Complex planning processes can also mean it takes longer to get planning permission for projects, such as wind farms, than it does to build them – if they even get approval at all.

For Douglas, something as simple as hiring more staff to process project applications in grid and planning authorities could begin to unlock thousands of gigawatts of renewable power.

Energy efficiency overlooked

Although renewables are growing faster than any other energy source, companies and governments are boosting investments in fossil fuels at the same time.

The use of fossil fuels for electricity generation continues to grow, while renewables only provide 6.3% of the energy required for heat, which is mainly used in buildings and industrial operations.

Electricity generation by energy source

Chart courtesy of IRENA

“We are not moving fast enough to fully meet the staggering rise in energy demand, let alone replace existing fossil fuels,” said REN21 Executive Director Rana Adib in a statement on the group’s recent statistics.

Another – neglected – solution is energy efficiency, experts said. The Global Renewables Alliance is running a ‘double down, triple up’ campaign, which calls on countries not only to triple renewables by 2030, but also to double the rate of improvement in energy efficiency, to reduce emissions and help stem energy demand – another goal countries signed up to at COP28.

“We absolutely need that doubling of energy efficiency as well,” said Dunlop. “That isn’t discussed enough.”

(Reporting by Daisy Clague; editing by Megan Rowling)

The post Global goal of tripling renewables by 2030 still out of reach, says IRENA  appeared first on Climate Home News.

Up to 400 giant wind turbines are due to be built off the northeast coast of the UK in what will be the world’s largest offshore wind development.

Output from the Dogger Bank project will be 1.2 Gigawatts – enough to power more than a million homes.

Next year, a 150-turbine wind farm off the coast of the Netherlands is due to start operating, and other schemes along the Dutch coast are in the works.

Denmark, Sweden and Portugal are major investors in offshore wind, and China has ambitious plans for the sector.

Wind farms – both onshore and offshore – are seen as a key ingredient in renewable energy policy, and an important element in the battle against climate change.

Weekly briefing: Sign up for your essential climate politics update

WindEurope, an offshore wind industry group, says that at the present rate of installations it’s likely Europe will be producing about seven per cent of its electricity from offshore wind by 2030.

By some calculations, all this building work would seem to make little economic sense. Fossil fuel prices are low on the world market, and constructing offshore wind farms several kilometres out at sea, in often treacherous conditions, has traditionally been an expensive business.

Despite this, the offshore wind industry insists it has a bright future: costs are coming down, and supporters say the sector is becoming ever more competitive.

Ironically, the slump in the price of oil has been one factor driving down the price of offshore power.

Inactivity in the oil industry and the closure of many drilling projects in the North Sea and elsewhere has led to a big surplus of offshore installation vessels. As a result, costs for transporting turbines out to sea and other support work have dropped substantially.

Report: Offshore wind costs hit record low

Costs have also dropped due to lower prices on the world market for steel, a major building component in offshore installations.

Building and technical techniques have been refined and standardised over the years. Maintenance expenditure – which can account for up to 40 per cent of the running cost of an offshore installation – has been reduced.

The industry now uses larger 6MW turbines, which it says need less servicing, and in future it’s likely a move will be made to 8MW models.

New methods have been adopted for laying foundations for pylons at sea. The industry says that as projects have grown in size, economies of scale have been achieved.

The cost of cables connecting the wind pylons to power networks onshore has also been reduced. Initially, cables were produced to operate at full capacity at all times, but new cables that are less bulky and less expensive are able to cope with the intermittent power produced.

Report: 10 EU countries ink offshore wind power agreement

Earlier this month, DONG Energy of Denmark, the world’s largest offshore wind company, won a bid to build two wind farms 22 kilometres off the Dutch coast.

The company says power will be produced for less than any other offshore scheme to date. It is estimated that when the scheme is fully operational, electricity will cost €72.70 per megawatt hour (MWh) and €87 MWh when transmission costs are included.

At present, the cheapest offshore power is €103 MWh, generated by a wind farm off the coast of Denmark.

“It has been clear for some time that the costs of offshore wind are falling rapidly,” says Giles Dickson, head of WindEurope.

“This tender goes beyond even the most optimistic expectations in the market. The €87/MWh is significantly lower than anything we’ve previously seen. It now puts offshore wind in the same cost range as conventional power generation.”

Offshore wind farms quashed due to concern over bird deaths https://t.co/apfQRpqmLI. Cats are the real bird killers: pic.twitter.com/0GT9382Of4

— Richard Howard (@UKenergywonk) July 19, 2016

The offshore industry does face problems. The majority of big projects in Europe – the main area of offshore wind activity – are backed by considerable government support.

Not only do governments put considerable funds into offshore schemes, they also offer developers prices for power that are often well above wholesale market rates.

Political change might result in reductions in state support levels. For example,the UK’s vote to leave the European Union has led to considerable uncertaintyabout government policy on wind and other renewable energy schemes.

Offshore wind faces competition not just from fossil fuel power production but also from other renewables − particularly solar power, which has seen dramatic cost reductions in recent years.

Although there is also competition from onshore power generation, which is considerably cheaper than offshore wind, many countries favour the offshore option because of its lower visual impact.

This article was produced by the Climate News Network

The post Offshore wind sees EU building boom appeared first on Climate Home News.

(Pic: Google)

By Gerard Wynn

US wind installations are performing even worse than a very poor 2013, while coal power generation and carbon emissions rise, show new data.

US carbon emissions are on course for a second successive annual rise in 2014.

Coal-fired power generation is rising on the back of higher gas prices, and as utilities run ageing coal plants into the ground, show the latest energy data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA).

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) earlier this month proposed the first ever US national cap on power sector emissions.

The EPA will cap the sector’s emissions at 30% below 2005 levels in 2030.

Because emissions have already fallen substantially over the past decade, the target is equivalent only to an 18% cut compared with last year’s levels.

While that is less significant, the latest data suggest that it may still force a big change, compared with presently rising emissions.

The EPA carbon cap may also counter a sharp slowdown in wind power installations, and boost solar.

Gas price

Growth in US coal-fired power generation is comfortably outstripping a rise in renewables.

US coal generation from January to May rose by 43 terawatt hours compared with the same period last year, show the EIA data.

That is more than four times the corresponding rise in wind and solar power generation.

Gas-fired power fell by a little over 10 TWh, show the data, published on Monday.

The rise in coal has nothing to do with new generating capacity.

Data from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission show that new US coal installations are falling year on year, after the EPA ruled that any new coal-fired power plants should install expensive carbon capture and storage equipment.

The United States installed some 4.8 gigawatts of new coal-fired power in 2012, falling to 1.5 GW last year, and has not installed any in the first five months of this year, the FERC data show.

Coal-fired power generation is rising because of rising wholesale gas prices.

EIA data show that electric utilities paid an average 10% more per unit of natural gas in April this year compared with the same month last year. Coal costs rose just 1%.

Wind market

The FERC data make depressing reading for the wind industry.

The industry continues to slow this year, compared with last year, the worst year for new installed wind capacity in the United States since 2004.

That puts the industry on course for its worse year in 10 years

In January to May, the United States added just 678 megawatts of wind capacity, compared with 962 MW for the same period last year, show FERC data published on Friday.

The reason for the slowdown is the failure so far of the United States to renew a tax credit which makes wind power competitive compared with coal and natural gas.

There is a large pipeline of planned wind projects, which qualified for a now expired tax credit by starting some minimal construction last year.

It is unclear when or whether those projects will be completed, however. The latest data suggest they some may stay on the drawing board.

The post US wind headed for dismal year as carbon emissions rise appeared first on Climate Home News.

By Gerard Wynn

Mexico gas-fired power generation will  surge in the wake of a projected doubling in US pipeline imports, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said last Thursday.

The shift to natural gas would cut dependence on more polluting fossil fuels including coal and oil, but may also undermine emerging wind power growth in the south and west of the country.

The US shale gas revolution has already slowed growth in the country’s domestic wind power sector, by cutting wholesale power prices and market incentives for the renewable power source.

“Nearly three-quarters of the projected growth in Mexico’s natural gas consumption between 2012 and 2027 is projected to occur in the electric power sector,” said the U.S. government energy research service, quoting data from Mexico’s national energy ministry, SENER.

“The growth comes largely from new combined-cycle plants, which benefit from greater operational efficiencies and lower emission levels compared to other generation sources.”

In all, Mexican natural gas consumption in the power sector would increase to 6.1 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2027, compared with 2.7 Bcf/d in 2012, according to the Mexican projections.

US natural gas producers would be major beneficiaries, with pipeline exports projected to more than double to Mexico in the next five years.

That would follow a doubling between 2009 and 2013, according to SENER.

“SENER projects that US pipeline exports to Mexico will reach 3.8 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2018. This would be more than double U.S. pipeline exports to Mexico in 2013, which averaged 1.8 Bcf/d,” the EIA said.

Wind

Mexican power generation is presently dominated by fossil fuels, where natural gas has recently surpassed fuel oil and coal as the number one power source.

“Power plants using fossil fuels comprise the overwhelming majority of Mexico’s electricity generation. In the past, petroleum products were the leading fuels in Mexico’s electric generation mix. However, natural gas consumed for electricity generation has risen significantly in recent years, a shift that has been a leading driver of Mexico’s rising natural gas consumption,” said the EIA.

Non-hydro renewables are dominated by geothermal power, and supply only 3% of the country’s electricity.

“The most significant source is currently geothermal, including the 645-MW Cerro Pietro plant in Baja California, followed by biomass and waste combusted in fossil-fueled power plants. At present, there is relatively little wind and solar generation in Mexico.”

The country has strong wind resources in the west, in Baja California where there are plans for a transmission line to allow modest wind power exports to the United States.

“Sempra International is developing the Energía Sierra Juarez (ESJ) wind farm. The electricity from this farm will be exported to the United States on a new transmission line. The 156-MW first phase of ESJ will be completed in 2014. ESJ’s longterm development plan includes additional phases, with a potential total capacity of over 1.2 GW.”

There are also strong resources in the south of the country, in the Isthmus of Tehuantepec in Oaxaca, where the EIA noted several projects were due to come on line by early 2015 with several hundred megawatts of wind power capacity.

The post US – Mexico gas exports to double in next five years says EIA appeared first on Climate Home News.

Pic: slworking2/Flickr

By Sophie Yeo

A €3 billion deal for a Dutch offshore wind farm project will boost the renewables industry in Europe and provide clean energy to 1.5 million people.

The Gemini project, which will be built in the Dutch North Sea, signed a deal with a consortium led by Siemens. The German company will deliver 150 wind turbines to the park, which will have a total capacity of 600 megawatts.

The amount of energy that the park will provide is equivalent to reducing emissions of CO2 by 1.25 million tons per year, said Siemens.

“With the project we are entering one of the most important emerging offshore wind markets in Europe,” said Markus Tacke, CEO of the Wind Power Division of Siemens Energy.

The Consortium is led by Canadian firm Northland Power, 20% by Siemen’s Financial Services arm, and 10% by Dutch firm Van Oord. The final 10% is owned by a joint venture of 48 Dutch municipalities and six water regulatory authorities. Siemens said that this makes Gemini the largest-ever project-financed offshore wind farm.

The project will help the Netherlands to hit its target of generating 14% of its energy from renewables by 2020. Currently, the country has 2.7 gigawatts of wind power online, which it hopes to raise to 4.45GW by 20203.

John Brace, CEO of Northland, said: As the global leader in offshore wind turbine supply with more than 20 years of experience, the involvement of Siemens contributes to the solid structure of the project and will help us to deliver a high quality facility that will help to fulfill the Netherlands’ renewable energy targets.”

The post EU wind sector boosted by €3bn Dutch offshore investment appeared first on Climate Home News.

Owenreagh Wind Farm in Northern Ireland (Source: Flickr/Bart Busschots)

By Sophie Yeo

Ireland could boost its economy by almost €500 million per year by harnessing wind energy to reach its 2020 renewable energy goals.

This is the finding of a report, released yesterday by the Irish Wind Energy Association, which assesses the impacts of using wind energy to generate 40% of the island’s electricity by 2020.

Using wind energy to hit this target could generate €3.5 billion of direct investment into the Irish economy, support 22,510 new jobs, and save €700 million a year in fossil fuel imports – all while driving down the country’s emissions.

“Unlike our fossil fuel imports to which we are so heavily reliant on with no environmental benefit and at a huge cost to the state, the positive impact of Irish wind energy must continue to be appreciated at a national and local level by consumers, communities, businesses and the State in Ireland,” said Kenneth Matthews, head of the IWEA.

UK links

Irish wind could also provide a potential new source of renewable energy to Britain, says the report.

While construction of another 2,600MW will be required for Ireland to meet its own 2020 target, there are sufficient wind resources on the island as a whole to more than double this capacity, allowing it to export across the sea.

This could enable the UK to achieve its own target of 15% of total energy consumption from renewable sources by 2020 and lead to a more “cost effective delivery” of the EU’s 2020 climate goals.

The report, compiled by engineering consultants Poyry and economic modelling consultants Cambridge Econometrics, makes a strong case for Ireland to lean more towards renewable wind energy as a means to reduce its reliance on imported fossil fuels.

Ireland is the fourth most energy dependent state in the EU, importing 85% of its energy. The security of its gas supply is a particular headache for the country, as 93% comes from a single transit point in Scotland.

A failure to employ new wind capacity after this year could lead to oil and gas exports rising from €900m in 2013 to €1500m in 2030.

Matthews added: “To fully deliver on these benefits, it is now essential to maintain momentum and remain focused on achieving our 2020 renewable energy targets with a view to continuing to grow the sector beyond 2020 for the benefit of all our communities.”

The post Wind energy could boost Ireland’s economy by €500m a year – report appeared first on Climate Home News.

(Pic: Ethiopian Electric Power Corporation)

By Nilima Choudhury 

Ethiopia has opened Africa’s largest wind farm, just over 775 km from the capital Addis Ababa.

Costing €210 million, the Ashegoda Wind farm took four years to complete and will generate 120MW, enough to supply energy for over 100,000 homes.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said the wind farm was vital to maintain the country’s development.

“Various studies have proved that there is potential to harness abundant wind energy resources in every region of Ethiopia. We cannot maintain growth without utilising the energy sector,” he said.

Ethiopia is pushing its renewable energy sector to make use of the 20,000 square kilometres suitable for wind electricity generation.

Steve Sawyer, secretary general of industry association the Global Wind Energy Council said: “Ethiopia has a very aggressive electricity market development plan which involves potentially very large quantity of wind, as much as 7000MW by 2030.”

Market

With African economies becoming more stable and therefore more attractive to foreign investment, this farm could open up doors to further projects.

Sawyer said the African wind energy market has seen “enormous growth”.

“I think there’s certainly an opportunity for wind to play a major role in the power sector in that whole area from Cape Town to Addis Ababa and beyond up in the east if political situations calm down in places like Djibouti and Eritrea and most importantly Egypt.”

Growing economies and stable governments always help to grow a young industry.

Last week, Ethiopia signed a preliminary agreement with a US-Icelandic firm for a $4 billion private sector investment intended to tap its vast geothermal power resources and produce 1,000MW from steam.

Sawyer said: “Quietly, the economies in Ethiopia, Kenya and Tanzania have been growing 5-8% for the last six to eight years.

“We’ve had peaceful transitional governments in Ethiopia and the latest transition in Kenya didn’t spark a civil war. Tanzania seems to be politically stable and so there’s a lot of people interested in investing in that part of that world.

“In Ethiopia there’s lots of hydro potential and wind and hydro are very complimentary. And they’re both very low priced and competitive.”

Ethiopia’s hydropower potential has been estimated to be around 45,000MW and geothermal at 5,000MW, while its wind power potential is believed to be Africa’s third-largest behind Egypt and Morocco.

The post Ethiopia introduces Africa’s largest wind farm appeared first on Climate Home News.

The Greater Gabbard is located off the coast of Suffolk. (Source: DECC)

The second largest offshore wind farm in the world, costing £1.3 billion (US$2 billion) opened today 23km off the coast of Suffolk.

The 504MW Greater Gabbard installation with 140 turbines is capable of generating enough clean electricity to power over half a million homes, more than the domestic electricity demand of Suffolk.

The developers, SSE renewables and RWE npower renewables are already planning doubling capacity by 2017 having received Development Consent in May.

“Greater Gabbard has already brought jobs and wider benefit to the local community, with hundreds of people employed on site, and a £150,000 fund created to support local initiatives, which will be managed by Suffolk Community Foundation”, said energy and business minister Michael Fallon.

Last month the UK celebrated its largest offshore wind farm off the Kent coast.

It plans to break this record with a 1,200MW project unveiled recently by energy chief Ed Davey.

The government set out its Offshore Wind Industrial Strategy, published last week.

This includes £20 million from the Regional Growth Fund to improve the UK wind industry’s supply chain, and £46 million to join up innovation between industry, Government and academia and help companies to bring new products to market.

Offshore wind has the potential to provide enough clean power for 11 million homes in the UK by the end of this decade, creating 30,000 jobs and contributing £7 billion to the economy.

The government has set a target of 16GW of offshore wind power capacity by 2020, and John Lang, from trade association RenewableUK says this is a realistic objective provided the government continues to support the development of wind in the UK.

“With regards to hitting our targets we are still confident we can reach 16-18GW of offshore wind by 2020, but for this to happen investors need to have confidence that there will be a positive policy framework in the UK, which will help convince them that this country is the best place to invest.”

RenewableUK data indicates the UK has 21 operational offshore wind farms with an installed capacity of 3,653MW – enough to supply nearly two and a half million British homes with clean electricity.

The post UK opens world’s second largest offshore wind farm appeared first on Climate Home News.

Google recently bought flying wind turbine manufacturer Makani, whose planes fly between 800 and 1,950 feet (Pic: Makani)

By Sophie Yeo

A new generation of flying wind turbines will enable wind power to be harnessed more cheaply and efficiently, say researchers into the technology.

Airborne wind turbines can access the enormous volume of wind that is beyond the reach of traditional turbines, while cutting out the need for the huge structures and foundations that can make the current model expensive and difficult to transport.

While no single design which has dominated the nascent airborne turbine scene, the most efficient swoop quickly through the air, like a kite or a glider, and are tethered to the ground using a long cable.

These, known as crosswind models, can reach a much higher altitude than the heavy structures of a traditional turbine will allow. Airborne wind turbines have already been developed to operate at 600m, compared to the average 120m of a standard turbine.

Swooping machines and high altitudes means access to faster winds, which has a dramatic effect on the power output of the turbines.

“The faster this device goes through the wind, the power will increase with the cube of that speed, so there really is a real benefit to going faster,” explains Oliver Woodford, an engineer at Toshiba Research Europe Limited, presenting the latest research to an audience at Bath University.

The untapped wind resources that this opens up are enormous. According to a paper published in Nature last year, wind turbines placed on the earth’s surface can only extract energy at a rate of 400TW, while high altitude wind power can provide at least 1800TW.

Extracting energy at this level would have a profound impact on the climate, but harnessing the 18TW of power globally in demand each year is unlikely to have any substantial side effects. Geophysically speaking, there is nothing to suggest that these devices cannot be rolled out on a grand scale.

Richard Ruiterkamp, the founder of Ampyx, a company who is currently developing the PowerPlane® airborne turbine, says, “As a development team, we consider this to be a likely candidate to diversify energy sources.”

Design

Even within the crosswind models, there are different ideas on how best to harness the kinetic energy of the wind to generate electricity.

Lift-based systems generate power by reeling the turbine in and out on its tether, passing it into a generator at ground level. The PowerPlane® is an example of this type of technology, which Ruiterkamp hopes will be on the market by the end of 2015.

With drag-based systems, such as the one being developed by Makani, a Californian start up company recently acquired by Google, power is captured through a series of small turbines installed on the larger rigid wing, and passed through the tether to the ground.

The notion of having lots of smaller turbines was adopted on the basis that most of the power generation happens in the tips of the blades, where the velocity is fastest.

Woodford says, “If you get rid of all the structure and just have the tip of the turbine blade, you save a lot of unwanted structure.”

Reducing this structure means that wind becomes a more viable option for future power generation, since, not only does it lower the cost and carbon footprint of construction, but it also makes it easier to transport over land to areas that the typical cumbersome turbine would not be able to reach.

There are also more opportunities to construct them out at sea, since all they require is a buoyant platform moored to the sea bed. One developer, SkySails, has suggested that depths up to 700m should be possible.

Although, like a typical turbine, the wind will have to reach a minimum speed before they can be put to use, the power supply of an airborne turbine will be more reliable because of its ability to harness higher density wind areas.

“Because you’re going higher, more often that wind speed will be met,” explains Woodford. “They are going to be more frequently operational, so you’re going to have more consistent power supply.”

Problems

There are still issues to be ironed out before these come onto the market. Each model has certain drawbacks, such as problems with control or durability, but largely these wrinkles concern the economics and regulatory limitations of their production.

With the machines flying at such a height, there will be issues of airspace that need to be resolved, and they will need to be certified to ensure they meet the standards of air safety.

Ruiterkamp says, “For a new technology, there are quite substantial entry barriers in the energy market. We think our first installations will be funded and owned by Ampyx Power itself.

“If you are contemplating putting these machines on the ground, you will have to finance it yourself. We can’t insure the machine or guarantee the output power or cost.”

Stephan Wrage, the managing director of SkySails, said that the company has “already has invested approximately €50m in the kite technology. Nevertheless, significant amounts (€15m and more) are necessary to further develop the technology for power production in the megawatt-scale.”

Google’s recent decision to purchase Makani suggests that investment in the industry could be more forthcoming in the future, as well as helping to put this kind of technology on the map. Lack of awareness about this new generation of turbine technology, says Woodford, is another hindrance to its development.

He says, “If this is to take off, it needs a lot more investment. It needs lot more people to know about it and more people convinced of its benefits.”

The post Flying wind turbines could cut costs and boost power generation appeared first on Climate Home News.

Based off the Kent coast, the London Array boasts 175 turbines which have a total capacity of 630MW – enough to power nearly half a million homes a year.

The first £1.8 billion phase was funded by DONG Energy, E.ON and Abu Dhabi based clean energy investors Masdar.

“This is a great day for Britain and a big win for renewable energy,” the Prime Minister said at the inauguration.

“London Array shows you can build large scale renewable energy projects right here in Britain. This is because when it comes to clean energy, the UK has one of the clearest investment climates globally.”

Energy and Climate Minister Greg Barker joined David Cameron at the official opening of the London Array (Pic: Twitter/Greg Barker)

Located 20km off the coast, the windfarm has been in operation since April. A possible second phase could add enough capacity to bring the total to 870MW.

The presence of the Prime Minister at the opening has been welcomed by many UK clean energy supporters, who have accused Cameron of shying away from green issues.

Really good to see @David_Cameron opening London Array. A return to green leadership? http://t.co/p8pcH8nxJC

— James Murray (@James_BG) July 4, 2013

Green groups also gave a cautious welcome to the launch, while arguing that the wind and solar sectors need more policy certainty to thrive.

“The London Array shows what the UK can potentially achieve with renewable energy. We’re now world leaders in an industry that some wrongly dismissed in the past as a nice-to-have,” said Greenpeace executive director John Sauven.

“But if offshore wind is to continue to provide jobs and economic growth for the UK and reach price parity with nuclear by the 2020s, David Cameron needs to do more than ribbon-cut.

“He needs to give the sector long-term certainty by agreeing to cut carbon completely from our electricity sector.”

The post World’s largest offshore windfarm officially opens in UK appeared first on Climate Home News.

A Tunisian wind energy startup says it is in talks with a number of major industrial players as it looks to move its bladeless wind towers to a commercial scale.

Saphon Energy’s sail inspired towers wobble in the wind, with pistons converting kinetic energy to electricity. It says that by removing blades and gearboxes it can “comfortably” reduce the cost of wind energy by 25%.

Empirical tests it has conducted suggest bladeless wind devices could be 2.3 to 2.5 times more efficient than three-blade turbines, capturing about 60-70% of the wind’s kinetic energy.

“We are in advanced discussions with a couple of companies,” CEO and co-founder Hassine Labaied told RTCC. “We have been overwhelmed with interest from investors and industrial firms. The plan is to remain flexible and consider all the proposals.

“We want to find the right partner so we can take the technology to the next level. The dream is to create a new industry here in Tunisia, to build a logistics and manufacturing centre.”

The Saphon device wobbles in a 3D knot shape generating electricity via pistons at the same time (Source: Saphon)

The absence of rotating blades and a gearbox makes the technology possible at any scale says Labaied. The bladeless technology also means less noise, no risk to birdlife and easier installation.

By using the same power-producing pistons to store hydraulic pressure instead of generating electricity, the towers can store energy without needing a battery. The built-up pressure can be released slowly when the wind is not blowing to even-out the supply of power.

As well as hoping to enter the towers into the global utility market, Labaied also sees an opportunity for the company to contribute to energy access in Africa. He believes the lower maintenance towers could help provide energy where there is no grid power available.

Garage

The technology was invented by Saphon’s other co-founder Anis Aouini and Lapaied explains what prompted them to start the company from Aouini’s garage.

“Anis and I have been best friends since we were 15. We always shared the dream of one day working on something that was unconventional. He left his engineering job in the oil and gas industry and I left my banking job in Dubai to start out on this venture,” he said.

“We tend to forget how many innovations have started out in people’s garages,” he points out.

With much of the scepticism about the duo’s device melting away, Lapaied is setting his sights on bigger challenges.

“There is a dilemma with growing energy demand, climate change and the need to shift to renewables. For some people this is a choice between affordable polluting energy or expensive clean energy. One day something could come along to provide affordable green energy.

“It sounds too good to be true we hope and we can get ourselves in a position to do that.”

The post Is wind energy’s future bladeless? appeared first on Climate Home News.

Critics of renewables have always claimed that sun and wind are only intermittent producers of electricity and need fossil fuel plants as back-up to make them viable. But German engineers have proved this is not so.

By skilfully combining the output of a number of solar, wind and biogas plants the grid can be provided with stable energy 24 hours a day without fear of blackouts, according to the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy and Energy System Technology (IWES) in Kassel.

For Germany, which has turned its back on nuclear power and is investing heavily in all forms of renewables to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions, this is an important breakthrough.

Germany is developing its renewable energy resources. Siemens has produced the world’s largest wind turbine (pictured) which has a 154m diameter (Source: Siemens)

The country has a demanding industrial sector that needs a large and stable electricity supply, and some doubted that this could be achieved in the long term without retaining nuclear or large fossil fuel plants.

Solving the problem is becoming urgent. The latest figures show that on some days of the year the electricity being generated from sun, wind, biomass, water and geothermal production already accounts for more than half of the load required in the country.

The research is funded by the German Federal Ministry of the Environment and is aimed at showing that the entire electricity grid could be run on renewable energy.

Dr. Kurt Rohrig, deputy director of IWES, said: “Each source of energy – be it wind, sun or biogas – has its strengths and weaknesses. If we manage to skilfully combine the different characteristics of the regenerative energies, we can ensure the power supply for Germany.”

The idea is that many small power plant operators can feed their electricity into the grid but act as a single power plant using computers to control the level of power.

Sharing the load

Scientists linked together 25 plants with a nominal power output of 120 megawatts. Surplus power could be used for charging electric vehicles and for pumped storage (pumping water uphill into a reservoir to produce hydropower later).

When many small producers work together, then regional differences when the wind blows or the sun is intermittent are balanced out in the grid and can be boosted by controllable biogas facilities.

If there is too much surplus energy then the power can also be used to create and store thermal energy to be used later.

Kasper Knorr, the project manager for the scheme, which is known as the Combined Power Plant2 research project, says the idea is to ensure that the consumer is supplied reliably with 230 volts at a frequency of 50 Hertz.

The current system of supplying the grid with electricity is geared to a few large producers. In the new system, with dozens of small producers, there will need to be extra facilities at intervals on the system to stabilize voltage. Part of the project is designed to find out how many of these the country will need.

The project has the backing of Germany’s large and increasingly important renewable companies and industrial giants like Siemans. Researchers will be demonstrating the system at the Hanover Trade Fair from April 8 to 13.

This story was produced by the Climate News Network

The post Linking clean energy sources solves blackout conundrum appeared first on Climate Home News.

The world’s potential renewable energy resources have been plotted in a publicly available interactive map.

The online tool launched at Abu Dhabi Sustainability Week by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) and the Masdar Institute.

The Global Atlas for solar and wind brings together wind speed and direction and solar insolation data to show where the greatest potential lies for both technologies.

Wind data clearly shows the difference in average wind speeds onshore and offshore.

Average wind speeds in Europe. Offshore speeds are often four times higher than onshore. The UK is blanketed in higher speeds. (IRENA Global Atlas)

The purple areas on this map of Europe have average wind speeds of 12 metres per second (m/s), yellow is 6m/s and green 3m/s.

Typically, wind speeds above 3.5m/s are required to generate power.

The UK is one of a handful on large onshore regions where wind speeds are largely above 8m/s.

An area of higher average wind speeds centred over Mongolia. (IRENA Global Atlas)

Only a few countries have significantly large areas with a high suitability for wind. The map above shows another large area of higher onshore wind speeds centred over Mongolia.

The Desertec Foundation is currently exploring the possibility of expanding solar and wind energy resources in Mongolia to fuel energy demand in South East Asia.

The potential for solar energy in the US. Darker colours mark out more suitable areas. (IRENA Global Atlas)

Solar energy has tipped as a big winner for the US. The IRENA map shows a pronounced prejudice for the south western States.

Although the Atlas currently only includes solar and wind resources, other technologies such as wave and tidal power can be added in the future.

Video: IRENA’s introduction to the Global Atlas

The post IRENA & Masdar launch global renewable energy map at Abu Dhabi summit appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)

Wednesday 02 January

Last updated: 1620

Media: Coverage of climate change in the US rebounded in 2012 to levels not seen since the 2009 climate change talks in Copenhagen. The New York Times wrote more climate change stories than at any point in its history, while the five big US newspapers hit the 300 article mark for the first time since the collapse of the 2009 UN climate negotiations. (Climate Central)

Arctic: An oil rig being towed back to port has run aground off the coast of Alaska. The Kulluk, part of Shell’s faltering drilling efforts in the Arctic was separated from its tug on more than one occasion providing fuel to environmentalists that oppose the drilling. (New York Times)

US: The US renewable energy industry received a boost from the deal to prevent the so-called “fiscal cliff”. The agreement extends the Production Tax Credit (PTC) for another year and while this will not provide long term certainty, it was initially feared the PTC would disappear completely. (GigaOM)

France: Climate change could be threatening French wine according to new research. Many varieties of grapes native to France could soon be better suited to England according to the study, which French winemakers have echoed with their own experiences on the ground. (CNBC)

China: The Chinese Government is to release live air pollution data from 74 cities after strong public pressure. Details on pollutants including particulate matter have previously been released by monitoring stations at foreign embassies, much to the disapproval of Chinese officials. (Times of India)

Germany: The first hybrid train has been launched in Germany. The diesel train has been retrofitted to collect and store energy generated during braking and could cut emissions from its 22 mile commuter route by 25%. (Treehugger)

India: Freshwater will be become a scarce resource by 2050 according to the head of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), Rajendra Pachauri. Speaking at a lecture yesterday Pachauri said South East Asia would be particularly vulnerable with flooding and disease reducing the availability of safe water sources. (Times of India)

Denmark: A new poll has found that 78% of Danes aren’t bothered by giant wind turbines within 1.2 miles of their homes. The country generates 26% of its electricity from wind, the highest proportion in Europe. (Earth Techling)

The post Obama’s “fiscal cliff” deal boosts US renewable energy sector appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)

Wednesday 14 November

Last updated: 1540

Qatar: A trial to use evaporated see water to cool and irrigate desert plantations will open in Qatar later this month. The Sahara Forest Project (SFP) proposes using a number of technologies to mimic the natural hydrological cycle. If the $5.3m trial is successful a 200 hectare site in Jordan could follow. (CNN)

US: The launch of the Californian carbon trading system, set to start its first auction later today, could have hit a snag. A last minute legal move by the state’s Chamber of Commerce is attempting to stop the state from selling credit. It says emissions allowances should only be handed out for free. The 350 companies bound to the scheme were only required to buy credits covering 10% of their emissions. (Kansas City Star)

EU: Talks in Brussels yesterday to secure EU cash for climate finance failed to deliver firm pledges. Commenting on the talks Oxfam’s Lies Craeynest said: “Finance ministers have mainly laid down conditions for developing countries in order to receive climate finance, but forgot to add what they can expect to receive in return.” (Reuters)

UK: A Greenpeace investigation has confirmed a split in the UK Conservative Party, one half of the ruling coalition Government, on environmental issues. A video released by the group shows one MP entering a rival candidate in a by-election on an anti-wind farm ticket and a second stating that Chancellor George Osborne backs MPs campaigning against wind farms. (Green and Blue Tomorrow)

Global: Wind power production could meet 20% of the global electricity supply by 2030 according to the latest Global Wind Energy Outlook report. The study, produced by the industry group the Global Wind Energy Council, says an increase to 12% by 2020 could be enough to generate 1.4m new jobs and CO2 reductions of 1.5bn tons a year. (GWEC)

US: California will launch its emissions trading scheme later today when its holds the first auction of carbon credits. The platform covers around 350 of the state’s largest industrial emitters. Annual sales of credits are anticipated to generate $1bn a year. In 2015 it will expand to include distributors of home heating fuels and there are hopes that transportation will eventually be covered too. (Reuters)

UK: The business lobby CBI has called on Europe to clarify its greenhouse gas emissions reduction target for 2030 to provide longer term guarantees for low-carbon investors. “Emissions trading is key to unlocking business investment in low-carbon technology to help get the economy growing. But at the moment the carbon market is not delivering for Europe because of its short-term focus,” said Rhian Kelly, CBI Director for Business Environment policy. The current EU target is to reduce emissions by 20% by 2020, a goal that some assessments say has already been achieved.

The post California ramps up climate change action as state-wide carbon trading begins appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)

Wednesday 31 October

Last updated: 1500

Thailand: The prospect of conflict over water resources will create the need for “hydro-diplomacy”, a conference in Bangkok has heard. A combination of climate change, population growth and urbanisation are squeezing the world’s freshwater supplies.

“Nothing will be more effective for reaching a consensus on transboundary water management agreements than for…states to sit together and exercise hydro-diplomacy,” said Khaled M. AbuZeid, director of technical programmes at the Arab Water Council. (AlertNet)

Scotland: The Scottish First Minister has announced an increase in Scotland’s 2015 renewable energy target to 50%. A 2020 target to generate the equivalent of 100% of the country’s electricity demand from renewable sources had already been set. Scotland has become a hub for established and emerging technologies including offshore wind and wave and tidal generators. (BBC)

Worldwide: False optimism could be masking the extent of the dangers of climate change with Western Europe and low-lying Pacific Island Nations facing severe consequences sooner than expected. Hugh Montgomery, director of the UCL Institute for Human Health and Performance says food shortages could mean some people in the UK starving within 20 years. Meanwhile climate scientist Michael Mann says the extent of sea level rise is being down-played and some Pacific islands could be evacuated with a decade. (Guardian)

US: Hurricane Sandy could force climate change on to the agenda of the next US President with more comparable events likely in the future. The storm set to empty the coffers of the Government’s flood insurance programme. The cost of the storm is estimated at $5-10bn of insured damage and an additional $10-20bn of knock-on economic losses. “The sort of storm we just saw is likely to be more common in some of the most populated and valuable areas of the country,” said Sharlene Leurig, senior manager for insurance and water programs with the sustainable investment advocacy group Ceres. (Reuters)

Canada: Carbon trading plans for several Canadian provinces will be jeopardised unless they link in with the EU carbon market an analyst has warned. Australia has already announced its plans to integrate with the European platform in 2018. Andrei Marcu from the Centre for European Policy Studies told a conference in Bangkok both systems could flounder without the tie-in. He also said South Korea’s carbon market would benefit from linking with the EU set-up. (Bloomberg)

UAE: A property developer in the UAE has had its energy efficiency programme approved for registration with the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Majid Al Futtaim Properties, the company behind Dubai’s indoor ski slope, will be able to sell carbon credits earned from the emission reductions across its property portfolio. The CDM allows countries with commitments to reduce emissions under the Kyoto Protocol to fund offsets in the developing world. Typical projects include clean cook stoves and solar water heaters as well as increasing the efficiency of industrial infrastructure in emerging economies. (Zawya)

UK: The UK’s recently appointed Energy Minister John Hayes has called for more attention to the aesthetics of the environment when making decisions on wind farm planning. Writing in the Guardian, Hayes said the UK needed an energy mix that included “new nuclear, gas, new carbon capture and storage technology, and renewable energy of the right kind”. Meanwhile, former Environment Minister Michael Heseltine, has called for a mammoth and controversial tidal power project to go ahead. The Severn Barrage would have a greater capacity than two new nuclear power stations but would also flood a large area of wetlands. (Guardian/Wales Online)

The post Company behind Dubai’s ski slope to receive cash from UN carbon market appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)

Tuesday 23 October

Last updated: 1730

Asia: Around 185m people are exposed to flooding and storms in Asia annually, almost doubling since 1970. “Exposure to disaster risk is growing faster than our ability to build resilience and Asia’s rapid economic growth is partly responsible for it,” said UNISDR head Margareta Wahlström. (AlertNet)

UK: The head of the firm charged with constructing the UK’s next generation of nuclear power stations has said he has not made his mind up. Vincent de Rivaz, CEO of EDF Energy told a panel of UK MPs that a green light from the firm required more certainty regarding the support it could expect from the Government. “Our final investment decision requires more progress to be made,” he said. (The Guardian)

EU: The proposal for a Financial Transaction Tax (FTT) in 10 EU countries has been approved by the European Commission clearing the way for a vote on the issue. The tax, which has been touted as a possible source of climate finance, will be voted on by all 27 member states even though the proposal includes only 10, namely Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain.

Sweden: The world’s largest furniture retailer IKEA has revealed the details of its plans to produce as much renewable energy as it consumes by 2020. The firm already sources 27% of its energy from wind and solar. It will invest $1.9bn to hit 70% by 2015. The company will also look to plant more trees than it uses. The company has already announced that it plans to sell LED lighting only in the near future. (Reuters)

US: Last night’s third and final presidential debate passed without a mention of climate change. It means the 2012 election debates are the first since 1984 not to mention climate change. (The Hill)

UK: A UK-wide survey has found that two-thirds of people would rather have a wind turbine within two miles of their house than a shale gas drilling site. The poll by ICM, but commissioned by the Co-operative, found just 11% would prefer fracking near their own home. The method for shale gas extraction, hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has been linked to small seismic events and groundwater pollution. (The Guardian)

EU: The EU has called for the massive oversupply of Kyoto Protocol carbon credits held by former Soviet countries to be scrapped, unless they make legally binding emission cuts under the Kyoto Protocol. A second period of commitments will begin from January 1, 2013 and the EU has been encouraging other nations to take part with Australia and New Zealand likely to sign-on. (EurActiv)

The post EU proposes cancelling carbon credits of Kyoto dissenters appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0830-1700 BST (GMT+1)

Latest news: Thursday 27 September

Last updated: 1740

UAE: A new exhibition demonstrating the UAE’s plans for a low(er) carbon future has opened in Abu Dhabi. The Eco Future exhibition will showcase the country’s solar energy plans and raises awareness on issues of food and of course, as you would expect from a desert nation, water security. (The National)

Australia: The starting pistol has been fired on Australian carbon trading with the first free emissions allowances worth A$150m allocated. A$138m of the total was awarded to Aluminium firm Alcoa. It marks the start of trading proper for the scheme, which recently announced plans to integrate with the EU system. (Sydney Morning Herald)

Namibia: A huge underground geological find created much optimism in Namibia this July. The reservoir is full of freshwater not oil, but now geologists say it must be tapped carefully to ensure its long-term future. The find has enough water for 1m Namibians for 400 years, based on current consumption rates. (SciDev)

India: North India and the Himalayas will be the regions of the country most affected by climate change according to a report carried out by the Indian Environment and Forests Ministry and the UK Department for Energy and Climate Change. Warming of 4°C is anticipated in those regions by the 2080s. (DNAIndia/PTI)

Nigeria: The Rafto Prize for Human Rights has been awarded to Nigerian environmentalist Nnimmo Bassey. The awards panel said he “links human rights to the climate by demonstrating how climate change has the greatest effect on the world’s most vulnerable people, the very people who have contributed least to the problem”. (AFP)

UK: New figures from the UK government show that renewable energy capacity has grown by 42.4% for the second quarter of 2012 compared to the same period last year. (BusinessGreen)

UN/Kiribati: President Anote Tong of Kiribati has told the UN General Assembly that the low-lying islands of his country, threatened by rising sea levels, must be made habitable for as long as possible. However, he also said that work has begun to prepare the nation’s young people for the international job market so they can “migrate with dignity”. (UN)

UK: The world land speed record for an electric car has been broken. The team behind the Nemesis car smashed the current record of 137mph hitting 148mph. They hope to push that figure higher as the day continues. (BBC)

148.419 MPH! We broke the UK EV speed record Well done Nick & team!!!^PS

— ecotricity (@ecotricity) September 27, 2012

US: An opinion piece in the influential science journal Nature has called on whoever wins the US Presidential Election to find a way to cut emissions while protecting the nation’s economic interests. The piece calls for Obama to tackle fierce political opposition to environmental policies should he win and for Romney to return to his centrist past if he triumphs. (Nature)

Worldwide: Plastic debris has been detected in the Southern Ocean around Antarctica. It was thought to have been one of the last pristine environments but new research found 50,000 fragments per square kilometre. (The Guardian)

France: The French government has confirmed it will use the revenue generated by the sale of its spare EU carbon credits, worth around €600m to fund energy efficiency improvements for as many as 1m homes a year. (EurActiv)

UK: The UK could be a net energy exporter by 2020 according to a report released by the country’s grid operator. With increased renewables output and more interconnections being made with other markets, the country could reverse its current net importer status. (Reuters)

Kenya and UK: The UK is to launch a trade mission to Kenya next month in order to help kick-start the geothermal energy sector in the African rift valley. (Bloomberg)

Canada: Green groups are suing the Canadian Government in an effort to force it to block the proposed Northern Gateway crude oil pipeline and protect biodiversity along its route. Although the Enbridge Inc pipeline would transport crude rather than bitumen-like tar sands, the oil is derived from tar sand deposits originally, giving it a higher impact on emissions. The Ecojustice coalition is seeking to protect white sturgeon, humpback whales and caribou. (Environmental News Service)

EU: Europe’s total wind energy capacity has hit 100GW, according to the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA). This is the equivalent to 39 nuclear power plants, according to the industry group. (EWEA)

The post Carbon trading officially under way in Australia as nation ramps-up climate action appeared first on Climate Home News.

It is a time of change in the energy sector. This does not happen often: it has only really happened twice, the First and Second Industrial Revolutions.

Confronted by climate change, resource depletion and growing demand for electricity, the development of renewable energy and more intelligent methods of distribution (the ‘smart grid’) is essential.

Vince set up Ecotricity in 1996 - it now has over 65,000 customers, generating energy from the wind and sun

Dale Vince, and his company Ecotricity, is one of a generation of entrepreneurs participating in this transition.

Ecotricity currently has 53 wind turbines and sees itself rising to become the ‘Big Seventh’ energy supplier to challenge the UK’s traditional ‘Big Six’ utilities.

However with 65,000 customers and only capacity to power 32,300 homes, it is clear that this vision is a long way off: their Big Six rivals each have over 5 million customers.

Vince dismisses other green energy companies – describing his nearest renewable supply rival, Good Energy, as “not in it for the long term” – implying that his company alone will be the driving force behind the transformation of the British energy industry.

This is a mighty ambition for both Dale Vince and Ecotricity. It is important to understand that in many respects Vince and his company are one and the same. Ecotricity’s publicity proudly describes it as having “no shareholders”. In fact it has one: Dale Vince.

Vince made it clear in our discussions that he is the boss, stating: “I make the decisions. I set the strategy of the company.”

Founded on the climate fight

To assess Ecotricity, one must assess Dale Vince.

Vince’s clarity of purpose for Ecotricity is striking.

“Climate change has been there for us from the beginning. The choice of electricity for us as something to tackle, was because it’s the single biggest source of carbon emissions in Britain, responsible for about 30% – it seemed sensible to me to tackle the biggest issue,” Vince explained.

Ecotricity’s foundation, according to Vince, was a calculated result of questioning how best to tackle climate change. Vince recalled the company’s description of themselves from their early days: “We were environmentalists doing business, we weren’t a business doing the environment.”

An Ecotricity wind turbine near Swaffham, Norfolk, UK. (Source: Flickr/Mr ATM)

This mantra appears still true for Vince. Rather than being a hindrance, it appears that the company’s strong ethical values drive both Vince and Ecotricity to success – a lesson that many businesses would do well to observe. Vince is clear about the grand scope of these aims: “I started Ecotricity to change the world, I didn’t start it to make money.”

Vince seems to attempt to redefine the cliché of a ‘hard-headed’ businessman: he possesses the stubbornness of an entrepreneur but shows that success in business can be defined by more than the simple pursuit of profit.

His stubbornness was obvious throughout our conversation. One of the first questions I asked – for my own benefit, as much as anything – was what advice he would give to a young person thinking of starting a green business. His response: “One of my favourite pieces of advice is, don’t take advice. That’s important.”

Vince credits much of his success to his stubbornness, as he explained: “I’m not a person that likes to be told something can’t be done or that I can’t do it. I’m not saying that drove me on, but I just refused to accept other people’s view.”

“Back in the day, the early 90s, the common thing that everybody said to me was ‘what is green electricity?’ – they didn’t know the concept – ‘who’s going to want it?’ and ‘you’ll never be able to sell it because it’ll cost more money’.

“My view on that was that if we made it available, people would want it – that we would create the demand for it by making it possible… I just had my own view and wasn’t deflected by other people’s opinions. The fact it was something that hadn’t been done before doesn’t mean it can’t be done.”

Related articles:

Green energy entrepreneur Dale Vince says lack of UK policy certainty is leaving industry in the dark

Forest Green Rovers: Football’s eco-champions are aiming to score on and off the pitch

Vince’s single-minded determination continues to be valuable for Ecotricity today.

His refusal to be constrained by barriers dismissed as insurmountable by others sparks innovation. When confronted by the credit crunch, Ecotricity refused to accept the financial hand dealt them by the banks, instead selling £20 million in ‘Ecobonds’ to customers and non-customers for investment in wind turbines.

As Vince explains, it has been a practical yet unique alternative to leaving Ecotricity’s fortunes in the hands of the banks: “If you put your money into a bank, today they’re giving you 1.5, 2%. If they lend that to us, they’re charging us 7 or 8%. So we said, don’t give your money to the banks so that they can lend it to us, just give it straight to us. It’s a great concept.”

City of London syndrome

Dale Vince’s firm principles and determination have brought success and an innovative spirit to his company, which has pioneered the concept of ‘green electricity’. Vince deserves full credit for this – his OBE shows that the political establishment certainly warrant him it.

Vince’s sole ownership of the company could well be interpreted as a risk. While the benefits of avoiding the influence of less ethically-minded shareholders are clear (Vince referenced avoiding “City of London Syndrome”, which he defined as profit-focussed short-termism), it does leave Ecotricity entirely dependent on Vince, with its capital in his hands alone.

This could create a rather inequitable situation, although Ecotricity’s business model, where no profits leave the company, for now negates this. Nevertheless, Ecotricity’s repeated emphasis on the benefits of having ‘no shareholders’ (a half-truth: Vince being the shareholder) still leaves me a little cold.

This is not a failing of Ecotricity in achieving it’s main goal of increasing the UK’s renewable energy capacity – but it is a missed opportunity to pursue a more progressive model of ownership, such as mutualisation among customers or employees.

This represents Vince’s pragmatism in action – the abstract question of ownership is considered irrelevant as long as Ecotricity continues towards its main goal. Perhaps this pragmatism has brought Dale Vince and Ecotricity success in other areas, but here it has created an example of the failure to think long-term that Vince so despises in other businesses.

Green economics

Ecotricity alone – at least at its present size – has not transformed UK energy generation. While Britain’s renewable electricity generation has increased – in 2011 it comprised 9% of the total – it lags far behind its European neighbours: by the end of 2011 German electricity was 20% renewable and Portugal’s was more than 50%.

Vince’s vision for bridging this gap relies on “hideous” energy costs persuading the ‘Big Six’ to change their ways, as he puts it, “not because it’s the right thing to do environmentally but because it’s imperative economically”.

While a sensible argument, it ignores the possibility of extra investment in nuclear power and ignores the present situation: energy costs are increasing – I’m sure many of the 4.75 million UK households living in fuel poverty would already describe them as “hideous” – yet as Ecotricity’s website emphasises, investment in renewables from the ‘Big Six’ remains low.

While in time I can see Ecotricity fulfilling Vince’s stated goal of becoming the ‘Big Seventh’ energy supplier, I cannot see the ‘Big Six’ following Ecotricity in basing their business models on increasing renewable energy capacity and solving climate change.

My conclusion is clear – Ecotricity has not and likely will not transform the UK energy industry alone, at least not on its current trajectory. The UK is not yet on a path to being renewably powered. Further intervention – perhaps by government, perhaps by civil society, perhaps by other businesses – is necessary.

This does not mean that whatever does cause this energy transformation, this ‘Third Industrial Revolution’ as it has been dubbed, will not owe a great debt to Ecotricity and to Dale Vince.

Vince started Ecotricity when the concept of ‘green’ electricity was almost entirely alien and followed it through until it became distinctly mainstream. Dale Vince and Ecotricity have already played a very significant role in the UK’s response to climate change.

It may be expecting a little much to criticise them for not yet sparking an industrial revolution. Then again, in Vince’s words, he did start Ecotricity “to change the world”. Vince said to me that he would describe Ecotricity as a ‘youthful’ business. I am excited to see what Ecotricity can achieve as it matures.

The post COMMENT: Can one man alone drive the green revolution? appeared first on Climate Home News.

When people think about islands with a proactive outlook on the global climate change and sustainability agenda, they are most likely transported to the low lying pacific isles that have campaigned tirelessly and punched far above their weight in the international climate arena. 

The Ecoisland concept, that will arm islands and other community groups from around the world with the knowledge and technologies required for a sustainable future, however, traces its origins to the Isle of Wight, off the south coast of England.

Sandown Pier on the Isle of Wight, which is aiming to be energy independent by 2020. (Source: Flickr/Sidibousaid60)

It may be a new entrant to the international climate change arena but the Ecoislands movement is wasting no time.

The island has targeted energy independence by 2020, is working with a number of global technology giants to develop a cutting edge smart grid and has just received a grant for an experimental hydrogen energy storage facility.

Less talk

Founder David Green is a firm believer that when it comes to energy security and sustainability, actions speak louder than words.

“People have spent too much time trying to agree wholeheartedly with everything that has to happen, before doing anything,” says Green

“The result is similar to hillwalking, you end up going at the rate of the slowest. We decided we’d start out at the front and see if we can get people to catch up with us.”

So what is special about  islands? Why might they be better suited to triggering climate action than any other sub-section of society?

There are a few common traits in island communities that may be responsible.

Islands frequently engender a strong sense of identity, the pursuit of independence from “the mainland” or a larger neighbouring state. Many island communities have already survived against the odds and doing it all again in the face of the challenge posed by climate change is nothing new.

Many of these traits are encapsulated in the Ecoisland project, but there are simpler reasons too.

“It is very easy to measure things on an island and that provides an insight in microcosm about what is happening on the big island to the north,” he says in reference to the UK mainland.

“We can prove the concept by being the guinea pig, the living laboratory for these ideas. We can crack it here and then we’re in a position to roll it out elsewhere in the country and even in other parts of the world.”

As one of the sunniest locations in the UK, the Isle of Wight is well placed to exploit solar energy. (Source: Flickr/p-a-t-r-i-c-k)

The plans include making the Isle of Wight energy self-sufficient by 2020 and energy efficiency plays as big a role as renewable generation.

It is working with IBM, Toshiba, Cable&Wireless Worldwide and UK utility firm SSE to roll out a smart grid. It has just received a £4.6m grant to trial a hydrogen storage system for excess renewable energy that will also integrate a vehicle charging station as it looks to cut its fossil fuel dependency for liquid fuels too.

Small wind projects, geothermal, solar and waste to gas projects will be developed to meet the island’s 120MW power demand.

Islands in the stream

In October, the Ecoislands Summit will see a chunk of the UK’s island communities as well as some from as far away as Japan, converge on the Isle of Wight’s major port, Cowes to learn from the Ecoisland experience thus far.

“We’re expecting a lot of people to sign up to be an Ecoisland and they’ll put in the IBM Intelligent Operations Centre (IOC) and the hope is we can give them the blueprint or the greenprint if you like. We can give them the technology, access to the partners and if necessary, the funding.

“We have a central funding pot that can help develop the technologies. The hope is that in ten years we can wean them off fossil fuels, put in renewable energy generation capacity and eventually hit some much bigger carbon reduction targets than maybe central governments can,” says Green.

Funding is not only important for the obvious reasons, for spending. Green also believes that the self sustaining model of Ecoisland breeds confidence and removes some of the intimidation.

Related stories:

Crowdfunding: A new source of finance for sustainability and renewable energy

UK community energy could match Drax output but needs greater government support

Transition 2:0 – A story of community and climate resilience in a time of global inaction

“It has been entirely fuelled by private money that serves us well because if it had been founded on grants or handouts people would say “oh you were lucky, you got yourself a fairy godmother. What we are doing is not predicated on subsidies. It is a very healthy economic model as a standalone.

“By doing it from grassroots, it all started with the sale of our first Greenback card, an individual putting £20 in, from that day on it has all come from commercial partners and opportunities and commercial activities.”

The Greenback card is a discount scheme involving 80 businesses with strong ethical claims or directly selling green services. In order to access the offers you must first buy the card for a 12 month period for £20. Thousands have been sold – with the money helping to fund the Ecoisland venture.

The potential of the Ecoisland scheme is undoubted. The scope of the project could leave some small islands feeling daunted and isolated, however, the self-sustaining business model and the Green’s “living laboratory” on the Isle of Wight will negate much of this feeling.

The most important message of any future Ecoisland success story could be “less talk, more action”.

If that mentality can jump across the water to a few mainland governments we may see more of the ambition and urgency so badly needed to wean ourselves off fossil fuels and towards a world with less than 2°C of warming.

The Ecoislands Global Summit will take place on October 16-17, 2012 in Cowes, Isle of Wight.

The post Can a tiny island show the world the way on climate change? appeared first on Climate Home News.

While Europe and the US’s growth figures continue to limp along, China’s economic expansion remains remarkably resilient in the face of the global economic crisis. Chinese economic growth is reflected both in its growing carbon footprint and the increasing number of trade complaints it’s involved in.

In an interview with China Daily last week, former Chancellor and climate skeptic Nigel Lawson, defended China’s predominantly coal-fuelled growth, and warned against imposing emissions targets or trade barriers on the country. But does this really reflect where China is at?

China is certainly burning a lot of coal to fuel economic growth which is currently estimated at between seven and eight per cent. According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), China made the biggest contribution to the 6.1 per cent rise in carbon emissions outside OECD countries recorded in 2011. The IEA says China’s emissions rose by “720 million tonnes, or 9.3%, primarily due to higher coal consumption”. According to Chinese government figures, the country burned an extra 95 million tonnes of coal last year, compared to 2010.

But while China’s emissions are rising rapidly, it also has policies in place that are helping to limit the country’s carbon footprint. The IEA says energy efficiency and clean energy deployment meant China’s carbon intensity – the amount of carbon dioxide emitted per unit of GDP – fell by 15 per cent between 2005 and 2011, cutting China’s overall emissions by 15 gigatonnes of carbon dioxide.

China’s government says the country currently gets 8.3 per cent of its energy from renewables – and it’s led the world in terms of installed renewable energy capacity since 2010 with 103.36 gigawatts installed. For comparison, in 2011 renewables met 3.8% of UK energy consumption, with 12.3 gigawatts installed.

Shanghai is at the centre of China's economic revolution (Source: Flickr/trioptikmal)

Last year China tripled its solar energy generating capacity and increased wind and hydropower capacity. China’s current five-year plan includes ambitions to increase the proportion of energy from non fossil fuels to 11.3 per cent by 2015.

The country appears to have much bigger carbon-cutting ambitions and plans to cap coal consumption this year in order to “reduce pollution and curb reliance on the fuel”, according to Bloomberg, with the National  Development and Reform Commission vowing to take an “active part” in international efforts to mitigate emissions. Liu Tienan – the director of the country’s National Energy Administration – called for energy use to be kept below 4.1 billion tonnes of coal equivalent per year by 2015, although a spokesman from a state coal body voiced concern  that the cap would make it hard to fuel China’s growth.

So although China has resisted signing up to binding emissions cuts at international summits, it’s undoubtedly got its own thing going on in terms of climate targets. It’s a complex picture that suggests China doesn’t want to be tied to coal forever – and that at least some parts of the government are keen to have a leading role in efforts to green the world’s economy, including cutting emissions.

China’s export industries

China’s growth is based on the ability to export cheap products. Its export-led growth policy allowed China to become the world’s biggest exporter in 2009, overtaking Germany. The country’s main export products include electronic goods, agricultural goods and machinery. You can see these figures in more detail on the World Trade Organisation (WTO) and Hong Kong Trade Development Council sites.

Renewable energy technology is one of China’s fastest-growing export industries, presumably because growth projections for the sector suggest there’s a lot of money in it. The Energy Information Administration, for example, predicts that world consumption of renewable energy will almost double by 2035. Since the early 2000s, for example, 95 per cent of China’s production of solar photovoltaic (PV) equipment has been destined for export markets, and  China dominates the global market – accounting for half of world PV output, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

Trade disputes with China

With export growth has come a fair share of trade disputes. China is involved in just under half of all trade conflicts brought before the WTO from 2011 onward. The press is full of stories entertaining the possibility of an all out trade war with the US – which Lawson’s interview is a nod towards. Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, never one to pour oil on troubled international waters, has threatened to file a complaint with the WTO over alleged currency manipulation. He claims China is undervaluing the Yuan in order to flood the US market with under-priced products – a practice known as dumping.

The US has failed so far to make any blanket complaints about Chinese goods, but allegations that the Chinese state is producing under-valued products are common. The country’s renewables sector has taken centre stage in some of these tussles. Although many countries have created schemes to promote renewables exports, China’s have been especially comprehensive, and that is causing friction. Last year, for example, the Chinese government revoked grants of between US $6.7 million and US $22.5 million to domestic wind turbine manufacturers following a US complaint to the WTO. The government gave the subsidies on condition that the turbine manufacturers purchased parts and materials in China, provoking a complaint from US steelmakers.

China: the world’s green competition

The complaints about China’s renewables export industries indicate just how worried other countries’ domestic renewables industries are about competition from China. Last month, European solar companies asked the EU to investigate whether China is selling solar PVs at unfairly low prices, saying several of them now face bankruptcy due to competition from China. This follows a recent decision by the US to impose 31 per cent tariffs on Chinese PVs, after finding the Chinese government is subsidising panel exports.

China has become more confident in filing its own complaints, too. This year it filed a complaint about the US’s application of countervailing measures – tariffs designed to raise the price of subsidised goods – to a wide range of its products, eight days after the US solar tariffs were imposed. This willingness to file retaliatory cases has fuelled concerns that trade war with the globe’s other powers looms, despite Chinese protestations to the contrary.

Competition from China has its cheerleaders, too. The Worldwatch Institute, for example, finds in a recent report that Chinese products’ downward pressure on prices – coupled with progress in Chinese research and development – is generally a good thing for cleantech deployment. The institute says: “As the country’s skills in efficient, low-cost manufacturing are brought to clean energy industries, this could widen the energy options for the world as a whole.”

The new green superpower?

In the West, many stories of China’s economic rise tend to focus either on its carbon footprint or on accusations of mercantilism. This comes into focus especially in the world’s renewable energy industries, which  – especially in the West – must promise domestic jobs to counter political arguments that they are expensive and ineffective. Cheap exports from China, competing with these infant industries have increased pressure on governments to impose tariffs, possibly at the risk of hurting faster green rollout in the process.

Though spooked by China’s aggressive market tactics, it’s possible these industries – and governments – could benefit from taking a look at China’s policies. A recent study from the University of Pennsylvania argues that China’s renewable energy experience could provide important lessons for other countries wishing to kick-start economic growth using new, low carbon technologies. By offering renewable energy industries consistent support combined with exposure to competitive markets, despite its dependence on coal, China now has one of the world’s leading green industries.

And China’s energy profile has to change – as the Pennsylvania study’s authors point out, the choking smog Beijing suffered last year illustrates that there’s a “newfound urgency” to China’s efforts to sustain growth while cleaning up its act. That doesn’t change the fact that China now has more to do than any other country to cut its emissions, but it’s worth bearing in mind.

UPDATE 14/08/2012, 4pm:

Here’s an update and a bit more detail on China’s renewable energy capacity stats. According to the PEW Charitable Trusts’ most recent edition of its report ‘Who’s winning the clean energy race?’, China has 133 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity installed as of 2011, up from 103.36 gigawatts in 2010.

This breaks down into wind: 64 gigawatts, small hydro: 62 gigawatts, biomass and waste: 4 gigawatts and solar PV: 3 gigawatts.

The report is available here – and you can see the China breakdown on page 40.

This article first appeared on the Carbon Brief website, and has been reproduced with the author’s permission.

The post Analysis: Despite soaring emissions is China the world’s new green superpower? appeared first on Climate Home News.

The subsidy for the US wind energy sector will not be allowed to expire, Senate Majority leader Senator Harry Reid has said.

Speaking at a clean energy summit in Las Vegas, Democrat Sen. Reid said work to renew the Production Tax Credit (PTC) before it runs out at the end of the year is under way.

“We will get it done before the end of the year, I’m very confident,” said Reid. “We may even get this done before the election.”

Video: Senator Reid’s speech at the National Clean Energy Summit

Presidential candidate Mitt Romney has said that he would not renew the PTC.

It is estimated that the loss of the PTC could cost 30,000-37,000 of the 100,000 jobs in the US wind sector.

A bi-partisan Senate finance committee voted 19-5 in favour of the scheme in early August.

With wind energy jobs prominent in key Republican heartlands, there is support on both sides of the political divide.

Sen. Reid, who is frequently outspoken, also commented on continued debate amongst US media and the public about the existence of climate change. Recent extreme weather has increased awareness and “belief” in climate change.

“…Despite having overwhelming evidence and public opinion on our side, deniers still exist, fuelled and funded by dirty energy profits,” said Reid.

“These people aren’t just on the other side of this debate. They’re on the other side of reality. It’s time for us all – whether we’re leaders in Washington, members of the media, scientists, academics, environmentalists or utility industry executives – to stop acting like those who ignore the crisis or deny it exists entirely have a valid point of view. They don’t.”

The post Congress will renew US wind energy subsidies, says Senate Majority Leader appeared first on Climate Home News.

There are very few things you can say about that United States that hold true across the country’s entire bulk – in many cases, somewhere else in the country, the opposite will also be true.

However, when talking about its climate change policy, we tend to talk about US policy as a whole and ignore the variety of sentiment on key issues throughout the States.

The political structure of the country and the autonomy of the individual States means policy can vary greatly from one to the next. Throw in the geographical, cultural and economic differences and it becomes disingenuous to lump the whole country under the banner of the federal position.

Internationally, its influence is huge not just economically but also in terms of influence, technology and politics.

In the first of a series of articles looking at the issues affecting individual states, we travel to Iowa, the agricultural dominated state in the Mid-West.

Iowa lads the US in installed wind power capacity and usage. (Source: Flickr/USDAgov)

Iowa

There are two simple and compelling reasons why Iowa is arguably the centre of the United State’s renewable energy development – it has more installed wind power (20% of its supply) than any other state and it manufactures more turbines than anywhere else in the state.

That’s part of the reason why President Obama chose it to deliver a key energy speech (which made no reference to climate change) earlier this year.

The state has some of the cheapest electricity in the country and relatively low unemployment compared California and others under the grip of the downturn.

The town of Newton, Iowa is a brilliant example of why the country’s powerful Labour Unions and industry lobby groups should embrace not destabilise the clean energy industry.

The Maytag washing machine manufacturer was a major employer in the town since the 1920s. In 2006, a bad run of results and product recalls brought the company to its knees.

Today, the same plants are supporting the town but they are not making appliances to use electricity, they are making blades for wind turbines to generate it. The estimates of how many jobs the US wind energy sector is responsible for range from 37,000 to 100,000 people are thought to be employed in the wind sector in the US. As many as 7000 of those are thought to be in Iowa.

At the end of this year however, while the winner of the US Presidential Election is thinking about the start of the new term, a change in the tax system could jeopardise these jobs.

President Obama chose to deliver a keynote speech on energy policy from the factory floor of wind turbine blade manufacturer TPI composites, in Newton Iowa. (Source: Flickr/USDAgov)

Up in the air

The Production Tax Credit (PTC) that could disappear offers 2.2% in credit per kWh to generators of renewable energy. The Whitehouse expects 30,000 jobs to go if it is allowed to expire at the turn of the year. The American Wind Energy Association puts the figure slightly higher at 37,000.

Obama’s Presidential rival Mitt Romney has confirmed that he would allow the PTC to expire.

“President Obama’s promise to ‘easily’ create 5 million green energy jobs has become a particularly depressing punchline amidst the endless disappointments of the last four years,” said a spokesperson for the Romney campaign.

Harold Prior, executive director of the Iowa Wind Energy Association said that by the end of the third quarter of this year he expected orders to be down to effectively zero.

On August 2 a Senate Committee voted in favour of maintaining support for the PTC in what could be a first step toward its continuation.

But with Romney’s campaign putting the PTC in its cross hairs, the debate is likely to continue in an increasingly ugly fashion.

Jobs or climate change?

The largely rural state, like many of its neighbours, has led on wind energy for a while with farms and isolated communities installing turbines long-before the emergence of the climate change debate.

A survey by Iowa State University found that only 5% of Iowans believe climate change is not happening. But only 45% believe it is happening and there is a contribution from human activity.

To attribute enthusiasm for wind energy to a desire to tackle climate change would be at best a stretch. Nonetheless, Iowa is living proof that economic prosperity and the low carbon transition can go hand in hand.

Iowa focus

Population: 3,062,309

Capital: Des Moines

US location: Mid-West in the USA, often called the ‘American Heartland’.

Governor: Terry E Branstad (R)

Senators: Chuck Grassley (R), Tom Harkin (D)

Related articles:

USA Energy Secretary Chu hails opening of first commercial tidal array in Maine

Obama administration backs biofuels as triple win for military, economy and agriculture

Video: Highlights from the first Senate Committee on climate change in 3 years

The post The United States of Climate Change #1: Wind, jobs and washing machines in Iowa appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to jp@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0900-1700 BST (GMT+1) 

Latest news – Tuesday 31 July

1738 Could the Pacific Ocean be turning more caffeinated? National Geographic News reports that in areas where waste systems are less regulated, the ocean could be becoming mildly caffeinated.

But the levels of caffeine found in these areas is still relatively low – around 45 nanograms per litre compared to your typical cup of coffee at 500,000,000 nanograms per litre.

1650 The UK business lobby, the CBI, has said that green growth could halve the UK’s trade deficit by 2015. The country is in the midst of a deepening recession but the companies operating in the green economy have bucked the trend.

1610 Another twist in the Arctic drilling saga. A Greenpeace submarine (yes, they have their own submarine) has found evidence of a larger than anticipated coral population in the Chukchi Sea near a Shell drill site. The group notes that while Shell has acknowledged the presence of the corals, they were absent from the Environment Impact Assessment for the project.

Check out the letters of protest against Greenpeace‘s protest, from the US Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources. Greenpeace’s actions are dubbed bad for Native Alaskans, marine life and mammals.

1551 Excellent blog/article in the UK Daily Telegraph by Tom Chivers – entitled: Climate change and confirmation bias: what would it take to change your mind? It comes off the back of Monday’s release of the Berkley Earth Surface Temperature final report, led by Professor Richard Muller. Muller was once (in his own words) a ‘climate sceptic’. He now believes that climate change is being caused by humans, although many sceptics still believe this is not the case.

1416 @rtcc_edking Just back from a Rio 2016 Olympics briefing with Adriana Rattes, the city’s Secretary of State for Culture. Says they are determined to use Games as a springboard for better transport and sustainable development in Rio (we know transport is an issue post Rio+20).

1300 Supermarket chain Tesco has responded to the report by the EIA (See 0940) by saying that HFC reductions were part of its wider climate strategy to halve emissions from its stores by 2020: “As part of this overarching target, we are introducing natural refrigeration units. We had hoped to roll out 150 [HFC-free] stores by the end of this year, but unfortunately the technology we initially used in our natural units failed to meet our high expectations.”

1130 BP’s results not as positive as EDF’s. The oil giant reported a quarterly $1.4 billion loss. The company had to down grade the value of refineries and shale gas assets. It was also hit by a $847m charge relating to the Deepwater Horizon disaster and its long-delayed projects in Alaska.

1030 The French utility firm EDF has said greater renewable energy output boosted its profits by 4.6% for the first half of this year. The company saw greater contributions from Hydropower and other sources, offsetting lower nuclear usage.

0940 The Environmental Investigation Agency has launched its fourth Chilling Facts report into commercial refrigeration’s impact on climate change. The study calls for a switch away from the use of HFCs, which have a warming effect hundreds of times greater than CO2.

0840 There has been a surge in demand for solar energy units in Bangladesh. Installations of small home systems are now at 55,000 a month in the country.

0835 A new study has found that bigger is better when it comes to wind turbines. The researchers found that with each doubling of size, the global warming potential, which sums up the energy required to build, transport, maintain and dispose of them, was cut by 14%.

0829 US farmers have called for the Obama administration to suspend its ethanol quota in the midst of the country’s widespread and severe drought. The US is one of the world’s largest ethanol producers but farmers say there is only one winner in the clean fuel versus food debate.

0825 A staggering 90% of businesses are unprepared for the green economy according to a report by Deloitte. Only six out of 65 companies were deemed to be ready. Check out the full story for a list of the top performers.

Top tweet

A British Company Has Found A Way To Collect Energy From Our Footsteps businessinsider.com/pavegen-system…

— Béné (@MelleBene) July 31, 2012

Image of the day

This graph shows how Arctic sea ice cover changes throughout the seasons. The black line is the average, the blue line is this year’s data so far, which is approaching record lows.

(Source: National Snow and Ice Data Center)

Reading list

The Economist assesses Germany’s ambitious, but risky, renewable energy targets.

Could the greatest threat to Greenland come from within? The Greenland government is considering opening up to mining according to The Guardian.

The post Climate Live: Calls to cancel US ethanol quota amid drought, Greenpeace sub finds coral near Shell drill site appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to ts@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0900-1700 BST (GMT+1) 

Latest news – Wednesday 25 July

1700 Military veterans and former lawmakers in the US have urged Congress to continue funding the Pentagon’s biofuel programme, saying US dependence on foreign oil has been a key factor in wars over the past two decades.

1640 A US governmental panel has criticised oil firm BP’s approach to safety prior to the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2012 saying they focused too much on the little details of personal worker safety and not on big systemic hazards.

1550 New report to be released by the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs is expected to warn that companies are worrying so much about the possible negative impacts of climate change that they are not realising the possible opportunities.

1420 Worldwatch Institute warns that global waste could double by 2050 unless materials are incorporated into a circular economy approach – where materials are reclaimed, recovered and reused.

1300 A new report from the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) – looking at how Beijing was able to slash the cities air pollution and carbon output – offers London 2012 organisers one simple solution to do the same – stop the traffic.

1145 In the UK Energy and Climate Change Secretary Ed Davey has been doing his best to maintain it’s him who is in charge of UK energy policy – and not the Chancellor George Osborne:

Ed Davey gains partial victory – for now – in row over renewables. But the #cleanenergy struggle isn’t over yet. guardian.co.uk/environment/20…

— Fiona Harvey (@fionaharvey) July 25, 2012

1130 Nepal is on the front line of climate change – we’ve got a special report from a youth group who are busy trying to educate their fellow citizens about how they can do their bit to respect the environment.

1115 The European Commission has today taken action to shore-up the EU’s Emission Trading System (ETS) by  proposing to delay the auctioning of carbon allowances. There is currently a massive over-supply of credits – some estimate it to be 1.4 Billion allowances.

Experts believe that delaying new allowances is needed to prevent further falls in the carbon price, which is already low. The move must now be agreed by Member States and the European Parliament. EU Climate Commissioner Connie Hedegaard has been busy tweeting:

#EUETS Is it wise to continue to flood an already oversupplied market? Clearly not. That’s why propose to change the auction time profile

— Connie Hedegaard (@CHedegaardEU) July 25, 2012

1100 France, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Finland, Jordan and the UK have joined the US-led Climate and Clean Air Initiative, bringing the total number of signed-up states to 21. The ‘coalition’ have pedged to take action against emissions of black carbon – or ‘soot’, methane and hydroflurocarbons (HFCs).

0900 MPs have called for the UK to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies at the next round of UNFCCC talks in Qatar. In their report the energy and climate change committee also said the UK and Europe should show political leadership and push for EU-wide 30% emissions targets for 2020.

Also in the UK, subsidies for onshore wind energy generation are to be cut by 10%, the government have announced. The Treasury is thought to have favoured a larger cut of 25%.

Cutting soot and other air pollutants could help ‘buy time’ in the fight against climate change, a senior US official has said. Seven more nations have joined the Washington-led Climate and Clean Air Initiative aimed at reducing these short-lived emissions.

An extreme melt event in Greenland occurred in mid-July causing 97% of the ices sheet’s surface to start melting, according to NASA.

Top tweets

Some of the fall-out from the Renewables Obligation announcements in the UK…

CCC: >10% unabated gas in 2030 “would neither be economically sensible nor compatible with our legislated carbon budgets”. DECC: total fudge

— Keith Allott (@KeithAllott) July 25, 2012

“Gas” section of @DECCgovuk press is clearly ridiculous. Please explain how we “meet carbon budgets” whilst “not restricting gas to backup”?

— Jenny Banks (@BanksJenny) July 25, 2012

So here we go… Renewables Obligation: DECC secures 10% wind cut but backs gas. Is this to appease Mr Osborne?: bit.ly/QBKjvU

— James Kershaw (@JamesKershawE2B) July 25, 2012

Stat of the day

The largest wind turbine in the world is 20 storeys tall and has blades the length of a soccer pitch.

Picture of the day

The NASA images showing a unusually high thawing of the Greenland ice sheet.

Credit: Nicolo E. DiGirolamo, SSAI/NASA GSFC, and Jesse Allen, NASA Earth Observatory

The post Climate Live: MPs call on UK to eliminate fossil fuel subsidies, EU takes action against emission trading surplus & NASA reports ‘extreme melt’ in Greenland appeared first on Climate Home News.

London 2012 will be the greenest ever Olympics, according to the WWF and Bioregional.

The two groups co-authored the original sustainability strategy in partnership with the organisers of the Games in 2005.

In an updated report published today assessing the organiser’s achievements, the groups confirm this year’s event will out do the sustainability levels of all previous Games.

The Olympic Park venues were praised for their high energy efficiency but the lack of renewable energy was criticised. (Source: ODA)

Although the report praised the games recycling rates during construction and the use of carbon footprints as a strategic planning tool, there were areas for improvement.

The response to the rejected proposal to construct an on-site wind turbine was criticised for having no replacement source installed.

Broader concerns surrounding the legacy of the London Games were also identified.

Despite these remaining challenges however, the authors expect the London 2012 strategy to prove influential for future events.

The full assessment of the Olympics’ performance will be released after the conclusion of the Games.

The report card in brief

The Good

-No waste direct to landfill

-Food waste to compost

-Promotion of public transport and walking to venues

-Energy efficient venues

-Increased connectivity between legacy developments and existing communities

The Bad

-Lack of promotion of healthy living

-Insufficient sustainable energy infrastructure

-Low job creation in re-manufacturing

-Athletes Village failed to become energy self-sufficient

-Failure to increase markets for recycled products

The post London 2012 declared greenest Olympics ever appeared first on Climate Home News.

– The day’s top climate change stories as chosen by RTCC
– Tweet @RTCCnewswire and use #RTCCLive hashtag
– Send your thoughts to ek@rtcc.org
– Updated from 0900 BST (GMT+1) Last updated 1800 BST

Latest news

The UAE safety regulator has cleared the way for the country to build its first nuclear power station. It is the first new nation to ‘go nuclear’ in 31 years.

Police have ended the ‘ClimateGate‘ inquiry after ruling that there is no prospect of them finding the culprit. Two batches of emails written by climate scientists at the University of East Anglia were released to the public in an attempt to discredit them.

The average Chinese person’s carbon footprint is now the same as a European’s according to a study by the European Commission. The findings are sure to carry little weight in Beijing given the source, but they are sure to provide fodder for the European delegation at the next climate negotiations in November.

New data from a Japanese satellite shows the extent of Greenland ice melt producing some dramatic imagery. It also revealed larger than expected rainfall.

While power generating technologies, wind or coal, solar or nuclear, tend to steal the headlines, the networks that move that power around our countries can be just as critical. This new deal between Ireland and the UK will allow the latter to receive excess power from Ireland’s blustery wind farms.

Greenpeace’s Arctic campaign is grabbing the headlines as its activists target Shell petrol stations, but did you spot this subtler campaign effort earlier in the year? The group carried out a number of hoaxes online but they also went a step further staging this fake, disastrous ‘Shell press event‘…

Germany’s Environment Minister Peter Altmaier has issued some cautious optimism ahead of the Doha climate change talks later this year: “There was more consensus here than I had thought possible,” he said of the Petersberg Climate Dialogue that concluded yesterday.

The UK wind energy subsidy cut continues with investors wading into the debate. They have called the ongoing debate harmful and added that the creation of new jobs could be jeopardised. The UK’s Department for Energy and Climate Change is seeking a 10% cut, but the Treasury is pressing for a 25% reduction.

The chairman of food giant Nestle has said that the “time of cheap food prices is over” and has pointed the finger squarely at biofuels.

Native Americans in the North West of the US have teamed up with climate scientists to monitor environmental changes.

Video of the day

An incredible water-free fire suppression technique from the US Defence Department’s (sometimes unorthodox) research group Darpa. The method uses sound waves to douse, an albeit small, fire. Insurance bills for the recent wildfires in Colorado that are thought to have killed six people and caused $500m of damage.

Top tweets

‘Breaking’ news: A big chunk of Greenland’s Petermann Glacier has broken lose; image from our Aqua satellite. go.nasa.gov/OQvyzV

— NASA (@NASA) July 17, 2012

Two giant bees handed the Govt an invoice for pollination services today bit.ly/NzC2oL#thebeecause

— Friends of the Earth (@wwwfoecouk) July 18, 2012

Picture of the day

Thanks to USA Today for publishing this excellent summary for detractors of the climate change negotiation process…

The post Climate Live: German Minister praises Petersberg Dialogue, Nestle in biofuel jibe and UK subsidy cuts to “cost jobs” appeared first on Climate Home News.

Renewable energy has come of age and will undergo a period of accelerated growth during the next five years, according to a report released today by the IEA energy think tank.

The Tehri dam on the Ganges River. Hydropower will be responsible for most of the growth in renewable energy generation, with India one of the largest markets. (Source: Flickr/Lingaraj GJ)

The amount of power generated from renewable sources will increase by 40% between now and 2017 as opportunities for deployment expand, according to the report.

While hydropower continues to represent the largest total share of renewable energy growth, other technologies will grow faster, reaching double digits annually in some case.

Onshore wind, bioenergy and solar PV will be the three biggest sectors for expansion after hydropower.

However, speaking at the launch of the report, they also predicted that the end of tax subsidies for renewable energy in the US would lead to a “crash” with the rate of deployment levelling-off.

So far there is no news on a replacement system to support the development of renewable sources in the US.

Despite this, the IEA predicts significant deployments in the States as well India, China, Germany and Brazil.

Related stories on RTCC.org:

ENERGY: Suzlon- Wind power soon to be cheaper than fossil fuels

POLICY: The anatomy of US energy subsidies

WATER: California’s climate change fight could increase drought risk

The post Renewable energy has “come of age” says IEA report appeared first on Climate Home News.

Wind energy will be cheaper than coal by 2020 at the latest, a senior figure from the renewable sector has said.

Speaking to RTCC, Arthur Lavieri, CEO of Suzlon Brazil, also said that the industry could chase down the remaining fossil fuels sources in the future.

As costs fall, wind energy will soon be cost competitive with fossil fuels says Suzlon Brazil CEO, Arthur Lavieri. (Source: REpower)

“The forecasts say that between 2015 and 2020, wind will beat coal [on price] and coal is the one to beat,” said Lavieri.

“Coal is still centralised, it is very dirty despite of new technologies and logistically, it is a nightmare. Logistics costs are going up, a coal power plant is also spending more and more licensing.”

Electricity from wind power may not require the purchasing of any fuels, but it does require steel, concrete and copper in relatively large quantities per unit of electricity generated as well as the purchasing or rent of the land they occupy.

The resulting spread of small generating locations must also be connected to the grid, which is more costly than plugging in one large coal, gas or nuclear plant to the network. In addition, the wind does not blow all the time, meaning it must be combined with other forms of energy that can be activated at short notice.

As long as generating electricity from fossil fuels remains cheaper than renewables, there remains an economic argument against their construction. However, as the scale of the certain sectors of  the renewables industry, particularly wind and solar, continue to grow, so the price drops.

In Brazil, the last two rounds of auctions for new electricity supply, has seen wind power offer the cheapest prices second only to large-scale hydropower, beating both coal and its cleaner cousin, gas.

“When we plot our numbers, year on year we see 3-5% more productivity from our turbines every year. They are becoming higher too. [In Brazil] every 20m higher that you go, you generate 4-9% more energy.”

All at sea

So could wind power undercut all fossil fuels for electricity generation one day?

“I think so but that is going to take longer. Figuring out when is a difficult question. [Wind] technology is still in its infancy. We are seeing in this industry, what hydropower saw 100 years ago,” he replied.

Offshore turbines are becoming large enough to incorporate helipads. (Source: Christian Eiche)

Indian firm Suzlon, one of the ten largest turbine manufacturers in the world, is now eyeing a push in offshore wind power, where higher output is offset by increased costs. But as more and more wind farms are built at sea, a drop in these costs is now perceptible.

“Offshore is starting to scale up,” he said. “Repower, a German company that Suzlon acquired, now has 1200MW on order.

Scale is not the only factor reducing the cost of electricity from offshore wind farms. The turbines are getting larger too.

“Offshore turbines and the blades are becoming bigger. Repower is about to launch a 7MW machine. These things are huge. The 6MW turbines are so large you can land a helicopter on them.”

For comparison, a typical large onshore turbine will be 2-3MW.

“Some of these blades are more than 80m. Onshore is limited to about 60m, once you go bigger than that you need to change the technology,” said Lavieri.

Once you add the height from the mast, these are much taller than the recently renamed Elisabeth Tower that houses Big Ben, its taller than St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican and stretches half way up the height of The Shard skyscraper in London.

So how big can turbines get in the future?

“We’re about to deploy 7MW. Some of our rivals in the UK have prototypes of 10MW. Offshore, the sky’s the limit.”

More Renewables stories on RTCC:

June 12: IEA says clean energy sector needs more investment

May 24: South Africa launches investment programme in wind

March 26: SEI warn metal scarcity could hit wind turbine production

VIDEO: Arthur Lavieri talks to RTCC at Rio+20

The post Suzlon: Wind power soon to be cheaper than fossil fuels appeared first on Climate Home News.

It boasts the world’s largest coal exporting facility and generates 88% of its own electricity with it. South Africa is now looking to wean itself off the black stuff and secure its erratic electricity supply.

South Africa’s electricity demand is expected to nearly double in coming decades and is already stretched to the limit. So much so that Eskom provides a half hourly status report to help the public work around potential outages.

Despite an abundance of coal, South Africa is now looking to diversify its energy mix to secure supply. (Source: RBCT)

In order to boost its renewable energy portfolio and kick the brown-outs to the kerb, the Government opened a partnership with the private sector inviting them to build and operate 3.725 GW worth of renewable projects. The results of the tender process are now being announced.

Vestas South Africa has so far been awarded contracts to supply turbines for more than a third of the total onshore wind capacity designated by the government, across seven separate projects.

“There’s been a huge undersupply of generation to meet the enormous economic growth in Africa,” says James White, sales manager, Vestas Southern and Eastern Africa.

“South Africa is a little different to the rest of the continent. We have a huge installed base of 40,000 MW but we outgrew that a few years ago. So in South Africa, we are not just bringing in renewable energy, we’re bring in independent power producers for the first time to try and meet that growing demand.”

State electricity firm Eskom is responsible for 95% of the country’s electricity at present and 45% of the supply in Africa. Opening the door to independent providers could be a sign of things to come across the continent.

The South African government's IPP scheme will focus mainly on solar and onshore wind. (Source: Vestas)

“This scheme shows how much overseas investment Africa can attract when there is a predictable and transparent process underlying it. It’s a good example for the whole continent, in energy or any other infrastructure project,” says White.

“We do have a lot of huge institutions supporting it and the other thing that is attractive about South Africa is the scale, which can’t be achieved in other markets in Africa. It’s my personal belief that these are minor issues and that the process could be scaled down,” says White.

Development

The government’s Independent Power Provider’s (IPP) scheme also involves a number of social and economic development criteria that bidding companies must address.

These include creating local jobs and using suppliers in the communities where each wind farm is being constructed.

There is also a 20% black shareholder requirement that Vestas satisfies through its Empowerment Trust.

“The trust’s specific role is to provide educational opportunities to black South Africans. Once the projects start making money, so will the trust. It will work with other large, broad-based charitable trusts already heavily involved in educational programmes in the country,” says White.

All at sea

The IPP has designated 1850 MW of its 3725 MW to onshore wind development with solar awarded 1450 MW.

While offshore wind is gathering speed in the US and northern Europe, White believes it is not realistic for the country at present, despite its 2800km long coastline.

“Offshore wind is not an option. The continental shelf drops off very quickly so until there is an advance in floating turbines that can work in deepwater, we won’t see it in Southern and Eastern Africa soon,” he says.

Despite the good progress, White is not carried away by the strides the government has made in “creating a very positive landscape for renewables”.

He knows all too well that the abundance of fossil fuels casts a dark shadow over fledgling renewable technologies.

“Wave and tidal energy is another interesting area…but you must remember there’s a lot of oil exploration in Africa and a huge coal resource too. I don’t see these [African] markets moving away from that in the foreseeable future.

“Renewable energy provides a diversification of the energy mix but Oil, gas and large-scale hydro will dominate for the foreseeable.”

Related Stories:

PODCAST: Heating water from South African rooftops

Solar revolution could bring power to 1.4 billion people

IEA: Overseas aid to Africa outweighed by oil imports

The post Can South Africa spark a clean energy revolution across the continent? appeared first on Climate Home News.

In his second video blog for RTCC, Tom Burke, founding director of sustainability consultancy E3G and a former executive director of Friends of the Earth explains how falling costs and improving technologies have left governments as the single largest remaining obstacle.

Tom Burke on the potential of renewables from Responding to Climate Change on Vimeo.

Filmed by John Parnell and Tierney Smith

Related stories on RTCC:

Burke’s Blog #1: Why nuclear is not the answer

COMMENT: Why pooling Europe’s energy makes sense

Shell energy expert: Renewables switch could take 30 years

The post Burke’s Blog #2: UK energy guru says politicians are major renewables hurdle appeared first on Climate Home News.

Mexico is undergoing a major energy transformation that will see a flurry of investment in wind energy during this decade.

A Walmart funded wind farm in Mexico. (Source: Flickr/Walmart)

The country’s installed wind capacity will grow from 2GW at the end of 2012 to 12 GW by 2020, according to the AMEE, Mexico’s wind energy association.

The UN ranks Mexico as the 11th largest producer of CO2 emissions globally meaning a shift to a cleaner energy supply can have significant consequences for global levels. It currently sources 88.9% of its energy from fossil fuels.

The majority of the new wind farms are planned for the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, the narrowest strip of land between the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Gulf of Mexico to the east, where the average wind speed is 25 mph.

According to the country’s government, it could potentially supply 139% of its current electricity demand from wind power.

Last month, Mexico introduced radical new climate change laws that include a 50% reduction in CO2 emissions by 2050 and a target to source 35% of its electricity from renewable sources by 2024.

The post Mexico embarks on ambitious clean energy roll-out appeared first on Climate Home News.

New study finds that wind turbines could increase night-time temperatures (© Rural Learning Center/Creative Commons)

Wind farms can affect local weather and raise night-time temperatures on the ground, according to new research.

The study published in Nature Climate Change, used satellite data to show that land around newly constructed wind turbines in Texas warmed more than surrounding areas.

While results varied, averaged out the researchers found a warming of about 0.72°C per decade.

They believe this is caused by turbines bringing warmer air down to ground level.

The results were seen to be most prominent at night, when the ground becomes cooler than the air just above the surface.

“The result in the paper looks pretty solid to me,” said Professor Steven Sherwood, co-director of the Climate Change Research Centre at the University of New South Wales.

“And it shows that night-time temperatures went up by about a half a degree in the summer where the wind farm is. Daytime temperatures do not appear to be affected.

“This makes sense, since at night the ground becomes much cooler than the air just a few hundred metres above the surface, and the wind farms generate gentle turbulence near the ground that causes these to mix together, thus the ground doesn’t get quite as cool.

“The same strategy is commonly used by fruit growers (who fly helicopters over the orchards rather than windmills) to combat early morning frosts.”

The researchers suggest that turbines in other places might not result in the same temperature change as those seen in Texas.

The study area saw a major wind-farm programme in the middle of the last decade, with the number of installed windmills going from 111 in 2003 to 2325 in just six years.

The study examined data from NASA’s Aqua and Terra satellites that measured ground temperature across the region. They compared temperatures at the beginning and the end of the construction period.

While the whole region saw a rise in temperatures, this was more extreme around the wind farms.

See the full study here.

The post Wind farms could affect local weather appeared first on Climate Home News.

It is one of a number of planned projects to tie together the continent’s electricity networks and spreading the benefits of renewable resources.

Ilesh Patel and Vladimir Parail of the Redpoint Energy consultancy explain why EU red tape could still hold back plans for a European supergrid.

A pan-continental supergrid could trigger a new dawn for the European energy market.(Source: Flickr/Theodore Scott)

A co-ordinated and substantial increase in the level of interconnection between national electricity markets can bring a variety of benefits.

It can improve security of energy supply and enable greater penetration of intermittent, weather-dependent renewables, such as wind and solar, by allowing supply shocks to be offset by output in neighbouring interconnected markets.

So for example, if bad weather cuts supply from Germany’s solar panel installations, it can be replaced with excess electricity from UK offshore wind, powered by the same bad weather.

Without more interconnectors, the cost associated with building new flexible capacity to manage intermittency of renewable generation could be significantly greater than would otherwise be required.

Lowering bills

By promoting cross-border trade in electricity, it can lower consumers’ bills by increasing use of the cheapest supply sources in the connected markets. This would also enable the least polluting generation sources to be utilised where it is economic to do so.

It can also contribute towards the development of the EU single market and economic integration between, and the optimal use of, resources across EU member states.

The European Commission (EC) has identified a need for $92 billion of investment in an additional 35GW of electricity interconnection capacity plus additional investment in offshore transmission to support renewables.

Currently, however, Southern Europe, Great Britain and Ireland are continuing to experience significant bottlenecks.

The capital required to achieve policy objectives may be beyond the finances of many European Transmission System Operators (TSOs), particularly given the forecast economic climate of the next few years.

TSOs are already committed to spending on upgrades to existing infrastructure and to connect new renewable sources.

European Union (EU) regulation on electricity interconnectors allows for merchant interconnectors to be exempt from regulation and be built alongside regulated links. However, the perception, based on recent decisions, is that such exemption is prohibitively difficult to obtain, deterring investment.

The EU target model for congestion management on electricity interconnectors envisages full market coupling between EU member states, with day-ahead implicit auctions determining allocation of the interconnector capacity within connected markets.

However, full market coupling may be incompatible with other policy developments in some EU electricity markets, most notably the introduction of market-wide capacity payments.

The Supergrid

A supergrid would allow offshore wind resources from the UK, Ireland and Norway to be redistributed across Europe. (Source: Vestas)

If non-domestic generators are to be made eligible for capacity payments, firm physical access to interconnection capacity would be a necessary requirement.

Furthermore, the introduction of capacity payments has the potential to significantly distort cross border flows with full market coupling.

Finally, rapid deployment of offshore renewable generation and the need to connect this generation to national transmission grids has raised the possibility of co-ordination between renewable developers and interconnectors, as well as the development of a wider “supergrid”.

Currently, however, the EU regulation is not well suited to such co-ordination. For example, Third Party Access provisions do not favour firm access to interconnection capacity for generation over regular interconnector flows.

Overall, there is no pan-European licensing, regulatory and commercial framework to enable such co-ordination to take place.

In conclusion, rapid developments in EU electricity markets have overtaken the EU target model in several important respects and created an urgent need for regulation to be adapted to those developments in order to enable the full benefits of interconnection to be realised.

The post COMMENT: Why pooling Europe’s energy makes sense appeared first on Climate Home News.

The solar industry is creating jobs on both sides of the Atlantic (Source: flickr/WalmartStores)

The number of people employed in the renewable energy industry in Europe passed the 1 million mark for the first time, according to new figures released today.

The EurObserv’ER State of the Renewable Energies in Europe report puts the number of people employed in the industry at 1.11 million across Europe.

Solid biomass employs the most people with 273,000. Solar has overtaken wind for the first time as the second largest employer with 268,110 and 253,145 respectively.

In the US, the solar sector employs 100,000 people, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.

The EurObserv’ER report is released in the midst of a backlash in the UK against onshore windfarms.

A group of more than 100 MPs wrote to the Prime Minister last week calling for a cut to the £400 million subsidy for onshore wind.

They say attention should be turned to offshore wind farms instead where a more reliable supply of wind energy is possible and there are few planning issues.

Data from WWF and RenewableUK shows the location of opposed MPs’ constituencies coincides with the location of proposed, planned or operational wind farms.

The post Europe hits 1 million jobs in renewable energy but discontent remains appeared first on Climate Home News.

Falling technology costs have offset cuts in supportive policies for clean energy (Source: flickr/twicepix)

Additional policy support for clean energy is diminishing despite record investment levels, according to a report released by Deutsche Bank’s (DB) Climate Change Advisor’s service.

The investment research branch of the bank has tracked the emergence of more than 414 policies supporting renewable energy in China, the EU, Russia, India and many others. However, the development of new policies slowed in 2011.

DB Climate Change Advisor’s 2011: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly report shows a clear levelling-off in government support for clean energy schemes.

In the US, the Production Tax Credit for the wind sector has not yet been renewed for 2012 leaving major renewable firms, including Vestas, to raise doubts about their future activities in the US.

Cuts in the subsidy for solar panels in the UK has caused significant investor disruption.

The Indian Government has also announced that it will be closing its current wind farm tax break at the end of this tax year.

Despite these setbacks, investment in renewable energy from the private sector rose by 5% to $260 billion in 2011, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

“The global investment community is on the move – investor awareness of climate risk has never been more clear,” Kevin Parker, Global Head of Deutsche Bank Asset Management recently told a Climate Risk and Energy investor summit.

“Several critical factors are aligning now and the view at Deutsche Bank is that renewable energy will be able to offer very positive returns in the near future,” added Parker.

The post Clean energy investment soars but government support slides away appeared first on Climate Home News.

As offshore wind becomes more economical, this sight could become synonymous with coastal areas (Source: Jimmedia/Flickr)

In the first instalment of the RTCC Wind Week debate, Jean-Pierre Huguet of the European Platfrom Against Wind (EPAW) tells us why wind is not the future for energy security in Europe*.

By nature the wind is changing continuously in speed and the wind forecast cannot be predicted with accuracy.

These two factors impact directly on the production of electricity from wind, which is highly erratic. These fluctuations can create an energy deficit that must be immediately compensated for.

The only way to do that is to dedicate fast-response power plants to make up the shortfall. These of course must be fossil fuel-powered and would require specific additional investment.

These plants are usually low-efficiency gas engine or steam turbines, with high CO2 emissions.

Offshore wind farms are of high unitary capacity and concentrated in a few large sites (200-600 MW each) where management of rapid power fluctuations is raising critical issues. Effectively, each site reacts as if it were one single enormous wind turbine.

As an example, a 17-month survey conducted between May 2010 and October 2011 at the 180 MW Robin Rigg wind farm in the UK indicated that while overall efficiency was 30%, there were large production swings varying from 0 to 100% during short periods of just one or two hours.

Efficiency was below 5% during 30% of the time.

During four consecutive days, efficiency was below 1%.

In December 2010 while a cold wave was covering Europe for a month, creating peaks of electricity demand, the site efficiency was below 5% during 50% on the time.

Meeting demand

The absence of a guarantee between wind energy availability and demand is another constraint difficult to overcome. Frequently wind farms produce too much with low demand and not enough when demand is high.

Furthermore, existing and forecasted sites along the European Atlantic and North Sea coasts are exposed to the they face similar wind patterns brought by the windy low pressure coming from the West or low winds associated with high pressure from the North East.

Consequently a wind farms’ output has the same behaviour. To make it more complicated, electricity peak demand occurs at low temperatures with the gentle winds and high pressure from the north east.

So it is hardly believable that wind farm production deficits in one area can be compensated by another region as they are likely to be experiencing the same conditions across a national electricity grid.

The current European grid has limited interconnecting capabilities (less than 10%) and would not meet high-quality power supply requirements to even out the shortfall in one particular location.

Although this would generate a lot of electricity losses in the network due to the long distances involved, a new ad-hoc “smart grid” could achieve this. But with the project cost estimated at €500 billion (IEA) it is for the time being, wishful thinking.

The solutions to wind energy’s intermittency require either back-up power plants reliant on volatile fossil fuel imports or a European “smart grid”, which does not exist.

Energy security by definition requires no dependencies on external sources that are susceptible to natural events or political unrest.

There are more constraints brought by offshore wind farms than addressed in this article, for example the high cost per MWh making it economically unviable without subsidies, the environmental damage caused during installation, overestimated CO2 emission reductions and the downsizing of fishing areas.

It is clear to PULSE that in the quest to attain energy security for Europe, we cannot rely on offshore wind energy.

Jean-Pierre Huguet is a member of the French Collective for Coastlines Without Wind Turbines  PULSE, which is a member organisation of EPAW

*Nick Molho of WWF UK will argue the ‘for’ motion tomorrow.

The post Comment: Why wind is not the answer appeared first on Climate Home News.

In the first article of RTCC’s week-long focus on wind, Maria McCaffery, Chief Executive of RenewableUK, the trade association representing the wind, wave and tidal energy industries, looks at whether 2012 could be the start of a wind boom.

By Maria McCaffery

The wind industry is in a buoyant mood at the start of 2012.

Several key Government announcements made within the last six months show a commitment in Westminster and Whitehall to building the low-carbon economy this country needs and deserves.

Renewable UK welcomed the publication of DECC’s Renewable Energy Roadmap in July, which sets targets of 18 gigawatts (GW) of installed capacity for offshore wind by 2020, and 13GW for onshore.

We currently have 5.8GW installed, and we are confident that we can meet these ambitious targets, as the deployment curve continues to rise steadily upwards.

Certainty in support

On the issue of financial support for the wind industry, the long-awaited Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) banding review announcement finally came in October.

We were pleased to note the Government’s commitment to boost financial support for wave and tidal projects to 5 ROCs from 2013.

Although the plans to downgrade the level of financial support for onshore wind from 2013 onwards (from 1 ROC to 0.9), and offshore wind from 2015 (2 ROCS to 1.9 in 2015, and 1.8 ROCs in 2016) will have an impact in deployment, we recognise that the reduction might have been even greater, so we are determined to work with Government in a positive manner on this issue.

RenewableUK scored a major victory by assuring that various amendments were made to the Government’s Localism Bill, such as the removal of a provision for local referendums on planning issues, which could have seriously damaged onshore deployment levels.

This shows that the Government is listening to our concerns, and adjusting its plans accordingly.

We’re awaiting further details on the Government’s plans for Electricity Market Reform (EMR).

We have accepted the principle of a Contracts for Difference Feed-in Tariff which will replace the ROC, but we need to see more detail on how this new financial support mechanism will work in practice.

The green jobs reality

The wind energy sector has huge job creation potential says Maria McCaffery, CEO, RenewableUK

Job creation in the wind industry is continuing even though other sectors are contracting during the economic downturn.

In December alone, Siemens submitted a planning application to build a wind turbine factory in Hull which will employ 700 people, and many more in the supply chain.

The wind turbine tower manufacturer Mabey Bridge in Chepstow announced plans to double its workforce to nearly 200, and to operate 24 hours a day to meet demand.

Announcements like these serve to boost business confidence and optimism at the start of 2012.

RenewableUK has published a report demonstrating the employment potential of the sector between now and 2021, outlining various market development scenarios.

Under the medium growth scenario, nearly 90,000 people will be working in the wind and marine energy sectors (including the supply chain) by 2021. Research such as this strengthens the mood of optimism in this dynamic sector.

In October, RenewableUK announced the creation of a new organisation called the Renewables Training Network (RTN), which aims to tackle the critical skills shortages within the sector.

I’m confident that the RTN will start to make a real impact in 2012, helping to provide courses at every level for workers wanting to make the transition into industries we represent.

We also have to emphasise the message that we are committed to driving down costs. We are proud that ReneweableUK’s Chairman, Andrew Jamieson, has been appointed Head of the Offshore Wind Cost Reduction Taskforce.

Their aim is to bring the levelised cost of electricity generated offshore down to £100 per megawatt hour (MWh).

We are determined to show that we are committed to offering value for money to the consumer.

Maria McCaffery MBE, Chief Executive, RenewableUK, the trade association representing the wind, wave and tidal energy industries

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Send us your thoughts on wind via our Facebook site

The post Maria McCaffery: 2012 the year for wind to fly appeared first on Climate Home News.

Home using solar energy (Source: UN/Eskinder Debebe)

Ensuring universal access to energy will mean $1 trillion of investment by 2030, according to a new report from the International Energy Agency (IEA), with 60 per cent going to sub-Saharan Africa.

The report “Energy for all: Financing access for the poor” – an early release of the 2011 World Energy Report – calls for financial help to aid the 1.4 million people still living without electricity.

Maria van der Hoeven, IEA Executive Director says: “In too many countries today, children cannot do their homework because they have no light. Food cannot be kept because there is no electricity. In short, modern society cannot function.”

Coming ahead of the UN’s ‘International Year of Sustainable Energy for All’, the report calls for rapid collective action to address energy poverty, with $48 billion worth of extra investment needed every year to 2030 to ensure every community and every household has access to electricity and clean cooking facilities.

Over 550 million of those without electricity are currently living in Africa – rising to around 650 million by 2030. The whole of sub-Saharan Africa – excluding South Africa – currently only generates 28 GW of electricity, the same amount as generated in Argentina.

The IEA say 60 per cent of the total investment should be focussed on this area.

Around 25 countries in sub-Saharan Africa face an energy crisis, and are plagued by rolling blackouts, according to the World Bank. High power tariffs in the region, $0.13 per Kwh compared to $0.04 to $0.08 per Kwh in most parts of the developing world, make electricity inaccessible for most households.

Africa is a continent that sees a hugely uneven distribution of these resources; meaning huge gains for some and energy crisis for others – particularly those in rural regions.

Smita Nakhooda, Research Fellow at the Oversea’s Development Institute told RTCC: “The big challenge is the scale of the problem. In many sub-Saharan African countries less than 10 per cent of the population have access to electricity and those who do trend to be in urban areas, where energy is not only most used but most easily distributed.

“The other part of the challenge is getting investment in countries which are very poor and have a history of conflict and the regulatory environment to attract private investment is not as strong. You have to frame the access to energy right, linking it with development and post conflict security building.”

Electrification, particularly in rural areas, has historically relied heavily on government subsidies and public investment.

Speaking at the launch of the report Erik Solheim, Norwegian Minister for the Environment and International Development, echoed the need to attract private investment. Currently uncertainty about the risks of investing in these countries provides key obstacles to private sector investment.

Projects such as Lighting Africa – a joint programme from the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation – looks to identify and mitigate these barriers, and support the development of commercial off-grid lighting markets in sub-Saharan Africa.

It aims to bring safe, affordable and modern off-grid lighting to 250 million people by 2030. Off-grid and renewables projects have huge potential in the region, where connecting to the national grid is difficult.

The post $1 trillion needed to ensure electricity for all appeared first on Climate Home News.