Tag: fossil fuel

The US has a Hydrogen Demand Problem – Despite Generous Incentives

The US has a Hydrogen Demand Problem – Despite Generous Incentives

November 25, 2024 | ,

The primary challenge to the widespread uptake of low-emissions hydrogen in the US continues to be reducing the cost gap between that hydrogen and its fossil fuel–based equivalent without resorting to stringent measures that force end-users to switch to lower-carbon solutions. The US government has initially supported hydrogen supply mainly through generous PTCs (up to $3/kilogram) that are structured to incentivize lower carbon intensity hydrogen. This post introduces measures drawn from the hydrogen sector and beyond in other countries that could be used to address this issue, whether at the federal or state level or by the private sector.

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Green Energy Potential Across Central Asia and the Caucasus

Green Energy Potential Across Central Asia and the Caucasus

November 25, 2024 | ,

This study analyses the current electricity mix, untapped renewable energy potential and energy transition commitments across Central Asia and the Caucasus. It highlights the role of green energy corridors in strengthening regional connectivity and enabling cost-effective expansion of renewables. Central Asia and the Caucasus represent a diverse region with vast potential for green energy corridors to enable large-scale renewable energy development. With the spotlight turning to Azerbaijan and its surrounding region as COP29 gets underway, one of the focuses would be ‘green energy corridors’, using interconnection and regional collaboration to enable renewables growth.

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Role of G20 in Promoting Energy Transition: Report

Role of G20 in Promoting Energy Transition: Report

November 22, 2024 | ,

This report “The Role of the G20 in Promoting Green and Just Transitions” by OECD focuses on climate change and the serious threats it poses to human lives and livelihoods, particularly for the poorest and most vulnerable and on the opportunities brought by green transitions. This report begins by exploring the purpose of green and just transitions as the world community moves towards sustainable development. Then the report seeks to identify the opportunities and synergies involved in taking an integrated and co-ordinated approach to the green and just transitions.

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Catalysing Change: Green hydrogen fuelling India’s transition to a low-carbon economy

Catalysing Change: Green hydrogen fuelling India’s transition to a low-carbon economy

November 18, 2024 | ,

Green hydrogen is a catalyst for India’s transition to a low-carbon economy. It offers a sustainable energy solution that harnesses renewable sources to decarbonise industries and reduce reliance on fossil fuels. This clean energy carrier has the potential to significantly decrease imports of fossil fuels and support India in achieving its climate goals. With a robust and evolving electricity grid infrastructure, India is well positioned to provide reliable and steady power necessary for green hydrogen production.

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COP29 Energy developments: steps forward, acceleration needed

COP29 Energy developments: steps forward, acceleration needed

November 18, 2024 |

At the end of the first week of COP29, discussions on furthering energy transition goals and delivering the COP28 energy package in negotiations could do with a boost. While there are positive signals, these are largely outside the formal negotiations, and many gaps remain. The global energy transition requires urgent action with clear policies, targets, and a massive scale up of annual investment – to around $4.8tn/year by 2030, reaching $5.3tn/year by 2035 globally.  Within this, Emerging and Developing Economies (EMDEs), excluding China, will need $1.6tn by 2030 and $2.1tn by 2035. Failure to deliver on this will increase the risk of missing our clean energy targets.

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Southeast Asia Energy Outlook 2024: IEA Report

Southeast Asia Energy Outlook 2024: IEA Report

October 24, 2024 | , ,

Southeast Asia is a very dynamic region and a driving force behind global energy trends, with a projected rise in energy demand over the coming decades second only to India. Eight of the ten countries in Southeast Asia have net zero emissions goals: Brunei Darussalam, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Singapore and Viet Nam have set a target date of 2050; Indonesia of 2060; and Thailand of 2065. Fossil fuels – led by coal – have met nearly 80% of Southeast Asia’s rising energy demand since 2010. At a time of heightened geopolitical tensions, energy security and affordability remain top priorities for Southeast Asia. The region’s energy future looks different from its past, but demand for all the major energy sources continues to rise in the STEPS.

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Building Moldova’s Renewable Energy Infrastructure: Presentation

Building Moldova’s Renewable Energy Infrastructure: Presentation

October 24, 2024 | , ,

The Republic of Moldova is importing almost 100% of fossil energy resources (gas, gasoline, diesel, LPG,…) and about 70% of its electricity demands. To transition towards a carbon-neutral future, the Republic of Moldova should untap its renewable energy potential and invest in renewable energy infrastructure. Over the past years, the Republic of Moldova has shown strong political will to implement energy market reforms as a precondition for energy transition, enhanced energy security and climate change mitigation. Within the Energy Community Treaty, the Republic of Moldova has adopted the core EU energy and environment legislation.

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Energy Outlook for EU and Eurasia: IEA

Energy Outlook for EU and Eurasia: IEA

October 21, 2024 | ,

The drive to decarbonise power generation and the impacts of the energy crisis together have brought the cost structures of electricity systems in EUs member states under close scrutiny. Clean energy transitions depend heavily on electrification and expansion of renewables, both of which require significant changes in electricity systems. The diversity of electricity mixes and decarbonisation pathways chosen by the various member states adds to the challenges. Russia plays an outsized role in the energy architecture of the region, but the continuing war between Russia and Ukraine, following Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, is shifting priorities and creates huge uncertainty for projections of energy demand and supply.

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Potential of low-emissions hydrogen in Latin American and Caribbean Region

Potential of low-emissions hydrogen in Latin American and Caribbean Region

October 6, 2024 | , ,

Based on announced projects, Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) could produce over 7 Mtpa of low-emissions hydrogen by 2030, but only about 0.1% of these projects is in operation, under construction or has reached a final investment decision. Deployment is still nascent. The high cost of capital in the region remains a barrier, and could undermine the competitive production costs from its strong renewable resources. In addition, a massive expansion of renewable capacity would be needed – if all hydrogen projects in the pipeline come to fruition, wind and solar PV generation would need to increase by 140% within this decade for hydrogen production alone.  Action is required in the short term to unlock LAC’s potential, balancing domestic demand with export ambitions.

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Energy Trends in UK: Paper

Energy Trends in UK: Paper

October 3, 2024 | , ,

Renewable electricity generation increased 19 per cent in the second quarter of 2023 with the share of generation from renewable sources reaching a record high at 51.6 per cent of total generation. UK generation of electricity hit a record low at 63.5 TWh. The drop in electricity generation from gas contributed to a record low for the fossil fuel share of 26.6 per cent. Total final energy consumption was 1 per cent higher than in the second quarter of 2023.

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China Postpones Coal Power: Brief

China Postpones Coal Power: Brief

August 23, 2024 | , ,

Following the accelerated permitting of over 100 gigawatts (GW) of new coal power annually in 2022 and 2023, China has abruptly curtailed approvals for new coal power plants, approving just twelve projects totaling 9 GW in H1 2024, an 83% decline compared to H1 2023. New and revived proposals in H1 2024 totaling 37.4 GW are also trending lower than in H1 2023 (60.2 GW) and H1 2022 (47.8 GW), indicating a possible tapering of new project development – although not at the same pace as the permit slowdown. Since 2023, China has added over 400 GW of new solar and wind power, driving down China’s coal power generation by 7% from June 2023 to June 2024.

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Cleantech Revolution and Decline of Fossil Fuel Systems: Brief

Cleantech Revolution and Decline of Fossil Fuel Systems: Brief

June 14, 2024 | ,

This presentation “The Cleantech Revolution” prepared by RMI charts how the energy system is being disrupted by the exponential forces of renewables, electrification, and efficiency. The past decade has seen remarkable progress and growth in cleantech. Cleantech costs have fallen by up to 80 percent, while investment is up nearly 10 times and solar generation has risen 12 times. Meanwhile, electricity has grown to become the largest source of useful energy, and the deep force of efficiency has reduced energy demand by a fifth.

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Corporate PPA Trends in Japan: Presentation

Corporate PPA Trends in Japan: Presentation

June 7, 2024 | , ,

Corporate PPAs are becoming popular in Japan to procure renewable electricity for business and industrial use. Under the current circumstances, where the price of fossil fuels remains high while the decarbonization of businesses is required, the benefits of corporate PPAs are being recognized from both economic and environmental perspectives. This information package puts together the latest trends in corporate PPAs in Japan as of April 2024.

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Solar Projects on Mine Lands and Landfills in the US

Solar Projects on Mine Lands and Landfills in the US

June 3, 2024 | ,

Two new federal laws provide incentives to support renewable energy production on mine lands and brownfields. Specifically, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA, 2021) and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA, 2022) include significant tax credit and financing programs to offset the additional costs of developing on brownfields and other degraded lands. IRA establishes a $250 billion loan program to finance projects that repurpose former fossil energy infrastructure to support clean power generation.

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Policies for Decarbonization of Chemical Industry in US

Policies for Decarbonization of Chemical Industry in US

May 27, 2024 | ,

The chemical industry needs a comprehensive decarbonization plan. The chemical industry is responsible for more than a quarter of U.S. gross domestic product and almost 10% of U.S. exports. Decarbonization of this sector will require policy developments on multiple fronts given the volume of products and the intersecting waste, toxicity, and climate threats that business-as-usual strategies pose.

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Energy Transition and Geopolitics: World Economic Forum

Energy Transition and Geopolitics: World Economic Forum

May 10, 2024 | ,

This paper “Energy Transition and Geopolitics: Are Critical Minerals the New Oil?” by WEF identifies an array of “no regrets” policy initiatives that can help ensure that “trading places” does not have adverse economic and environmental consequences. Among these is helping markets operate more effectively, such as by creating more transparency of data about transactions and the encouragement of forward markets that will make it easier to signal scarcity and finance new supplies.

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South Korea’s transition away from fossil fuels is delayed

South Korea’s transition away from fossil fuels is delayed

April 1, 2024 | , ,

South Korea’s energy security policies and business strategies have been misconstrued to focus on securing fossil fuels for power supply stability and affordability.  South Korea’s transition away from fossil fuels has been slow, despite ambitious targets set in its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) to reduce fossil fuel use in the power sector to 23.7% and increase renewable energy to 30.6% by 2036. In 2023, fossil fuels still accounted for 58.5% of the power mix, while renewable energy contributed only 9.64%.

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China Misses Climate Targets: Report

China Misses Climate Targets: Report

March 1, 2024 | , ,

In 2021, the country committed to strictly limiting coal consumption growth; strictly controlling new coal power; reducing energy intensity; and reducing carbon intensity; it also set targets of increasing the share of non-fossil energy sources to 20%; and getting more than 50% of the increase in energy use from renewable sources. All of these targets are severely off track after 2023. Almost half (46%) of the growth in energy use came from coal and 70% from fossil fuels, against a target of getting more than 50% of the growth from renewable energy, target that is off track.

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