A finance mechanism that retires coal power stations and replaces them with new renewable energy capacity is gathering steam in the United States. But challenges remain in making this seemingly simple solution mainstream
Early successes with a market-led financial innovation that stimulates the displacement of coal by renewables could turbo-charge the energy transition everywhere
FINANCIAL SENSE
Replacing fossil fuel power supply with renewables can help lower costs for consumers otherwise stuck with increasingly expensive electricity from dirty sources
HUGE POTENTIAL
The model can facilitate the removal of large numbers of coal power stations in a way that is responsible, affordable and provides money for job retraining
KEY QUOTE
It is not as simple as walking into someone’s boardroom and saying you can save them money by doing something that is also good for the world—that doesn’t get you as far as you would think
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As the clean energy industry forges ahead into new markets, sometimes with technologies yet to stand the test of time, conditions for obtaining insurance for renewable energy facilities have tightened significantly, particularly for the increasing number of projects built in areas susceptible to natural disasters
Natural gas has not yet reached its peak in the US, but the summit is in view
Europe’s electricity industry is decarbonising at an increasing pace, with the rise of renewables and drop in coal-based power generation. But progress on the ground will be bigger once the remaining barriers are removed, argues Eurelectric’s Kristian Ruby
The big names of the corporate world will not achieve the energy transition alone. Companies of all sizes have a part to play
It is beyond discussion that the global climate emergency calls for solutions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and requires decarbonisation. Often, the spotlight is aimed at renewable energy as the solution, but in fact, we can achieve 44% of the required global reductions by capturing the potential of energy efficiency, argues Lars Knaack of Novenco
By competing with each other in clean transport technology, Europe and China have the opportunity to keep oil prices, demand and production down, says Carl Pope, environmentalist and climate advisor to Michael Bloomberg
As economic activity declined under the pandemic so did demand for electricity. Fossil fuel generation was squeezed off the grid by renewable energy projects with lower marginal costs. Fears that the higher proportion of fluctuating supply would destabilise power systems proved unfounded and grids remained stable. If renewables are to be tasked with keeping the grid secure, alternative mechanisms, already available, must be introduced soon
The mining and cement industries contribute over 10% of the world’s CO₂ emissions but demand in both industries remains high. It is, therefore, imperative that decarbonisation efforts should be accelerated, argues Thomas Schulz, CEO of engineering firm FLSmidth
The biggest barrier in the transition to electric vehicles is the lack of charging infrastructure. While large-scale projects will ultimately deliver the most effective results, traction will come from multiple smaller applications and innovations, argues Jean-Christoph Heyne from Siemens’ Future Grids business unit