The Jolt: Don’t call it a comeback

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Introducing The Jolt, a new series from FORESIGHT Climate & Energy, which will keep you updated on all the essential energy transition stories

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Welcome to today’s episode of The Jolt by FORESIGHT Climate & Energy. In a world underpinned by climate and energy stories, it is sometimes hard to cut through the cacophony of noise and get to the news you need to hear.

This is where The Jolt comes in. Tune in on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for bite-sized updates, expert analysis and a global view.

We kick off with a look at the major global climate and energy news stories.

What you need to know

Here are some of the main climate and energy stories making the news around the world:

The global shift to renewables is “unstoppable”, according to the International Energy Agency’s latest outlook report. Half of the world’s electricity will be sourced from clean sources by 2030 but fossil fuel phaseouts are progressing at too slow a pace for the globe to stay within 1.5℃ of warming above pre-industrial levels.
UK energy bills will increase again next year and will not dip below pre-crisis levels for the rest of the decade, analysts predict. Costs will rise from an average of £96 (€110) per megawatt-hour to nearly £130 (€149).
California now has enough storage capacity to power 6.6 million homes for up to four hours, new data shows. The state has 6600 megawatts (MW) installed, with another 1900 MW due to come online by the end of the year.
Japan signed a floating offshore wind agreement with Denmark. The two countries will aim to set global standards for the sector and Japan is scheduled to publish a full strategy in March 2024.
China smashed another clean energy record by installing 129 gigawatts (GW) of solar PV between January and September. This is more PV capacity freshly added to China’s grid than Germany has in total.
Nigeria is set to receive 500 mini-grid installations powered by solar to help rural and isolated communities gain access to electricity. US firm Husk Power Systems secured $100 million for the project, which is backed by the US International Development Finance Corporation and the European Investment Bank, among others.
Seventy-five percent of Brazil’s total emissions are indirectly caused by food production, as deforested land is used for grazing pastures and crop fields. Brazil is the world’s fifth biggest polluter and its beef sector alone would make the top ten if it was a country. Next week’s Policy Dispatch episode will dive deeper into what Brazil is doing to halt and reverse its climate-wrecking ways.

Today’s big story

Don’t call it a comeback

Image MidJourney / Prompts FORESIGHT.

Europe’s wind sector has slumped in recent years thanks to supply chain constraints caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and inflation wreaking havoc on investment decisions. In 2022, 16 GW was installed in the EU – a record – but according to trade body WindEurope, 31 GW is needed every year to hit climate targets.
The EU’s executive branch, the European Commission, yesterday published a new package of rules and measures aimed at revitalising the sector. It includes extra support to improve permitting and auction design.
By the end of the year, the Commission will make available an online platform that governments can use to digitalise their permitting processes. On auction design, the EU executive wants national authorities to include non-price criteria in tenders, such as sustainability standards and cybersecurity checks and measures.
Energy commissioner Kadri Simson says, “If we are going to spend billions on projects, we should mitigate the risks for implementation, the level playing field and security.”

“We want wind power to continue to be a European success story”

Morten Petersen, a Danish member of the European Parliament, welcomed the new package, saying it was much needed by the sector.
Petersen added that it will benefit not just the wind sector, as permitting and auction improvements will be a boon for other renewable energy generators.

Check out the latest episode of Watt Matters, which digs into how Poland’s recent election result will affect energy and climate thinking, and stay tuned for a new article on district heating.

Audio clip credits:

C-SPAN YouTube

European Commission Audiovisual Service

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