A company called German Pellets has filed for insolvency. As recently as 2013, it was the largest pellet producer in the world. Low oil prices were given as one reason for this development, but that’s not all. Craig Morris reports.
All posts tagged: USA
The “Chinese Dream” of Shale Gas as a Bridge Fuel
International Energy Policy: Shifting Towards Renewables
While the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) is now established as a global voice for renewable energies, the International Energy Agency (IEA) is coming under increased pressure to modernise. Sybille Röhrkasten explains.
What the US Keystone protests and the German nuclear phase-out have in common
People who want to change the world need to understand why some campaigns are successful while others aren’t. One US commentator has investigated the Keystone campaign’s success in this respect. The overlapping with the German nuclear phase-out is salient. By Craig Morris.
How lax EU standards could enter the US
Europeans fear that the TTIP free trade agreement between the United States and the EU would water down their environmental standards, but the recent diesel emissions scandal shows that the opposite could be the case. Craig Morris explains.
Citibank: How investments in clean energy can save trillions
For years, critics have attacked renewables by arguing that a transition to clean energies would be a money-losing business. Today, even Citibank estimates that transitioning to clean energy will globally save an estimated $1.8 trillion in comparison to a business-as-usual scenario by 2040. Karin Rives summarizes their findings.
Renewable energy and the need for storage: Lessons to be learned from the situation in Germany
According to conventional wisdom, renewable energy needs storage options. While it is true that a completely renewable energy system would need mechanisms to balance supply and demand, there is surprisingly little need for energy storage until renewables reach a really high share in the power mix. Martin Tampier reviews the scientific literature and looks at the implications for North America.
The right lessons from the Energiewende
Foreign onlookers are interested to know what lessons can be learned from Germany’s energy transition. In a recent article, a German energy sector executive drew conclusions for the outside world themselves. Craig Morris can’t follow the logic.
Turning Point: Decoupling Greenhouse Gas Emissions from Economic Growth
2015 marks an important year for international climate politics. The challenge is to find ways in which economic growth can be decoupled from greenhouse gas emissions and fossil fuel consumption. In some parts of the world, this decoupling trend is already happening, as a recent Heinrich Boell Foundation study finds.
Energy prices not making Germany uncompetitive
Most of the talk about high energy prices in Germany focuses only on retail electricity rates. But firms pay different power prices, and their expenses on energy may focus more on fossil fuels for heat than electricity. Furthermore, German labor is expensive and may often be a bigger budget item than energy. Craig Morris summarizes the findings of two recent studies.