Tag Archives: global warming

Capturing Carbon – the most challenging part of the Clean Energy Transition today.

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The big four needs of the Energy Transition for clean energy are achieving greater Electrification from renewables, building out Hydrogen, sustainable Bioenergy, and Carbon Capture. These are suggested as the main pillars to get us moving towards the Net Zero targets of eradicating the harmful emissions by the 2050 to 2070 range. We have a long way to go in time, commitment, and investments. I also feel in belief!

We are seemingly on the right pathway to shifting the source of energy away from fossil fuels into wind, solar, and hydro. Yet, the costs of moving from the power generations we have known, change our transmission and infrastructures to cope with the change in the fuel mixes is a massive undertaking. Continue reading →

Hydrogen is the big ticket, it needs a landscape view

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Hydrogen is undoubtedly becoming the big agenda ticket within any Energy Transition. It is the promise of being a central pillar for many parts of the world to achieve their decarbonization targets to get as close as they can to zero carbon by mid-century.

Hydrogen seems to hold, it seems, such a promise, but it is nearly all to do. There is so much to validate, prove, and certainly scale. We have some exciting pilots, even some emerging commercial-scale projects.

Still, these pilots or pockets of limited commercialization are not connected up or integrated into a Hydrogen Economy. So far we are not able to scale sufficiently to generate that same unstoppable momentum that Wind and Solar as sustainable renewables are achieving, in dislodging fossil fuels.

Today we do not yet have a Hydrogen infrastructure, market and price competitiveness, or overarching policies to build into a movement that shifts the energy needle.

We have lots of desire and willingness, some recent infusion of development money, especially here in Europe, but we do need to now make hydrogen really happen on a commercially sustainable basis. Continue reading →

How can we mobilize innovation capability for the energy transition?

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Image credit: Miguel Bruna @mbrunacr

To mobilize our innovation capabilities and capacities for the energy system, they do have a compelling need to be purposefully marshalled for the future energy demands and the carbon-free world that is being demanded, and supportive of the commitments within the Paris climate accord.

We need to pursue, nurture, and see beyond as our three points of delivering change within the Energy transition. The combination of all three gives us the potential to navigate the energy transition we need. This energy system needs to move from today’s reliance of fossil fuels and antiquated infrastructure into one based on clean, sustainable and renewable energy sources, delivered through a highly distributed infrastructure, designed for the final consumer of the energy. Continue reading →

Themes for Decarbonizing, My Agenda Setting Post

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Is deep decarbonization possible? The level of investments will be substantial and require enormous changes to the energy system we have in place today.

Taking a higher-level of decarbonization, I have summarized the critical aspects we need to consider when we discuss this area. I have put them in blocks of bullet points here in this opening decarbonization post. I am planning to delve into each of these in later posts. Continue reading →

There is a need for innovation within the energy transition.

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The significant shifts we are undergoing in the energy transitions today are allowing real innovation opportunities when you survey the innovation landscape. The challenge is spotting and seizing these opportunities.

There is a clear realization that there is significant complexity in all the energy transitions going on. Still, it is the researchers, engineers, and entrepreneurs that can see the possibilities and ‘energize’ the innovative solutions are the ones that hold the future in their hands.

If innovation is given its appropriate place within the energy transition, the pace of innovation and energy transition will scale up and accelerate to meet the needs of a world rapidly wanting to decarbonize. The world is demanding a change in our energy supplies and rapid decarbonization.

It will be the organizations that have innovation central to their thinking and access to the financial and resource capital that will be in a very healthy position to capitalize on this demand for making change. Continue reading →

A sharp acceleration towards Clean Energy is required.

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Today the International Energy Agency (IRA) released a long-awaited update on where innovation needs to be in the energy transition we are undergoing.

At their own admission, it has been three years since they (IEA) released its last Energy Technology Perspective (ETP) report. Although they argue they have been reflecting on the critical technology challenges, it is way overdue.

In this new report, “Energy Technology perspective: Special Report on Clean Energy Innovation” released today, 2nd July 2020, they have developed some improved modeling tools to bring a higher capacity to answer key technology questions in greater detail. This is good news.

IEA will further follow up later this year with a flagship ETP 2020 publication later in the year to keep a tighter and more consistent focus on the role and need of innovation to accelerate clean energy transitions.

They, the IEA are planning an IEA Clean Energy Transitions Summit really soon to convene ministers and CEO’s to the aim of driving economic development by this more robust focus on clean, resilient, and inclusive energy systems. Continue reading →

The spark of innovation to connect the energy transition

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There is a real urgency that we transform our energy systems.

Where can innovation help within the Energy Transition to rapidly advance it?

The opening answer is everywhere within the energy system. Technological and systemic innovation is critical to the end-user sectors of transport, industry, and buildings and replacing and upgrading much of the overall system design and operation to generate increased electrification.

We need to digitalize our grid services, provide new concepts for the grid and local storage, provide improved smart charging for electric vehicles, add different ways of building into the energy system the idea of mini-grids.

Each day there seems some level of innovation development, but my aim here is not to list these or where they need to go in future but to take a broader view of where and how innovation can help in general terms within the energy transition. We all need a sense of bearing or a compass that shows us the way. Our job is is “spark” and ignite innovation within the Energy Transition. To give innovation more resources and support. Continue reading →

The Energy Transition we all need to undertake

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Sources FT Guide: The Energy Transition https://www.ft.com/reports/energy-transition-guide

 

 

 

 

 

 

In recent months I have become totally “wrapped up” in the energy transition occurring across the world. The whole transformation we are undertaking is not just for our energy sake; it is for more for our climate sake and having a sustainable future.

Energy is one of the critical drivers of our well-being, providing one of the essentials to survive and thrive. We need water, food, air, shelter, and sleep, and our source of energy underpins all of these as the energy transition in its solutions are aimed at cleaning up our climate and environment before it is too late and give us more energy to power the next growth cycle.

Continue reading →

The Size and Vulnerability of the Fossil Fuel System Disruption

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Image credit: Harvard Business Review

If there is one report you have to read in the absolute disruption we are undergoing in the Energy Transition, it is one just released by Carbon Tracker entitled “Decline and Fall: The Size & Vulnerability of the Fossil Fuel System.

It stops you in your track at the enormity of the changes that will occur in the Energy System in the coming years. What we are witnessing today is only the tip of the Energy Transition iceberg. Continue reading →

Tension, Bottlenecks and Concerns within the Hydrogen Transformation

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The Hydrogen transition story is still in its early days of becoming a sustainable part of the solutions we need to decarbonize the planet.

Although the use of Hydrogen has been around for years, it is the potential to replace other energy sources at an industrial scale that is exciting. The execution of Hydrogen solutions is a real imperative for this decade to validate and demonstrate.

We need Hydrogen solutions across so many industrial applications as well as a significant contributor to reducing heat in buildings or powering up our vehicles.

What I can see in the Hydrogen story is all technically feasible, but I am having several concerns on the pathway to delivery.

Let’s look at some of the present and future issues that will need to be resolved for Hydrogen to realize a greater future and play its part in the energy transition. I want to here summarize a few of my present concerns over Hydrogen. Continue reading →