Green, ethical, energy issues in the news

Martyn1981

Hooray, i've been dancing around a figure of 30% leccy from renewables in 2017, and now we finally have official numbers with a fantastic 29.4% for 2017, v's 25% FOR 2016.

The article is really worth a read, and the graphs worth a quick click and study. Also of note is that gas generation is falling, as some like to claim that coal is pushed off the grid by burning more gas, but this is simply not true.

UK wind generation reaches record levels

Renewables overall provided 29.4% of the UK’s total generation last year – up from 25% in 2016, and also a new record, according to data from the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS). This proportion is second only to gas (39.6%).

Martyn1981

Further to the good news on 2017 generation is this article looking at 2017 quarter 4 generation, with wind and solar just beating nuclear.

I thought this was a bit silly at first, but then again, most hydro isn't new, and some bio-energy (particularly bio-mass) can raise concerns. So it's sort of a useful comparison of the new boys v's the old boys.

Plus the final paragraph hints at some surprising govt news.

Wind and solar make more electricity than nuclear for first time in UK

By contrast, large-scale solar and onshore wind projects are not eligible for support, after the Conservative government cut subsidies in 2015.

However the energy minister, Claire Perry, recently told House Magazine that "we will have another auction that brings forward wind and solar, we just haven't yet said when".

Hmmm? (re my bold)

ASavvyBuyer

Crown Estates Offshore Windfarm Map

Another source of information for the offshore windfarms.

Martyn1981

Who wouldn't want solar power in South Africa ....... perhaps the coal industry?

South African court rules in favor of renewables

Common sense appears to have prevailed in South Africa, with the Gauteng North High Court ruling against coal’s attempt to block the signing of 27 renewable energy PPAs.

Martyn1981

This weeks 'Carbon Commentary' was so interesting (I think) that it's worth copying all of the points, giving a great little read on recent developments:-

1, Saudi solar PV. The Saudi government did a deal with Masayoshi Son of Softbank to install over 200 GW of PV by 2030. Of course the full programme might not happen but if it does the consequences are extraordinary. PV will provide more power annually than today’s total Saudi consumption. At midday, PV will be producing about 3 times today’s typical power usage. Because most electricity is generated from oil currently, the Kingdom will save about 1% of world oil consumption. 200+ GW is equal to half the world’s existing PV capacity and will provide about 1.5% of global electricity today. By extension, the PV necessary to cover total power need would cost about 1% of global GDP between now and 2030. More details on my web site.

2, Vehicle to grid. EVs are often seen as enemies of grid stability. Commentators assume that they will be charged at times of high demand, adding to peak generation requirements. This view is wrong, partly because EV chargers already have enough intelligence to adjust charging rates to match electricity availability. We are also seeing gradual moves towards ‘vehicle to grid’ (V2G) charging, with batteries acting as storage devices for the electricity network, thus enabling EVs to assist, not hinder, grid stability. A project in the Netherlands sees Hitachi V2G chargers and Mitsubishi plug-in hybrid cars at an office buiding owned by Engie, the French energy company. Engie will manage the V2G chargers to use the power generated by on-site PV. V2G adds value to electric vehicles by putting them at the heart of future microgrids.

3, Hydrogen from solar energy. Hydrogen can be made directly from sunlight and water. Progress in photoelectrochemical (PEC) water splitting, as it is usually called, has been slow. Catalysts decay quickly, only portions of the solar spectrum can be used and materials are expensive. But PEC may eventually be the dominant means of storing solar energy. In theory it should eventually be cheaper than electrolysis (and fossil fuels) at making hydrogen because it will simpler and will use less equipment. A team at Heriot-Watt University in Scotland reports major advances in conversion efficiency, generating hydrogen with about 20% of the energy value of the captured sunlight at a cost of about one third of existing PEC systems. (This is a greater net efficiency than hydrogen generation from light via solar panels combined with electrolysis). This technique is a very long way from commercialisation but shows the potentially enormous impact of PEC on the energy storage market.

4, Micro-scale carbon capture. The cosmetics company Lush said it had bought a carbon capture unit for its office in Vancouver, Canada. The machine takes the exhaust from a natural gas boiler and converts some of the CO2 to sodium carbonate (soda ash). Soda ash is chemical used in several industrial processes, including glass making. Financial details of the purchase weren’t revealed but previously the manufacturer, CleanO2 of Calgary, Alberta, has suggested prices of less than US $4000 for its device, capturing about 10 tonnes of CO2 a year. The machine is said to improve the efficiency of the heating system and will pay back the investment in four years, even without a price on CO2, partly from the improved thermal efficiency and partly from the value of the soda ash.

5, Grid upgrade costs cut by small PV installations. The Californian electricity system operator (CAISO) announced it was cutting back on grid upgrade plans because of the growth of behind-the-meter solar and improving energy efficiency. It estimated the savings at $2.6bn, saying that 18 grid projects should be cancelled and 21 pared back. As importantly perhaps, the system said that it sees no current need for any new upgrades resulting from California’s commitment to 33% renewables generation by 2020.

6, Energy storage. Two more global companies made substantial commitments to ‘self-consumption’ of PV power. EdF of France said it would invest €8bn by 2035 to build 10 gigawatts of capacity. Most of this money will be spent on batteries, with an emphasis on equipping households to enable them to get to near self-sufficiency. EdF said it aimed to be the European leader in storage. It will double battery R&D in the next two years and its start-up fund will devote three quarters of its investments into storage and demand flexibility. Swiss-Swedish ABB announced a modular domestic storage system that allows the homeowner to manage power use to maximise self-consumption of solar electricity

7, The Netherlands bans domestic gas boilers. The Dutch government proposes to ban new central heating boilers from 2021. Householders will have to install heat pumps driven by electricity for their heating needs. Hybrid heat pumps that combine a small boiler with a heat pump will also be allowed. CO2 reductions of about 50% are envisaged from the use of these hybrids. Whatever form of low carbon heating is used, the government is imposing substantial new costs on the householders: a hybrid unit will cost about €4,000 more than a conventional boiler. New systems will be financeable by loans from the government, paid back by the occupier of the home. In this respect the Dutch are copying a British scheme (the Green Deal) which was an unambiguous failure, signing up only 14,000 households in three years, at an administrative cost of £17,000 per loan.

8, Dutch electric bus charging. The bus operator for Amsterdam airport unveiled what may be the world’s largest electric vehicle charging station. Over 100 fast charging stations, including 23 offering 450 kW, offers a maximum of 13 megawatts of power. (Of course this means that if the buses charge all at once they could only take 12 kW). A bus that is able to take 450 kW will fully recharge in less than 5 minutes. The 100 new electric buses working from the airport will be the largest single electric bus fleet in Europe.

9, Plastics recycling. British firm Recycling Technologies announced a successful £3.7m crowdfunding for its pioneering product. It makes small-scale equipment that accepts all forms of plastic and using extreme heat turns it into an oil that can be used to make plastic again. Only about 10% of the world’s plastics are currently recycled. 14% is incinerated (about 50m tonnes, generating probably 150 million tonnes of CO2) and 32% leaks into the environment in one form or another. A payment system for returned plastics, combined with Recycling Technologies machines, could be used to incentivise continuous recycling of plastics everywhere in the world. (Thanks to Jonathan Scott).

10, ITM Power. A very good week for UK electrolyser company ITM Power. It opened another hydrogen refuelling station on a Shell petrol forecourt on a major British highway. It also won a government grant to build four more hydrogen charging points on UK roads with the Japanese fuel cell car manufacturers, including Toyota. Perhaps most importantly for its long-term future, ITM said it was working with Japanese engineering firms to investigate the potential for up to 300 megawatts of electrolysis capacity in British Columbia, Canada to make renewable hydrogen from surplus hydro-electric power, possibly for export to Japan and California. Most commercial electrolysers in the field today are one megawatt or less, and total worldwide capacity is probably less than 100 MW so this research contract from the provincial government envisages a massive expansion.

NigeWick

Martyn1981 wrote: »

This weeks 'Carbon Commentary' was so interesting (I think) that it's worth copying all of the points

Interesting times we live in.

Martyn1981

NigeWick wrote: »

Interesting times we live in.

I was surprised at the 2021 ban of new boilers in the Netherlands. I know this is something that will roll out eventually, but didn't know some countries were so close already.

I'm sure such a policy announcement in the UK won't raise any concerns and heated debates.

EricMears

Martyn1981 wrote: »

I was surprised at the 2021 ban of new boilers in the Netherlands. I know this is something that will roll out eventually, but didn't know some countries were so close already.

I'm sure such a policy announcement in the UK won't raise any concerns and heated debates.

Why would we want to ban gas boilers when we're on the verge of seeing limitless supplies of fracked gas ?
Not that it will affect us : we've never had a gas supply.

NigeWick

EricMears wrote: »

Why would we want to ban gas boilers when we're on the verge of seeing limitless supplies of fracked gas ?

You are naughty, but I like you!

Fracked gas is still a pollutant and we can do without any more of that. Then there's the chance that the chemicals used for fracking will poison our drinking water. We can put more clothes on to deal with the cold but we can't do without potable water to drink. Not for long anyway....

I like the idea of heat pumps being installed in all new builds and retrofitted when boilers are due replacement.

Martyn1981

NigeWick wrote: »

You are naughty, but I like you!

Fracked gas is still a pollutant and we can do without any more of that. Then there's the chance that the chemicals used for fracking will poison our drinking water. We can put more clothes on to deal with the cold but we can't do without potable water to drink. Not for long anyway....

I like the idea of heat pumps being installed in all new builds and retrofitted when boilers are due replacement.

It's getting a harder and harder sell. Blocked or banned now in Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Unlikely to be economically viable without shale oil production (like the US) and apparently there won't be oil in the UK. Alternatives such as bio-gas might be possible, as per Ecotricity grass mills. Move to increase space heating efficiency and to heat pumps.

Plus of course, the majority of existing FF reserves can't ever be 'dug up' without exceeding all CO2 targets, so adding more FF to the mix isn't a great idea.

..... but David Cameron is still pushing hard for it!