Energy

In our series of renewable energy and geopolitics interviews, Indra Øverland – head of the Center for Energy Research at the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs – explains why hydropower can be the perfect match for intermittent renewables such as solar and wind. Hydropower assets are one of the biggest geopolitical stories of the energy transition but receive almost no attention. Nations with strong hydro potential may become linchpins of regional renewable energy.

The audit agency said at least half the EU member states will be unable to reach their 2020 renewable energy targets, including the Netherlands, France, Ireland, Poland and the U.K. It recommends citizen participation and more renewable energy auctions to increase investment and raise volume in the EU clean energy sector. Cross border renewables trade and grid improvements are also highlighted as necessary for a successful energy transition.

In a new interview in a series on renewable energy and geopolitics, Indra Overland describes the possible trajectory of China’s bid to become the world’s solar energy leader. After building a leading position in key technologies and manufacturing, China may find a potential partner in the European Union, especially if the U.S. government pushes forward with its trade war against Beijing, Overland says. Solar and renewables are also helping the country expand its influence in Southeast Asia, fuelling concerns among some of its neighbors, he adds.

Although the nation’s PV industry has recently established new landmarks, warnings have been sounded about the immediate outlook for the sector.

According to a paper published by the European Network of Transmission System Operators, a significant number of grid infrastructure projects in the Ten-Year Network Development Plan 2018 have been delayed, with public opposition identified as the main hindrance.

The fossil fuel company will partner with Slovakia’s InoBat to develop hydrogen-related projects in central and eastern Europe. Sourcing and supply of hydrogen will be the main focus of the cooperation.

After two decades of growth, the amount of newly installed renewable energy capacity is no longer rising and, despite a 7% growth in electricity generation from clean energy sources, global energy-related carbon emissions have risen 1.7%.

The plant, for which no official documents are available online, is being opposed by the nation’s Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations which claims it is against the interest of its promoter, utility INDE.

In the latest of a series of interviews about the geopolitics of renewable energy, Indra Overland, head of the Center for Energy Research at the Norwegian Institute for International Affairs, explains how storage could change the global energy landscape by eliminating entrenched strategic dependencies. The impact of storage, he says, will be stronger in regions dependent on fossil fuels.

The energy program will initially relate to combined cycle gas power plants with a capacity of 2.76 GW. No mention was made in electric utility CFE’s official statement of the possibility of increasing capacity by harnessing renewables.