If one asks what is the share of renewable energy in total global energy consumption, most people will answer 2%, 3%, maybe 5%. Wrong! It is two or three times that, around 13% because biofuels (mainly wood, charcoal and agro-residues) alone should account for more than 10%. When talking about renewable energy, one should be careful with the figures because of the extreme difficulty in getting the right numbers; it is important to add caution words such as “around” or “should” when trying to quantify production and consumption of renewables. The non-marketed nature of most renewables explains in part the poor quality of the data. But the limited knowledge about renewables, especially biomass, in some countries could lead to dramatic consequences such as acceleration of desertification. So, the call for an urgent change.

To read the full article, click here.

This article appears in the second issue of IEA Energy, which covers a broad range of today’s energy issues, from technology to market developments, and highlights the energy challenges of tomorrow.

A world in which, say, a third of electricity is provided by wind and solar power would need to be very different from today’s. The tools now available to power system operators are unlikely to be up to the task of managing so much additional variability and uncertainty. To system operators, wind and solar represent disruption – in both senses of the word. On the one hand, additional management complexity; on the other, a game-changer. And the new game is flexibility.

To read the full article, click here.

This article appears in the second issue of IEA Energy, which covers a broad range of today’s energy issues, from technology to market developments, and highlights the energy challenges of tomorrow.

At the 2011 Clean Energy Ministerial (CEM) meeting in Abu Dhabi, the CEM Carbon Capture, Use and Storage Action Group (CCUS AG) presented seven recommendations on concrete, near-term actions to accelerate global carbon capture and storage deployment. This week, at the 2012 CEM meeting in London, the IEA and Global CCS Institute presented a report tracking progress made against the 2011 recommendations and focusing on key questions such as how Energy Ministers can continue to drive progress to enable CCS to fully contribute to climate change mitigation. It concludes that, despite developments in some areas, significant further work is required. CCS financing and industrial applications continue to represent a particularly serious challenge.

Link to full report…

The authoritarian government of a major oil producer is facing a wave of strikes and demonstrations culminating in a revolution. Unfortunately, the main opposition force is interested in promoting its own extremist ideology rather than establishing democracy, and it launches a series of attacks against oil installations.

To read the full article, click here.

This article appears in the second issue of IEA Energy, which covers a broad range of today’s energy issues, from technology to market developments, and highlights the energy challenges of tomorrow.

Tracking Clean Energy Progress report released at the third Clean Energy Ministerial in London.

Read press release...