This report summarizes the investments in clean energy made by the operations departments of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) in 2013, condensing information from project databases and formal reports in an easy-to-reference format. This report was prepared by ADB's Clean Energy Program which provides the cohesive agenda that encompasses and guides ADB's lending and non-lending assistance, initiatives, and plan of action for sustainable growth in Asia and the Pacific.
This publication provides host country governments with guidance on the policy options that are available to make the most of investment opportunities in clean energy infrastructure, drawing on the expertise of climate and investment communities among others. It identifies key issues in investment policy, investment promotion and facilitation, competition, financial markets, and public governance. It also addresses cross-cutting issues, including the implications of regional co-operation and of international trade for investment in clean energy infrastructure.
Hydrogen and fuel cells are vital technologies to ensure a secure and CO2-free energy future. Their development will take decades of extensive public and private effort to achieve technology breakthroughs and commercial maturity. Government research programs are indispensable for catalyzing the development process. This report maps the IEA countries' current efforts to research, develop and deploy the interlocking elements that constitute a "hydrogen economy", including CO2 capture and storage when hydrogen is produced out of fossil fuels. It provides an overview of what is being done, and by whom, covering an extensive complexity of national government R & D programs. The survey highlights the potential for exploiting the benefits of the international cooperation. This book draws primarily upon information contributed by IEA governments. In virtually all the IEA countries, important R & D and policy efforts on hydrogen and fuel cells are in place and expanding. Some are fully-integrated, government-funded programs, some are a key element in an overall strategy spread among multiple public and private efforts. The large amount of information provided in this publication reflects the vast array of technologies and logistics required to build the "hydrogen economy."--Publisher description.
The Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROI or EROEI) is the amount of energy acquired from a particular energy source divided by the energy expended, or invested, in obtaining that energy. EROI is an essential and seemingly simple measure of the usable energy or “energy profit” from the exploitation of an energy source, but it is not so easy to determine all of the energy expenditures that should be included in the calculation. Because EROI values are generally low for renewable energy sources, differences in these estimates can lead to sharply divergent conclusions about the viability of these energy technologies. This book presents the first complete energy analysis of a large-scale, real-world deployment of photovoltaic (PV) collection systems representing 3.5 GW of installed, grid-connected solar plants in Spain. The analysis includes all of the factors that limit and adjust the real electricity output through one full-year cycle, and all of the fossil fuel inputs required to achieve these results. The authors’ comprehensive analysis of energy inputs, which assigns energy cost estimates to all financial expenditures, yields EROI values that are less than half of those claimed by other investigators and by the solar industry. Sensitivity analysis is used to test various assumptions in deriving these EROI estimates. The results imply that the EROI of current, large-scale PV systems may be too low to seamlessly support an energy and economic transition away from fossil fuels. Given the pervasiveness of fossil fuel subsidies in the modern economy, a key conclusion is that all components of the system that brings solar power to the consumer, from manufacturing to product maintenance and life cycle, must be improved in terms of energy efficiency. The materials science of solar conversion efficiency is only one such component. Sunny Spain represented an ideal case study as the country had the highest penetration of solar PV energy at 2.3 percent of total national demand as well as state-of-the-art expertise in solar power including grid management of intermittent, modern renewable systems. This book, written by a uniquely qualified author team consisting of the chief engineer for several major photovoltaic projects in Spain and the world’s leading expert on the concept and application of EROI, provides a comprehensive understanding of the net energy available to society from energy sources in general and from functioning PV installations under real-world conditions in particular. The authors provide critical insight into the capacity of renewable energy sources to fill the foreseeable gap between world energy demand and depletion rates for fossil fuels. · Presents the first comprehensive study of the EROI of large-scale solar PV systems in a developed country · Uses real-world operational data rather than laboratory approximations and extrapolations · Describes the dependence of one alternative energy source on the goods and services of a fossil-fueled economy · Has global implications for the potential of renewable energy sources to replace dwindling reserves of fossil fuels · Written with the first-hand knowledge of the chief, on-site engineer for many solar installations in Spain together with the leader in the development and application of the concept of EROI
World Energy Investment 2018 provides a critical benchmark for decision making by governments, the energy industry, and financial institutions to set policy frameworks, implement business strategies, finance new projects, and develop new technologies. It highlights the ways in which investment decisions taken today are determining how energy supply and demand will unfold tomorrow. The report looks at critical questions that have shaped the energy industry, including: (i) Which countries and policies attracted the most energy investment in 2017, and what fuels and technologies are growing fastest?; (ii) Is energy investment sufficient and targeted appropriately to realise the world's energy transition objectives?; (iii) How are oil and gas companies responding to higher oil prices? Are they changing their strategy decisions in order to ensure adequate supplies while minimising long-term risks?; (iv) *How is the business model for US shale evolving? Is the rapid growth of production in 2018 still largely based on continuous overspending or is the industry finally moving towards financial sustainability?; (v) Are business models and financing approaches supporting a shift in power generation investments towards renewables? How are regulators around the world shaping enabling investments in power system networks and flexibility?; (vi) What policy and market factors drive energy efficiency spending? What new approaches to financing are emerging for efficient goods and services?; (vii) How are the sources of energy finance evolving? What roles are public financial institutions and utilities playing? How are decision makers addressing investment risks in India and other emerging economies?; (Viii) What are governments and the energy sector spending on energy research and development? What are the main considerations facing investors in batteries and the electric vehicle value chain; carbon capture, utilisation and storage; and hydrogen?
The world is currently undergoing an historic energy transition, driven by increasingly stringent decarbonisation policies and rapid advances in low-carbon technologies. The large-scale shift to low-carbon energy is disrupting the global energy system, impacting whole economies, and changing the political dynamics within and between countries. This open access book, written by leading energy scholars, examines the economic and geopolitical implications of the global energy transition, from both regional and thematic perspectives. The first part of the book addresses the geopolitical implications in the world’s main energy-producing and energy-consuming regions, while the second presents in-depth case studies on selected issues, ranging from the geopolitics of renewable energy, to the mineral foundations of the global energy transformation, to governance issues in connection with the changing global energy order. Given its scope, the book will appeal to researchers in energy, climate change and international relations, as well as to professionals working in the energy industry.
Now that Trump has turned the United States into a global climate outcast, will China take the lead in saving our planet from environmental catastrophe? Many signs point to yes. China, the world's largest carbon emitter, is leading a global clean energy revolution, phasing out coal consumption and leading the development of a global system of green finance. But as leading China environmental expert Barbara Finamore explains, it is anything but easy. The fundamental economic and political challenges that China faces in addressing its domestic environmental crisis threaten to derail its low-carbon energy transition. Yet there is reason for hope. China's leaders understand that transforming the world's second largest economy from one dependent on highly polluting heavy industry to one focused on clean energy, services and innovation is essential, not only to the future of the planet, but to China's own prosperity.
This book will discuss the legal tools offered by international law that can support foreign direct investment (FDI) in the renewable energy sector in the Global South. Promoting and increasing investment in the renewable energy sector is crucial for limiting global temperature rise to 1.5°C and addressing energy poverty in the Global South. In this volume, Avidan Kent explores the various home-country measures (HCMs) offered by international law that support FDI in the renewable energy sector. This book provides a bird’s eye evaluation of HCMs from fields such as trade law, investment law, environmental law, development law and more. It reveals that while international law indeed offers many legal tools to support investors’ needs, the current legal framework is fragmented; most legal instruments were designed in isolation and the potential for mutually supportive, synergetic policies has been explored only to a limited extent. This fragmented reality is in contradiction to the notion of Policy Coherence for Development, which is increasingly gaining support in leading institutions in Europe and elsewhere. This book will provide recommendations on the manner in which HCMs can be connected in order to maximise their potential and boost investment in renewable energies in the developing world. International Law and Renewable Energy Investment in the Global South will be of great interest to scholars, students and practitioners of international law, energy studies, development studies and IR more broadly.
