Renewable energy projects

The promotion of renewable energy during the last decade did not result in widescale application of the technology. In many cases, technologies were promoted before they were commercially viable or were inappropriately selected for the particular end-use application. In other cases, a lack of local technical expertise and support infrastructure was absent to sustain the technology once it had been placed in the field. There was also a loss of donor interest and funding for renewables concomitant with the decline in oil prices. This paper attempts to summarize lessons learned from this decade of experience with renewable energy and to offer criteria and suggestions for future activities in transferring renewable energy technology.     

Alternative energy technologies

Technologies that remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and produce energy without reliance on fossil fuels can play a significant role in sustainably meeting our energy needs.© 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Alternative energy: Environmental and economic factors associated with renewable energy and creating new integrated energy management systems

At best, the future of alternative and renewable energy remains uncertain. Our dependency on fossil fuels is already depleting world supplies of coal and petroleum while increasing greenhouse gas emissions. Most assuredly, the ability of alternative energy, described in this article as biomass, hydrogen, wind, solar, and geothermal power, to compete and even integrate with fossil fuels will depend on several important variables: First, developing, as well as developed, countries must be willing to direct long-term public and private funding towards innovative energy technologies by increasing research and promoting public education. Secondly, the “bottom line” economics associated with alternative energy technology must clearly show a positive cost/benefit ratio. Revenues and not deficits are paramount to the sustainability of alternative energy. Lastly, many experts argue for the environmental benefits of alternative energy by way of carbon reductions. The 1997 Kyoto Global Warming Treaty requires the United States in particular to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuel burning by 7 percent below 1990 levels. While many experts argue that reactions to global warming and the alternative energy benefits anticipated because of them are fiscally irresponsible and not worth the billions of tax dollars intended, we can be assured that a business-as-usual attitude will continue without increased government and public support.© 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Financing energy transformation: The role of renewable energy equity indices

The support of financial markets for the transformation of the energy system to a low carbon society seems critical for its success. But will they support this transformation on the basis of market incentives alone? This study analyses how equity indices that try to capture renewable energy investments perform compared to conventional benchmark indices. Especially financial market investors—such as pension funds, insurance companies, and mutual funds—use these to assess and guide their renewable energy investments. As such, we take the perspective of financial market participants, which mainly only indirectly invest in renewable energy. We also analyze whether renewable energy indices are to be regarded as an example of market environmentalism. We find that the renewable energy indices’ risk-adjusted return is very poor and suggests renewables is not a financially attractive portfolio investment yet. We also argue that renewable energy equity indices can be regarded as an example of market environmentalism, especially with respect to commodification and frame-shifting.     

Renewable energy: Biomass power and biofuels as alternative sustainable energy sources

This article describes biomass fuels as renewable and sustainable energy resources in Minnesota as well as across the United States. This country has long benefited from surplus supplies of diverse energy resources, while our dependency on foreign petroleum supplies and domestic coal reserves has only recently prompted Congress to recognize the importance of renewable and alternative fuels such as biomass energy. Our further utilization of biomass power and biofuels can be an important step in altering our dependency on both coal and petroleum while simultaneously reducing carbon dioxide emissions. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

China's dual-thrust energy strategy

As the basis of the national economy, energy has been of importance in the course of China's economic development. Due to the increasing attention to the environmental problems incurred in the production and use of energy since the beginning of the 1980s, environmental protection has become a major factor for consideration in formulating China's energy development strategy and programme.     

The world energy situation

The oil crisis has ended on a worldwide scale. Risks of excessive price rises have disappeared. Between now and the year 2000, oil resources costing less than $15/bbl (1988 dollars) will be abundant. Twenty to 25% of the oil consumed in 2000 for thermal uses will be replaced by less costly natural gas and coal. Consumption of these last two energy sources will increase if the cost of oil rises above $20/bbl (1988 dollars). The cost of oil will rise sharply when it becomes reserved for the uses for which it is irreplaceable, ie transport, petrochemicals, the Third World and non-energy uses — probably after 2010.     

Renewable energy rural electrification

During the last 20 years Mexico has been fertile ground for rural projects using renewable energy technologies. In many cases, however, sustainability aspects were either improperly handled or essentially ignored. Such was the case, for instance, with solar thermal water pumping projects, solar water desalination, and even complete 'solar towns'. Painful but important lessons were learned from such failed projects. Now, sustainability is the focal point of a current rural electrification programme with renewable energy. As of this writing, over 24000 individual home photovoltaic lighting systems have already been installed in different regions of Mexico; another 12000 systems are estimated to have been installed in rural areas as a result of private commercial activities; seven village-size hybrid systems (photovoltaic–wind and photovoltaic–wind–diesel) have also been implemented. With this, the Mexican renewable energy rural electrification programme stands among the largest programmes of its kind in the world today. The question of the programme's sustainability has been a major concern at the Electrical Research Institute of Mexico (IIE), where activities have been under way since the start to lend it technical support. The lessons learned in the process will be discussed in this article .     

Climate justice and energy: applying international principles to UK residential energy policy

This paper draws on climate justice principles developed in the context of international negotiations between national governments to assess the distribution of carbon reduction roles between different actors involved in residential energy use within the UK. In so doing, it aims to provide a new understanding of equity aspects of current residential policy and to highlight opportunities for more effective and equitable policy. The paper uses three criteria: rights and corresponding duties; mitigation responsibilities and capabilities. It applies them systematically to assess the roles of five key actors involved in residential energy use in the UK. The assessment finds a suboptimal distribution of actors’ duties, responsibilities and capabilities and roles and discusses whether and how a more effective and fair allocation of outcomes, in terms of carbon reduction and fuel poverty, could be achieved. In particular, it raises questions about whether the right actors are being legally obliged or incentivised to deliver energy efficiency improvements, and suggests that particular actors – local authorities and community groups – are under-used and require greater government support with capability. The paper represents the first use of international climate justice frameworks to investigate residential energy policy within a country.     

Efficiency of energy delivery systems: I. An economic and energy analysis

Energy-return-on-investment (ERI) analysis is a variation of more traditional cost-benefit analyses, a variation that is particularly important in times of diminishing fuel resources. We present a simple set of procedures for ERI analysis and apply those procedures to central New York State, where there is a proposal for a new 870 MW_e coal-fired generating station. We compared the energy and dollar costs of building that facility with the costs of an alternative comprehensive regional program of insulation. The analysis showed that regional insulation was more efficient in conserving energy than the plant was in providing it by at least a factor of 4 in economic terms and by a factor of more than 15 when viewed as energy returned on energy invested.     

Health and safety implications of alternative energy technologies. III. Fossil energy

This paper reviews both innovative fossil energy sources (tar sands, oil shale, and unconventional natural gas), and more established technologies that are being considered as suppliers of gaseous and liquid fuels (that is, coal gasification and liquefaction). Potential health and safety issues related to the technologies are discussed, although the absence of commercial-scale facilities in the United States restricts the discussion to health effects information derived from related processes. The available epidemiological and carcinogenic studies give cause for concern. The study of the health and environmental impacts of the emerging fossil fuel technologies will be important for quantification of adverse effects and rectification of problems before commitment to large-scale commercialization occurs.Operated by Union Carbide Corporation under contract W-7405-eng-26 with the U.S. Department of Energy.     

Wave energy vs. other energy sources: A reassessment of the economics

The large scatter in the predictions of wave energy costs, which is caused in part by the simplifications assumed by existing models, is a hindrance for the development of this promising renewable. In this context, the main objective of this paper is to reassess the cost of wave energy taking into account a number of elements that are usually overlooked, or not considered simultaneously. This analysis has been performed in relation to the European context. The direct and indirect costs of a wave farm are examined, and a value for each is presented. The levelized cost (€/MWh) of wave energy is then calculated for different scenarios in order to compare the profitability of wave energy with that of other energy sources. After that, a sensitivity analysis is carried out to identify the main parameters affecting the total cost, considering in particular the effect on the levelized cost of considering: (i) the cost reductions arising from economies of scale and technological effects; (ii) an O&M cost variable throughout the useful life of the farm; and (iii) the externalities. In sum, this work sets the basis for a thorough economic comparison of wave energy with other sources of energy.     

Societal implications of sustainable energy action plans: from energy modelling to stakeholder learning

This article investigates the potential impact of sustainable energy action plans (SEAPs) on local development through a two-step methodology involving participatory planning and quantitative analysis. The first phase relies on a participatory system mapping (PSM) approach and generates a causal structure at the basis of the urban model. In the second phase, we transform the qualitative map into a system dynamic model which evaluates the effect of the SEAP on social, economic and environmental indicators. This methodology was applied to the case of Cascina Municipality (Italy). Through scenario analysis, we show that some indirect feedback can harm the achievement of the 20% emission reduction target. This process allows the local authority and stakeholders to evaluate the impact of emission reduction policies on CO₂ emissions and local development, thereby generating collective learning on the systemic implications of the plan. We show that this method can enhance the ambition of emission mitigation efforts by small towns.     

Efficiency of energy delivery systems: II. Estimating energy costs of capital equipment

Procedures are developed and summarized that allow the calculation of the energy required to manufacture and install capital equipment, such as the material needed for a coalfired power plant. Three methods are available, each with certain strengths and weaknessess The first uses both literature value and national manufacturing statistics, the second uses a previously developed technique that disaggregates energy use according to how much each industry buys from all other industries, and the third technique is based on the average national relation between energy use and dollar flow. The most important differences between estimates of energy use by the different techniques relates to the inclusion or exclusion of labor and indirect expenditures rather than to differences in the data bases of the three techniques.     

Place attachment and public acceptance of renewable energy: A tidal energy case study

Efforts by many governments to mitigate climate change by increasing deployment of renewable energy technologies have raised the importance of issues of public acceptance. The ‘NIMBY’ (Not In My Backyard) concept, although popular, has been critiqued as an appropriate and valid way to explain local opposition. This study applies an alternative approach, empirically investigating the role of place attachment and place-related symbolic meanings in explaining public responses to a tidal energy converter in Northern Ireland, said to be the first grid-connected device of its kind in the world. 271 residents in two nearby villages completed questionnaire surveys, three months post-installation, following up preliminary qualitative research using focus groups. Although results indicated predominantly positive and supportive responses to the project, manifest by emotional responses and levels of acceptance, significant differences between residents in each village were also observed. Contrasting patterns of association between place attachment and emotional responses suggest that the project enhanced rather than disrupted place attachments only in one of the two villages. In regression analyses, place attachment emerged as a significant, positive predictor of project acceptance in both places, affirming its value in explaining public response. Place-related symbolic meanings also emerged as significant, with contrasting sets of meanings proving significant in each context. Implications of the findings for research on place attachment and responses to land-use changes, as well as for developers seeking to engage with residents affected by energy projects are discussed.     

Renewable energy in remote communities

This research has demonstrated that even in a small urbanised country like Britain, communities can still be remote. The paper analyses the nature of remote settlements and suggests that beyond the rural idyll, there are deprived communities. In order to obtain real data, a study area in the North Pennines was selected. The types of remote communities were evident throughout the study area and one of each type was selected for further study. It became clear that villages with an industrial base had most potential, due to high energy demand, vulnerability and community involvement. A village with a high measure of multiple deprivation and suffering from fuel poverty was chosen for a more detailed investigation. Energy demand profiles were developed and candidate technologies nominated. The latter were tested by filters that assessed fitness for application, robustness and autonomy. The most appropriate combinations of technologies were proposed. The residents and their community representatives were involved in the process and recognised the benefits of the proposals to themselves and others.