More renewables in the European Union? Yes, we can
The European Union is about to adopt new renewable energy targets for 2030. While going beyond the initially-planned 27% is absolutely feasible, the EU strategy can only be credible if it is based on a good mix between performance and effort obligations, and also includes possible review clauses.
Trump's Tax Reform and Trade Policy: Renewables Spared, Oil Industry Wins
The energy sector is one where the break between the Trump and Obama administrations is the most pronounced. The three officials in charge, Rick Perry at the Department of Energy (DoE), Scott Pruitt at the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Ryan Zinke at the head of the Department of the Interior (DoI), share the same indifference to the issue of climate change, the same will to encourage oil and gas production in the USA in order to bring an era of American “energy dominance”, the same desire to promote the extraction of “beautiful, clean coal”, to paraphrase President Trumps’s State of the Union address, and the same deep mistrust of renewable energies such as wind and solar.
South Korea's New Electricity Plan. Cosmetic Changes or a Breakthrough for the Climate?
Shortly after his inauguration in May 2017, the President of South Korea, Moon Jae-In, announced a major policy shift away from nuclear and coal power, and toward renewables and gas. This would have meant a complete U-turn from previous policies, considering that nuclear and coal produced 40% and 30% respectively of Korea’s total electricity in 2016.
Renewable Energy in India: Solutions to the Financing Challenge
India has committed to ambitious action on climate change, but financing its renewable energy goals remains a significant challenge.
The Energy Transition and the Challenge of Critical Raw Materials
The geopolitical analyses of energy markets are traditionally focused on fossil fuels, and less on renewable energy sources.
Decarbonizing Germany’s Power Sector: Ending Coal with a Carbon Floor Price?
Germany has a long tradition of climate policy programmes with ambitious greenhouse gas emission reduction targets and comprehensive climate and energy policy packages.
This target-driven policy approach is, however, increasingly facing challenges due to the lack of progress on greenhouse gas emission reductions in key sectors, i.e. the power, the transport and the building sector.
France’s Macron takes lead in climate change battle, with the U.S. absent
PARIS — The United States may have withdrawn from the Paris climate change accord, but on Tuesday dozens of world leaders and philanthropists met to find solutions to the swiftly warming planet — and send a message of resolve to the White House. More symbolic than policy-driven, Tuesday’s summit comes two years after the landmark COP21 conference in Paris, when 196 participating countries — including the United States — vowed to keep this century’s global temperature increase below 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit. In one of the most controversial moments of his young presidency, President Trump announced in June that the United States would leave the Paris accord.
Strategies of African national oil companies
The study and comparison of different National Oil Companies (NOC) help understanding the political history of Algeria, Nigeria and Angola. The NOC’s role and activities depend on several economic and political aspects. For example, Angolan Sonangol has been the coffer for the Popular Movement of Liberation of Angola (MPLA) party to fund its struggle against the National Union for the Independence of Angola (UNITA) party during civil war.
The Resurgence of Shale Oil
This study addresses the resilience factors of the American production of light tight oil, in particular regarding the evolution of the financial model, and the regulatory changes with the authorisation of exports for crude oil. The paper also evaluates the development perspectives of the production on the medium and long term.
The Transformation of the Electricity French System in 2030 - Mario Pain
Deputy Director, Ministère de la transition écologique et solidaire, describes the main challenges for the French energy system at the 2030 horizon and highlights the need to find the right balance between EU harmonization and national measures to achieve energy transition at the lowest cost.
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