Scientists find sweet solution to hydrogen conundrum – A team of scientists at Virginia Tech Institute in the USA have been experimenting with sustainable methods of generating hydrogen for electricity production. Hydrogen is an incredibly efficient energy source, capable of generating electricity while producing only water as a by-product. Y. H. Percival Zhang, professor of bioengineering at Virginia Tech, claims that problems surrounding hydrogen production are largely due to lack of imagination on the part of scientists. His aim has been to find a solution by taking advantage of the abundance of sugar, calling the result ‘sweet hydrogen’. Zhang’s suggestion is to use biomass to produce sugar, turning it into hydrogen, which has the potential to change energy production. The team have developed an artificial enzyme cocktail capable of breaking down vegetable matter to produce sugars and have established a method of extracting high-purity hydrogen at low temperatures. Zhang has successfully used the new enzymatic solution to generate electricity within a battery.
Hydro industry to expand, say new projections – Prospects for large-scale hydropower development look better than they have for years, according to figures published by the International Hydropower Association (IHA). In the past hydropower has been largely excluded from considerations of renewable power generation, despite having a global kWh contribution far exceeding any other renewable energy source. But this is set to change, with developments around the world showing a significant increase in hydropower contribution – in 2012 alone 30 GW of new hydropower infrastructure were commissioned. The IHA has highlighted the three trends which are expected to see a growth in the investment in and development of the hydropower sector in the near future: regional development, increasing international investment and private sector investment. As investment in hydropower has increased, so too has research into the sector, including increased investment in tidal and marine technologies and storage.
UK signs a big fracking deal – French oil company Total and UK energy firm IGas Energy have agreed to a deal that will see Total with a 40 per cent stake in two shale gas exploration licenses in the UK. Total will pay US$1.6 million in back costs and fund a works programme of up to $46.5 million, with a $19.5 million minimum commitment. The scale of investment is a first for the shale gas sector in the UK.
IGas Energy chief executive Andrew Austin said: “The entry of the first major [oil company] into UK shale gas licences is a further endorsement of the potential that exists and demonstrates strong support for our operating capabilities.”
Total’s senior vice president for Northern Europe Patrice de Vivies said the deal marked an “important milestone” in a promising onshore play.
IGas will be the operator of the initial exploration programme, with Total subsequently taking over ownership as the project moves towards development.
Fracking, which is short for hydraulic fracturing, involves drilling deep underground and releasing a high-pressure mix of water, sand and chemicals to crack rocks and release gas stored inside. But it is controversial because ground water can become polluted in the process. In December 2013 a report commissioned by the Department of Energy and Climate Change said that more than half of the UK could be suitable for fracking.
Asia-Pacific region to dominate solar PV in 2014 – Nearly 95 per cent of new solar photovoltaic capacity in the Asia-Pacific region will be generated by five countries – China, Japan, India, Australia and Thailand – according to a report by NDP Solarbuzz APAC PV Markets Quarterly. Expected to install more than 23 GW of solar PV in 2014, the region will set a new record for the most solar PV installed annually within any region. This record PV level exceeds the total installed globally by the entire PV industry in 2010 and is even greater than the 19.2 GW installed in Europe in 2011.
The record level of solar PV demand from the Asia-Pacific region during 2014 will represent 35 per cent annual growth compared to 2013. With more than 85 per cent of the region’s installations this year, Japan and China will dominate demand.
The Chinese Bureau of Energy recently announced an aggressive target to install 12 GW in 2014, with 8 GW to be installed on rooftops and 4 GW on ground-mounted plants. New investments will also continue to drive the Japanese market.
NPD Solarbuzz predicts that Thailand will become the next major solar PV country in the region in 2014, having increased its target for renewable energy contributions to 25 per cent by 2021. The report adds that, despite efforts in China to increase the solar PV capacity located on rooftops through distributed generation, more than 50 per cent of solar capacity installed across the APAC region during 2014 will come from ground-mounted projects, with less than a quarter of new installations derived from residential and small commercial rooftop segments.
Being green comes at a cost for Germany – Germany’s Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble has warned that Berlin may have gone too far in its attempts to protect the environment, saying that the government must now “rebalance” its policies to ensure environment regulations do not cost jobs.
He claims that the green economy will be a driver of employment, saying Berlin’s decision two years ago to scale back its nuclear power plants and emphasise renewables needed to be re-examined.
His remarks come amid rising concerns in European industry that the EU is losing competitiveness internationally because of rising energy costs and, with the US expanding its shale gas industry, it is time Europe rebalanced.
“We did it too well and now we have to correct it because otherwise we have increasing energy costs, which will harm jobs in Germany in a serious way in the medium term,” he said adding that a rollback of existing regulations was in order.
The European Commission recently unveiled a new energy strategy for 2030, which many environmentalists called ‘disappointing’ because it lacked binding national targets on how much power EU countries would have to generate from renewable sources. Critics of the strategy believe Brussels has put economic growth ahead of climate change concerns, adding that the EU has long been the strongest advocate internationally for tough environmental standards and a retreat by Europe on the issue could have major implications for the global debate.
Germany’s Minister for the Economy and Energy, Sigmar Gabriel, warned that Germany had reached the limit of what it could ask of its economy in terms of energy prices.
Germany provides significant subsidies for its renewable industries and is subject to an EU investigation into special exemptions that have shielded its manufacturers from the full cost of its high energy prices.
Scotland drinks up plans to turn whisky waste into green power – A plan to use waste from a whisky distillery to generate power has been given the go ahead in Scotland.
The anaerobic digestion facility at Glenfiddich Distillery will use malted barley and pot ale from the distilling process to produce biogas that can be cleaned and injected into the gas grid or used to generate electricity.
The principal planning officer for the county of Moray where the distillery is housed, Neal MacPherson, said the project would deliver numerous benefits for the area.
“This proposal would see the re-use of by-products from the distillation process that would provide and re-use waste and heat, increasing efficiency of the process of the Glenfiddich Distillery, creating four new jobs and also providing either electricity or gas that would feed back into the national grid or gas network,” he said.
The plant will be built on site at the distillery and is expected to produce heat and steam for use in the distilling process. Glenfiddich is the latest in a line of distilleries moving towards anaerobic digestion technology to improve production and reduce costs.
UN: Energy production uses precious water resources – Demands for energy are using up scarce water supplies, particularly in developing countries, according to a report by the UN. The World Water Development Report found that hydropower accounts for 15 per cent of the world’s water usage – but this figure is expected to jump to 35 per cent by 2035. Meanwhile, water requirements will also increase. The main regions set to raise both their power and water consumption are India, China and the Middle East, thanks to changing lifestyles and growing populations. “Demand for fresh water and energy will continue to increase over the coming decades to meet the needs of growing populations and economies, changing lifestyles and evolving consumption patterns, greatly amplifying existing pressures on limited natural resources and on ecosystems,” the report’s authors say. Around 90 per cent of current energy production is water intensive.
Liquid air to be used to power turbines – A UK-based company has hit upon a new way to use stored energy to create power. Highview Power has been experimenting with using cheap off-peak energy to cool air to -196oC using conventional refrigeration techniques, creating liquid air. When the air returns to normal temperature, it turns back to gas and, as it expands, can be used to turn a turbine and create electricity. The UK government has given Highview an £8 million grant to build a 5 MW demonstration plant in England. Energy giant GE has also signed a deal with Highview, which could see GE’s gas turbines and engines take advantage of the new discovery.
Panama powers up with new solar installation – Panama’s first utility-scale solar photo-voltaic (PV) installation has been completed. The 2.4 MW joint venture between Greenwood Energy and Biosar is nine miles from the city of Chitré and will provide 30 per cent of power for the surrounding area – equivalent to around 2,600 homes. “Latin America is one of the world’s most dynamic solar power markets,” said Camilo Patrignani, CEO of Greenwood.
USA sees rising demand for coal, despite pit closures – Rising gas prices and discoveries of cleaner, low sulphur coal are driving a resurgence of coal in US energy markets. The USA’s Energy Information Administration projects that 40 per cent of America’s electricity production will still be coal-based by 2030.
For the first 11 months of 2013, the most recent figures available, coal was used to generate 39 per cent of the 3.7 trillion KW hours of electricity used in the USA. Natural gas accounted for 31 per cent of electricity output, while solar and wind power produced just four per cent between them. Ten years ago, coal was used to generate more than half the country’s electricity, but since then more than a quarter of the USA’s coal mines have closed.
Financial analyst Paul Forward told CNBC that coal stocks were becoming attractive to investors once again. “Things that can drive coal prices higher – like energy inflation, shortages of natural gas, bad weather, that sort of thing -they can hurt the rest of the economy, but can be a spur for long dormant coal prices.”
Geothermal energy market heats up in Indonesia – Plans are underway to construct a 320 MW geothermal plant in North Sumatra, Indonesia, which is expected to cut 1.3 million tonnes of carbon emissions per year.
In March the Asian Development Bank approved a grant worth $350 million towards the funding of the Sarulla Geothermal Power Development Project, which is scheduled for completion in 2018.
The Sarulla Project is being managed by a consortium, including the company responsible for developing the geothermal technology involved in the project, Ormat Technologies. Financing is expected to be finalised by the end of the second quarter 2014. Dita Bronicki, CEO of Ormat Technologies, said the company “will continue the effort to close this financing and, ultimately, supply clean, reliable electricity to the Indonesian market”.
The project comes as part of Indonesia’s wider plans to cut greenhouse gas emissions and increase its share of renewable energy from five per cent to 25 per cent by 2025.
