There’s long been a close link between fossil fuel exports and authoritarian regimes. [A commentary on Russia 08 Nov 2022]
It’s good if energy becomes more democratic, if people can control what they consume, then I’m convinced Europe can become a role model for the green transition. In 2020, partly because of pandemic lockdowns, global carbon emissions fell by 7%. But to meet the Paris climate pact’s “2-degree-goal”, emissions would need to fall by 7 percent every year through 2030. We don’t have a lot of time left to stop the climate catastrophe.
See these related posts:
[A climate change representation – 01 Sep 2022]
[Intercourse – 18 Jul 2022]
[110 Years & So Little changes – 13 Jul 2022]
[Jason Bateman’s Hair – 06 Aug 2022]
Energy is the wellspring of modern life in Europe. Without energy, we couldn’t produce our food, manufacture objects, communicate, work, or travel. The war in Ukraine is a painful reminder of the price of our energy dependence.
For a long time, Europe’s prosperity has relied on cheap fossil fuels, much of it imported. But to comply with global agreements on climate change, the continent must achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. Geopolitical conflict has made the energy transition more urgent than ever.
Before the war in Ukraine, 40% of Europe’s natural gas and 30% of its oil came from Russia.
Europe depends on a vast oil and gas supply network that extends halfway around the world. Repeatedly, Europe’s energy dependency has come at a heavy political price. We have waged wars over access to raw materials in the Middle East, the Caucasus, Africa, and Iraq. We have signed many treaties with kings, with dictators, and with Soviet bureaucrats when the Soviet Union began building pipelines toward Western Europe. All in the service of securing energy. Now Europe needs to free itself of its reliance on Russian gas.
It may be beneficial that they have shelved the controversial Nord Stream 2 pipeline project—a multi-billion euro project that would just increase Germany and Western Europe’s energy dependency. Over the next years, Europe cannot wean itself off gas imports. To replace Russian gas, Europe will increase its imports from the United States and the Middle East, perhaps even reaching out to China.
Demand for crude oil continues to rise for fuel, for asphalt roads, for tires. But also to produce plastic, cosmetics, fertilizer and even pharmaceutical products. It’s burned to generate electricity. Germany and Italy, which want to close their coal-fired and nuclear power plants, are especially reliant on these fossil fuels. That’s why the price of electricity is linked to the price of gas.
Europe subsidized oil and gas on a massive scale to the tune of 55 Billion Euros every year over the past ten years. Germany’s economy relies on gas. It’s a big problem, and the only way to fix that is to expand renewable energies.
Renewable energy is already cheaper than fossil fuels, but the EU needs not only to reconsider how it produces energy, it also needs to take a hard look at consumption. In Europe, the richest ten percent emit six times as much CO2 per person as the poorest 50 percent.
Policymakers often ignore this energy inequality, yet there are many people for whom access to energy is still a luxury. The way we produce our energy reflects our lifestyle and of our individual and collective choices. Energy is always political.
Producing energy isn’t enough. We also want to limit energy consumption and have made that a topic in our schools and communities, and teach about energy management. You don’t need to keep all your appliances on all the time. Insulate your house—the best energy is the energy we don’t use. Production is good, but cutting consumption is even better. Reducing consumption is key if Europe wants to meet its 2030 climate targets and ensure its energy independence.
Denmark used to be a major producer of gas and oil. Today it’s a forerunner in the energy transition. Denmark has an ambitious plan to produce 100% green energy without reducing consumption. They want to show Europe that it’s possible to invest in green technologies and to actually get a return. Denmark aims to become the first EU country to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035. That goal will require a broad social consensus, a collective decision supported by the public and by industry.
Denmark has already invested vast sums in the energy transition. It’s planning to build two energy islands each will connect some 650 wind turbines. They’ll generate more wind power than Denmark needs. With so many turbines, they can export surplus power and use some of that green energy to make green fuels. These green fuels could supply cars, aircraft and trucks. If you have equipped an airplane with a battery, the battery would be bigger than the plane. Green fuels are the most likely way to decarbonize the transportation sector.
There’s a lot of interest these days in local networks. People want to know what they’re paying for in their energy bill. Copenhagen has its share of spectacular projects, like the ski slope built on top of an ultra-modern power station fueled by waste incineration. The incineration plant is already one of the most efficient in the world. Now it’s embarked on a new experiment, to capture CO2 before it enters the atmosphere.
Carbon-capture is one way that Europe could gain time to produce more green energy. It would be a groundbreaking solution. But right now, the technology is still in its infancy. Storing the captured carbon dioxide is extremely complex.
Denmark is forging ahead. But the country is also part of the European energy network, in which they exchange electricity between countries to compensate for the vagaries of production and demand. Denmark still hasn’t solved one of the key obstacles on the path to green energy: how to store the electricity produced by wind turbines.
When winds are strong, Denmark produces more electricity than it needs—the excess sent to Germany and the Netherlands. When there’s little wind, the country depends on imports of electricity, mostly coming from German coal power plants and Swedish nuclear power. Research on new storage methods is underway. Tesla style power banks notwithstanding, the most efficient way might be to pump water into an elevated reservoir, releasing it later to produce power as needed. Right now, perhaps there’s just no good way to store green energy.
If Europe is serious about decarbonizing its industry, and making the switch to electric vehicles, it will need much more green energy—more than twice as much as what it produces today.
In Europe, 28% of the electricity generated comes from nuclear power. Nuclear is crucial is reducing emissions, preventing deforestation, and ensuring people’s well-being. People expect affordable energy for their daily lives and well-being. That’s another point in favor of nuclear. The issue is divisive. The largest producer of nuclear power in Europe is France. But several reactors are also active in Sweden, Great Britain and Eastern Europe. With clean, safe, nuclear fusion still some way away [Don’t conFUSE me – 01 Sep 2022], much of the public sees nuclear energy as a threat.
The countries are planning their nuclear exit. But upheavals on the energy market could change that. I was about 15 when the Chernobyl meltdown happened, our worst nuclear accident. Nuclear power isn’t risk free, but these risks can be mitigated. We shouldn’t simply condemn it outright. We want sustainable power, and nuclear is a tool.
We must act quickly to stop climate change and loss of habitats. Building a nuclear power plant takes time, and we need to slash emissions by the end of the decade. We have a lot of work ahead of us in this century. One decade won’t be enough. Europe can’t win its race against time on nuclear alone. Nuclear power plants generate carbon-free electricity. But their construction is time-consuming, dangerous and very expensive.
Today, you can buy solar modules at a supermarket and generate electricity at home. Energy is more democratic when people can control some of what they consume. The more the people understand how it’s produced, the more economical they’ll be with its use. Energy is a back door to democracy.
Europe urgently needs to move forward with the energy transition, but it will take time to come up with reliable alternatives, time that is running out.
Solar has a bright future.
One study suggests that Europe could meet its entire electricity needs by covering half of all roofs with solar panels. Solar will be vital to a successful energy transition. It could also help offset job losses that the decarbonization would entail.
The climate emergency is the greatest threat we’ve ever faced. And now green energy has also become a matter of peace and security. The energy transition would help us solve both problems to protect the climate and our own freedom.