Energy Infrastructure

Wind and solar power generated in Western Australias Midwest could be helping to power Europe by the end of the decade. A trilateral international study will consider how to fast track renewable hydrogen exports from WAs Midwest to the Netherlands and Germany.

For the first time, global demand for each of the fossil fuels shows a peak or plateau across all WEO scenarios. Russian exports in particular falling significantly as the world energy order is reshaped. The biggest tremors have been felt in the markets for natural gas, coal and electricity.

Japanese utilities exploring the case for co-firing of coal with ammonia to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. By 2050, the cost of a retrofitted coal power plant running 100% on clean ammonia is expected to be at least $168/MWh.

Women are underrepresented in STEM jobs (28%) and the renewable energy workforce (32%, IRENA). EIGE calculated that by 2050, improving gender equality would lead to an increase in EU (GDP) per capita by 6.1 to 9.6%

Solar eclipsing coal is the lead source of electricity generation in Australia. The question of how to manage this powerful but unpredictable fleet is already a pressing issue. Solstice AI has developed an AI model that can find all the solar on the rooftops providing regional and individual one hour forecasts.

Five young companies have received financial support for their growth in the last 12 months. Industry and commerce are deploying battery storage to complement renewable energy generation. Investments in battery storage companies is not unique to the automotive sector. In stationary or other applications for chemical energy storage, the market is also developing

Commissioning has taken place of a 100MW/400M vanadium redox flow battery (VRFB) energy storage system in Dalian, China. A second phase will bring it up to 200MW/800MWh.

Spearmint Energy founder Andrew Waranch says we are at a tipping point. Texas power grid froze in 2021 after a surge of severe winter storms battered state. He says we need massive investment in our energy infrastructure, especially in energy storage.

EU needs €210bn over next five years to pay for phasing out Russian fossil fuels based on a plan drawn up in response to the Kremlin-ordered invasion of Ukraine. The plan proposes upgrades to the EU green deal, the blocs flagship policy to confront the climate crisis. Officials also want to cut energy consumption by 13% by 2030 (compared with 2020), too.