More use of German renewables

Germany can reach a 25% share of electricity consumption by 2020, according to the results of study by the German centre for aerospace and space travel and the Wuppertal institute. This would beat the government goal of a 20% proportion of renewables in 2020. The researchers reported that the 25% share of renewables can be reached in that year without imposing significant costs on consumers. However, Germany ’s electricity industry is convinced this report proves that the current renewables support system in Germany is too expensive for consumers.

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Energy review announced in the UK

British Prime Minister Tony Blair announced a strategic energy review to find out what would be the best option to secure the UK ’s energy supply. The UK government has started a consultation round to check the opinion of industry, consumers and environmental campaign groups. The UK is concerned about the country’s reliance on foreign energy supply and, according to earlier statements from Blair , the possibility of commissioning new nuclear power stations is real. Energy Minister Malcolm Wicks is researching the necessity of supporting investments in new nuclear power stations, however he stated that he is neutral about nuclear energy. Ecologists are preparing actions to convince the public that renewable energy should be preferred above nuclear power.

Wave and tidal power for energy supply UK

Wave and tidal power could supply a fifth of UK energy needs, according to the report ‘ Future Marine Challenge’ from the Carbon Trust. By 2020 several GW of generating capacity could be installed, and this could potentially meet a small but significant share of the 2020 UK renewable energy aspiration. The cost of electricity generation from tidal stream energy could become competitive with current base costs of electricity within the installed capacity estimated for the UK of 2.8 GW. Beyond 2020, the marine renewables industry could grow much further. The Carbon Trust concludes that marine renewable energy has the potential to become competitive with other generation forms in the future.

California approves large solar programme

California ’s Public Utilities Commission has approved the creation of the largest solar programme of its kind in any state in the USA . This programme, the California Solar Initiative, will provide US$ 2.9 billion in the next 11 years for the transition to clean energy and to reduce the consumer costs of solar electricity. With the Solar Initiative, California aims to increase the capacity of installed rooftop PV panels by 3,000 MW by 2017. At the start, the Solar Initiative will fund installation of solar PV. Solar thermal water heating and solar heating and cooling systems will be added later. After Germany , the California programme is the second largest in the world.

Survey about carbon capture and storage

A survey on Carbon dioxide Capture and Storage ( CCS ) has been launched through the internet. At www.CO2-CATO.nl , accessible until February 15th, 2006, one can give his opinion on the possible contribution of CCS to the development of a sustainable energy supply. It takes about 5 minutes to complete the survey.

The survey is part of the Netherlands ’ research programme CATO (CO 2 Afvang, Transport en Opslag, or CO 2 Capture and Storage). The aim of CATO is to identify whether and how CO 2 capture and storage can contribute to a sustainable energy system in the Netherlands . CATO is implemented by a consortium of companies, research institutions, universities and environmental organizations and is supported with over 25 million euro.