BBC: UK to finish with coal power after 142 years
The UK is about to stop producing any electricity from burning coal - ending its 142-year reliance on the fossil fuel.
The country's last coal power station, at Ratcliffe-on-Soar, finishes operations on Monday after running since 1967.
This marks a major milestone in the country's ambitions to reduce its contribution to climate change. Coal is the dirtiest fossil fuel producing the most greenhouse gases when burnt.
Minister for Energy Michael Shanks said: "We owe generations a debt of gratitude as a country."
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Canada: Prime Minister announces the appointment of senators - Powerwood's Daryl Fridhandler
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Stop debating carbon markets and start building them
The prize is huge if we can agree on standards and get this right writes Mark Carney in the Financial Times.
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Announcement
Coalternative through their subsidiary Powerwood Canada are pleased to announce the signing of an MOU between Powerwood and the Pabineau and Eel River Bar First Nations in New Brunswick. This cooperation and partnership between Powerwood and the First nations will support the development of a new 400k tons per annum Steam Treated Black Pellet plant close to the Port of Belle Dune and adjacent to the New Brunswick Power station which is seeking to enter a long term off take of Powerwood’s black pellets.
Powerwood are excited to have the support and cooperation with two of the most forward thinking and influential First Nations in the region and look forward to building on this partnership for the benefit of the First Nations and the entire population of New Brunswick by enabling the continued operation of the NB Power plant.
Canadians are taking dramatic steps to avoid more ruinous firestorms
The focus is as much on mitigation and preparation as on suppression.
Stumpy, soot-stained foundations of homes, charred fir trees that crumble when touched and the skeletons of petrol stations offer mute testimony to the ferocity of the wildfire that roared through the hamlet of Scotch Creek last year.
The smoke from it and myriad other Canadian fires reached Baltimore, Barcelona, Berlin and beyond.
Drax: UK power station still burning rare forest wood
Unlike all other pellet producers, Coalternative Energy only use fire damaged forests for the wood. The feedstock we need comes from the Northern Alberta forests so devastated by the forest fires this year.
Why does this matter?
We don’t destroy perfect and valuable carbon capturing forests.
We PREVENT even more carbon release too. Because when a tree dies after a few years it releases all the carbon it has captured back into the atmosphere.
That is an immensely powerful reason to support what we do. Get in touch to learn more.
June 7th 2022 - Full Article Link
The US envoy on climate change John Kerry has warned that the war in Ukraine must not be used as an excuse to prolong global reliance on coal.
Speaking to the BBC, Mr Kerry criticised a number of large countries for not living up to the promises they made at the COP26 climate summit.
Climate diplomats meet again today in Bonn amid new, energy security worries.
If countries extend their reliance on coal in response to the war, then "we are cooked," Mr Kerry said.
The fragile unity shown in Glasgow last November is likely to be tested in Bonn as countries deal with the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the cost of living crisis.
Mr Kerry told the BBC that despite these drawbacks, "as a world we are still not moving fast enough," to rein in the emissions of warming gases that are driving up temperatures.
"We can still win this battle," the former senator said, but it will require a "wholesale elevation of effort by countries all around the world".
Mr Kerry's call was echoed by a leading Ukrainian scientist who urged delegates to speed up their transition away from fossil fuels.
Dr Svitana Krakovska said oil and gas were the "enablers of war".
Today's meeting in Bonn, which will last until the end of next week, is much smaller than COP26 and is mainly a technical negotiation.
It occurs halfway between the big conferences in Glasgow and COP27, to be held in Egypt.
The talks will be carried out by civil servants with limited political input and will review progress on a host of issues agreed in the Glasgow Climate Pact,
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October 25th 2021
Wood pellets are produced using finely ground wood bark; they are majorly used as fuel. These are extensively used in residential houses for efficient burning in smaller stoves. Wood pellets are produced from numerous wood waste products and are considered a source of renewable energy. Currently, along with residential heating, there is increased use of wood pellets for power generation across the globe. These are largely utilized globally as a fuel, which is expected to increase the demand for wood pellets in the coming years. Europe is the leading region for the consumption of wood pellets for power generation. Moreover, North America is the significant exporter of wood pellets, which is expected to increase the production facilities of wood pellets in the coming years.
Based on application, the wood pellet market is segmented into residential heating, commercial heating, CHP (combined heat and power), and power generation. The residential heating segment led the wood pellet market with the highest market share in 2020. Wood-fueled systems are commonly used worldwide for residential heating, and recently wood pellets have been replacing traditional firewood. Wood pellet boilers for residential heating applications promise low emissions, high efficiency, and automatic operation. Wood pellets are used for residential heating in pellet stoves. They are also used in pellet boilers to generate heat, steam, and electricity in the service industry, power generation, and manufacturing. It is used for power generation and heat generation in the manufacturing and energy sectors, which is driving the wood pellet market. Since the cost of wood pellets remained cheaper than that of other fuels for a long time, it has become a more economical option, addressing the primary concern of the residential sector. As a renewable energy source, wood pellets received incentives and subsidies from the governments in many countries. In recent years, many countries either launched or updated their policies and schemes related to wood pellets for heating applications.
In 2020, Europe contributed to the largest share in the global market. An annual report filed with the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service’s Global Agriculture Information Network represents that the wood pellet market in Europe has been relatively unaffected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As per the report, the region consumed ~29 million metric tons of wood pellets in 2018, which makes it the world’s largest pellet market. Wood pellets are used in residential applications for heating purposes and industrial heat and power generation. The report further states that the region contributes ~30% of world pellet production currently. However, it accounts for the major consumption of wood pellets across the globe. Italy, Germany, and other such countries are considered as the major growth markets for consuming wood pellets in residential heating applications. The UK is one of the major consumers of wood pellets, followed by Italy and Denmark.
Pacific BioEnergy, Premium Pellet Ltd., Pinnacle Renewable Energy, Enviva, Andritz, Wood & Sons, Graanul Invest, New England Wood Pellet, Tanac, and Energex Pellet Fuel, Inc. are among the major players operating in the wood pellet market.
For more information please click on:
Wood Pellet Market Forecast to 2028 - COVID-19 Impact and Global Analysis
August 1st, 2020
In short, biomass is organic material made by living organisms that contains stored energy from the sun. Plants absorb radiant energy from sunlight and then convert it into chemical energy in the form of glucose, or sugar. This energy is passed on to people and animals that consume the plant matter. The chemical energy from biomass is released as heat when burned. Types of biomass include wood, crops, landfill gas, alcohol fuels and trash. Biomass can either be a waste product or grown specifically for energy in the form of crops like hemp, corn, poplar, willow, sorghum, switchgrass and sugarcane. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, biomass fuels provided about 4 percent of the energy used in the United States in 2010. About 46 percent of that amount was from wood or wood-derived biomass such as wood chips and sawdust; 43 percent came from biofuels like ethanol, and 11 percent was sourced from municipal waste.
August 1st, 2020
However, when speaking of biomass-to-energy, what comes to mind is energy extraction from woody biomass or from farm crops, like corn or oil-rich rapeseed. The collected or harvested biomass intended for energy extraction is considered a fuel. As with any fuel, manmade or not, when consumed for practical applications, such as for conversion into electricity, or to power an automobile, the objective is to minimize the amount of fuel used for maximum output of whatever the design goal is, and hopefully in an environmentally acceptable way. The design goal is efficiency or minimization of losses, the parasitic losses that are inherent in any scheme that changes energy from one state to another. In the end, it is the cost of the fuel, or energy, to the consumer that makes some solutions succeed and others fall by the wayside. All renewable energy must compete in the marketplace with hydrocarbon fuels; petroleum, natural gas and coal are extremely low in price today. In the long run, all the noble intentions to intervene with or reverse global warming fail, if the cost of the measures adversely impacts the consumer’s pocket book. Look at the December 2018 “Yellow Jacket Revolts” in France, with the government forcing measures to curb emissions by taxing citizens for using certain fuels.
July 26th, 2020
Apart from this, the global Wood Pellets Market 2020 report provides crucial particulars regarding the categorisation, assessed growth trends, distribution network, economical or commercial terms, and many other vital elements related to the Wood Pellets. Rapidly increasing spendable income and innovative products offered by manufacturers are expected to boost Wood Pellets industry over the forecast interval. A vast and growing client base of the Wood Pellets industry creates an opportunity for producers to serve to a significant market and make money.
July 26th, 2020
As sustainability and the climate crisis races ever higher up the agenda, we want to tell you all about biomass, the underrated renewable energy source that’s helping to power homes and businesses across Britain.
Read on for a detailed explanation of everything biomass: what it is, where it comes from, and how it’s used to generate a significant portion of the UK’s renewable electricity.
Read the full article on the Opus Energy website...
June 8th, 2020
A decade ago about 40% of the country's electricity came from coal; coronavirus is part of the story, but far from all.
When Britain went into lockdown, electricity demand plummeted; the National Grid responded by taking power plants off the network.
The four remaining coal-fired plants were among the first to be shut down.
The last coal generator came off the system at midnight on 9 April. No coal has been burnt for electricity since.
The current coal-free period smashes the previous record of 18 days, 6 hours and 10 minutes which was set in June last year.
Can we deal with a pandemic and global warming at once – both urgent, one an immediate hit, the other a decade-long burn? Well, yes, because – even with front pages dominated by COVID-19 – last month saw an astonishing concentration of decisions by international corporates to ditch carbon. And they slipped by, with the world looking the other way.
Analysts say the coronavirus and a savage price war means the oil and gas sector will never be the same again
The plunging demand for oil wrought by the coronavirus pandemic combined with a savage price war has left the fossil fuel industry broken and in survival mode, according to analysts. It faces the gravest challenge in its 100-year history, they say, one that will permanently alter the industry. With some calling the scene a “hellscape”, the least lurid description is “unprecedented”.
A key question is whether this will permanently alter the course of the climate crisis. Many experts think it might well do so, pulling forward the date at which demand for oil and gas peaks, never to recover, and allowing the atmosphere to gradually heal.
Reliance on fossil fuels has left countries more exposed to the economic shock of global crises like coronavirus, and governments should look to renewable energy to help reduce such risks, a leading financial economist has said.
Dr Charles Donovan, Executive Director of the Centre for Climate Finance and Investment at London’s Imperial College Business School, made the comments to Forbes.com at the end of a week that saw the confirmation of the COVID-19 coronavirus as a pandemic, along with an announcement by Saudi Arabia that it would increase oil supply at a time of declining demand. The one-two punch of events sent the Dow Jones Industrial Average tumbling by as much as 10%—the largest drop since 1987, causing central banks to issue further dire predictions of recession.
The world is struggling with the coronavirus pandemic right now, but even the darkest of clouds can have a silver lining. For many, it is seeing the world around them with fresh eyes. People are driving less and industry is producing less, so there is less pollution in the air. That means we can see things like buildings and mountains that have been obscured for years, if not decades. Those clearer skies are convincing many people the time is ripe to move away from fossil fuels and toward renewable energy. Here are three perspectives on how that transition could unfold.
The headline of an editorial in The Los Angeles Times on April 7 puts things succinctly. “Renewable energy must be the future, if we are to have one at all.” Author Scott Martelle leads off with the recent good news from the International Renewable Energy Agency that renewables were responsible for 72% of all new electrical generation in 2019. He adds,
The current coronavirus pandemic has, at least temporarily, made a significant impact on greenhouse gas emissions. But that reflects a stalled economy rather than smart energy consumption choices. The pandemic is a naturally occurring threat to humans, as were SARS and MERS before it. Global warming, by contrast, is being driven by human behavior; it is a self-inflicted crisis.