For the same investment, wind generates 5 times the jobs and 2.3 times the power as a nuclear reactor.
The global report: 'Energy [R]evolution: A sustainable World
Energy Outlook', produced by the European Renewable Energy Council
(EREC) and Greenpeace International, provides a practical blueprint
for how to cut global CO2 emissions by almost 50% within the next
43 years, whilst providing a secure and affordable energy supply
and, critically, maintaining steady worldwide economic
development.
The plan states that renewable energies have the potential to
deliver nearly 70% of global electricity supply and 65% of global
heat supply by 2050 - not only in OECD countries, but also in
developing countries such as China, India and Brazil.
"The Energy Revolution scenario comes as the world is crying out
for a roadmap for tackling the dilemma of how to provide the power
we all need, without fuelling climate change," said Sven Teske
energy expert of Greenpeace International. "We have shown that the
world can have safe, robust renewable energy, that we can achieve
the efficiencies needed and we can do all this whilst enjoying
global economic growth and phasing out damaging and dangerous
sources such as coal and nuclear."
Wind and solar markets are doubling in size every three years
and internationally are already worth US$ 38 billion, their growth
path follows the trends set by the internet and mobile phones.
Renewable energy can and will have to play a leading role in the
world's energy future. There is no technical but a political
barrier to make this shift.
"Renewable energies are competitive, if governments phase-out
subsidies for fossil and nuclear fuels and introduce the
`polluter-pays principle`. We urge politicians to ban those
subsidies by 2010," said Teske.
However, the report also highlights the short time window for
making the key decisions in energy infrastructure. Within the next
decade, many of the existing power plants in the OECD countries
will come to the end of their technical lifetime and will need to
be replaced, whilst developing countries such as China, India and
Brazil are rapidly building up new energy infrastructure to service
their growing economies.
The report was developed in conjunction with specialists from
the Institute of Technical Thermodynamics at the German Aerospace
Centre (DLR) and more than 30 scientists and engineers from
universities, institutes and the renewable energy industry around
the world. It provides the first comprehensive global energy
concept which gives a detailed analysis of how to restructure the
global energy system.
Greenpeace New Zealand was involved in the modelling of this
report, specifically working on a roadmap for how New Zealand can
significantly reduce CO2 emissions over the next 50 years. The New
Zealand energy roadmap will be released in February prior to the
close of submissions on the Governments proposed energy
strategy.
"Climate chaos is on the increase, we all must act to cut global
emissions to avoid total climate meltdown," said Vanessa Atkinson,
Greenpeace New Zealand climate campaigner. "New Zealand, with an
abundance of clean renewable energy, has a responsibility to
increase investment into clean technologies like wind and solar,
significantly increase energy efficiency and conservation and phase
out polluting power sources like coal."
A copy of the Energy [R]evolution: A Sustainable World Energy
Outlook report can be
downloaded here
VVPR info: INTERNATIONAL CURRENTLY IN BRUSSELS
Sven Teske, Greenpeace International renewable energy campaign, + 31 62129 68 94
Isabel Leal, Greenpeace International media officer, + 31 20 718 2470
NEW ZEALAND
Vanessa Atkinson, Greenpeace New Zealand climate campaigner, 021 565 165
Suzette Jackson, Greenpeace New Zealand communications officer, 021 614 899
Notes: The Energy [R]evolution scenario describes a development pathway which transforms the present situation into a sustainable energy supply, within a single generation. Exploitation of the large energy efficiency potential will reduce primary energy demand from the current 435,000 PJ/a (Peta Joules per year) to 422,000 PJ/a by 2050. Under the 'business as usual' scenario there would be an increase to 810,000 PJ/a, and a quadrupling of electricity costs. This dramatic reduction is a crucial prerequisite for developing a significant share of renewable energy sources, compensating for the phasing out of nuclear energy and reducing the consumption of fossil fuels.
1. The report was commissioned by Greenpeace and EREC from the Department of Systems Analysis and Technology Assessment (Institute of Technical Thermodynamics) at the German Aerospace Centre (DLR).
2. The report develops a global sustainable energy pathway up to 2050. The future potential for renewable energy sources has been assessed with input from all sectors of the renewable energy industry around the world, and forms the basis of the Energy [R]evolution Scenario.
3. The energy supply scenarios adopted in this report, which both extend beyond and enhance projections by the International Energy Agency, have been calculated using the MESAP/PlaNet simulation model. This has then been further developed by the Ecofys consultancy to take into account the future potential for energy efficiency measures.
4. The Energy [R]evolution Scenario describes a development pathway which transforms the present situation into a sustainable energy supply through the following mechanisms:
- Exploitation of the large energy efficiency potential will reduce primary energy demand from the current 435,000 PJ/a (Peta Joules per year) to 422,000 PJ/a by 2050. Under the reference scenario there would be an increase to 810,000 PJ/a. This dramatic reduction is a crucial prerequisite for achieving a significant share of renewable energy sources, compensating for the phasing out of nuclear energy and reducing the consumption of fossil fuels.
- The increased use of combined heat and power generation (CHP) also improves the supply system's energy conversion efficiency, increasingly using natural gas and biomass. In the long term, decreasing demand for heat and the large potential for producing heat directly from renewable energy sources limits the further expansion of CHP.
- The electricity sector will be the pioneer of renewable energy utilisation. By 2050, around 70% of electricity will be produced from renewable energy sources, including large hydro. An installed capacity of 7,100 GW will produce 21,400 Terawatt hours per year (TWh/a) of electricity in 2050.
- In the heat supply sector, the contribution of renewables will increase to 65% by 2050. Fossil fuels will be increasingly replaced by more efficient modern technologies, in particular biomass, solar collectors and geothermal.
- Before biofuels can play a substantial role in the transport sector, the existing large efficiency potentials have to be exploited. In this study, biomass is primarily committed to stationary applications; the use of biofuels for transport is limited by the availability of sustainably grown biomass.
- By 2050, half of primary energy demand will be covered by renewable energy sources.
Exp. contact date: 2007-02-20 00:00:00