Page 52 - European Energy Innovation - autumn 2017 publication
P. 52
52 Autumn 2017 European Energy Innovation
EUROPEAN ENERGY RESEARCH ALLIANCE
EERA: Championing EU
transition to Low Carbon
By Adel El Gammal (pictured), Secretary General, The European Energy Research Alliance (EERA)
AN “INCONVENIENT REMINDER” A recent analysis by Carbon Action Hinkley Point C, UK).
Except for those still believing in Tracker indicates that under full
soothing political statements still execution of the Paris Accord pledges, Nor that 75 GW of PV capacity could be
hanging on to a 1,5°C warming target, the world is likely to be on a 2,8°C built, installed and commissioned in a
it will be little surprise that humanity warming trajectory, while under current single year, representing about twice
must get ready to accept the unknown policies, warming is expected to reach the historical installed capacity of a
consequences of temperatures rising no less than 3,6°C. country such as Poland.
well above 2°C by the end of the
century. In the race to fight climate change, INCREASED RESEARCH AND
decarbonizing the energy sector INNOVATION IS CRUCIAL
Record concentration of carbon dioxide stands out as a key priority. But despite Quoting Pascal Lamy (Report of the
of 410 ppm (from the pre-industrial some remarkable achievements, the Independent High Level Group on
peak of 280 ppm in 1958) have been speed of transition to low carbon, in maximizing the impact of EU Research
recorded in May 2017, hinting that the Europe and globally, fails to reflect & Innovation), “Investing in Research
450 ppm threshold needed for keeping the climate urgency and needs to be & Innovation is increasingly crucial for
warming below 2°C (with only a 50% accelerated. shaping a better Europe future in a
probability) will irremediably soon be rapidly globalizing world where success
overshot. COMPETITIVE TECHNOLOGY depends even more on production
READILY AVAILABLE and conversion of knowledge and
Under the combined effect of a deep innovation”.
economic crisis and a rapidly changing
regulatory environment, the last decade Indeed, the fabulous progress achieved
has been in Europe the theatre of an in low carbon technologies in the
intense turmoil in the energy sector. recent years is largely attributable to
And the unprecedented lobbying the early promotion of renewables in
activity that followed, resulting from Europe and to the research impetus it
the size of vested interests at stake, led has created within the union, that led
to a blurred perception of the actual to major advances in most low carbon
technological state of play. technologies.
While still in an early deployment Focusing on PV, despite mass
phase a decade ago, many low carbon production now primarily taking
technologies have in fact delivered far place in Asia, EU still captures most
beyond expectations, and constitute of its added value. And thanks to
today highly competitive power sustained research efforts, it still holds
generation technologies. scientific and technological leadership
on advanced PV technologies and
For instance, nobody would ever concepts.
have thought a couple of years ago
that – under a pure cost perspective In addition, due to the high penetration
– PV could now deliver electricity in of PV in some EU member states,
Germany at a cost close to half the Europe is now also developing unique
strike price of New Nuclear power (ref. capabilities in addressing the complex
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