Page 50 - European Energy Innovation - spring 2019 publication

50 Spring 2019 European Energy Innovation
GAS INDUSTRY INNOVATION
Innovation in the gas
industry paves the way to
low-carbon future
By Marco Alverà, President of GasNaturally
Meeting the long-
term greenhouse
gas (GHG)
emissions target
of the COP21 Paris Agreement will
require extraordinary measures.
On current trends, the world is
set to miss the Paris goals; however,
a radical shift towards innovative
and affordable gas technologies
could make a real difference in
achieving global climate goals in a
sustainable way.
This is especially relevant in the
context of growing energy demand:
according to the International Energy how vital it is that the industry pursue
Agency’s (IEA) World Energy Outlook
Marco Alverà, President of
GasNaturally.
The members of GasNaturally are:
International Association of Oil and
Gas Producers (IOGP), Eurogas, Gas
Infrastructure Europe (GIE), European Gas diversity is our strength: we support
Research Group (GERG), the Technical
Association of the European Natural Gas
Industry (MARCOGAZ) and Natural & Biogas
Vehicle Association (NGVA)
2018, global demand is set to grow by
more than 25% by 2040.
To meet this challenge, gas
companies are pulling their weight by
improving the efficiency of their own
processes and increasingly investing
in decarbonised and renewable
energy ventures.
As the CEO of SNAM, Italy’s leading
gas infrastructure operator, I am
honoured to represent also the
GasNaturally partnership of six
Associations throughout Europe.
Having served the gas industry for
almost two decades, I can see clearly
innovation in order to remain relevant
in the long term.
GasNaturally’s membership covers
the entire value chain, from upstream
to transmission, distribution,
wholesale and retail operations, as
well as gas utilisation including in
maritime, road and rail transport. This technology.
research and development (R&D) and
are investing in the implementation
of a full range of promising new
technologies with long-term potential
to reduce carbon dioxide (CO2)
emissions, such as power-to-gas
(P2G), natural-gas-to-hydrogen,
carbon capture and storage (CCS),
and carbon capture use and storage
(CCUS).
The gas industry today can partner
and support the clean energy of
tomorrow
Extensive existing gas infrastructure
throughout Europe can be used
to provide the flexibility needed to
meet seasonal variations and peaks
in energy demand and to transport
increased quantities of renewable
and low-carbon energies to final
customers – a key feature that the
electricity network is unable to deliver.
The most common renewable gases,
such as biomethane and synthetic
methane, have compositions similar
to natural gas, which means that
existing consumers can convert to
low-emission fuels without further
investment.
At the end of 2017, there were more
than 17 000 biogas plants and more
than 500 biomethane plants in
Europe, and further development of
the sector is planned in the coming
years.
In Spain, the SMART green gas
project, led by one of our members,
is developing new generation
technologies to obtain high-quality,
low-cost biomethane for industry,
transport and households. In
parallel, the Power2Biomethane
project aims to develop a fully
renewable biomethane generation
system through advanced bio-
electrochemical process.
In Italy, SNAM places decarbonisation
and smart energy at the core of
our company strategy. We invest in
biomethane and energy efficiency
and support the vast potential of
hydrogen as a sustainable energy
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