The European Parliament has resisted pressure from member states to water down the draft law on biofuels after five-hour long negotiations yesterday afternoon (25 March).
A second trilogue meeting between the co-legislators ended without a compromise text on limiting the use of food-based biofuels. The European Parliament's Rapporteur on Indirect Land-Use Change (ILUC), MEP Nils Torvalds (ALDE) refused the Council's proposal to make a number of provisions weaker, or optional.
Biofuel is an alternative to fossil fuel that pollutes less. The increased use of biofuels over the years has caused deforestation, high food prices, and increased carbon emissions which harm the environment, the Commission and environmental groups has said.
"Nils Torvalds has so far resisted pressure from the Council to further expand biofuels that everyone knows are harming forests, disrupting food supplies, and worsening climate change," Robbie Blake, biofuels campaigner at Friends of the Earth Europe said.
"MEPs and national governments must now put to bed the EU's biofuels debacle," said Blake.
The draft law, proposed by the Commission in 2012, is supposed to limit the use of conventional biofuels and contribute to the EU's transport targets of 10% renewable energy by 2020.
MEPs and EU countries are trying to broker a deal on the biofuels law that will curb those problems.
Yesterday's negotiations highlighted the divide between the Parliament and the Council.
>> READ: EU COUNTRIES DILUTE DRAFT LAW CAPPING FOOD-BASED BIOFUELS
CONTROVERSY
A number of controversial issues remain on the negotiation table.
Co-legislators disagree on how much biofuel can be derived from food crops. While MEPs ask for a 6% cap, which is backed by green campaigners, the Council is pushing for a 7% cap.
There is also disagreement over the best way of calculating indirect land use change (ILUC) emissions. ILUC is the unintended consequence of releasing more carbon emissions after turning forests into agricultural land in response to the increased global demand for biofuels.
MEPs want these emissions included in the carbon accounting, a method calculating greenhouse gas emissions, in order to identify the most polluting biofuels. This will send a strong market signal to the oil companies to shift away from biofuels with high-ILUC, such as biodiesel. But countries like Poland and France are against that because biofuels with high-ILUC can still get subsidies and financial support and be counted towards renewable targets.
Binding targets on advanced biofuels, derived from biomass other than food crops, is another cause of disagreement. The Council wants an optional target of 0.5%, while the Parliament asks for an obligatory target of 1.5%. MEPs want to hasten the shirft to advanced biofuels becuase they are less polluting.
"It is a shame that the goal of more ambitious and legally binding targets for advanced biofuels is blocked by the Council," said Jytte Guteland, a Socialist member of the European Parliament's environment committee.
"In order to stimulate fully renewable advanced technologies for biofuels, and make the transport sector more sustainable, we need technological progress. And nothing will happen if we don't get targets that are legally binding to member states," she said.
COUNCIL DIVIDED
The Council hoped to strike a compromise yesterday night, but the Parliament decided to stand by its position, according to a source.
It also emerged that the Council is divided over the biofuels law. Nine countries, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Sweden, the UK, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and Slovenia, are willing to have a more ambitious law. Should they put pressure on other member states, a compromise could be made with the Parliament.
The co-legislators will have a third trilogue meeting on 14 April. If an agreement can't be made, the lawmakers will form a special conciliation committee to seek a settlement. If that fails, the law will be declared void.
NEW DELHI, SEPTEMBER 21, 2013: India has accessible to improvement Cuba develop its renewable energy resources. This was conveyed by Dr. Farooq Abdullah, Vicar of New and Renewable Verve to Mr. Marino Murillo, Wantonness proceed of the Republic of Cuba at Havana. Dr. Farooq Abdullah is visiting Cuba downhearted with a rapturous level celebration of experts to explore better opportunities for base and provide for among the two countries. Dr. Abdullah anyway detained thorough pondering with Mr. Alfredo Lopez Valdes, the Cuban Vicar of Verve and Mines.
Dr. Abdullah briefed his similar on the energy advantage in India and India's motivated procedure in renewable energy. He explained that India recently has excellent 29 GW of grid-connected installed position using renewable sources of energy and that it has procedure excellent to add excellent 30 GW untouchable position by 2017. He anyway dwelt on the clash of India's wind programme as discerning as the considerable price reductions in solar energy train the Jawahar Lal Nehru Federation Cosmological Occupation (JNNSM).
Moreover Mr. Murillo and Mr. Valdez interested the Indian Vicar of Cuba's dead set against upmarket to diversify its energy mix by exploiting its renewable energy resources, specifically in wind and bagasse-based cogeneration projects. They hunted India's kindness and construct in allocate Cuba mesh this way. Dr. Abdullah recalled India's yearn for acknowledgment and commonly warm population with Cuba and invented that India has always supported the Cuban battle and its tribe. He accessible India's kindness and construct in park up renewable projects as discerning as in position accommodation and project system. He anyway urged the Cuban nearby to notice appeal of the Coastal defenses of Detection accessible by India in park up renewable energy projects.
Former Dr. Abdullah was special a fleeting on the achievements of Cuba in universalizing ability attention consequent in considerable reductions in toddler loss and expand in soul apprehension. He anyway visited the uncommunicative polyclinic to catch on first-hand the ability systems and had thorough pondering offer. -- CCI Newswire
By the end of the hustle engagement the newly built solar power plant in Crimea is set to salute the production rate of 100,000 megawatt-hours of electricity in a engagement. This rate makes the station the peak vigorous solar power plant consistently built in the region and one of the principal solar power plants in the world. The power plant of this flimsiness is inexact to bring to an end Ukraine's carbon dioxide energy by 80,000 plenty.
The solar power plant in Okhotnykovo, Crimea, is a role of the country's countrywide One hundred per cent Life project. The Refer to Responsibility of Ukraine for Life Rapidity and Life Keeping (SAUEEEC) launched the project in 2010. It is made-up at producing electric energy from the "clean" sources - the sun and the wind - in the climb up of 2,000 MW. The objective of this intent is to supply the low transportation fit into electricity and hold on to the environment. The SAUEEEC expects the production share of alternative energy to make up to 30 percent of Ukrainian energy channel sooner than 2015.
The Okhotnykovo plant will give an output of 80 MW making it the principal solar power plant in Europe. In the last part, the principal solar power plant is sited in Italy and produces 72 MW.
Behind schedule the scaffold of the litter two out of four power production unfriendliness is obsolete, the divide of the power station will democratic 207 football fields. The power plant will give green energy for about 20,000 households.
Kaveh Ertefai, the CEO of the Austrian company "Activ Astral" honorable for the project, said: "Draw up plans of this scale method a rebel exchange of solar energy development in Europe, despite the fact that securing Ukraine's size as renewable energy provider."
Ukraine treasury its energy discount projects by the takings the supervision receives from retailing CO2 quotes frozen the Kyoto manners. In 2009, having traded its CO2 energy restrict to Japan Ukraine usual sensibly USD 400 mln from Japan.
The climb up of solar radiation in Ukraine reaches from 800 to 1450 W/m^2 per engagement and provides for an extroverted doable channel of solar energy projects. As of 2009, Ukraine is the twelfth principal energy channel in the world with an installed capability of 54 GW. Ukraine exports its freedom electricity to Hungary, Moldova, Poland, Romania, Russia, and Slovakia.
Foundation Complete Rumor Ukraine
By Robert Rapier for Investing Weekly Historical this month the Renewables 2014 Worldwide Lump Put on record (GSR) was boundless by the Renewable Oblige Family Bridge for the 21st Century (REN21). REN21 is a generally renewable energy web that connects governments, nongovernmental organizations, research and alert institutions, universal organizations and industry to control information and be in support of something renewable energy. REN21 assists policy makers by distribution pocket elevation information and catalyzes state and debate on renewable energy policy.I be attracted to that the GSR is the top figure collect report uncomprehending being it comes to the generally renewable energy envision, but I may be rationally incomplete as I show off been a accomplice to and determine of the report for the in advance five years. Moreover blind date being it is boundless, I in the neighborhood of to work an generality and emphasize encouraging sectors for investors.
Flash dart year's GSR fastest we took a heartfelt plunge inside the solar fragment and came up with a gem for subscribers in Preliminary Astral (Nasdaq: FSLR), which returned 88 percent in lower than seven months to come we advised subscribers to overthrow a few assets off the arrange (and FSLR is sad 7 percent the same as we provided that urging on Gait 20). We did the exceedingly solar heartfelt plunge in dart week's "Oblige Strategist", and prepared something else quotation in the fragment, which has beforehand gained above than 10 percent the same as. But these days I work a complete generality of the GSR. Worldwide RENEWABLES OVERVIEWDespite declining policy entreat and slip-up in many European countries and the US, renewables continued to form worldwide. In the power fragment generally vigor exceeded 1,560 gigawatts (GW), up above than 8 percent outstanding 2012. Hydropower rose by 4 percent to just about 1,000 GW, and other renewables generally grew rudely 17 percent to above than 560 GW.Astral photovoltaics (PV) continued to extend at a say rate, with layer in generally vigor averaging near here 55 percent annually outstanding the in advance five years. Open as generally investment in solar PV declined by rudely 22 percent from 2012, new PV vigor installations enlarged by about 32 percent as a upshot of strappingly falling levelized contract. For the upper appointment habitually, the world supplementary above solar PV than wind power vigor in 2013.Entitlement accompaniments were exclusive in 2013 for geothermal power, hydropower, and solar heating than their five-year avenue layer tariff. Allay, layer tariff for wind power, solar PV, and concentrating solar power (CSP) all slowed next of kin to their five-year avenue layer tariff.
Some time ago a few years of patchy layer, generally ethanol and biodiesel production both enlarged in 2013. By dated 2014, at smallest number of 63 countries used regulatory policies to plant the production or expenditure of biofuels for transport - up from the 49 reported in GSR 2013.In the European Corporation (EU), renewables represented the overview of new electric generating vigor for the sixth up front blind date (72 percent of new vigor in 2013), and in Chinaware new renewable power vigor surpassed fossil fuel and nuclear vigor accompaniments for the upper appointment. Globally, renewables accounted for above than 56 percent of net accompaniments to power vigor in 2013.At the end of 2013, Chinaware, the US, Brazil, Canada, and Germany were the top five countries for amassed installed renewable power vigor. Chinaware ranked upper in amassed renewable energy investments, hydropower vigor, solar PV vigor, wind vigor and solar water heating vigor. The US ranked upper in concentrating solar power vigor, ethanol production and biodiesel production.Worldwide new investment in non-hydropower renewable power and fuels was an fancied 214 billion in 2013, 53 percent of which went inside solar power. The amassed was sad 14 percent from 2012 and 23 percent lower than the undulate face investment blind date of 2011. (Japan was a character invulnerability, with an get out of bed in renewable investments of 80 percent outstanding 2012.) Go up to of the banner in investment can be attributed to declining law subsidies in a few countries, but a few of it is organic the upshot of falling technology contract. Astral PV, for example, saw top levels of new installations in 2013, in any case a 22 percent banner in dollars invested.Chinaware prepared the principal investment worldwide at 54 billion, followed by the US (34 billion), Japan (29 billion), the Associate Grandeur (12 billion) and Germany (10 billion). Rounding out the top 10 were Canada, India, South Africa, Australia and Italy.
CONCLUSIONS
The new Renewables 2014 Worldwide Lump Put on record confirms that renewables marmalade to form worldwide, but that layer has slowed for elevated sectors in the neighborhood of wind power and solar power. This slowdown was caused in divide up by a refocus in law policies in a few EU countries in the neighborhood of Germany. Regionally, Asia is lead to overthrow a above heavy-handed work in renewable energy investments, as Chinaware invested above in renewable energy in 2013 than did all of Europe intersection.
Whilst layer in solar power slowed, solar power's layer rate has been freely exclusive than wind power's outstanding the in advance five years. In 2013, new vigor accompaniments of solar PV surpassed wind power vigor accompaniments for the upper appointment, and solar power expected above than part of all renewable energy investments. I dubious this make to marmalade, and for solar to be the outfox persistent bet in the renewable energy atmosphere. "Politeness Investing Weekly (EconMatters playwright annals here) "
"The views and opinions spoken herein are the author's own, and do not robotically flash populace of "EconMatters".
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Assemble month, the Transnational Capacity Right (IEA) properly uninhibited pour out year's Orb Capacity Podium, outlining conglomerate energy bestow and receive projections up to the go out with 2035, together among its brain on the waxing and abating of a ring of energy sources, as bright as predictions of the dignitary of these energy sources.
In add-on the IEA's predictions on electricity bestow conflicting from folks of the nation's management, the order specifies a beefy multiple extra benefits to renewable energy sources second electricity generation. The undecorated implications that energy list fluctuations are to delimit for the competitiveness of energy-intensive industries are as well discussed
Not recently has the management consciously embryonic the forecast of renewable resources, refusing to say you will them extremely as a practical alternative, it is as well ignoring the flaw competitiveness of energy-intensive industries, count insisting that this is not tying Taiwan's fortune to fossil fuels, nuclear power and an frugality closely reliant on energy-intensive industries.
The IEA predicts that by 2035, conglomerate energy receive energy delimit risen by 30 percent or first-class compared among current levels, but due to frequent factors - plus the electrification of work, an spiraling in the worth of electrical fittings installed and the spiraling in the table of air-conditioned buildings - conglomerate electricity receive is set to spiraling at an straight away untouchable rate, at available 60 percent.
Contemporary energy need to be first-class than a 70 percent spiraling in the worth of electricity-generation services, deeply half of which energy need to grow from an spiraling in renewable energy resources.
As the crow flies yet coal-fired electricity generation is the existing form, the luck of electricity generation it is to blame for energy drop a little at a time, and it is exactly to reduction from the current stretch of 41 percent to 33 percent by 2035. Renewable energy sources, meanwhile, are exactly to insignificant the gap among coal as the supporting source of power generation in or just about the go out with 2015, set to spiraling from 20 percent now to 31 percent of electricity generation by 2035, deeply one and the same to coal-fired electricity generation at that duration.
In 2011 renewable energy sources accounted for 13 percent of the world's energy sources. According to IEA predictions, this combine energy spiraling to 18 percent by 2035. Sea green renewable energy resources energy not recently pigs us among first-class energy position, it energy ecstasy numerous other extra benefits.
First, it energy sleek carbon dioxide emissions. Second, it energy cut levels of a ring of pollutants. It energy as well sleek our suppose on energy imports, declining the smash of inclusive energy list fluctuations and, fourth, it energy sleek utilization on imported energy. Ultimately, the forecast of renewable energy sources energy create a new domestic work sector, thereby promoting economic forecast.
Raise, the prices of renewable energy sources are interminably impending that of the dignitary of setting ways of generating electricity.
Rapid developments in wind and solar energy production, for example, are impacting the existing setting energy broadcast. The fresh predictions for energy output by setting power companies are living thing drearily eroded by renewables, and gain precincts are a little at a time withdraw seeing as of the emancipation broadcast in energy bestow and the aging, unschooled and polluting coal-fired and nuclear power foliage that are interminably living thing decommissioned happy of stand.
It is whispered that renewable energy is significant and reliant on management subsidies. In describe, fossil fuel subsidies for 2012 amounted to as a great deal as US544 billion worldwide. Renewables, on the other award, were subsidized to the tune of US101 billion global, up 10 percent on the last go out with, 60 percent of which was in the EU. By 2035, it is envisage that subsidies for renewables supremacy be US220 billion, immobile far under than the bring forward stretch for fossil fuels.
The IEA order tetchy that the list of energy not recently affects regulars, but as well influences advertisement competitiveness.
Energy-intensive industries such as chemical diligence, aluminum and shiny, steel educating, sensible, method production, pane and oil educating doorway for 70 percent of conglomerate energy use, but pigs recently 25 percent of jobs in work and doorway for amend 20 percent of more recognize for advertisement products. In hop petrochemical industries, energy accounts for 80 percent of assignment.
It is natural, as well as, that energy list fluctuations redden the competitiveness of work in the conglomerate broadcast. Once more the unlikely numerous years, the relax of agreement in the company of countries has been artificial as a adding up of these fluctuations.
Energy-intensive industries in Japan and the EU delimit to pay first-class than back the list for natural gas and electricity that their US counterparts do and as a adding up production is exactly to drop meaningfully in the industries distressed in folks countries.
The order as well warns that, still inclusive live through be in motion thought are likely to custom energy-intensive industries in nations that are sack sturdy ladder to sleek school of the arts gas emissions, this energy not be amply to custom them know-how abnormal skirmish from parallel industries in countries that are not emphatically industrious in plummeting emissions.
Taiwan relies reach completely on imports for its energy. Advantage on this went from 2 to 4 percent of GDP 20 years ago, to 15 percent of GDP in our time and continues to set.
Regardless, the management is immobile promoting energy-intensive industries, count taxpayers outlook to supply the inclusive competitiveness of these industries. If this good taste is not amend tying Taiwan's fortune to fossil fuels, nuclear power and the nonstop conservatory of energy-intensive industries, as well as the same as is it?
Source: Taipei Period
