How companies can tap into energy efficiency’s vast potential
For the third part of this series on utilities, and after tackling solar and power purchasing agreements (PPAs), I am going to delve into how companies save energy through efficiency.
Energy efficiency
Costa Rican electricity was 100 percent renewables for 113 days
Another world is possible. It is always a question of public willingness. The latest example of this is Costa Rica – 4.9 million inhabitants strong – which ran for almost four months on a hundred percent renewable electricity.
Canada, the US and Mexico to partner on energy
The agreement signed late last month may be the beginning of a new era of collaboration on climate change as the three North American countries signed an agreement to push cleantech and fight climate change.
Our civilization is 98 percent energy inefficient
You know it if you have been reading this blog for some time : I am an energy efficiency nut. While less sexy than renewables, consuming energy more efficiently is just the most important part of our transition towards sustainability.
Peru to have 60 percent renewables by 2025
Currently in Lima, Peru, is taking place the 20th Conference of the Parties. It is an important event as the talks on our future climate are taking place there. In margin of these, the host country made some announcements.
Japan has a carbon tax too
This was kind of a surprise for me when I learned that not only does Japan has a carbon tax, but that is has one since… October 2012. The world’s third largest economy is taxing emissions from power plants and vehicles alike.
A billion dollar a day invested in efficiency
365 billion Dollars (approx. 278 billion euros) : this is the money that was spent on energy efficiency around the world in 2012 according to a recent study the leading consultancy Ecofys did for HSBC.
Australian emissions decreased in 2013
According to Enerdata, Australian greenhouse gases emissions decreased by 0.8% last year. While this seems tiny and not really reason to rejoice, there is some data worth mentioning as emissions from the power sector fell by 5%. Last year alone, there was a 4.1% decrease in power generation from black coal, -6.9% from brown coal …
Japan replaced half of its nuclear reactors by efficiency
We have seen it many times over, energy efficiency is a key component to the energy transition, alongside with renewable energy sources. Energy sobriety / conservation is another often overlooked tool. As I was reporting all the way back to 2011, after Fukushima, Japan had cut by 15 percent its power usage thanks to conservation measures between 9 a.m. and …
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China to declare war on smog
Not so long ago, a much larger proportion of Chinese citizens was poor. From 1981 to 2008, the poverty rate was slashed from 85 percent to 13 percent. But this was rapid economic development has had a toll on the environment. Nowadays, the air quality in the capital city of Beijing is “somewhat similar to …