When one thinks of the Middle East nowadays, oil comes to mind. But with solar photovoltaic booming right now all around the region and beyond, this might not be the case in twenty or thirty years.
Oil
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.
Costa Rican electricity was 100 percent renewables for 113 days
I stated early this year that 2016 would be a bad year for fossil fuels. It seems I was quite right as bad news keep on piling for coal in the United States.
America is ditching coal
2 It seems fossil fuels are starting this new year with a lot of bad news. It is not only a treehugger’s hope and dream but also an incresingly pressing reality. Let us start with reviewing coal.
2016 will be more bad news for fossil fuels
This is such a huge win for the environment and such a huge loss for oil companies, especially Shell. The company announced recently that it was withdrawing its oil platform from the Arctic, where it was drilling for oil.
Shell withdraws from the Arctic
I have played with Lego bricks all my childhood, something that sparked my curiosity and inventivity. But as they are made of oil, and the age of oil is going to an close. Plus climate change urges to act. So what to do ?
Lego to ditch oil for its bricks
While the G7 Nations are thinking about whining themselves off fossil fuels by the end of the century and while some – most ? – oil companies are not really diversifying themselves, Saudi Arabia is planning its fossil fuels’ exit by 2040 or 2050.
Saudi Arabia is planning its fossil fuels’ exit by 2050
As odd as it might seem, oil prices at $60 are not making it any easier for Big Oil and the likes. The Financial Times published two articles on how coal, oil and gas are through tought times. Let us review them here.
Those are tough times for fossil fuels companies
With the current low prices of oil – they are now around $50 – one could think that solar, wind and the likes wouldn’t be this interesting as an alternative. Luckily, it isn’t the case at all. Let’s see why.
Cheap oil won’t kill the cleantech revolution
2 Which countries have the electricity with the lowest amount of greenhouse gases per kilowatt-hour ? Which energy source is the greenest ? An article from Cleantechnica answers these important questions.
Electricity sources and their carbon intensity
We have seen that divesting from oil companies is a moral question but it is also a sound economic advice as more and more financial analyst are saying, to the point of ” fossil fuels are the next subprime danger “ as I blogged last year.
15 reasons to divest from oil as soon as you ...
Now this is … strange ? odd ? bizarre ? weird ? I was reporting in October that oil prices had dropped below $90, but last week they went even lower with as little as $50 a barrel. This is a 55% drop compared to last June.