Mary Robinson and Fallacy of War and Peace | 37 comments (37 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

Short vs long term (none / 1)

I suppose the main problem with renewables is that they are capital intensive and require a long time to ramp up. The Ukraine war has created a short term problem and politicians can't be expected to allow old people die of hypothermia or industry requiring carbon feedstocks to collapse.

So some prolongation of existing carbon based energy production is unavoidable in the short term. The key thing is to ensure that a short term fix doesn't become the long term solution.

Part of the solution has to be the increased price of carbon fuels themselves - they have made renewables much more price competitive and profitable. Hopefully that will lead to much greater investment and a more rapid transition to renewables.

In the meantime, the best we can do is ensure that carbon fuels aren't subsidised while capital is made available for as rapid a roll-out of renewables as possible.

Longer term that will be extremely damaging to the Russian economy, but unfortunately not immediately enough to encourage them to stop the war.

Index of Frank's Diaries

by Frank Schnittger (mail Frankschnittger at hot male dotty communists) on Wed Jan 11th, 2023 at 12:57:36 PM EST

Legal Action, Dutch Government Loses Appeal (none / 0)

The legal system had to force the executive of PM Mark Rutte to make haste in emission reduction as was legislated by the EU in Brussels ... due to lousy implementation of BreXit by the UK taking many years, Rutte's window for NeXit passed.

Libertarian Rutte with his Conservative party VVD wasted a full decade to be serious on sustainability and renewables. The Hague with Royal Shell, Exxon and the GasUnie went full throttle for Nord Stream and Gazprom making sweet deals to be the facilitator as Groningen gas fields went dry. The damages to homes and businesses due to earth tremors made decisions urgent. Compensation to victims of major damages of homes took many years and hasn't been resolves as of today.

Limits on emissions slows down permits to build new infrastructure, highways, homes and renovation of pre-war and ear,y houses build in the 1950s. Poorly insulated and the vast majority connected to Groninger natural gas after the coal mines closed in the sixties under Economy Minister Joop den Uyl (Labour).

(The Hague - Nov. 6, 2011) Prime Minister Mark Rutte is one of the government leaders who are officially commissioning the Nord-Stream pipeline in Lubmin, northern Germany.

The Nord-Stream connects the huge gas reserves in Russia to Europe via the Baltic Sea. The pipelines can supply Europe with 55 billion cubic meters per year for a period of at least 50 years.

The reason Rutte attempted to keep Royal Shell from moving to London were tax benefits ... emissions ruling made the decision for Shell stakeholders quite easy.

Royal Dutch Shell: Netherlands court orders oil giant to cut emissions | BBC News - May 2021 |

'Sapere aude'

by Oui (Oui) on Wed Jan 11th, 2023 at 02:27:53 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Rutte lashes out at Putin ... (none / 0)

Diplomatic War Between Rutte and Putin | Oct. 15, 2013 |

Reset Dutch ties with Russia in a concerted effort by the free West at the time of the Sochi Winter Olympics ... a turning point. Start of the Maidan protest in Kyiv ... a coincidence?

'Sapere aude'

by Oui (Oui) on Wed Jan 11th, 2023 at 02:29:23 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Plenty of EU Subsidy for Green Hydrogen (none / 0)

We're pleased announce our partnership with @NortH2Europe - a consortium consisting of @Equinor, @RWE_AG, @Shell, @Gasunie, and new investment partner #Eneco. This partnership allows us to develop the first large-scale green ammonia and methanol value chains in the Netherlands pic.twitter.com/Rqx1XW80T8
— OCI (@oci_nv) March 31, 2022

By design, the Ukraine was to become a major partner in the European H2 hub for transport. Another crucial setback for some years.

'Sapere aude'

by Oui (Oui) on Wed Jan 11th, 2023 at 02:30:54 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Pardon me, but ... (4.00 / 2)

That pitchbook is dated 2020. I've even posted a few which also pre-date the MidCat fiasco.

I do not understand that UNPROVOKED WAR IN UKRAINE was ever a barrier to value chain income collected by these downstream European "hub" operators now raising public and private capital investment to convert existing fuel refining P&E for cracking and storing (grey | blue | pink | green) hydrogen. Conspicuously absent in these presentations (sponsored by Ukrenergo) are requisite, "competively priced" supply chain infrastructure ownership, construction, and operations.

For thirty-one years, Ukraine neither produced nor exported fuel of any significance other than coal to Europe's "energy" grid. Instead Ukrainian TSOs collected pipeline transit fees from Russian suppliers who built that infrastructure yet failed to maintain its "renewable" power plant legacy.

This model shows that during 2020-2050 in Ukraine must be put into operation 88.8 GW installed capacity of renewable energy sources for domestic consumption. [p 12]

Some one explain, Why @Equinor, @RWE_AG, @Shell, @Gasunie, #Eneco hedge funds would abandon "reliable" TTF supply chain "partners" around the world to replace them in Ukraine?

by Cat on Wed Jan 11th, 2023 at 04:09:24 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Pardon me, but ... (4.00 / 2)

Green hydrogen depends on massive oversupply of wind generation capacity during "peak wind" conditions (when the grid doesn't need wind generation, you use it to make H2 because the marginal price of the energy is close to zero). It's definitely a Good Thing, and probably the Next Big Thing for road transportation of goods (H2 is VERY high energy density by weight, better than diesel, but poor energy density by volume, so not suitable for cars or, um, aeroplanes)

SO... indeed, Ukraine never a player. Until they have massive eolian capacity on the Black Sea.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue
- Queen Elizabeth II}

by eurogreen on Thu Jan 12th, 2023 at 11:12:39 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: Short vs long term (none / 0)

I'm not inclined to sing the praises of Macron (he is currently engaged in buggering up my retirement prospects) but on energy, he has pivoted / flip-flopped to renewables in a big way. Crisis = opportunity.

He has already committed us to building new nukes, but that is a decade away (in wildly optimistic mode) from having any impact. Offshore wind can come on line in a big way in a few years, and solar can ramp up even quicker.

_{It is rightly acknowledged that people of faith have no monopoly of virtue
- Queen Elizabeth II}

by eurogreen on Thu Jan 12th, 2023 at 11:57:03 AM EST
[ Parent ]

Mary Robinson and Fallacy of War and Peace | 37 comments (37 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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