Elon Musk: Renewable Energy, Automotive and Hyperloop - GineersNow Engineering Magazine

ABOUT REN21 STAND ON CLEAN ENERGY THE MACRO LEVEL OF CLEAN ENERGYChristine: REN21 is a multi-stakeholder GN: What is clean energy (as defined bynetwork that works to drive the energy your organization/company)? GN: Where are we today? What is thetransition with renewables. REN21 has its Christine: Any energy that uses renewable current situation of renewables?headquarters at UNEP, the United Nations energy resources (wind, sun, water, Christine: 2015 was a record yearEnvironment Programme in Paris/France. biomass, geothermal). It does not include for renewable energy installations.GN: Are you an educational institution, nuclear. Renewable power generating capacity sawsocial enterprise, non-profit or private GN: Why bother? What’s the importance its largest increase ever, with an estimatedcompany? Describe your company. of pursuing clean energy? 147 gigawatts (GW) added. ModernChristine: REN21 is a global public-private Christine: If we are to have a planet on renewable heat capacity also continued tomulti-stakeholder network on renewable which we can live, we need to change how rise, and renewables use expanded in theenergy regrouping international we consume energy. The combustion transport sector. Distributed renewableorganizations, governments, industry of fossil fuels results in short-term energy is advancing rapidly to close theassociations, science and academia as well pollutants which directly affect our health gap between the energy haves- and have-as NGOs working in the field of renewable and the generation of GHGs (Green nots. Investment in renewables in 2015energy. We are a registered NGO. House Gases). If we are to limit warming reaching USD 286 billion worldwide inGN: How big is your company? to under 2 degrees, then fossil fuels need renewable power and fuels; if investmentChristine: The secretariat is composed of to stay in the ground. Renewables provide in large hydropower (>50 MW) and ineight people: six permanent staff and two a viable option to fossil fuels. Countries heating and cooling is taken into account,interns who are with us on a six month are already powering themselves with the total is far higher. For the first timebasis. We work with an international renewables (Portugal recently had four ever, investment in developing countriesnetwork of 700 energy experts. consecutive days of 100% renewable surpassed that of industrialized countries.GN: Describe your mission, vision and electricity and Denmark does so GN: Where should we be 10 years fromvalues. frequently). now? Are we on the right track? Are weChristine: We work with those whose delayed? Are we progressing?promote renewable energy. We do not Christine: The UN Secretary-General’sdiscriminate by technology and we work initiative Sustainable Energy for Allacross all sectors. launched a call for global action toGN: Where is this company headed? achieve universal access to modernWhat’s your future expansion plans? energy services, double the global rateDescribe briefly your strategic goals of improvement in energy efficiency andChristine: Our mission is to drive the double the share of renewable energy inenergy transition with renewables – the the global energy mix by 2030. To reachfaster the better! this objective we need to rapidly increase the uptake of renewables as well as implement energy efficiency throughout all energy systems. By the end of 2014, renewable energy provided an estimated 19.2% of global final energy consumption. We therefore have our work cut out for us! ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 101

THE MICRO LEVEL OF GN: What impact have you delivered THE CHALLENGES &CLEAN ENERGY (social, economic and environmental)? THEIR SOLUTIONS Do you have metrics or statistics of yourGN: What are the initiatives / projects accomplishments? GN: What are the stumbling blocks orthat you are doing (or have done) that will Christine: When REN21 first started its bottlenecks in the renewable industry?drive low or zero emission? Renewable Global Status Report series, Christine: Long-term stable policyChristine: REN21 provides high-quality it was 30 pages. Today the report stands frameworks are key for the uptake ofinformation to assist decision-makers at over 180 pages, reflecting the growth renewables. Investors are reluctant tomake the best decisions possible. We of renewables and the need to diversify invest in markets that are not underpinnedfacilitate the collection of comprehensive what and how the status of renewables by long-term policy action.and timely information on renewable is tracked. The Renewable Global Status GN: What do you think the government,energy. This information reflects diverse Report is now the world’s most frequently private companies and NGO of eachviewpoints from both private and public referenced report on the global renewable country should do to get rid of this?sector actors, serving to dispel myths energy market, industry and policy Christine: Citizens, business, investors allabout renewable energy and to catalyze landscape. need to demand that long-term planningpolicy change. and policy action be put in place.GN: What are the future innovations that GN: How do we provide cheap energy inyou or your company pursuing? poverty stricken areas?Christine: In addition to tracking the Christine: Distributed renewables providecurrent status of renewables globally, we clean, affordable energy services. Theare developing regional status reports to market opportunity for off-grid solutionsbetter track the growing development is growing rapidly.within key regions. REN21 is alsodeveloping a new Global Futures Reportto illustrate the credible possibilities for a100% renewable energy future.102 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Approximately 28 million households ADVICE TO THEworldwide were using clean cook stoves YOUNG ENGINEERSby the end of 2015. Roughly 44 millionoff-grid pico-solar products had been sold GN: Please give advice and words ofglobally by mid-2015, representing an wisdom about renewables to our youngannual market of USD 300 million. About global audience. What would you like70 countries worldwide either had some to tell to the millennials? Any inspiringoff-grid solar PV capacity installed or had words that you can share?programmes in place to support off-grid Christine: Everyone has a role to playsolar PV applications by the end of 2015. in making this planet a better place toIn addition, several thousand renewables- live. As engineers you have a specialbased mini-grids were in operation. responsibility as you will be the forefrontInnovative business models include use of system design. Therefore whateverof mobile payment systems and scratch specialty you choose make sure to thinkcards, the “Powerhive” business model, systemically; think about how to providepay-as-you-go micro-payment schemes clean, efficient energy services in a wayand integrated service providers with that meets a population’s needs in aproducts that range from simple solar sustainable manner. If we don’t get it rightlamps with radios and mobile phones, to in the 30 years we may not have anotheraspirational items like televisions. chance.GN: How do we ensure access to clean There are currently over 8 million peopleenergy? employed in the renewable energyChristine: By supporting innovative sector, tendency growing, so watch outbusiness and financing models through for interesting job opportunities in thepolicy support. energy sector of the future! But one word of caution: working for renewables is contagious – once you start in this sector you won’t want to leave it! ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 103

RENEWABLES 100: HELPING THE WORLD TO TRANSITION TO100% RENEWABLE ENERGYRenewables 100 Policy For centuries, we have been relying on RENEWABLES 100 100% renewable energy is not a questionInstitute Founding non-renewable energy sources, and this of “if ” it will happen, but of how, whenDirector Diane Moss. has been causing multiple environmen- GN: Are you an educational institution, and who will lead and profit. In our first tal problems. The best way to solve this social enterprise, non-profit or private years, a good deal of effort had to go into problem is to shift from using environ- company? Describe your company. raising the debate beyond that question ment-polluting energy sources to using Diane: Renewables 100 Policy Institute is of “if,” in order to overcome pervasive re- clean and renewable energy sources. a 501 (c)3 non-profit educational organi- sistance, even among environmental pro- Energy is a very important aspect in our zation founded in 2007 with a mission to gressive non-profits. In the past year or technological world today, and it is a fact study and accelerate the global transition two, however, the idea that 100% renew- that non-renewable energy sources won’t to 100% renewable energy in ways that are able energy is the direction in which the last forever. The Renewables 100 Policy most sustainable and economical for most world needs to head – indeed is heading Institute, a non-profit organization, has a people. Our Board of Advisors includes – is becoming more widely accepted. We mission “to study and accelerate the glob- several long-time leaders in the clean en- are finding happily that thanks in part to al transition to 100% renewable energy in ergy field, such as utility veteran S. David our efforts, we are no longer such a rare ways that are most sustainable and eco- Freeman, former Congressman and life- voice in advocating for 100% renewable nomical for the most people.” long environmental champion Richard energy. And there are ever more exam- GineersNow conducted an exclusive in- Oettinger, and Dr. Harry Lehmann who ples of it actually happening, which is the terview with Diane Moss, the founding is a General Director at the German Fed- best way of all to dispel myths and break director of Renewables 100 Policy Insti- eral Environment Agency and one of the through fears. tute. founding thought leaders of the 100% So looking ahead, while there is certainly GineersNow: How many years have you renewable energy movement. Our intel- still work to do on convincing people of been working in your industry (energy, lectual founding father was German Par- the urgency and viability of 100% renew- engineering, NGO)? liamentarian Hermann Scheer, principal able energy as the necessary way forward, Diane Moss: The Renewables 100 Policy architect of Germany’s renewable energy our organization will increasingly priori- Institute team has combined experience laws at the turn of this century, which led tize focusing in a more detailed way on the of more than 50 years in the clean ener- to Germany becoming a world leader in bigger, more complex questions of how gy field. Our background covers a broad this field. we get there most intelligently, what mile- range of expertise, including grassroots GN: How big is your company? stones are best to pursue in what order, advocacy, power grid governing, utility Diane: We are a lean organization, with cultivating leadership, and how to create management, renewable energy and other a core team of three and many partners the most broadly and justly distributed clean technology industry development, with whom we work on our various proj- opportunities to profit. These questions policymaking, media and communica- ects and who provide technical support. are all interconnected, and the answers tions. Our international core team grew GN: Where is this company headed? need to be worked out region by region, up and has lived all over the world, in- What’s your future expansion plans? De- community by community depending on cluding California and the East Coast of scribe briefly your strategic goals. their values, resources, politics, etc. Our the US, Germany, France, Bulgaria, Swit- Diane: Since our first days, our organi- job is to facilitate and accelerate that pro- zerland and Italy in Europe, and Nigeria, zation has asserted that transitioning to cess, as well as to help identify and advo- Ghana and Tanzania in Africa. cate for best practices.104 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Pathways to 100% Renewable Energy Conference,April 2013 in San Francisco, USAPanel 2 – Overcoming Technical Barriers to 100% Renewable Energyin the Power Sector. From R-L: Keynote Speaker: Stephen Berberich,President/CEO of CAISO; David Olsen, Managing Director of theWestern Grid Group andmember of the Board of Governors of CAISO;Dr. Harry Lehmann, German Federal Environment Agency (UBA)Climate & Energy Director; Angelina Galiteva, Founding Board Chairof the Renewables 100 Policy Institute; David Renne, President of theInternational Solar Energy Society (ISES)-Frank Lacey, Vice Presidentof Comverge; Peter Asmus, Principal Research Analyst, Navigant; Dr.Alexa Lutzenberger, Prof. at Univ. of Leuphana; Janice Lin, Exec. Dir.of the California Energy Storage Alliance (CESA); Dr. Mark Jacobson,Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering and Director, Atmo-sphere/Energy Program, Stanford University. From L-R: Edwin M. Lee, Mayor of San Francisco; Diane Moss, Renewables 100 Policy Institute; Melanie Nutter, Director of the City and County of San Francisco Department of the Environment; Bob Dixson, Mayor of Greensburg, Kansas; Danielle Murray, Renewable Energy Program Mgr, for the City of San Francisco Dept, of Environment.Talking about 100% Renewable Energy is Keynote Speaker, Groundbreaking Climate and Energy Collaboration - Under2 MOU. Governor, State of California, U.S. JerryEdwin M. Lee, Mayor of San Francisco. Brown; Renewables 100 Policy Institute Founding Board Chair Angelina Galiteva, and Founding Director Diane Moss; Prof. Dr. Eicke Weber Director Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE), Germany; and Dr. Harry Lehmann, German Federal Environment Agency (UBA) Climate & Energy Director. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 105

Groundbreaking Climate and Energy Collaboration - Under2 RENEWABLES 100’S more than 54.9 million people who haveMOU. Renewables 100 Policy Institute, Founding Director Diane “CLEAN ENERGY” transitioned or are officially committed toMoss; and Prof. Dr. Eicke Weber Director Fraunhofer Institute transitioning within the next few decadesfor Solar Energy Systems (ISE) (Zayed Future Energy Prize 2014 GN: What is clean energy as defined by to 100% renewable energy in at least oneawarded the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE). your organization? sector. And we will be mapping dozensFrom L-R: Renewables 100 Policy Institute Founding Director Diane: Clean energy is efficiently pro- more in the weeks ahead. In the US, so-Diane Moss; Advisory Board Member Prof. Richard Ottinger; duced using renewable sources and does lar and wind accounted for nearly all theand Renewables 100 Policy Institute Founding Board Chair not increase greenhouse gas or other new electricity generation that came on-Angelina Galiteva. harmful emissions over its lifecycle. Re- line this year. This type of growth mirrors newable energy sources include sun, what’s occurring throughout the world, wind, some hydro, bioenergy from or- where most new generation came from ganic waste, tides, waves, and geothermal renewables last year. energy. Renewable energy systems cover Zero emissions transportation and re- all energy sectors, including electricity, newable heating and cooling are also on heating and cooling, transportation, and the rise. Electric vehicles worldwide have cooking. Clean energy systems include surged past the one million mark, sales in many technologies that support renew- China are exceeding expectations, and ac- able energy, such as building efficiency cording to the Inside EVs report, US sales technologies, grid integration technol- have broken records for the last 6 months ogies, storage, electric vehicles, and fuel in a row. The share of renewables in Eu- cells. Clean energy demands a system rope’s heating and cooling sector rose wide transition and change of approach. from 10.2% in 2004 to 17.7% in 2014. GN: Why bother? What’s the importance That said, most of the world’s energy still of pursuing clean energy? derives from non-renewable sources, so Diane: Fundamentally, non-renewable en- there is much work to be done and room ergy sources will by definition diminish. for expansion in the energy transition. In the meantime, continued dependence GN: Where should we be 10 years from on them is causing multiple global crises. now? Are we on the right track? Are we Renewable energy sources, while they delayed? Are we progressing? may vary from place to place, are virtually Diane: In the next decade, having a limitless, scalable and modular. Properly 100% renewable energy target of no later implemented, they avoid problems of the mid-century and a workable implemen- conventional energy system like fresh wa- tation plan, as well as meaningful steps ter depletion and contamination, green- already achieved, should be the norm for house gas and local air pollution, radioac- all levels of government and corporations. tive waste, and geopolitical tensions that These plans need to reach beyond elec- result from depending on commodities tricity and encompass all energy sectors. from other countries who may not share This process is already underway. Sever- one’s values. al major urban cities are seeking to reach Renewables are also more economical at least 100% renewable electricity within in the long run, and increasingly in the this time frame, like San Francisco and short run. As costs for renewable energy San Jose in California, and some countries technologies drop, communities, regions, are as well, such as Scotland. Many small- businesses and individuals are more and er cities and regions, as well as islands, more looking to adopt renewable energy already have achieved or surpassed 100% as a shelter from volatile fuel prices and renewable energy targets in the electricity imported fuel costs. Clean energy is also and heat sectors, and this trend can be ex- a source of new jobs and whole new in- pected to grow. dustries. That’s good news for engineers, In a basic sense, we are, of course, delayed as well as the many other skilled workers because there are numerous global threats who have roles to play in this develop- occurring that almost no one wants to see ment. Last year, the growth in the solar happening and are a result of not acting workforce outpaced the US economy by sooner to transition our conventional en- a factor of 12. In Germany, clean energy ergy system to a safer, more secure one accounts for nearly 400,000 jobs. Glob- based on renewable energy. ally, more than 7.7 million people were But we are also on track in the sense that employed by renewable energy industries adoption of renewable energy is rap- at the end of 2014, according to the Inter- idly increasing, and few now question national Renewable Energy Agency (IRE- whether renewables are here to stay and NA), an 18% rise from the year before. whether they are the way of the future. As confidence grows, stakeholders across the THE MACRO LEVEL OF board, from prosumers to grid operators CLEAN ENERGY to utilities to businesses are increasingly seeing clean energy technologies less as GN: Where are we today? What is the cur- challenges and more as opportunities. rent situation of renewables? Continuing to transform energy systems Diane: Renewable energy uptake is rapidly at the scale and pace needed, however, growing. Increasingly national and subna- will require policies, regulations, finance tional governments, as well as businesses, structures and markets that open the op- are setting and reaching high targets of up portunities to a broad spectrum of partic- to 100% and beyond. The Renewables 100 ipants, while also keeping up with rapidly Policy Institute’s project Go 100% Renew- changing technological advances and able Energy (www.go100percent.org) has consumer demands. so far mapped 8 Countries, 55 Cities, 61 Regions/States, 9 Utilities, 21 NonProfit/ Educational/Public Institutions, totaling106 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

THE MICRO LEVEL OF ects, studies, and other learning tools that We were also honored to inspire and be a part CLEAN ENERGY showcase how 100% renewable energy is not of UNESCO’s official declaration and call to a fantasy for someday, but a reality for today. action for expanding 100% renewable ener-GN: What are the advocacies that you are do- There’s more because there is so much to do, gy as the way forward for the world, as welling (or have done) that will drive low or zero but that gives you an idea of some of our ad- as to integrate the call for 100% renewableemission? vocacy efforts. energy into the platform at global climateDiane: Our organization’s efforts are entirely GN: What impact have you delivered? Do conferences and among several internationalcentered around our mission to study and you have metrics or statistics of your accom- coalitions.advance the global transition to clean, renew- plishments? As mentioned, our Go 100% Renewableable energy. We do this in a number of ways. Diane: When the organization was founded Energy project additionally created the firstFor instance, we educate leaders around the in 2007, the concept of 100% renewable ener- global campaign for 100% renewable en-world, bring together multiple stakeholders gy was too bleeding edge for most outside of ergy, along with the first and most compre-from different regions to exchange knowl- a few places in Europe. We tried to get other hensive interactive map of 100% renewableedge and best practices. An example of this is organizations to take on the mission instead energy case studies from around the world.the tours we organized over the last two years of starting a non-profit ourselves, but there The project website go100percent.org and itsto Europe and California, which brought was too much political fear, and no one was social media counterpart are visited by tenstop level grid operators, policymakers, and ready. Our organization was created to fill of thousands of visitors a month from everycivil society leaders together for first-time this big vacuum and to raise the debate. Over continent in the world and have been emu-discussions, knowledge exchange, and coop- our first nine years, the Renewables 100 Poli- lated by several allies.eration building. Reports and video galleries cy Institute has helped catalyze a multi-sector Readers are welcome to read more aboutfor these are available on our website (www. conversation about 100% renewable ener- what we’ve been up to on our website: www.renewables100.org). gy targets and solutions and bring it to the renewables100.org.My fellow founder of Renewables 100 Poli- cutting edge. Our work has also inspired acy Institute, Angelina Galiteva, also traveled number of cities and regions to adopt 100% Renewables 100 Policy Institute Foundingtwice in recent months on behalf of the State renewable energy goals. Director Diane Moss interviewed byDepartment to Argentina and Brazil in re- Among specific milestones have been our Al Jazeera at our Event “PV60”.cent to meet with energy leaders there and Pathways to 100% Renewable Energy confer-provide education on renewable energy ad- ence, which was the first international forum Energy Regions in Transition –vancement. in the Americas to focus on 100% renewable EU-California Tour 2015.We also have worked closely with the Office energy and brought together people from 4of the Governor of California on state, na- continents and more than 10 countries. This Roundtable Discussion hostedtional, and international initiatives, such as forum was the springboard for several cities, by Stanford University.promoting multi-state electric vehicle policy including San Diego, to make commitmentsdevelopment, efficiency financing, and the to 100% renewable energy targets. OtherUnder 2 MOU, which is an international non-profits and educational institutions inagreement that we initiated that commits various countries also initiated 100% renew-subnational governments to reducing green- able campaigns. And numerous government,house gases 80-95% below 1990 levels or to labor, and grid operation leaders began aunder 2 tonnes per capita by 2050. These are first-time public discussion of 100% renew-just a few of the leadership education efforts able energy targets.we’ve undertaken in the last couple years. An outcome of our 2014 California-Ger-We additionally engage media to get the facts many Learning and Collaboration tour wasout to a broad audience. I think we were the the Under 2 MOU, which was signed firstfirst to get the concept of 100% renewable by the State of Cali- fornia and the State ofenergy into some of the major media publi- Baden-Wuerttemberg, followed by morecations in the US. than 120 signatories.We also created the Go 100% RenewableEnergy project on www.go100percent.org,which is our grassroots campaign platformthat seeks to maintain a comprehensive data-base of actual 100% renewable energy proj- ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 107

THE CHALLENGES & 6. Emphasize direct and local or regional GN: How do we ensure access to clean THEIR SOLUTIONS procurement of renewable energy wher- energy? ever possible, in order to encourage en- Diane: This is mainly up to policymakersGN: What are the stumbling blocks or vironmental and local economic benefits and, in democracies, the people who votebottlenecks in the renewable industry? like jobs. for them, to create policies and regulatoryDiane: One of the biggest is establishing 7. Aim for a fair and level playing field that frameworks that support access to cleanpolicies and regulations that work well. includes rather than excludes different energy for all. It is also up to financing en-First, they ideally must have the transpar- types and sizes of clean energy technolo- tities to make low cost financing available.ency, longevity, and certainty to ensure the gies in the marketplace. And it is up to all of us collectively to de-required sustained investment. Second, 8. Open the way for regional collaboration cide that having access to energy, and par-they ought to be flexible and responsive on grid operations and markets. ticularly clean, renewable energy, is a rightenough to allow for innovation and quick- 9. Avoid the inefficiencies of siloed plan- for everyone and that resources must bely evolving consumer demand. Third, they ning by integrating clean energy policy- made available to make this happen. Lit-need to ensure that opportunities for en- making with other relevant planning, in- erally, we must bring power to the people.gagement are expanded to include a broad cluding greenhouse gas reduction plans,range of stakeholders, from corporations waste reduction plans, water resource Renewables 100 Policy Institute Founding Board Chairto prosumers to communities. Adding to protection plans, and food plans. Angelina Galiteva was invited by US State Departmentthe challenge, these policy and regulato- 10. Include externalities and lifecycle costs to Meet With Energy Leaders in Brazil.ry mechanisms need to do two things at and benefits into economic decision mak-the same time: focus on transforming the ing.energy system and make sure the energy These are just some best practices ob-system is reliable and efficient. served so far. Keep in mind that the play-GN: What do you think the government, book is being written as we speak, so stayprivate companies and NGO of each tuned.country should do to get rid of this? GN: How do we provide cheap energy inDiane: There is no silver bullet, one size poverty stricken areas?fits all formula. However, there are some Diane: Many of the world’s poor live in ru-best practices that frontrunners have been ral areas where there is little to no energydemonstrating. Here are some examples. infrastructure. Electricity grids can take1. Set a target of 100% renewable energy decades at the soonest to reach these ar-with milestones along the way and a prac- eas. Clean energy solutions have been al-tical plan for implementation. Having the lowing millions of people in these regionsbig picture in view as much as possible to have power for the first time becausehelps prevent inefficiencies of piecemeal they can be installed by local people in-planning. This target setting and planning dependently of the big energy companies.ideally integrates all energy sectors, since For example, solar panels can be hookedthe energy system of the future will be in- up to an efficient LED light and a smallcreasingly cross-sectorial. battery anywhere that the sun shines and2. Improve public trust and engagement are often cheaper than traditional forms ofby achieving at least one milestone quick- energy like kerosene. Villagers from thesely, transparently tracking progress, in- areas don’t have to wait for the govern-cluding multiple stakeholders from the ment or utilities to bring them this energy,community in the planning process, and as the technologies are relatively simplemaking sure policies allow as many people to install themselves. And once they haveas possible – including prosumers - the the skills, entrepreneurial individuals canopportunity to get involved in and profit perform the installations for neighbors orfrom the transition. Many communities train others to be installers, which is anreport that getting women involved is also added income opportunity.key to success, as they most often make Inexpensive, flexible financing, for exam-household decisions and influence oth- ple in the form of micro-loans, is also crit-ers in the community. The same goes for ical to help people overcome the upfronteducating and engaging youth, not only capital costs for energy technologies. It’sbecause they need to equipped to manage been reported that putting the financingthe future, but also because they inspire in the hands of women helps to ensureadults to do the right thing. that the money is managed responsibly.3. Learn from other frontrunners. We’re Clean energy should be as ubiquitousall smarter when we learn from each oth- as cell phones, which have now reacheder’s challenges and solutions. nearly every pocket of the world, no mat-4. Cut the red tape for adopting renewable ter what the income level. Maybe notenergy and complimentary technologies, everyone has the latest iPhone, but theysuch as excessive costs or application pro- have the means to communicate. Thiscedures for renewable energy installation. happened very quickly. There is no good5. Lead by example. Any entity is bound to reason that the same kind of access shouldbe more effective at getting the public on not be so for energy technology.its side if they walk the talk.108 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

ADVICE TO THE YOUNG ENGINEERSGN: Please give advice and words of wis-dom about renewables to our young globalaudience. What would you like to tell tothe millennials? Any inspiring words thatyou can share?Diane: We are in the middle of one of thegreatest industrial transformations of ourtime. This brings with it vast opportunitiesfor many skilled people, including engi-neers, to get involved in one of the mostcreative and meaningful endeavors hu-manity has ever had to undertake.I’ll pass on the advice often given by suc-cessful leaders in frontrunner cities andregions about the key to success: There aretwo ways of thinking about going 100%renewable. One is to think of all the rea-sons to fear it and how to slow down theprocess. The other is to commit, start andfigure it out as you go, accepting that therewill be mistakes, learning from them, im-proving and continuing to just go for it forthe betterment of your community andfuture generations. Be the second kind ofthinker. It’s not only the right thing to do,it is also a lot more fun. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 109

All photos are taken from the Nordic Baltic Bioenergy Conference, a business connection between East and West which was held in Vilnius, Lithuania from April 19-21, 2016. Photos by Marius Linauskas/MakophotoSSSwuavseitdnaisignhHaBbuiolmeenBaeniroigteyynAeTsrhsgroyocuiagthion:THE COMPANY PTBUHIORRESONUUEIGNRHGGYSCULSETAANINENAEBRLEGY TCLHEEAFNUETNUERREGOYFThe Swedish Bioenergy Association Clean Energy is renewable energy that Globally, according to IRENA, we have 19SVEBIO is a non-profit member we can use forever without damaging percent renewable energy and about 67association for companies and persons nature, causing worse health conditions percent of that is bioenergy. We have thewith the interest to develop the use of or threatening survival of species, etc. technology and the economy to get 100sustainable bioenergy. I am also Chairman Clean energy should enhance a healthier percent renewable.of AEBIOM, the European Biomass world and the survival of species. The We are taking steps forward but not atAssociation with a similar purpose. recirculation of nutrients and minerals is all with sufficient speed. We would needSVEBIO has 12 employees with a turnover an important part of the natural life. global Carbon Dioxide Pricing as soonof USD$2.4 Million. The company’s In my view, we as humans, have a given as possible to back out the use of fossilsmission is to increase the use of bioenergy responsibility to leave the world a better to cope with the climate change. Allin an economically and environmentally place than when we came here. technology is there but it is more aboutoptimal way. political will and knowledge about howOur ambition is focused more on the to create the steering instruments to makeshare of bioenergy in the Swedish society. people and companies move in the rightOur aim is to have more than 50 percent direction. It is not costly or expensive andof bioenergy in the total energy use. We it has to be done. The alternative is moreare currently Sweden’s largest energy expensive and damaging. Ten years fromsource (around 35 percent bioenergy of now, I hope we have a global Carbon taxthe country’s total use) and we surpassed of at least 30 USD per Carbon Dioxidefossil oil in 2009, which was the largest ton. Biofuels like ethanol and biodieselenergy source before 2009. from agriculture are more accepted since those are the cheapest and best options to replace fossil gasoline and diesel.110 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

ASVNEDBPIORO’SJIENCNTOSVATIONS 111Most important project of the company isthe introduction of general incentives suchas CO2 ta., We have to make the polluterspay since this is the most efficient wayto stop climate change. In many regions,Combined Heat and Power should beintroduced. It is a very cost-and-energy-efficient system approach that decreases costfor energy use. Also, energy efficiency workis important and very much needed in mostregions. We already have the technology toreplace all fossils, replacing fossil jet fuels byrenewable in aviation, in off grid solutionsfor power production, in replacing naturalgas in industry, green houses, breweries, etc.When I say we have all needed technologyto make the switch, it doesn’t mean thatthere is no room for further research andimprovement. I believe biofuels for cars willcost less than a dollar per liter includingVAT and we will use maybe only a literto run 30 km. Biofuels will be very costcompetitive to electric cars and batteries.Also, we see higher share of electricity inCHP-production which will lower the costfor electricity from biomass.In Sweden we have replaced 6000 cubicmeter of fossil imported oil every week in20 years from 1990 to 2010. This has madea fantastic impact on Swedish trade balanceand also made possibilities in rural areasand forestry, where fuel production takesplace. We recommend every country thatimport fossil energy to introduce CO2-taxesurgently to better our domestic resourcesand save the climate. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

TTHHEEICRHSAOLLLUETNIGOENSS& The problem is mainly the mind set believing that it is not possible. But it is also the subsidies that distort markets and push investments that are not optimal or needed. It is important that it is the customer’s demand that initiates investment and not the subsidies and support schemes that put market demand out of the equation like in some European energy markets. NGOs are actually sometimes part of the problem, demanding support schemes that are not optimal and also blaming biofuels for causing problems. If you consider the global statistics, the yield per hectare has increased faster than the growth of the global population. We continuously free more land for energy production and still less people starve. The fact that people starve has other reasons than that we cannot produce food enough. In Europe, NGO’s try to forbid biofuels from agriculture and they say the land is needed for food production and thus, biofuels cause deforestation in the Amazon but at the same time they approve the 6 percent Ecological Focus Areas that is used to decrease the surplus production of food in Europe. The legislation of ILUC is illogical and stupid and should be taken away as soon as possible. We should start to buy renewable bioenergy from poor rural areas to inject capital and investments, then food production can also increase in these areas when capital is increasing. This creates a better economic development and combat poverty. Again, the Carbon tax is important to push development and use of renewables. If people are poor and cannot afford higher energy prices, a part of the governmental income of the carbon tax can be used to support poor people. Income streams will stop flowing to fossil companies and start to flow out in regional areas and into forestry and agriculture into many different hands and companies.112 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

YAODUVNICGEETNOGTIHNEEERSWe have the potential of a much betterworld ahead; controlled combustion is notdangerous but a condition for life. Thereis actually no life on the globe withoutcellular respiration which is combustionat low temperature. With moderntechnology we get rid of problematicemissions and health issues. You canmake a difference helping poor people outof poverty when developing agricultureand forestry in rural areas to producefood and bioenergy. At the same time,we can develop better life conditions forrare species when using natural resourceswithout consuming them.VIDEOS FROM SVEBIOISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 113

WBA: MOVING FORWARD IN PROMOTING SUSTAINABLE BIOMASS FOR ENERGY Karin Haara, Executive Director WBA GETTING TO KNOW (Photo by Oskar Omne/Dagens Industri) GN: Introduce yourself. How many years have you been working in your industry? C L I M AT E C HA N G E I S O N E of the greatest prob- Karin Haara: I am the executive director of the World lems of our world today. The best solution to this prob- Bioenergy Association and it all started in 2008. Build- lem is to replace fossil fuels with renewable energy, and ing up a new global organisation is a major challenge, according to World Bioenergy Association (WBA), bio- but I really believe that bioenergy is going to be one of mass will be playing a major role in satisfying the human the most important players globally in the field of re- energy needs. newable energy. The WBA is a global organization which was founded in I was born in northern parts of Sweden and studied at May 2008, wherein they have been promoting the use of the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. There, I bioenergy globally in an “efficient, sustainable, econom- acquired my Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering. ic and environmentally friendly way,” as stated in their After attending different initiatives concerning renew- factsheet. Their members include national and regional able energy I decided to devote my professional work bioenergy organizations, institutions, companies and life to something that would be of importance to future individuals. generations, something that would be in balance with GineersNow conducted an exclusive interview with nature. The answer is bioenergy. Karin Haara, the executive director of the World Bioen- In 1983, I started as an energy consultant and later on ergy Association. in 1988 as a project manager for the Swedish Bioenergy Association. During this time, I was involved in differ- ent bioenergy projects such as promoting education, sta- tistics and information, national and international con- ferences and lately also international bioenergy business projects. Bioenergy is a widespread area and throughout my work I have been able to gain a better understanding of how different bioenergy systems work and also how to promote development. Bioenergy is a versatile energy source with a multitude of technologies, conversion pathways and end uses. It is a continuous challenge to keep abreast of all the de- velopments in this sector. Every day, there is something new to learn in this sector and that’s what is so exciting and inspiring.114 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

WORLD BIOENERGY Illustration of different ecological systemsASSOCIATION for biomass origins: short rotation forestry, corn and sugarcane and managed forestryGN: Are you an educational institution, social enter-prise, non-profit or private company? Describe your (Photo by SLU)company.Karin: World Bioenergy Association (WBA) is an um- The biogas plant in the municipality ofbrella organization for bioenergy associations, compa- Linköping, Sweden. Sweden is a worldnies and individuals supporting the sustainable develop- leader in upgrading and use of biometh-ment of bioenergy globally. It started 2008 in Jönköping ane for transport. Biogas covers today 1%(Sweden) by leaders of a group of national and regionalassociations. of the total road traffic in SwedenWe are a non profit and a non governmental organi-zation. WBA has 19 board members comprising one (Photo by Svensk Biogas)President and four Vice Presidents. The board sets theagenda for the organization. The agenda is executed by World largest combined heat and powerthe Secretariat which sits in Stockholm, Sweden, led by plant based on biomass owned by Fortumthe Executive Director.GN: How big is your company? and Stockholm City started operation inKarin: In terms of manpower, WBA has 2 employees 2016 in the middle of Stockholm, Swedenwho work fulltime executing the activities of the organi-zation. They are assisted by the President, the Vice Pres- (Photo by Hans Ekestang)idents and the Board. Apart from the Board, WBA has aproject advisor, assistants and event managers who workvoluntarily for some of the projects. The organization istruly global as our 190 members come from more than50 countries and with various backgrounds.GN: Describe your mission, vision and values.Karin: WBA aims to promote the sustainable use of bio-energy for mitigating climate change impacts of fossilfuels. We support various actors – associations, compa-nies, institutions, individuals – working in the field ofbioenergy. We see a future where bioenergy along withother renewables become the dominant energy source.A sustainable energy solution for the future generationsis possible only if we show how bioenergy with otherrenewables can meet the energy demands of the local,national and regional energy needs. We actively workwith knowledge transfer, technology transfer and capac-ity building as key aspects of promoting a sustainablefuture.GN: Where is this company headed? What’s your futureexpansion plans? Describe briefly your strategic goals(10 years to 20 years plan)Karin: The association is based in Stockholm, Swedenbut our aim is to have a bioenergy association in everycountry in the world. The idea is to be the clearing housefor everything that fits in bioenergy. These national as-sociations become platforms for Bioenergy entrepre-neurs, and their job is to educate leaders as well as tobuild networks in the different regions where bioen-ergy is available and/or used. We would like to see thecompanies and institutions involved in the whole sup-ply chain offering jobs and building local businesses aswell as global businesses. WBA is able to be serve as thehub to transfer both knowledge and technology in bothdirections on global level and serve with inspiration toeven local needs. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 115

WBA Steering Committee meeting WBA’S STAND ON in Nairobi. (Photo by WBA) CLEAN ENERGY WBA visit to Biogas plant in Nairobi. GN: What is clean energy as defined by your organiza- tion/company? (Photo by WBA.) Karin: Clean energy should be renewable! Clean ener- gy is tied with the definition of the sustainable devel- WBA at cookstoves lab in KIRDI, Nairobi. opment as envisaged in the Brundtland commission report. First and foremost, clean energy should meet the (Photo by WBA) current energy needs without compromising the needs of our future generations. Hence, no fossil fuels. Clean energy should also be affordable and transparent. Technologies like Nuclear energy which are not only ex- pensive, but also carry significant cost burdens due to disasters have to be avoided. Clean energy should be reliable. Millions of people in Africa and Asia suffer from unreliable and inefficient energy supply which significantly affects development. GN: Why bother? What’s the importance of pursuing clean energy? Karin: Energy is everything. We use electricity, heating, transport fuels to run our planet. Everything we do is tied with the use of energy. It is of utmost importance as to where we get the energy and how we use it. We have been using energy unsustainably with little or no care for the safety of the planet for generations. Only recently have we realized the drastic negative impacts of climate change. Climate change impacts everyone – from island nations in the pacific to mega cities in Asia to quaint Scandinavian countries up north. What we do on this planet now affects everyone. It is not an issue between neighbors or cities or even countries. It affects the whole planet and in that context energy is central. Replacing fossil fuels with renewable energy sources is the only way forward! In the word of Carl Sagan, one of the greatest astrono- mers ever: “The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand.” In other words, there is no Planet B!116 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

In a sustainable managed for- REN Alliance at COP21 in Paris holding a side-event on how renewables are workingest, trees of different age grow together for 100% renewable energy systems. (Photo Bharadwaj Kummamuru)side by side, to left or in somecases even trees of even ages asshown to the right.(Left photo by ppcnet.org; right photoby Per Petersson, Sveaskog)THE MACRO LEVEL THE MICRO LEVEL Pellets.OF CLEAN ENERGY OF CLEAN ENERGY Photo by iStock_©tcharaGN: Where are we today? What is the current situation GN: What are the initiatives / projects that you are doingof renewables? (or have done) that will drive low or zero emission?Karin: Renewables currently provide 18 – 19% of the Karin: Knowledge transfer: We actively publish fact-global energy. The rest of it is supplied by fossil fuels – sheets and papers on the role of various bioenergy tech-coal, oil and gas. Among the renewables, bioenergy is nologies in a natural science based idea. These factsheetsthe largest renewable energy source – currently at 14%. are published in collaboration with experts in universi-Most of it is in the form of traditional biomass – wood- ties, companies and associations. They provide an unbi-fuel, charcoal etc but modern bioenergy (liquid biofuels, ased view and clear the air on various misconceptionspellets, efficiently used solid biomass, etc.) stands today associated with bioenergy. These factsheets are used byfor 4-5%. The rest of the contribution comes from hy- professors in their teaching, companies in understand-dro, wind, solar, geothermal, and other renewables. ing the market and associations lobbying in favor of re-The share of renewables varies drastically among na- newables in their countries.tions and regions. European nations have a high share Statistics: One of our key activities is on improving theof renewables in their energy mix. In Americas, coun- statistics on bioenergy. As the saying goes ‘one can’ttries like Brazil have increased renewables in the trans- manage what one can’t measure’. Data is key for sustain-port sector. African nations are largely dependent on able development. A standardized approach to gather-biomass for heating. Countries like India and China are ing bioenergy data will be an invaluable tool for inves-also investing heavily in solar and wind technologies for tors, organizations including regional and global policytheir growing energy needs. makers. The availability of consistent data will also leadGN: Where should we be 10 years from now? Are we to awareness among countries on the true potential ofon the right track? Are we delayed? Are we progressing? biomass and the sustainable use of locally available bio-Karin: We are not doing enough. Although the renew- mass resources can reduce energy poverty in developingables have gained the spotlight – post COP21 in Paris, countries.still more than 80% of all energy is supplied by fossil fu- Bioenergy Action Plans: Developing bioenergy actionels. We have to wean off from coal, oil and gas at the ear- plans for regions will contribute to a growing role of bio-liest (possibly within this century, or even by 2050), if we energy in the energy system. The development of suchare to have any chance of limiting the global warming action plans would create a strong economic benefit forlevels to within 2 degrees – the standard metric agreed the society in terms of jobs, savings in energy expen-upon by climate scientists. ditures and increased regional economic growth. TheHaving said that, the momentum is shifting. Major fossil development will also reduce greenhouse gas emissionscompanies are exploring options to invest in renewable and dependency on imported energy.technologies. Banks and institutions are thinking twice Bioenergy Directory: WBA Bioenergy Equipment Di-before financing coal projects. Solar prices are dropping rectory is a database for companies working in the valueat a faster rate than expected. chain of biomass to energy. Companies can offer theirWe are on the right track, but we have got to pick up the equipment to attract new buyers. Clients can requestpace now! information or compare various products and services on the website. Such a directory facilitates technology transfer within the energy sector along with assisting companies and clients in accessing relevant information. Sustainability criteria for Biomass to energy: WBA would like to implement our sustainable biomass veri- fication scheme. The role of verification processes is to participate in creation of a global market for bioener- gy and biofuels. The goal of the following verification scheme for biomass is to secure the sustainability crite- ria for biomass, the supply of biomass in a sustainable way with clearly defined and consistent quality for spe- cific purposes. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 117

GN: What are the future innovations that you or your Global final energycompany pursuing? consumption.Karin: Innovation is a difficult word with no borders andif you expand it a bit then it should cover what the shift (Photo by WBA)in thinking means when faced with facts and integratingbioenergy in the circular driven society. This will open THE CHALLENGES &for collaborations with other groups to reach the 100% THEIR SOLUTIONSrenewable energy driven society.Our continued focus is on integrating the renewable en- GN: What are the stumbling blocks or bottlenecks in theergy industry. Our collaboration with the International renewable industry?Renewable Energy Alliance (a partnership of Interna- Karin: The Fossil based energy system has built uptional Solar Energy Society, International Geothermal structures that support the fossils. The renewables needAlliance, World Bioenergy Association, International other systems. Even if biomass can fit in the fossil struc-Hydropower Association and World Wind Energy As- tures we need to have a price on what we do not want sosociation) aims to use our wide expertise in renewable a carbon pricing would be needed as well as taking offenergy to inform policy makers on the right decisions. the support schemes that hold up fossil systems. To getEach city, region and nation have to be informed about the price right it should follow the Polluters Pay princi-their true and sustainable potential of their renewable ple (PPP) so that the one who is polluting pays the costenergy resources. We will continue preparing reports of the climate change. It is more of a question of policyon cities using bioenergy and regional bioenergy action and investment rather than technology. Another topicplans so that everyone becomes self sufficient in a sus- for bioenergy is the ignorance of politicians about thetainable way. benefits and role of bioenergy.Our continued focus on improving statistics is crucial GN: What do you think the government, private com-in meeting the recently announced Sustainable Devel- panies and NGO of each country should do to get ridopment Goals by the United Nations. To satisfy the in- of this?dicators and goals, measurement of key energy data is Karin: Firstly, the governments have to initiate a carboncrucial and we strive for the same. pricing. Fossil fuels have to pay for the pollution thatGN: What impact have you delivered (social, economic they cause. Those countries which already have such aand environmental)? Do you have metrics or statistics of pricing should increase it further to deter the use of fos-your accomplishments? sil fuels.Karin: Our efforts have put bioenergy on the global map.Our continued presence at the UN climate conferences Traditional family-farming corn strawhave built up a reputation as the leading global bioener- baling in Region of Becej, Serbia.gy organization.Our statistics report is downloaded close to 2000 times (Photo by Herman Wieser)by financial institutions, banks, governments, researchinstitutes and universities etc. The feedback we receiveis largely positive on the global impact we are ensuringwith updated and relevant bioenergy data.More than 30 companies have already joined our bio-energy equipment directory so far. This is leading toan improved transfer of technology from regions withmanufacturing capabilities to regions with high poten-tial of utilizing their own resources.118 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Corn straw bailing in the Regionof Sombor in Serbia.(Photo by Herman Wieser)The general public has to be educated on the climate Company Husk power systems is creating change in rural India by providingchange issues. Such a debate should not be restricted to electricity through bioenergy. In Bihar, more than 70 percent of the populationthe scientific community, but the whole society has to has no electricity but now 200 000 have been provided with electricity.be aware of our current energy situation and how it willaffect them in the near future. Moreover, they should be (Photo by Acumen)educated with natural science based facts.Fossil fuel companies have to explore alternative sus-tainable energy solutions. The era of big oil, coal and gasis over and they have to realize that. Banks should stopfinancing fossil fuel power plants and invest heavily inrenewables as that is the future.GN: How do we provide cheap energy in poverty strick-en areas?Karin: Bioenergy and other renewables are the best op-tions for providing energy to rural and off grid areas inlow income countries. Biomass along with solar andwind are easily available. Off-grid decentralized solu-tions should be developed as well as central solutions foreasier and cleaner access to energy.Financial institutions should focus on providing lowinterest options for developing renewable energy tech-nologies.ADVICE TO THEYOUNG ENGINEERSGN: Please give advice and words of wisdom about re-newables to our young global audience. What would youlike to tell to the millennials? Any inspiring words thatyou can share?Karin: Integrate your professional knowledge on renew-able energy with visions about a desirable and sustain-able society for future (your) generations. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 119

AconKsetnruyacntiodnelseigteatiinonGveirsmitianngy.a wind farmWWEA: Aiming To Achieve100% Renewable Energy SupplyTHE WORLD WIND ENERGY SpWtaerWflaianEmCGe2n0stä1ni2ngeBirnongnivt.hineg faorsmpeerechGeartmtahne PERSONAL BACKGROUNDAssociation (WWEA) is an internation-al non-profit association which special- GineersNow: Introduce yourself.izes in the promotion of the worldwide Stefan Gsänger: When I grew up in thedeployment of wind energy technology. 1980s, the world was confronted withThey have more than 600 members in many severe environmental crises, whicharound 100 counties and are cooperating seemed to put on risk the future of man-with different renewable energy organiza- kind: air pollution and acid rain, climatetions in order to work for a full shift from change, water pollution, the nuclear di-polluting and hazardous waste-causing saster in Chernobyl etc – and no solutionenergies to renewable energies. seemed to be available. During that time,GineersNow conducted an exclusive in- I came across the German MP Hermannterview with Stefan Gsänger, the Secretary Scheer and his NGO Eurosolar who pro-General for WWEA. moted strongly an economy based on renewable energy. I noticed immediate- ly that many of his ideas and proposals would contribute substantially to solve our problems and, even more, they would create completely new prospects for all of us.120 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

GN: How many years have you been GN: Where is this company headed? RENEWABLE ENERGY,working in your industry? What’s your future expansion plans? De- NOT CLEAN ENERGYStefan: I started working for renewable scribe briefly your strategic goals.energy in the late 1990s for Eurosolar as a Stefan: The WWEA Head Office is locat- GN: What is clean energy as defined byresearcher and moved in 2001 to the Ger- ed in Bonn, next to the UN Campus – in your organization/company?man Wind Energy Association where I sight of the UNFCCC Climate Secretariat Stefan: We do not use the term “clean”started building up the WWEA which was and not far from the IRENA Innovation energy because it is not clear enough. Wefounded in that same year. In 2003, I was and Technology Center. We have cur- prefer to talk about “renewable” energyappointed by the board as WWEA Sec- rently researchers also in other countries, as it describes very precisely the mainretary General and since that time I have including currently in Pakistan and in requirement our energy sources have tomanaged the association – a great work Russia. fulfill in order to meet mankind’s energywhich has allowed me to travel around WWEA is a very broad and global net- demand in a sustainable way. In this sense,the world many times and to work closely work of the wind and renewable energy renewable energy includes geothermalwith people from all different countries community around the world. We do energy, hydropower, bioenergy, marineand cultures. believe in the strength of such networks energy, solar energy and wind power. of local and national units, and hence we GN: Why bother? What’s the importance THE COMPANY have also launched two other important of pursuing clean energy? umbrella networks: The International Re- Stefan: Renewable energies are by defini-GN: Are you an educational institution, newable Energy Alliance brings together tion inexhaustible, and this also impliessocial enterprise, non-profit or private the global renewable energy technolo- that in principle they do not cause ma-company? Describe your company. gy associations, and the Global100%RE jor environmental and hence social orStefan: WWEA is a non-profit organiza- campaign is a multi-stakeholder network economic problems. Based on renewabletion and the global umbrella organiza- from industry, civil society, academia, lo- energy, all human beings have equal op-tion for the world wind community with cal governments and beyond who share portunities to access modern energy andthe aim of promoting wind energy and the vision and goal of a 100% renewable to develop and to satisfy their needs with-other renewable energy sources on the energy future. out endangering the lives of others. This isglobal level, ultimately to achieve a 100% really a unique opportunity for mankind,renewable energy supply worldwide. We the first time since industrialization hascurrently have members in more than 100 started. There is a chance that all humanscountries, and our elected board members can achieve a similar standard of life.are representing all continents. The cur-rent president is Peter Rae, former Sena- TAHotekrtymhoeawnCsiotehmn.SmamunsietyEnPeorwgeyrDCiroencfteorre,nScoereinntor from Australia, while his predecessorscame from Denmark, India and China.GN: How big is your company?Stefan: WWEA has more than 600 directmembers, and through its member asso-ciations indirectly far more than 50,000members. This includes national andregional wind energy associations, thewhole range of companies, other organi-zations, and individuals.GN: Describe your mission, vision andvalues.Stefan: WWEA works for an energy sys-tem completely driven by renewable en-ergy. In order to achieve global 100 %renewable energy supply, WWEA is sup-porting especially decentralized and com-munity based approaches, as we believethat social support and a broad involve-ment of citizens is an essential precondi-tion for the global shift towards renewableenergy. Without that, it will be very diffi-cult to mobilize the needed resources forthis huge task. In addition, a more decen-tralized energy supply will also lead to afairer and more democratic world.To achieve our goals, we connect the dif-ferent actors of the wind community, weprovide information about wind power,and we work with governments and in-ternational organizations – WWEA hasspecial consultative status at the UnitedNations. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 121

TspheeaSkeincrgeatat rtyheGWenWeraElCfo2r01W5.WEA THE MACRO LEVEL OF global paradigm shift: From now on, Stefan: I have no doubt that the future CLEAN ENERGY renewables are the new normal, and belongs to renewable energy. However, it any other investment needs to be jus- depends on all of us how fast the transi-GN: Where are we today? What is the tified. Anyway, we have still a long tion will happen. Climate change expertscurrent situation of renewables? way to go, and it is now up to the re- are telling us that we really need to accel-Stefan: The global shift towards re- newables community to demonstrate erate our efforts in order to keep the 1.5 ornewable energy started more than further how to apply renewable tech- even the 2 degree target. With our Global30 years ago, in the United States and nologies. 100%RE campaign we had a long discus-in Europe, particularly in Denmark. An important element of the global sion which year we should aim at for theIn the second phase, other countries success of renewable energy is that it 100% renewable energy target– and thesuch as Germany, India or Spain have is completely changing the structure conclusion was that we should rather in-joined the movement. At the begin- of the energy industry, away from a sist on the principle that any new invest-ning of the new century, new emerg- few large corporations, be it in the oil, ment has to be made in renewable energy.ing economies such as China have be- gas, coal, nuclear sector, towards mil- Amazingly, the Paris agreement stronglycome the largest players. This has led lions of investors. People like you and supports this principle. If we follow thisto great technological improvements me who install their own solar roof- principle, we will reach the 100% at theso that renewables are today compet- top, community based cooperatives, end of the natural investments cycles, thisitive even without looking at external small and medium sized companies means in about 20-30 years.cost such as climate change. and also larger companies. People all over the world prefer renewableOf course today’s level of renewable GN: Where should we be 10 years energy but we have also to understandenergy market penetration is still from now? Are we on the right track? that there are still many hurdles to over-not sufficient, but according to lat- Are we delayed? Are we progressing? come, in particular there is still strong re-est figures, renewables in 2015 for sistance from the fossil sector who wantsthe first time have become the larg- to earn as long as possible and as much asest investment in the power sector. possible from dirty fossil fuels.And Paris has officially launched the122 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

THE MICRO LEVEL newable energy into our economies and Stefan: A simple answer is: Look at OF CLEAN ENERGY societies. This implies that the way we or- the share of wind power in the year ganize our economies today needs to be when WWEA was founded: In 2001,GN: What are the initiatives / projects adjusted to the decentralized character of we had a global installed wind capac-that you are doing (or have done) that will renewable energy. On the technical side, ity of 24 GW, this year we will reachdrive low or zero emission? we will need innovation e.g. in terms of more than 20 times this number, soonStefan: One very important initiative is energy storage and demand side flexibili- we will be close to 500 GW. Anoth-certainly the Global 100%RE campaign ty, in order to manage the volatile charac- er major indicator: I do believe thatwhich we launched three years ago to- ter of the abundant sources wind and sun. through this practical success andgether with partners from other NGOs, On the social and economic side, we need also thanks to our political work, theindustry associations, and academia. new business models which allow the Paris agreement became possible.The second pillar is our work on com- participation of more and more people in Of course I could also refer you tomunity power which aims at promoting order to benefit directly from the produc- individual countries where we havebottom-up solutions and intends to en- tive use of the renewable energy sources been active: When we started work-courage citizens and local communities in their environment. And politically, we ing with our Chinese colleagues into become active drivers of the necessary need the right policies in place which en- 2003, China had an installed wind ca-transition to renewable energy. able such innovations. pacity of around 500 MW. In the fol-GN: What are the future innovations that GN: What impact have you delivered (so- lowing year, we held our World Windyou or your company are pursuing? cial, economic and environmental)? Do Energy Conference in Beijing, whichStefan: The next big technical, but also you have metrics or statistics of your ac- resulted in the first Chinese renew-social, political and economic innovation complishments? able energy law. Today, China’s windhas to be the holistic integration of re- capacity is around 150 GW, 300 times what it was in 2003! iLnauCnocihmobfataowrei,nIdndpioaw. er conference ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 123

THE CHALLENGES & GN: How do we provide cheap energy THEIR SOLUTIONS in poverty stricken areas? Stefan: There is without doubt onlyGN: What are the stumbling blocks or one basic approach: The “poor” needbottlenecks in the renewable industry? to be enabled to harvest the renew-Stefan: Technology is certainly not a ma- able energy potentials in their envi-jor bottleneck any more. It is obvious that ronment. There is enough renewablerenewable technology will develop fur- energy around which can be harvest-ther in the coming decades and centuries ed, but the “poor” often only suffer– like automobiles today are certainly not the capability of capitalizing on theirthe same they used to be 50 or 100 years skills and capacities so that they can-ago, and they will again change with the not get access e.g. to loans. A focus ondeployment of electric cars. The main energy productivity and confidencebarrier is still a mental barrier: We need in people’s general creativity and pro-a fundamental change in the way we think ductivity, together with spreading theof energy supply. To give you an example: right business models, can certainlyThe technical concept of baseload is not bring the needed breakthrough. Ban-at all needed in order to provide enough gladesh’s Grameen Shakti has provid-energy whenever there is demand. What ed a very encouraging and powerfulwe need is flexibility, which is rather in example, with its microcredit pro-contrast to baseload. But still many peo- gram for solar home systems.ple are stuck in the old way of thinking GN: How do we ensure access toand cannot imagine that power supply is clean energy?possible without baseload. We need also Stefan: At first, we must exclusivelyto make clear that close-to-zero-margin- focus on renewable energy sourcesal-cost technologies such as wind or solar as they are available in abundancecannot simply compete on a spot market everywhere. Secondly, we need to en-for electricity as the price would tend to able people to use their skills to har-zero. We need to find other regulatory vest these energies. There is this nicetools which ensure economic efficiency as example of the young guy somewherewell, against what most economists have in Africa who just had a book aboutbeen proposing during the last decades. wind energy and very basic pieces ofGN: What do you think the government, a bike etc. – and he managed to buildprivate companies and NGO of each his own wind generator. If we focuscountry should do to get rid of this? on the productivity of the use of ener-Stefan: The best approach is certainly to gy, we can make sure that people canpoint at practical solutions. On the local use the energy to create more value,and regional level, we can already find re-invest, and eventually escape fromhundreds, thousands of models from poverty.which the rest of the world can learn howto organize the global energy transition.Building networks amongst these practi-tioners will certainly be of great help toclose the gap between the overall Parisgoal and the perceived barriers.124 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

ADVICE TO THE YOUNG ENGINEERSGN: Please give advice and words of wis-dom about renewables to our young glob-al audience. What would you like to tell tothe millennials? Any inspiring words thatyou can share?Stefan: The Indian leader Mahatma Gand-hi said: “There is enough for everybody’sneed, but not for everybody’s greed.” Thisis a very important and true statement, es-pecially when we look at the energy sideof it: There is an abundance of renewableenergy resources on our planet! Let usharvest them jointly and create wealth forall people, without putting on risk the fu-ture of mankind. We have the choice, wehave the responsibility, and we have nowthe opportunity to create a better and fair-er world!ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 125

NEWBATTERYHARNESSESRENEWABLEENERGYThis new ‘green’ battery racghbsaArToeiobgreohtlceoeyulmleheeedflehntnadwosoveratosoepllnrvtbyeureree,caylrvessdrttciwovsorteneeeielislhvucssrdareeieytrygaotinfryorooofettcpninrenhenhaaedinevaregzneotaereaiegdrusrslcigrrrssnofaeee.tyrdnuanecToalhnasenmhtknsahwpdiiatrdnseootaHggnrwbgaqehealelaueoveorawbreeevwbbelnrnaneoetnyrceet.eubedhhrceftragahadgUtsytrnhstyteen.coopnfrVsiolruvyateooueosecwgormelrredyyr----. haiagllayisgctoahohvehsdatre-ieelledpmafbfiefalnrecnotmdfimov.areTktfhhwiunietsagusyuerrereosgnoufeeusdswert.tcoaherbesil,netwegeanhmtheicrethgoyewcnrroeeeauragdltdye-is capable of fundamen- eooiTdiwtsnffahhbmgwrriiseeeicannenihnsnneeeeagetwwbwarreseaslaltfbbyt‘omogwllrterreaereoeeakde.eonnnenTifess’enhftrrubohggitssraeyhyemtmetkimesningornovooyrlsgeairwtndrietashtn,abideomcnuteanowdnpapdakedawbayniabyynindel.ngeltaHdebstocaohlptferureovfirtwucuahcinrseetadyers-t choTbeTrrfaerhegatlepaEtycetynteoreTgydfSaeiRymnicaskhoneeleyndtesrhodGidPanlote.brgogvGyceifoaeoeMlnnossrsddpcioaceoethriAdnvaot,epethfdhpleMelJti.ehHbaAditaaseztrrtSiovezicarar,iglyreGsadnwnaecnniSiectdcesh.hfaElotoHnhnowdee-ltally transforming the way Tbmewucthonarhhaeanteetiklrtcelegbaeyhrlsiyaienetcotatisnhtaeccrwrnetcooysyeucubirhktlsrarirenktiaafmtnoelceo‘gwefrirlstyoaohttcwrofemaayd’mnrobmabdoeyraofte.otfnatal‘ele-qourbcaurnyuagniasnaldw.eenosTdhdinchieetciphmshts’,ehaiodntanalondestescntusotuaohnrrltnn’eee-t oGdIeotsSSetosccffeso.rwhivCterTCeeoMadnhdhlohsooceeileiepnmncnmo,omh,oafiMtatsiThneEsetjhntierdluncryrotihysgAsmstoaaiclnnafaedaaiseldnentessehJndso.CrAiDetAcigihnssPibnuzaptegraiedstmuzoetdalw’trsefdn,eieuyclhrbdsaw-aysoubGCloAitoitBwuranhprabizocapoloitolstrkllhuofotiko,eedregMPPdbyedyH.rru.SPaRoofiactolffroreteeiorveryssafniatssenahGroocsldderrs--.electricity is being stored nasOtboanltreetceeoodnnfesirtstghayntehtsleryuecafaahsvcoatanislstahwbwalietnhydisnoaturhnreicdlsaetsspiuoronnofjlietgrocehtntthweaewariers- rsctbcgUatahoyaonntsteertlsktmiee.tkstorlaieirwaceneraoshkdgluiseacfr.irlrshueTcapiommhdrdnisoaosevpksuewwioennghsrattntiisytioce,hoohdnetnfahaafetlellornobeteawaosrmtstgttboteooyhrarrueeitaeetntdessetari,nzyitocenehfhareobgesefleyafnelpptoehitaewrnoer--in the grid, making the useof renewable energy moredependable that it wasbefore.Photo by Harvard SEAS126 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

NEW DEVICE THAT MAKESCOMPOSTING EASIERIt’s good for crops, it’s “sMPitneaIeaigittdtmhlcosihtmwnKukTaadanovtfeeoarynsc,nrtzi.aasoAlOlnaGnotsadhofenrewunedrsidwoRmtarh,ymeiMaswmnewihcblYaloheeesrarht,snlh.ikiaeEceradteolgaeCplanlrhcghoriiSnfosiitelhciveneera,a”r-, gutaTaelhmkanereeosrgdialsaeittfrse,fbsefbaritniegiomneeg.lcyeaeAstc.olihtsetoruTpnrphaneteetdolByf,cioooirtBmmclepanonofdsbtweptahrusaotsnedeudrthecgteaos-t Photo by Ricegood for water and, in seReTenihigac,ehrewct’sshhtmOuekdrositeehncnmththhtesasennyhw–ahEovoanrervkgeaisinntpigneleeensairttnsaitnlmlttgehhudeDecahsbenisanoisgkafencmptthuaKereanitlt.tlcrahoes--tf “pictscisnoOaoolaiimuadnfcpl.eetrdpuh“eslottTseehwftxyhiaetniuehcntoyharerttanhcutnaahoermtuin,tngobaluadrgnkasorsseeocceooruettmeufhhrnaryeeefdtomesndspaottaesnodoevoldnrloivfewcssteeoeaaosorlsl.n”lfrsatoerbwrga,r”ie,opaesinTgafteaartotntuhsrtmoocretuazhyesong’eenrnhtyeet, Universitythe end, it’s good for peo- ofwTaaRSoLannwtuihihcvhcddteeuiipeecndlrCoihtpglenyesrhnttLecohaeas,mtajdanluewmbosvdcer,nhietrseaswrgirenctitishrshhoMn.eUiegnaprainentmitetpthisichvrttoaoheaeerwouselrwtltnsdnsilie,TleitEhRnyrbMhlosieleohcsilaodefutirBeptcsTotsihoettnawieecBsndcdhitlhtdhteenhahnvnelobeoiodlNpcenolteroyAeggasoogatsyjSnimiefedAioidctsn’ersst,,. “emdIraaatathkodeirndekewndaoi.tufhagmhthifleoyirrotfwhfeoamustre,t,ouwscioonougkladwbbiitoehg,”aabsGlgeoewnto--ple and the planet. Why cU“i“dibonnIoTueonguhhtwtaihpatitennsehvlicyednieodtokih-ooeSrrfefstfertofa.sirogdntenaTreanae’sthstryh,d”bersio.l”sayeysfgtqapacietiunekhadidoneerapieTsicmlovtpeuoaroosancarsejuztiroareieotnslrt,n,nyu’tjabtuoeonoawsfdfrpctirhwultiollhiaetianktnrneyiescnggsedegtttieaoeontfvkvhopibeitceonhrueeidgyer-t. oopAavdocewsourtrte.fsoliogfafwhnstsdwsaeiktnncedsheopaaruftcltriaoaermcsbkoaastwnihcaoafyilwlltyferfroturmhlilpetslthphbeseebfqociunoraemsisih-t,would anyone not turn csTBstshttiohimuaeoutedBuplpdesllrtneyeojvntaugdsidmsraiatasrWctmemhhoiwe.naa-sFnkaInrieenyctpieotttorhtiwnbtaeeretruteraa,psltneThtndwooeorrhacyoetlzeuhenodtrantnfuguussiklesvale,eriidsnerbsp.gwutTtowoThutihhietlthdyeesfood waste into compost?tatRhhnieacdtierqhUauannvesisewvtieseorprns.eitnaytt ettnhhgeeisnmteaeorrtniotnhfgstshsteuindscceehnotrseofalinsykieneadgrTvtabiiicttnelneyhucstnidoeitndamtweitantodsapeatguknlataiaeesemfnwiesreddfdassmuateuikertrlvpnahedrpicpc)oecretlgewogpiiraoeodarntrsnotheub.escacaadwettsgisnhefwsso(iiocatlhdoesonfidilsmroluepeitwqnc)ohhupdyaseeiscoaelrdptl.lrseiitnEanw-opghfngnfaradegosetscat’osdtetsreiuebpvs(nciaeriinenndgolydkes---,ecTpwthnalhieeptgethisierntsoaacteunlephaderrsoieosnsdnejtgeestosscisiftngmttpunoAaodktguseesergnaiaubtumdssipultsia.atoraiteenteseRrawenoiqcdhfeuem.ainrrMoeetdrohpeserttteoyhssbeacenneongtmi8eoind0r-BdFoelevrnedlaollwpiatnhsgea tnmhaeetumdrbeavle.ircse otfhe(cyocma)llpoTsht-ehaBsitoe-, ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 127

WORLD’S FIRST EMISSIONS-FREE, LOW-COST FOSSIL FUEL POWER TECHNOLOGY NET Power breaks ground on demonstration plant for world’s first emissions-free, low-cost fossil fuel power technology. Illustration by NET Power128 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

NET Power, LLC, today announced that Rivers and Toshiba, towards delivering a inherently eliminating all air emissions.it has broken ground on a first-of-a-kind technology that will be the cornerstone The system burns natural gas with oxygen,power plant that will validate a new nat- of a modern global energy infrastructure as opposed to air, and uses high-pressureural gas power system that produces that is clean, affordable and flexible. carbon dioxide, as opposed to inefficientlow-cost electricity with zero atmospher- Executives from each of the companies steam like most power plants, to drive aic emissions, including carbon dioxide. gathered on the site to mark the start of turbine. NET Power produces only elec-NET Power is a collaboration between construction of the demonstration plant. tricity, liquid water and pipeline-readyExelon Generation, CB&I, and 8 Rivers The $140 million program - which not CO2, all while operating as efficiently asCapital. The 50-megawatt demonstration only includes demonstration plant de- the best natural gas power plants availableplant is being built in La Porte, Texas. sign and construction, but also ongoing today. Additionally, for a small reductionThe plant will demonstrate NET Power’s technology advancement, a full testing in efficiency, the technology can operateAllam Cycle technology, which uses car- and operations program, and commer- without water, actually becoming a netbon dioxide as a working fluid to drive a cial product development - is funded by water producer. For the first time, clean-combustion turbine, eliminates all atmo- a combination of cash and in-kind contri- er energy does not mean more expensivespheric emissions without requiring ex- butions from Exelon and CB&I. Toshiba energy, and, as a result, our global climatepensive, efficiency-reducing carbon cap- has developed and is now manufacturing goals are within reach.ture equipment, and ultimately produces a new supercritical CO2 turbine and com- NET Power’s 50MWth plant will be a fullypipeline-quality CO2 that can be seques- bustor for the project. CB&I is performing operational unit that will generate powertered or used in various industrial pro- the engineering, procurement, and con- to the grid while demonstrating all keycesses, including enhanced oil recovery. struction of the plant. Exelon is providing aspects of the Allam Cycle. Commission-“NET Power is the first technology that operations, maintenance, and develop- ing is expected to begin in late 2016 andallows policy and economics to work to- ment services. 8 Rivers invented and con- be completed in 2017. The plant will alsogether, instead of against each other, to en- tinues to advance the technology behind provide the validation to begin construct-sure the world meets our climate targets,” the project. ing the first 295MWe, commercial-scalesaid NET Power’s CEO, Bill Brown. “To- NET Power uses a novel process – an NET Power plants. NET Power is alreadyday marks a significant step for our world- oxy-fuel, supercritical CO2 power cycle engaged with customers across several in-class team, including Exelon, CB&I, 8 – to produce electricity efficiently while dustries on the design and development of these projects. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 129

WIND POWERBLOWS AWAYTHE NEEDFOR ENERGYPLANTSIn an average working man’s life, what do you think about by the rise of popularity of renewable sources ofare his most common monthly concerns? Pocket mon- energy. Moreover, there have been technological ad-ey? Yes. Rent? Yes, that too. But one of the most unsta- vances which have improved power storage and efficien-ble-priced needs he has to worry about is the electricity cy. This has caused fossil fuels become a more expensivebills! source of energy.Yes, electricity bills. Every country in the world has this This resulted in the creation of a cycle that has causedkind of dilemma. But, it seems like technology is taking the rise in the cost of power generated from gas and coal.a new turn to try and help keep our wallets from being That in turn has caused more attention to be given toempty. renewable energies and their production has increased.Wind power is slowly blowing away the need for energy The fact is that the cost of generating electricity from anyplants using fossil fuels. renewable source of energy such as wind or solar is, atNew reports are showing that the onshore windfarms its essence, completely free. Of course, there are certain-have become the cheapest method for producing elec- ly costs of upkeep and staff to take into consideration.tricity in the United Kingdom. The price drop is rather Nonetheless, the power company does not have to paysignificant as electricity produced by windfarms is now anything to get the actual source of energy as they are£20 cheaper than producing the same amount of elec- free natural forces. On the other hand, power companiestricity from fossil fuels. This is certainly a great break- have to buy the gas or coal in order to run the powerthrough for renewable sources of energy. Moreover, it is plants when using fossil fuels. Therefore, power compa-not limited to the United Kingdom only. This scenario nies will always choose the free source at any given timeis also being reflected elsewhere in the world such as leading to increase of renewable power plants such asGermany, as the cost of solar and wind technologies are windfarms.rapidly decreasing while the costs of fossil fuels are in- Of course people would prefer cheaper source of energy.creasing at the same time. Is this goodbye for power plants using fossil fuels then?In fact, wind power has become the source of the cheap- Does this mean our electricity bilsl won’t be too high inest electricity in the United Kingdom as well as Germa- the future? Let’s hope so.ny. This is the first of such achievement by rich countries.According to analysts, this scenario has been brought Photo by Carbon Brief130 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

WORLD’SWBIGIGNESDTTURBINESTwo new wind turbines have just been inauguratedin Denmark, in Måde near Esbjerg, to call them thebiggest in the world, standing at 200 meters highwith a wingspan of 164 meters and an 8MW produc-tion capacity. It is enough to power 18,000 Danishhouseholds.According to reports, if 300 of these huge turbineswill be built, it will be enough to produce electricityfor all the households in Denmark. European Ener-gy, its main investor, takes the two new turbines ahuge step in forwarding wind energy.“At European Energy this is an important step for-ward and adds to our exciting journey within winddevelopment and increased focus on nearshore andoffshore project opportunities. With this coopera-tion we take an important leap forward and we nowbecome an important part of the testing process forthe world’s most powerful wind turbines and thenext generation of the 3MW platform.” says KnudErik Andersen, CEO of European Energy A/S.The new wind turbines are a collaboration project ofEuropean Energy, MHI Vestas and BMC Energi.Photo by Windfair ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 131

WINDLICHT: TAKING WIND POWER TO A MORE ARTISTIC LEVEL A team of designers and engineers, led by Daan Roosgaarde, wanted to let the world visualize the beauty of green energy through their latest ex- perimental installation—the Windlicht (windlight). Photo by Platoon.org132 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

A team of designers and engineers, led Windlicht is supported by Dutch landlineby Daan Roosgaarde, wanted to let the and mobile telecommunications companyworld visualize the beauty of green energy KPN. This year, the company has beenthrough their latest experimental instal- exclusively using green energy generatedlation—the Windlicht (windlight). Their in the Netherlands since 2011. ‘the updateartwork comprises of a sequence of bright that the artwork gives to the landscape,green lights that connects one windmill represents important values such as sus-to the next, filling the sky with beautiful tainability and connectedness,’ describeslight movements. Special software and KPN CEO eelco blok. ‘because these twotracking technology are used to detect values are of great significance for KPN,the windmill blades, which rotates at 280 we are committed to this artwork. withkilometers per hour (174 mph) and illu- ‘windlicht’ we support the idea of roose-minates the gaps between the neighboring gaarde that green energy is something towindmills. be proud of.’ ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 133

Top 5 Largest Solar power has given humanity hope in ment and private companies can provideSolar Parks saving mother nature without sacrificing more jobs to people compared to naturalIn The World our electrical needs. A free source of ener- gas and coal industries. These certainly gy, we are provided with power from solar are important details to remember when parks as soon as the sun shines on the so- we encourage our own local governments lar panels. Energy is easily stored during to support the use of solar power. gloomy days as well. It plays a crucial role Accumulating energy from solar parks in our society as we stop global warming. can result to cheaper and accessible power It has plenty of advantageous - mainly its to everyone, especially to the poor coun- affordability. Aside from that, we are as- tries. Comparing which countries have sured that it will always be there, ready to the largest solar parks in the world, China provide us with sufficient energy to pow- and the US come out at the top of the list. er our homes and our offices. Unlike coal The list below shows which solar parks and fossil fuel energy, solar power is re- have made it to the top 5 largest solar newable. The sun won’t stop shining any- parks in the world. time soon. Through solar power, govern- Longyangxia Dam Solar Park Photo by Solar Power Today The Longyangxia Dam Solar Park is the largest photovoltaic power station in the world. With a capacity of 850 MW, it is made up of two phases: Phase I with a capacity of 320 MW and Phase II with a capacity of 530 MW.134 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Topaz Solar Farm Desert Sunlight Solar FarmPhoto by Wikimedia Photo by Alternative EnergiesThis $2.5 billion project has a capac-ity of 550 MW. Located in San Luis Located six miles north of DesertObispo County, California, it has 9 Center in California, this solar parkmillion cadmium tellurium photovol- produces 550 MW. With the help oftaic modules provided by First Solar. US manufacturer First Solar, DesertIt began construction last 2011 and Sunlight Solar Farm uses 8.8 millionended in November 2014. cadmium telluride modules.Solar Star Huanghe HydropowerPhoto by Computer World Golmud Solar ParkIt is found near Rosamond, California.Using 1.7 million solar panels, it has a ca- Photo by PV Buzzpacity of 579 MW. The solar panels were Producing 200 megawatt, this solarprovided by SunPower. park is located in Golmud, Qinghai Province in China. It was construct- ed back in 2009 and won the China Quality Power Project Award three years later. This solar park has an es- timated 317 GWh production every year. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 135

WCTOOINPM1DP0AENNIEERSGY Photo by GemenergyWind is not only a clean renewable ener- Photo by Siemens Photo by Foractivagy source, it is also free and readily avail- Photo by me-boletinable. Nowadays, many windfarms around Photo by Scandasia Photo by Think Progessthe world are harnessing the power of thewind to convert it to electricity. Wind tur- Goldwindbines are the main component in harness-ing wind power and turn it into energy. Goldwind has come out to be China’sWindpower Monthly consolidated fig- leading turbine manufacturer. They areures for Make Consulting, BTM Navigant now ranked fourth in the world. Theyand Windpower intelligence to be able to hold 9.2% of market shares.come up in this list of ten leading windturbine manufacturers. Here are the Top Enercon10 leading Wind Energy CompaniesWhen all ten companies are combines, By the end of 2014, Enercon had installedthey have around 270GW installed wind a total of 16, 867MW in Germany andpower which is around three-quarters of 20,284MW in export markets. They holdthe global total! The companies’ turbines 7.8% of market shares.range from 20+ year-old kilowatt ma-chines to brand new megawatt designs. United PowerHere are the Top 10 Wind Energy Com-panies United Power is part of China Guodian, one of China’s five largest power produc-Siemens ers, and owener of Longyuan, one of the world’s biggest developers. They hold 5%Siemens is rated as the world’s leading of market shares.turbine supplier. Its 10.8% share of themarket equates to 5.63GW in turbine in-stallations.General ElectricGE offers a full suite of turbines which arecreated for different wind environments.GE’s turbines feature rated capacitiesfrom 1.7MW to 3.4MW for onshore, and6MW for offshore. They hold 10.2% ofmarket shares.VestasVestas has 53,743 turbines installed in 73countries which has a total joint capaci-ty of 66GW. They hold 10.1% of marketshares.136 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Photo by Nrel GamesaPhoto by EVWindPhoto by Windpwer Monthly Gamesa has over 30GW installed world- wide, and they are aiming to become the largest manufacturer in India and Mexico. They hold 4.2% of market shares. Ming Yang Ming Yang is a newcomer in the top ten status, unlike other Chinese manufactur- ing companies, they don’t benefit from be- ing state owned. They hold 4% of market shares. Senvion The German turbine manufacturer, for- merly known as Repower, was one of the first companies to go into the offshore sec- tor. They employ around 3,500 people in 14 countries and have a little over 12 GW in operation worldwide. Nordex Nordex is a German wind turbine man- ufacturing company located in Rostock, Germany. Currently they manufacture two platforms of wind turbines, rated at 2.4 and 3.3 MW. They hold 3.4% of market shares.Photo by Recharge News ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 137

TOP 5 LARGEST WIND FARMS IN THE WORLD Wind energy is one of the renewable ener- Photo by The Guardian gies that holds great potential in supplying electricity across the world. Unlike other sources of electricity which needs fuel in processing plants, wind energy gen- erates electricity through wind—which is free. Wind can be considered a “fuel” that doesn’t require to be transported or mined. Here is a list of the top 5 largest onshore wind farms which are currently opera- tional. Gansu Wind Farm Project The Gansu Wind Farm Project, which is also called the Jiuquan Wind Power Base, is found in the western Gansu province in China. It is composed of a group of large wind farms and is currently under con- struction. It has a capacity of 6,000 MW and has a goal of 20,000 MW by the year 2020. Alta Wind Energy Center The Alta Wind Energy Center (AWEC), or also known as Mojave Wind Farm, is a wind farm which is located in Tehachapi Pass of the Tehachapi Mountains, in Kern County, California. As of the year 2013, it is the largest wind farm in the United States and has a combined installed ca- pacity of 1,547 MW. Photo by Almrsal138 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Muppandal Wind Farm The Muppandal Wind far, has been se- lected as the showcase for India’s $2 bil- lion clean energy program, which gives foreign companies tax breaks for building fields of wind turbines in the area. The village of Muppandal attracts many wind energy producing companies, which has created thousands of new jobs which help raise the income of the villagers. The wind energy generation capacity for this wind farm is around 1500 MW.Photo by Elperiodicodelaenergia The Jaisalmer Wind Park The Jaisalmer Wind Park is located in Jaisalmer district, Rajasthan, India and is the largest operational onshore wind farm in their country. The wind park’s capacity is 1,064 MW, which makes it one of the world’s largest operational onshore wind- farms.Photo by Elperiodicodelaenergia The Shepherds Flat Wind Farm The Shepherds Flat Wind Farm is located in the state of Oregon. It has an installed capacity of 845 MW. The wind farm was built by Caithness Energy using General Electric (GE) 2.5 MW wind turbines, and it supplies electricity to Southern Califor- nia Edison.Photo by Examiner ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 139

What WORLD’Smakes GREENESTa green EPCLAONRNEESDORThome? Plans to create the world’s greenest eco re- low-lying, angular PV-topped buildingWhat is a green home? sort in Liwa, the southern region of UAE, comprised of 84 suits of various sizes.A green home is one that has been built, have just been revealed. The Oasis Eco Re- Moreover, there will be a zero-emissionsor remodelled to meet higher standards sort, with promising sustainable features, zone that will have its own waste treat-than that of conventional construction, was designed by Baharash Architecture ment center and a business and researchto be able to achieve a healthier, more and commissioned by the Eco Resort facility.resource efficient and more cost-effective Group. The Oasis Eco Resort, when complet-homes which in turn benefits the people The 8,400 square foot development re- ed, will be the greenest of its kind in thewho live in them. sort will be fully solar energy-dependent world. Other than that, according to Ba-There are independent, third party veri- which will be acquired from the 1,570,000 harash Bagherian, it will preserve thefications to document when a house has square feet of solar panels surrounding the region’s heritage and provide greater in-met certain standards. The verification area. It will also feature a spring, out of the teraction with native people. It will alsowill serve as a basis for certification of existing groundwater, which is important provide job opportunities for local whichgreen homes, and will provide informa- to Bedouins for trade and transportation will create a more diversified economy.tion for consumers like helping them with routes. Such water will be utilized for the The compound is expected to be complet-comparison shopping and decision-mak- resort’s crop irrigation, fish farming, and ed by 2020.ing. recreational activities, on top of provid-The National Green Building Standard ing habitat for local fauna. The spring will Photos by Baharash Architecture(NGBS) is the first residential green be the center of the entire resort, with abuilding standard that undergone the fullprocess and received approval from theAmerican National Standards Institute.They were developed by the National As-sociation of Home Builders.There are other organization that of-fer green building certification, manyof which are regional or statewide, likethe Build Green New Mexico Standards,largely adapted from the U.S. HomeBuilders Association Standards.140 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

The 8,400square footdevelopmentresort will befully solarenergydependentwhich will beacquired fromthe 1,570,000square feet ofsolar panelssurroundingthe area. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 141

‘Future of Mobility Concept’ Unveiled by Nissan Europe and Foster + Partners142 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Nissan has revealed an exciting Paul Willcox, Chairman, Nissan Eu- The need for a sustainable and inno-glimpse into the future – with the first rope, said: “Technology holds many vative refuelling network is becominglook at its fully connected vision of of the answers for the challenges we vital as the market shifts toward alter-the future of mobility in association face in our cities today. However, the native sources like electric power.with renowned architects, Foster + true power comes when those tech- Today, more than half (54%) of thePartners. nologies are integrated with each oth- world’s population lives in cities andThe landmark partnership, between er and the world around us. by 2050, seven out of every 10 peoplethe manufacturers of the world’s “We’ve been at the forefront of zero will live in urban areas[i], so it is im-best-selling 100 percent electric ve- emission technology since 2010, but perative that the infrastructure existshicle and the leading design studio, our vision does not stop there – we to support this growth.concluded that the fuel station of the believe that the future of transporta- Nissan is currently trialing an innova-future could actually be the car itself. tion is reliant on both infrastructure tive vehicle-to-grid system in EuropeIllustrated in a stunning two minute and the environment. We’re looking which, when coupled with advancesvideo, featuring the best-selling Nis- for real, workable solutions that go in its second-life batteries, will allowsan LEAF and futuristic IDS Concept, beyond the product.” drivers to operate as individual ‘en-Nissan’s visionary concept explores Incorporating a range of pioneering ergy hubs’ able to store, use or returnhow our way of living might change Nissan technologies, the vision hints clean energy to the grid.as technology develops. at how vehicle-to-grid, battery stor- It is predicted that by 2050, almost allThe collaboration, which concludes a age, wireless charging, autonomous global energy needs can be met with12-month partnership, offers a snap- drive technology and over-the-air renewable energy sources.shot of what’s to come from Nissan’s connectivity could combine to revo- Nissan is the leader in zero emis-vision for Intelligent Mobility; a world lutionise how energy is used and dis- sion technology, and pioneered thein which cars interact with their en- tributed across Europe’s major cities. commercial electric vehicle marketvironment as populations adopt zero David Nelson, Co-Head of Design, in 2010. The Nissan LEAF – the firstemission, Piloted Drive technologies. Foster + Partners, added: “Integrating mass-market, pure EV launched glob-The design study is being previewed zero emission technologies into the ally – continues to be the best-sellingat this year’s 86th International Motor built environment is vital in creating EV in history.Show in Geneva. smarter, more sustainable cities. That commitment must extend far beyond Photos by Nissan the car – it must sit at the heart of ev- erything we do.” ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 143

Photo by Lucid EnergyPhoto by OPB LIFT-BASED TURBINES:Photo by Version DailyPhoto by Hydro World A NEW SOURCE OF HYDROELECTRIC 144 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY POWER Engineers have devised a new way to pro- You must be wondering how much energy duce hydroelectric power. Now, the water this system could produce. This depends pipes that bring water to your home could on the pressure and the flow rate inside produce electricity too! Did you hear the transmission pipe. Say for example, about LucidPipes lift-based turbine? This in a pipeline with 60-inch diameter, with is the turbine that produces electricity as a flow velocity of seven feet per second, the turbine spins. a LucidPipe can produce up to 100kW The set-up has been designed by engi- of power! It will extract 11.5ft of head neers to maximize power production from the system. Now, if you could add and to limit the onset of cavitation. As multiple turbines to this set-up, the Lu- the velocity of the turbines increases, the cidPipe could produce thousands of watts power production also increases. This of energy. And the best part is, this power power-producing set-up has a lift-based generation process is without any sort of design and the system generates power environmental impact. across a large range of velocities. You can try taking a 40 feet section of a The LucidPipe Power System is the pow- water pipe and install up to four Lucid- er-producing system that harnesses the Pipe units at a distance of 3-4 turbine di- untapped energy of moving water and ameters apart. Contextually, you need to produces clean, low-cost energy. It is the know that a mile of pipeline of 42 inch di- kickass system that can work on a wide ameter is capable of producing more than range of volumes, velocities, and flow 3 megawatts of energy. conditions. Finding other ways to get hydroelectric power has to be influenced by great de- mands of electricity. Thanks to LucidPipe, we think that we have found another one.

THE DOWNSIDE OF Clean energy might make us pay a heavy price. How?POWERHYDROELECTRIC Researchers of Harvard University have found out the reason behind the high con- centration of methylmercury and potent neurotoxin in the Arctic region: it is the production of hydroelectric power that is being used to eliminate global warming. The research paper published in the PNAS had started off as a review of the environ- ment effect assessment of the Muskrat Falls Hydroelectric dam of Labrador in Canada. In the year 2017, the dam will flood an extensive region upstream from the estuarine fjord called the Lave Mel- ville. But reports predicted no danger and that is when the Government consulted Elsie Sunderland. So, is clean energy really benefitting us? No, not when you think of it this way. The people living on the Coast of Lake Mel- ville will be affected because they depend on it being their only source of food. The research team of Sunderland found large quantities of methylmercury in the water of Lake Melville. The methylmer- cury coming from the river and from the sediments at the bottom part of the lake could not justify the level of the same in the water. The team discovered that the level increased just below the surface of the water. What could be the reason for this? They found out that it was because of the eating habit of planktons. When salt and fresh water meet, the salinity increases along with the density of water. All organic matter sinks down to the bottom and gets collected forming a debris and turns into a feeding area for marine plankton. The bacteria of this area cause a complicated chemical process turning mercury into methylmercury. Now there are is actually a risk in produc- ing clean energy especially on this matter. Will the government still continue push- ing through this? Photo by Energy Digital ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 145

What Doesthe Year 2050Have in Storefor Engineers?Dtuplwtrihholksioaeeb?lecloyWbettlothi?eosguicooltOhlseshkencviratrleondiewmrklyeopweisnalgetlok?obyontepypWhditlteaoteheihn?lorewlewftwoiahylhrmdoeelavardrtsleradtwnlhb2ocaee0eoe5bwksdme0eoej?toufrtoierlIsnderrstTechnology is advancing at a rapid pace Similar plans are afoot in London, UK. Aand affecting all industries and sectors in plan has been proposed which can bringone way or the other. It is likely that tech- about major changes in the infrastructurenology will have brought to reality things so as to make the city sustainable for overby 2050 that only exist in fiction now. It 11 million people, the projected popula-will also have certainly made a major im- tion of London in 2050. One of the majorpact in the sectors of energy production concerns has been water shortage, othersand engineering. In fact, researches have being energy, waste, transport and re-already uncovered certain remarkable source management.possibilities will come into being by 2050. Some of the largest engineering groups inFor example, engineers at the Stanford the world have stated that we already haveUniversity have already developed a plan technologies which are capable of reduc-that can transform the United States into ing the greenhouse gases in the planet bya nation that uses only renewable sources as much as 85% by the year 2050. Anotherof energy by the year 2050. The plan de- prediction being made for the year 2050 istails the actions that need to be taken by that the world will have a total populationeach of the 50 states of the country in or- of 9.5 billion. In order to feed such a largeder to achieve the transformation. There population, researchers are suggesting theare aggressive changes required in the use of genetic engineering and high per-energy consumption patterns and also the formance computing to increase the pho-infrastructure. Nonetheless, the plan is tosynthetic efficiency of the plants. Thisfeasible from an economic and technical method can boost food production andstandpoint. crop yields.Is it the end of the coal industry then? With all these plans for cleaner energyClean energy for all? What will the green and sustainability, do you think engineersactivists complain about then? and scientists can make them happen by the year 2050? Only time can tell.146 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Can One Tower Replace A Power Plant? Engineers Say Yes! Photo by Solar Wind Energy TowerThe world has seen numerous turbines inside power generatorsvaluable developments in the to produce electricity.recent years. The focus of both The exterior of the tower is con-researchers and engineers has structed with vertical “windshifted to making the best use vanes” at places where atmo-of solar energy. One of the finest spheric conditions are condu-examples of the company which cive. These “wind vanes” captureis making the best utilization of the prevailing wind and channelTthe freely available resource is it to produce supplemental elec-Solar Wind Energy Tower, Inc. trical power. This dual renewableThe company is working on the energy resource greatly enhancesdevelopment of a large Solar its clean energy-producing capa-Wind Downdraft Tower, a struc- bility and productivity.ture capable of producing abun- What’s interesting about the So-dant, inexpensive electricity in lar Wind Energy’s Tower is thatArizona, Mexico, and Chile. it does not have any operation-The tower is the first hybrid so- al limitations in terms of timelar-wind renewable energy tech- and can be operated aroundnology in the market. Compris- the clock, 24 hours per day, anding of a tall hollow cylinder with seven days per week. Howev-a water injection system near er, there’s an operational lim-the top, the patented structure itations with solar collectorshas wind tunnels containing that work only when the sunturbines near the bottom. shines, and with wind turbinesThe functioning of the tower is that work only when the windsimple. The water is delivered blows.to the injection system at the The most remarkable feature istop of the tower by a series of that these towers can be oper-pumps where a fine mist is ated virtually with no carboncast across the entire open- footprint, fuel consump-ing. The water then evap- tion, or waste production. Itorates and is absorbed by generates clean, cost effec-hot dry air which has been tive and efficient electricalheated by the solar rays of power without damagingthe sun. As a result, the effects.air becomes cooler, dens- We hope that the companyer and heavier than the soon meets its core objec-outside warmer air, and tive and focus on becom-falls through the cylin- ing a leading enabler ofder at a speed up to in clean, efficient renew-some excess of 50 mph. able energy at reason-This air is then divert- able cost.ed into wind tunnelssurrounding the baseof the tower where ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 147

THROWBACKCHANELFEATUREDRENEWABLEENERGY INITS FASHIONSHOWPhoto from Blogspot Remember the time when Karl Lagerfeld Photo by PSFK famously put wind turbines and faux solar panels in his 2013 Chanel runway spring In this season, classic Chanel looks such as summer fashion show in Paris Fashion chains, braids and Chanel buttons weren’t Week? The legendary fashion icon mixed present but an overwhelming occurrence fashion and renewable energy on the cat- of pearls can be noted on the dresses. walk and showed that even fashion pow- Pearls, pearls everywhere. erhouses like Chanel (probably) cares In an industry that is driven by innova- about the environment. tion, boldness and progress, Chanel just The head designer and creative director showcased how delivering a message us- of Chanel has always been ambitious with ing visuals such as iconic green energy his fashion shows – something people in materials can make an impact in other in- the creative world always look forward dustries and make one’s show memorable. to. The past few years featured ambitious However, it may just have been a stunt and exhibits and 2013 was about renewable Lagerfeld may not have a deeper mean- energy. ing as to why he chose renewable energy With 80 looks to showcase, 68 models as the season’s theme. In an interview he showed off the season’s designs in between gave to explain the inspiration behind the 13 massive wind turbines on blue faux theme, he said: solar panels. Some of the looks featured “I started to sketch in St. Tropez over the futuristic designs that mimicked these re- summer and it was so hot I wanted some newable energy icons: a look with a disc- fresh air.” shaped hat and a transparent brim that Nonetheless, renewable energy got the resembles the wind turbines and a blue buzz it needed. Though Lagerfeld is con- dress with a glittering blue embroidery troversial in his support in using furs, he that resembles the solar panels. did the renewable energy sector a favor by reminding the fashion industry, known for its materialistic ways, that renewable energy is in.148 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY

Photo by MicNEW APPLE HQ Photos by AppleTO RUN ONSOLAR ENERGY& BIOGASFUEL CELLSIn their Environmental Responsibility Re-port, Apple revealed that their new head-quarters will be solar-powered and willrun on biogas fuel cells. The solar powerwill be coming from the rooftop solarpanels, some of which will be at the topof tis two on-campus parking structures.The biogas fuel cells, on the hand will turnhydrogen and oxygen into electricity.The solar power has a capacity of up to 16megawatts while the biogas fuel cells areexpected to be 4 megawatts of energy.According to the company representative,both sources of energy should be ableto generate about 75% of the energy itneeds during peak day time hours to runits campus. The remaining power will beproduced by a California solar farm calledFirst Solar, as part of their $848 milliondeal for 130 MW in 2015.For the new Apple headquarters to runentirely on alternative energy, Apple pro-duced their own “microgrid” wheneverlocal power grids fail to deliver to them.This effort is part of Apple’s commitmentin running all of its operations on renew-able energy and in helping solve the prob-lem of climate change. ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY 149

MARK YOUR CALENDARS! inNEanJtiguoinnnaeleeWri2nog3mDenay An Ar ticle by Women's Engine ering S o ciety through Dawn Bonfield, CEng, FIMMM, FICE, FWES. Inspiring Women as Engine ers, S c i enti sts an d Te c h n i c a l L e a d er s About Dawn Bonfield, CEng, FIMMM, FICE, FWES DAWN B ONFIELD IS CHIEF EXECU- Dawn has recently written a report for the Institu- T I V E of the Women's Engineering Society. She is a tion of Civil Engineers called Disruptive Diversi- materials engineer, graduating from Bath University ty which has set out how this large institution can with a Degree in Materials Science. She has worked increase its diversity and inclusion to make a step in the atomic energy, automotive and aerospace sec- change in attracting and retaining a diverse range of tors for AERE Harwell, Peugeot SA in Paris, British members. Aerospace in Bristol, and MBDA in Stevenage. She In addition to her work with WES Dawn is Patron has also worked for the Institute of Materials, Min- of Alton Convent School, a member of the Institute erals and Mining and joined WES in 2011, becom- of Materials Minerals and Mining Women in Mate- ing President in 2014. She became Chief Executive rials committee, a steering group member of the 100 in 2015 - the first CEO that the Women's Engineer- Years of Women in Transport Campaign, a mem- ing Society has employed in its history. ber of the Royal Academy of Engineering Diversity Dawn is a chartered engineer, a Fellow of WES, a Concordat, an Advisory group member for the Sci- Fellow of the Institute of Materials, Minerals and ence Museum's Engineer Your Future careers exhi- Mining, and a Fellow of the Institution of Civil bition in 2014, a judge for a number of competitions Engineers. She is also a member of the Worshipful in engineering including the Talent2030 National Company of Engineers. Engineering Competition for Girls and the WISE / She is passionate about supporting women in en- Evoke bursaries for girls in engineering. gineering, and is founder of National Women in Dawn has recently been awarded the SEMTA Diver- Engineering Day, and the WES outreach activities sity in Engineering Award 2016. 'Magnificent Women' and the 'Sparxx' project. Her Presidential theme was 'women returners' and she is Information taken from working on a number of initiatives to support wom- http://www.wes.org.uk/dawnbonfield en to return to work after career breaks.150 ISSUE NO.004 RENEWABLE ENERGY