Alerte GIEC sur le dérèglement climatique : quid du modèle d'affaire des pétroliers ?

Par JJB

 

Le GIEC ayant publié hier son dernier rapport, soulignant à nouveau l'urgence du dérèglement climatique, les appels se multiplient pour réagir à cette alerte par des mesures concrètes. 

Dans ce contexte, il est intéressant de se rappeler que les leaders du pétrole ont vu leur rentabilité financière baisser durant la décennie 2010, tendance qui n'a été que renforcée par le Covid-19. Face à cette perte d'attractivité financière, et face à l'urgence climatique, certains de ces pétroliers entament une diversification de leurs activités, voire une réduction de leur impact carbone... A savoir si cela suffira pour sauvegarder non seulement leur modèle d'affaires, mais aussi les objectifs mondiaux de l'Accord de Paris ?

 

L'étude détaillée sur la dégradation de la santé financière des pétroliers peut être consultée via ce lien.

Stockage d'énergie - une introduction

Par JJB 

 

L’idée de stocker l’énergie peut sembler paradoxale au premier regard : comment est-ce qu’un phénomène aussi éphémère que l’énergie pourrait être séquestré sur une longue durée ? Pourtant, il existe déjà de nombreuses manières pour y parvenir, et plusieurs pistes sont en train d’être étudiées pour compléter et améliorer ces technologies de stockage. En effet, celles-ci sont amenées à jouer un rôle de plus en plus important dans le cadre de la transition énergétique. 

 

Stockage d’énergie : quels vecteurs ?

Parmi les solutions traditionnelles de stockage d’énergie, on pourrait citer d'abord les produits solides d’origine fossile, tels que le charbon ou le fioul, qui peuvent facilement être achetés, vendus, transportés, stockés puis utilisés à n’importe quel moment – dégageant ainsi de l’énergie, par exemple pour cuisiner ou pour alimenter le moteur d’une voiture.  

Les systèmes gaziers, avec leurs réserves et réseaux, permettent également de stocker et distribuer de l’énergie, sous forme de gaz naturel. Là encore, il s'agit d'une source d'énergie qui reste avant tout d’origine fossile, même si des alternatives moins carbonées se développent également.

De manière similaire, les réseaux de chaleur, qui fournissent de la chaleur à leurs clients, permettent de conserver l’énergie sous forme de chaleur pendant une certaine durée (à condition d’une bonne isolation thermique).

Cet effet d’inertie n’étant pas possible dans le cas de l’électricité, celle-ci est la forme d’énergie qui est la plus difficile à stocker. En effet, sur un réseau électrique, l’offre doit correspondre à la demande à tout moment. Les technologies de stockage d’électricité méritent donc une attention toute particulière.

 

 

Stockage d’électricité : entre les batteries lithium-ion et options plus larges

Le prix de batteries lithium-ion a chuté de manière considérable ces dernières années, d’environ 1200 USD/kwh en 2010 pour les batteries de véhicules à 156 USD/kWh en 2019, selon l’Agence International de l’Energie (IEA, qui précise d’ailleurs également la chute des prix pour d’autres gammes de batteries).

Selon les analyses de Bloomberg New Energy Finance, ces prix continuent de chuter et commencent en 2020 à se situer en dessous de 100 USD/kWh.

Mais les batteries lithium-ion ne sont pas forcément la solution la plus efficace pour le stockage de grands volumes d’électricité sur de longues durées. Pour cela, la solution la plus répandue aujourd’hui reste l'énergie hydraulique, et notamment les STEP : ces Stations de Transfert d'Energie par Pompage utilisent de l’électricité (lorsqu’elle est abondante sur le marché) pour pomper de l’eau dans des bassins de retenue d’eau à hauteur élevée. Ensuite, lorsque l’offre d’électricité sur le marché est trop faible, cette eau peut être relâchée pour faire tourner des turbines de production d’électricité.

Cela représente un atout considérable pour un avenir où les énergies renouvelables joueraient un rôle plus important dans la fourniture d’électricité, créant ainsi un besoin pour compenser les fluctuations que peuvent connaître la production électrique photovoltaïque ou éolienne.

Néanmoins, étant donné que les STEP nécessitent une géographie spécifique, et peuvent avoir un impact négatif sur la biodiversité locale, d’autres solutions sont développées à travers le monde. 

D’un point de vue non seulement technique mais aussi financier, les technologies suivantes sont parmi les options les plus efficaces (après les STEP), selon la ressource en ligne GreenTechMedia :

• des tours de béton (répliquant le principe des STEP mais en soulevant et relâchant du béton au lieu d’eau), qui ont par exemple déjà suscité l’intérêt de Bill Gates et Tata Power,
• de l’air liquéfié et stocké dans des réservoirs en surface,
• de l’air pressurisé et stocké dans des cavités souterraines (dans les deux cas, la décompression de l’air permet ensuite de faire tourner des turbines produisant de l’électricité)
• des batteries à flux redox, qui stockent l’électricité via un réservoir d’électrolytes liquides

Toutefois, il convient de noter que ces technologies ne sont pas encore déployées à grande échelle aujourd’hui. Ainsi, la question du stockage à longue durée (par exemple, pour lisser la saisonnalité de la production et consommation d’électricité), essentielle pour le défi de la décarbonation de l’économie, est encore loin d’être tranchée.  

 

Règles du jeu : comment harmoniser tous ces instruments ?

La question du stockage n’est pas seulement technologique, elle est également économique. Par exemple, les professionnels des marchés de l’électricité discutent depuis longtemps sur la question de savoir s'il faut rémunérer (en plus de la production réelle d'électricité) la disponibilité des producteurs d’électricité, afin s’assurer que l’offre d’électricité soit toujours suffisante. Une telle rémunération pourrait avoir un impact important sur la rentabilité du stockage d'énergie. Néanmoins, ces débats ne sont pas encore complètement tranchés dans les différents pays. 

De plus, les opérateurs de stockage d’énergie ayant un rôle intermédiaire, entre producteurs et consommateurs, ils pourraient faire l'objet d'une double-taxation, à la fois quand ils importent et quand ils exportent de l'énergie. 

Tant que les revenus (ainsi que les surcharges et taxes) associés à ce rôle restent flous, il n'est pas facile d’investir dans de nouvelles installations de stockage d’énergie, notamment s’il s’agit de nouvelles technologies encore peu matures.

C’est un challenge non négligeable pour les régulateurs qui définissent les règles des marchés de l’énergie : si l’on veut compenser financièrement le stockage d’électricité et la sécurité d’approvisionnement qu’il peut procurer, il faut le faire d’une manière qui évite des effets indésirables sur les marchés ou sur les réseaux électriques.

 

Par exemple, le stockage d’électricité pourrait aider à absorber la surproduction momentanée des énergies renouvelables, notamment lorsque le réseau électrique local n’est plus capable d’évacuer toute cette production électricité (dans ce cas, on écrête aujourd’hui souvent la surproduction renouvelable). Mais, pour ce faire, il faut que le cadre régulatoire incite l'opérateur du stockage à absorber l’électricité au moment où le réseau local est dépassé. Autrement, il n’est pas exclu que le marché national incite l'opérateur du stockage à exporter de l’électricité (au lieu d’en absorber), détériorant ainsi la situation du réseau local au lieu de l’améliorer.

 

Des solutions de « Sector Coupling », qui renforcent les synergies entre les secteurs (électricité, chaleur, transport), peuvent également aider à absorber la (sur)production d’électricité renouvelable, permettant ainsi souvent de conserver cette énergie sur une durée plus longue. Par exemple, le « Power-to-heat » qui, aujourd’hui déjà, utilise les excédents de la production renouvelable pour en faire de la chaleur pour les réseaux de chaleur municipaux, par exemple au Danemark et en Allemagne.

Un autre exemple est la transformation d'électricité en hydrogène, qui peut ensuite être utilisé en tant que gaz décarboné pour des processus industriels, de la chaleur, ou pour la mobilité (voire pour en refaire de l’électricité, même s’il y a des pertes d’efficacité durant l’étape de transformation).

 

Conclusion

Ainsi, de nombreux enjeux technologiques, économiques et régulatoires restent encore à relever autour du stockage de l’énergie. Pour le système de l’électricité de l’avenir, qui sera conçu pour accueillir de plus en plus d’énergies décentralisées et décarbonées, il y aura donc plusieurs outils de stockage dont le déploiement reste à surveiller de près.  

 

 

Low-carbon heating in France : warming up to District Heating

By JJB

"District Heating" is a technology allowing several large buildings, neighbourhoods or even entire cities to share common heat sources, which produce heat centrally and then deliver it to each individual home through dedicated heat networks. While the general public may sometimes associate district heating more with Scandinavian, Central- or Eastern European countries, France is also "warming up" to this technology.

Indeed, France's district heating systems have seen an increased share of renewable heat production in recent years, and the government is looking to expand the use of low-carbon district heating even further (the goal being a 5-fold increase by 2030, compared to 2012 levels). According to a recent study, this would also enable the country to tap into local resources in order to create local employment, while also protecting consumers from price fluctuations.

A commented article can be found here. The full detailed paper can be downloaded here ; even though it is written in French, the authors can also be contacted in English in case of any questions.

How does Europe define "Clean Hydrogen" ?

The European Union and several of its member states are moving forward to promote clean hydrogen as a new energy carrier for a fossil-free future.  

However, as argued by JJ Bürger in an article for the French utility-centered magazine Usine Nouvelle, the European Union's approach is still too vague, leaving it up to the individual states to define what "clean hydrogen" actually means and how it should be produced. 

The discrepancy among the national approaches hinders the creation of a EU-wide common vision for clean hydrogen technologies, as argued in the article, even though Europe's position on hydrogen could have the potential to set international standards for the emerging market of clean hydrogen.

While the above-mentioned article is written in French, please do not hesitate to reach out through the comments below if you seek further information in English.

Integrating flexibility into the power grid of tomorrow

In order for the Energy Transition to succeed, the energy system of the future needs to embrace flexibility in a way that would have seemed unbelievable just a few decades ago.
Indeed, an increasing share of the electricity production will be provided by intermittent renewable resources. In addition, power consumption may become more and more flexible, due to new use cases such as e-mobility or smart homes.

In this context, it is interesting to note that research projects are increasingly focused on enabling real-life applications of Energy flexibility. For instance, the InterFlex project has recently published its final results.
InterFlex was a 3-year project, running from early 2017 to end of 2019, which investigated the use of local flexibilities to relieve distribution grid constraints.
The project aimed to develop solutions for the integration of distributed energy resources and to prepare the electric system for new uses, including electric mobility.
Six industry-scale demonstrators were set up in 5 participating countries. 

The variety of the approaches investigated by InterFlex reflects the diversity of the European energy systems and particularly of the grid infrastructure. The project’s use cases, tested in its six demonstrators in five countries, have provided their individual input to five innovation streams:

• Local Flexibility Markets
• Demand response & Customer Empowerment
• Smart Functions & Grid Automation
• Cross-Energy-Carrier Synergies
• Multi-Service Storage & Islanding

Further information is available by clicking on the above links, or by browsing through the InterFlex media Library, including videos, project deliverables and scientific publications.

France's low-carbon hydrogen ambitions : one year later

According to its strategy launched in 2018, France aims to reach at least 200 heavy-duty vehicles powered by low-carbon hydrogen by 2023 - and at least 5000 light-duty commercial vehicles. The targets for 2028 are even more ambitious, as they foresee to multiply the 2023 targets by at least 4.

In order to reach those targets, France announced an equally ambitious support budget of 100 million EUR (potentially per year) when it presented its hydrogen strategy in June 2018. So far, it does not seem like the reality of the 2019 budget can fully live up to that promise.

Nevertheless: now that the first selection of 11 hydrogen projects was presented this month by the French Energy Agency ADEME, the interest in the emerging market for low-carbon hydrogen solutions is at a new height, and it keeps on growing steadily.

However, in order to reach France's overall objective of creating an entire new industry around low-carbon hydrogen, certain financial and regulatory elements are still needed in order to create solid long-term perspectives.

This is what JJ Bürger describes in an article for the French magazine Usine Nouvelle, specialized on industry and energy topics. Please click here to read the entire article.
The article is only available in French language. If you are interested in publications in English or German, please feel free to reach out.

Local and regional aspects of the Energy transition : France, Germany, United Kingdom

By JJB

The energy transition continues to have a local dimension that is very strong. Indeed, large parts of the infrastructure, investments and jobs related to the clean energy sector are deeply rooted in their respective regions. Similarly, opposition against clean energy projects can frequently also have an important local dimension, for example in the form of citizen backlash or regional regulatory hurdles.

An international team of researchers now took on to further analyze these interactions between the energy transition and its local or regional contexts. Published at Lavoisier, the book cites specific examples and compares overall trends between France, Germany and the United Kingdom.

Local and regional aspects of the energy transition in Germany, France and in the UK

The book's contributions on Germany were elaborated by EIFER, the Karlsruhe-based European Institute for Energy Research. The author of this blog also contributed to this work.

The book is currently available only in French language. If you are interested in publications in English or German, please feel free to reach out.

United Nations - High-Level Political Forum, with a focus on Water and Energy

By JJB

The 2018 United Nations' High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) on sustainable development is currently taking place in New York City from July 9th to July 18th, including a ministerial meeting from July 16th to the 18th. The theme of this year's HLPF is: "Transformation towards sustainable and resilient societies". The full program can be found here.

The High-Level Political Forum is the United Nations' central platform for follow-ups and progress reviews around the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and its Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). It provides a participatory opportunity for all States that are members of the United Nations or of specialized agencies.

View on the flags from inside the United Nations. Photo: EUPlanet

Water and energy (two intertwined topics which EUPlanet covered several times recently, for example here and here) are among the SDGs that are being reviewed in detail in this year's HLPF. Several documents and reports were produced in advance, in order to help structuring the debate on those topics.
For instance, the 2018 progress report on SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation) can be found here and futher pieces of information are provided here. A two-page summary is available here.
Regarding SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy), an extensive report on policy briefs was provided here. A two-page summary can be found here.

During HLPF, this "Ecological Living Module" at the UN showcases sustainable solutions, incl. for energy and water. Photo: EUPlanet

On July 9th, SDG 6 on water and sanitation was discussed in detail at the United Nations' during a three-hour session.
One important aspect of these discussions was the fact that SDG 6 is a goal that is very deeply connected to other SDGs, because water is a central element to so many aspects of sustainable development. For example, initiatives to fight hunger in developing countries may lead to increased use of water for agriculture and to more water pollution from livestock, as pointed out by Claudia Sadoff, Director of the International Water Management Institute. Thus, Sadoff highlighted, there may be many synergies between SDGs, but there may also be trade-offs. However, various solutions may help to address this issue, such as new irrigation techniques, changes in diet or solar-powered sanitation, she argued. Also, according to Sadoff, modern cities should be capable of absorbing water types from different origins (e.g. storms, floods, recovered waste water) and using them according to the respective water qualities.
Similarly, Lucía Ruiz, Vice Minister of Environment of Peru, emphasized the importance of integrating indigenous and ancestral knowledge of water management into local and national strategies, including water resources shared by several nations, such as the Amazonas.
Following the presentations of the panelists, the discussion with worldwide representatives in the audience helped to further underline additional aspects, such as the importance of long-term funding and capacity building. Other discussed topics included innovative financing solutions (including bottom-up or neighborhood projects as well as micro-finance) and smart usage of data and pathway forecasts.
Indeed, according to Danilo Türk (Chair of the Global High-Level Panel on Water and Peace, former President of Slovenia), international funds for water projects (dubbed "Blue Funds" by a Senegalese participant) could contribute to achieving SDG 6 by 2030, in addition to water strategies that empower "each member of the investment community" to participate in local projects.
When asked about interconnections between SDG 6 and other SDGs, Claudia Sadoff mentioned, in addition to her statements on water-related aspects of agriculture and smart cities, that SDG 6 is also deeply linked to SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). Not only can solar-powered sanitation help to address water pollution, but most renewable energies also require much less water for cooling purposes, compared to thermal and nuclear power plants.

HLPF review session on SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). Photo: EUPlanet

This was also reiterated during the three-hour session of in-depth review of SDG 7, on Tuesday July 11th. Notably, Adnan Z. Amin (Director-General, the International Renewable Energy Agency IRENA) and Hans Olav Ibrekk (Policy Director, Energy and Climate Change, Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs) emphasized the link between SDG 6 and SDG 7, as well as the potential benefits of renewable energies.
Many panelists and participants shared an optimistic outlook on the dynamic growth of clean energy solutions, particularly in the field of electricity, where renewables and batteries achieved remarkable cost reductions (and are poised to continue to do so, according to Amin). Furthermore, the share of access to electricity among the world's population has grown from 78% to 87% from 2000 to 2016, while the absolute number of people living without access to electricity is now below 1 billion. In this context, the role of off-grid solutions should also be highlighted: according to Amin, 50% of those who will gain access to electricity between now and 2030 will do so thanks to off-grid solutions such as mini- and microgrids or stand-alone photovoltaics.
However, it was also highlighted that the world is not yet on track to address the issue of safe, clean and affordable energy for cooking. According to the UN's statement, "41 per cent of the world's population (almost 3 billion people) continue to lack access to clean cooking solutions. From 2000 to 2016, 1.4 billion people gained access to clean cooking fuels and technologies. However, these advancements were mostly offset by population growth during this period. Almost 4 million people, mostly women and children, are dying annually due to household air pollution due to inefficient cooking". The urgency of this grave situation was emphasized by a large number of participants and panelists. As Sheila Oparaocha (Executive Director of ENERGIA, Zambia) argued, this issue also requires a thorough analysis of home/kitchen design and food-related processes, as well as a critical reassessment of gender dynamics.
Furthermore, as pointed out by Laurence Tubiana (CEO of the European Climate Foundation), despite positive trends in the energy industry, the "battle is not won yet", as worldwide energy-related carbon emissions increased in 2017 instead of decreasing. Tubiana argued that additional efforts were needed, such as achieving a carbon-free electricity supply on a global scale by 2050, building on current progress in renewables integration and grid management. Similarly, Amin affirmed that about 1 trillion USD of worldwide clean energy investments would be needed every year in order to reach the SDG 7 goal by 2030; those investments would by worthwile, according to Amin, given their vital impact on sustainable development.
Further topics discussed by panelists and participants were carbon-free transportation, bottom-up empowerment and gender aspects of energy strategies, innovative financing solutions, carbon pricing, the role of nuclear energy, carbon emissions from mineral exploration industries, the role of subsidies for renewables and fossil fuels, and clean energy as a motor for power reliability, job creation and economic diversification, especially in developing countries. The importance of Research & Development efforts was also underlined by a participant from South Korea (citing for example Artifical Intelligence and Cloud technologies) and by the host Amin, quoting in particular e-mobility as one of the main fields of research on emerging clean energy technologies.

Testing device for quality assessments of solar cookers. Photo: EUPlanet

Concerning the much-discussed dire need for clean cooking solutions, several NGOs presented their projects during an event on Thursday, July 12th. For instance, Solar Cookers International (SCI) developed the testing device shown above, allowing this NGO to test various solar cooking devices from any manufacturer, in order to ensure industry-wide quality standards and comparability. This testing device is compliant with the ISO standards for performance measurement in cooking devices, which were adopted only a few weeks ago.
In addition, SCI and Solar Cities presented some of their work in Haiti, empowering local communities to embrace biodigesters and solar cookers in order to solve the country's energy shortage and to create opportunities for community engagement and economic development. The Public-Private Alliance Foundation (PPAF), which initiated the event, also presented some of their experiences of working in Haiti, through renewable energy projects such as biodigesters and solar cookers, or through microfinance, handicraft and manufacturing.
A silent auction was also organized, in order to raise funds for new projects in Haiti, allowing participants to buy Haitian items such as paintings, rum, handicraft.

Paintings at the Haitian benefit auction. Photo: EUPlanet

Rum-tasting for the auction, as well as Solar Cities information material. Photo: EUPlanet

Indeed, many more efforts are needed to reach the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. Many of today's technologies and habits will have to evolve, and a lot of investments will be needed. Yet, remarkable coordination efforts are being carried out at the United Nations, and many individuals are committed to implement concrete projects that improve people's lives and empower them to create their own solutions and opportunities.

The role of blockchain technology in the energy transition

By JJB

This week, on Monday June 18th, the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI) and the Fresenius University of Applied Sciences organized a symposium on “The Role of Blockchain in the Energy Transition”, which took place at Grand Central Tech in Manhattan, New York.

Blockchain technology promises critical progress for the energy sector. Indeed, blockchains could improve system reliability and reduce operating costs, thanks to new types of interactions between the power system, its users, and distributed energy resources (DERs) such as photovoltaic rooftop installations, heat pumps, electric vehicles or electricity storage. This would also represent an opportunity to enhance overall system efficiency and to share the economic surpluses arising from better resource utilization.

However, blockchain technology continues to evolve and projects with different levels of maturity are being discussed on both sides of the Atlantic. Therefore, the symposium’s panel of experts discussed a range of key insights for a better understanding of blockchain and its potential for the energy sector.

First of all, what is a blockchain? Kicking off the main event, Jens Strüker from the Fresenius University of Applied Sciences described it this way: “A cryptonetwork is a decentralized network built on top of the internet that provides a wide variety of digital services. Tokens are the internal currency of cryptonetworks, and the incentive mechanism which enables them to function. Blockchain is the underlying technology [of those cryptonetworks and their tokens]”. Strüker highlighted specific features which blockchain technology aims to deliver, such as increased efficiency (higher speed, less layers) compared to intermediate platform exchanges, better control over data exchanges and other benefits that are specific to the token-based approach of blockchains (such as: immediate remuneration, better incentives for participation in the network and for investing in the network).

In a pre-recorded presentation, Ashley Pilipiszyn (from Stanford's SLAC) described some of her research on Crypto Control for Power Systems. By reducing the amount of verification necessary to proof that a certain service was indeed carried out (“Proof-of-Work”, used for example by BitCoin) or that it was monitored correctly (“Proof-of-Authority”), Pilipiszyn’s “Proof-of-Control” concept reduces the blockchain’s energy consumption. Indeed, this blockchain technology only needs to verify that sufficient controls were in place during a given interaction. According to Pilipiszyn, this could become an efficient solution for power system functionalities such as forecasting, scheduling, dispatch and frequency regulation.

Colleen Metelitsa (GTM Research) presented several existing use cases for blockchains in the energy sector, including electric vehicle charging (for instance, the ambitious “Oslo2Rome” project, using an Ethereum blockchain), wholesale power trading (for example: 39 companies have been taking part in a pilot project, using a Tendermint blockchain), distribution management, grid flexibility (e.g.: transmission system operator TenneT will be able to manage residential storage units through a Hyperledger blockchain) and cybersecurity. Metelitsa argued, more generally speaking, that blockchains could be used to optimize multiple market participation options for DERs and also to remunerate them immediately.

Andrew Reid (ConEdison), who recently won an award for his research on microgrids, presented ConEdison’s approach to redefining the utility business model, by integrating DERs and by designing and implementing new management processes that maximize the value of innovation for ConEdison. According to Reid, blockchain technologies will be an essential part of this strategy. He also announced an upcoming ConEdison report on blockchain implementation in the power sector, and on use cases that could prove to unlock substantial energy benefits.

Scott Kessler (LO3 Energy) presented his company’s blockchain technology Exergy, aiming to be a DSO-operated demand-response and grid services platform that understands the time- and place-dependent value of DER grid injections, and that moves towards a system based on grid efficiency. In addition, his company’s work on local community microgrids enabled the “first-ever energy transaction through a blockchain”, according to Kessler. He also emphasized the industry’s need to continue their research efforts for new, profitable business models. Kessler also argued that different layers of blockchain could very well go hand in hand: local ones could be used for specific or urgent local interventions, whereas larger blockchains could be used to ensure system optimization. In a similarly cooperative spirit, he highlighted that the aim of LO3 Energy was not to create a single turnkey-ready blockchain product for the worldwide market, but rather to accompany utilities in their deployment of blockchain-based solutions, harnessing their employees’ knowledge of local constraints and imperatives.

United Nations - Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation

By JJB

This week, the third annual Forum on Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) took place at the United Nation's headquarters in New York. This forum is also known as the "annual collaborative Multi-stakeholder Forum on science, technology and innovation for the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)". Indeed, the United Nations adopted 17 SDGs in order to structure and coordinate the world's efforts to reach the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The Forum on STI is part of the Technology Facilitation Mechanism that aims to support the efforts of reaching the SDGs.

Banner of the STI Forum at the UN Headquarters

A large variety of topics were discussed during the STI Forum, thus reflecting the fact that the SDGs are multidisciplinary and cut across all sectors of economy and society.
For example, during the panel discussion on SDG 6 (sustainable management of water and sanitation for all), Hungarian Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN, Katalin Annamaria Bogyay, argued that this goal needed to be addressed systematically, by strategies that are also closely linked to SDG 5 (gender equality).

Discussion in the UN's large auditorium 4 on SDG 11: Inclusive, Safe, Resilient and Sustainable Cities

Despite the interdependent nature of sustainability and the SDGs, this blog article will focus on some main aspects around the Food-Water-Energy nexus, which was also the topic of this blog's previous post.

The interconnection between food-, water- and energy-related sustainability efforts was highlighted for example during the session on SDG 12 (sustainable consumption and production patterns). The Inga Foundation presented their projects promoting soil- and water-improvements by planting Inga Trees as agricultural component, allowing farmers to escape the vicious cycle of poverty and Slash-and-Burn practices in rain forest areas, therefore also reducing deforestation and protecting biodiversity.
The trend of decentralization, as well as its opportunities for enhancing sustainability, were discussed in the same session, for example by NYU energy researchers and by urban farming experts from Madagascar.
In the follow-up session on SDG 15 (sustainable terrestrial ecosystems), Inger Elisabeth Måren, from the University of Bergen, Norway, laid out a similar argument in favor of local and indigenous agricultural knowledge. According to Måren, those smaller local farms, their surroundings and other decentralized sources still provide a majority of the global food supply, while the share of big argicultural corporations is still much smaller than one might expect. Harnessing and empowering this local knowledge could foster biodiversity and agricultural efficiency in unique ways, as many speakers of the STI Forum agreed. In contrast, new technologies such as Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence were seen on the one hand as very promising, game-changing opportunities, but on the other hand also as a threat to jobs in particular in countries identified as Least Developed Countries (LDCs), where many rely on small-scale farming.

This underlined once more the importance of keeping an effective overview and a (sustainability-oriented) control of development strategies and their multiple effects across all economic and society sectors. In this spirit, Jack Metthey (Deputy Director-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission) for example highlighted the importance of tackling energy and climate issues in a comprehensive way, and Jim Watson (Director of UK Energy Research Centre and University of Sussex) argued that high-level sustainability roadmaps may be important, but that capacity building was almost equally as important. As examples for capacity building measures, Watson quoted for instance training and human resources, efficient institutions capable to follow up on implementation progress, as well as a sufficient long-term funding.

Scientific Symposium - Zero Carbon Cities and Food-Water-Energy Nexus Research

By JJB

On Friday, June 1st 2018, a scientific symposium kicked off a week of workshops and discussions about "The City of Tomorrow". Organized by the US-German CITYtrans / Zero Carbon City network (in cooperation with the New York University, the City University of New York and the German Center for Research and Innovation, and with support of the German Federal government), these events bring together research partners from the US and Germany to exchange knowledge and elaborate new projects.

The kick-off event on Friday was an opportunity to debate about research challenges and solutions for sustainable urban districts, thanks to researchers sharing their most recent insights and thanks to presentations from young scientists who participated in the week-long Urban Summer School in New York City, showcasing their case studies on carbon reduction strategies for a Downtown Brooklyn neighborhood district.

As Ursula Eicker from the Stuttgart Technology University of Applied Sciences (HFT Stuttgart) pointed out during her keynote at the beginning of the event, cities have a major impact on the way we consume energy, so the goal of becoming a "Zero Carbon City" is more and more important for cities across the globe. Yet, the exact definition of this goal is not always clear. For example, Eickner explained, the city planners' perspective can change significantly once they start taking into account indirect emissions outside of the city parameter, such as those caused by the food supply chain. Therefore, in order to address sustainability issues more holistically, the event tackled not only energy-related topics but also water- and food-related topics ("Food-Water-Energy Nexus" or "FWE").

In addition, as Detlef Kurth from the University of Kaiserslautern underlined in his key note, social aspects also need to be considered by city planners when working on improvements for the FWE Nexus. Negative side effects or gentrification-related issues should be avoided while improving sustainability, he argued. He also outlined methodological differences that exist in the urban planning approaches (particularly in terms of Zero Carbon Cities) in Northern and Southern Europe and in the Anglo-Saxon countries - differences that may also encourage us to look at things from a different angle.

Volker Coors from HFT Stuttgart then described advantages of 3D modelling for sustainable city strategies, as well as the importance of efficient data gathering and processing. Indeed, the quality of the data as well as the analytical tools are decisive in order to produce insights that support cities on their path to carbon neutrality.

Teams of young researchers went then on to present results from their Urban Summer School case studies. They also outlined concepts for model-based tools that could provide efficient decision-support for zero carbon strategies, if further research efforts were deployed.  
Indeed, the researchers presented insights on energy-related and demographic statistics of the Borough Hall district in Brooklyn, as well as the district's potentials for energy efficiency and renewable energy. In addition, the district's food industry was analyzed, highlighting on the one hand the sector's energy consumption and transport-related carbon emissions, and on the other hand its potential for electricity production through bioenergy from food waste. The sewage in the close-by Red Hook wastewater treatment plant was identified as another important potential for bioenergy, able to cover a majority of the plant's electricity needs if combined with bioenergy from food waste.
Building on these results, a case study by another team of researchers then analyzed possible scenarios for a 80% to 100% carbon-free energy mix in the Borough Hall district. Their results suggested that this target was feasible, albeit a certain amount of energy imports remained necessary as well as flexibilization efforts in order to make this scenario more cost-efficient.
The potential for a higher share of electrity-based heating, particularly through heat pumps, was also discussed, as a solution that may be complementary to other flexibilization and decarbonization efforts.

Further to these presentations, Dieter Hertweck from Reutlingen University, described challenges and opportunities of digitalization and new business models in the FWE Nexus. As he pointed out, utilities are increasingly facing a platform-based shift of their industry, very similar to the experience of other industries, such as the car industry and the retail/supermarket landscape as new services such as UBER and Amazon continue to gain ground. Researchers can and should support businesses with data-based insights and qualitative advice as their traditional business models evolve, Herweck argues, pointing to recent achievements in his university's "Research Lab for Digital Business". This way, according to Herweck, efficiency gains and increased sustainability can go hand in hand - even in less industrialized regions, or rather: in particular in those regions.

The kick-off event was concluded by Michael Bobker from the CUNY Building Performance Lab, discussing the overall challenges and opportunities of "Zero Carbon Cities" as well as the ambivalence of this concept, thus rounding off the symposium by reflecting on the presented results and some aspects of Ursula Eicker's initial key note.

The series of workshops and debates is still ongoing until Thursday, June 7th,

Venue of the symposium: NYU 6 Metrotech Center, Brooklyn, New York

 

Local Energy Transitions, City Planning and Business Models

By JJB

Energy transition continues to be a much-discussed topic, and local developments and cities play a crucial role for its implementation. But as this industry keeps on growing, solid methods and business models are needed in order to make sure that these changes, as well as profit, are made in a sustainable way. 

That is why a large number of researchers and entrepreneurs followed the invitation of the German Center for Research and Innovation (GCRI) and the HFT Stuttgart to gather at the Urban Tech Hub by Grand Central Tech in New York City on November 27^th and 28^th, in order to discuss about “Energy Systems and Business Models for a Sustainable Urban Transformation” and, on a more technical level, “Urban Energy Systems and 3D Modeling for Low Carbon Cities”.

Sparkling energy (can you spot the metal workers in the above pictures?), architecture and city planning were at the center of discussions at Grand Central Tech and could also be observed outside, in a neigborhood full of energy.

Ursula Eicker from the Stuttgart University of Applied Sciences (HFT) and its Reseach Center of Sustainable Energy TEchnologies (zafh) in Germany provided results from energy research and 3D city modeling aiming to improve urban energy planning and demand response.

Richard Graves from DC-based CleanChoice Energy shared insights from his company’s experience as one of the largest direct-to-consumer renewable retail energy providers in the United States. For instance, their Community Solar program allows clients to save on their bills by purchasing power from a close-by solar farm, without having to provide a roof space and without switching the utility provider.

Tooraj Arvajeh and his team from Blocpower presented their young company’s work, bringing energy efficiency, solar energy and other sustainable housing upgrades to underserved neighborhoods in New York and the US, while also analyzing the benefits of microgrids for challenged territories such as Puerto Rico and its ongoing power outages after the devastating 2017 hurricane season.

Michele Lunati explained how Potluck Energy works as broker bringing together roofing contractors, solar developers and owners of roof spaces, thanks to a patent-pending roof sensor system which allows to prevent roof leaks while tapping into the unused economic potential of roof spaces.

Dieter Hertweck, from the Hollerith Research Center and Graduate School for DigitalBusiness (HHZ) in Reutlingen, Germany, presented case studies on the benefits of distributed energy solutions. These benefits included local energy resiliency, optimized market value of solar power via batteries and blockchain, and a mid-sized town in Germany which created a virtuous cycle by combining circular economy and local energy planning.

Felix Thumm from Transsolar introduced the audience to several projects of climate-responsive urban design and architecture. In the case of a large campus building in Winnipeg, Canada, these eco- and user-friendly concepts not only helped to reduce energy consumption drastically, but also improved reported well-being of employees within the building. Even a reduction of 1.25 less sick days per employee per year was observed. 

Picture taken from HUB at GCT

Bernd Thomas from Reutlingen University, Germany, explained how Micro-CHP, solar energy and batteries can benefit from each other. One of his results showed that if adding Micro-CHP to a solar PV and battery combination, the battery may be much smaller (and thus cheaper) than if the Micro-CHP was left out, while still attaining the same degree of self-consumption.

Ahmed Mohamed from the City College of New York provided updates on research on improved microgrid control, reconciling the benefits of decentralized and centralized approaches.

Matthew Sachs from Peak Power described his company’s contributions to peak shaving powered by machine learning, which has the potential to reduce the public cost of infrastructure development while also reducing individual utility bills.

Alfred Helble from AH Consult, based in Stuttgart, Germany, shed a light on cost-saving strategies for waste water treatment plants thanks to energy planning, including for example biogas production.

Many participants voiced that they were impressed by the large number of insights and by the fact that many obstacles and goals are actually commonly shared by many projects in both America and in Germany. The talks were accompanied by lively discussions with the audience and were concluded with a closing reception as well as discussions on follow-up projects to further foster the transatlantic energy dialog. 

Grand Central Tech by night, in the city that never sleeps.