THE AUTHOR
Peak Oil is You
Donate Bitcoins ;-) or Paypal :-)
Page added on August 14, 2017
The Myth Of Natural Gas As A Bridging Fuel
I often disagree with the consulting group Bloomberg New Energy Finance, but they may be spot on in questioning whether natural gas can serve as a bridge to the future. Of course, they would say no, renewables will take over quickly, while I would say it will continue to be an important fuel, not a bridge, and that forecasters, including the oil industry, are greatly understating its potential.
It all reminds me of the many times in the early 1980s when oil company executives would say, “natural gas is the fuel of the future,” and some smart aleck would respond, “and always will be.” I finally jumped in and said, you’re producing twenty trillion cubic feet a year, it seems like natural gas is a fuel of the present.
Contrast this with the late Matthew Simmons’ view that world gas production had peaked, based on short-term declines in four major producers. Indeed, peak oilers like Jean Laherrerre regularly produced pessimistic views of future gas production and resources, while oil industry mavens like Robert Hefner III, and maverick academics like Peter Odell, countered that it was somewhere between abundant and superabundant.
Now, some climate activists and renewable energy advocates are arguing that gas should be left in the ground and/or that it will be because of declining costs of wind and solar. Most oil company forecasts see only minor changes in demand, specifically moderate growth (see figure).
THE AUTHORGAS DEMAND, ACTUAL AND FORECAST
Amazingly, nearly all of these either ignore prices or treat them as high and rising, due to bad economic theory and a simplistic or incorrect view of the market. Typical comments focus on the “quality” or cleanliness of natural gas, without considering prices.
This is enough deja vu to make Yogi Berra’s head spin. For my entire career, beginning with the Carter Administration’s review of the proposed Alaska Natural Gas Transportation System (yes, ANGTS), long-term natural gas prices have almost always been predicted to rise by almost everyone (except my colleagues at MIT and myself). And apparently based on nothing more than a belief that a) gas is better than oil, and b) depletion will drive us from cheaper to more expensive sources. The first is not relevant (it’s supply and demand, not just demand) and the latter suffers from an omitted variable problem.
The next figure shows the current state of natural gas price forecasts around the world. Most groups no longer present detailed forecasts, perhaps due to budget cuts but possibly also in response to past embarrassing failures. Natural gas prices in international trade have been linked to oil prices for decades, and long-term oil price forecasts have been atrocious (the reasons are explained in my book.) The problem is that too many believe that oil and gas prices should be linked or tend to converge, which means that gas prices are forecast to be high. (The Figure below shows some Asian gas price forecasts, with actual Japanese LNG prices.)
THE AUTHORACTUAL AND FORECASTED ASIAN NATURAL GAS PRICES
North America is the only truly competitive market in natural gas, as close to a free market as it is possible to come. And while some think they perceive convergence on energy prices, natural gas prices are set by supply and demand, and only marginally influenced by developments overseas since the high cost of transportation precludes easy long-distance shipping. This is why U.S. gas prices have often been well below those in Europe and Asia (see figure).
THE AUTHORHISTORICAL GAS PRICES BP DATA (NOMINAL)
Basic facts: Natural gas is superabundant as a resource, although the bulk of it is methane hydrates which are not currently economically feasible. The remaining resource is still superabundant, with supergiant discoveries still occurring and production rates generally exceeding those of conventional wells.
Two things have kept the global market for natural gas from achieving its true potential: the cost of transportation and the price. The latter is something that can and hopefully will change. Natural gas prices in many countries are controlled, with the industry treated as a monopoly if not outright state-owned. Often gas prices are kept low to provide cheap fuel for the electricity monopoly and thus supposedly improving the welfare of the poor. But this also retards the development of gas resources (and usually benefits the wealthy more).
In gas-importing countries in Asia and Europe, gas is often priced similar to oil on the basis of their respective heat content. This makes as much sense as pricing tea according to its caffeine content relative to coffee. It is a historical artifact of the industry which has survived because of oligopolistic behavior by producers, who are happy to reap oligopolistic profits. But it means that natural gas imports often don’t compete with oil, let along coal. Countries like Korea and Taiwan still burn some oil for power generation.
Natural gas is cheap, at least cheap to produce. Witness North America, one of the world’s most mature petroleum provinces yet one where the natural gas wellhead price is approximately one-half to one-third the equivalent petroleum price.
Gas from Iran to India and Russia to China could displace enormous amounts of coal being burned and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by a tremendous degree. These countries account for over 60% of the world’s coal consumption, and coal accounts for about half of the global CO2 emissions. This is the lowest hanging fruit on the planet, but the desire of exporters to achieve extremely high price has been an obstacle.
In the U.S., natural gas from shale has meant a boost to the economy while reducing GHG emissions, all at no cost to the taxpayer (indeed, strong benefits). Market share for gas has risen sharply (Figure below) even though the U.S. was already a mature market, rising at 0.8% per year from 2006 to 2016, while global gas market share was increasing at 0.1% per year. Most forecasts anticipate a slightly faster rise, about 0.2% per year, despite the many benefits of natural gas, primarily because they assume that international natural gas prices will remain uncompetitive.
THE AUTHORNATURAL GAS SHARE OF PRIMARY ENERGY U.S.
The U.S. petroleum industry is poised to change that, not just because of the volume of exports but the willingness of exporters like Cheniere to provide attractive price clauses. The contracts typically specify that the gas will be at U.S. Henry Hub prices plus a fixed amount to cover liquefaction and transportation. In other words, if oil prices return to $100/barrel, U.S. LNG exports could be half the price of competing countries (and/or make huge profits).
The preferred solution (for the planet) would be for a flood of U.S. LNG exports breaking the informal exporter cartel which has kept prices high and demand low for many years. That would obviously hurt the Russian, Algerian, Norwegian, and Australian economies in particular, but it would do far more to reduce GHG emissions than any international agreement.
Forbes
79 Comments on "The Myth Of Natural Gas As A Bridging Fuel"
sunweb on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 3:35 pm
Natural gas is the main fuel for high temperature industrial process of all kinds. “Renewables” will never replace it.
Many materials used in our industrial world require energy from mining to manufacturing for processing and transportation. The energy for some of these products is in the form of high temperatures – 2000° F (nearly 1100°C).
There are proposals that solar and wind energy collecting devices can provide the energy to maintain the industrial world. To look at this possibility, solar electric panels, wind turbines and concentrated solar installations in the form of parabolic trough collectors (PTC) have been assessed.
The energy requirements in 2010 for the following essential components of our industrial world are provided: steel, aluminum, chromium, copper, manganese, cement and glass. This energy would be mining, processing and transporting to name some. Other important components of the industrialized world such as nickel and cobalt are not considered because they are part of the high temperature processing of other ore metals.
The kWh output and area required for installations of solar electric panels, wind turbines and PTC has been researched. This then is divided into the energy (exajoules converted to kWh) required for global production of each material in 2010.
NEEDED
121,214.45 Square Miles of Solar Electric Collectors
257,472 square miles and 2,807,276 Wind Turbines
77183.4 square miles of PTCs
See maps, images and calculations at:
http://sunweber.blogspot.com/2017/08/heat-for-tomorrow-many-materials-used.html
rockman on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 3:45 pm
Or to say the same with much fewer words: had NG not existed the energy it produced would have been done with the only other abundant and economical fossil fuel. Imagine what the climate would be like today if the 1 million TW produced by NG since the 1960’s had been produced by coal.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_energy_consumption
That bridge was built over half a century ago and has been well maintained ever since. And appears will still be standing tall and shiny many decades into the future.
sunweb on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 4:01 pm
rockman – not the same thing but akin.
Davy on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 4:38 pm
What sunweb is saying is if we are going to adavance as a civilization it is going to have to be by other means than techno energy driven development. We are going to have to advance internally not externally. The reality of this step our civilization is facing is daunting. We will have to decline externally at the same time we are advancing internally. More wisdom with less things. Yea, how about that new and improved more with less.
dave thompson on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 4:43 pm
Oil is a FF. Coal is a FF. Natural gas is a FF. A bridge using FF’s? I do not get it. Where does this bridge lead to?
Anonymous on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 6:14 pm
Since 2008, natgas price has dropped to a third of what it was. And at the same time production volume is up 30%. That is a SHALE GALE.
Higher production AND lower price.
Peakers be looking like massive dumbfucks.
eugene on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 8:04 pm
As we head into an extremely unpredictable future, I am reminded of religion. Seems to me we are placing one helluva lot of faith in things that don’t as yet exist but we have “faith” they will. We have faith that what exists at the moment will exist for the infinite future. At some point, our endless faith will have to face a word called limits. It will be one helluva blow to our “faith”.
deadlykillerbeaz on Mon, 14th Aug 2017 10:15 pm
Natural gas is more or less inexhaustible, bubbles from the Gulf of Mexico’s sea floor.
Artesian wells can contain natural gas.
It is everywhere you go. No matter where you go, there you are.
The Chinese have used natural gas for probably 3000 years or more.
I saw a natural gas flare that was about 80 feet wide and shooting a good 200 feet in the air. It could be seen from about three miles away. It was adding heat to warm the earth.
Calpine Corp filed chapter 11 in 2005 when natural gas was 13 dollars per million BTUs in December of 2005.
https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/rngwhhdm.htm
Might as well burn it to heat your house during the winter, it is the least expensive fuel for your furnace. Nothing wrong with keeping warm enough, natural gas is a bargain. My heat bill is the very reasonable using natural gas, especially when it is -20° F.
I would not depend upon solar or wind, too unpredictable.
Electric heat is fine, but costs 50 percent more than heating with natural gas.
Bloomer on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:52 am
True, natural gas is a fossil fuel with less of a carbon footprint. It would of been a suitable bridge fuel to wean us off of coal and oil. But that ship sailed years ago.
Why try to reduce carbon emissions when you can still mountain top mine.
rockman on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 7:00 am
Dave – “What sunweb is saying is if we are going to adavance as a civilization it is going to have to be by other means than techno energy driven development.” IF, IF, IF. As Bloomer put it: that ship has sailed…more then 50 years ago. You can’t change history. No, it won’t necessarily mean other energy will have to be developed in the future anymore then it was in the 1950’s. The consumers make that choice. Today, as they have been for more then a half century, they have been increasingly choosing NG. In the future as that resource becomes scarce/expensive they will choose the most economical option. Possibly renewable energy in which case the NG “bridge” will have been completed. Or coal in which case that bridge will have collapsed into the river.
Can’t change history nor the future just by wishing so. Not you, environmentalists nor govts will make that choice. The consumers will: just as they did half a century ago, are today and will in the future.
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 7:24 am
I disagree that “consumers” made some kind of choice.
Corporate capitalism took away public transportation and replaced it with the automobile for example. Thereby making happy motoring the norm that so called “consumers” chose.
In reality “consumers” have no more real choice to burn NG, then to burn coal. The capitalists running electric generation made the switch.
When the NG gets expensive I will bet dollar to donuts that using coal to generate electricity will be the choice. Not made by consumers either.
Davy on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 7:45 am
“Can’t change history nor the future just by wishing so. Not you, environmentalists nor govts will make that choice. The consumers will: just as they did half a century ago, are today and will in the future.”
Rock, you missed my two point. First Rock, my main point is we are not going to advance materially anymore with or without an energy revolution because this is more than energy. We are a late term civilization that has caused irreversible planetary decline. My point is “IF” we are going to advance it will be from within and that advancement will consist of “sapience” or the wisdom of survival in an insecure world. We are of course not going to advance with sapience until we have been cleansed. This cleansing will be a crisis and existential conflict that we may not survive. If we do survive then those who survive may be advanced.
sunweb on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 7:47 am
” The consumers will: just as they did half a century ago, are today and will in the future.”
Fortunately, the ‘consumer’ is wise and can’t be manipulated. And of course, they have to have a choice make.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 8:13 am
While the discussion rages on if gas could be a bridging fuel, work on a renewable energy bases goes full speed ahead. Here a list of a number of North Sea offshore wind hubs, from where installation of wind turbines in the North Sea begins:
https://deepresource.wordpress.com/2017/08/15/north-sea-offshore-wind-hubs/
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 8:24 am
How are wind turbines built, constructed and maintained without FF inputs?
paultard on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 8:34 am
dave, this is a bootstrapping problem. i don’t see a problem.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 8:42 am
Stop the presses, paultard makes a smart remark.
Chapeau!
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:15 am
Yea Ha ha ha. Still no answer to the question.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:32 am
dave, it is ok to continuously ask questions if you are three year old and expect daddy to come up with an answer. At some point in life it becomes tiresome, all these time consuming questions. Find some answers yourself. Or at least explain to us why it won’t work.
A hint: 1 kwh = 1 kwh.
I hope you are not a kwh racist, now are you dave. Don’t you know that all kwh’s are equal? And that cars, planes, trucks, smelters, etc., etc. can both be “fueled” by electrickery as well as by ff?
sunweb on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:34 am
Cloggie -How will our industrialize world work on wind?
Many materials used in our industrial world require energy from mining to manufacturing for processing and transportation. The energy for some of these products is in the form of high temperatures – 2000° F (nearly 1100°C).
There are proposals that solar and wind energy collecting devices can provide the energy to maintain the industrial world. To look at this possibility, solar electric panels, wind turbines and concentrated solar installations in the form of parabolic trough collectors (PTC) have been assessed.
The energy requirements in 2010 for the following essential components of our industrial world are provided: steel, aluminum, chromium, copper, manganese, cement and glass. This energy would be mining, processing and transporting to name some. Other important components of the industrialized world such as nickel and cobalt are not considered because they are part of the high temperature processing of other ore metals.
The kWh output and area required for installations of solar electric panels, wind turbines and PTC has been researched. This then is divided into the energy (exajoules converted to kWh) required for global production of each material in 2010.
Three installations are used as examples
Shepard’s Flat Wind Farm
Alta Wind Energy Center
London Offshore Array
To provide the energy in electricity
for the named seven essential materials would require:
Shepard’s Flat Wind Farm
257,472 square miles and 2,807,276 wind turbines
Alta Wind Energy Center
30,985 square miles and 3,718,200 wind turbines
IN AN INDUSTRIALIZED SOCIETY, IT FALLS TO THE PROMOTERS OF A FUTURE FOR “RENEWABLE”
ENERGY TO SHOW HOW THESE ESSENTIAL
MATERIALS AND SO MUCH ELSE CAN BE PROVIDED.
http://sunweber.blogspot.com/2017/08/heat-for-tomorrow-many-materials-used.html
Kenz300 on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:51 am
Wind and solar have no monthly fuel costs.
They have no need to worry about fluctuating fuel costs.
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:53 am
More ad-hominem attacks Cloggie? Calling me a three year old and then posting; “And that cars, planes, trucks, smelters, etc., etc. can both be “fueled” by electrickery as well as by ff?”
You do not mention shipping running on electricity. Are the ships all getting real long extension cords That plug into the wind turbines?
AND to quote Sunweber right above that you conveniently always seen to ignore; “IN AN INDUSTRIALIZED SOCIETY, IT FALLS TO THE PROMOTERS OF A FUTURE FOR “RENEWABLE”
ENERGY TO SHOW HOW THESE ESSENTIAL
MATERIALS AND SO MUCH ELSE CAN BE PROVIDED.” Cloggie you are the one promoting these silly ideas.
Davy on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 9:55 am
“A hint: 1 kwh = 1 kwh.”
Clog, sorry, you are being intellectually lame. 1=1 is a starting point and that is where is ends. You need to listen to sunweb, and Dave T. I also agree with you to a degree. There is much more we can do with alternative energy strategies. We can also adapt life to these alternative strategies. There are many things we can do and admirably you Euro’s are doing them. Just don’t blow smoke up my ass with the status quo can be greenwashed with your fake renewable energy.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 10:28 am
You do not mention shipping running on electricity.
They can run on renewable produced hydrogen.
with your fake renewable energy.
Fake?
https://deepresource.wordpress.com/2017/08/15/north-sea-offshore-wind-hubs/
https://deepresource.wordpress.com/2017/05/09/the-giants-of-a-new-energy-age/
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2015/jul/10/denmark-wind-windfarm-power-exceed-electricity-demand
https://cleantechnica.com/2017/07/24/record-june-wind-yields-record-six-months-scotland-wind-energy/
The only thing you will achieve with your intellectually lame doomerism is talking yourself and your country into the abyss.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 10:36 am
To provide the energy in electricity
for the named seven essential materials would require:
Shepard’s Flat Wind Farm
257,472 square miles and 2,807,276 wind turbines
Not sure if I understand you. Are you saying that to install said wind farm you need the electricity input of 2.8 million wind turbines?
For how long? 1 nano-second perhaps?
sunweb on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 11:43 am
Cloggie your trolling gets boring. Read the article or have someone explain it to you. The data is for the year 2010. It is clearly on the chart.
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 11:44 am
I looked for (on google) your claim that ships can run on hydrogen. In the process I did not find a single shipping company (Ocean shipping) that is using hydrogen as the primary fuel source. I did find many sources that show how commercially produced liquid hydrogen comes from NG.
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 11:52 am
I do not deny that there are wind turbines and lots of photvoltaic systems being built and utilized.
My problem is with people that insist that these types of devices are going to completely take the place of FF usage. To some degree and so far a minuscule degree this technology does play a role in limited situations and settings.
Overall the total energy used world wide increases year over year and the carbon increases with it.
Davy on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:24 pm
Cloggie, when renewables renew themselves I will call them “real” renewables. Currently they are not so I will take the liberty of my clarification of “fake” renewables.
In regards to shipping the real renewable shipping transport system is sail. Unfortunately we are not willing to peruse sail transport with vigor. Too much work and too intermittent for a techno modern. We just sail for fun.
Hydrogen would be a good fit for shipping but let’s face it there is one problem and that is economics. You rarely acknowledge economics, cloggie. You need to ground yourself in reality more. A little fantasy is fine. Fantasies become reality but only after a process.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:24 pm
I looked for (on google) your claim that ships can run on hydrogen. In the process I did not find a single shipping company (Ocean shipping) that is using hydrogen as the primary fuel source.
http://www.irena.org/menu/index.aspx?mnu=Subcat&PriMenuID=36&CatID=141&SubcatID=517
GregT on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:34 pm
If mankind’s biggest problem was finding even more ways to increase energy production, then alternate energy could be a part of that solution. Unfortunately, that is not the predicament that we face.
Our largest predicaments are overpopulation, attempting to maintain exponential growth in a finite environment, and the consequences of both of the above on that same said finite natural environment.
Alternate energy production does not address any of the above predicaments, but rather exacerbates all of them.
Just like a drug addict, facing an untimely death, the answer does not lie in finding a new drug to replace the old one, the answer lies in kicking the habit once and for all, and facing the uncomfortable reality of the pain and suffering required to do so. The longer that reality is ignored, the greater the pain and suffering will be.
Not exactly rocket science, or even basic mechanical engineering.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:47 pm
German ex-chancellor Gerhard Schroeder becomes board member of the world’s largest oil company Rosneft, from Russia.
http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/unternehmen/gerhard-schroeder-das-ist-der-russische-oel-konzern-rosneft-a-1162967.html
Important political signal for Putin-Russia. Many in Germany despise Merkel’s anti-Russian policies.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:54 pm
Our largest predicaments are overpopulation, attempting to maintain exponential growth in a finite environment, and the consequences of both of the above on that same said finite natural environment.
Alternate energy production does not address any of the above predicaments, but rather exacerbates all of them.
One problem at a time.
– Alt-energy can solve the greenhouse gas induced climate change. Europe will be the first to achieve that goal and serve as an example for others.
– When the world finally got rid of the US empire and Paris-Berlin-Moscow is a fact, we in Europe can turn to Beijing and together with them work out a plan against overpopulation. The Chinese themselves already understand the problem and were able to restrain themselves. The solution consists of virtual colonization/adoption of the worst offenders (read Africa) and offer them economic help in return for a rigorous birth control program.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 12:58 pm
In regards to shipping the real renewable shipping transport system is sail.
They thought about that too:
https://makewealthhistory.org/2012/09/11/sustainable-shipping-the-return-of-the-sail/
bobinget on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:00 pm
Dharmendra PradhanVerified account
@dpradhanbjp
India orders first Shale Oil consignment from US.Over 6 million barrels of US crude ordered in last 1 month by IOCL &BPCL.Imports to continue
Poster’s note;
NEXT month imports (toUS) will go from 7-8 M B p/d to below 7 M, RV makers will get a hankering
for something stronger than aspirin.
When bot heads write ‘WTI Down on China Demand Concerns’. What they are really saying reads like this: China flat for week. Oh, India demand up 6%.
WHEN a shorter then expected Venezuelan oil shipment fails to materialize next week, writers will blame foreign oil workers vanishing. Certainly Not the beginnings of long term trends. Real panic buying won’t start till mid Sept. That will be blamed on a likely hit or miss GOM hurricane. As bad as hurricanes get, storm damage can be patched up.
Political damage? Not so quickly repaired.
By December, we finally realize, additional exports are out of the question.
dave thompson on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:01 pm
Cloggie the link you post is not a shipping company using ocean going vessels at scale.
GregT on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:09 pm
“Alt-energy can solve the greenhouse gas induced climate change. Europe will be the first to achieve that goal and serve as an example to others.”
Alt energy does nothing of the sort. All alt energy schemes require fossil fuels in their resource extraction, refinement, manufacture, distribution, and maintenance. As does the grid itself, and all of the products that we use that electricity for.
Even if your assertion was factual Cloggie, which it is clearly not, greenhouse gas induced Climate Change is a global problem, not a European one. I might add, the primary reason for alternate energy production is primarily economic, not environmental. The fact that you continue to ignore the big picture is indicative of that very point.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:13 pm
Schiphol Airport follows example of Dutch Rail and Google and wants 100% renewable electricity. 200 GWh. More companies want to follow and this threatens shortage in supply, which is good news for offshore wind installers. Green pull.
http://www.nhnieuws.nl/nieuws/195910/Heel-Schiphol-gaat-in-2017-volledig-over-op-groene-stroom
GregT on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:16 pm
Green washing Cloggie.
There is nothing green about industrial,processes.
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 1:55 pm
You don’t understand the difference between a kwh from a windturbine or one from a ff power station?
Cloggie on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:08 pm
“Alt energy does nothing of the sort. All alt energy schemes require fossil fuels in their resource extraction, refinement, manufacture, distribution, and maintenance. As does the grid itself, and all of the products that we use that electricity for.”
You do realize that you continue to put yourself in the same league as the likes of dave, who doesn’t even understand the difference between pumped hydro storage and hydro power. What was your formal education again? You are so stubborn that you nix the energy policy of the scientific and technological super power Europe and declare it null and void. That is pretty arrogant and probably motivated by your uninformed broadcasting of excessive doomer opinions to the people in your direct environment and now there is no way back without major loss of face.
The big picture is that Europe will design and implement the blueprint and the rest of the world will take it over, just like every innovation over the past centuries.
bobinget on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:12 pm
Bloomberg
Kuwait will issue a tender to build the estimated $1.2 billion Dibdibah solar-power plant in the first quarter of 2018 as part of the country’s plans to produce 15 percent of power from renewable energy by 2030.
OPEC’s fifth-biggest oil producer set a Sept. 7 deadline for companies to express interest in the 1 gigawatt project, Shukri AbdulAziz Al-Mahrous, deputy chief executive officer of planning and finance at Kuwait National Petroleum Co., said in an interview at the company’s headquarters south of Kuwait City. The cost will be about $1.2 billion, he said. Dibdibah will produce half of the country’s planned renewable energy output, he said.
Building solar plants is part of government efforts to help the environment while benefiting from increased production of petrochemicals and refined products. Kuwait pumped 2.7 million barrels of crude a day in July, less than Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran and the United Arab Emirates, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Apneaman on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:15 pm
clog, are they going to use that alt energy to suck the CO2 out of the atmosphere and store it indefinitely? If not then it will be around for many thousands of years.
Here is a whickad smhart Dutch Boy scientist, Rolf Schuttenhelm, to explain why the humans are already fucked.
“In part 16 of our temperature trend series we take a better look at one of the main reasons almost everyone still underestimates climate urgency: ‘Thermal inertia’ of the climate system – a delay between the moment of emissions of CO2, and the moment the (majority of) inevitably resulting atmospheric warming manifests itself – a time lag of decades, with very large implications.”
“The currently observed warming is (mostly*) the result of cumulative CO2 emissions up to the late seventies. The implications of this understanding are large: Even if we stopped further rise of the atmospheric CO2 concentration completely as per tomorrow, warming would still continue for several decades.”
http://www.bitsofscience.org/real-global-temperature-trend-climate-system-thermal-inertia-7086/
The humans are at a few 10ths of a degree to 1/2 a degree from driving civilization into chaos and there is a bare minimum of another 1.5C baked in and that don’t even count most positive self reinforcing feedbacks….. and the Cancer consuming and infecting and reproducing at their historical max.
bobinget on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:17 pm
In addition to Hurricane #Gert, NHC is tracking 3 Atlantic disturbances with a chance of formation within the next 5 days.
Apneaman on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:27 pm
Plenty of myths out there. Hey when is that all electric mining for minerals going to start?
Electric vehicles, renewable energy driving demand, and price, for copper
http://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2017-08-15/copper-demand-and-price-up-on-electric-vehicle-demand/8799106
GregT on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:27 pm
“The big picture is that Europe will design and implement the blueprint and the rest of the world will take it over, just like every innovation over the past centuries.”
Every innovation over the past century is culminating in the predicaments that humanity now faces Cloggie. Mankind is not in control of nature. Never was, and never will be.
kanon on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:29 pm
The society we know requires vast consumption of “essential” materials that are required to maintain the the society we know. The main thing I get from this discussion is the status quo will continue to devour the planet until it collapses or has consumed everything. The system is built on control of money to control society and appropriate all resources and technology that burns fossil fuels to find more ways to burn fossil fuels There is no alternative.
GregT on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:29 pm
“You do realize that you continue to put yourself in the same league as the likes of dave.”
Thank you Cloggie, I take that as a compliment.
Apneaman on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:30 pm
Suniva Solar Tariff Case Could Throttle a Thriving Industry
Two bankrupt solar panel manufacturers are asking the U.S. government for tariffs on imports, imports U.S. solar installers rely on. It’s already having an impact.
https://insideclimatenews.org/news/14082017/suniva-solar-tariff-case-could-throttle-entire-industry
Apneaman on Tue, 15th Aug 2017 2:33 pm
The Secrets of the Super Elements BBC Documentary | Super Materials behind Modern Technology
“Super Elements are rare earth elements or rare earth metals behind modern technology. So far, China has kind of monopoly on these rare metals and rare elements.
Forget oil, coal and gas – a new set of materials is shaping our world and they’re so bizarre they may as well be alien technology. In the first BBC documentary to be filmed entirely on smartphones, material scientist Prof Mark Miodownik reveals the super elements that underpin our high-tech world. We have become utterly dependent on them, but they are rare and they’re already running out. The stuff that makes our smartphones work could be gone in a decade and our ability to feed the world depends mostly on a mineral found in just one country. Mark reveals the magical properties of these extraordinary materials and finds out what we can do to save them.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=–8UOXDU4u8&feature=youtu.be