Energy & Commodities

Why Banning Fossil Fuel Investment Is A Huge Mistake

Posted by Cyril Widdershoven

on Monday, 18 November 2019 9:38

Activist global warming strategies have now caused the European Investment Bank to ban its fossil fuel project funding. After more than a year of internal and external lobbying by several EU member states and an ever-growing list of activist NGO and pressure groups, the EIB has decided to cut its financial support for all new fossil fuel projects by 2021. It will also support €1 trillion of investments in climate action and environmental sustainability. This is meant to force European countries to put an end to new gas-fueled power projects and keep in line with the Paris Agreements and EU CO2 emission targets. EIB VP Andrew McDowell stated to the press that the EIB’s new energy lending policy, seen as a landmark decision, has been approved with “overwhelming” support. He reiterated that it will bar investments or financing for most fossil fuel projects, including those that employ the traditional use of natural gas.

There is still a small loophole for fossil fuel projects, as the EIB funding will still be available for projects that can show they can produce one kilowatt-hour of energy while emitting less than 250g of carbon dioxide. New technologies could therefore be the savior in the end for traditional gas-burning power plants.

The significance of this decision by the EIB cannot be understated. As a major financial institution, a wide range of energy-related projects inside and outside of the EU, such as gas pipeline projects in Central Asia, Turkey and the recent discussions on East Med offshore gas projects, are now being endangered. While various Green Parties and environmental NGOs are celebrating this move as a major victory, it is a victory that comes with some real risks. The decision, which was largely inevitable after that EU finance ministers unanimously agreed to initiate stricter measures to combat climate change, will put more pressure on all parties to phase out gas, oil and coal projects…CLICK for complete article

Seoul Is Putting Solar On All Public Buildings and 1 Million Homes

Posted by Michelle Lewis

on Thursday, 14 November 2019 9:14

In Seoul, South Korea, every public building and 1 million homes will have solar panels by 2022. South Korea, the world’s fourth-largest coal importer, is making a concerted effort to shift to green energy after public pressure to do so and aims to generate 35% of its electricity from renewables by 2040.

South Korea is Asia’s fourth-largest economy, and it currently relies on nuclear, gas, and coal for power. The government had originally planned to retrofit 20 of its 60 coal plants with anti-pollution gear when they reached 30 years of age, but this idea has been abandoned, as it’s not cost-effective. According to a June Reuters article:

“To have more renewable power, we can make coal power plants run lower,” said Kang Seung-jin, energy professor at Korea Polytechnic University, who is helping to map out the 2019 plan.

According to the World Economic Forum:

The World Economic Forum’s Energy Transition Index, which benchmarks countries’ energy systems and supports them as they move to cleaner power sources, ranks South Korea 48th out of 115 nations surveyed. Its capital wants to lead the transition.

In November 2017, the capital city’s government announced the 2022 Solar City Seoul Plan, in which it said it would add 1 GW of solar capacity by 2022. This has already cut more than 100 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions…CLICK for complete article

6 Technology Trends Revolutionizing The Transportation Sector

Posted by Charles Kennedy

on Wednesday, 13 November 2019 9:37

The transportation industry boasts this inglorious claim to fame: It’s responsible for nearly 30 percent of all greenhouse gas emissions in the United States.

Of that, cars and trucks alone are believed to be responsible for nearly one-fifth of all U.S. emissions.

It’s not profit loss. It’s how much Americans lost on average every year due to traffic congestion.

Americans have lost an average of 97 hours a year due to congestion, which costs them roughly $87 billion, or an average of $1,348 per driver, according to 2018 INRIX National Traffic Scorecard.

And it’s about to get worse.

The market now is all about doing two things at once: cleaning up and getting out of traffic. The tech advance that makes both possible wins on all levels.

Here are the 5 cleanest modes of travel right now…CLICK for complete article

Nuclear Energy Is Not The Enemy

Posted by Haley Zaremba

on Thursday, 7 November 2019 9:58

11,000 scientists have declared a climate emergency and warned of “catastrophic threat” to humanity and “untold suffering” in a paper published this week in Oxford University Press’ peer-reviewed BioScience journal. The paper, titled “World Scientists’ Warning of a Climate Emergency” begins: “Scientists have a moral obligation to clearly warn humanity of any catastrophic threat and to ‘tell it like it is.’ On the basis of this obligation and the graphical indicators presented below, we declare, with more than 11,000 scientist signatories from around the world, clearly and unequivocally that planet Earth is facing a climate emergency.”

When science has been telling us not just for decades but for over a hundred years that human production of greenhouse gases will cause global warming, why are we still so resistant to decarbonizing our energy industry? We have the technology and we have the urgency, so what’s holding us back? CLICK for complete article 

Last Day To Watch For Free – The Movie They Don’t Want You To See

Posted by MoneyTalks Editor

on Wednesday, 30 October 2019 9:48

Vivian Krause is Canada’s best investigative journalist (Robert Fife and Terry Glavin honourable mentions).  Her tireless efforts churning through thousands of pages of US tax returns revealed the extent of US involvement in the opposition to Alberta oil and every proposed pipeline. Her new documentary Over A Barrel is a must see and you can do that for free until the end of the month.