Clean Energy Policy News
31 July 2012
In a recently issued report, the International Energy Agency forecasts that renewable power generation will increase by at least 5.8% through 2017. The report attributes the increasing growth of renewables to continued supportive policy and increasing economic attractiveness. IEA expects around 40% of the growth in installed capacity to be in China.
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31 July 2012
The Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Partnership (REEEP) has issued its 9th call for proposals to support up to 30 projects intended to accelerate the deployment of renewable energy and/or energy efficiency technologies. The maximum funding per project is €150,000 to support five key areas: scaling up successful business models; supporting off-grid generation; harnessing clean energy in food production; employing clean energy in providing a reliable water supply; opening up energy data in emerging markets. Initial proposals are due 21 September 2012 with short-listed full proposals due 9 November 2012.
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18 July 2012
The International Energy Agency (IEA) convened a group of public and private sector energy experts in the Caspian region from 3 to 5 July to discuss clean energy technology and best practices. Representatives from Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan were in attendance to discuss national and regional clean energy initiatives.
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3 July 2012
The International Energy Agency (IEA) recently released an interactive data visualization tool to complement the new book Energy Technology Perspectives 2012. This user-friendly infographic presents IEA's forecast for how the overall energy system could evolve from now to 2050.
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3 July 2012
The Japanese government launched feed-in tariffs for solar, wind, and geothermal power this week. The payment incentives took effect on 1 July 2012, and are intended to help Japan transition to renewable energy sources, as it continues to reduce the use of nuclear power. According to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI), the tariff levels are set at 42 yen/kWh for solar (10KW or more); 23.1 yen/kWh for wind (20 KW or more); and 27.3 yen/kWh for geothermal power. The term of the incentives are 20 years for solar and wind, and 15 years for geothermal. Biomass and small hydroelectric installations are also covered by the new policy. The Ministry has set the feed-in tariff surcharge to consumers at .22 yen/kWh, estimating that the feed-in tariff will cost the average household 87 yen per month, or the equivalent of $1.09 USD per month.
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28 June 2012
The Institute for Industrial Productivity (IIP) announced on 28 June 2012 that policies from Australia, China, India, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, South Africa, Thailand, the United Kingdom, and the United States have been added to the IIP database Industrial Efficiency Policy Database. The database provides details about industrial efficiency and greenhouse gas mitigation policy, but also offers in-depth analysis based on IIP's 'Policy Pyramid.' Information about each policy includes time period; implementation support; and measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) regimes. The database also includes the data from the International Energy Agency on CO2 emissions and energy consumption in the industry sector.
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25 June 2012
At the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development last week, official delegations from 191 nations gathered to debate the future of sustainable development. The outcome document from the meeting, titled 'The Future We Want', recognized the role increasing the share of renewable energy and improving energy efficiency will play in the future of sustainable development. In support of the declaration, numerous governments have made voluntary commitments thus far in clean energy areas such as clean energy for agriculture, green electricity and transport, and finance for sustainable development.
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25 June 2012
The United Nations announced on 22 June 2012 that governments, the private sector, civil society, and other groups had committed over $513 billion USD to promote sustainable development at the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development.
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25 June 2012
In support of the Rio+20 United Nations (UN) Conference on Sustainable Development, eight multilateral development banks have committed $175 billion to sustainable transportation. According to a UN press release, the eight organizations, including the World Bank, will help address the climate and safety issues surrounding transport that may cost up to 5 -10% of gross domestic product per year.
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11 June 2012
A host of new technologies is ready to transform the energy system, offering the potential to drastically reduce carbon emissions, enhance energy security and generate a huge investment return, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its flagship energy technology publication launched in June 2012.
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