Industrial Decarbonization......

 Industrial sector greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions have steadily increased since the industrial revolution and nearly tripled over the last three decades. U.S. industries account for 30% (including industrial electricity use) of national GHG emissions, on par with transportation, the highest emitting sector, and exceed power sector emissions. Globally, the industrial sector accounts for all GHG emissions. Heavy industries, like chemical production, cement and steel production and oil and gas refining should no longer be dismissed as too ‘hard to abate.’ Options for transitioning these manufacturing processes are rapidly emerging and becoming more cost competitive due to historic public investments in the U.S. 

Transitioning this sector away from fossil fuels by midcentury is possible — if companies, governments, investors and communities work together to make sound and bold decisions in this decade that will be crucial to defining our decarbonization trajectory to meet mid century climate goals. Demand is expected to rise for cement, steel and chemicals in coming years. Options for decarbonizing those facilities and products include switching to non-fossil fuels and feedstocks, energy efficiency, electrification and carbon capture utilization and sequestration as well as transformative emerging technologies such as electrolytic hydrogen, thermal heat batteries, kiln electrification and novel materials. On the other hand, oil and gas demand will be dropping over the next few decades as the world moves to phase out fossil fuels and facilities may simply become non-economic as this transition occurs and the demand for fossil fuels dwindles and disappears. Deciding the fate of these facilities — whether they are retired or repurposed — is an opportunity to consider overall pollution profiles (including air toxics, chemical discharges and pollutants that cause smog and soot) and engage with fence line communities around these facilities to decide what is the best way to make a just transition away from carbon intensive industry. The path toward industrial decarbonizationby midcentury requires comprehensive company strategies and a robust portfolio of federal and state policies to support innovation, investment and deployment.......read on        https://www.wri.org/initiatives/industrial-decarbonization

The Renewable Revolution Continues. While 2023 was a challenging year for clean energy, we highlight six points that prove the revolution marched on. December 19, 2023 By  Sam Butler-Sloss,  Kingsmill Bond,  Daan Walter,  Laurens Speelman  By some measures, 2023 was a challenging year for clean energy. Interest rates rose, supply chains remained stressed, Western wind players struggled, interconnection queues grew, and clean energy stocks underperformed. Yet, the renewable revolution marched on. In 2023, the costs of clean technologies started falling again; the growth in clean technologies continued up S-curves; fossil fuel demand remained on a plateau; the geopolitical race to lead the renewable era sped up; clean tech manufacturing surged; and policy action continued to ratchet higher. Below we describe six reasons 2023 was a year of success and continuity for the renewable revolution.

1. Costs fell....... After the bounce in prices in 2022, this past year cleantech prices continued falling on learning curves. Relative to the first half of last year, the LCOE of utility solar PV fell by 9 percent to $41/MWh and the LCOE of onshore wind is down 13 percent to $40/MWh. Solar panel module prices fell 50 percent this year to 12 cents/W — as of December. Battery cell costs are down 16 percent, now at $107/kWh.

2. Volumes rose.....According to BloombergNEF, the world is expected to deploy an astonishing 413 GW of solar this year, representing a 64 percent year-on-year growth in additions. Despite the travails of wind in the West, global wind additions are up 18 percent, exceeding 100 GW. Electric vehicle car sales are set to surpass 14 million, capturing 20 percent of the global market. Electric vans and trucks are taking off in China, gaining an 11 percent and 3 percent market share, respectively, in the first 10 months of the year. Globally, battery storage sales are expected to triple. Electrolyzer shipments are expected to roughly double. Solar, batteries, and EV sales continue to follow their well-established S-curves.

3. The plateau in fossil fuel demand continued....As clean tech volumes continue to rise, it is becoming ever clearer that global fossil fuel demand and emissions have hit a peak and are bouncing along a plateau. ....read on.....https://rmi.org/the-renewable-revolution-continues/

Clean energy’s dirty secret: the trail of waste left by India’s solar power boom. As vast solar plants multiply, so does the scrap, set to reach 19m tonnes by 2050. But disposing of the waste often falls to informal traders who risk injury when dismantling broken panels. Guardian  Thu 18 Apr 2024 Under the scorching sun, a sea of solar panels gleams in the semi-arid landscape. Pavagada, 100 miles north of Bengaluru in southern India, is the world’s third-largest solar power plant, with 25m panels across a huge 50 sq km site, and a capacity of 2,050MW of clean energy. India has 11 similarly vast solar parks, and plans to install another 39 across 12 states by 2026, a commitment to a greener future. Yet this solar boom has a downside: the waste it generates from the panels, made of glass, aluminium, silicon, rare-earth elements; as well as power inverters and wiring. “While manufacturers claim decades of longevity, degradation of these panels sets in much sooner,” says Atif Mirza, director of Fusion Sprint Recycler, a solar-farm waste contractor in Uttar Pradesh.

Panels can break during installation and transport or through exposure to monsoons and typhoons. India’s solar ambitions come with a hefty amount of waste. With the nation targeting output of 280GW of solar power by 2030, of which 70.1GW is already installed, one study forecasts an accumulation of more than 600,000 tonnes of solar waste by then, with this projected to increase 32-fold to more than 19m tonnes by 2050. About two-thirds of the waste is expected to originate from five states – Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh – which house eight of India’s 10 largest solar parks. Naranaiah Amaranath, general manager at Karnataka Solar Power Development Corporation, which oversees the Pavagada solar park, acknowledges that while there are basic regulations regarding waste management, the responsibility largely falls on the private firms that own the solar plants.  Because authorised e-waste contractors are often unwilling to handle the waste in accordance with the CPCB protocol, a network of informal operators – who dismantle, aggregate, transport and recycle panels – have stepped in to fill the gap........read on        https://www.theguardian.com/global-development/2024/apr/18/india-clean-energy-solar-power-plant-panel-waste-recycling-pollution-regulation    

Caribbean Women Are Making Waves in Clean Energy. Meet three women who are leading the clean energy transition through education, mentorship, and community. March 18, 2024  By  Laura Diez Women have long been underrepresented in the energy sector. In the Caribbean, it often starts at a young age, with girls being discouraged from pursuing science, technology, and engineering. However, a group of passionate dedicated women are set on changing that. The Caribbean-based Women in Renewable Energy (WIRE) Network advocates for increased gender equality across the clean energy sector in government agencies, utilities, regulatory bodies, and the private sector to eventually increase women’s representation in C-suites and boards, through ensuring a pipeline of motivated and experienced women.One way it does this is through its two-year mentorship program. Twelve women are selected each year and are paired with women in senior leadership positions for guidance in the clean energy sector and advisement on how to make the most of their professional opportunities. The current WIRE Mentorship Program currently hosts 24 women across 14 nations in the Caribbean. Meet some of these amazing women.......Indra Haraksingh is a visionary educator and a driving force behind the development of the Master of Science in Renewable Energy Technology (MScRET), a groundbreaking program at the University of West Indies in the Caribbean. Based in Trinidad and Tobago, Haraksingh supports the WIRE Network as a senior mentor to the current WIRE Mentorship cohort. She also serves as president of the Caribbean Solar Energy Society and lecturer in the Department of Physics at the university. The MScRET initiative was born out of the pressing need to address high electricity rates and the environmental impact of fossil fuel dependency in the region. Haraksingh saw the immense potential of harnessing solar and other renewable resources prevalent in the Caribbean and recognized the critical role of education in driving this transition. In collaboration with universities in Flensburg, Germany, Haraksingh spearheaded the creation of the MScRET to equip Caribbean nations with the knowledge and expertise necessary to embrace renewable energy solutions fully. "For countries to move in this direction, it is important that they are well informed and trained in the technology and use of renewable energy," she explains. The program has been instrumental in training a new generation of experts, with approximately 20 graduates annually over its ten-year history.By training individuals across various sectors in renewable energy, the MScRET has helped to build a more self-reliant region, reducing the reliance on external experts. Haraksingh emphasizes the importance of mentorship and networks in shaping the future of these students.......and meetmore of these amazing women              https://rmi.org/caribbean-women-are-making-waves-in-clean-energy/