Affordable Clean Energy

Photo: Dr Wim Naudé, Professor of Economics at the Department of Economics with the Cork University Business School in Ireland with the image of AfCFTA from African Union website.

African Free Trade Area Expected to Lift Millions out of Extreme Poverty and Boost Growth

By Busani Bafana

BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe (IDN) — The long-awaited African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA)—set to be the world’s biggest free trade zone by size—which entered into force on January 1, 2021, promises a new era for African trade.

An Africa-wide free-trade pact could bolster the region’s income by $450 billion and lift 30 million people out of extreme poverty by 2035, if accompanied by significant policy reforms and trade-facilitation measures, according to the World Bank. When fully operational, the Free Trade area will create a market of 1.2 billion and drive a combined GDP of $2.5 trillion.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 06 April 2021

Photo: Zhang Dezhen, a staff member at the Shanghai Fengxian Converter Station, patrols the power converter area. Credit: Wu Huiyuan/Sixth Tone.

China's Growing Network of Ultra-High Voltage Power Lines Has Hit Its Fair Share of Snags — Part Two

Please click here for Part One of this article.

By Ye Ruolin and Yuan Ye *

SHANGHAI (IDN | China Dialogue) — The Hunanese experience and other cases demonstrate how this vision may prove difficult to realise. The Baihetan dam, currently under construction on the Jinsha River straddling the border of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, is set to become the world’s second-largest hydropower station after the Three Gorges Dam once it is fully completed in 2022.

From its inception, it was meant to connect to two UHV lines that would send power to Zhejiang and Jiangsu provinces on China’s eastern coast. The project has been delayed, however, due to a conflict over who owns its electricity.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 02 April 2021

Photo: Power lines at Shanghai Fengxian Converter Station in January 2021 Credit: Wu Huiyuan/Sixth Tone.Photo: Power lines at Shanghai Fengxian Converter Station in January 2021 Credit: Wu Huiyuan/Sixth Tone.

China's Growing Network of Ultra-High Voltage Power Lines Has Hit Its Fair Share of Snags — Part One

By Ye Ruolin and Yuan Ye *

SHANGHAI (IDN | China Dialogue) — With few coal reserves to call its own and winter rains too erratic to rely on hydropower, central China’s Hunan province had long faced frequent electricity blackouts, an annoyance to residents and a hindrance to economic growth. So, when an ultra-high voltage power line was approved in 2015, hopes were high.

The new Ultra-High Voltage (UHV) connection would run all the way from the energy-rich Jiuquan region in northwestern Gansu province, and bring in enough coal, wind, and solar power to answer a quarter of Hunan’s energy needs.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 02 April 2021

Photo: High-level Dialogue on Energy 2021. Source: United Nations.

Expert Groups Prepare Roadmap for Universal Energy Access

By Radwan Jakeem

NEW YORK (IDN) — The virtual launch of the High-level Dialogue on Energy 2021 Process: A Year of Energy Action on March 10 succeeded in generating a wave of enthusiastic support from key players in the energy field who committed to help drive impactful results at the September summit-level Dialogue event, according to the UN.

: UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Affordable Clean Energy; 20 March 2021

Photo: The Energy Charter Treaty allows fossil fuel companies to sue government for taking action on climate change. Credit: Alfred T. Palmer/Wikimedia

Little-Known Energy Treaty a Climate Threat

Viewpoint by Fabian Flues, Cecilia Olivet and Pia Eberhardt*

LONDON (IDN) — On February 4, the German energy giant RWE announced it was suing the government of the Netherlands. The crime? Proposing to phase out coal from the country’s electricity mix. The company, which is Europe’s biggest emitter of carbon, is demanding 1.4 billion euros in ‘compensation’ from the country for loss of potential earnings because the Dutch government has banned the burning of coal for electricity from 2030.

If this sounds unreasonable, then you might be surprised to learn that this kind of legal action is perfectly normal — and likely to become far more commonplace in the coming years.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 08 March 2021

Photo: Solar power in the desert. Terlingua, TX, USA. Credit: Gene Jeter | Unsplash.

Texas’ Sustainable Energy Initiatives Under Fire Amid the Latest Grid Failures

By J W Jackie

RENO, Nevada, USA (IDN) — The recent energy failure in Texas left 4 million Texans without power and almost half the state under a boil water advisory. As below-freezing temperatures and an intense winter storm swept the state, the state’s energy grid—at the worse possible time. Clean energy is poised to grow in 2021.

Now, in the wake of consequences, everyone is asking whether renewable energy is to blame—and realizing that maybe the U.S. energy system is not as indestructible as they once thought. For now, interesting conclusions are being drawn relating to the state’s dependency on fossil fuels, and the need to do more with its energy-saving and green energy initiatives in the coming years.

: Jaya Ramachandran; SUSTAINABILITY; Affordable Clean Energy; 03 March 2021

Photo: Workers construct a solar panel array structure in Malawi. CC BY-SA 4.0

An Inclusive Energy System Key to COVID-19 Recovery

Viewpoint by Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana

Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana is Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations and Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP).

BANGKOK (IDN) — The past year is one that few of us will forget. While the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic have played out unevenly across Asia and the Pacific, the region has been spared many of the worst effects seen in other parts of the world. The pandemic has reminded us that a reliable and uninterrupted energy supply is critical to managing this crisis.

: Opinion Editor; SUSTAINABILITY; Poverty; 22 February 2021

Photo: Knox Msebenzi (credit: Msebenzi), Managing Director of Nuclear Industry Association of South Africa (NIASA) in South Africa (Credit: NIASA)

South African Nuclear Energy Chief Pleads for Energy-Mix

Interview by Kester Kenn Klomegah*

MOSCOW (IDN) – The power industry in South Africa is faced with huge challenges. Knox Msebenzi, Managing Director of the Nuclear Industry Association of South Africa (NIASA), discusses the impact of challenges on the country's economy and a way out of the power generation difficulties in South Africa.

The Nuclear Industry Association of South Africa is a body committed to promoting the highest standards in the development and application of nuclear technology in South Africa. NIASA is composed of organisations, groups, and individuals, from not only the established nuclear sector but also any entities involved in any technology endeavour related to the development and operation of nuclear technology.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; OPINION; 26 January 2021

Photo: Men install solar panels for a hospital in Yemen. UNDP’s SPCRP project is equipping COVID-19 isolation centers with vital equipment such as solar energy panels. This allows the key healthcare facilities to function even with the chronic lack of electricity in the country. Photo: UNDP Yemen

Clean Energy Set to Grow in 2021

By Marcel Alers

The author is Head of Energy of the UN Development Programme (UNDP)

NEW YORK (IDN) – The energy sector, still dominated by fossil fuels, is the largest contributor to greenhouse gas emissions. We know people and nations need reliable sources of energy to power hospitals and light schools, and to safely cook, heat or cool their homes. We know we need to switch to sustainable energy.

: UN Bureau; SUSTAINABILITY; Affordable Clean Energy; 03 January 2021

Photo: A view of the Mabwepande Green Village. Credit: Kizito Makoye.

Mabwepande Green Village: Model for a Sustainable Future

The Watumishi Housing Company’s model estate harnesses clean energy technologies to improve lives and reduce the carbon footprint.

By Kizito Makoye

MABWEPANDE | Tanzania (IDN) – As a warm breeze blows from the Indian Ocean, two men in dazzling outfits show up on the balcony of a home with flower-filled pots to convey a message to their community members about the future plans of their green village.

“In order to achieve our goals of establishing a successful green village, it is important to come together and exchange our ideas,” says Reeves Ngalemwa, the chairman of the Mabwepande green village in Tanzania’s largest commercial city.