By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Tue, 2009-08-18 16:41
The implementation of millions or even hundreds of millions of electric vehicles (EVs) will require a lot of effort on technical and financial aspects, but also on socio-economic aspects.
Read full story
By HDK / Published on Wed, 2009-08-05 15:21
At present both electricity and gas energy delivery chains exists for the full range from long distance to distribution and end-use.
How do you view the use of either electricity (E) or gas (G) for the future energy delivery chain ranging from long distance (> 1000km) transmission, (regional) transmission, (local) distribution to end-use?
Read full story
By Hans De Keulenaer / Published on Mon, 2009-08-03 16:21
At present in a lot of European countries two energy infrastructures exist, the electricity network and the natural gas network. Both networks have unique characteristics e.g. gas can easily be stored and electricity is very versatile and can be used without any local pollution. And the question arises whether or not to better make use of this by creating a stronger coupling between both infrastructures.
Read full story
By Ivan Benes / Published on Tue, 2007-10-16 15:33
The Czech Republic has a well developed national transmission grid. Nevertheless, several emergency situations occurred last year (2006). The energy security discussion between public and private sector was accelerated. The Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Regional Development as well as several Regional Governments sponsored several studies and research projects into how to improve population protection as well as critical infrastructure protection.
Read full story
By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Wed, 2007-09-19 18:10
EU working hard to improve the reliability of supply
The summer of 2007 is nearly over and no large power blackouts have afflicted Europe. At the beginning of the summer, concerns were raised over possible disturbances in electricity supply due to heat waves. Heat waves cause increased power consumption by air-conditioning and cooling systems and a reduced power production from hydroelectric and wind turbines.
The fact that no major power shortages occurred is at least partly due to the temperate weather in Northern and Central Europe this summer. But the European Commission can also claim a share of this success. At the beginning of July, Energy Commissioner Piebalgs set up a coordination cell within the Commission to oversee the situation over the summer months.
Read full story
By Bruno De Wachter / Published on Tue, 2006-10-03 07:32
To connect wind farms and interconnect countries
A subsea supergrid could link offshore wind farms from the Mediterranean to the Baltic Sea. Since ‘the wind always blows somewhere,’ such a grid could serve to offset local shortages of wind power. That is the plan that the Irish wind energy company, Airtricity, is trying to win politicians over to.
An even more ambitious a plan is the Poseidon Initiative of Econcern, a Dutch company.
Read full story
By Hans Nilsson / Published on Mon, 2006-01-23 17:40
The International Energy Agency, IEA, publishes every second year the World Energy Outlook. In the 2003 edition there were estimates of how much investment was needed in energy supply, distribution and transmission globally up till 2030. The result is handsome 16 trillion dollars of which roughly two thirds relates to electrical power. The study however also tried to calculate the impact of energy efficiency measures as alternative and came with a rather conservative view to the result that one trillion (1.000.000.000.000) could be saved by use of energy efficiency in such a form that generation, transmission and distribution was replaced.A very interesting thing in this study is that the major part of the savings was in distribution and transmission and not in generation as one may intuitively assume, see figure below. This also seem to verify the statements, that many make regarding the future electricity system, that it will be less of a system with big central generation units and more of a mesh with quite a substantial part of distributed generation. And also a system that will require a different way of thinking both in terms of operation and planning and in technologies. See also "The transition of the grid" on this site.
Read full story
