Information Service
Information about developments in the confusing Renewable Energies’ Markets: This information service, designed specifically for interested readers and professionals draws insiders from around the world - since all dedicated and professional engineers usual only know their own field. Lots of new inventions flood the markets. Often one cheaper than the next. Please consider that our offerings in the information service are only a selection of backstage information and publicly availabe sources.
As to our knowledge in November 2019 this is one of the most independent and most short overviews about Renewable Energies. Please do know, that it is not easy to get the right information in Germany – owed to big industries. It seems that young persons do my work in an appropriate manner and do have a lot of knowledge! To make conservation of natural resources a key pillar in our customers’ & partners’ sustainability teams and programmes readers will find useful information: Contents without links are from specialised engineers, insiders and / or company owners in Renewable Energies’ field. Links are – in most cases - from specialised journalists.
Royal Network & Production information system works in an alphabetical order - from the latest selected news to Information Archive since 2015. We are delighted to welcome as readers of this information service - besides the engineers and interested persons - “clean” businessmen and businesswomen, helping us to be better neighbors to our nature and environment and to benefit our world.
in alphabetical Order
23 March 2017, Article from dpa: Synlight is a project of DLR (German Aerospace Center) to develop new fuel for big planes. Synlight is a sun simulator – made from 149 lamps, normally used to show movies - clustered in a building in Jülich close to Aachen. It is droven by normal electricity to use the endless energy of the sun’s rays. One aim of the sun simulator is the efficient production of hydrogen / hydrogen peroxide, regarded as an environmentally friendly fuel of the future. The sun simulator is heating metal to 800 degrees Celsius, than the metal is sprayed with water vapour. The metal reacts with oxygen, the hydrogen remains.
The biodiversity, i.e. the diversity of species of plants and animals is the unique heritage of our blue planet. It developed in billions of years, humans appeared relatively late, as we all might know. Erasing of a species is an irreversible process. Once extinguished a species can’t return. Thus, protection of nature is an important task of all the countries in this world.
Most important to protect biodiversity is to create large protected areas, because many species can only survive in their natural habitats as national parks, nature reserves, biosphere reserves and so.
But many species have to life outside from protected areas and there are many threats, which are caused by human activities. It is our responsibility to protect them.
This means:
- To use as little fertilizers and pesticides as possible in agricultural areas.
- To replant forests consisting of native trees and shrubs, because they are best adapted to the environment and can harbour, home & house the highest number of native animal species.
- To protect any natural wetland, since these type of habitat houses many species and is important for many migrant species too.
- To hunt only species which are common and have a high reproduction rate, not to overexploit the population. Unfortunately, in some countries around the Mediterranean and in the Middle East hunting has a long tradition and in the meantime the macho and wealth are playing a big role: You can afford a weapon.
Ranger Officers: Most efficient to finish stupid chasing and hunting seems the work of educated & trained Ranger Officers entrusted with executive power by their countries leading politicians, also with power to punish – as I was informed. Such rangers might develop to legendary heroes – because they are true protectors of life. In most cases hunting is only wrong understood “masculinity”. Successful rangers are very often people from low income families in their own countries and counties. Very much engaged and with an excellent education in all biodiversity and life cycle chains they can serve the biodiversity of this planet (information about ranger officers is based on precious insider information from Africa! Other information is from a scientist).
- NEVER hunt rare species or species with a low reproduction rate like raptors.
- To protect biodiversity means also to erect wind farms far away from important bird habitats and bird flyways, since the rotor blades can kill many birds, especially raptors and other large birds.
- To protect biodiversity power lines should be equipped with appliances against electrocution, because large birds get extinguished locally by sitting on the pylons and receiving deadly short-circuits.
- To protect birds, use as little glass as possible in buildings near green areas and even trees, because birds cannot differ i.e. make a difference between a true tree and the reflection of that tree in a glass window. Birds will fly to it and get killed by the solid glass surface. Migrant birds appear in any village, town or city, use the trees to eat insects and can get killed by the glass. Transparent glasses like corridors or walkways are very dangerous as well.
- To protect biodiversity put waste only in waste containers, never “forget” or put plastics in the environment.
10th September 2022. Prof. Dr. Matthias Glaubrecht, Professorship Animal Biodiversity at the University of Hamburg Diversity / Head of Exhibitions writes in an article from 16th of January 2022 about the ignorance of politicians on the subject of biodiversity, animal biodiversity: https://www.tagesspiegel.de/politik/artenschutz-als-ignoriertes-thema-das-biologische-analphabetentum-der-politik-bringt-uns-noch-alle-um/27975842.html.
In Germany, for example, we have lost almost 80 percent of the biomass of flying insects over the past few decades. The main reason for species extinction is the loss of their natural habitats and thus their food and drinking base. At its core - similar to the climate - it is about the earth and life on this only planet that we will have. We depend on functioning ecosystems for our nutrition, and to quench our thirst. We might no longer covering up areas in a pointless way. Densification of small and large towns thus makes a lot of sense.
please see Renewable Energy Sources/Biogas Plants
29th of Oct. 2021: To avoid Birds’ Collision, the buildings might be constructed without transparent views through glass and without larger areas of reflecting glass. In the night light emissions should be avoided: https://vogelglas.vogelwarte.ch/en/home. And https://vogelglas.vogelwarte.ch/assets/files/broschueren/Bird-friendly%20Building%20engl.pdf.
German readers can be informed about glass and light as problems for animals by the website of the administration of environmental protection of the city of Berlin. There is also an email address to ask and get answers:https://www.berlin.de/sen/uvk/natur-und-gruen/naturschutz/artenschutz/freilandartenschutz/vogelfreundliches-bauen-mit-glas-und-licht/
Architects may read an article in DAB (German Architects’ Journal) as early as of 19 of Oct 2020, to be informed about solutions to avoid birds collision:
ADACmotorwelt, journals Feb, May and Oct 2, 5 and 10 / 2018, Fuel cell cars produce their own electricity by a fuel cell powered by hydrogen. They refuel hydrogen at special hydrogen refuelling stations and drive without emissions, i.e. they do not produce CO2.They work with polymer electrolyte membrane, PEM. For an explanation of the principle please see ADACmotorwelt, 5/2018, p.22 or https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brennstoffzelle#Chemische_Reaktionen. Hydrogen H2O can react with oxygen O2 in a fuel cell to generate electricity and drive an automobile via an electric motor. Especially large and heavy cars can benefit from fuel cell technology. Hyundai Nexo has a range of around 540 km. Fuel cell cars are available from Hyundai, Honda and Toyota. In Germany in end of 2018 cars can refuel hydrogen at around 50 refuelling stations. However, a fuel cell car is only as environmentally friendly as the electricity used to produce the hydrogen – i.e. not more environmentally friendly in operation than batterie-powered electric cars.
An input given to me (Dr. von Werz) to these sentences: It seems even more to need a lot of power to produce hydrogen.
Subsidies in car industry, 22 April 2019: http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/unternehmen/elektroauto-foerderung-bmw-und-volkswagen-streiten-ueber-subventionen-a-1258834.html
19 June 2017, backstage information: German Car industry has with the manipulations and the trickery around the exhaust gas purification not only harmed itself massively and has to pay now heavily in the USA, a worldwide search for VW managers was launched in late June 2017. Germany’s car industry - by its only goal of making money – seems now less developed than other international car industry competitors. The best hybrid cars - combining petrol and electric – are said to be made by Japanese car industry. And indeed also the protectors of the German car industry, the Federal Office for Motor Traffic and the Ministry of Transport / Traffic with Minister Dobrindt (now until June 2017) seem to have harmed the German industry very much: Because they seem to have covered and defended the criminal acts for years they not only have seriously damaged the progress in car industry, they have damaged the reputation of Germany.
12 Jan 2017, VW: Six other leading and former managers of VW have to tremble because of criminal charges in the US because of cover-up in case of Dieselgate, one manager was arrested by the FBI at 07 Jan 2017 in Miami. „Responsible persons and companies are held responsible for the miscarriages of companies“, said Loretta Lynche, US minister of justice http://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/auto/abgas-skandal-strafanzeigen-gegen-sechs-weitere-vw-manager/19241708.html und . http://www.wiwo.de/politik/deutschland/nach-manager-festnahme-anwaelte-raten-vw-vorstand-dringend-von-usa-reisen-ab/19241534.html
Nov 2016, ADACMotorwelt 11/2016, p. 28: The article is headed “Cheating on the track”. The ADAC checks through realistic measurements wether the exhaust gases on the test bench are manipulated. Since the beginning of the 90ties the emissions and consumption of a vehicle are examined in NEFZ, a test which takes place exclusively on the test bench in the laboratory. Nitrogen oxide is tested (NOx), Hydrocarbon (HC), Carbonmonoxide (CO), and Carbondioxide (CO2 i.e. CO2). The NEFZ (i.e. Neuer Europäischer Fahrzyklus) is said to have two weak points: The frame measurements are not very strict and “allow” many legal “improvements”, on the other hand the average speed on the 11 km is only 34 km/h. Thus in 2017 a new test is introduced, the WLTP (Worldwide Harmonized Light Duty Test Procedure), with an average speed of 47km/h on 23.26 km. The problem: This good test is also a test bench cycle and the results can be manipulated by software as well as VW made it at the NEFZ. To avoid manipulation the EU introduces the RDE road measurement with a PEMS- gadget (portable emissions measurement system) and the car has to drive on true roads, a fixed share of the city, land and highway. The RDE-EcoTest of the ADAC runs 91 km, between 100 and 120 minutes and test up to three times the results of the same car.
Oct 2016, www.eve-magazin.de, p. 25: Abs Expert Dr. Axel Friedrich teaches the car industry the fear. Article in eve5.: Dr. Axel Friedrich is said to be the Sherlock Holmes of the Dieselgate, since 2011. He works closely with DUH (Deutsche Umwelthilfe). They knew that VW – and many other car manufacturers – in Germany betray, but they did not assume that they would dare to do this in USA also! The fraud is in the manipulation of the exhaust gas purification, which only works on the test bench, but not in the normal road life. Because of the nitrogen oxide NOx pollution in many cities there is now an EU procedure against Germany. Environmental organisations, which are consulted by Dr. Axel Friedrich sue cities and car manufacturers as Opel, Fiat, Mercedes. He assumes they will win all the processes because the statements in nitrogen oxide pollution simply are wrong. Because on average the emission of nitrogen oxides is seven times as high as prescribed. Dr. Axel Friedrich and his crew measure on the road values of 550mg/km with a prescribed limit of 80! It is expected that in EU 430,000 humans will die by nitrogen oxides. Dr. Axel Friedrich lives in Berlin, a searched for international working Abs expert. He strives for fresh air on the whole globe, since world climate change threatens our livelihood.
7/8 2016 ADAC motorwelt: The article says that since 1 July 2016 cars are not allowed to Paris City, which were approved before 1997. After 2020 an even cars older than 10 years are not allowed. This is for conservation/ protection of environment.
Carbon Monoxide (CO) is a colourless, tasteless and odourless gas. It is a chemical compound of Carbon and Oxygen.
Carbon Monoxide (CO) and its association with carbon dioxides (CO2) and Oxygen (O2) and how they interact and do damage in and by exhaust gases: The exhaust gases of cars on the one hand contain a lot of carbon dioxide – which is harmless in the short term as long as enough oxygen is available. What is also present in the exhaust gas – also in much slower concentration – is carbon monoxide. That is much more dangerous: Carbon dioxide is simply inhaled and exhaled and does not react with the human body. Carbon monoxide is transferred to the red blood cells in the lungs and attaches there extremely tight. Normally Oxygen should be there in the lungs, but that does not work if Carbon monoxide has taken the place of oxygen. The red blood cells thus can not work for the internal breathing because they can not longer absorb oxygen! I.e. we can die from carbon monoxide polluting if carbon monoxide is not diluted from fresh air. (Information to me in April 2019.)
CO2 Emission in E-cars
is - as claimed by the producers - without any CO2 emissions. Carbon dioxide is a not visible heavy gas, weight in grams or tons. However in Germany E-cars are charged with CO2 emissions, since the Germans take into consideration the origin of the electricity. I.e. if the electricity is produced with burning of wood, oil, or other fossils as gas users can find this CO2 emissions at e-cars. This is to compare conventional cars and e-cars, as was informed at 10 Feb 2019.
CO2 Emissions, NOX and Particulate Matter Through Exhaust Gases or Fumes i
19 July 2017 Deutschlandfunk, a term clarification by Güther Hetzke / Christine Heuer: CO2 and NOX are gases. NOX are damaging the health. These NOX are mostly a man-made result, caused by burning of fossile energy as coal, oil and gases. In cities mainly Diesel cars are responsible for NOX. However also petrol cars are dangerous for the health because of the fine dust due to the tire abrasion and other reasons. In higher concentration they do damage to the lungs and thus later can cause heart problems. They do damage also to plants. NOX are part of the Particulate Matter Fumes, which is in general made by dust and erosions of the streets or by the tires’ abrasion. All these are doing damage to health. Carbon dioxides (CO2) are a part of nature, however in high concentration also can damage the health. CO2 is produced mainly by petrol cars or petrol driven engines.
22 March 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/news-deutsche-umwelthilfe-bekommt-vw-dokumente-komplett-geschwaerzt/13554168.html Association German Environmental Support (DUH, Deutsche Umwelthilfe) sued against German car producers since they did not deliver requested data about the nitrogen oxide NOx. Minister Dobrindt for traffic was forced by German Ministry KBA (Kraftfahrtbundesamt) to deliver the data, which were not made public by Minister Dobrindt since Oct 2015. Now the data from VW with 581 pages were sent to DUH, most content was blackened. Dobrindt is said to be a puppet on a string from the “leaders” of the German car producers. He is said to refuse any transparency. My comment: Ridiculous, Germany is strong – despite the “leaders”.
Both are chemical compounds of Carbon and Oxygen, both are produced by burning fossil fuels etc. https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kohlenstoffdioxid, 16 Oct 2019: Carbon Dioxide is – same as Carbon Monoxide – normally a natural gas. However 60 % of CO2 in the last decades, man-made emissions - remain in the atmosphere. This is leading to global warming, with negative effects on our world. Please see also other articles: The energy industry is emitting double of CO2 compared to the traffic industry. https://www.umweltbundesamt.de/themen/klima-energie/treibhausgas-emissionen/emissionsquellen#textpart-1
In 16 Oct 2019 https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/klimapaket-gebilligt-bundesregierung-1.4642724, “Emissionen in Deutschland”, meaning emissions in Germany: The very dark fields are the emissions produced by the energy industry and other industrial fields.
4 June 2021, Qatar Airways Press Releases: “Qatar Airways Group is dedicated to environmental leadership across all of its entities, including airlines , airport operations , aviation and catering services, retail outlets and hotels….Voluntary Carbon Offset Programme for Passengers: To put this into perspective, one tonne of CO2 is the average emission of one passenger on a return-flight from Paris to New York. It is also the amount of CO2 produced by driving 6,000km with a diesel.” Especially this press release from 04 June 2021 is to be appreciated very much, since it lines out, what the airline did already for a sustainable future of our planet. Please find there a list of admirable initiatives https://www.qatarairways.com/en/press-releases/2021/June/worldenvironmentday.html?activeTag=Press-releases.
CCS (Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage) and CCU (Carbon Dioxide Utilization) technology capturing and pressing carbon dioxide in the ground
2 Februar 2024 in “Welt”, by Philipp Woldin, at about 15th of January 2024, https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/jetzt-kommt-die-gro%C3%9Fe-kehrtwende-der-umweltverb%C3%A4nde-bei-der-co-speicherung/ar-AA1mLjTb?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=LCTS&cvid=2c468f959e2d4e1c8255b5adda8401a5&ei=49 “The majority of protectors of environment and nature until now have rejected the procedure of pressing CO2 into the ground because they feared incalculable damage from escaping gas. And they speculated that CCS could be used as an excuse to postpone measures to reduce CO₂ emissions.” … “ CCS: The carbon dioxide is captured during industrial processes and pressed into the ground at high pressure, be it on land or under the sea, for example in the North Sea. The theory goes that it is bound and can no longer cause any damage to the climate.”… CCU “stands for “Carbon Dioxide Utilization”. The captured carbon dioxide is further used, for example as a raw material for the chemical industry.
According to the law, CCS in Germany is currently only possible for research purposes and on a very small scale. But the federal government has been working on a carbon management strategy (CMS) since last year”. German newspaper SZ (Süddeutsche Zeitung) said “Norway has been using the technology for years and has offered countries like Germany to store their CO₂ under the North Sea. Since 1996, carbon dioxide has been injected into the Sleipner natural gas field around 260 kilometers off the west coast of Norway…. A comparable large-scale project is underway in Denmark, and Great Britain and the Netherlands are planning something similar. All have their CCS repositories in the North Sea in now exhausted gas and oil reserves.” …”The Federation of German Industries (BDI), the German Federation of Trade Unions (DGB) and the environmental protection organizations Nabu and WWF have published a theses paper on the transformation of the industry that is quite impressive.. It quotes: ”It is right to now give priority to using CCS and CCU where CO₂ emissions cannot be avoided based on current technical standards.” Please see also https://www.nabu.de/umwelt-und-ressourcen/forschungspolitik/32419.html#Wie%20l%C3%A4sst%20sich%20CO%E2%82%82%20Wieder%20Einfangen? The NABU (environmental protection organization) describes the technology of CCS and CCU.
29 June 2024: “On the economic benefits, Al Baker noted the competitive costs of renewable technologies, making the adoption of renewable energy technologies in Qatar and the region more attractive due to the decreased levelized cost of electricity production. The cost of photovoltaic solar energy has dropped significantly from around 4 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2017 to about 1.5 cents in 2023, with expectations to decrease to around 1 cent per kilowatt-hour by 2030. Similarly, the cost of wind energy has decreased from about 5 cents per kilowatt-hour in 2017 to approximately 4.5 cents in 2023, projected to reach about 4 cents per kilowatt-hour by 2030. The recommended energy mix is expected to reduce the average cost of electricity generation by 15 percent in 2030. Al Baker also mentioned that the strategy will enhance energy security by diversifying energy sources, ensuring the stability of the energy sector. The strategy adopts a balanced approach, combining centralized renewable energy facilities with high-efficiency gas-powered thermal generation.”
12 Dec 2016 E-aviation: Four persons in Munich, Germany, made a new invention in e-mobility, i.e. in e-aviation: A plane for two persons that can start vertically and consumes even less energy as an E-vehicle. http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/lilium-elektro-jet-muenchner-tueftler-bauen-mini-flieger/14882514.html As to a backstage information, often there are private investors to invest in such projects, where now seem to work 35 engineers. The project is suited for small planes, not to transport more passengers. There is no information about the e-aviation plane “Solar impulse 2” flying in 2015with Photovoltaic PV – started in Abu Dhabi – in our information service. The world is too familiar with that plane. If the new project Lilium is working with Lithium as “solar impulse 2” we do not know.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electric_vehicle, 17 Oct 2019: “An electric vehicle uses electric motors for propulsion.”… In the 21th century, EVs saw a resurgence due to technological developments, and an increased focus on renewable energy … Government incentives to increase adoptions were introduced including in the United States and the European Union.”
E-cars - as claimed by their producers - are driving without any CO2 emissions. In Germany E-cars are sometimes charged with CO2 emissions – since producing the electricity for cars is done by the energy industry, the industry which causes the highest CO2 emissions. We do not know how the electricity at the charging stations for the e-cars is produced - by coal, nuclear electricity or by fossil energy. Please see also this following article from Oct 2019 https://www.sueddeutsche.de/politik/klimapaket-gebilligt-bundesregierung-1.4642724, “Emissionen in Deutschland”, meaning emissions in Germany: The very dark fields are the emissions produced by the energy industry and other industrial fields.
Thus, it might be useful – at least in German cities – that peoples use buses, trains, bicycles or even walk.
04 Aug 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/ueber-den-stau-china-testet-elektrischen-bruecken-bus/13969262.html. See also 7/8 ADAC motorwelt p. 9: The “Transit Explore Bus” runs on rails at a speed of up to 60 km/h. The e-vehicle is supposed to transport around 1,400 passengers. Soon in Northern China in Qinhuangdao a first bus is tested. When other cars are stuck in the traffic jam, the bus rolls over rails almost on top of them. See also
05 Jul 2016-10-17 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/nahverkehr-olli-der-elektrobus-ohne-fahrer/13832382.html
22 Jan 2016 http://green.wiwo.de/airbnb-fuer-e-tankstellen-zwei-gruender-wollen-ein-crowd-ladenetz-aufbauen/
Small power plants as PV on private houses’ roofs and small wind turbines and home storage as by Teslas Powerwall are planed to be used for an electrical grid for charging of E-vehicles in Europe, since there is yet a lack of charging stations in Europe: By a crowd founding campaign two men from Austrian Vienna want to gather money for their start-up, see please enio.at their search engine for charging stations. The Austrians developed already a net of more than 1,000 charging stations in Europe – from Swede to Croatia.
24th August 2019 https://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/mittelstand/gescheitertes-wuestenprojekt-klaus-krinner-glaubt-nicht-mehr-an-desertec-aber-an-solarstrom/24934826.html. The article deals with PV (Photo Voltaic) as a means to produce electricity for the future. It is suggested to install PV on car ports’ roofs. Two roofs with PV thus might produce the electricity for two families. Such a decentralised PV from car port roof might deliver energy for charging an e-vehicle to drive around 10.000 km (ten-thousand kilometres). From another side the idea was given, to allow to E-car-owners to drive only with such own produced electricity, to save energy.
Dec 2015, ADAC Motorwelt, p.14: Porsche wants to present until 2020 the E-Bolide, in “Mission E”. The model engine offers a power output of 600 hp (440 kW) owed to two synchronous controlled E-engines, with acceleration 0 to100 km/h in 3.5 seconds. In 15 minutes it is planned to reload the battery up to 80 per cent.
7/8 2016 ADAC motorwelt: The article says the new electrically driven racing car “Grimsel” is even faster than racing cars with internal combustion engine. “Grimsel” has an acceleration of 1.513 seconds and 30 meters 0 to 100km/h – new world records. The car from the formula Student Team AMZ (Akademischer Motorsprortverein Zürich) has a weight of 168 kg and 1700 newtonmeter of torque.
16 Jan 2016: Three brothers from Austria conquer with their batteries the car industry. http://green.wiwo.de/kreisel-batterien-drei-brueder-erobern-mit-ihrem-akku-die-e-autobranche/
2 May 2016 http://green.wiwo.de/fuer-autos-und-ladesaeulen-oesterreichischer-akku-entwickler-baut-erste-batteriefabrik/ The Kreisel brothers in Austria offer their batteries now as well for planes. They already are better in costs and in range with the cars than Tesla.
19 Feb 2016 http://green.wiwo.de/e-autos-deutsches-forschungs-konsortium-will-1000-kilometer-reichweite-knacken/ TyssenKrupp wants – based on Lithium-Ion-Battery – to exceed the range of e-vehicles of 1,000 km. The cells in the battery should be arranged differently. Huge start-ups costs.
Uniti is a E-Vehicle with a range of 150 km with one charging of the battery, reaching a maximum of 90 km/ h. Soon it is planned to be built by company Uniti (same name as the car). Partners are scientists from Lund university. By crowd-founding-campaign FundedByMe now are collected around one million of Euro, the campaign is open until mid of Nov 2016. The car Uniti is claimed to be a milestone in more sustainable and efficient E-mobility - due to the developers. Two persons can sit in the car, one behind the other.
Around 21 April 2017: Chinese car industry BYD Auto claims at Shanghai car fair to sell more cars as TESLA, due to the article for the second year running. The company delivers e-vehicles to taxi and bus fleets and abroad China http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/automesse-shanghai-byd-ist-der-star-der-chinesischen-elektrofahrzeug-branche/19680926-2.html Owed to a backstage information from 18 April 2017 also in Seoul e-vehicles are developed with great passion, let’s hope that soon Lithium will be replaced here by other inventions.
Jan 2016, p.20: ADAC Motorwelt: The short lines inform that Elon Musk, chief of Tesla builds a huge storage factory for batteries of E-vehicles and in addition for storage of current energy in the own house, i.e. in each single house. He is quoted as follows: “The power of the sun is enough to cover the world’s energy needs.” (My comment: This is true, but better not with Lithium, the “white gold” to start a new Yukon-river-gold-rush-run. Nevertheless Elon Musk teaches us, that we can produce & store our own current energy. We have to ask: Is than energy producing in the future business or not?
08 June.2016 http://www.wiwo.de/politik/deutschland/eeg-reform-wie-es-mit-der-oekostromfoerderung-weiter-geht/13703620.html Difficult discussions on this law’s future. (My comment: A law, which used too much tax money for companies without a proper environment assessment. In consideration of wind turbines in Germany until Nov 2016 the law actually subsidizes small farms, or even municipalities or even citizens’ wind farms.)
21 July 2021, backstage information: Everyone can and may contribute by Energy Saving to the man-made climate change which causes disastrous weathers – may it be heavy rainfalls, prolonged draught or heat. Such energy saving can include the use of public transport networks, or to use delivery services instead as driving car, etcetera. All in all, the energy saving of many people together is very efficient.
When it comes to produce renewable energy the solar PV (Photo Voltaic) might be the most environment friendly option.
Reasons:
Green Hydrogen is not a source of energy production - it is only a technology to use water electrolysis to store and transport energy. But this Green Hydrogen or H2 has to be produced from wind energy, biogas, hydropower or PV, which means that these technologies must first be expanded in order to be able to produce Green Hydrogen. Please see H2 – Green Hydrogen below in our Information Service: There Ms Güllü Beydilli writes „The electricity from green sources is used for water electrolysis to split water molecules and produce hydrogen. This hydrogen can in turn be used as energy storage, stored in tanks or even underground caves and transported via pipelines, tankers or trucks. Thanks to hydrogen technology, green energy plants can be used independently of environmental conditions and thus become more reliable.“
Wind energy kills many birds of prey and other birds as well as bats and reduces the habitat for other birds like geese, bustards and cranes. Thus, it can have a huge negative impact on biodiversity.
Biogas from plants seems a single catastrophe in terms of environmental policy. Originally, waste from agriculture was supposed to be used. In reality, maize and other intensive fruits are grown with subsidies. The need for fertilizers and pesticides is huge and is in part at the expense of the tropical countries that produce the fertilizer. The damage to the groundwater resources cannot yet be foreseen, but eutrophication is already one of the main reasons for species extinction in many terrestrial and aquatic habitats. In addition, valuable agricultural land for food production is lost in favour of biogas production. The whole thing is financed by German and EU taxpayers' money.
Hydropower: In Germany, hydropower is the least efficient form of energy in relation to environmental damage. Many animal species in the waters normally migrate, but this is interrupted by the barriers used to generate energy. Wandering animals are killed, if they pass the turbines. Hydropower only contributes very little to electricity generation and has no further potential here in Germany.
Photo Voltaic: It would make sense to generate electricity on all roofs in Germany, because then it is generated where it is needed. And we don't have to build so called electricity highways from north to south. Unfortunately, people are still building PV parks in the agricultural landscape - also causing loss of area for food production.
https://www.mdr.de/ratgeber/mobilitaet/elektroauto-eauto-akku-lithium-entsorgen-oekobilanz-100.html, 24 Aug 2021, Electric cars are on the road. How climate-friendly do they really drive? How long do the batteries last? How are they disposed of and recycled? Battery technology expert Ulrich Schubert from the Friedrich Schiller University Jena explains it. Ulrich Schubert: The batteries in electric cars are typically lithium batteries. One of the main components are lithium ions, which in turn are embedded in graphite. Other components are cobalt, nickel, iron, aluminium and copper to conduct electricity and a housing made of metal and plastic. A wide variety of materials are used in such a battery.
What plans are there to increase the ecological balance of the batteries? Ulrich Schubert: With the current framework conditions of the sluggish energy transition, we won't get very far. The problem is that there is so much focus on electric cars now. It is trusted to save the world and stop global warming. This way is not correct. The CO2 emissions from recycling the batteries, the electricity required and the intervention in ecosystems during production create a large ecological footprint. You would need your own solar system on the roof to charge the car with your own green electricity. That would be climate neutral.
Electric cars burning: What does fire brigade have to consider:
https://www.mdr.de/nachrichten/deutschland/panorama/e-auto-batterie-brand-tunnel-schweizer-forscher-testreihe-100.html
Swiss researcher talks about tests with burning e-cars in the tunnel, January 06, 2022, What does the fire brigade have to consider? Marcel Held: That would make a difference, especially for extinguishing fires, i.e. for the fire brigade. Because the batteries cannot be extinguished in that sense. But you can spray water on it. This has a certain cooling effect. But the whole dynamic of the chemical process that takes place in a burning battery is practically unstoppable. Even if you were to sink the entire vehicle and the battery into a container with water, these processes would continue - until everything had chemically reacted… But that is in the order of a few minutes. The main finding is that there is contamination, specifically from the battery. Materials, especially the heavy metals of the cathode, are massively deposited in the environment. We found a lot of nickel, manganese and cobalt there. These are the metals of the cathode, the metal oxides and then also a bit of fluoride and some lithium. This means, especially for cleaning, that you can't just wipe it away. That must be decontaminated by professional personnel. - What about "harmful to health"? Marcel Held: Which is also important, if such fires are somehow fought or extinguished with water, or if batteries are submerged in water to cool and control them - then this water is also hazardous waste. You can't just throw that down the drain. The heavy metals are of course not healthy. They should not be inhaled in large quantities. There are also people who are allergic to metals - nickel for example. This is not a poison in that sense, but a certain danger if you inhale too much of it.
What alternatives to batteries could there be?
Marcel Held: The manufacturers are of course constantly improving these batteries. Security is a huge issue. Unfortunately, the most powerful batteries currently used in electromobility are also the most dangerous. Of course, research is being done to replace these flammable electrolytes and so on. At some point the solid-state battery with solid electrolytes might come along. On the material side, they try to make it less dangerous in all areas.
If a fire develops: Pull over to your right, do not attempt to put it out yourself. You can't do that with fire extinguisher.
The history about the electric cars: In 2009, Honda launched the first series-ready plug-in hybrid. In that year, countries around the world were struggling with the banking crisis. So the German government released funds for the development of e-cars... by the way, they are still subsidized today.
Unfortunately, the consequences were not thought through to the end: No requirements for the car manufacturers on how the HV (High Voltage) batteries can be recycled. No information how to extinguish a burning battery. No offer for the fire brigade about the handling. No infrastructure for charging stations and no thought that most people don't have the possibility to charge the car at home (charging time 8 hours). The super chargers are far too little and cost a lot more.
At the moment (June 2022) we have 0.8% e-cars on our roads, if you only increase the proportion to 20%, these vehicles could no longer be powered with so-called "green" energy because we don't have that many resources for it. In addition, there are currently discussions that e-cars produce enormous amounts of fine dust. Not necessarily the prerequisite for a positive balance of the CO2 limit.
Alternatives of batteries would be:
H2 = hydrogen
CNG = compressed natural gas
LPG = Autogas
SynFuel = synthetic fuels
E-Fuel = electro fuel
Perhaps one should also add that all HV (high voltage batteries) have to be replaced after 8-10 years. All FCEV fuel cell electric vehicles (abbreviation: FCEV), if the H2 drive or fuel cell, whether CNG or LPG, whether SynFuel or e-fuel. However BMW continues to rely on combustion vehicles. A new HV battery, depending on the size of the vehicle, costs up to 10,000Euro. In many cases, this means a total economic loss. This might be an important detail in an accident with an electric car and what enormous sums of money the owner can face. Information on the arbitrariness of the towing companies, since nothing is regulated by law: https://www.ramom.de/rechtsthemen/autounfall/standkosten.html
Sept 2018, Backstage and www.ews-schoenau.de supply of electricity in Germany for 2016: Basic supply in Germany is a mixture of nuclear power (14,3 %), coal 41,8 %, natural gas (9,5 %), other fossil energy(2,4%), Renewable energies according to EEG law (28,8 %), other renewable energies (3,2 %). Every form of production of energy has its disadvantages. The greatest potential therefore lies in energy savings. Then small decentralised combined cogeneration power plants are currently the optimal energy utilization because electricity and heat can be produced and used without large transport losses. These can be supplemented by solar collectors in the cities because there the electricity is used. Wind energy makes sense if it does not harm living beings and is not based on greed for money.
18. Nov. 2022. A small village in Germany’s county Bavaria is known as a pioneer in supplying the village and environment with Renewable Energies. “We are in the year 2022 a. D. All of Germany is paralyzed by the energy crisis.” (Magazine “Bertl”, 03-22, p. 14 and 15, by Silva Katinka Feltes). But a village with different sub-communities is not paralyzed – it has already managed the so called “energy transition” and is not only energy independent - it also sells its own energy to other communities. A total of around 60 to 65 million kilowatt hours of electricity are generated in the village (Fuchstal) from renewable energies, the community only needs 25 to 30 million kilowatt hours. Investors have already made substantial profits.
Mayor Erwin Karg and Deputy Mayor Gerhard Schmid with great perseverance and for the good of the community have been expanding renewable energy sources since 2008: Energy sources are Wind turbines - even with anti-collision systems to protect birds and bats. The school is heated with waste heat from the nearby biogas plant. Photovoltaic and hydroelectric power are also used.
Battery storage “Heatpot”: (See also newspaper “Der Kreisbote”, 21 September 2022, article “Heat pot at the start. Regional added value - 5.9 million project completed”, by Johannes Jais). The heat pot is a battery storage device with a capacity of 5,000 cubic meters - 25,000 bath tubs - and is supplied with excess energy from wind turbines. Depending on the cold, the heat pot (130 customers) can supply heat for a month to these customers including the school and the planned retirement home. In this way, excess electricity that does not fetch a price on the exchange is used sensibly. And the self-generated energy is much cheaper than purchased energy.
Addition of S. v. Werz: The municipality of Fuchstal has again won a very important award - after the German Sustainability Award in 2021, they have now received the German Solar Prize 2022 (Der Kreisbote, 16 November 2022, J.J., p. 8).
Sept 2019, Article in German Vogue Business “It is not too late”. The scientist Friederike Otto’s field in this institute in Oxford is world climate change. She is the leader of this institute with 80 employees. She also co-founded the Worldweatherattribution.org. In the article in German Vogue Business at p. 37 in my (Dr. von Werz-Kovacs’) translation: “… we speak a lot about the climate change, however we do nothing. … we might check all fonds we have ((meaning there might be hidden fossil energies etc.)) …To save energy is very good… And if you travel with trains instead of planes it is good also. However the global flight emissions are emitting only 3 (tree!) per cent of world wide CO2 …
19 June 2017, backstage information: Because consumers want increasingly to eat cheap meat, the mass production is consistently further expanded. The incredible quantities of manure are of course also disposed on agricultural land – to a far greater extend than they can absorb. All surplus pollutants and medicines can reach the drinking water. Already now the water works are alarming because the treatment of water will be far more expensive. And the medicines as hormones can cause a mollification of the males. Please read as well Renewable Energy Sources/Biogas Plants
20 Oct 2016 Indoorfarming and Hydroponik: very good for regions with low access to water. Now tested with sewage in several counties in Germany and countries as Portugal.http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/versuchsanlage-in-wolfsburg-hydroponik-mit-abwasser/14640184.html
June 2015: Poultry industry, wild birds: “Eco-farming as well as animal welfare is being challenged by the difficulties to keep free range poultry in species-appropriate conditions, while factory poultry holdings in closed bio-securitypremises are being privilegded.” In summary: Steiof, K., J. Mooij & P. Petermann 2015: %e “wild bird hypothesis” in the epidemiology of highly pathogenic avian influenza – recent situation and critical assessment of the position of the German Federal Research Institute for Animal Health (FLI) (state of June 2015).
Vogelwelt 135: 131–145.
05 Oct 2018: https://www.msn.com/de-de/nachrichten/panorama/oberverwaltungsgericht-münster-verfügt-rodungsstopp-im-hambacher-forst/ar-BBNY8s6?ocid=spartandhp
RME energy giant is not allowed to destroy a forest in Germany for brown coal mining with excavators. Since the forest is 300 m (metres) far away from places were such coal is mined and 120 metres are only needed for the excavators each year to reach the forest.
30 Oct 2016 Sustainability Report - Qatar Airways’ commitment to sustainable results in increased fuel efficiency and the recycling of more than one third of waste at Hamad International Airport Qatar Airways’ commitment to sustainable results in increased fuel efficiency and the recycling of more than one third of waste at Hamad International Airport http://www.qatarairways.com/global/en/press-release.page?pr_id=pressrelease_sustainabilityreport&locale_id=en_gl
please see Renewable Energy Sources/Geo Thermal Energy Plants
17 Feb 2021: These following sentences are from an article from Ms Güllü Beydilli “The path of green hydrogen” (article from 25 May 2020, https://engineered.thyssenkrupp.com/en/green-hydrogen/) and explain very good the advantages of this green technology not only to replace fuel and to drive cars. Green hydrogen – the light molecule H2 - can be stored and transported. We may be aware and know that the digitalisation of our lives constantly needs energy as well!
“The prerequisite for green hydrogen is its’ production, aka the water electrolysis, by using electricity from sustainable sources. To ensure a constant and reliable supply of electricity from green energy sources, the surplus electricity from wind power plants & solar plants must be storable for later use.”
„The electricity from green sources is used for water electrolysis to split water molecules and produce hydrogen. This hydrogen can in turn be used as energy storage, stored in tanks or even underground caves and transported via pipelines, tankers or trucks. Thanks to hydrogen technology, green energy plants can be used independently of environmental conditions and thus become more reliable. Hydrogen technology offers renewable energy plants the possibility to store surplus energy produced under favourable weather conditions. Renewable energies and green hydrogen technology are therefore mutually beneficial.
Modern hydrogen technology can thus make a significant contribution to a successful energy transition.”
Please see also https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/21/10/2020/Exporting-%E2%80%98green-hydrogen%E2%80%99-will-be-real-business-in-GCC-IRENA. The article is from 21 Oct 2020 and has the headline: “Exporting ´green hydrogen´ will be real business in GCC: IRENA
06 December 2022
Citizen pay for big industry. There have to be built and are already under construction new pipelines. It seems that here the citizens have to pay for it, but the green hydrogen is mainly used by large scale industry. So the “clever” large-scale industry probably passes the costs on to the citizens. https://www.vzbv.de/publikationen/faktenblatt-zu-gruenem-wasserstoff
Uncontrollable hydrogen (blue or grey) or other gas can be delivered in pipelines. Liquid gas from other energy sources as nuclear power might be delivered in the big pipelines TV, ARD, 1. Deutsches Fernsehen, Broadcast Monitor 4/29/21 | 07:46 min. Summary: Politics and the gas industry are selling green hydrogen as a central building block for the energy transition. But critics are skeptical: green hydrogen will be scarce and expensive. The gas industry is only using it as an excuse to secure its fossil gas business for decades. In the interview, the German politician Report the politician Altmaier can be seen versus various German professors.
Too much water consumption. A lot of drinking water is probably needed for the production, but drinking water is precious and scarce on the planet. https://oilprice.com/Energy/Energy-General/The-Green-Hydrogen-Problem-That-No-One-Is-Talking-About.html. It seems that a lot of drinking water is consumed by the process and this drinking water becomes contaminated - but afterwards this water has to be cleaned again.
Poor efficiency. We have to build up far too many green energy sources to get relatively little green hydrogen. The technology results in a lot of losses. Here I present the German Wikipedia translated into English: German Wikipedia, Green Hydrogen, criticism: “A study by Greenpeace Energy came to the conclusion at the end of 2020 that the use of green hydrogen would only serve to protect the climate if there was an abundance of green electricity due to its comparatively poor efficiency.[8][9] The German Nature Conservation Union (NABU) demands, among other things, a complete life cycle assessment of green hydrogen.[10]”
29 Aug 2023. The following contribution is from 25 Aug 2023: https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/nur-in-einer-region-sinken-emissionen-%C3%BCberall-sonst-gibt-s-mehr-treibhausgas/ar-AA1fLkNF?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=8c7852878b104723b48a1a1014a763e1&ei=17
Greenhouse gas emissions are calculated in tons. There are various reports on this. In brief: Europe ranks sixth. The highest number of GHG tonnes per person:
USA currently leads with 14 tons per person, followed by Russia with 13 tons, China with 9.7 tons, and the EU with 7.2 tons per person. The EU thus emits three times more greenhouse gases than India with 2.4 tons per capita. However, the World Bank reports a 24 percent drop since 1990 in the EU, while US emissions have increased by 3.7 percent and India by 178 percent. In China it is 300 percent. Despite Europe leading the way in cutting emissions, a 2021 UN report predicts that planet Earth could see a fatal 2.7 percent temperature rise until 2100..
Please see Oxygen (O2), Carbon Dioxide (CO2), and other Greenhouse Gases (GHG) and Trees ‚ Plant Respiratioen. In this text from 29 Oct 2020 you will find the principal greenhouse gases.
17 Feb 2021: These following sentences are from an article from Ms Güllü Beydilli “The path of green hydrogen” (article from 25 May 2020, https://engineered.thyssenkrupp.com/en/green-hydrogen/) and explain very good the advantages of this green technology not only to replace fuel and to drive cars. Green hydrogen – the light molecule H2 - can be stored and transported. We may be aware and know that the digitalisation of our lives constantly needs energy as well!
“The prerequisite for green hydrogen is its’ production, aka the water electrolysis, by using electricity from sustainable sources. To ensure a constant and reliable supply of electricity from green energy sources, the surplus electricity from wind power plants & solar plants must be storable for later use.”
„The electricity from green sources is used for water electrolysis to split water molecules and produce hydrogen. This hydrogen can in turn be used as energy storage, stored in tanks or even underground caves and transported via pipelines, tankers or trucks. Thanks to hydrogen technology, green energy plants can be used independently of environmental conditions and thus become more reliable. Hydrogen technology offers renewable energy plants the possibility to store surplus energy produced under favourable weather conditions. Renewable energies and green hydrogen technology are therefore mutually beneficial.
Modern hydrogen technology can thus make a significant contribution to a successful energy transition.”
Please see also https://www.thepeninsulaqatar.com/article/21/10/2020/Exporting-%E2%80%98green-hydrogen%E2%80%99-will-be-real-business-in-GCC-IRENA. The article is from 21 Oct 2020 and has the headline: “Exporting ´green hydrogen´ will be real business in GCC: IRENA
20 Oct 2016 Indoorfarming and Hydroponik: very good for regions with low access to water. Now tested with sewage in several counties in Germany and countries as Portugal.http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/versuchsanlage-in-wolfsburg-hydroponik-mit-abwasser/14640184.html
please see Farming/Indoorfarming
08 Oct 2018 IPCC, Intergovernmental panel on climate change does not do research itself but evaluates the findings of many studies on the global climate. In the article the IPCC concerns about evaluation of 6000 studies, the report was voted on by representatives of 195 states. https://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/weltklimarat-beispiellose-veraenderungen-gegen-klimawandel-notwendig/23158912.html
In order to stop the warming of the planet, the IPCC asks especially the politicians for rapid changes at all levels, as energy, industry, buildings, transportation. Observers speak of a wake-up call to the politicians. The data is also the basis for the world climate conference in December 2018 in the Polish city of Katowice. Especially planned and existing coal-fired power plants are made responsible for the warming of the planet. The warming causes risks of rising sea levels, salinization of the fields, or floods due to storms in coastal areas such as in the Nile Delta. In the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement politicians had greed to a global warming degree below 2.0 degree. But now without drastic restrictions the planet is heading for 3 to 4 degrees.
01 April 2023 https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/schmutziges-gas/ar-AA16JAYz?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=e25b3a925b214595b14b33530fce8240 This article was published at 25th of January 2023. LNG: The natural gas itself consists of the much stronger greenhouse gas methane. And that escapes in mining and transport. Combustion not only produces CO2. The think tank "Energy Comment" also writes that up to 10 percent more methane gas escapes from LNG from the USA than from gas from Norway. With Norwegian methane gas, only 0.02 percent would end up in the atmosphere. The think tank writes: Of course, climate-friendly alternatives would be best anyway . https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/und-das-gas-kommt-doch/ar-AA196R2p ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=738e9c8fc71d47f0f77c75d1c8e73913&ei=101 And the gas is coming, article from the 26th of March 2023: Despite the delivery stop, Russia is becoming the third largest LNG supplier for Europe via detours. The EU and especially Germany have greatly reduced dependence on Russian LNG. Germany has not received any Russian pipeline gas since 02 Sept 2022. There was a delivery stop from Moscow on the same day. But according to the US think tank IEFFA, 12 percent more LNG from Russia is now arriving at LNG terminals in Europe. This makes Russia the third largest LNG supplier to Europe after the USA and Qatar. There are LNG terminals in France, Spain, Belgium, Netherlands, Great Britain, Italy. In Germany, terminals have now also been built on the North and Baltic Seas, with more to follow. Germany does not receive LNG directly from Russia. According to IEFFA, it reaches Germany via existing pipeline networks from Belgium and Holland.
26th of July 2023. The following article was published at 24th of June 2023: https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/niederlande-wollen-europas-gr%C3%B6%C3%9Ftes-gasfeld-schlie%C3%9Fen/ar-AA1cWDwj?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=53ef74bf42b44010b18ac457b90fdcbc&ei=107
The Netherlands intends to shut down Europe's largest gas field near Groningen in October 2024. The underground gas fields are the largest in Europe and the eleven wells have been producing around 22 billion cubic meters of gas per year since the 1960s. The NAM group is probably half owned by Shell Netherlands and half by ExxonMobil. There is probably a functioning network of pipelines where non-European nations could feed in their gas.
But for more than 20 years, residents have complained about earthquakes caused by gas extraction, which have severely damaged homes. Therefore, gas production should be stopped completely as early as 2022, but due to the uncertain international situation and in the event of a gas shortage, gas should still be able to be withdrawn until October 2024.
„The EU Commission has approved state aid from Germany of an estimated 40 million euros for the Brunsbüttel LNG terminal.“ Energy companies RWE and the Dutch energy network operator Gasunie will benefit. This terminal Brunsbüttel “improves the gas supply and gas infrastructure in Germany and also contributes to energy security in the EU. Specifically, the German state development bank KfW is to grant the two companies a share of the dividends paid by the operator of the LNG terminal if the annual return on the project falls below a certain percentage. The operating company is a joint project of KfW, Gasunie and RWE.
On the other hand, if the project yields enough money, no aid should be paid, is said. According to the information, however, it is estimated that the amount of aid should amount to 40 million euros. The mechanism through which the money is to be distributed is set to run for 15 years.”
18 Sept 2021 https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/umweltminister-k%C3%BCndigt-systemwechsel-beim-wasserhaushalt-an/ar-AAOzRIm?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531"Intact bogs bind large amounts of carbon, while drained bogs are still major sources of carbon dioxide today, often emitting more than 30 tons of CO2 equivalents per hectare and year," scientist and Minister of Environment of a German County , Axel Vogel explained.
From another scientist I received the following explanation: “In fact, a lot of CO2 is bound in the peat that is formed in the moors. Drainage of moors (e.g. to harvest crops - potting soil!) is also a disaster for this reason. The other is that there are many highly specialized animal and plant species in bogs that can no longer live in drained bogs. On the one hand, peatlands are still peated in Germany on the basis of 99-year mining rights (how bizarre is that ?!), but one also tries to bring peatlands back to life. That is only possible with water. So: 1. Close drainage ditches, 2. remove woody plants that have grown in the bog (because a lot of water evaporates) and 3. replace coniferous forest with deciduous forest in the area around the bogs. Because more water seeps away under deciduous trees than under conifers, and this may benefit the moors as groundwater or stratified water. It is only now a huge effort to heal the mistakes of the past.”
June 2017, magazine "Schrot & Korn, p. 58: "German Minister of Agriculture accused 2016 by EU Commission for lack of implementation of the EU nitrate directive. The article mentions that he not only has blocked environmental measures and animal welfare measures, but he also abducted the new EU nitrate directive. Experts demand a new start in agricultural policy to protect the biodiversity of our planet. The farmer’s union in March 2017 found out that Germans claim that ethical and ecological claims are not yet met, especially environmental measures & animal welfare might be far better. Furthermore in monocultures lots of pesticides are applied and on the fields more manure is applied by extensive animal farming than the meadows can tolerate.
12 Jan 2024. https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/nuklear-startup-kriselt-gewaltig-der-traum-der-hosentaschen-akws-ist-vorerst-geplatzt/ar-AA1mOfU4?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=LCTS&cvid=710c6ccafd854d61f89c5332a6c47c67&ei=127 „Miniature reactors were to become a fundamental part of the nuclear renaissance. But the most important manufacturer is in huge crisis. For investors, the bet on company NuScale Power turned out to be a flop.
The energy industry seems to be sure of one thing: the future is decentralized. This applies to the in-house solar roof - including battery storage - as well as to the most advanced form of energy generation, nuclear power. Instead of huge reactors, compact, modular reactors will provide the necessary energy in the future. Cheap and CO2-free.”… “Originally, electricity from the mini-reactors was supposed to cost $58 per megawatt hour. However, due to higher construction costs, the price climbed to USD 89/megawatt hour, a jump of an enormous 53 percent, according to an analysis by the energy industry think tank IEEFA last January. The price would actually be almost 120 USD/megawatt hour”…
In Germany, a megawatt hour in wholesale electricity currently costs around 100 euros, or just over 109 US dollars, as data from the Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur) shows. In the USA the prices are significantly lower. According to the energy agency EIA, a megawatt hour of electricity was at the end of December for prices between 27 and 54 dollars - depending on the regional distributor.”… “Reactors are expensive, and in almost every case more expensive than planned.”… “ Cost explosions in nuclear projects are the rule, not the exception. Last year, for example, two new units at the Vogtle nuclear power plant in the US state of Georgia finally went into operation - seven years later than planned, and with construction costs of over 31 billion dollars, more than twice as expensive as planned.”…”In addition, a question in the nuclear power renaissance often remains unanswered: Who should ultimately build all the Nuclear power plants, whether large or small? After the COP 28 climate conference” – in 2023 – “energy consultant Mycle Schneider criticized "N-tv" that many countries had declared that they wanted to build more reactors, but the fragmented industry did not have the capacity at all…. For example, EDF is already overwhelmed with the maintenance of the reactor fleet in the home country of France. …The performance of the French power plant park was an absolute disaster last year. There were an average of 152 standstill days per reactor”...”In December (2023), China General Nuclear Power (CGN) said goodbye to the Hinkley Point C project. The company was actually supposed to be a junior partner of the French utility giant EDF and support the now $41 billion expansion of the nuclear power plant near the British town of Bridgwater. But a contract clause allowed the Chinese to stop financing if the costs became too high.”
According to a document from EWS Schönau (Elektrizitätswerke Schönau Vertriebs GmbH (EWS), the share of nuclear power in 2022 was still 6.6 percent of the German electricity mix.
Nuclear power is only so cheap in Europe because it is subsidized with large amounts of tax money. The taxpayer bears the vast majority of costs. This doesn't even include the costs of disposing of and safely sealing the nuclear waste for at least 100,000 years or so. The electricity companies are allowed to make profits from the nuclear reactors and the taxpayer bears the costs.
01 Sept 2022. Already in 2010 German Bund für Umwelt und Naturschutz Deutschland (BUND), Landesverband Schleswig-Holstein e.V. wrote in their website “Electricity from renewable sources is already cheaper than nuclear power on the electricity exchange today. In addition, the price of electricity does not reflect the true cost of nuclear power. In a study, the Forum Ecological-Social Market Economy compared the real costs for society as a whole of different forms of energy. A kilowatt hour (kWh) of nuclear power costs up to 42.2 cents. Wind energy, on the other hand, is only around 8.1 cents/kWh.”
Please see also https://green-planet-energy.de/fileadmin/docs/publikationen/Studien/Greenpeace_Energy_Was_Strom_wirklich_kostet_2015.pdf. The booklet mentions the comparatively high costs of nuclear power, please see page 15 and 16.
21 May 2017: Switzerland will leave nuclear power plants, thus a democratic voting: http://www.wiwo.de/politik/europa/atomausstieg-schweiz-stimmt-fuer-die-energiewende/19833766.html
June 2017, Magazine „Schrot & Korn“, page 9: The nuclear power plant Tihange 2 in Belgium is said to be a risk power plant. However fuel rods are delivered from Germany to Tihange 2 in Belgium – with the approval of the German Federal Ministry for Environment. Minister Ms Barbara Hendricks says, owed to the laws (Atomrecht / i.e. Law for Nuclear Power and other law in EU) she has to allow that delivery. However a German lawyer, Ms Cornelia Ziehm, explained in TV (Tagesschau), that Germany has the right to stop the planned export – as in the case of Tihange 2, when the security of citizens is threatened (www.ausgestrahlt.de). As we in Royal Network & Production Alliance explained in “Why Protection” – Uranium seems to be without any risk in the ground. However mining, transportation and other handling of uranium may cause high risks to the health, especially it may cause cancer.
09 June 2017: The U.A.E. / Abu Dhabi will not be Without Nuclear Power Plant because of Diversification says Anca Westley, marketing leader of Abu Dhabi Future Energy: “This is part of our diversification” Abu Dhabi participates in the planned world expo in Kasachstan, were nuclear power plants are in the forefront – because they do not produce CO2 (That is correct, but mining, transportation and other handling of uranium may cause high risks to the health, especially it may cause cancer! Please read “Why protection” in our website) http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/kasachstan-expo-zur-energie-der-zukunft/19912388.html Moreover the German industry hopes to build more wind turbines for the rich country Kasachstan!!! Let us hope that there are not any birds or bats to be killed. In the same article the planned leader of the German Pavillon, Mr. Heindl, says that Germany completely will retire from nuclear power. But at same time Germany plans to sell fuel rods to Tihange 2 – despite Germany has the right to stop that export www.ausgestrahlt.de).
01 Sept 2022 Risks: Atomenergie ist eine Hochrisikotechnologie, sie kann die Gasmangellage nicht beheben - Sonnenseite - Ökologische Kommunikation mit Franz Alt
The article mentions world known medical organization IPPNW in 2022: The Nuclear Power share in the power supply in Germany is currently only around 6 percent. In these times (September 2022) there is much confusion about nuclear power and extending the service life of nuclear power plants in Germany. The background is that Germany sells this power also to France. IPPNW informs since long years about the security gaps in nuclear power plant operation. The cause is stress corrosion cracking in the steam generator pipes, which in the worst case can trigger a super meltdown. More than 300 cracks are already known in the German Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant. “Nuclear power is a high-risk technology. Within 32 years there were three major nuclear disasters: Three Mile Island (USA), Chernobyl (Ukraine) and Fukushima (Japan). That means, on average, a major disaster every 10 to 11 years,” explains (German) IPPNW Chair Dr. Angelica Claussen.
29th Oct 2020: There is a big confusion about trees producing Oxygen. It is true that during daytime trees produce Oxygen by photosynthesis, however in the nights they breath in the same amount of oxygen, which they produced during day. If they really would produce Oxygen the amount of oxygen in forest areas might be much higher compared to deserts, however it is around the world around 21 %!
Trees do have a very important function: They give shadow and evaporation cooling and filter a lot of dust from the air with their foliage. Therefore they are so important for cities. Trees - especially forests that are getting old - have an important role in the world's climate: They store CO2 in their wood. Therefore if burning this wood the stored CO2 is released into the air. However CO2 is just one gas that is responsible for the greenhouse effect besides methane and others, please read the following very interesting sentences in the mentioned article:
https://whatsyourimpact.org/greenhouse-gases
“Greenhouse gases allow sunlight (shortwave radiation) to pass through the atmosphere freely, where it is then partially absorbed by the surface of the Earth.3 But some of this energy bounces back out towards space as heat. Of the heat emitted back to space, some is intercepted and absorbed by greenhouse gases in the atmosphere. This is because these compounds are made of three or more atoms. This molecular structure allows them to absorb some of the escaping heat and then re-emit it towards the Earth which increases global temperatures.
The ability of these gases to trap heat is what causes the greenhouse effect. So the more greenhouse gases you have in the atmosphere, the more heat stays on Earth. This process, which is very similar to the way a greenhouse works, is why the gases that can produce this effect are collectively known as greenhouse gases.
There are 2 ways that a greenhouse gas (often abbreviated GHG) can enter our atmosphere. One of them is through human activities. The main human sources of GHG emissions are: fossil fuel use, deforestation, intensive livestock farming, use of synthetic fertilizers and industrial processes. The other is through natural processes like animal and plant respiration.
The principal forcing greenhouse gases are:
• Carbon dioxide (CO2)
• Methane (CH4)
• Nitrous oxide (N2O)
• Fluorinated gases
The main feedback greenhouse gas is:
• Water vapor”
Here also trees are named in the content of “plant respiration”. I’m very happy that now we can find such light giving articles!
Production of Oxygen O2 and its connection to carbon dioxide CO2. Algae produce O2, trees and plants breathe in oxygen and exhale carbon dioxide, animals and humans consume oxygen: Our O2 / Oxygen was and is formed in the oceans by the phyto plankton, which are smallest algae. Like all living things trees themselves need oxygen and breathe in oxygen – and they exhale CO2! They can only – like all plants with chlorophyll – operate in sunlight photosynthesis, - which means that than from CO2 becomes Oxygen again. Therefore, the Oxygen and CO2 is balanced in trees and plants. Only humans and animals consume constantly oxygen. The main function of trees in cities is the evaporation and thereby cooling by the large leaf surface. In forests and moors carbon is bound directly in the biomass. Carbon (CO) is bound in moors in the peat, which is why peat extraction is so catastrophic. In forests the carbon is first bound in the wood and then in the soil over the next centuries. What we do with oil and coal burning is nothing but the release of the carbon of millions of years old forest and moorland now within a few years: Hence the incredibly fast changes in the climate. Thus a backstage information from insider for more clarity from 11 Oct 2018.
02 August 2023: So far there has been a discussion in Germany that PV solar fields are blocking valuable agricultural farmland, because they are usually mounted very low. However in Au in the Hallertau in Bavaria a high-mounted PV system was inaugurated: Tall growing hop plants there will be grown on an area of 1.3 hectares and at the same time solar energy will be produced for around 200 households. (Weekly magazine “Landwirtschaftliches Wochenblatt, 21 July 2023, p. 45): There were invested around 1.5 million euros in the scientifically supported project. The PV modules are mounted on 6 metres high stable steel masts, on which the hop plants can grow at the same time. However, only 80 percent of the usual electricity yield is expected because fewer PV modules are installed so that the plants do not get too much shade.
The potential in the Bavarian Hallertau region for these high-mounted PV modules is huge, because hops are grown on 17,200 hectares. Farmers can use this large area twice: for hop cultivation and for solar energy. At the same time, the solar modules can be very useful from an agricultural point of view. Because the plants benefit from protection from too much sun or hail and less evaporation. The German state of Bavaria holds amidst all German estates the top position in the field of solar energy by a wide margin: 750,000 solar systems currently produce more than 20 GW of electricity. https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/agri-pv-photovoltaik-landwirtschaft-soeder-aiwanger-kaniber-fraunhofer-energiewende,TiffokW. According to Trommsdorff, from German Fraunhofer Institute around 30 systems are currently installed in Germany. How powerful a system is per hectare depends on how close together the solar panels can be built. The question is: How much shade can a plant tolerate? Or: how big does the distance between the module rows have to be in so-called ground-level systems?
https://www.br.de/nachrichten/bayern/dank-solarenergie-auch-in-zukunft-noch-hopfen-in-bayern,TifuTid
“With agri-photovoltaics (agri-PV) or agrophotovoltaics, agricultural land can be used for plant production and solar power generation at the same time. Photovoltaic modules are mounted on high frames so that the area below can be used for agricultural purposes. Agri-PV is not only used in fields with low-growing crops such as potatoes, but also for higher-growing special crops such as hops or fruit. Depending on the system design, the complex, stable constructions are sometimes more than four meters high, so that tractors and combine harvesters can drive underneath.
Advantages: Due to the dual use of agricultural land, the competition between energy and food production is defused - in Germany, energy crops are grown on a good 14 percent of agricultural land instead of food. In addition to more efficient soil use, Agri-PV can increase harvest yields: the solar modules sometimes support plant production through shading effects at high temperatures and, depending on the design, offer protection against heavy rain, hail and frost.
Disadvantages: In contrast to photovoltaic ground-mounted systems, however, agri-PV systems are usually more expensive and tend to produce less electricity per area.”
Please see also Renewable Energies/Sun/Photo Voltaic (ohne Agriculture)
09 August 2023. The company IWORKS and its scientific partners presented a PV model for city roofs. The foldable PV System , the Urban Box, is used as a roof over parking spaces, sports fields or industrial areas. An at the same time provides shade. In bad weather conditions, such as a storm, the modules automatically move into a protective box, the “urban box”. When moving in and our , they are cleaned from a rotating brush for maximum energy efficiency. The previous foldable modules have a size of 11 x 35 meters and are erected up to a height of 12 meters. The maximum output is 75kWp. The first systems are to be erected in Nuremberg in 2023.
For PV please see also Renewable Energies / Sun / PV
06 Dec 2021: Rangers in National Parks and Nature Reserves are worldwide well known to safe the biodiversity of this planet. Though, they do a hard job, which might be dangerous if one considers their fight against poaching and illegal logging in many tropical countries.
It might be interesting to read, that even in cities like Berlin and Hamburg the institution of rangers was implemented recently.
21 Oct 2021: https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/informieren-und-kontrollieren-ranger-nehmen-dienst-auf/ar-AAPNeYQ?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531 Not having such an extreme job as their colleagues in other countries, they play an important role in bringing knowledge about nature to the wider audience, or to guard some interesting species in the cities (like beavers, otters or rare plants). Additionally, they might monitor some traps as glass facades, which can be fatal for birds. Thus, they help the authorities to save the urban biodiversity.
15 April 2019 https://www.qatarairways.com/en/press-releases/2019/April/QADCO.html?activeTag=Press-releases
Fresh food from the farms and greenhouses!
Feb 2017 backstage information: CSP Trough-Mirror design only in very few cases does damage to birds. Therefore we're very happy about a Norwegian company, because CSP design is used https://www.saharaforestproject.com/qatar/, however less efficient PV seems to be used also, etc. Please read the site yourself! The site in Qatar was planned in 2012 by the former Prime minister in Qatar (cooperation between Yara ASA, the worlds’ largest supplier of fertilizer and the Qatari company Qafco, the world’s largest single site producer of urea and ammonia). Now it seems this Norwegian company has developed a testing area for environmental technologies in Jordan. Please see an information from March 2018: https://www.saharaforestproject.com/desert-visit-high-level-delegation-jordanian-politicians-european-diplomats/
Summer 2017: Dr. Abouleish, founder of SEKEM, a longstanding re-greening project in the desert in Egypt, founded sustainable Heliopolis university with many family members in 2012 (Magazin “Der Lebensbaum”, Nr. 81, Sommer 2017, p. 15). http://www.hu.edu.eg/
30 Oct 2016: Sustainability Report - Qatar Airways’ commitment to sustainable results in increased fuel efficiency and the recycling of more than one third of waste at Hamad International Airport . http://www.qatarairways.com/global/en/press-release.page?pr_id=pressrelease_sustainabilityreport&locale_id=en_gl
As owed to several information in 2019 companies try to save batteries to reuse as Lithium-Ion-Batteries by several measurements.
30. April 2019, Spiegel.de: Solar Photo Voltaic (PC) panels of the first generation, i.e. 20 years old, have (often?) lost their efficiency and can be recycled. It is in a process, called Pyrolyse: As in an oven without Oxygen but with high pressure the silizium (silicon) can be separated from the metals and can be reused, i.e. recycled. This has to be done if only one or two of the cells in the system of the PV panels doe not work by having been damaged etc. It is possible to simply repair the damaged cell, however it is not reasonable! More over the markets are floaded with cheap panels from Asia, thus to repair some cells means far too high costs compared with buying new stuff. https://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/technik/solaranlage-wohin-mit-den-solarzellen-der-ersten-generation-a-1259061.html
04 May 2017 Australian scientists from Deakin University and here Mazher Mohammed produce tabs, pumpes and pipes for water supply in remote areas by a 3D-printer. These printers can produce any three dimensional objects. The printer works with solar energy and uses shredded plastic waste. The whole project will cost around 30,000 Australian dollars, by Crowed Funding already 18,000 Dollar are funded. http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/biz/solarer-3d-drucker-wasserleitungen-aus-plastikmuell/19744576.html
Backstage information Feb 2017: Solar tubes (Swiss made) are coated inside with steel-aluminium-nitrite or with steel-copper-nitrite. This micro/1000s coating will dissolve, when the tubes are damaged and come into contact with oxygen. The more important is a high quality of the solar tubes, since such solar tubes do work “forever”.
16 Nov. 2022: Doing research in Renewable Energies using the internet in November 2022 is very complicated, since many agencies or news now work in this field. We prefer to present the calculations of a scientist on the feasibility of supplying Germany with renewable energies. His calculation is based on a graphic of energy consumption by sector in
2021 in TWh:
With 1946 TWh almost exactly 2000 TWh was the consumption in 2021 in Germany. At the same time, around 120 TWh were probably generated by wind turbines and around 40 TWh by solar cells. After all, almost 40 TWh came from biogas (estimated - in 2017 it was 32 TWh). Then we still have hydropower with about 20 TWh.
So from 2000 TWh approx. 220 TWh are covered so far, i.e. 10%. There's still a decent gap there. Of course, one can argue that e-cars will eventually spread further etc., so I assume a flat-rate saving of 500 TWh. Then we have 1500 TWh demand and 220 TWh yield. Let's round it up very roughly, which is 1000 TWh, which is missing, and if we want to cover that with solar cells and calculate with the usual 1000 hours of peak power, we need 1 TW of additional peak power. 22 GW area is needed with 20% efficiency: 1 TW / 1000 W/m² /20%=5 Gm². So 5000 km² is needed (PV preferably mounted on roof surfaces), which corresponds to about twice the area of Saarland.
22 August 2018. https://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/studie-haushalte-auf-dem-land-liegen-bei-energiewende-technik-vorn/22940582.html
Article from Wiwo green, most influential business news: Most spread in Germany are Solar Thermal Systems, especially amidst owners of houses. The article quotes a poll among 3,700 households by the state bank KfW. The Germans are to 90 % keen to protect the planet from further world climate change, especially in house building – with solar tubes collectors.
Backstage information: From 1,000 (one-thousand) watts from solar radiation and energy the solar tubes collectors gain back 800 watts in efficiency. PV (Photo Voltaic) only gains 10 %, i.e. from 1,000 watts they gain 100 (one-hundred) watts.
01 Feb 2024: Royal Network & Production Alliance’s Information Archive 2014 is quoted here: “High power Perowskit solar cells with an efficiency of 20,1 % developed (article from17.11.2014) in Southern Korea. These cells were already certified in October 2014. A Perowskit cell was discovered in 2009. These cells will be very cheap, since Perowskites are available in masses. To manufacture such solar cells only very small amounts of the material are necessary. Solar power thus would be the cheapest power source - mentions the article. To date records only have arisen in the laboratory – the next step would be the manufacturing of efficient modules, stable and reliable. However the cell decomposes most rapidly when exposed to moisture.
Researchers hoped that the cells might be printed on glass, steel, plastic and other materials as parts of facades. This meanwhile has turned out as impossible, as I was informed http://green.wiwo.de/durchbruch-billig-solarzelle-erreicht-20-prozent-wirkungsgrad/”
31 Jan 2024: “Solar panels built with Oxford PV’s solar cell technology” – as claimed by Oxford PV – “will generate more power than comparably sized, silicon-only based PV technology – critical for delivering more affordable clean energy, accelerating the adoption rate of solar, and addressing the climate crisis. Leaders in perovskite solar technology | Oxford PV “Oxford PV, a spin-out of the University of Oxford, is a world leader in the development of perovskite-on-silicon tandem solar cells, which have a theoretical maximum efficiency of over 43%, compared to less than 30% for silicon solar cells.”
26 April 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/biogas-aus-mist-neue-technik-macht-energiepflanzen-ueberfluessig/13554436.html Company Ductor from Finland claims to generate biogas from animal manure, as chicken - avoiding misuse of agricultural farmland.
March 2016 – backstage information mostly. As it seems Biogas plants which burn waste (as a special form of WTE Waste to Energy) to produce gas for both the current recovery as well as for heating and hot water are far less efficient as assumed – the efficiency seems to be only 30 % (owed to a backstage information given to me in March 2016 from a former leader in this field). The system which runs the plants is cogeneration, which is not further funded in Germany. The engine used needs itself energy to burn the waste. “Bio gas can be produced from raw materials as agricultural waste, manure, municipal waste, plant material, sewage, green waste of food waste. It is a renewable energy source and in many cases exerts a very small carbon footprint.” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biogas In short: By fermentation of biodegradable materials the gas methane, hydrogen and carbon monoxide can be oxidized with oxygen. “This energy release allows biogas to be used as a fuel;” https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biogas.
The lack of efficiency applies for large municipal biogas plants and also for smaller ones. The rest of the waste, i.e. those not biodegradable materials - around 70 % - have to be burnt again! More over in the case of smaller farm biogas plants precious farmland is misused . The main problem for nature and environment is here, that this it not essentially bio-waste but plants as mais and raps are cultivated and gassed! This means that precious agricultural land is lost for the production of food. As a result, food prices are rising – even in the third world, because there precious agricultural land is used for crops to be gased in Europe – as far as I understand. The cultivation of these monocultures increases the use of fertilizers and pesticides. These pollute the environment, namely groundwater, surface water and soils – and are directly responsible for the destruction of species. This is a classical example of misguided subsidies!
Renewable Energy Sources/Biogas plants most expensive?!
23 Nov 2015 http://www.sueddeutsche.de/bayern/subventionen-laufen-aus-die-angst-der-biogas-bauern-1.2748751: The article mentions (besides the big picture), that biogas is the most expensive renewable energy source, one kW hour costs about 15 to 22 cent. In Germany seemingly without subventions. Rather high risk because of errors made by the human operators or by technical reasons, and manure was released into ground water and polluted a river, fish died. Restoring of this river seems to need years. Seems to be a renewable energy source which does not need storing (???). Munich Stadtwerke (driving the electrical grid in Munich) therefore in the past supported many biogas plants to feed energy into the grid, whenever a break down of grid made it necessary.
However it seems that German KfW bank is supporting with a certain amount of money, for storage systems related to biogas plants. This is bit confusing to me, if these systems are said that they do not need storage? Etc.
14 Sept 2016, http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/schifffahrt-brennstoffzellen-fuer-grueneren-antrieb/14539532.html. Ships propelled by cogeneration.
09 Jan 2017, https://www.audubon.org/news/why-solar-power-good-birds: Lynsy Smithon-Stanley and Liz Bergstrom write about different methods of solar energy production and their impact on birds, including PV. “Here’s how to go solar safely” – and not harmful. About systems with concentrated solar towers they write “The potential harm of this solar power method can be seen at the Ivanpah concentrated solar tower in California. In 2015, Ivanpah killed about seven birds per gigawatt hour of electricity produced—or more than 6,000 birds estimated over the course of the year. By comparison, the climate change impacts of burning fossil fuels are estimated to kill only one bird per gigawatt hour. Because of this, Audubon opposes any further construction of concentrated solar towers.”
Please also note our older contribution “Renewable Energy Sources/Sun/Solar Tower”
02 Jul 2016: It is planned that in Egypt in the future there will be no further subsidies for the current. Therefore there is high interest in Renewable Energies Sources. German company Heliatek offers a foil stuck on walls. As Heliatek claims the foil does have high efficiency at high temperatures as well – in contrast to conventional PV/Photovolatic products. They are organic solar cells, which are significantly cheaper to manufacturer than PV cells. However the stated efficiency is modest. The Egypt people want to do business with these solar cells. They are stuck on steel facades . On a biogas plant in Germany the 95 sqm delivered 5,4 kW/hour. Operator is former Energy giant RWE. Instead the Heliatek company aims to use decentralised energy world wide. Please search for the article in www.wiwo.de.
17 Mar 2015 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/hausfassade-in-singapur-grossversuch-mit-klebenden-solarzellen-startet/13551448.html This article is about facades in Singapore to be equipped with foils from Heliatek.
Jan 31, 2024 https://noorabudhabi.ae/news/noor-abu-dhabi-solar-plant-completes-second-year-of-commercial-operation/
“Noor Abu Dhabi solar plant completes second year of commercial operation
The 1.2 gigawatt project is the largest standalone photovoltaic plant in the world. The UAE’s massive 1.2 gigawatt Noor Abu Dhabi solar power plant has completed two years of commercial operation. The project, which has more than 3.3 million solar panels deployed at a single site, is the largest standalone photovoltaic plant in the world. The project began commercial operation in April 2019 and generates enough power to meet the needs of 90,000 individuals.” The PV panels cover an area of 8 km3 in the UAE, i.e. United Arab Emirates.
20 April 2016: New PV modules from cadmium telluride cheaper and more efficient than those made from silicon. Despite world wide new producers made silicon modules very cheap a new and tested invention, the cadmium telluride thin-film cell may be a victorious competitor in the future. Scientists from US company First Solar have topped with an efficiency of 22,1 – better than the efficiency of the best silicon cell. US First Solar announced that already in the end of 2015 the prices of their cadmium telluride cells were lower than the prices from cheap Chinese poly silicon producers. http://green.wiwo.de/photovoltaik-duennschicht-module-werden-guenstiger-und-effizienter-als-silizium/
10 May 2017 Insolvency of SolarWorld - http://www.focus.de/finanzen/boerse/aktien/solarworld-insolvenz-deutschlands-bekannteste-solar-firma-ist-pleite_id_7116205.html
12 Jan 2017, SolarWorld: Some shareholders are calling for a reorientation of the group, as strategic reduction of the product range to become profitable in the day-to-day-business http://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/energie/solarworld-tag-der-entscheidung-bei-solarworld/19243326.html
22 Sept 2016, Solarworld, The article http://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/industrie/angeschlagener-photovoltaikkonzern-solarworld-in-der-bredouille/14576386.html Very difficult times for Solarworld, arguments from Assmann not believed by German insiders & institutes. As Assmann seemed to explain PV products flood the markets only since 2016. In fact, Chinese products in PV flood the markets since years as a longstanding Arab business friend wrote to Royal Network & Production Alliance years ago, in 2013. These PV markets decrease since years. The article mentions also that now in 2016 prices in PV again decreased at 25 per cent.
3 June 2016: http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/hybrid-technologie-neue-solarzelle-verwandelt-auch-waerme-in-strom/13686814.html New solar cells developed at MIT with Nano tubes for capturing thermal energy.
One of world’s largest power stations based on solar thermal technology is planned Noor in Morocco.
04 Feb 2016: In Morocco a consortium from Saudi Arabia and Spain are the general contractors and operators of one of world’s largest power stations, named “Noor” - said to be one of four plants to be build. The plant is based on solar thermal technology, which is – as often mentioned by us - far higher in efficiency as PV systems. In end of 2017 the plant aims to deliver current energy for 1,2 million humans, http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/umwelt/solarkraftwerk-ein-licht-in-marokkos-wueste/12916494.html. In general solar thermal heat is used for heating and cooling, in this article only producing of current is mentioned. In the future the King’s MASEN Authority in Morocco plans eventually to sell current energy to Europe. Such current selling business towards Germany or other European countries seems to me not to be a hit: We look for independency from conventional energy and from the grid and we have successful communities on this path. Further more nearly each day new and tested inventions in the field of Renewable Energies - one cheaper than the other - are unveiled!
The power plant “Noor” is financed (834 Mio. Euro, i.e. more than one third of the costs) by German KfW Bank and uses German products only. German solar thermal parabolic design mirrors in 400 rows heat thermo oil from SchottSolar in a pipe system in the mirrors up to 400 ֠ Celsius. This heat drives a conventional steam turbine from Siemens to produce current energy. Energy storage with liquid salt is from BASF. In Morocco now 1,800 persons can work on the plant for maintenance etc. There are other solar thermal systems – as installed in Doha - nearly free of maintenance – for me personally a better base for business development.
27 May 2016: Fire in Ivanpah Solar Power Facility. We informed since long time about this strange solar power plant, not to be followed http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/news-feuer-im-groessten-solarkraftwerk-der-welt/13641070.html
24 May 2016
http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/rekord-in-suedafrika-solarkraftwerk-liefert-zwei-wochen-durchgehend-strom/13607978.html It is about a similar solar power plant as “noor” in Morocco: Based on Solar Thermal Technology, also with Siemens etc. Operated and built by a Saudi company ACWA Power. The name of this new power plant is Bokport. World record: It is said to deliver 20 days energy without any problem and has to replace older coal power plants.
17 May 2016: Solar thermal technologies are now at the rise. The article mentions that these systems have been in the shadow and use the argument of low prices to produce energy. http://green.wiwo.de/solarthermie-hersteller-verspricht-sonnen-strom-rund-um-die-uhr-fuer-56-cent/. If these Fresnel systems (mentioned in the article above) are pleasant to birds and maintenance persons is not mentioned.
14 Jan 2017 http://www.wiwo.de/unternehmen/industrie/sonnenenergie-israel-baut-den-hoechsten-solarturm-der-welt/19223484.html Israel claims to build the highest solar power tower of the world. Please read also in Information Archive – Renewable Energy Sources/Sun/Solar Thermal Technology/Solar Power Facility Ivanpah about solar tower systems as Ivanpah.
27 May 2016: Fire in Ivanpah Solar Power Facility. We informed since long time about this strange solar power plant, not to be followed http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/news-feuer-im-groessten-solarkraftwerk-der-welt/13641070.html
09 Sept 2016: http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/australien-solarkraftwerk-mit-weltrekord/14520730.html Big parabolic mirror with 500 sqm in Australia / Canberra might result in an efficiency of 97 per cent compared to earlier efficiency says Mr. Pye from ANU (Australian National University). The power plant has an efficiency of 100 kw/hour. It is planed to compete to fossil energy sources by lower costs and to reduce the current energy costs to 8 (eight) European cent, far lower that PV systems can offer.
09 May 2017 We in Royal Network & Production Alliance claim since years that there never ever might be any subsidies of governments or ministries for Renewables: Companies based on own strength and best products will survive. Thus the company in the following link named Solarwatt likewise now instead of mass markets and big solar power plants concentrates on best products for final customers http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/erfolgreich-ohne-subventionen-solarfirmen-kaempfen-gegen-billigmodule-aus-asien/19777152.html Solarwatt’s company’s owner is someone of BMW family.
With Fotovatio Renewable Ventures FRV from Spain and the semi-public company Masdar from Abu Dhabi now Dubai is about to build a PV Solar plant – mostly paid by US $ - to offer current at a price of 2.6 Euro cent. This price seems unbelievable but Dubai Electricity & Water Authority (DEWA) agreed for the third part of Sheikh Maktoum Solar Power Plant, since the Fotovatio Renewable Ventures FRV & semi-public company Masdar have guaranteed this price. Chinese group Jinko Solar and German RWE had offered a price of 3.22 Euro cent if the solar power plant would be operated fur a running period of 25 years. In 2020 it is aimed to generate sever per cent of current by Renewable Energy sources. My comment: In the future there will be no business with current owed to decentralisation.
03 May 2016 Tidal energy project http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/wellenkraftwerk-2-0-bayern-bauen-gruenstrom-generator-auf-kreta/13607938.html
German company Sinn Power, a start-up tests a new tidal project close to Heraklion in Crete.
Article in Natur + Umwelt 3-2015, pp. 15-25, see p. 20 and www.bund-naturschutz.de/themen/wasser/wasserkraft.html, Sebastian Schönauer writes: New hydropower plants are planned in Gemany under the (wrong) pretext that might forward the so called green energy supply. Power generation by hydropower plants in Germany at rivers and lakes delivers a supply already of 60 per cent – with devastating consequences.
All small hydro power plants (under 1,000 kw) deliver only 1.5 per cent of the complete power generation in Southern Germany, i.e. Bavaria. Please read yourself about the cruel and damaging effects of these hydro power plants by your translaters, I can not do! However, there seem to be good Germans who want to conserve and help against the politicians & concrete lobby to save so many endangered species in the last natural part of huge river Donau between Straubing and Vilshofen. On only 0.5 per cent of the Southern German / Bavarian states area live 46 per cent of endangered fish species and 32 per cent of endangered birds, and so on! Please consider that you are loved by your good deeds, never ever by greed!
Wind lobby’s work was unveiled in famous BUND / association for the protection of nature by a former leader of BUND. The latter now founded his own environmental protective association: 18 April 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/umwelt/umstrittene-windraeder-wie-die-windenergiebranche-umweltverbaende-spaltet/13455180.html 18 April 2016: New association for endangered species and natural heritage founded by former leader of BUND, county NRW in Germany. Wind Lobby unveiled working in German association BUND. The article describes that Harry Neumann, the former leader in county Rheinland-Pfalz of famous German association BUND (www.bund-naturschutz.de) for the protection of flora and fauna left the BUND and founded his own association "Naturschutz Initiative" http://naturschutz-initiative.de. He was afraid of the independence of the famous BUND, as it seemed to be under the influence of wind lobby. Due to the terms & conditions (in German “Satzung”) of the BWE (Bundesverband Windenenergie, this association being the most important interest group in wind energy in Germany at that time (18 April 2016) the BUND will be the heir of the legacy of BWE’s assets in case BWE dissolves. There were individuals in BUND operating for both interest group, BUND and BWE. As often it was a breeding red kite raptor family that led to the escalation. In the region of Harry Neumann there were plans to build big wind turbines – without any former analysis of the risks for plants and animals, and humans of course! So Harry Neumann forced a and fighted successfully a building-battal before court! See please as well http://naturschutz-initiative.de/neuigkeiten/124-windraeder-und-naturschutz.
Meanwhile the counties at our German Northern Coast try to avoid these big turbines, which there stay one by one – an ugly performance, dispelling tourists…
08 Sept 201617 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/norddeutschland-deshalb-wehren-sich-die-ersten-landkreise-gegen-die-windkraft/14512328.html
Wind turbines even exploded since world climate change with heavy storms caused fires. Like every technology, wind energy sources technology is not entirely safe.
2015-06-03 http://www.nordkurier.de/templin/windrad-steht-in-flammen-0315284106.html#
2011-09-14 http://www.lr-online.de/regionen/elbe-elster/herzberg/Windkraftanlage-bei-Beyern-steht-in-Flammen;art1056,3493082you tube film 01.02.2016 wind turbines even exploded :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eqfNBVuSe9cdangerous for birds see after 3 minutes https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkbU1tS_UQc
windmill desaster https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YJuFvjtM0s
Smaller wind turbines & more compact wind turbines are safer, when they do have a vertical spindle and blades directly connected to it.
The big wind-turbines of course produce much Megawatt, especially for industry. But the power has to be brought by power lines to the other counties.
New developments concentrate (backstage-information) on small wind turbines based on other technical approach. The latter planned to be built at the place were the energy is used. In the future decentralised energy systems will increase, as widely achieved already in solar systems on the roofs or close and make power lines superfluous. Some wind power generation technologies could be suitable for decentralisation – such as Slavonius Rotors, which do not kill birds or bats. However much research is a needed, to develop wind energy systems, which do not harm to our biodiversity (birds and bats).
(please read also our information in Information Archive in letter R about Renewable Energy Sources/Wind/Big Wind Turbines/Eco Audit and Renewable Energy Sources/Wind/Big Wind Turbines/Future?: Summary: Big wind turbines can be of enormous damage to bats and birds, especially to raptors – if built at the wrong place. The problem is the industrialists’ wind lobby, which tries to ignore this impact on the biodiversity of the planet. An engineer involved in industries close to the wind turbines branch writes, to invest in scrapping might be an advice.
07 May 2017: Backstage information: As it seems some politicians seem to consider, how to further support wind energy, especially the “green” party. “To support” means here to support with money, given from the government. Since big companies are said to pay no taxation, the money for subsidies is paid by mid market companies, who work unbelievable hard to survive – and often do not have any time to inform themselves about the risks etc. of this Renewable energy source.
10 May 2017: The wind power industry unfortunately in the past years has been able to eliminate stork and eagles/bird of prey, with the complete trees. So the birds “vanish” – as if not have existed - and the industry does not to have take care for any distance prescribed by law to the nests. It is difficult to prove this in individual cases, but in many cases there have already been findings to remove nests in connection with planned wind power plants. The nature conservation authorities/state bird protection authorities react, that in the case of a removed nest, the wind power operators also do have to observe the radii/distances – because the birds might build a new nest nearby to the removed nest. And this prescription lasts for some years - thus they hope to counteract the strategy of the wind power industry.
17 May 2017, Magazin Uckermarkkurier/Templin, “Adler das Nest unter den Federn weggeschlagen”: Today the rent someone gets for a large wind turbine on his field is 80,000.- (eightythousand Euros!) . For this large sum of money, criminal deeds are also committed, such as the elimination of a sea eagle nest by tree felling. As is written below the article, the nests of this rare type of bird are very secret.
06 Sept 2018 backstage information: Wind lobby seems to work in German websites to “protect the planet” in running “campaigns”. May be these widely announced & spread websites – by yellow press etc. - are only operating for interest groups in wind energy, to build more and more wind turbines. Owed to backstage information the wind lobby is extremely aggressive, threatening with lawyers etc. Even if they are allowed to build a big (for us bad) wind turbine, they want to avoid the laws imposed to them, i.e. shutdowns of wind turbines for protection of birds and bats. The topic in general was eventually not carefully planned in Germany. They argue that we have to build such huge wind turbines (more than 200 metres) to produce necessary current for all.
http://www.kitegen.com/en/ This website contains interesting diagrams. The kite flies in 1,500 metres height – higher than in the former systems. (Please read Information Archive below: Renewable Energy Sources/Wind/Wind Dragons). As I was informed, ships ate using this system when going with the wind.
https://www.allianz.com/de/presse/news/finanzen/beteiligungen/160208_allianz-und-bank-of-america-investieren-in-windparks/ Allianz and Bank of America invest in wind parks. Due to my personal experience Allianz assurances’ own product as travel guide Sri Lanka are not proven.
29 April 2016 Wind turbines further critical
http://www.wiwo.de/politik/deutschland/energiewende-windraeder-stehen-still-und-kosten-hunderte-millionen-euro/13515276.html. Operators of wind power plants in Germany receive money, also if they produce superfluous energy which can not be used in the grid, because there is already too much energy in the grid. The Wind power plants’ energy is wasted. This and other strange “things” in this theme caused not only a discussion about the wind turbines, especially in Schleswig-Holstein were the power plants originated, humans protest against these: http://green.wiwo.de/zukunft-der-windkraft-schwimmende-anlagen-und-schaufensterprojekte/
17 July 2017 backstage information of a scientist about the website http://cleantechchallenge.be/ which does not show safe Slavonius Rotors
“ I only can see ordinary wind turbines with an horizontal spindle and 3 rotor blades. These constructions are known to kill birds and bats, if erected in areas where these animals do live (which is quite often the case). The longer the blades are, the higher is the potential to harm birds and bats, due to the disc the blades are spinning. Very small turbines of this type with blades not longer then 3 meters may be quite safe for birds, but they also kill bats.
Slavonius Rotors have a vertical spindle and blades directly connected to it. There is not much known about their influence on birds or bats. Since Slavonius Rotors are normally small devices and compact, their impact should be very small. It can be assumed, that they are quite safe for birds and bats.” The website cheantechchallenge is in connection to Vito and McKinsey.
http://www.wiwo.de/politik/deutschland/energiewende-windraeder-stehen-still-und-kosten-hunderte-millionen-euro/13515276.html. Operators of wind power plants in Germany receive money, also if they produce superfluous energy which can not be used in the grid, because there is already too much energy in the grid. The Wind power plants’ energy is wasted. This and other strange “things” in this theme caused not only a discussion about the wind turbines, especially in Schleswig-Holstein were the power plants originated, humans protest against these: http://green.wiwo.de/zukunft-der-windkraft-schwimmende-anlagen-und-schaufensterprojekte/
24 Sept 2018: An article from www.spectrum.de mentions giant Redox-Flow-Batteries projects. Redox-Flow-Batteries are based on a fluid, were the electrical energy is stored in two electrolyte fluids. One is the “brine4power” project for stationary power storage, which wants to use as tanks for storage caves deep in the underground in Northern Germany Jemgum, close to the Netherlands. Thus, to store (wind) energy and to feed it into the grid if necessary might be possible. Planned is to store about 700 MWh of energy, i.e. as much as is needed in one hour in 1,8 million households (as for a city of the size of Berlin). The technology is in the laboratory state, might work at 2025. However, the Redox-Flow-Accumulators there are dependent on the expensive element Vanadium. It seems to be better than Lithium technology or Lithium based batteries for storage of current’s energy, the problem here is the high cost. A lithium battery was built from TESLA, the Hornsdale Power Reserve in Australia with 129 MWh or another is planned by Siemens in California with 400 MWh. Redox-Flow-Technology until now is proven only in Japan with 60 MWh. EWE uses in Jemgum already eight caves for storing of gas, and wants to use two of them later to store wind power energy. Another group of researchers (university of Jena and company JenaBatteries) presented the liquid salt polymer battery in a contribution to journal “Nature” in 2015. No metal salts anymore. Here the electrolyte is based on common salt, water and special polymers. Survive these plastics for 20 years of battery operation – as assumed under laboratory conditions - and can be produced below 50 Euro per KWh this seems the right way to help the redox-flow-technology to break through – as also RWTH Aachen’s Dirk Uwe Sauer is cited. The membrane is also inexpensive. It consists of material that is already produced in large quantities and is known from drinking water filtration and dialysis. How such a redox-flow-battery works please see:
https://jenabatteries.com/products/how-does-it-work/
11 Dec 2018: A new type of batteries that is supposed to be eight times better than Lithium-based batteries - at the same size - now works a room temperature, not only at temperatures above 150° Celsius. These are rechargeable batteries that use fluoride as a charge carrier. The decisive improvement is made by electrolytes, the conductive medium that transport the charge carriers between anode and cathode. The new type of batteries will need some few years to be launched at the markets.
Energy from wind energy is planned to be transformed to gas: 16 Oct 2018
Tennet, Gasunie and Thyssengas, these grid operators want to convert wind energy into gas in hydrogen or methane gas, which is easy to be stored and transported with the existing grids. For this Power-to-Gas-technology they want to build a 100 MWh plant. AUDI already has its own power-to-gas-plant in Germany (Emsland close to Werlte), to produce energy for around 1,500 cars to drive emissions’ free. (In Germany there are already around 36 projects known to produce fuel on the basis of green electricity.) In the moment there are many ideas that all seek for research funding.
Energy from wind energy is planned to be transformed to gas: 16 Oct 2018 https://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/oekostrom-soll-zu-gas-werden-netzbetreiber-planen-100-megawatt-anlage-in-ostfriesland/23191104.html. Tennet, Gasunie and Thyssengas, these grid operators want to convert wind energy into gas in hydrogen or methane gas, which is easy to be stored and transported with the existing grids. For this Power-to-Gas-technology they want to build a 100 MWh plant. AUDI already has its own power-to-gas-plant in Germany (Emsland close to Werlte), to produce energy for around 1,500 cars to drive emissions’ free. (In Germany there are already around 36 projects known to produce fuel on the basis of green electricity.) In the moment there are many ideas that all seek for research funding.
19 Oct 2018 Backstage information for more clarity from an insider: The problem of wind and sun plants in central European countries is, that these plants only produce a lot of energy if wind blows or sun shines. Therefore, other power plants must be present to jump in if wind does not blow or sun does not shine. Wind energy also requires many power lines to dissipate the huge amount of electricity produced – when wind is blowing. At the moment wind turbines even have to be switched off because the power grids are overloaded. The problem could be solved if the current of wind and sun could be stored – and that at reasonable costs. In Norway, surplus energy pumps water into reservoirs high up in the mountains and then uses the water flowing down to produce energy – at the time when energy is needed. These water pump plants however can be built at few places and are not free of damaging the environment. Since years researchers seek to develop usable batteries or develop other power storage solutions as hydrogen (see fuel cell car). Or gases in power-to-gas-technology.
May 2017, backstage information: Storage is also a problem of definition. How is it defined? As with 15 July 2017 was not able to do more research.
Furhermore: Without storage to get energy from or to store energy to most of the renewable energy sources would not be usable. It is a simple expectation only that energy storage will be a major business in the years to come. Technically there are several ways of storing energy, besides the most obvious way: Batteries. There is much research done in the area of batteries and chemicals, most of it focused on the needs for electric driving and smart phones/tablets/laptops. The requirements for energy storage for the grid differ in one utmost point, that is the size and weight, which is not really important. If a storage system is bigger and heavier while cheaper or more reliable, than it is the one chosen. Besides LiIon (LithiumIons) there are redox batteries ore even old style lead acid batteries (seldom), a different example is LiFePo/Lithium Iron Phosphate. Storage without Lithium of course is possible, there are already pilot projects, please read our other information under batteries or storage etc.. If now in the laboratory, very soon the new batteries might be implemented. As to me it is often very important, if the university to develop is an elite university or not! However this does not count in leadership of GLs of big groups!!! And we have a lot of scientists who submit scientific projects, thus here it is very important that those who select have a great experience and knowledge.
Other ways for energy storage include water pump systems where water is pumped uphill to store energy and downhill to get the energy back. There are similar approaches with more or less complete hills discussed in research, but not yet implemented.
Also there are pilot projects (AUDI) using the energy from wind or solar to create LPG/natural gaz or similar over several steps and store it in the grid. LPG/natural gas is available at gas stations for e-vehicles. However as with July 2017 was not able to do more research.
09 Aug 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/kraftwerk-unter-der-erde-schweizer-wollen-druckluftspeicher-rentabel-machen/13982886.html: Even when RWE (former Energy giant in Gemany) with project “Adele” and Alstom Power Switzerland failed, a new company from Switzerland Alacaes. This spin-off of Airlight Energy to use renewable energies in Biasca improved a compressed air storage system in a former tunnel.
31 Oct 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/alte-speichertechnologie-start-up-entdeckt-das-schwungrad-wieder/14754416.html. A German start-up uses an old system, the flywheels, to store energy. Flywheels work with weight, the new flywheels replace weight by faster turns.
12 April 2016: Despite other sources for batteries for e-vehicles and other devices are in R & D the price for lithium has increased fivefold! http://www.focus.de/finanzen/boerse/elektroauto-boom-preis-verfuenffacht-um-diesen-rohstoff-reisst-sich-die-welt_id_5427728.html
21 June 2016 storage of produced energy as methan gases from ecological waste and wind energy http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/energiespeicherung-methan-aus-bioabfall-und-windstrom/13766452.html
As to an oral information to me it is necessary for companies to have access to more current energy, because they need that much current. Which companies are those? Instead we produce in Germany too much current and deliver the overproduction abroad. We even pay the receivers, that these please might be so kind and take our overproduction. But storage is possible, already now. Is this is the end of a political system of “leaders” who are not interested in the needs of citizens? Here in Wirtschaftswoche we can read that scientists want to produce Biomethan from superfluous current energy, to be implemented into the earth gaz-grid.
Instead famous University in Zurich / Switzerland made an invention, how gases at the production of oil in the gulf or other regions can be used, instead of burning, i.e. to make the whole process more efficient. If we need oil for chemistry and pharmacy – than in an efficient way of being produced.
17 Feb 2017 AW: http://www.wiwo.de/riesiger-energiespeicher-der-strom-kommt-aus-dem-tank/19408566.html
Huge Redox-flow-storage based on vanadium, close to Karlsruhe in Germany, to work after March 2017. 19 millions Euro used by Fraunhofer Institut for Chemical Technology. Due to the leader of the project, Peter Fischer, they try to make the storage more reasonable in the future. He claims this storage might supply an entire village with energy for around 10 hours. (Dr. von Werz: I do live in a village, what does he mean with these words? My village has 185 adults… ). When they wanted to build up a big wind energy tower close to the project, during the transport one of the big parts had a crash with a bridge.
http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/stromspeicher-weltweit-groesstes-off-grid-batteriesystem-entsteht-in-ruanda/13817014.html : Company Tesvolt from Germany is about to built the world’s largest off grid battery system with containers in Ruanda. http://www.royal-alliance.net/archive/89-storage-batteries-batteries-for-stationary-storage-and-e-vehicles-e-mobility.
25 April 2016 For off-grid-places as construction sites a „green“ battery based on Lithium can be used, in case normal grid has a brown-out, i.e. the grid does not work. http://green.wiwo.de/solarstrom-to-go-neue-generatoren-arbeiten-ohne-diesel/#comment-175510
23 Aug 2016 Alevo is said to be closer to the commercial market. Alevo “a battery manufacturing aspirant”, a company with a mysterious huge funding produces batteries with sulfur-based inorganic lithium-ion electrolyte chemistry. http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/Alevo-Moves-Closer-to-Commercial-Deployment-of-Its-Big-Battery
Start up Alevo from Switzerland claimed having been developed batteries with 10tmes longer lifespan than other batteries. Furthermore the batteries are said to be very robust and not-flammable.
13 Oct 2016 http://www.wiwo.de/technologie/green/tech/ultra-caps-batteriehersteller-skeleton-fertigt-kuenftig-in-sachsen/14616228.html the article is about Ultra-caps, i.e. capacitors that can store a lot of current. The new technology seems convincing. The technology is developed in cooperation with scientists of Monash university and a company which was founded in 2014 only, named Ionic Industries – both from Melbourne. They developed an electrode of nanoporous grapheme. These very fast batteries soon will be built near German city Dresden. In contrary to other systems it can load and charge in seconds. Nevertheless they can not replace batteries, the latter having a far higher capacity. Their importance seems to increases.
30 Oct 2016: The Qatar Airways Group has made conservation of natural resources a key pillar in its sustainability programme. Hamad International Airport’s waste water treatment plant allows 95 per cent of captured water to be re-used in irrigation. Facilities such as aircraft and vehicle washing incorporate water recycling-systems to further support Qatar Airways Group’s efforts to conserve natural resources
please see Renewable Energy Sources/Wind/Wind Parks
21th of June 2024. 90% of the auction proceeds will probably be used to reduce electricity costs instead of encouraging savings. 5% goes into fishing and the last 5% goes into marine nature conservation.
https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/beh%C3%B6rde-versteigert-windpark-rechte-f%C3%BCr-drei-milliarden-euro/ar-BB1oDZaV?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=LCTS&cvid=5acbf9beaf4240f8b8d68d81dddaec95&ei=65
26th of July 2023. Wind power is a hot topic at the moment, so Berlin has to have a wind power priority area of 445 hectares (as of April 2023). The following article was published at 21th of July 2023: German Newspaper Focus, https://www.msn.com/de-de/finanzen/top-stories/vattenfall-stoppt-bau-von-meereswindpark/ar-AA1e71hJ?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531&cvid=466e191299004a25bd5aad31fe0fb081&ei=79. Swedish energy supplier Vattenfall has halted its 1.4 gigawatt Norfolk Boreas wind turbine project off the UK coast. The main reason for this are cost increases of up to 40 percent, the group board said. “Vattenfall secured the contract for Norfolk Boreas at an auction last year at a fixed price of £37.35 per megawatt hour.” The wind farm should supply electricity for 1.5 million households. Other proposed projects - Vanguard Est and Vanguard West - are also under review. All three wind farms together would have an energy output of 4.2 gigawatts. High inflation and rising capital costs make the planned energy turnaround on the high seas more expensive. Vattenfall is now taking the consequences.
Vattenfall certainly calculated this very precisely - but the prices targeted in an assured price guarantee are probably not feasible without subsidies for offshore wind farms. The complex foundation of the towers, the complex maintenance of the systems and the rapid wear and tear due to salt water are particularly difficult and expensive. This also applies to other countries as Germany: “ Last week, corporations paid money for the right to build wind farms in the North Sea and Baltic Sea for the first time in a bidding process. The sale by the Federal Network Agency brought in 12.6 billion euros. Two of the North Sea areas went to subsidiaries of the oil multinational BP, the other two areas to Total Energies companies. Companies from the wind power industry went away empty-handed. Industry representatives fear that the oil companies have secured the land for a lot of money but will ultimately not build anything there.”.
12 December 2022: When burning wood pellets, very harmful CO2 escapes into the atmosphere very quickly https://www.br.de/nachrichten/wissen/schlechte-klima-bilanz-fuer-holzpellets,Rh2umI1
12 December 2022. Experts warn of high dust pollution and the poor climate balance ...
Translated from German by Google: “But the real problem is not the long period of time until a stove can be put into operation for the first time, but ecological and health aspects. There is an enormous demand, of all things, for a form of heating energy that the Federal Environment Agency (UBA) and the Federation for the Environment and Nature Conservation (BUND) advise against harmful nitrogen and sulfur compounds, carbon monoxide and also large amounts of fine dust. According to UBA, the share of wood combustion in the total fine dust emissions in Germany is ten percent over the entire year. In winter, however, the proportion is up to 20 percent.” The article is from 12 of December 2022 – >From 1 ARD, German Television.
16 Dec 2018: United World Climate Conference in Poland / Katowice 2018:
It seems that the politicians are not really aware of the development of the warming of the world, which happens. As for me and many others in Germany, also young peoples and animals the very hot summer in this country was very hard to bear, it was a survival summer. Many persons died here.
is an NGO with huge fundings.