Greening the European Union has suffered a setback.
The European Biodiesel Board is reporting that the European Union biodiesel industry production forecasts are noting a 2011 decrease in output, the first since data has been gathered, down from 2010 figures of 9.57 million tons.
It’s a commonly held perception that Europe leads the Western world with respect to energy efficiency. In many ways, it’s true. Europeans tend to live in smaller homes than Americans and are less fond of air conditioning and other energy-intensive equipment and appliances. The Passivhaus standard, which has
Europe has a challenge ahead, in terms of renewable energy targets. The UK government has signed up to a commitment which states that by 2020, 15% of energy production will come from renewable sources. Quite a target for any government to achieve, but in a climate where purse strings are being tightened, this challenge is ever more complex. However, the UK
What’s the only country in the world that generates 99% of its electricity from clean, carbon-neutral energy sources? If you guessed Iceland—a nation with a relatively tiny population but vast renewable energy resources—you’re right. Today almost all Iceland’s electricity comes from two renewable power sources: a system of dams fed by melting glacier water, and geothermal
Ten European countries, including Norway, have agreed to develop an offshore electricity grid at the North Sea, in a bold move that promoters say will give Europe the possibility of tapping into an even bigger source of energy than the Middle East’s oil capacity. Ministers from all the ten ‘North Seas Countries’ signed of a ‘Memorandum of Understanding’ on December 3 to
In a scramble for new sources of natural gas, European energy companies are increasingly turning to hydraulic fracturing, or “fracking,” a drilling technique that has generated controversy in the U.S. because of potential harmful environmental effects.
In Poland, Halliburton has constructed a well for the state-owned Polish Oil and Gas
The Directive 2010/31/EU on buildings’ energy performance approved this year opened new doors for manufacturers of urban wind turbines. The Directive urges European governments to elaborate laws that enforce the use of renewables in buildings and technologies that improve
The European Union has unveiled plans for a single European energy market, a 1 trillion-euro ($1.38 trillion) strategy to achieve energy security and cut fossil fuel emissions.
The 10-year plan would include upgrades
Angelika Pullen is communications director for the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC). Jeremy Shere spoke with Pullen about the differences in the development of wind energy in Europe and in the United States.
The use of renewable sources of energy in Europe continues to grow at a brisk pace and energy efficiency also is improving, significantly reducing reliance on coal and natural gas, according to a new report. In
2009, renewable energy accounted for 18.4 percent of the European Union’s primary energy production, an increase of 8.3 percent from 2008, according to a
(Reuters) – The messages are tense, angry, cajoling.
Written between 2008 and January 2010 and sent between lobbyists, scientists and high-ranking European civil servants, they hint at the intense emotions in the debate over one of Europe’s most contentious environmental issues: the use of biofuels, long touted as an alternative to carbon-emitting petroleum.
But it’s not how the emails are written that’s important. It’s what’s in them — and
There is plenty of sun in deserts and the Sahara is one of the biggest deserts in the world. Europe intends to import its first solar generated electricity from North Africa within the next five years, European Energy Commissioner Günther Oettinger said in an interview on Sunday. The European Union is backing projects to turn the plentiful sunlight in the Sahara desert into electricity for Europe, a scheme it hopes will help meet its target of deriving 20% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020.
The European Union has announced its plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and “de-carbonize” the energy sector, reducing the air pollution that iscontributing to chronic respiratory disease in millions of people.
Yet within the Industrial Emission Directive (IED) , which underwent a second reading in the European Parliament in late April, it appears that some discussions are leaning in favor of emissions-emitting industry interests over public health and the fight against climate change.
In 2001, the E.U. Large Combustion Plant Directive (LCPD) was redesigned to gradually limit emissions from facilities such as coal-fired power plants. Yet even though these facilities have had 15 years to get ready to comply with a tougher nitrogen oxide emission limit value starting in 2016, some E.U. countries and their power companies are pushing for more time.
The European Union has unveiled a strategy to become a world leader in the green vehicle market, including a framework for common standards for electric cars across Europe by 2011 and the development of a network of charging stations continent-wide.
Calling this a defining stage for the automotive industry, E.U. leaders outlined steps to promote the adoption of fuel-efficient vehicles, boost low-carbon technologies, and increase the manufacturing of low-emissions vehicles in Europe.
The plan includes maintaining existing regulations to reduce carbon emissions, initiatives to encourage new innovations and technologies, and the standardization of electric car technologies across the continent so that drivers can recharge their vehicles in any E.U. country.