Renewable energy in the European Union
Renewable energy is making progress in the EU, but it is uneven across member countries.
Entries tagged with "Coal"
Lignite (brown coal)
Lignite (brown coal) which Germany has in large quantities, is the dirtiest kind of coal.
Hambach Forest
The Hambach Forest is a historic forest in Germany which lies ontop of a brown coal field. The energy company RWE has been fighting activists who want to stop mining there. An occupation of the forest in conjunction with court cases has so far been successful in blocking the mining there from beginning.
Lobbying
Even though the switch to renewable energy is financially appealing in the long run, some actors will lose money; therefore, they have a strong interest in trying to stop the Energiewende. The main problems in Germany are the car industry and the coal workers’ unions.
Solar Photovoltaics (PV)
Germany has helped to make solar power inexpensive for the world. The challenge now is to integrate large amounts of solar power in the country’s power supply.
Emissions trading (EU-ETS)
An Europe-wide emissions trading system (EU-ETS) puts a limit on emissions for the long term. It aims to lower greenhouse gas emissions in industry, the power sector, and most recently the aviation sector.
Renewable Energy Act (EEG)
This law is the basis for Germany’s Energiewende and specifies 1. priority dispatch for renewable power and 2. floor price for that electricity. The resulting high level of investment security and the lack of red tape are the main reasons why the EEG has brought down the cost of renewables.
Merit order
Merit order indicates the order in which power is bought from power plants on the market. The merit order means that the most expensive plants currently producing determines the price of power on the power exchange.
Dispatchable (ramping)
Dispatchable power plants are those that can change how much power they provide to the energy grid quickly. They can be switched on and off, or ramped up and down to meet power demand.
Anthracite (hard coal)
Anthracite is basically another way of saying “hard coal,” just as lignite is another term for “brown coal.”