Feed In Tariffs - Stimulus Without The Public Debt

 

With the financial crisis still crippling  the global economy, many of the world’s governments are attempting to kick-start their countries with stimulus packages in order to avoid high levels of unemployment
 
Most of these stimulus packages are being paid from rapidly shrinking tax revenues that aren't enough to cover the splurges, with the result that public borrowing is rising rapidly. 
 
This situation means massive amounts of debt for future generations and the stimulus packages themselves are based on a short term solution to massive problems of an uncertain duration. There is little buffer for further shocks or unexpected twists and turns. 
 
But there is another way and stimulus packages that do not require the commitment of public financial resources are receiving little consideration.
  
Hans-Josef Fell, MdB is Spokesperson on Energy and Technology Policy for the Green Parliamentary Group in the German Bundestag. Together with other Members of Parliament he invented and politically implemented the Renewables Energy Source Act (EEG) in 2000. 
  
Mr Fell believes that by taking targeted regulatory measures on the markets, governments can stimulate private investments and so put in place recovery packages to invigorate the economy without incurring new debts.
  
Mr Fell recently published a paper (PDF) explaining how feed in tariffs for renewable energy sources such as solar power and wind energy can  address a range of different problems with which society is confronted; and how this has already been successfully demonstrated in Germany
  
Since 2000, the Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) has made it possible for a new sector of the economy to be built up in Germany; a renewable energy sector that is heavily dominated by small and medium-sized enterprises. This has been achieved mostly without the German government needing to dip into public coffers.
  
According to Mr. Fell, the Renewable Energy Sources Act has created more than 150,000 new jobs in Germany without any commitment of taxpayer’s money. In total, more than 250,000 jobs have been created in the renewable energies industry. Through the Act,  the costs for the market introduction of renewable energies have been considerably lower than in other countries. For example, the average cost for the generation of power from wind energy in Germany is approximately 8 euro cents per kilowatt hour, compared with approximately 14 euro cents per kilowatt hour in the UK, even though the UK has far more wind. 
  
The expenditure avoided in 2008 thanks to the reduced amounts of fossil and nuclear fuels that had to be purchased amounted to a total of 17 billion euros – several times the additional costs for the generation of clean power of approximately 3.2 billion euros.
  
While countries such as Australia are moving towards feed in tariffs, the local situation is one of a fractured system. Each state runs its own program and in many cases, a far inferior form of feed in tariff compared to Germany; leading to increased calls for a national, uniform gross feed in tariff.
 
Mr. Fell's paper, which can be downloaded here (PDF), describes the basic principles of the Renewable Energy Sources Act and seeks to that many of the arguments often used against feed-in tariffs are incorrect. Mr Fell maintains that compared to subsidies, tendering models or quota arrangements, the feed-in tariff model has been proving itself the superior model for the market introduction of renewable energies to the mass market.

The Lithium Air Battery

 

Deep cycle batteries provide those living off grid to store power for use during times when their renewable energy system can't keep up with demand or if inclement weather conditions prevail. Aside from the cost of a deep cycle battery, their size and weight can also be an issue - for example, a 230 AH battery can weigh up to 75 kilograms.
  
Thanks to the surge of interest in electric cars, improved energy storage solutions are getting much needed attention and a variety of innovations with good potential are being developed, such as the Beltway battery and even a virus battery.
  
Research work funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and led by researchers at the University of St Andrews with partners at Strathclyde and Newcastle is focusing on a new type of air-fuelled battery could provide up to ten times the energy storage of designs currently available.
  
The batteries will also enable a constant flow of electricity from sources such as wind or solar power, even during overcast or calm conditions and during the night.
 
The addition of a component that uses oxygen drawn from the air during discharge replaces one chemical constituent used in current rechargeable batteries today. The oxygen, which will be drawn in through a surface of the battery exposed to air, reacts within the pores of the carbon to discharge the battery. This offers more energy for the same size battery. 
 
The STAIR (St Andrews Air) battery should be cheaper than today’s rechargeables as the new component is made from porous carbon, which is far less expensive than the lithium cobalt oxide it replaces.
 
The four-year research project, which is nearly at its halfway point, builds on the discovery at the university that the carbon component’s interaction with air can be repeated, creating a cycle of charge and discharge.

It will likely be at least five years before the STAIR cell is commercially available and initially it will only be available for small applications, such as mobile phones or MP3 players.
 
Source
 

News for Monday 18 May, 2009

 

• Solar Gross Feed In Tariff For Western Australia
  


• World's Largest Solar Farm Project For Australia
  


• Taller Wind Turbine Towers Boost Power Generation
  

View all news for Monday 18 May, 2009 on one page

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