World has no shortage of energy resources, says WEC
LONDON, England, 2004-10-13 (Refocus Weekly)
There is no shortage of biomass, wind or geothermal energy resources in the world, according to a survey by the World Energy Council.
Potentially, biomass is the world's largest and most sustainable source of
energy but, to progress from the ‘potential’ stage, both production and use
of biomass must be modernized, concludes the 20th edition of the Council's
‘Survey of Energy Resources.’
After hydro, “wind is often considered the most advanced of the renewables”
with offshore windfarms spurring development of turbines with 5 MW rated
capacity about to enter the market. The increasing share of wind power means
that many electricity systems will face new challenges in grid stability and new
concepts for power system control.
“Geothermal is an important renewable resource which can be deployed for
base-load electricity production,” with current global capacity of 8,000 MW,
it notes. Geothermal facilities can provide electricity with an annual capacity
load factor exceeding 90%.
After low oil prices and complacency last decade, “energy security is back in
the forefront of political discussions,” it adds. The volatile nature of oil
“has become clear in recent years” as has the world's continued dependence
on oil, although the trebling of oil prices over the last five years has not
been caused by dwindling reserves
Global reserves of natural gas are “considerably larger” than reserves of
oil, but bringing more gas to market is a significant challenge that will
require an enormous investment to build new pipelines. LNG is expected to become
increasingly important in supplying remote markets, and its production costs
will decline as a result of technological developments in liquefaction processes
and upstream gas production.
“Although there is no shortage, the physical concentration of the leading
strategic resources in only a few regions is a serious concern for many
countries dependent on imports,” says Alessandro Clerici of WEC. “A
diversified energy mix is absolutely vital for stability of prices and supply,
and should be taken into consideration when countries are developing national
energy plans or long-term business strategies.”
The Survey covers 17 energy resources and provides commentaries and country data
for each. The summary has been produced since 1934.
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