Discover CleanTech
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Column
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The Cleantech Market
No silver bullet required – how we can make a positive impact on climate change with existing clean technologies BY DAVID HUNT
Electricity generated by photovoltaic solar panels is already cheaper in many locations than that powered by fossil fuels.
If you are reading this magazine, chances are you fully appreciate that climate change is one of the most pressing issues facing humanity today. The overwhelming scientific consensus is that we need to take immediate and significant action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to prevent the worst effects of global warming. There is often a perception that we are waiting for some kind of ‘silver bullet’ technology that will solve the problem for us; hydrogen, fusion or some new battery chemistry. The reality is we already have the necessary clean technologies to make a huge positive impact in the fight against climate change, we just need to deploy them at scale and with speed.
and have become increasingly efficient and cost-effective over time. In many parts of the world, solar power is already cheaper than fossil-fuel generated electricity. The cost of solar panels has decreased significantly in the last ten years. According to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the average cost of solar panels in 2010 was around $4.00 per watt. By 2020, the average cost had dropped to around $0.30 per watt, a decrease of approximately 93 per cent. Solar power can be used to generate electricity for homes, businesses and even entire communities. It can also be used for heating and cooling buildings and for powering electric vehicles.
AN ODE TO SOLAR AND WIND
Another established and scaling technology is wind turbines. From the Netherlands of old, to the massive offshore wind farms of today, wind has been captured for power for a very long time, and mod-
One of the most cheap, available, scalable and beautiful clean technologies is solar power, for both electricity and heat. Solar panels have been around for decades 56 |
Issue 06 |
February 2023
ern wind turbines have scaled in size and output significantly. Like solar power, wind power is now competitive with fossil fuels in many parts of the world and is rapidly becoming cheaper. Modern offshore wind turbines have a power output of 8-12 MW. These wind turbines are much larger than the onshore wind turbines you may see driving along the motorway. The most powerful offshore wind turbine currently in operation is the GE Haliade-X, which has a power output of 13 MW and a rotor diameter of 220 metres. That’s huge! Heat pumps are another brilliant and efficient clean technology that has been around for years and are picking up significant momentum as we move away from gas to heat our homes and buildings. Heat pumps are devices that transfer heat from one location to another and can be used for heating and cooling buildings. They