EU Revises Horizon 2020 Programme to Make Gas a Green Fuel
(Power-Technology.com) Gas has been reclassified as a green source of power by Horizon 2020, an €80bn European Union programme unveiled last year, which could have serious repercussions for the renewable energy industry.
According to a document seen by the Guardian, a large chunk of these funds that were initially supposed to be injected into the development of renewables, may now be used for the construction of more gas power stations and gas exploitation.
The news follows the release of the UK draft Energy Bill, which was designed to attract investment in nuclear and renewable energies, such as solar and wind power.
A report published by the International Energy Agency this week, however, dubbed the next two decades as a ‘golden age’ of gas, which has infuriated environmentalists.
The summary says that gas could grow by over 50% by 2035 if safety and environmental issues with hydraulic shale fracking can be overcome.
…Although gas is a fossil fuel, because it generates less carbon dioxide when burned than coal, lobbyists from the gas industry have been touting it as a lower-carbon alternative to coal.
However, speaking at the ‘Hype or Hope? Shale gas and UK energy policy’ event hosted by London-based think tank Policy Exchange in March, Greenpeace UK chief scientist Doug Parr said that natural gases like shale could be worse for the environment than coal. READ MORE and MORE (The Guardian)
