THE POTENTIAL OF GREEN POWER

Letter submitted to the Daily Telegraph, 2010-03-18 and published in reduced form here.

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Dear Editor

THE POTENTIAL OF GREEN POWER

The suggestion that "40 new nuclear power stations" might be needed to meet climate targets (18 March) is out of step with several published reports.

Research that is reviewed in the November issue of Scientific American shows that renewables can meet 100% of the world's energy needs (not just electricity) and that it is technically feasible to do it by 2030.

The US National Academy of Sciences published a report last year showing that wind power could supply more than 40 times current worldwide consumption of electricity and more than 5 times total global use of energy in all forms. Another report from the European Environment Agency shows that the "economically competitive potential" of wind power in Europe is 3 times projected demand for electricity in 2020 and 7 times projected demand in 2030. Offshore wind power alone could meet between 60% and 70% of projected European demand for electricity in 2020 and about 80% of projected demand in 2030.

A report from the Tyndall Centre has shown that photovoltaics (PV) could generate about 266 TWh/yr in the UK - about two thirds of the UK's present electricity demand.

A consortium of blue-chip companies (the Desertec Industrial Initiative) has now been established to develop the colossal potential of solar and wind power in desert regions. It aims to supply 15% of Europe's electricity demand by 2050.

It is now well-established that nuclear power is one of the most expensive ways of generating electricity. The "Nuclear Subsidies" report from the Energy Fair group shows how the real cost of nuclear power is disguised by several subsidies. Another report from Citigroup confirms the high cost of nuclear power.

Sincerely,

Last updated: 2007-08-19 (ISO 8601)