Payne Institute Earth Observation Group provided the satellite data and software to look at flaring. Researchers are able to look at any flare in the world on a given day, including the air speed of the gas release, the location and the owners of the site. October 19, 2021.
Payne Institute Fellow Benjamin Attia and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how globally, the top 10% of countries consume 20 times more energy than the bottom 10%. And 1.1 billion sub-Saharan Africans share the same amount of power generation capacity as Germany’s 83 million people. At least half have no access to electricity at all. These stark energy inequalities are fueling thorny debates around financing Africa’s energy future as world leaders and their negotiators prepare for COP26. October 14, 2021.
Payne Institute Director Morgan D. Bazilian is honoured to be appointed as a new member to the Climate Change Advisory Council (CCAC). A critical part of Ireland’s transition to a low carbon society is the provision of accurate and timely advice. The CCAC needs to have a broad and diverse balance of skills and experience that will advise Government on both carbon budgets and progress on implementation of the climate action plan. October 13, 2021.
Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article about how a plant threatened with closure in a Colorado town is hiring again after switching to renewables. For its developers the project is a shining example of the energy transition. October 11, 2021.
Payne Institute Director Morgan Bazilian contributes to this article on how the demand for coal is moving back near peak levels. Across the world, fossil fuels are making a remarkable comeback as a super-charged recovery from the pandemic boosts demand. For all the green energy promises and plans, that transition is in its infancy, and the world still leans heavily on fossils. October 10, 2021.
Payne Institute Communications Associate Brooke Bowser, Program Manager Laura Singer, and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how carbon capture, utilisation and storage (CCUS) technology has again become popular in discussions on how to combat climate change, but the associated midstream infrastructure necessary to support an energy transition remains underdeveloped and often overlooked. October 6, 2021.
Payne Institute Fellow William Nuttall writes how Boris Johnson is set to announce at the Conservative Party conference in Manchester that all of Britain’s electricity will come from renewable sources by 2035, according to a recent report in the Times. The government suspects that the British public – tired of petrol station queues and dreading winter gas bills – will like the idea of moving away from fossil fuels, and towards nuclear power. October 6, 2021.
Payne Institute Fellow Liam Denning writes an opinion piece on how President Biden’s methane fee isn’t a gas tax, but it’s a tax on the natural-gas industry for failing to capture and sell its own product. This isn’t a tax on the gas we consume but rather the gas that somehow never makes it far enough for us to consume. October 5, 2021.
The Payne Institute is a data science partner with Project Canary to help Tallgrass Energy Partners monitor emissions, including methane and other greenhouse gases, on its Rockies Express Pipeline, making it the first U.S. company to measure the environmental impact of operations on an interstate natural gas pipeline. September 28, 2021.
Payne Institute Fellow Dustin Mulvaney and Director Morgan Bazilian write about how the solar industry must work with governments to clean up the solar supply chain. The rapid growth of the solar energy industry has seen in recent years is expected to continue. Solar is now one of the cheapest power sources available globally, but its long-term sustainability has been threatened by allegations of forced labour and coal use by some silicon producers that supply the solar panel industry. September 28, 2021.