Renewable Energy

A Green Energy Plan for Mozambique

Cahora Bassa power lines bypass Zambezi villagers
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Cahora Bassa power lines bypass Zambezi villagers Lori Pottinger Mozambique has among the lowest uses of electricity in the world. Yet virtually all of the electricity it does produce from Cahora Bassa Dam on the Zambezi is shipped to its wealthy neighbor, South Africa. As the government prepares to build another costly large dam on the Zambezi that will also power South Africa rather than homes and businesses in Mozambique, a new report lays out a saner plan for developing renewable energy sources across the nation that would share the energy wealth more equitably; diversify the national ele

Will China Win the Clean Energy Race With the US?

China's Liu Xiang on track to winning Olympic Gold in 2004
China's Liu Xiang on track to winning Olympic Gold in 2004 www.chine-informations.com/images/upload2/Liu_xiang.jpg In April 2009, President Obama said, "The nation that leads the world in twenty-first-century clean energy will be the nation that leads in the twenty-first-century global economy." Will China or the United States win the race for clean energy technology and future economic predominance? Here is an update with some personal impressions from Beijing. The United States government has allocated more than $38 billion to renewable energy projects in the economic stimulus program passe

The Right Climate for Green Energy in Africa

Cahora Bassa power lines bypass Zambezi villagers
Cahora Bassa power lines bypass Zambezi villagers Lori Pottinger The world is greening its electricity supply at a fast (if not fast enough) pace. Germany is slapping solar on every building it can, Spain is becoming a world leader in big concentrating solar plants, and the US stimulus package includes a plateload of subsidies for renewables. At the same time, the price of solar technologies have fallen 35% since last year, and new breakthroughs in storing energy from the sun and wind appear to be on the cusp. It’s not just the richest countries tapping into their green: India, which has u

The Right Climate for Green Energy in Mozambique

Thursday, October 8, 2009
Light or water? That’s a choice Southern Africa could face in a few years if current plans to build more large dams on the Zambezi proceed. A new report reveals that Mozambique's plans to build the US$2 billion Mphanda Nkuwa Dam on the Zambezi River will mostly serve South Africa’s needs, while creating social and environmental impacts in Mozambique, and ignoring climate-change warnings that show major hydrological problems ahead for Southern Africa. The Zambezi, Africa's fourth largest river, is expected to be especially vulnerable to climate change. Millions of people depend upon it fo

Is the World Bank Pulling out of Large Dams?

Earlier this year, the World Bank announced that it would scale up lending for dam projects “to maximize the strategic value of hydropower”. Yet new figures released yesterday show that in 2009, the Bank’s lending for large hydro has reached its lowest level in ten years. What is happening? Is the World Bank pulling out of large dams? Since the adoption of a new water sector strategy in 2003, the World Bank has been a strong cheerleader for building more dams. In March 2009 the Bank in a new report committed “to exploit the maximum strategic value of hydropower resources” thro

Tapping Local Green Power Could Light Up Mozambique

Map of a Green Energy Investment Plan for Mozambique
Tuesday, September 15, 2009
New Plan Shares the Wealth, Spares the Zambezi From September 2009 World Rivers ReviewMozambique is painting itself into a corner. Already extremely hydropower-dependent, the poor Southern African nation's next priority energy project is yet another large, costly dam on the Zambezi, at a time when climate change threatens to make the river's flow more erratic and hydropower more risky. The Mphanda Nkuwa Dam's power will primarily be for export to South Africa, since Mozambique's people are too poor, and its national grid too small, to make the dam economically viable for domestic use. Local NG

Are Dams In Patagonia Necessary? An Analysis of Chile's Energy Future

Monday, July 13, 2009
The long awaited study by the Consejo de Defensa de la Patagonia analyzing energy alternatives to hydroelectric mega-projects in Chile's Patagonia has been officially launched.  The study - "Se Necesitan Represas En La Patagonia? Un Análisis del Futuro Energético Chileno" (Are Dams in Patagonia Necessary? An Analysis of Chile's Energy Future) - was launched on July 2, 2009 in Santiago and then on July 14th in Coyhaique. Amongst the most interesting findings in this study piloted by the Patagonia BioGems Campaign at the Natural Resources Defense Council is that ener

Cuba’s Energy Revolution: Yes They Can!

Che Guevara on bike
Che Guevara on bike Barack Obama has proposed to invest $150 billion in renewable energy and energy efficiency over the next ten years. He need look no further than La Havana for inspiration. Cuba has successfully greened its energy sector over the last few years, and is now exporting its energy revolution. Will we soon benefit from Cuban expertise in cleaning up the US energy sector? Just a few years ago, Cuba was plagued by frequent power blackouts – the result of inefficient generation in outdated thermal power plants, large transmission losses, and wasteful consumption. In 2006, the

Clean Energy for Ethiopians, Not Damnation of River Dwellers

With all the controversy over Ethiopia’s Gibe 3 Dam – which has stirred up negative coverage from the BBC to the East African Standard – it’s easy to forget that a greener energy future for Ethiopia is possible, and that some positive steps are being taken to get there. Ethiopia is rich in clean renewable resources – some of the best on the continent. Developing its abundance of geothermal, wind and solar reserves could make it a green-energy leader among African nations, rather than the dam-nation it is fast becoming. Ethiopia needs more electricity, of that there is no doubt. Bu

Fontes Alternativas de Energia e Eficiência Energética

Cartaz: Fontes Alternativa de Energia  e Eficiência Energética
Thursday, June 20, 2002
Cartaz: Fontes Alternativa de Energia e Eficiência Energética Fundação Heinrich Böll, Coalizão Rios Vivos O seminário "Fontes Alternativas de Energia e Eficiência Energética: Opção para uma política energética sustentável no Brasil", organizado pela Fundação Heinrich Böll e a Coalizão Rios Vivos em Brasília em 2002 foi um marco no debate sobre o futuro energético do país. Este livro contém as apresentações de especialistas que apontam um caminho em que o Brasil poder seguir para eliminar sua dependência em grandes hidrelétricas na Amazônia. A primeira parte trata

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