intermittency

Propaganda for renewables: a critique of a report by Oil Change International

While agreeing with Oil Change International's arguments concerning the unfeasibility of natural gas as a 'bridge' in the energy transition, Brian Davey is concerned about their apparent ignorance of the scarcity of resources required for generating and storing renewable energy, and their (related) failure to mention any need for degrowth in the transition to renewables.

The real lesson of the Energiewende is that the German economy uses too much energy to be sustainable and needs to degrow…

Brian Davey draws on German research to argue that the only way that industrialised countries will be able to achieve the transition to 100% renewables is through degrowth. The transition is likely to be easier in low-income countries that use relatively little energy at present.

Fantasies of “Socialism with an iPad”?: Inventing the Future by Nick Srnicek and Alex Williams: Review

"Sometimes you read a book that helps to crystalize your thinking, not because you agree with it, but because you don't" writes Brian Davey, who goes on to challenge the authors' assumptions about the availability of renewable energy and the nature and potential of localism.