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OPINION | POWER ELECTRONICS
increasing carbon taxes, focusing on the
A Greener Future Could Be ecological turnaround to boost economic
recovery. The growth in sales of electric,
hybrid, and hydrogen vehicles will also
Pandemic’s Silver Lining dampen oil demand. At the same time, the
pandemic may have permanently altered
driving habits, as some of the workers who
began telecommuting in the early lockdown
By Maurizio Di Paolo Emilio days continue to do so. The cumulative
effect of all of these developments is that oil
demand will drop as much as 80% by 2050,
A tectonic shift is underway in the global energy landscape according to various studies.
that seemed unlikely only a few years ago. The transition to renew-
able energy today is a virtually universally acknowledged trend. We The population of the planet
appear to have little choice in the matter: The population of the
planet continues to rise, and non-renewable energy sources are continues to rise, and non-
limited.
Renewable sources require considerable societal commitment renewable energy sources are
and investment if they are to succeed, but it’s clear that the only limited.
path for fossil fuels is toward decline (with the possible exception
of natural gas, which currently is propped up by subsidies). Expediting the energy transition
toward the “zero emissions” objective is also the financial scenario, as companies disinvest in Many countries have committed to meet-
fossil-fuel businesses because of the industry’s diminished prospects. ing the Paris Agreement goal of keeping the
The latest International Energy Agency (IEA) report projects that renewable sources will global temperature rise this century to well
meet more than 40% of total global energy demand in the coming decade. The recent growth within 2°C above pre-industrialized levels.
in renewable power is a result of tech innovations that have increased production efficiency That imperative cannot be wished away, nor
and enabled a drastic decline in prices, particularly for solar energy. can it be achieved without substantial effort,
A rare bit of good news related to the coronavirus pandemic is that the crisis appears to be investment, and innovation. The required
accelerating the transition from fossil-fuel–based to renewable energy sources. A report by changes will put a strain on global energy
BP, the former British Petroleum, observed the impact of Covid-19 on oil demand, noting that networks.
demand had begun to fall in absolute terms for the first time in modern history. Microgrids, solar storage systems,
The company’s annual report on the future of energy says oil will be replaced by clean elec- electric-vehicle chargers, distributable
tricity from wind farms, solar panels, and hydroelectric power plants as the momentum behind energy loads, and other distributed energy
the renewables industry reaches unprecedented levels. The most pessimistic of the three resources will play a critical role in deter-
presented scenarios for renewable versus fossil-based resources assumes that oil consump- mining the balance between electricity
tion levels will remain constant until 2035 and then begin to fall. However, even under that supply and demand. ■
scenario, oil consumption does not increase.
As the energy ecosystem takes a green turn, the pandemic could be accelerating the process. Maurizio Di Paolo Emilio is editor-in-chief of
Economically developed countries are implementing more ambitious climate policies and Power Electronics News and EEWeb.

IMAGE: SHUTTERSTOCK

www.eetimes.eu | DECEMBER 2020