⚡ Think Europe is Electrifying? Think Again ⚡
✍️ By Ann Mettler and Julia Reinaud
Europe routinely speaks about ‘electrification’ as if it is happening. But data 📊 tells a different story: demand is flat – and has been for years [📈 see chart in the pictures]. In other words: the much-touted electrification revolution in Europe is (so far) failing to materialize.
Despite ambitious rhetoric 🎙️ and policy initiatives 📜, the stark reality is that Europe 🇪🇺 is not rising to the occasion and does not currently have the speed 🏃♂️ and scale 🌉 required to meet its targets and is nowhere near China’s electrification drive 🚀🇨🇳. This is yet another example of a divide between assumptions 🤔 and on-the-ground realities.
This disconnect has very serious spillover effects: with so little additional demand for electric-based technologies ⚡🔋 and long queues ⏳ to connect to the electricity system, there isn’t the necessary boost to provide the abundant and affordable clean electrons ⚡ that industry needs to decarbonize.
And manufacturing sectors are hurting, too. Despite our supposedly ambitious clean energy transition and renewable targets, our home-grown wind sector is on its knees. Yet another indicator that we need to stress-test the presumably inevitable trajectory towards electrification.
At the root of this issue is a disjointed policy plan: while going all in on renewables for years, there has only very recently been an accompanying strategy for energy storage and grid modernization. This is an essential piece of the puzzle 🧩 because as we all know: the sun doesn’t always shine 🌞 and the wind doesn’t always blow 🌬️.
The seeming inability to think of – and build towards – a modern energy system means that storage and grids are now lagging far behind. Moreover, the rollout of renewables has been uneven with much faster deployment of solar, de-coupled from wind.
It will be imperative that the EU’s (existing) Grid Action Plan and (forthcoming) Electrification Strategy provide an honest stock-take 🧐 that includes a more holistic approach. They need to connect the dots 🔗 between a volatile energy system ⚡, squeezed industry 🏭, and the clean technology enablers that can provide solutions to both – such as Long Duration Energy Storage 🔋 to absorb and use these clean electrons at all times, and Thermal Energy Storage 🔥 to electrify Industrial Heat as flexible demand.
The bottom line is that much of Europe’s approach simply doesn’t add up ➕❌ and therefore calls for an urgent stress test 🛠️
Our latest Cleantech Reality Check on electrification 📘, created with Cleantech for Europe and with analytical support from Systemiq Ltd. provides real-time feedback from European policymakers, providing a clear-eyed view of the obstacles on the ground and aggressive policy responses to them. Read it here: https://lnkd.in/dKZGNpcu
Breakthrough Energy Cleantech for Europe
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