Addressing the climate challenge at COP23

 

The World Energy Council, its partners and network took an active role at the UNFCCC 23rd Conference of the Parties in Bonn, where  the 2017 World Energy Trilemma report & Index was launched  followed by a panel discussion on 'New Policy Dilemmas in the Energy Transition'.

The launch on 15 November, set the context for high-level dialogue on the interplay of decarbonisation, decentralisation and digitisation trends, in accelerating the supply and demand of low/zero carbon energy electricity, and addressing the climate challenge.

Discussions moderated by Christoph Frei, Secretary General, World Energy Council,  focused on how the Energy Trilemma Index can be used to drive dialogue on policy dilemmas encountered in managing security of supply, social equity and sustainability. The session highlighted new approaches and policies for ensuring reliability and enabling dynamic resilience in the context of diverse grid archetypes; the rise of the empowered consumer; the emergence of new economic development models e.g. the sharing economy; city-scale circular economy, and smart rural development.

 

Pierre El Khoury, Secretary World Energy Council Lebanon, commented: "In 2017 there are  four Arab countries in the top 10 for social equity. In Lebanon,  we are setting aggressive targets in terms of renewables  and solar. We are seeing a huge trend in many Arab states. Energy subsidies and infrastructure investments are key to driving this."

This year Slovenia ranked in the top 10 for the first time.

 

State Secretary for Ministry and infrastructure, Klemen Potisek, said:" There is still  room for improvement. When it comes to  Security Slovenia is doing well. In terms of sustainability  there is the potential to do more.

"Slovenia has an energy vision for the period 2030 to 2050, based on similar pillars of the three  corners of the Energy Trilemma. We are currently battling with conflicting policies. For example,  hydropower is one of the cleanest forms of energy resources and there are many unexploited rivers in Slovenia, but we need to take into account how we utilise rivers as form of resource against protecting the environment in the long-term."

Philip Lowe, Executive Chair World Energy Trilemma, stressed the need for  for competition, innovation,  regulation, and government intervention to drive climate friendly solutions and successfully achieve the energy trilemma goals. "The government needs to pay more attention, we need are framework where all possible flowers bloom", he said.

Other remarks  were made by  Jeanne Ng, Director Group Sustainability CLP Power, Hong Kong; Mart Raamat, Energy Advisor for the Minister of Environment, Estonia;  Siim Kiisler, Minister of Environment, Estonia and Thomas Fritz, Partner, Utilities, Oliver Wyman.

The World Energy Council was also  proud to cooperate with the German Energy Agency (dena) at the launch of their new iteration of the Start-up Energy Transition Awards “SET 2018”.

 

Start Up Energy Transition is a global initiative for visionaries and vanguards fighting climate change. By creating a platform with a clear focus on scaling up innovation, its mission is to strengthen the existing ecosystem surrounding innovations in the field of sustainable energy solutions.  The launch took place at the Climate Planet venue, an interactive space located beside the official Bonn Zone.  The event marked the kick-off of the process for start-ups and innovators from around the world to submit their application according to the type of critical issues that they are looking to solve to help shape the energy transition.

The programme included interventions by Philippe Joubert, Executive Chair, World Energy Council, who commented: "Innovation is not an act of god, there is still room for more progress, we can not afford to be complacent," as well as Nick Nuttall, Head of Communications & Outreach and Spokesperson UNFCCC, Adnan Amin, Director-General International Renewable Energy Agency, as well as start-up pitches, and a lively panel discussion.

The Council also organised a breakfast briefing 'Driving the energy transition through innovative business models and technology',  co-organised by the World Energy Council, BDI and the International Chamber of Commerce, as well as an exclusive high-level Dinner  'Collaboration and Innovation: Leading to a Sustainable Future,' co-organised with Weltenergierat- Deutschland, the German member committee of the Council.