Page 9 - European Energy Innovation - winter 2018 publication
P. 9
Winter 2018 European Energy Innovation 9
FUTURE ROLE OF GAS
My vision of the future European more carbon emitting fossil fuels, energy carrier that can be made out
energy system in this regard is notably hard coal and lignite. There is of all other energy sources. It can be
clear: it is one of a dual or hybrid no way reaching our climate targets used as a transport fuel, converted
model based first and foremost on without radically change the share of back to electricity or injected into the
electricity from renewable sources coal and lignite in the energy mix. natural gas network.
but sustained and complemented by
renewable and decarbonised gas. In the mid-term, natural gas will One promising option is the
be needed as a back-up or bridge power-to-gas technology. It allows
With such a hybrid model the fuel for the increasing production renewable electricity to be converted
European energy system would be of electricity from renewable and stored as a gas. This is of
much stronger and more resilient sources, mainly wind and solar. Gas particular interest for Europe where
because it could be based on two is the ideal back-up technology for the combined generating capacity
independent and at the same time variable renewables characterised of offshore wind farms could reach
complementary energy resources by a high flexibility for balancing the around 100 GW by the year 2030 and
and infrastructures. Large quantities integration of renewable generation the PV capacity installed is expected
of renewable gases can be produced (more flexible compared to nuclear to increase to almost 60 GW in 2020.
within Europe reducing the import production) and by the lowest CO2- Using power-to-gas technology
dependency of the European energy intensity of fossil fuels. could help to accommodate these
system. quantities of renewable electricity.
For the long-term, however, there
And even more: While the energy is a challenge. If natural gas is to However, the precise composition of
transition in the EU has so far remain in the EU energy mix, until energy carriers in our future energy
focused on the electricity sector, 2050 and beyond, it has to be fully system is surrounded with high
it now needs to encompass heat, decarbonised. This clearly entails uncertainty when a time horizon up
transport and industrial consumption. massive deployment of technologies to 2030 and 2050 is taken.
The interfaces between both as well as related costs and likely
electricity and gas grids and the regulatory changes. In this context The exact combination of different
integration of multiple technologies Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS)/ technologies will best be determined
will increase the resilience of Usage (CCU) will have to play a by market forces, finding the most
the overall system efficiency The decisive role. efficient way to reach ambitious
underlying concept is called “sectoral policy objectives in a technology
integration” or "sector coupling". The decarbonisation of natural gas neutral manner. The main objective
will be increasingly complemented should be removing any existing
Such a combined approach of by the development of renewable regulatory barriers or fill any
renewable electricity with renewable gases. Renewable gases have potentially existing regulatory gaps to
and low-carbon gases would not been gradually emerging in the create a level-playing field.
only lead to quite substantive European energy market as possible
savings in the energy transition alternatives to natural gas in several In order for the future to happen, a
process but would also deliver applications. At present, bio-methane structured cooperation between the
on economic growth, job creation and biogas represent the main renewable electricity and gas sector
and strengthening EU's position source of renewable gases in Europe on the one hand and an intense
as a leader in innovative energy with hydrogen showing a growing cooperation with the energy intensive
technologies. potential. Thanks to its particular industries is required. Furthermore, a
characteristics, hydrogen is able to dialogue between the electricity and
In the short term, natural gas can play contribute to achieving the climate gas sectors and their customers in
an important role in decarbonising goals and to translate them into the transport and heating sector is
the EU's energy system by replacing economic activities. Hydrogen is an essential. l
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