Renewable Revolution

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July 12th, 2019 by Steve Hanley

SNIPPET:

70% of Africans do not have access to a conventional electrical grid, which is why distributed renewable energy from solar panels and wind turbines is the perfect way to connect them to the modern world. But that hasn’t stopped 🦕😈🦖 traditional energy companies from trying to drag Africa into the 21st century with 19th century technology if there’s a buck to be made.

China is moving aggressively to slash carbon emissions at home, but it is only too happy to export them to other nations. It is offering to build coal-fired generating plants throughout southeast Asia, India, Pakistan, and Africa just as long as they are built by Chinese companies.

A court in Kenya has recently nixed a plan to build that country’s first coal facility — a 981 MW station backed by a Chinese-led consortium — after environmental activists sued Amu Power and the Kenyan National Environment Management Authority claiming they failed to carry out a rigorous environmental assessment and to inform local people of potential impacts, according to a report by The Guardian. They argued that the plant would have adverse effects on local fishermen and farmland. The court agreed.

Full article:
 

David Zarembka • 9 hours ago • edited
Another point is that the coal plant was supposed to sell its electricity for 7 cents per KWh, but an independent analysis indicated the cost would be closer to 70 cents per KWh. The government was also required to guarantee that the electricity would be bought by the power company and, if not, the company/government would be required to pay 85% of the cost of the undelivered power. This was a terrible deal no matter how you look at it. At the moment Kenya has an excess of electric power capacity and solar farms and more geothermal are coming on line. 👍👍👍

Steve Hanley > David Zarembka • 9 hours ago
Thank you for that local input, David. Sounds like the project developers were going to get a gold mine while Kenyans go the shaft.

David Zarembka > Steve Hanley • 8 hours ago
You are correct. But the Kenyan elite would have cashed in also.

Agelbert COMMENT: The Chinese seem to have a NIMBY problem. Someone should remind them that pollution cause and Catastrophic climate Change effect is unavoidable within a single planetary biosphere like ours.


It's real hard to grow crops on the 🌙 moon.