It is going to be an exciting year for renewable technology solutions in 2020. An increasing number of countries and companies are embracing the sustainable energy generation and the landscape will be rapidly evolving allowing for new technology solutions to be discovered.
The Government’s goal in the UK for renewable energy production is to aim to produce up to 20% of electricity in the UK by 2020. By 2020 the UK would need to produce around 30% of its electricity and 12% of its heat and 10% of its fuels from renewable sources.
Energy storage plays a very important part in balancing power supply and demand and the key to undertaking the intermittency issues of renewable energy.
Wind & Solar
There is widespread support for using renewable energy and technology solutions. Particularly solar and wind energy which will provide electricity without giving growth to any of the carbon dioxide emissions. Utilising solar and wind-generated electricity in a stand-alone system requires batteries or some other storage capacity
The use of batteries is increasing and they are also the most common storage device used in renewable energy systems. Energy storage technologies are expected to increase and improve making their use more affordable and widely available.
Acceptable To Preferred Use
Solar and wind technologies are more widely available and already more efficient and cost-effective than their conventional sources. They are likely to continue to grow and improve their performance and price. Using the economic benefits with a low environmental impact we can expect to see the renewables move from being an acceptable energy source to a preferred one to use. Wind turbines have developed a lot in recent years and solar photovoltaic technology is a lot more efficient and also improved projections of linking the energy in waves and tides.
Reducing Emissions
An increasing number of cities, countries and corporations are embracing the emissions reduction targets and have climate action plans to meet the goal of limiting the rise in the global temperature. A lot of them have pledged that they will work towards the goal of energy generation that is 100% based on renewables. Companies are also recognizing their impact on climate change and have also committed to transitioning to 100% renewables too.
Efficient Solutions
The most efficient ways of renewable technology solutions to look for in 2020 are wind, nuclear fusion, PV panels, biomass, concentrated solar power and geothermal marine energy. Improved cars with better fuel efficiency. Such as diesel and electro-hybrid systems. Energy storage particularly for wind energy and solar energy too. According to Phil from Enhanced Energy Solutions in Sheffield “Energy conservation such as improved insulation, heating, air conditioning etc, will continue to increase”
It can be easily forgotten that a significant percentage of the world’s population remains without access to energy at all. A billion people still live without any electricity and hundreds of millions have unreliable and expensive energy sources. Gaining universal access to energy is a critical factor in addressing global development challenges.