A large population requires a large amount of energy From 1970 to 2015 the world population doubled and the consumption of primary en ergy increased by 168 percent So far 80 percent of this consumption has been covered by fossil energies resulting in a rise in both CO2 emis sions and global warming and the need to switch to renewable energy sources This is what the development looks like The World Energy Council has predicted that the primary ener gy demand growth will drop to one third by 2060 This means that due to technological innovations digi talization as well as social transfor mation we will save energy At the same time the proportion of fossil energies in primary energy demand will decrease to between 50 and 70 percent depending on the scenario The proportion of nuclear energy will remain roughly the same whereas the proportion of renewable ener gies will increase from today s 14 percent to a range between 21 and 37 percent according to the World Energy Council The impact of renewables is partic ularly strong in electric power gen eration Although the global demand for electricity will double by 2060 between 55 and 98 percent of it de pending on the scenario will then be produced without CO2 emissions Is the energy transition technically feasible Yes says Prof Wolfgang Irrek PhD an energy management expert at Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences Assured supply though is the big challenge Relat ed to his native Germany Irrek says Solar and wind power might only be able to cover five percent of the electricity load on some days but 198 percent of it on others During most hours of the year solar and wind power in Germany would con tinue to be insufficient Natural gas or hydropower stations or storage systems would have to fill the gap The expert expects that in Germany alone following the country s exit from coal power in 2038 up to 50 gigawatts of excess electricity would have to be stored depending on weather conditions and during pro longed periods of insufficient sun light electricity gaps of up to 70 GW would have to be filled For compar ison an average power station pro vides 1 GW Is the energy transition economi cally feasible too Irrek explains The exit from coal and the entire energy transition will only be fea sible if the economic incentives are sufficient to motivate the required capital expenditures These he says are not only necessary for the massive extension of renewable en ergies but also to ensure the flexi bility and system stabilization op ENERGY TRANSITION The energy transition is technically feasible Prof Wolfgang Irrek PhD Ruhr West University of Applied Sciences 1995 2030 2040 RENEWABLE ENERGIES ARE SEEING A GLOBAL UPSWING Source BP Energy Outlook 2018 10 20 30 40 50 0 2020 Predicted proportion of renewable ener gies in electricity production by regions tions in the electricity market This is where Irrek also sees a need for action on the part of policymakers in terms of more effectively estab lishing suitable price or quantity control parameters and other reg ulatory actions for a consistent framework within which a socially fair energy transition process can develop in line with efficiency con siderations of a market economy and compatibility with the natural environment EU USA China Worldwide India global 25

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