Carta de Solicitud

Dirigido a

Arq. Claudia Camacho

Vicerrectora Regional UDABOL Santa Cruz

REF: Solicitud de envío de documentos

Atentamente,

Brief Story of Energy

To achieve a low-carbon economy without nuclear, renewable electricity generation
and storage must be really tremendous.

The uncomfortable truth of decarbonisation is we need to dig a lot of stuff out of

the ground to make the world cleaner.
 Energy is essential for most activities of modern
society. Access to abundant, affordable, secure, safe, and clean energy is beneficial for humans.
We use energy in the form of firewood, fossil fuels, and electricity to make life comfortable and
convenient. Every product you have at home is most likely made of materials, which were
obtained from Earth using a lot of energy. At home, we use electricity for our lights and fans,
water heater and room heaters, oven, microwave, washing machine, etc. We use petrol, diesel,
CNG for our cars, trucks, buses, etc. A large amount of energy is consumed in agriculture and
industry.

As of 2018, the world’s main primary energy sources consisted of petroleum (34%), coal (27%),
and natural gas (24%), amounting to an 85% share for fossil fuels in primary energy
consumption in the world. A large-scale transition away from fossil energy poses a great
challenge for society. The current consumption of energy is tremendous. It is hard to imagine
that we can rely on one source of energy.

Global direct primary energy consumption in 2020 was about 160,000 TWh (576 exajoules or
545 quadrillions BTU). Assuming that the calorific value of hard coal is 24 GJ / t, then we are
talking about the equivalent of 24 billion metric tons of coal. That’s about 20 billion cubic
meters. This is equivalent to three hundred million wagons of coal or to a mountain of coal 4
times larger than Mount Kilimanjaro.

Low-carbon Economy – Energy Sources and Storage

How much energy does the world consume?

Energy consumption is growing steadily.

Global direct primary energy consumption in 2020 was about 160,000 TWh (576 exajoules or
545 quadrillions BTU).
 This is equivalent to three hundred million wagons of coal or to a mountain of coal 4 times
larger than Mount Kilimanjaro.

We are totally dependent on fossil fuels.

The world’s main primary energy sources consisted of petroleum (34%), coal (27%), and natural
gas (24%), amounting to an 85% share for fossil fuels in primary energy consumption in the
world.

How much energy does the world consume?

Why do majority of fossil fuels need to stay underground?

Climate change is a real problem that you and especially your descendants will face. 90% of
coal must remain unextracted and nearly 60% of oil and fossil methane gas must stay
underground to have even a 50% chance of keeping global temperatures from rising 1.5 degrees
Celsius above pre-industrial levels.
 Arctic sea ice is now declining at a rate of 13% per decade.

Why do majority of fossil fuels need to stay underground?

The type of emissions matters.

What are the primary energy sources?

Industry, transportation, and the residential sector consume even more primary resources than
electricity generation.

To achieve a low-carbon economy, electricity generation has to triple and it must be based on
low-carbon sources.

Hydrogen and electricity are produced from primary energy, we cannot say that they  have the
potential to offset fossil fuels.
 All energy transformations are associated with energy losses.

What are the primary energy sources?

Energy conversion and storage efficiency

Energy exists in many forms. All energy conversions are associated with significant energy
losses.

It is desirable to minimize the number of energy conversions and to use highly efficient
conversions.

Daily energy storage does not pose a problem. The problem is energy storage to cover the whole
year and seasons. 

Energy conversion and storage efficiency

 

What is the low-carbon balanced energy mix?

Generation and consumption must be balanced across the entire grid because energy is
consumed as it is produced.

Variable renewable energy sources are not dispatchable due to their fluctuating nature, such as
wind power and solar power. When it’s cloudy or the wind isn’t blowing, the grid needs more
energy from other sources.

The MIT analysis shows a big share of nuclear, a big share of renewables, and some storage is
the best mix that is low-carbon, reliable, and at the lowest cost.

What is low-carbon balanced energy mix?

Current nuclear energy – to phase-out or to continue?
Today’s majority of nuclear plants are approaching the end of their design life.

Taking out existing nuclear power plants completely destroys gains with renewables such as
wind, biomass, and solar power.

We have to make a final decision on the phase-out of the current nuclear. Indecision can cost us
a lot. At present, nuclear energy has been declining for thirty years, and educational capacities
and supply chains are in line with this.

to phase-out or to continue?
Future of Nuclear Energy
A big share of nuclear, a big share of renewables, and some storage is the best mix that is low-
carbon, reliable, and at the lowest cost. Without nuclear, demands on the overcapacity of
renewables, transmission system, and energy storage systems, would result in excessive use of
land and resources. 

Future Costs: Opportunities exist to significantly reduce the capital cost and shorten the
construction schedule for new nuclear power plants.

Safety: Based on the entire life-cycle, fossil fuels are most dangerous, while nuclear and modern
renewable energy sources are vastly safer and cleaner.
 Sustainability: Nuclear energy is one of the few sustainable primary sources. It is the only
controllable large-scale source that could complement variable renewable sources (wind and
solar power), and that could ensure reliable 24/7 energy.