Ivo Bozukov serves as the vice president of energy transition at Forum Energy Technologies, spearheading a development path for the company’s technologies to be used by customers to provide the greatest possible positive impact on the environment. In this role, Ivaylo Bozoukov also focuses on investing in technologies that help to reduce the company’s Scope 1 and Scope 2 emissions while reducing its overall greenhouse gas impact.
This article will take a closer look at renewable energy, outlining the various different types and why there is growing impetus to move away from fossil fuels to greener, cleaner, more sustainable energy sources.
Renewable energy is derived from natural sources that are replenished faster than they are consumed. For example, wind and sunlight are constantly replenished. Available in plentiful supply, renewable energy sources abound.
Conversely, fossil fuels like gas, coal and oil are finite and non-renewable. Taking millions of years to form, when fossil fuels are burned to produce energy, resources are used up and greenhouse gases are released into the earth’s atmosphere.
From fuelling cars to drive to work to heating and lighting homes, modern life was built on fossil fuels like gas, coal and oil. However, burning them impacts the climate and can have repercussions in terms of human health too. Generating renewable energy creates drastically less emissions. In terms of addressing the climate crisis, transitioning from fossil fuels, which account for the lion’s share of emissions, to renewable energy sources is crucial.
Today, renewables are becoming increasingly affordable. In addition, the renewable energy industry is generating three times more jobs globally than fossil fuels.
The main types of renewable energy currently include:
- Solar energy, the most abundant of all energy sources, which can even be captured in cloudy weather. In fact, the rate at which energy from the sun is intercepted by the earth is approximately 10,000 times faster than the rate at which energy is consumed by humankind.
- Wind energy, harnessing the kinetic energy of air movement via large wind turbines located at sea or onshore. Wind energy has been used by humans in various ways for thousands of years, although it is only relatively recently that wind energy technologies have evolved to maximise electricity production.
- Hydropower, capturing the energy of water moving from high to low elevations, including rivers and reservoirs. Hydropower reservoirs typically have multiple uses, including providing flood and drought control, drinking water, water for irrigation and navigation services.
- Ocean energy, derived through technology that uses the thermal and kinetic energy of seawater, currents or waves to produce electricity. Although still at a relatively early stage of development, ocean energy systems with wave and tidal current devices are being explored, providing theoretical potential for the development of an ocean energy industry that could easily exceed present human energy requirements.
- Geothermal energy, utilising accessible thermal energy from the earth’s interior and extracting heat from geothermal reservoirs. Once extracted via wells or other means, fluids of various temperatures can be used to create electricity using mature and reliable electricity generation technology.
- Bioenergy, with power generated by a variety organic materials known collectively as ‘biomass’. Sources include charcoal, wood, dung and other manures that can be used to generate power and heat. Biomass shows particular potential in developing countries, providing an affordable means of generating power in rural regions for cooking, lighting and heating.
With numerous countries worldwide, including the United States and United Kingdom, all striving to achieve net zero by 2050, renewable energy is a critical component in terms of driving down greenhouse gas emissions and avoiding the worst consequences of the impending climate crisis.
Harnessing the power of renewable energy sources presents numerous benefits. First and foremost, they are in much more plentiful supply than fossil fuels, helping governments around the world to reduce their reliance on other countries and ensuring energy independence and security. However, the biggest advantage of renewables lies in the fact that they produce little to no harmful emissions when used. It is for this reason that renewables are being hailed as an integral component in the transition from fossil fuels to clean, green energy, reducing mankind’s ecological impact on the planet and preventing further global warming.
