I was quite happy with the answer of IEA (International Energy Agency*) director, Dr. Fadi Birol, to two critical questions I posed, first on how the European Commission should include nuclear power in its “green financing taxonomy,” and secondly, against German over-reliance on variable renewables (I termed this “renewable fundamentalism”) which I said produces high “organizational entropy,” that is, unworkable and unaffordable, completely “reinvented” so-called “smart grids” with “grid scale stage” whose technology is not sufficiently developed all to cope with the problem of unavoidable wind and solar energy fluctuations, which become more massive as the percentage of installed renewables increases. This is a significant contribution to Germany’s (and the EU’s) present crises of energy supply and price security. (The video above is set to start at my two questions.)
His answers are very pointed (i.e., critical of German energy transition policy) and useful – yet polite as always. In fact, go back and watch his entire talk and especially the previous to mine.
Here is a link to the Commission’s science research arm’s findings, which I referred to, that nuclear power “does no significant harm” to the environment and is eminently “safe”.
Note: this was the T-PECC is “Transatlantic Partnership for Energy and Climate Cooperation.” It was held on 20-21 September in Warsaw, Poland. On the Polish side most notably was Minister Michał Kurtyka, head of the Polish Ministry of Climate and Environmental, and on the USA side Secretary, Jennifer Grandholm of the Department of Energy was there along with top Department of State officials,
* The IEA (International Energy Agency) is the independent energy arm of the OECD – the developed states plus Turkey and Mexico.
Here is a link to the EU Commission’s science research advisory arm’s report finding that nuclear energy poses “no significant harm” under EU Green Finance Taxonomy rules. Apparently the Commission has decided to adopt this; however was reportedly waiting for the German elections (“wisely” as one expert commented). It is under great pressure to ignore this scientific concensus.
Also, I was interviewed on this nuclear issue in the green finance taxonomy by PAP, Brussels (the Polish Associated Press) on this, and this interview appeared in Polish in Bankier.pl (22 Sept.) and various venues.
The Global Barrel 