Affordable and Clean Energy

Looking to take advantage of the LNG oversupply and low pricing, many developing regions are now establishing gas-to-power markets that can accommodate imported supply. Converting to gas power, particularly in regions that have historically run on diesel fuel oil, can carry additional economic benefits. In some areas, conversions can cut electric costs in half.

Bloomberg New Energy Finannce (BNEF) released its annual Climatescope findings, assessing 71 countries in emerging markets on their progress made toward the clean energy transition. Solar capacity jumped by more than half in developing nations.

For Power Industry, Innovation is Key. For electric utilities, innovation will be key to helping the industry evolve and prepare for the future.

Latin America’s rising demand for natural gas presents broad opportunities across the industry. While these opportunities may be most acutely present in Mexico — where a steadily growing economy is catalyzing soaring natural gas imports from the United States — conditions across the region reflect positive trends for U.S. producers and midstream players. Emerging markets are eager to tap U.S. supplies and seize on natural gas’s potential as a low cost, reliable and cleaner power generation source.

Schneider Electric, the global specialist in energy management and automation, today announced that it has extended relief efforts to those affected by Hurricane Maria by donating APC by Schneider Electric Mobiya TS170 S portable LED lighting systems to the Light and Hope for Puerto Rico campaign. The solar lanterns will provide citizens with temporary lighting and power to charge mobile devices as the grid continues undergo repairs in the wake of the storm.

Today, about 1.1 billion people in the world live without electricity. Another billion have unreliable power and 2.8 billion people use coal, wood, charcoal or animal waste for cooking and cleaning. Today, Schneider Electric is transforming the lives of millions of people in Nigeria by partnering with Microsoft and the Lagos State Electricity Board to provide sustainable solar power to over 200 schools and clinics.

General Motors’ global manager of renewable energy, Rob Threlkeld, and Lily Donge, principal of the Rocky Mountain Institute’s Business Renewable Center, led a GreenBiz webinar on the economic opportunity in addressing climate change. Together they shared best practices to help organizations of all sizes achieve quick wins toward their renewable energy goals and scale efforts across their enterprise.

Experts have predicted the amount of energy used by data centers will triple in the next decade, and as a responsible cloud computing company, iomart has started its journey to sustainable growth through lower energy consumption across its data centers. The company turned to Schneider Electric to lower energy use, meet energy compliance standards, and manage volatile energy costs.

Today nearly 1.3 billion people — almost 1 of every 5 persons on the planet — lack access to modern energy. Almost all live in poverty in rural sub-Saharan Africa and developing Asia, unconnected to utility networks. Many companies offer stand-alone solar powered systems and mini-grid solutions, but the target communities often cannot afford the purchase price and lack the know-how to operate the systems. There are elements of a successful, sustainable approach to rural electrification projects, with examples of innovative business models and a case study of Schneider Electric’s Access to Energy program.

Leaders from business, civil society, Government and the United Nations convened today in Bonn to discuss an accelerated pathway forward towards implementing the Paris Climate Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) at the COP 23/CMP 13: High-Level Meeting of Caring for Climate.