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eSPARC attended The IHS Energy CERAWeek in Houston,Texas during the week of February 22nd. The conference focused on the future of the global energy sector. The theme of the conference was: Energy Transition: Strategies for a New World. Several stakeholders, policymakers, and experts in the oil, natural gas, power, coal, nuclear, and renewables industry provided insight on the future of investment, costs efficiency, technology, energy, regulatory policy and geopolitics, and emerging strategies in the energy sector. The eSPARC team attended lectures on Thursday and Friday.
Summary of Thursday panel discussions:
On Thursday, The CERAWeek 2016 panelists discussed the uncertain nature behind The Clean Power Plan, the present and future climate of the electricity sector, and the transition to renewable energy in Europe and Latin America. A few notable discussions on Thursday:
Edward Sala de Vedruna, IHS Senior Director, led a discussion on the European Power Market and its transition to renewable energy. Panel participants discussed Europe’s ongoing transition towards a clean energy policy, and important lessons that the US can learn from their progress. The panel concluded that cost-efficient technology, regulation, and networks development will be important factors for the US to focus on while it begins to integrate cleaner alternatives.
Carlos Pascual, IHS Senior Vice President, moderated a discussion on the COP 21 Paris climate agreement. Panelists discussed how the global energy system will change in response to the Paris agreement, necessary policy tools and technology needed to address climate change, and challenges and solutions facing the developed and developing world. Several participants believe that renewables, such as wind and solar, will experience massive growth in the coming years.
Summary of Friday panel discussions:
On Friday, The CERAWeek 2016 panelists discussed the future of oil, gas, power, finance, technology, and corporate strategy. A few notable discussions on Friday:
Daniel Yergin, Vice Chairman of HIS, led the MIT Plenary session: Frontiers of Science and Innovation: Future Technologies to Meet the Energy and Climate Change. Several distinguished MIT professors and directors working in energy and technology discussed how MIT has been a critical player in technological innovations in the energy sector. The discussion primarily focused on biological synthesis and low-cost electrical storage technology.
Senators John Cornyn (R-Texas) and Lis Murkowski (R-Alaska), Chairman of the US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee, discussed past and future energy policies and the US’ global influence. The senators believe that energy policy will be in constant flux in response to US administration changes, likely having an impact on economic and political systems globally.
More information on CERAWeek here: http://ceraweek.com/2016/
