Rapid fuel switching from coal to natural gas through effective carbon pricing
Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
Authors
Colleges, School and Institutes
External organisations
- Imperial College London
Abstract
Great Britain's overall carbon emissions fell by 6% in 2016, due to cleaner electricity production. This was not due to a surge in low-carbon nuclear or renewable sources; instead it was the much-overlooked impact of fuel switching from coal to natural gas generation. This Perspective considers the enabling conditions in Great Britain and the potential for rapid fuel switching in other coal-reliant countries. We find that spare generation and fuel supply-chain capacity must already exist for fuel switching to deliver rapid carbon savings, and to avoid further high-carbon infrastructure lock-in. More important is the political will to alter the marketplace and incentivize this switch, for example, through a stable and strong carbon price. With the right incentives, fuel switching in the power sector could rapidly achieve on the order of 1 GtCO2 saving per year worldwide (3% of global emissions), buying precious time to slow the growth in cumulative carbon emissions.
Details
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 365-372 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | Nature Energy |
Volume | 3 |
Issue number | 5 |
Publication status | Published - 26 Mar 2018 |