30 November 2023
Speed of renewables uptake poses questions over gas’ role in European transition
Publication date: 18 September 2020
Gas Strategies Group
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ISSN: 0964-8496
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For years, natural gas has been touted as the “transition fuel” between the age of hydrocarbons and the low-carbon future required to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
The argument has long been that widespread deployment of zero-carbon but interruptible electricity generating technologies such as wind and solar require reliable back-up sources when they are not sufficient to meet demand.
Natural gas, which emits half as much carbon dioxide per MWh of power as coal, is often considered the only climate-efficient way to fill that role. Gas offers the advantages of both rapid response time and grid scale in a way that other low-carbon technologies such as nuclear do not.