Narrative storytelling has power in driving clean energy revolution

ASU, American Resilience Project to premiere film documenting the closing of the Navajo Generating Station

Tempe Town Lake at night with a building and lights in the background

In 2017, the Salt River Project utilities company announced it would be closing the Navajo Generating Station, a coal-fired power plant located on the Navajo Nation near Page, Arizona, for good. The largest coal plant in the western U.S., the plant was in operation for more than four decades and employed some 750 — nearly all Native Americans, and many of whom lost their jobs when it closed.

Some in the nearby tribal communities were divided on the closing, with the economic impact weighed against the negative environmental effects of the plant.

On Feb. 4, in association with Arizona State University, the American Resilience Project , a nonprofit organization that uses storytelling to address social issues and inspire action, will premiere the second film in its “ Current Revolution ” series on energy transitions, titled “Nation in Transition,” which tells the story of the closing of the coal plant on the Navajo Nation.

Paul Hirt , ASU emeritus professor of history and sustainability, helped to produce the documentary with filmmaker Roger Sorkin.

“I spent years and years advocating for more renewable energy, and I thought that was enough,” Hirt said. “Now that the clean energy revolution has come faster than anybody expected, it's being driven by market forces rather than policy or the individuals it’s affecting. It's not enough anymore to just put solar panels on your roof. Now we have to say, ‘How do we bring the rest of society along and not let people fall through the cracks?’ We have to pay attention to the social impacts of that transition and make sure that we're bringing everybody along in a just and sustainable way.”

And if you’re not sure where you fit into the issue as an individual, Sorkin has the answer.

“One of the points we're trying to illustrate is the fact that no matter what you do in your life, you need energy,” he said. “We're all connected to the energy system. What happens when the lights go out? Everyone can relate to that feeling of reaching for the light switch and nothing happens. This isn't someone else's problem to solve. We all should have a vested interest in it.”

ASU Now had a conversation with Sorkin and Hirt in advance of the film’s virtual premiere this Thursday to hear more about what they had to say on the subject and how the power of narrative can help.

(Editor's note: Responses have been edited for length and clarity.)

movie poster with hands holding electric wire and power transformer in the background

The American Resilience Project’s “Current Revolution” series explores the subject of energy transitions.

Question: This documentary is part of the American Resilience Project, the purpose of which is to harness the power of narrative to address societal issues and inspire action. Why is narrative such a powerful tool for that?

Sorkin: Story is such a powerful tool for organizing. I mean, you can trace it back to the origins of civilization, that ability to communicate and construct narratives for survival purposes and for social cohesion. Often I'll joke about the films (in the Current Revolution series) as white papers disguised as films, because they're really aiming for that same goal, which is to educate people in the change-making space, whether it’s on the policy level or the grassroots level, so that they know how to really tell a story about this stuff.

So I'm trying to help people become better communicators themselves with the films, and so I’ve got to tell a story that everyone can relate to in their daily lives. And that's really tough to do. But if we think about it in terms of basic human needs, everybody's got them – food, water, shelter, quality of life, health – these are basic needs. So it’s not about persuading somebody that solar power is better than wind power, or that wind is better than gas. It’s about showing people how these things affect you, how they can make your life better. So I see narrative as a really powerful tool to connect with people on a deeper, emotional level. Especially in this media ecosystem where we're just so overwhelmed with information coming at us all the time. I think that the more you can connect on that emotional level, and go a little deeper beyond just a soundbite or a tweet, maybe it lingers more; at least that's my hope.

Hirt: One of the key units at ASU that provided support for this film was Steven Beschloss’ Narrative Storytelling Initiative . Narratives are central to our comprehension of the world and our organizing of ourselves to act in the world. And so narrative is really at the heart and soul of everything that we're doing here in this film. I'm a historian, and historians work through narrative. We do research and we generate data, but we don't just use charts and graphs and work in the science and math arena. We actually are humanists who work in the human understanding and human communications arena.

And so every historian has to learn how to interpret the past in a way that can be delivered through an essay, through a story, through a narrative, in a way that helps people to understand the world through storytelling, through narrative. And so my whole professional career has been all about crafting narratives that help us to understand the past so that we can better understand how we got to where we are today, so that we can better shape the future that we're heading into.

Q: How do you decide which stories to tell?

Sorkin: For me, it always starts with — what are we going to do about the threat of climate change to the future of civilization? That's the banner headline for what I care about. So working backwards from there, I usually start by just talking with folks in the policy space, like Paul — I consider Paul to be one of those policy people, because he’s not just a historian, he was also on the board of directors for the Salt River Project  — and I just ask them, “What do you see happening in this next legislative cycle?” and “What are the policy solutions that are going to give us the best bang for the buck when it comes to securing the future of our civilization?” Whether that’s greenhouse gas emissions, or CAFE (Corporate Average Fuel Economy) fuel standards, or any number of things, solar tax breaks; just really try to get down to that granular level of what all the policy people are working on and try to create some sort of connective tissue among that movement. 

Hirt: After we met while Roger was working on the first episode in the "Current Revolution" series, Roger asked me to sit on the advisory council (for the American Resilience Project). And one of the things that he asked me to think about was what future episodes might we create. What needs to be told about the renewable energy revolution? What other stories are really important? And something that I had come to feel strongly about was when in 2017 the Salt River Project announced that they were going to close the Navajo Generating Station. At that moment, there was an economic crisis in northeastern Arizona that was causing a lot of fear and disruption. The Navajo Nation was going to lose something like 40% of their government revenue and something like 400 good paying jobs. The coal mine was going to close down. The Hopi Tribe was very worried. And there was this big battle to try to keep the coal-fire power plant open. And the Navajo Nation itself fought for nearly two years to stop the plant from closing rather than immediately beginning to prepare for a transition to a future without coal. They spent all of their capital and all of their time and money trying to stop the plant from closing, which was kind of sad.

Being on the board of SRP at the time and also being an energy historian, I realized that transitions take time. No. 1, they require management. We can’t just make a big technological or social transition without some kind of social and political and economic management; otherwise, hundreds or thousands of people fall through the cracks, towns dry up and blow away, revenue disappears, livelihoods disappear. A lot of people are going to suffer in the process of this transformation from fossil fuel energy to clean energy. A lot of people are going to benefit, too; there's going to be companies making tons of money and growing jobs like weeds in a well-watered lawn, and a lot of new investment opportunities. But we can't just turn our sights away from the communities. Because it's the workers who are going to lose out during this transformation. I think we, as a society, engage better in evolution and social change and progress when we're actively engaged in managing it and providing incentives to go in the direction that we want to go in and providing assistance for the people who would otherwise be left behind.

So I started talking to Roger about how facilitating the clean energy revolution is going to require a really strong focus on how we do it in a socially responsible and environmentally sustainable way, rather than just leaving it up to the market. And Roger saw all of the logic in that and was motivated by it. So it was probably in 2018 that we decided, all right, let's put together a strategic outline for the kind of narrative that we need to tell about this.

Q: Was there anything that happened over the course of filming that surprised either of you or changed your perspective on something?

Hirt: There's been a lot of talk about how the Navajo Nation has tremendous renewable energy resources, a lot of sun and a lot of wind, but very little has been developed. So there was this great opportunity for developing renewable energy, but nobody really engaging in doing it. And over the last couple of years, there’s been a rise in homegrown, Indigenous renewable energy companies coming out of the Navajo Nation itself, and Indigenous people becoming leaders in the development of renewable energy jobs and opportunities.

Two new companies have really come forward and made a lot of progress in establishing themselves at the forefront of renewable energy development in the Navajo Nation, and both of them were co-founded and directed by Indigenous people. One is called Native Renewables and they specialize in providing electricity to families who live off-grid that have no access to power lines and no access to electricity. Something like 40% of the people living in the Navajo Nation don't have electricity and running water. So Native Renewables was founded by two Navajo women, and their goal is to train Navajo people to become installers and maintainers of off-grid systems and try to get electricity to the families that don't have it and want it. On a significantly larger scale is a company called Navajo Power . One of the co-founders is Navajo, and the other co-founder met, fell in love with and married a Navajo woman, and they now live in Flagstaff and have property on the Navajo Nation. And their ambitions are phenomenal. They're looking at a gigawatt A gigawatt is equal to one billion watts. So 1 gigawatt could power roughly 10 million light bulbs. The Hoover Dam is a 2 gigawatt facility. of solar installations over the next 10 years. And they have applied for PPA (power purchase agreement).

So they build a large-utility-scale solar array, and a utility company like SRP or APS, who are looking to buy renewable energy, will buy it via a PPA, which is a long-term 20 year lease purchase of the power itself. My guess is within this year, they'll probably have a couple of hundred megawatts of solar energy under construction on the Navajo Nation. And that's one of the reasons we're profiling people from those companies in the film, because we want to show that local leaders and local action can make a difference.

Q: What do you hope people get out of this film?

Sorkin: We really tried to distill a very complex, multifaceted situation into something more digestible. And we hope it will inspire other communities and give them the confidence to use this as a roadmap for their own transitions. The Navajo Nation has its own unique issues in terms of transition, but there are definitely lessons that are being learned there that can be applied to other communities. And the hope is that this story will be useful all around the world.

Hirt: We hope people will recognize that we have very large, complex problems and challenges to face, but they are not insurmountable. For many people, tackling climate change seems like a lost cause, and we want to change that narrative, because it paralyzes people and it's also not true. We have an incredible opportunity now that we didn't have 10 years ago, that we could only faintly see five years ago, that we can clearly see today. Most people don't realize that the solution to the climate crisis is within reach, but we need to come together to manage that transition in a way that works and brings us to a just and sustainable future. So there is hope.

Sorkin: Yeah. We're so over the “doom and gloom” environmental documentaries.

flyer for Current Revolution: Nation in Transition film premiere

Top photo: Tempe Town Lake, September 2017. Photo by Anya Magnuson/ASU Now

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renewable energy narrative essay

This Is the Future: Essay on Renewable Energy

renewable energy narrative essay

Today the world population depends on nonrenewable energy resources. With the constantly growing demand for energy, natural gas, coal, and oil get used up and cannot replenish themselves. 

Aside from limited supply, heavy reliance on fossil fuels causes planetary-scale damage. Sea levels are rising. Heat-trapping carbon dioxide increased the warming effect by 45% from 1990 to 2019. The only way to tackle the crisis is to start the transition to renewable energy now. 

What is renewable energy? It is energy that comes from replenishable natural resources like sunlight, wind, thermal energy, moving water, and organic materials. Renewable resources do not run out. They are cost-efficient and renew faster than they are consumed. How does renewable energy save money? It creates new jobs, supports economic growth, and decreases inequitable fossil fuel subsidies. 

At the current rates of production, some fossil fuels will not even last another century. This is why the future depends on reliable and eco-friendly resources. This renewable energy essay examines the types and benefits of renewable energy and its role in creating a sustainable future.

Top 5 Types of Renewable Energy: The Apollo Alliance Rankings

There are many natural resources that can provide people with clean energy. To make a list of the five most booming types of renewable energy on the market today, this energy essay uses data gathered by the Apollo Alliance. It is a project that aims to revolutionize the energy sector of the US with a focus on clean energy. 

The Apollo Alliance unites businesses, community leaders, and environmental experts to support the transition to more sustainable and efficient living. Their expert opinion helped to compile information about the most common and cost-competitive sources of renewable energy. However, if you want to get some more in-depth research, you can entrust it to an essay writer . Here’s a quick overview of renewable energy resources that have a huge potential to substitute fossil fuels. 

Solar Renewable Energy

The most abundant and practically endless resource is solar energy. It can be turned into electricity by photovoltaic systems that convert radiant energy captured from sunlight. Solar farms could generate enough energy for thousands of homes.

An endless supply is the main benefit of solar energy. The rate at which the Earth receives it is 10,000 times greater than people can consume it, as a paper writer points out based on their analysis of research findings. It can substitute fossil fuels and deliver people electricity, hot water, cooling, heat, etc. 

The upfront investment in solar systems is rather expensive. This is one of the primary limitations that prevent businesses and households from switching to this energy source at once. However, the conclusion of solar energy is still favorable. In the long run, it can significantly decrease energy costs. Besides, solar panels are gradually becoming more affordable to manufacture and adopt, even at an individual level. 

Wind Renewable Energy

Another clean energy source is wind. Wind farms use the kinetic energy of wind flow to convert it into electricity. The Appolo Alliance notes that, unlike solar farms, they can’t be placed in any location. To stay cost-competitive, wind farms should operate in windy areas. Although not all countries have the right conditions to use them on a large scale, wind farms might be introduced for some energy diversity. The technical potential for it is still tremendous. 

Wind energy is clean and safe for the environment. It does not pollute the atmosphere with any harmful products compared to nonrenewable energy resources. 

The investment in wind energy is also economically wise. If you examine the cost of this energy resource in an essay on renewable resources, you’ll see that wind farms can deliver electricity at a price lower than nonrenewable resources. Besides, since wind isn’t limited, its cost won’t be influenced by the imbalance of supply and demand.

Geothermal Renewable Energy

Natural renewable resources are all around us, even beneath the ground. Geothermal energy can be produced from the thermal energy from the Earth’s interior. Sometimes heat reaches the surface naturally, for example, in the form of geysers. But it can also be used by geothermal power plants. The Earth’s heat gets captured and converted to steam that turns a turbine. As a result, we get geothermal energy.

This source provides a significant energy supply while having low emissions and no significant footprint on land. A factsheet and essay on renewable resources state that geothermal plants will increase electricity production from 17 billion kWh in 2020 to 49.8 billion kWh in 2050.

However, this method is not without limitations. While writing a renewable resources essay, consider that geothermal energy can be accessed only in certain regions. Geological hotspots are off-limits as they are vulnerable to earthquakes. Yet, the quantity of geothermal resources is likely to grow as technology advances. 

Ocean Renewable Energy

The kinetic and thermal energy of the ocean is a robust resource. Ocean power systems rely on:

  • Changes in sea level;
  • Wave energy;
  • Water surface temperatures;
  • The energy released from seawater and freshwater mixing.

Ocean energy is more predictable compared to other resources. As estimated by EPRI, it has the potential to produce 2640 TWh/yr. However, an important point to consider in a renewable energy essay is that the kinetic energy of the ocean varies. Yet, since it is ruled by the moon’s gravity, the resource is plentiful and continues to be attractive for the energy industry. 

Wave energy systems are still developing. The Apollo energy corporation explores many prototypes. It is looking for the most reliable and robust solution that can function in the harsh ocean environment. 

Another limitation of ocean renewable energy is that it may cause disruptions to marine life. Although its emissions are minimal, the system requires large equipment to be installed in the ocean. 

Biomass Renewable Energy

Organic materials like wood and charcoal have been used for heating and lighting for centuries. There are a lot more types of biomass: from trees, cereal straws, and grass to processed waste. All of them can produce bioenergy. 

Biomass can be converted into energy through burning or using methane produced during the natural process of decomposition. In an essay on renewable sources of energy, the opponents of the method point out that biomass energy is associated with carbon dioxide emissions. Yet, the amount of released greenhouse gases is much lower compared to nonrenewable energy use. 

While biomass is a reliable source of energy, it is only suitable for limited applications. If used too extensively, it might lead to disruptions in biodiversity, a negative impact on land use, and deforestation. Still, Apollo energy includes biomass resources that become waste and decompose quickly anyway. These are organic materials like sawdust, chips from sawmills, stems, nut shells, etc. 

What Is the Apollo Alliance?

The Apollo Alliance is a coalition of business leaders, environmental organizations, labor unions, and foundations. They all unite their efforts in a single project to harness clean energy in new, innovative ways. 

Why Apollo? Similarly to President John F. Kennedy’s Apollo Project, Apollo energy is a strong visionary initiative. It is a dare, a challenge. The alliance calls for the integrity of science, research, technology, and the public to revolutionize the energy industry.

The project has a profound message. Apollo energy solutions are not only about the environment or energy. They are about building a new economy. The alliance gives hope to building a secure future for Americans. 

What is the mission of the Apollo Alliance? 

  • Achieve energy independence with efficient and limitless resources of renewable energy.
  • Pioneer innovation in the energy sector.
  • Build education campaigns and communication to inspire new perceptions of energy. 
  • Create new jobs.
  • Reduce dependence on imported fossil fuels. 
  • Build healthier and happier communities. 

The transformation of the industry will lead to planet-scale changes. The Apollo energy corporation can respond to the global environmental crisis and prevent climate change. 

Apollo renewable energy also has the potential to become a catalyst for social change. With more affordable energy and new jobs in the industry, people can bridge the inequality divide and build stronger communities. 

Why Renewable Energy Is Important for the Future

Renewable energy resources have an enormous potential to cover people’s energy needs on a global scale. Unlike fossil fuels, they are available in abundance and generate minimal to no emissions. 

The burning of fossil fuels caused a lot of environmental problems—from carbon dioxide emissions to ocean acidification. Research this issue in more detail with academic assistance from essay writer online . You can use it to write an essay on renewable sources of energy to explain the importance of change and its global impact. 

Despite all the damage people caused to the planet, there’s still hope to mitigate further repercussions. Every renewable energy essay adds to the existing body of knowledge we have today and advances research in the field. Here are the key advantages and disadvantages of alternative energy resources people should keep in mind. 

Advantage of Green Energy

The use of renewable energy resources has a number of benefits for the climate, human well-being, and economy:

  • Renewable energy resources have little to no greenhouse gas emissions. Even if we take into account the manufacturing and recycling of the technologies involved, their impact on the environment is significantly lower compared to fossil fuels. 
  • Renewable energy promotes self-sufficiency and reduces a country’s dependence on foreign fuel. According to a study, a 1% increase in the use of renewable energy increases economic growth by 0.21%. This gives socio-economic stability.
  • Due to a lack of supply of fossil fuels and quick depletion of natural resources, prices for nonrenewable energy keep increasing. In contrast, green energy is limitless and can be produced locally. In the long run, this allows decreasing the cost of energy. 
  • Unlike fossil fuels, renewable energy doesn’t emit air pollutants. This positively influences health and quality of life. 
  • The emergence of green energy plants creates new jobs. Thus, Apollo energy solutions support the growth of local communities. By 2030, the transition to renewable energy is expected to generate 10.3 million new jobs. 
  • Renewable energy allows decentralization of the industry. Communities get their independent sources of energy that are more flexible in terms of distribution. 
  • Renewable energy supports equality. It has the potential to make energy more affordable to low-income countries and expand access to energy even in remote and less fortunate neighborhoods. 

Disadvantages of Non-Conventional Energy Sources

No technology is perfect. Renewable energy resources have certain drawbacks too: 

  • The production of renewable energy depends on weather conditions. For example, wind farms could be effective only in certain locations where the weather conditions allow it. The weather also makes it so that renewable energy cannot be generated around the clock. 
  • The initial cost of renewable energy technology is expensive. Both manufacturing and installation require significant investment. This is another disadvantage of renewable resources. It makes them unaffordable to a lot of businesses and unavailable for widespread individual use. In addition, the return on investment might not be immediate.
  • Renewable energy technology takes up a lot of space. It may affect life in the communities where these clean energy farms are installed. They may also cause disruptions to wildlife in the areas. 
  • One more limitation a renewable resources essay should consider is the current state of technology. While the potential of renewable energy resources is tremendous, the technology is still in its development phase. Therefore, renewable energy might not substitute fossil fuels overnight. There’s a need for more research, investment, and time to transition to renewable energy completely. Yet, some diversity of energy resources should be introduced as soon as possible. 
  • Renewable energy resources have limited emissions, but they are not entirely pollution-free. The manufacturing process of equipment is associated with greenhouse gas emissions while, for example, the lifespan of a wind turbine is only 20 years. 

For high school seniors eyeing a future rich with innovative endeavors in renewable energy or other fields, it's crucial to seek financial support early on. Explore the top 10 scholarships for high school seniors to find the right fit that can propel you into a future where you can contribute to the renewable energy movement and beyond. Through such financial support, the road to making meaningful contributions to a sustainable future becomes a tangible reality.

Renewable energy unlocks the potential for humanity to have clean energy that is available in abundance. It leads us to economic growth, independence, and stability. With green energy, we can also reduce the impact of human activity on the environment and stop climate change before it’s too late. 

So what’s the conclusion of renewable energy? Transitioning to renewable energy resources might be challenging and expensive. However, most experts agree that the advantages of green energy outweigh any drawbacks. Besides, since technology is continuously evolving, we’ll be able to overcome most limitations in no time.

renewable energy narrative essay

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Renewable Energy Essay: Tips to Write a Great Paper

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renewable energy narrative essay

Scientists have categorized climate change as the greatest threat facing humanity today. While there’s irrefutable evidence that our climate is warming up, scientists are divided on its probable causes, with some attributing it to anthropogenic origins and others claiming Earth’s orbital patterns, among myriads of hypotheses. Today, climatologists and other mainstream researchers float renewable energy as humanity’s silver bullet to fight climate change. The discussions around the topic have inspired interest among the young and the old, leading to increased enrolment in climate-related studies, participation in demos and campaigns, and sharing of knowledge in talk shows and online platforms. However, being passionate about renewable energy and sharing your insights with others are two different things. Many people struggle to express themselves. Yet, there’s no room for hesitation regarding climate change. We must all act now and play the small part we can to reverse it. As such, it’s crucial to understand the power of words in advocating for change as the world shifts towards more sustainable energy sources. In this short article, we’ll guide you in crafting a winning essay on renewable energy, exploiting the power of storytelling to capture people’s attention while highlighting the importance of taking immediate action to reverse its potential impacts on humanity.

Unlocking the Power of Words: Secrets to Writing about Energy

The internet is awash with essays and articles on various topics. In the last few years, climate change has become one of the most targeted topics of discussion. So, by writing another renewable energy essay, you could add to the debate but not make any significant impact. Therefore, it’s vital to create a well-crafted piece to convey your ideas and influence your audience effectively. Remember that the intention is not to add to the existing literature but to make a powerful impact. A poorly written essay may fail to engage your readers and diminish the significance of your message. Consider what’s at stake when writing a renewable energy essay.

To make your work stand out, pay special attention to writing mechanics such as coherence and persuasive techniques. Additionally, adhere to grammar and writing style requirements. Most importantly, stay on the topic. While climate change is an emotive issue, be careful not to be dragged into every aspect of the debate. Yours should be to communicate your ideas effectively and inspire action.

From Sun to Success: Tips to Write an Essay on Renewable Energy

Writing a renewable energy paper is unlike crafting other documents. The scrutiny such pieces get in today’s world is mind-boggling. A simple misrepresentation of facts or omission can attract incredibly unwanted attention. So, how do you create an impactful and persuasive piece of writing on this topic? We’ve got you covered. Below, we’ve put together some invaluable tips to help you harness the power of words to make a difference in the world of renewable energy.

Choosing the perfect topic

There are numerous topics under renewable energy to explore. It’s improbable to examine or discuss them all. Consequently, it would be best to settle for the one that interests you the most or addresses the most critical issues on the subject matter. Here are a few factors to consider when choosing a topic:   

Relevance: If it’s not germane, don’t write it. Your primary objective is to address current issues and developments in the field of renewable energy, ensuring your essay is timely and highlights essential concerns. We understand this can challenge some students, so we recommend seeking professional help. For example, you can use a trustworthy paper writing service , to help write your essay online or develop a topic.

Uniqueness: As we said earlier, you don’t want to add to existing literature but explore new ideas from different perspectives. Consider topics that stand out, especially those in niche areas or emerging technologies within renewable energy, e.g., wave and tidal power, solar skin technology, and floating solar farms, among others.

Passion : Don’t just write, do so about the things you love or are genuinely passionate about. Readers can always tell if you’re writing for money, attention, or interest. If you put your heart into it, your enthusiasm will shine through it and engage them.

Conduct thorough research

Thorough research is the backbone of any well-written essay. This is especially critical when crafting an essay on renewable energy. You must not only gather reliable and up-to-date information from credible sources but also use them expertly. But how can an amateur achieve this? Here are some tips:

Rely on credible sources: Libraries and online databases contain millions of books and articles about renewable energy. So, how can a student know reputable ones? Most often, academic journals and government reports are the most reliable. They contain information that’s been verified by peers. You can also check educational institutes and organizations that provide primary data, e.g., NASA and NSE.

Stay updated : Things can move very fast in the field of renewable energy. As such, you must always be alert or risk being left behind. Therefore, access the latest research on the topic and, if possible, subscribe to newsletters and publications on renewable energy. A rapidly evolving field requires unconventional ways to stay ahead.

Take notes : There could be so much to learn on this topic. However, always note new trends, emerging issues, and controversies. This way, you can update your essays long after writing them, keeping them relevant for longer.   

Structuring your essay for maximum impact

An essay is only as impactful as the structure of its arguments. You can’t go far with a haphazard essay design. You must adopt a well-structured format to convey your ideas clearly and effectively. This may not be as straightforward as it seems. So, here are a few considerations for you:

Introduction : Begin your article with a powerful and captivating paragraph outlining what it is about and the direction of your argument. Remember that a flat introduction can distract readers from an otherwise excellent essay.    

Main body : Divide the body of your essay into several paragraphs, each focusing on a specific aspect or argument related to renewable energy. Here, you’re supposed to produce evidence and dispute any divergent opinions with solid arguments. This is the core of your paper.

Conclusion : This section is no less important than the others. You should use it to summarize your main points and restate your thesis statement. Given the criticalness of the topic, you can sign off with a thought-provoking message that reinforces the importance of renewable energy and encourages action or further exploration of the subject.

Do Some Research to Craft an A+ Renewable Energy Essay

Any good English paper requires careful planning, thorough research, and effective writing techniques . However, when trading in extremely high-stakes zones, your writing ability becomes secondary. The accuracy of your claims comes first when crafting essays on renewable energy. Still, other components remain vital. Therefore, by choosing a compelling topic, conducting thorough research based on valid questions, structuring your essay for maximum impact, and utilizing persuasive language and credible sources, you can create a powerful piece of writing that inspires action and raises awareness about the importance of renewable energy.

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Introduction to Renewable Energy

Exploring our content.

Fast Facts View our summary of key facts and information. ( Printable PDF, 270 KB )

Before You Watch Our Lecture Maximize your learning experience by reviewing these carefully curated readings we assign to our students.

Our Lecture Watch the Stanford course lecture.

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Orange sunset with wind turbines on the horizon

Fast Facts About Renewable Energy

Principle Energy Uses: Electricity, Heat Forms of Energy: Kinetic, Thermal, Radiant, Chemical

The term “renewable” encompasses a wide diversity of energy resources with varying economics, technologies, end uses, scales, environmental impacts, availability, and depletability. For example, fully “renewable” resources are not depleted by human use, whereas “semi-renewable” resources must be properly managed to ensure long-term availability. The most renewable type of energy is energy efficiency, which reduces overall consumption while providing the same energy service. Most renewable energy resources have significantly lower environmental and climate impacts than their fossil fuel counterparts.

The data in these Fast Facts do not reflect two important renewable energy resources: traditional biomass, which is widespread but difficult to measure; and energy efficiency, a critical strategy for reducing energy consumption while maintaining the same energy services and quality of life. See the Biomass and Energy Efficiency pages to learn more.

Significance

14% of world 🌎 9% of US 🇺🇸

Electricity Generation

30% of world 🌎 21% of US 🇺🇸

Global Renewable Energy Uses

Electricity 65% Heat 26% Transportation 9%

Global Consumption of Renewable Electricity Change

Increase: ⬆ 33% (2017 to 2022)

Energy Efficiency

Energy efficiency measures such as LED light bulbs reduce the need for energy in the first place

Renewable Resources

Wind Solar Ocean

Semi-Renewable Resources

Hydro Geothermal Biomass

Renewable Energy Has Vast Potential to Meet Global Energy Demand

Solar >1,000x global demand Wind ~3x global demand

Share of Global Energy Demand Met by Renewable Resources

Hydropower 7% Wind 3% Solar 2% Biomass <2%  

Share of Global Electricity Generation Met by Renewable Resources

Hydropower 15% Wind 7% Solar 5% Biomass & Geothermal <3%

Global Growth

Hydropower generation increase ⬆6% Wind generation increase ⬆84% Solar generation increase ⬆197% Biofuels consumption increase ⬆23% (2017-2022)

Largest Renewable Energy Producers

China 34% 🇨🇳 US 10% 🇺🇸 of global renewable energy

Highest Penetration of Renewable Energy

Norway 72% 🇳🇴 of the country’s primary energy is renewable

(China is at 16%, the US is at 11%)

Largest Renewable Electricity Producers

China 31% 🇨🇳 US 11% 🇺🇸 of global renewable electricity

Highest Penetration of Renewable Electricity

Albania, Bhutan, CAR, Lesotho, Nepal, & Iceland 100%

Iceland, Ethiopia, Paraguay, DRC, Norway, Costa Rica, Uganda, Namibia, Eswatini, Zambia, Tajikistan, & Sierra Leone > 90% of the country’s primary electricity is renewable

(China is at 31%, the US is at 22%)

Share of US Energy Demand Met by Renewable Resources

Biomass 5% Wind 2% Hydro 1% Solar 1%

Share of US Electricity Generation Met by Renewable Resources

Wind 10% Hydropower 6% Solar 3% Biomass 1%

US States That Produce the Most Renewable Electricity

Texas 21% California 11% of US renewable energy production

US States With Highest Penetration of Renewable Electricity

Vermont >99% South Dakota 84% Washington 76% Idaho 75% of state’s total generation comes from renewable fuels

Renewable Energy Expansion Policies

The Inflation Reduction Act continued tax credits for new renewable energy projects in the US.

Production Tax Credit (PTC)

Tax credit of $0.0275/kWh of electricity produced at qualifying renewable power generation sites

Investment Tax Credit (ITC)

Tax credit of 30% of the cost of a new qualifying renewable power generation site

To read more about the credit qualifications, visit this EPA site .

LCOE of US Resources, 2023: Renewable Resources
Resource (Renewables)Unsubsidized LCOE*LCOE with ITC/PTC Tax Subsidy
Wind (Onshore)$24 - $75$0 - $66 (PTC)
Solar PV (Utility Scale)$24 - $96

$16 - $80 (ITC)

$0 - $77 (PTC)

Solar + Storage (Utility Scale)$46 - $102$31 - $88 (ITC)
Geothermal$61 - $102$37 - $87
Wind (Offshore)$72 - $140$56 - $114 (PTC)
Solar PV (Rooftop Residential)$177 - $282$74 - $229 (ITC)
Wind + Storage (Onshore)$24 - $75$0 - $66 (PTC)
LCOE of US Resources, 2023: Non-Renewable Resources.
(The ITC/PTC program does not provide subsidies for non-renewable resources. Fossil fuel and nuclear resources have significant subsidies from other policies.)
Resource (Non-Renewables)Unsubsidized LCOE*
Natural Gas (combined cycle)$39 - $101
Natural Gas Peaker Plants$115 - $221
Coal$68 - $166
Nuclear$141 - $221

*LCOE (levelized cost of electricity) - price for which a unit of electricity must be sold for system to break even

Important Factors for Renewable Site Selection

  • Resource availability
  • Environmental constraints and sensitivities, including cultural and archeological sites
  • Transmission infrastructure
  • Power plant retirements
  • Transmission congestion and prices
  • Electricity markets
  • Load growth driven by population and industry
  • Policy support
  • Land rights and permitting
  • Competitive and declining costs of wind, solar, and energy storage
  • Lower environmental and climate impacts (social costs) than fossil fuels
  • Expansion of competitive wholesale electricity markets
  • Governmental clean energy and climate targets and policies
  • Corporate clean energy targets and procurement of renewable energy
  • No fuel cost or fuel price volatility
  • Retirements of old and/or expensive coal and nuclear power plants
  • Most renewable resources are abundant, undepletable
  • Permitting hurdles and NIMBY/BANANA* concerns
  • Competition from subsidized fossil fuels and a lack of price for their social cost (e.g., price on carbon)
  • Site-specific resources means greater need to transport energy/electricity to demand
  • High initial capital expenditure requirements required to access fuel cost/operating savings
  • Intermittent resources
  • Inconsistent governmental incentives and subsidies
  • Managing environmental impacts to the extent that they exist

*NIMBY - not in my backyard; BANANA - build absolutely nothing anywhere near anything

Climate Impact: Low to High

renewable energy narrative essay

  • Solar, wind, geothermal, and ocean have low climate impacts with near-zero emissions; hydro and biomass can have medium to high climate impact
  • Hydro: Some locations have greenhouse gas emissions due to decomposing flooded vegetation
  • Biomass: Some crops require significant energy inputs, land use change can release carbon dioxide and methane

Environmental Impact: Low to High

  • Most renewable energy resources have low environmental impacts, particularly relative to fossil fuels; some, like biomass, can have more significant impacts
  • No air pollution with the exception of biomass from certain feedstocks
  • Can have land and habitat disruption for biomass production, solar, and hydro
  • Potential wildlife impacts from wind turbines (birds and bats)
  • Modest environmental impacts during manufacturing, transportation, and end of life

Updated January 2024

Before You Watch Our Lecture on Introduction to Renewable Energy

We assign videos and readings to our Stanford students as pre-work for each lecture to help contextualize the lecture content. We strongly encourage you to review the Essential reading below before watching our lecture on  Introduction to Renewable Energy . Include the Optional and Useful readings based on your interests and available time.

  • The Sustainable Energy in America 2024 Factbook (Executive Summary pp. 5-10) . Bloomberg New Energy Finance. 2024. (6 pages) Provides valuable year-over-year data and insights on the American energy transformation.

Optional and Useful

  • Renewables 2024 Global Status Report (Global Overview pp. 10-39) . REN21. 2024. (30 pages)  Documents the progress made in the renewable energy sector and highlights the opportunities afforded by a renewable-based economy and society.

Our Lecture on Introduction to Renewable Energy

This is our Stanford University Understand Energy course lecture that introduces renewable energy. We strongly encourage you to watch the full lecture to gain foundational knowledge about renewable energy and important context for learning more about specific renewable energy resources. For a complete learning experience, we also encourage you to review the Essential reading we assign to our students before watching the lecture.

Kirsten Stasio

Presented by: Kirsten Stasio , Adjunct Lecturer, Civil and Environmental Engineering, Stanford University; CEO, Nevada Clean Energy Fund (NCEF) Recorded on:  May 15, 2024  Duration: 68 minutes

Table of Contents

(Clicking on a timestamp will take you to YouTube.) 00:00 Introduction  02:06 What Does “Renewable” Mean?  15:29 What Role Do Renewables Play in Our Energy Use?  27:12 What Factors Affect Renewable Energy Project Development?

Lecture slides available upon request .

Additional Resources About Renewable Energy

Stanford university.

  • Precourt Institute for Energy Renewable Energy , Energy Efficiency
  • Stanford Energy Club
  • Energy Modeling Forum
  • Sustainable Stanford
  • Sustainable Finance Initiative
  • Mark Jacobson - Renewable energy
  • Michael Lepech - Life-cycle analysis
  • Leonard Ortolano - Environmental and water resource planning
  • Chris Field - Climate change, land use, bioenergy, solar energy
  • David Lobell - Climate change, agriculture, biofuels, land use
  • Sally Benson - Climate change, energy, carbon capture and storage

Government and International Organizations

  • International Energy Agency (IEA) Renewables Renewables 2022 Report .
  • National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL)
  • US Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy (EERE)
  • US Energy Information Administration (EIA) Renewable Energy Explained
  • US Energy Information Administration (EIA) Energy Kids Renewable Energy
  • US Energy Information Administration (EIA) Today in Energy Renewables

Other Organizations and Resources

  • REN21: Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century
  • REN21 Renewables 2023 Global Status Report Renewables in Energy Supply
  • BloombergNEF (BNEF)
  • Carnegie Institution for Science  Biosphere Sciences and Engineering
  • The Solutions Project
  • Renewable Energy World
  • World of Renewables
  • Energy Upgrade California

Next Topic: Energy Efficiency Other Energy Topics to Explore

Fast Facts Sources

  • Energy Mix (World 2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Energy Mix (US 2022): US Energy Information Agency (EIA). Total Energy: Energy Overview, Table 1.3 . 
  • Electricity Mix (World 2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Electricity Mix (US 2022): US Energy Information Agency (EIA). Total Energy: Electricity, Table 7.2a.  
  • Global Solar Use (2022): REN21. Renewables 2023 Global Status Report: Renewables in Energy Supply , page 42. 2023
  • Global Consumption of Renewable Electricity Change (2017-2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Renewable Energy Potential: Perez & Perez. A Fundamental Look at Energy Reserves for the Planet . 2009
  • Share of Global Energy Demand (2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Share of Global Electricity Demand (2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Global Growth (2017-2022): Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Largest Renewable Energy Producers (World 2022): International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). Renewable Capacity Statistics 2023 . 2023.
  • Highest Penetration Renewable Energy (World 2022): Our World in Data. Renewable Energy . 2023.
  • Largest Renewable Electricity Producers (World 2022):   Energy Institute. Statistical Review of World Energy . 2023.
  • Highest Penetration Renewable Electricity (World 2022): Our World in Data. Renewable Energy . 2023.
  • Share of US Energy Demand (2022): Energy Information Administration (EIA). Electric Power Monthly. 2023.
  • Share of Electricity Generation (2022): Energy Information Administration (EIA). Electric Power Monthly. 2023.
  • States with Highest Generation (2022): Energy Information Administration (EIA). Electric Power Monthly. 2023.
  • States with Highest Penetration (2021): Energy Information Administration (EIA). State Profile and Energy Estimates. 2023.
  • LCOE of US Renewable Resources: Lazard. LCOE. April 2023.
  • LCOE of US Non Renewable Resources: Lazard. LCOE. April 2023.

More details available on request . Back to Fast Facts

Renewable Energy

Renewable energy comes from sources that will not be used up in our lifetimes, such as the sun and wind.

Earth Science, Experiential Learning, Engineering, Geology

Wind Turbines in a Sheep Pasture

Wind turbines use the power of wind to generate energy. This is just one source of renewable energy.

Photograph by Jesus Keller/ Shutterstock

Wind turbines use the power of wind to generate energy. This is just one source of renewable energy.

The wind, the sun, and Earth are sources of  renewable energy . These energy sources naturally renew, or replenish themselves.

Wind, sunlight, and the planet have energy that transforms in ways we can see and feel. We can see and feel evidence of the transfer of energy from the sun to Earth in the sunlight shining on the ground and the warmth we feel when sunlight shines on our skin. We can see and feel evidence of the transfer of energy in wind’s ability to pull kites higher into the sky and shake the leaves on trees. We can see and feel evidence of the transfer of energy in the geothermal energy of steam vents and geysers .

People have created different ways to capture the energy from these renewable sources.

Solar Energy

Solar energy can be captured “actively” or “passively.”

Active solar energy uses special technology to capture the sun’s rays. The two main types of equipment are photovoltaic cells (also called PV cells or solar cells) and mirrors that focus sunlight in a specific spot. These active solar technologies use sunlight to generate electricity , which we use to power lights, heating systems, computers, and televisions.

Passive solar energy does not use any equipment. Instead, it gets energy from the way sunlight naturally changes throughout the day. For example, people can build houses so their windows face the path of the sun. This means the house will get more heat from the sun. It will take less energy from other sources to heat the house.

Other examples of passive solar technology are green roofs , cool roofs, and radiant barriers . Green roofs are completely covered with plants. Plants can get rid of pollutants in rainwater and air. They help make the local environment cleaner.

Cool roofs are painted white to better reflect sunlight. Radiant barriers are made of a reflective covering, such as aluminum. They both reflect the sun’s heat instead of absorbing it. All these types of roofs help lower the amount of energy needed to cool the building.

Advantages and Disadvantages There are many advantages to using solar energy. PV cells last for a long time, about 20 years.

However, there are reasons why solar power cannot be used as the only power source in a community. It can be expensive to install PV cells or build a building using passive solar technology.

Sunshine can also be hard to predict. It can be blocked by clouds, and the sun doesn’t shine at night. Different parts of Earth receive different amounts of sunlight based on location, the time of year, and the time of day.

Wind Energy

People have been harnessing the wind’s energy for a long, long time. Five-thousand years ago, ancient Egyptians made boats powered by the wind. In 200 B.C.E., people used windmills to grind grain in the Middle East and pump water in China.

Today, we capture the wind’s energy with wind turbines . A turbine is similar to a windmill; it has a very tall tower with two or three propeller-like blades at the top. These blades are turned by the wind. The blades turn a generator (located inside the tower), which creates electricity.

Groups of wind turbines are known as wind farms . Wind farms can be found near farmland, in narrow mountain passes, and even in the ocean, where there are steadier and stronger winds. Wind turbines anchored in the ocean are called “ offshore wind farms.”

Wind farms create electricity for nearby homes, schools, and other buildings.

Advantages and Disadvantages Wind energy can be very efficient . In places like the Midwest in the United States and along coasts, steady winds can provide cheap, reliable electricity.

Another great advantage of wind power is that it is a “clean” form of energy. Wind turbines do not burn fuel or emit any pollutants into the air.

Wind is not always a steady source of energy, however. Wind speed changes constantly, depending on the time of day, weather , and geographic location. Currently, it cannot be used to provide electricity for all our power needs.

Wind turbines can also be dangerous for bats and birds. These animals cannot always judge how fast the blades are moving and crash into them.

Geothermal Energy

Deep beneath the surface is Earth’s core . The center of Earth is extremely hot—thought to be over 6,000 °C (about 10,800 °F). The heat is constantly moving toward the surface.

We can see some of Earth’s heat when it bubbles to the surface. Geothermal energy can melt underground rocks into magma and cause the magma to bubble to the surface as lava . Geothermal energy can also heat underground sources of water and force it to spew out from the surface. This stream of water is called a geyser.

However, most of Earth’s heat stays underground and makes its way out very, very slowly.

We can access underground geothermal heat in different ways. One way of using geothermal energy is with “geothermal heat pumps.” A pipe of water loops between a building and holes dug deep underground. The water is warmed by the geothermal energy underground and brings the warmth aboveground to the building. Geothermal heat pumps can be used to heat houses, sidewalks, and even parking lots.

Another way to use geothermal energy is with steam. In some areas of the world, there is underground steam that naturally rises to the surface. The steam can be piped straight to a power plant. However, in other parts of the world, the ground is dry. Water must be injected underground to create steam. When the steam comes to the surface, it is used to turn a generator and create electricity.

In Iceland, there are large reservoirs of underground water. Almost 90 percent of people in Iceland use geothermal as an energy source to heat their homes and businesses.

Advantages and Disadvantages An advantage of geothermal energy is that it is clean. It does not require any fuel or emit any harmful pollutants into the air.

Geothermal energy is only avaiable in certain parts of the world. Another disadvantage of using geothermal energy is that in areas of the world where there is only dry heat underground, large quantities of freshwater are used to make steam. There may not be a lot of freshwater. People need water for drinking, cooking, and bathing.

Biomass Energy

Biomass is any material that comes from plants or microorganisms that were recently living. Plants create energy from the sun through photosynthesis . This energy is stored in the plants even after they die.

Trees, branches, scraps of bark, and recycled paper are common sources of biomass energy. Manure, garbage, and crops , such as corn, soy, and sugar cane, can also be used as biomass feedstocks .

We get energy from biomass by burning it. Wood chips, manure, and garbage are dried out and compressed into squares called “briquettes.” These briquettes are so dry that they do not absorb water. They can be stored and burned to create heat or generate electricity.

Biomass can also be converted into biofuel . Biofuels are mixed with regular gasoline and can be used to power cars and trucks. Biofuels release less harmful pollutants than pure gasoline.

Advantages and Disadvantages A major advantage of biomass is that it can be stored and then used when it is needed.

Growing crops for biofuels, however, requires large amounts of land and pesticides . Land could be used for food instead of biofuels. Some pesticides could pollute the air and water.

Biomass energy can also be a nonrenewable energy source. Biomass energy relies on biomass feedstocks—plants that are processed and burned to create electricity. Biomass feedstocks can include crops, such as corn or soy, as well as wood. If people do not replant biomass feedstocks as fast as they use them, biomass energy becomes a non-renewable energy source.

Hydroelectric Energy

Hydroelectric energy is made by flowing water. Most hydroelectric power plants are located on large dams , which control the flow of a river.

Dams block the river and create an artificial lake, or reservoir. A controlled amount of water is forced through tunnels in the dam. As water flows through the tunnels, it turns huge turbines and generates electricity.

Advantages and Disadvantages Hydroelectric energy is fairly inexpensive to harness. Dams do not need to be complex, and the resources to build them are not difficult to obtain. Rivers flow all over the world, so the energy source is available to millions of people.

Hydroelectric energy is also fairly reliable. Engineers control the flow of water through the dam, so the flow does not depend on the weather (the way solar and wind energies do).

However, hydroelectric power plants are damaging to the environment. When a river is dammed, it creates a large lake behind the dam. This lake (sometimes called a reservoir) drowns the original river habitat deep underwater. Sometimes, people build dams that can drown entire towns underwater. The people who live in the town or village must move to a new area.

Hydroelectric power plants don’t work for a very long time: Some can only supply power for 20 or 30 years. Silt , or dirt from a riverbed, builds up behind the dam and slows the flow of water.

Other Renewable Energy Sources

Scientists and engineers are constantly working to harness other renewable energy sources. Three of the most promising are tidal energy , wave energy , and algal (or algae) fuel.

Tidal energy harnesses the power of ocean tides to generate electricity. Some tidal energy projects use the moving tides to turn the blades of a turbine. Other projects use small dams to continually fill reservoirs at high tide and slowly release the water (and turn turbines) at low tide.

Wave energy harnesses waves from the ocean, lakes, or rivers. Some wave energy projects use the same equipment that tidal energy projects do—dams and standing turbines. Other wave energy projects float directly on waves. The water’s constant movement over and through these floating pieces of equipment turns turbines and creates electricity.

Algal fuel is a type of biomass energy that uses the unique chemicals in seaweed to create a clean and renewable biofuel. Algal fuel does not need the acres of cropland that other biofuel feedstocks do.

Renewable Nations

These nations (or groups of nations) produce the most energy using renewable resources. Many of them are also the leading producers of nonrenewable energy: China, European Union, United States, Brazil, and Canada

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Recent News

renewable energy narrative essay

renewable energy , usable energy derived from replenishable sources such as the Sun ( solar energy ), wind ( wind power ), rivers ( hydroelectric power ), hot springs ( geothermal energy ), tides ( tidal power ), and biomass ( biofuels ).

The transition to renewable energy explained by Phil the Fixer

At the beginning of the 21st century, about 80 percent of the world’s energy supply was derived from fossil fuels such as coal , petroleum , and natural gas . Fossil fuels are finite resources; most estimates suggest that the proven reserves of oil are large enough to meet global demand at least until the middle of the 21st century. Fossil fuel combustion has a number of negative environmental consequences. Fossil-fueled power plants emit air pollutants such as sulfur dioxide , particulate matter , nitrogen oxides, and toxic chemicals (heavy metals: mercury , chromium , and arsenic ), and mobile sources, such as fossil-fueled vehicles, emit nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide , and particulate matter. Exposure to these pollutants can cause heart disease , asthma , and other human health problems. In addition, emissions from fossil fuel combustion are responsible for acid rain , which has led to the acidification of many lakes and consequent damage to aquatic life, leaf damage in many forests, and the production of smog in or near many urban areas. Furthermore, the burning of fossil fuels releases carbon dioxide (CO 2 ), one of the main greenhouse gases that cause global warming .

renewable energy narrative essay

In contrast, renewable energy sources accounted for nearly 20 percent of global energy consumption at the beginning of the 21st century, largely from traditional uses of biomass such as wood for heating and cooking . By 2015 about 16 percent of the world’s total electricity came from large hydroelectric power plants, whereas other types of renewable energy (such as solar, wind, and geothermal) accounted for 6 percent of total electricity generation. Some energy analysts consider nuclear power to be a form of renewable energy because of its low carbon emissions; nuclear power generated 10.6 percent of the world’s electricity in 2015.

renewable energy narrative essay

Growth in wind power exceeded 20 percent and photovoltaics grew at 30 percent annually in the 1990s, and renewable energy technologies continued to expand throughout the early 21st century. Between 2001 and 2017 world total installed wind power capacity increased by a factor of 22, growing from 23,900 to 539,581 megawatts. Photovoltaic capacity also expanded, increasing by 50 percent in 2016 alone. The European Union (EU), which produced an estimated 6.38 percent of its energy from renewable sources in 2005, adopted a goal in 2007 to raise that figure to 20 percent by 2020. By 2016 some 17 percent of the EU’s energy came from renewable sources. The goal also included plans to cut emissions of carbon dioxide by 20 percent and to ensure that 10 percent of all fuel consumption comes from biofuels . The EU was well on its way to achieving those targets by 2017. Between 1990 and 2016 the countries of the EU reduced carbon emissions by 23 percent and increased biofuel production to 5.5 percent of all fuels consumed in the region. In the United States numerous states have responded to concerns over climate change and reliance on imported fossil fuels by setting goals to increase renewable energy over time. For example, California required its major utility companies to produce 20 percent of their electricity from renewable sources by 2010, and by the end of that year California utilities were within 1 percent of the goal. In 2008 California increased this requirement to 33 percent by 2020, and in 2017 the state further increased its renewable-use target to 50 percent by 2030.

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Turning Climate Crisis Stories Into Narrative of the Future, Changed but Still Beautiful

Turning Climate Crisis Stories Into Narrative of the Future, Changed but Still Beautiful

Writers Rebecca Solnit and Terry Tempest Williams offer new perspectives on how to remake the world

By Alvin Powell, The Harvard Gazette

Stories can drive action, but perhaps the most damaging climate change story we can tell is the tall tale that we can simply opt for the stability and safety of the status quo, writer and activist  Rebecca Solnit  said Wednesday evening at Harvard’s Memorial Church.

That’s because there is no status quo, as the effects of climate change are multiplying around us, Solnit said. And those changes are going to keep coming — and worsening — regardless of the path we take. The choice is between the uncertainty of a transition from fossil fuels that results in more manageable changes or to continue on the path we’re on, fostering what are likely to be more sweeping and dangerous disruptions.

Solnit, the author of 24 books, including the recently released anthology “Not Too Late: Changing the Climate Story from Despair to Possibility,” spoke as part of  Harvard Divinity School ’s  Climate Justice Week,  designed to promote thinking around climate justice and highlight the roles that religion and spirituality play in the conversation. The event, “Stories Are Cages, Stories Are Wings — So What Stories Do We Tell About Climate?,” featured Solnit in conversation with  Terry Tempest Williams , Divinity School writer-in-residence, as well as a poetry reading and a musical performance of Beethoven.

“Like the chassis of a car or the framing of a house or the skeleton of our own body, assumptions lurk under the stories we tell, giving them their structure or limiting the shapes they can take,” Solnit said. “And one of the biggest, wrongest ones that seems to shape — or misshape — the collective imagination is this idea that there’s an option not to change, and that change is just something we should aspire to or demand, that there’s some sort of stability we can choose instead of changing everything.”

Solnit, who spoke for about 30 minutes and took questions afterward, was described by Williams as “singular, original, defiant, and loving.” Through her work, which spans human rights, women’s rights, the environment, and climate change, Solnit is “building a constituency for change,” Williams said. That effort is continuing with her latest book, “Not Too Late,” which seeks to combat climate change despair and defeatism with stories of hope and change.

Another damaging idea, Williams said in her talk, is that we have to have a perfect solution before we act. People hold up the promise of energy generation by nuclear fusion — the clean source that powers the sun — or of carbon capture and sequestration technology, which will permit continued fossil fuel burning by stripping and storing carbon dioxide from emissions, as ideals that will cause much less disruption to the current energy system.

But Solnit cautioned against letting the perfect be the enemy of the good. Instead of waiting for those technologies to mature, she said, we should take advantage of the solutions available now. There has been a revolution in renewable energy in recent decades, with efficiency climbing and prices dropping for solar and wind power to the extent that wind is supplanting coal in the Texas energy grid on the basis of price alone.

Addressing climate change, she said, may best be viewed not as merely achieving a goal, but rather as embarking on a process, one that will best get us where we’re going if we start now, using the tools we have at hand. That means embracing renewables and widespread electrification and then adjusting as we go, as newer, better tools become available.

No solution is perfect, however, including renewable energy sources, which have been criticized because of the mining practices employed in extracting chemicals important for battery production to store the energy. While a real problem, that doesn’t invalidate a strategy that still has significantly lower impact than fossil fuel extraction, Solnit said.

“We don’t know how to get there, but we know to take the next step and the next step,” Solnit said, quoting E.L. Doctorow’s description of writing as an apt analogy: “Writing is like driving at night in the fog. You can only see as far as your headlights, but you can make the whole trip that way.”

A key element of the trip into our climate-changed future, Solnit said, is that it should be taken together. Those who resist change would like us to focus on ourselves, on our individual carbon footprints, despairing of achieving broader change.

But Solnit said the complexity of the world’s natural systems means climate change is, by its nature, a problem of networks and connectedness. Viewing climate change as a collective problem requiring cooperation, imagination, and creativity, she said, gives us the power to devise solutions that lift up those who are disadvantaged in the present, like the billions of global poor, living in places most likely to feel climate-related impacts.

Solnit invoked the Japanese art of  kintsugi  as an analogy for the future. Kintsugi repairs broken pottery not to its original functionality or appearance, but rather uses golden glue to highlight the breaks, enhance the beauty, and transform the piece into something different, but nonetheless valuable.

“I think that there’s a tendency to think that when something is broken, all it will ever be is shards,” Solnit said. “I’ve used it as a metaphor: Life will happen to you. You won’t be young forever. Sorrow will carve its pattern on our face. If you live, if you love, you will lose. But it can still be beautiful, still be strong, and go forward. The bowl can still hold something. The person can still find beauty, find meaning, have strength.”

Today, Solnit said, we don’t need stories of “the climate crisis” so much as we need stories of meeting the crisis, stories that reframe our view of the decades to come in a way similar to reassembling broken ceramics into something else, something perhaps more beautiful.

“I say to you we are making a new world and I believe it can be, in crucial ways, a better one,” Solnit said.

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Energy and Economic Narratives

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This chapter introduces the reader to the concepts and ideas within the book. A real-world story of a Texas town voting on whether to allow natural gas drilling within its borders leads to defining the two types of narratives, those of energy and economics, that form the basis of the book. The competing energy narratives are those that promote fossil fuels versus those that promote renewable energy. The competing economic narratives are those whose worldviews center on technological optimism and the assumption of infinite substitutability of technology and human capability for physical resources versus those whose worldviews center on technological realism and the consideration of feedbacks from the finite Earth. Using these narratives for context, the chapter includes contemporary stories and debates that show how the narratives play out in media and the public sphere.

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Barnett, Marissa (April 17, 2015) “Texas House approves so-called ‘Denton Fracking Ban’ bill.” Accessed April 19, 2015 at: https://www.texastribune.org/2015/04/17/texas-house-drill-denton-fracking-bill/ . Malewitz, Jim (May 18, 2015) “Curbing Local Control, Abbott signs ‘Denton Fracking Bill’. ” Accessed May 24, 2017 at: https://www.texastribune.org/2015/05/18/abbott-signs-denton-fracking-bill/ .

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Russel Ray, Power Engineering, September 21, 2016: https://www.power-eng.com/articles/2016/09/w-rtsil-engines-used-for-225-mw-power-plant-in-texas.html . The power plant is 225 MW of reciprocating natural gas engines.

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The “law of supply and demands” is notion that supply of goods (e.g., energy) and human demand for those goods are always equal, or matched. This of course is neither a physical nor political law, but one that economists use as rationale for interpreting the world.

Increasingly Stupid Movie Physics: http://www.intuitor.com/moviephysics/ .

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Here “developed world” refers largely to the richer countries such as the U.S., Western Europe, Japan, and others within the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

I recognize that the Earth does have mass transfer to it from such objects as meteors, meteorites, and comets, and that humans now send mass from Earth into space in the form of satellites and capsules such as during the Apollo missions. However, these mass transfers to Earth are also not infinite. Further, this book refrains from speculating regarding our ability to harvest resources from space. In addition, taking one picture of the Earth from space does not prove that the Earth is geometrically finite because in theory the Earth could be extending infinitely into the distance behind its cross section. Since we’ve circled the Earth and taken pictures of the Earth from multiple vantage points, we’re sure of its near spherical shape.

Credit to my waitress Sarah A. at the Arvada, Colorado School House Kitchen & Libations (May 31, 2017).

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Renewable Energy Essay Examples

Renewable Energy - Free Essay Examples and Topic Ideas

The earth is slowly, but surely running low on its non-renewable energy. Resources like coal, oil, and natural gas are the most consumed each year (Gardner). Reasons for such marginal increases can range from using oil in gasoline to power cars, to providing heat through coal in fireplaces and stovetops in a kitchen. Pretty soon these forms of energy will become scarce and hard to produce, creating massive economic mood swings due to higher prices and lower quantity of needed resources (Introduction to Biofuels). It seems there has been no clear-cut solution to this problem. That is until recent advances in recyclable energy in the form of Biofuel, along with the infinite efficiency of Solar power.

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Introduction to Biofuels

Biofuels are a sustainable fuel source produced from dead plants called biomass, also called agrofuel (Introduction to Biofuels). Biofuels have been produced using all kinds of biomass sources since the dawn of time, for example corn, wheat, and recent evidence shows carcasses being used as fertilizer thousands of years ago. It has even been proposed that biofuel can be created from any carbon source (Gardner). The difficulty is to change over the biomass safely, neatly, and efficiently into the fluid fuel that powers the cars, planes, trains, and other forms of transportation that humans use every day. In previous decades, the wave of support for biofuels has become increasingly dramatic.

One of the most popular reasons is that biofuels are a much cleaner type of resource than non-renewable energy sources and in this way leaves a smaller carbon footprint too (Introduction to Biofuels). Whether it is corn, seeds, or some forms of grass, massive strands of these fuels can be developed and handled in the US. Making this technology crucial to American independence of western oil and natural gas. Biofuel creation from biowaste can otherwise address the issues with trash and human waste too. Effectively reducing the size of landfills and overall pollution.

Sun-powered Clean Energy

Another form of energy can be derived from the sun called solar power. A bigger portion of the world’s useable energy will be dealt with by sunlight-based engineering that take in the warmth and light produced from the sun (Hamer). Sun-powered clean energy can be utilized without being present to produce specific and efficient energy waves that pay for themselves over time. Americans should build their dependence on this earth inviting natural source. The estimate for sun powered energy in the twenty-first century is “bright”. Sun power will push the pattern of sheltered, moderate, and dependable energy. In such a plan, access to the sun through building rooftops and windows will be a key segment. Particularly in the Southwest or city regions, concentrating sunlight will give a critical level of potential energy (Hamer). Not to mention the value solar power may have in other parts of the world like the scorching sands of India or the long periods of sunlight in Alaskan summers.

Some researchers say that these forms of energy have too high of a startup cost (Utility-Scale Solar Power Is Uneconomical and Unreliable). While yes, both Bioenergy and solar power may not be cheap at the start, they do pay for themselves the longer they are in use. For example, the average solar panel costs approximately $20,000 for a 1,500 sqft home (Hamer). Yes! This is a large chunk of money on start up, but typically the average American power bill can cost up to $300 a month. While the average solar bill is between $100-$200 a month, nearly less than half the monthly bill is. Which means within about 20 years or less, customers will be earning free energy (Hamer). The best part, after you pay the Solar Panels off you potentially will never have to pay an electric bill ever again. While with biofuels, the initial costs may be higher due to an unequal distribution of energy. Overtime the more people that decide to buy and or switch to bioenergy powered products, the more refined and efficient it will be causing both production and product value costs to recede (Introduction to Biofuels: At Issue). The same way that as more automobiles gained popularity, the less the product cost to produce.

So, What Now?

Now that the information is public, how can it be used in day to day society? The most common of the two alternative energy sources is solar power (Hamer). This form of power is used and seen every day whether it’s to spin the little solar powered merry go round on the window sill, or the solar farms used to power nearly half a million homes worldwide. Both of which provide some sort of value either monetary or economically. In the case of biofuels, research may play a factor in how quickly people begin to see its potential to be implicated into their life (Introduction to Biofuels: At Issue). There is an obvious risk in trying to make both human and plant waste useful. But many scientists believe that the only way to get rid of our waste issue is by learning how to properly recycle it into our lives.

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Harnessing solar and wind power in transitioning Sri Lanka towards sustainable renewable energy future

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renewable energy narrative essay

However, the island nation, blessed with abundant natural resources presents a unique opportunity to transition to a more sustainable energy future. The narrative surrounding renewable energy, is gaining traction, not only as a necessity but as a vision for a self-reliant and prosperous Sri Lanka.

Return to roots

In the past, Sri Lanka’s energy infrastructure was predominantly renewable. In the mid-1980s, the country met approximately 80% of its energy requirements using domestic renewable resources, such as hydro and biomass. Only 20% of the energy, primarily for transportation and minor needs, was sourced from imported fossil fuels. It enabled Sri Lanka to be largely self-sufficient in energy production, relying on its own renewable resources for the bulk of its energy needs. 

However, over the years, population growth, industrialisation, and increased energy demands have shifted this balance, with fossil fuels now accounting for over 51% of the country’s energy mix, leading to a higher dependency creating economic and environmental challenges. The need to move away from fossil fuels towards renewable energy is not only a national priority but also a global imperative.

Urgency of change

The recent economic crisis in Sri Lanka starkly highlighted the vulnerabilities of depending heavily on imported fossil fuels. Power cuts lasting up to 13 hours, fuel shortages and the inability to afford fossil fuel imports because of limited foreign exchange, not only disrupted daily life, but also demonstrated the critical need for energy independence. 

It is clear that Sri Lanka cannot continue on this path. The country must shift towards harnessing its indigenous renewable resources, such as solar, wind and biomass, to meet its growing energy needs. While efforts are ongoing to explore possible petroleum reserves, the focus must remain on renewable energy, as this is the only viable and sustainable option moving forward. 

Political consensus

Today, with Presidential elections imminent, the importance of renewable energy has gathered support across the political spectrum. This realisation has been acknowledged by all major political leaders – Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sajith Premadasa, and Anura Kumara Dissanayake – have included strong commitments and renewable energy targets into their manifestos. 

n Ranil Wickremesinghe aims to achieve 70% renewable energy by 2030, making Sri Lanka a Green Energy hub and exporting to neighbouring countries. The plan includes developing Trincomalee and Pooneryn as energy hubs, reducing energy costs, and implementing climate-friendly policies across key sectors.

n Sajith Premadasa’s Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) emphasises climate action through a National Adaptation Plan (NAP) focused on renewable energy. According to the manifesto, the aim is to exceed the 70% renewable energy target by 2030, positioning Sri Lanka as a regional renewable energy powerhouse.

n Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s manifesto emphasises the potential of wind power, stating, the nation has the capability to harness over 40 gigawatts of wind power and sees renewable energy as a pathway to enter the global energy market.

Like many countries globally, Sri Lanka is on the cusp of an energy transition from fossil fuels to renewables, and the future of the nation’s energy sector will largely depend on this shift.

Solar and Wind power potential

Sri Lanka’s renewable energy resources are diverse, with a focus on hydro, solar, and wind. Being close to the equator, the country benefits from abundant sunlight, making solar energy widely available. Surrounded by the sea, Sri Lanka also has excellent onshore and offshore wind potential. While resources such as geothermal and wave energy exist, they are not commercially viable yet. As the country’s hydro resources are nearly fully utilised, the focus is now shifting primarily to expanding solar and wind energy.  

As of 31 March 2024, Sri Lanka’s total installed generation capacity was 5,012 MW. Excluding hydro, renewable energy sources contributed only 1,093 MW, which is about a fifth of the total installed capacity. The long-term generation expansion plan aligns with the government’s commitment to achieve 70% renewable energy by 2030 and carbon neutrality by 2050. The plan emphasises mini-hydro, wind, biomass, and solar technologies, all renewable in nature. 

According to a joint study conducted by the United Nations Development Program and the Asian Development Bank, Sri Lanka houses a potential of 16 GW solar power . World Bank estimates Sri Lanka’s offshore wind potential is 92 GW . With limited scope of adding large scale hydro projects in the future, it is the wind and solar projects which will have to do the heavy lifting for SL to meet its renewable energy generation goals.  

Over the next 25 years, the country’s power demand is projected to grow at an annualised rate of ~5% and SL will need to add ~7,000 MW of fresh renewable energy, mainly consisting of ~4,700 MW of solar and ~1,800 MW of wind power .

The growth in solar capacity, particularly rooftop installations, which is crucial for decentralised energy generation reflects a positive trend towards renewable energy adoption. The total solar capacity in Sri Lanka has shown a steady increase from 1.36 MW in 2011 to 951.36 MW in 2023. The net metering achievements indicate a supportive regulatory framework that encourages individual and commercial investments in solar energy.

The substantial wind resource suggests that Sri Lanka has a significant potential for harnessing a vast untapped capacity of wind energy, particularly contributing to reducing reliance on imported fossil fuels and enhancing energy security.

Both solar and wind power data indicate a strong potential for renewable energy development in Sri Lanka. The significant solar capacity available, combined with the rapid growth wind resource positions the country to enhance its energy independence, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and meet future energy demands sustainably. 

Economic and environmental benefits

Investing in renewable energy will have far-reaching, multifaceted economic and environmental benefits for Sri Lanka including job creation and reduced energy costs. In addition, multilateral and bilateral agencies now prioritise funding for renewable projects over fossil fuel-based ones. The global shift highlights the financial and environmental advantages of adopting renewable energy offering Sri Lanka a competitive edge in global markets.

In the solar industry alone, over 900 companies have already been established to service the growing demand. Similarly, wind power projects are expected to generate thousands of jobs as the country ramps up capacity. These expansions will require substantial manpower, creating numerous local jobs during both the construction and operational phases of projects.

A reduction in overall energy costs for households and industries is predicted, making Sri Lanka more competitive in attracting energy-intensive industries. Lower energy costs will also benefit households and contribute to a more robust economy.

Renewable energy is not just about addressing Sri Lanka’s current energy crisis but also about shaping the country’s long-term sustainability goals. Sri Lanka, having committed to reducing carbon emissions under the Paris Agreement, aims for net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and renewable energy will be crucial to achieving this goal, offering a much lower environmental impact compared to coal or other fossil fuels.

The nation can lead by example in the global fight against climate change. Moreover, the cost of renewable energy technologies has decreased dramatically, making them sustainable. These shifts will help mitigate the effects of climate change, and reduce pollution, leading to healthier communities and ecosystems.

Priorities for the ‘Next Government’

To ensure the success of Sri Lanka’s renewable energy transition, the next Government must prioritise several key areas. First, grid infrastructure must be enhanced to accommodate intermittent energy sources such as wind and solar. Second, regulatory frameworks need to be streamlined to expedite the approval process for renewable energy projects. Finally, the Government should create partnerships with international and local investors to finance large-scale renewable energy developments.

Sri Lanka stands at the threshold of a renewable energy revolution. Solar and wind power, with its vast potential, offers a pathway to energy independence, economic growth, and environmental sustainability and also an opportunity to become a regional leader in green energy production. 

As the country moves forward, it must continue to invest in renewable energy technologies, infrastructure, and policies that will ensure a secure and sustainable energy future for generations to come.

https://www.adb.org/sites/default/files/publication/354591/sri-lanka-power-2050v2.pdf

  https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/828731586850081077/pdf/Technical-Potential-for-Offshore-Wind-in-Sri-Lanka-Map.pdf

  https://www.themorning.lk/articles/C2a9RM0BiUCA40tviZfS

(The writer is a Professor in Electrical Engineering attached to the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Moratuwa, Sri Lanka.)

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NTPC shares jump more than 4% as renewable energy arm files draft papers to raise ₹10,000 crore via IPO

Ntpc stock climbed 4.34% to ₹431.85 — its record high — on the bse. at the nse, it surged 4.27% to ₹431.85 — the all-time high.

Updated - September 19, 2024 12:10 pm IST - New Delhi

NTPC Green Energy is a ‘Maharatna’ Central Public Sector Enterprise with renewable energy portfolio, including solar and wind power assets. File

NTPC Green Energy is a ‘Maharatna’ Central Public Sector Enterprise with renewable energy portfolio, including solar and wind power assets. File | Photo Credit: Reuters

Shares of NTPC jumped by more than 4% to hit an all-time high on Thursday (September 19, 2024) after NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of the firm, filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to raise ₹10,000 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

The stock climbed 4.34% to ₹431.85 — its record high — on the BSE. At the NSE, it surged 4.27% to ₹431.85 — the all-time high.

The initial share-sale is entirely a fresh issuance of equity shares with no Offer For Sale (OFS) component, according to the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP).

The renewable energy firm said proceeds of the issue to the tune of ₹7,500 crore will be used to repay or prepay part or all of its subsidiary NTPC Renewable Energy Limited's (NREL) outstanding loans, while a portion will be utilised for general corporate purposes.

NTPC Green Energy is a 'Maharatna' Central Public Sector Enterprise with renewable energy portfolio, including solar and wind power assets.

IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, HDFC Bank, IIFL Securities, and Nuvama Wealth Management are the book-running lead managers to the issue.

Published - September 19, 2024 12:07 pm IST

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NTPC shares jump over 4 pc as renewable energy arm files draft papers to raise Rs 10,000 cr via IPO

NTPC shares jump over 4 pc as renewable energy arm files draft papers to raise Rs 10,000 cr via IPO

Shares of NTPC jumped over 4 per cent to hit an all-time high on Thursday after NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of the firm, filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to raise Rs 10,000 crore through an Initial Public Offering (IPO).

The stock climbed 4.34 per cent to Rs 431.85 -- its record high -- on the BSE.

At the NSE, it surged 4.27 per cent to Rs 431.85 -- the all-time high.

The initial share-sale is entirely a fresh issuance of equity shares with no Offer For Sale (OFS) component, according to the Draft Red Herring Prospectus (DRHP).

The renewable energy firm said proceeds of the issue to the tune of Rs 7,500 crore will be used to repay or prepay part or all of its subsidiary NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd's (NREL) outstanding loans, while a portion will be utilised for general corporate purposes.

NTPC Green Energy is a 'Maharatna' central public sector enterprise with renewable energy portfolio, including solar and wind power assets.

IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, HDFC Bank, IIFL Securities, and Nuvama Wealth Management are the book-running lead managers to the issue.

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Gold Prices Fall In India For 3rd Day, Sept 19: Yellow Metal Loses Glitter, Check Latest Gold Price

NTPC Green Energy Files DRHP With SEBI For Rs 10,000 Crore IPO; Check Key Dates & Other Details Here

NTPC Green Energy, a subsidiary of NTPC Ltd, India's largest power producer, has taken a step toward expanding its renewable energy footprint by filing draft papers with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday. The company is seeking to raise Rs 10,000 crore through an initial public offering (IPO).

NTPC Green Energy Files DRHP With SEBI For Rs 10,000 Crore IPO; Key Details Here

NTPC Green Energy has clear plans for the utilization of the Rs 10,000 crore it seeks to raise. Of this amount, Rs 7,500 crore will be allocated to repay or prepay a portion of the outstanding loans of its subsidiary, NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd. (NREL). The remaining funds will be directed toward general corporate purposes, helping the company boost its operational capabilities.

The decision to file for an IPO comes at a time when India's stock market is seeing heightened activity in public listings. Nearly 60 mainboard companies have launched IPOs this year, making it a highly competitive environment. NTPC Green Energy's entry is expected to attract attention from both domestic and international investors.

NTPC Green Energy is part of NTPC, a 'Maharatna' public sector enterprise, with a robust renewable energy portfolio that spans across multiple states in India. The company has a strong presence in both solar and wind energy projects. As of August 2024, NTPC Green Energy operates 3,071 MW of solar power capacity and 100 MW from wind projects. These assets are strategically located in over six states, including key regions known for their renewable energy potential.

NTPC Ltd, the parent company, has set an ambitious goal to achieve 60 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2032. Currently, the group has an installed capacity of 3.5 GW, with more than 28 GW of projects in various stages of development.

India's renewable energy sector has seen rapid expansion in recent years, fueled by the government's push to reduce carbon emissions and transition to cleaner energy sources. A recent Crisil report, referenced in NTPC Green Energy's draft papers, highlights India's global standing in renewable energy. The country ranks fourth in the world for installed renewable energy capacity, with a particular focus on wind and solar energy installations.

India's installed renewable energy capacity has grown from 63 GW in FY12 to 123 GW in FY21, and it reached approximately 191 GW by March 2024. This includes large hydro projects, which contribute to the country's overall renewable energy output. Solar energy has been the main driver of this growth, accounting for a significant portion of the capacity increase. Currently, renewable energy makes up about 43% of India's total power generation capacity.

NTPC Green Energy has appointed a consortium of reputable financial institutions to manage its upcoming IPO. The book-running lead managers include IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, HDFC Bank, IIFL Securities, and Nuvama Wealth Management.

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NTPC Green Energy files draft papers for ₹10,000 crore IPO

Ntpc green energy files draft papers for ₹ 10,000 crore ipo.

NTPC Green Energy files draft papers for  <span class='webrupee'>₹</span>10,000 crore IPO

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NTPC Share Price Highlights September 19, 2024: NTPC shares gain as subsidiary files draft papers with SEBI for ₹10,000 crore IPO

Ntpc share price, ntpc stocks, ntpc share price updates september 19, 2024: ntpc stock surged to hit a 52-week high on thursday’s trade. the stock was in focus as its renewable energy arm filed draft papers with sebi for ₹10,000 crore ipo..

FILE PHOTO: A signboard of NTPC is seen outside its office in Mumbai, India, July 23, 2018. REUTERS/Francis Mascarenhas/File Photo

N TPC Stocks, NTPC Share Price Updates September 19, 2024: NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of NTPC, on Wednesday filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator SEBI to raise ₹10,000 crore through an initial public offering (IPO). NTPC shares gained over 3% to hit a 52-week high on Thursday. It closed among the top gainers on the Nifty 50 pack.

ALL UPDATES

Ntpc’s total market cap stood at ₹4,11,138.64 crore., ntpc share price closing figures: shares close 2% higher on thursday .

NTPC shares closed 2.38% higher at ₹424 on the NSE. On the BSE, the stock climbed 2.48% to end at ₹424.10.

NTPC shares were up 2.22% on the NSE trading at ₹423.35 as at 3 pm.

Ntpc’s total market cap stood at ₹4,09,587.18 crore., ntpc shares traded at ₹422.80 on the nse, higher by 2.09% as at 2.10 pm., ntpc shares price outlook as at 1 pm.

Shares of NTPC traded at ₹427.40 on the NSE , higher by 3.20%. 

On the BSE , the stock traded at ₹427.75, higher by 3.36%. 

NTPC share price today: NTPC stock hits 52-week high

NTPC shares have hit a 52-week high on the NSE today at ₹431.85.

NTPC shares in focus

NTPC has informed the stock exchanges that NTPC Green Energy Limited (NGEL), a subsidiary of NTPC Limited, has filed a draft red herring prospectus dated September 18, 2024, with SEBI, BSE Limited and National Stock Exchange of India Limited in respect of its proposed initial public offer (IPO) of equity shares, subject to receipt of requisite approvals, market conditions and other considerations.

NTPC shares climbed 3.72% on the NSE, trading at ₹429.55

NTPC shares gained 3.42% on the NSE, trading at ₹428.30 as at 11.22 am.

Ntpc shares in news: ntpc shares gain 3.15% on the nse.

NTPC shares climbed 3.15% on the NSE, trading at ₹427.20 as at 10.12 am.

NTPC share price in focus: NTPC shares featured among major stocks that will see action today

KS Badri Narayanan of businessline writes

Stock market live today: NTPC shares trade among top gainers on the Nifty 50 pack

Top gainers on the NSE as at 9.30 am:

NTPC (3.31%), LTIMindtree (3.20%), Wipro (2.14%), Bajaj Auto (1.53%), Tata Motors (1.40%)

Top losers:

ONGC (-0.71%), BPCL (-0.36%), Bajaj Finserv (-0.29%), L&T (-0.05%)

NTPC stock in focus: NTPC Green Energy files draft papers to raise Rs 10,000 cr via IPO: PTI

NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of NTPC, on Wednesday filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator Sebi to raise Rs 10,000 crore through an initial public offering (IPO).

The initial share-sale is entirely a fresh issuance of equity shares with no offer-for-sale (OFS) component, according to the draft red herring prospectus (DRHP).

The renewable energy firm said proceeds of the issue to the tune of Rs 7,500 crore will be used to repay or prepay part or all of its subsidiary NTPC Renewable Energy Ltd’s (NREL) outstanding loans, while a portion will be utilised for general corporate purposes.

The filing comes at a time when the country’s IPO market is thriving, with around 60 main board companies having launched their initial share-sales this year so far.

NTPC Green Energy is a ‘Maharatna’ central public sector enterprise with renewable energy portfolio, including solar and wind power assets spread across more than six states.

As of August 2024, the company’s operational capacity comprised 3,071 MW from solar projects and 100 MW from wind projects, across six states.

Overall, the NTPC group aims to reach 60 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2032. Currently, it has 3.5 GW of installed capacity and over 28 GW in progress.

India’s renewable energy sector is growing rapidly. Globally, India is ranked fourth in renewable energy capacity, including wind and solar installations, the draft papers said, citing a Crisil report.

The country’s installed renewable energy capacity increased from 63 GW in FY12 to 123 GW in FY21, reaching about 191 GW by March 2024 (including large hydro). As of March 2024, renewable energy made up nearly 43 per cent of India’s total power generation capacity, with solar energy leading this growth, it added.

IDBI Capital Markets & Securities, HDFC Bank, IIFL Securities, and Nuvama Wealth Management are the book-running lead managers to the issue.

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  1. Essay on Renewable Energy

    Climate change is costing the world trillions of dollars by trying to stop it. Using renewable energy would save the U.S. over $700 billion a year in the 2040s. Around 1 million additional jobs would also be created due to this transition. (Alexander, 2018).

  2. A review of dominant sustainable energy narratives

    A sustainable energy narrative tells how to achieve a sustainable energy system. ... Renewable energy resources (hereafter renewables) have the potential to offer significant reduction in CO 2 emissions [102]. The IPCC suggests that 50-60% of electricity must be based on renewables by 2030, increasing to 60-80% by 2050. This is a massive ...

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  4. PDF 2018 Renewable Energy Narrative Analysis Feb 11, 2019 (2)

    RENEWABLE ENERGY NARRATIVE ANALYSIS · 2 BACKGROUND & KEY FINDINGS Over the past decade, the dream of 100% renewable energy in the United States has gone from abstract policy proposals to concrete commitments and achievements. Cities, states, and companies across the country have responded to public demand for clean ...

  5. Narrative storytelling has power in driving clean energy revolution

    And so every historian has to learn how to interpret the past in a way that can be delivered through an essay, through a story, through a narrative, in a way that helps people to understand the world through storytelling, through narrative. ... Indigenous renewable energy companies coming out of the Navajo Nation itself, and Indigenous people ...

  6. This Is the Future: Essay on Renewable Energy

    As a result, we get geothermal energy. This source provides a significant energy supply while having low emissions and no significant footprint on land. A factsheet and essay on renewable resources state that geothermal plants will increase electricity production from 17 billion kWh in 2020 to 49.8 billion kWh in 2050.

  7. Renewable Energy Explained

    Background Info. Vocabulary. In any discussion about climate change, renewable energy usually tops the list of changes the world can implement to stave off the worst effects of rising temperatures. That's because renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind, don't emit carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that contribute to global warming.

  8. Renewable Energy Essay: Tips to Write a Great Paper

    Unlocking the Power of Words: Secrets to Writing about Energy. The internet is awash with essays and articles on various topics. In the last few years, climate change has become one of the most targeted topics of discussion. So, by writing another renewable energy essay, you could add to the debate but not make any significant impact.

  9. Introduction to Renewable Energy

    The term "renewable" encompasses a wide diversity of energy resources with varying economics, technologies, end uses, scales, environmental impacts, availability, and depletability. For example, fully "renewable" resources are not depleted by human use, whereas "semi-renewable" resources must be properly managed to ensure long-term ...

  10. PDF Stories of Energy

    Narrative in the Energy Humanities Axel Goodbody and Bradon Smith Th is collection of essays is an output of the UK research project Sto-ries of Change: Energy in the Past, Present, and Future.1 Its principal aim is to explore the insights that narratives, literary and nonfi ction, aff ord into the processes and consequences of energy ...

  11. The Energy Narratives: Fossil Fuels Versus Renewables

    Abstract. This chapter summarizes the competing narratives for and against the use of fossil and renewable energy resources and technologies. The chapter presents pros and cons as expressed by each narrative so that the reader understands how the narratives do and do not relate to data from Chapter 2. The pros and cons are expressed via several ...

  12. Renewable Energy

    The wind, the sun, and Earth are sources of renewable energy. These energy sources naturally renew, or replenish themselves. Wind, sunlight, and the planet have energy that transforms in ways we can see and feel. We can see and feel evidence of the transfer of energy from the sun to Earth in the sunlight shining on the ground and the warmth we ...

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    AbstractThis essay reviews three recent books on the changing landscape of global energy politics in the era of climate change. ... though these remain secondary in the arc of his narrative, which focuses predominantly on the consequences of the American "shale revolution," the rise of China, and the role of energy in reshaping the ...

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    ferenced communities of color, 194 (63%) also focused on solutions, while 116 (37%) did not.Tracing the history of these analyses reveals that the media narrative around renewable energy has steadily progressed to more equ. In 2017, coverage discussed renewable energy's viability. In 2018, coverage revealed renewable energy's widespread growth.

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    In addition, hydroelectric power stations are very cost efficient as the set up costs are relatively low. Besides, the power station requires minimal labour and can run from 50-100 years within very minimal maintenance cost. Moreover, hydroelectric dams are very reliable as compared to other forms of renewable energy since hydroelectric dams ...

  16. Essay on Importance of Renewable Energy

    Tidal power generators are the most predictable and affordable source of energy. For example, The Bay of Fundy in Canada has the world's highest tides, which reach speeds up to 17 kph generating 700 kilowatts of power compared to 600 kilowatts produced by wind turbines (Meyer 66). Therefore, the global implementation of renewable sources is a ...

  17. Full article: A review of renewable energy sources, sustainability

    Notwithstanding, renewable energy sources are the most outstanding alternative and the only solution to the growing challenges (Tiwari & Mishra, Citation 2011). In 2012, renewable energy sources supplied 22% of the total world energy generation (U.S. Energy Information Administration, Citation 2012) which was not possible a decade ago.

  18. Renewable energy

    In contrast, renewable energy sources accounted for nearly 20 percent of global energy consumption at the beginning of the 21st century, largely from traditional uses of biomass such as wood for heating and cooking.By 2015 about 16 percent of the world's total electricity came from large hydroelectric power plants, whereas other types of renewable energy (such as solar, wind, and geothermal ...

  19. Turning Climate Crisis Stories Into Narrative of the Future, Changed

    Turning Climate Crisis Stories Into Narrative of the Future, Changed but Still Beautiful April 17, 2023. Writers Rebecca Solnit and Terry Tempest Williams offer new perspectives on how to remake the world ... No solution is perfect, however, including renewable energy sources, which have been criticized because of the mining practices employed ...

  20. Energy and Economic Narratives

    A real-world story of a Texas town voting on whether to allow natural gas drilling within its borders leads to defining the two types of narratives, those of energy and economics, that form the basis of the book. The competing energy narratives are those that promote fossil fuels versus those that promote renewable energy.

  21. Renewable Energy

    Paper Type: 900 Word Essay Examples. In this paper I will be comparing the energy policies of Russia and Poland. I will first give a brief overview of each state and explain why I choose to compare them. I will then look at the prevalence of fossil fuel energy, nuclear energy, and renewable energy in both countries.

  22. Full article: Renewable energy and the promise of jobs, regional

    The promise of renewable energy. The economic and social consequences of necessary carbon-emissions reduction policies for carbon-exposed regions have been a focal point of considerable political concern and research over many years (ETUC Citation 2016; Gibson Citation 2022; Wright et al. Citation 2022).Unions, environmental organisations and local communities have called for 'justice ...

  23. Harnessing solar and wind power in transitioning Sri Lanka towards

    Sri Lanka stands at crucial crossroads. With an increasing reliance on imported fossil fuels, amidst global climate challenges and energy security concerns, the nation faces mounting economic and environmental pressures. However, the island nation, blessed with abundant natural resources presents a unique opportunity to transition to a more sustainable energy future. The narrative surrounding ...

  24. NTPC shares jump more than 4% as renewable energy arm files draft

    NTPC shares jump more than 4% as renewable energy arm files draft papers to raise ₹10,000 crore via IPO NTPC stock climbed 4.34% to ₹431.85 — its record high — on the BSE. At the NSE, it ...

  25. State-run NTPC's green energy arm files for $1.2 bln India IPO

    BENGALURU: India's NTPC Green Energy filed draft papers for a 100 billion rupees ($1.19 billion) initial public offering on Wednesday, as it looks to cash in on the country's renewables expansion plans and a red-hot equities market. The company, a unit of state-owned power producer NTPC, will only issue new shares, and existing shareholders will not sell any stake, the draft papers showed.

  26. NTPC shares jump over 4 pc as renewable energy arm files draft papers

    Shares of NTPC jumped over 4 per cent to hit an all-time high on Thursday after NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of the firm, filed preliminary papers with capital markets regulator ...

  27. Renewable Energy Argumentative Essay

    Renewable Energy Argumentative Essay. This essay sample was donated by a student to help the academic community. Papers provided by EduBirdie writers usually outdo students' samples. Recently, some people believe that nuclear, solar, wind and hydropower provide cheap and clean energy. The advantages of these sources of power far outweigh their ...

  28. NTPC Green Energy Files DRHP With SEBI For Rs 10,000 ...

    NTPC Green Energy, a subsidiary of NTPC Ltd, Indias largest power producer, has taken a step toward expanding its renewable energy footprint by filing draft papers with the Securities and Exchange ...

  29. NTPC Green Energy files draft papers for ₹10,000 crore IPO

    NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy subsidiary of NTPC, filed draft papers with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on Wednesday, seeking to raise ₹10,000 crore through an ...

  30. NTPC Share Price/ NTPC Stocks Updates 19 Sep 2024: NTPC shares gain as

    September 19, 2024 10:04 NTPC stock in focus: NTPC Green Energy files draft papers to raise Rs 10,000 cr via IPO: PTI NTPC Green Energy, the renewable energy arm of NTPC, on Wednesday filed ...