Energy

The energy and climate crisis is real, and the big fossil fuel companies are dictating the rules of the game. Global warming and Russia's aggression in Ukraine have accelerated the search for safer, cheaper, and greener energy. One option is energy provided by energy communities. In post-communist countries, however, cooperatives have a distinctly negative connotation. The belief that energy should come from big government agencies or fossil fuel companies has created a perception that energy prices are beyond our control. But is this statement true? We explore this and many other questions in the following report.

Global demand for critical and strategic raw materials is on the rise. These resources are indispensable, particularly for the transition to clean energy, but also within other industry sectors. In this issue of our Böll.Thema magazine, we provide insights into recent developments in resource extraction, the associated challenges, and, most importantly, opportunities for positive change.

The report is a summary with the key findings from the Community energy law in Greece, Serbia, Poland, and Bulgaria. Stock taking and bottlenecks workshop organised in the meantime of the Community Energy Spring Gathering that both took place in Athens and which aimed to explore the topic of a decentralised system of community energy based on democratisation, localization, and environmentally sustainable methods of energy sourcing by shedding light onto its initiatives in Greece, Serbia, Poland, and Bulgaria. The paper presents key elements of both the legal framework and lessons learnt from the community energy initiative’s actions in each of the mentioned countries. Provided knowledge may be useful for further actions towards decentralised energy systems.  

What are the arguments in favor of Small Modular Reactors and how realistic are they? What is the chance we will see their mass construction in the Czech Republic? This publication contributes the views of experts and offers the most important findings in the topic. Its author is Professor Stephen Thomas from the University of Greenwich who has more than 25 years of experience conducting research in the field of energy policies. The current situation in the Czech Republic is described in a chapter by Edvard Sequens, the energy consultant for the Calla organization.

The Urban Resilience Package report was produced in cooperation between the Heinrich Böll Foundation in Warsaw and the CoopTech Hub. The publication presents a model of a development cooperative that enables the use and development of local resources - material and social. The solution is based on three pillars: common ownership, co-investment and co-management. The report discusses examples of places where model statutes for development cooperatives have been successfully created: Dąbrowa Górnicza and Konin. The solutions presented in the publication are the result of workshops and meetings with the inhabitants of these towns.

As we write this in March of 2022, our review of the year 2021 is overshadowed by Russia’s brutal war of aggression against Ukraine. Because of this, not only foreign policy, but also domestic politics have now entered a new era.

The EU must put an end to unabated fossil gas use by 2050 at the latest to comply with its climate neutrality objective. To stay within the Paris Agreement target of 1.5°C, the use of unabated fossil gas would have to end significantly earlier – by 2035. This report outlines the implications of this challenge for the management of the energy transition in a way that rapidly phases out Russian gas imports, protects security of supply and energy-poor consumers as well as the climate.

The World Nuclear Industry Status Report 2019 (WNISR2019) provides a comprehensive overview of nuclear power plant data, including information on age, operation, production and construction.