In a recent article, I explored some of the ways in which solar power could transform the economy. Such a transition towards renewable energy not only promises to produce new kinds of work but also makes energy supplies more secure. That’s the conclusion of a recent paper from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
There are obvious benefits from adopting renewable energy in terms of the reduced carbon footprint, but the paper also highlights the benefits in terms of security. For instance, the authors highlight how moving away from fossil fuels will likely mean that the military won’t need to invest so much in defending facilities in oil-producing countries.
Making the shift
The researchers examine the hypothetical transition from coal to wind in Texas across the full lifecycle, from mining to market. They find that the mining required, for instance, to develop 1 gigawatt per hour of wind capacity over 20 years is roughly the same as coal would require to generate the same electricity for just four years.
“Over two decades, five times more power would be produced by mining an equivalent amount for wind rather than coal,” the authors say. “Since transition materials requirements are so comparatively small, reduced international trade volumes mean a large measure of political risk falls away. Current practices for securing energy systems that require constant fuel deliveries thus offer little relevance for renewables.”
The authors also highlight the reduction in work required to mine materials for wind power infrastructure. For instance, even if we increased wind production 12 fold, the materials used to develop the wind power infrastructure would still amount to just 3% of that used in coal production.
“Once the system is operating, no trade is required to sustain it,” the authors say. “Therefore, renewable energy production is not exposed to the political risks and other problems that plague fossil fuel production and shipments, such as interdiction, embargo, civil war, labor actions and other disruptions. Waning dependence on the global fossil fuel trade thus reduces threats to the continuity of energy supplies, a substantial benefit for importing countries.”
Energy security
As well as reducing the raw materials required to produce our energy, renewable sources are also more secure. The authors highlight how renewable systems aren’t dependent upon fuels shipped over fragile supply lines that need to be maintained at incredible costs.
“Fossil fuel supply chains may stretch for thousands of miles over land and sea, facing constant risks from technical systems failure, human intervention and natural phenomena. These supply chains are enormous,” they say. “Trade in oil, gas and coal — shipped around the world in massive quantities every hour of every day — represent between 5% and 10% of total international trade by value, while crude oil, gas and petroleum products amounted to 29% of all seaborne trade tonnage in 2017. Even a small failure can have extreme consequences.”
While renewable sources won’t remove energy security concerns entirely, and the intermittent nature of renewable energy is certainly an issue to overcome, the authors believe that the risks involved are significantly reduced if and when renewables become a more central part of the overall energy mix.
