1. Stronger IEA links with Brazil, China, India
2. Hydrogen energy systems in demonstration
3. Contribution of Renewables to Energy Security
4. Coal & gas power plants - efficiency and cost
5. New IEA international R&D projects
6. Slovak Republic welcomed as IEA member

• Carbon dioxide capture & storage
• Newsletters from IEA programmes
• Updated IEA policies & measures databases
• CHP/DHC best practice

• Workshop What's Needed to Facilitate Upgrading or Replacement of Older Coal-Fired Plants, Paris (France), 17-18 January 2008.

• Workshop New Energy Indicators for Transport: The Way Forward, Paris (France), 28-29 January 2008.

• Workshop on Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles, Vancouver (Canada), 8 February 2008.

• Workshop Meeting Energy Efficiency Goals: Enhancing Compliance, Monitoring and Evaluation, Paris (France), 28-29 February 2008 February 2008.

• 2008 14th Biennial CSP SolarPACES Symposium, Las Vegas (United States), 2-7 March, 2008.

• 3rd IEA GHG International Oxy-Combustion Network Workshop, Yokohama (Japan), 4-6 March 2008.

• 9th IEA Heat Pump Conference, Advances and Prospects in Technology, Applications and Markets, Zürich (Switzerland), 20-22 May 2008.

• Eurosun 2008 - 1st International Conference on Solar Heating, Cooling and Buildings, Lisbon (Portugal), 7-10 October 2008.

• 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Washington, DC (United States), 16-20 November 2008.

• IEA-programme Clean Vehicle Awards go to: Ford; Plug-In Partners campaign; the late Paul MacCready.
• IEA photovoltaic programme Lisbon Ideas Challenge design awards go to Portuguese and German contestants.

1. Stronger IEA links with Brazil, China, India. Joining forces with "Plus-5" countries is a core IEA activity to boost energy technology's contribution to a clean, clever and competitive energy future. Energy technology ties with Brazil and China were strengthened in November when IEA R&D programmes met key local stakeholders at energy technology workshops in Beijing and Brasilia. Led by the IEA’s NEET initiative (Networks of Expertise in Energy Technology), these events hosted by Brazil and China proved fertile ground for IEA energy technology network experts to engage with host-country colleagues from policy-making, industry, business, research and academia to boost co-operation and exchange. The first NEET workshop took place in Johannesburg (South Africa) in February 2007 (see Issue 41). The IEA collaborative energy technology network brings together more than 5000 experts around the globe.

Reporting for the OPEN Bulletin on the 1-2 November Beijing NEET workshop, John Gale, General Manager of the IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme (IEA GHG) underlines the benefits of the event, organised together with the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology and the China Coal Research Institute. Download his report.

Andreas Hauer, Secretary of the IEA Energy Conservation through Energy Storage Implementing Agreement (ECES), sent us his report on the 19-20 November Brasilia NEET workshop organised together with Brazil's Ministry of Mines and Energy.

Partnerships with China and India were further reinforced when Chinese and Indian delegations subsequently participated in the 3-7 December "Committee Week" at the Agency's headquarters in Paris. Guests from these two countries notably attended the two-day session of the IEA Committee on Energy Research and Technology (CERT). See the press release.

2. Hydrogen energy systems in demonstration. Hydrogen and fuel cell R&D projects are attracting hefty investments in a number of countries. Some national administrations and their industrial partners are betting heavily on the chance that hydrogen and fuel cell options can eventually sever the link between notably transport and CO₂ emissions. Strong momentum in this area of investigation has generated widespread demonstration of hydrogen and fuel cell systems, for both transport and stationary power production, and including ventures into the vast area of hydrogen supply infrastructure.
Since 2003, Annex 18 of the IEA Hydrogen Implementing Agreement programme (IEA HIA) has been monitoring and assessing integrated hydrogen demonstration projects around the world. This has created a substantial knowledge base, including national information and selected IEA case studies. Annex 18 Sub-Task C focuses on lessons learned and best practice. The OPEN Bulletin put some questions about the state of play to Shannon Miles of Natural Resources Canada, who leads this Sub-Task. Access the interview here. IEA HIA is one of 41 programmes within the IEA collaborative framework.
Three workshops on the hydrogen economy were organised during 2007 by the IEA Secretariat and the International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy (IPHE).

3. Contribution of Renewables to Energy Security. Aside from their widely proven value in curbing greenhouse-gas emissions and local environmental pollution, renewables offer many other benefits. For example if widely distributed, they can create the flexibility to mitigate risks from energy market instability, technical power system failure or physical security threats such as terrorism or extreme weather conditions. While it may be hard to find an energy source that is totally risk-free, renewables can certainly score highly, especially when it comes to diversifying supply sources and exploiting local energy resources rather than importing. Their potential for domestic or commercial space heating and cooling, for displacing thermal electricity, for industrial process heat systems, or for national transport fuel production is often left out of account. This IEA report shows how harnessing renewable energy for electricity generation, heat supply and transport can make major contributions to a nation’s energy security. It provides policy pointers for turning the potential of renewables into reality. Download from the IEA website.

4. Coal & gas power plants - efficiency & cost. Which of today's fossil fuel-fired power plants have highest efficiencies and lowest emissions? And how much do they cost? These are some of the questions answered in IEA's recently released publication Fossil Fuel-Fired Power Generation - Case Studies of Recently Constructed Coal- and Gas-Fired Power Plants. But the authors' case studies covering nine selected facilities in Europe, Asia and Africa also explore the challenges met in designing the plants, their technical configurations and operating methods, also plans for future development. They demonstrate the degree of efficiency currently achievable in various parts of the world using different grades of fossil fuels and different state-of-the art technology. A review of current and future application of coal-fuelled integrated gasification combined cycle plants is included. This valuable handbook for decision takers responds to one of the requests for analysis that the IEA received from G8 leaders at their July 2005 summit. Visit the IEA Online Bookshop.

5. New IEA international R&D projects. Research portfolios among the collaborative programmes within the IEA's energy technology network are constantly adapting to meet today's evolving energy challenges. Here are some new projects.

• The IEA Demand-Side Management (DSM) Programme has created a new multi-country research project, Task XVIII on "DSM and Climate Change". It will seek pathways to greater synergy between programmes to curb greenhouse gas emissions and measures to optimise electrical power system efficiency and return on investment. Learn more from the IEA DSM website. Contact: crossley@efa.com.au.

• Promoting "Energy Efficient Communities" is the focus of the new Annex 51 within the IEA Implementing Agreement on Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Systems (ECBCS). Taking an integrated, multidisciplinary approach, it will shape guidance for planners and decision makers on sustainable and secure urban energy structures. Details can be found on the ECBCS website. Contact: annex51@ecbcs.org.

• The IEA Implementing Agreement on Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Technologies and Programs (IEA HEV) is planning a project on plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. Its draft work plan can be accessed here. A kick-off workshop, scheduled for 8 February 2007 in Vancouver (Canada), will discuss advanced batteries, policy issues, charging and grid questions, as well as marketability and impact. See workshop announcement.

• The IEA Wind programme is launching two new tasks. The "Cost of Wind Energy" is the focus of Task 26. It will enhance understanding of cost components while developing internationally applicable cost-assessment methodology, improved comparative cost analysis and new insight on wind energy's social value. For the Work Programme, visit the IEA Wind website. Contact: joergen.lemming@risoe.dk.
"Winning Hearts and Minds" is the vocation underlying a proposed new IEA Wind task on social acceptance of wind energy projects. Its multiple outputs will include a state of the art report, along with best-practice guidance and tools for policy makers and planners. Visit the IEA Wind website to consult the Task Proposal. Contact: robert.horbaty@enco-ag.ch.

6. Slovak Republic welcomed as IEA member. Having completed all steps required to become a full member of the Paris-based International Energy Agency (IEA), the Slovak Republic is now officially the twenty-seventh IEA member country. See press release.

 

• Near-Term Opportunities for Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage - Global Assessment Workshop. Downloadable from the IEA website, this summary report covers a 21-22 June 2007 workshop that took place in Oslo (Norway), one of three organised jointly by IEA and the Carbon Sequestration Leadership Forum. Findings will feed into the G8 Plan of Action on Climate Change, Clean Energy and Sustainable Development. Download here.

• Free technology newsletters from IEA's international collaborative programmes:
- AMFI Newsletter - Issue 4/2007, October, from the IEA programme on Advanced Motor Fuels.
- E3Light - Issue 2/2007, November, from the energy-efficient lighting project of the IEA programme on Energy Conservation in Buildings and Community Centres.
- ENARD Newsletter- No. 3, November 2007, from the IEA Implementing Agreement on Electricity Networks Analysis, Research and Development (ENARD).
- IEA Hybrid and Electric Vehicles Implementing Agreement Newsletter, Vol. 7 Issue 2, November 2007.
- PV Power - Issue 27, November 2007, from the IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme.

• Recently updated, these IEA Policies and Measures Databases offer a wealth of online, freely searchable authoritative information on steps implemented or planned in countries around the world to promote use of renewable energy, foster energy efficiency and combat climate change.
- Global Renewable Energy Policies and Measures database
- Energy Efficiency Policies and Measures database
- Climate Change Mitigation Policies and Measures database

• Global CHP/DHC Best Practices: A Policy Maker’s Roundtable - a summary report from the event on Global CHP/DHC Policies at IEA Headquarters on 10-11 October 2007. It was designed to highlight international examples of best-practice combined-heat-and-power/district heating and cooling policy, with a view to contributing to the IEA’s work for G8 leaders on climate change and clean energy.

• Findings from IEA Roundtable on Trading and Transmission of Renewable Electricity, Berlin, 10 October 2007. This event was part of IEA work on renewables that will culminate in a final report to G8 leaders. The roundtable's presentations, highlights and background information can be found on the IEA website. See also the previous workshop on Grid Integration of Renewable Energy: Technology Status and Priorities.

• International Methane Partnership - Fighting Climate Change. This communication paper from the IEA follows up on the international “Methane to Markets” Partnership Conference and Exposition in October 2007 in Beijing (China). Bringing together more than 750 attendees from 34 countries, the event highlighted technologies, markets and policies relating to methane recovery and use. Download the paper from the IEA website.

• The Russian version of the IEA publication Lessons from Liberalised Electricity Markets is now available. Both Russian and English versions can be downloaded free from the IEA website.

• Energy Policies of IEA Countries - Switzerland - 2007 Review. The latest in the series of IEA reviews of energy policies in individual IEA countries. See Summary. Visit the IEA Online Bookshop.

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• Workshop What's Needed to Facilitate Upgrading or Replacement of Older Coal-Fired Plants, Paris (France), 17-18 January 2008. Organised by IEA in association with the IEA Working Party on Fossil Fuels and the IEA Clean Coal Centre, this workshop will update on progress of ongoing work on cleaner fossil fuels by IEA and its associates. It will address modes of wide dissemination of results and discuss policy recommendations to be submitted to the G8 summit in Hokkaido in July 2008. Visit the IEA website. To request an invitation, e-mail: sankar.bhattacharya@iea.org.

• Workshop New Energy Indicators for Transport: The Way Forward, Paris (France), 28-29 January 2008. The purpose of this joint IEA/International Transport Forum (ITF) workshop is to bring together statisticians, analysts and policy-makers to share information about different approaches to transport data collection and indicators development and use. It will help guide the IEA’s future energy indicators work relating to transport and support the ITF’s work on the connection between transport and energy markets. Learn more from the IEA website.

• Workshop on Plug-In Hybrid Electric Vehicles, Vancouver (Canada), 8 February 2008. This workshop will be the kick-off event for a planned project dealing with plug-in hybrid electric vehicles within the IEA Implementing Agreement on Hybrid and Electric Vehicle Technologies and Programs (IEA HEV). See workshop announcement.

• Workshop Meeting Energy Efficiency Goals: Enhancing Compliance, Monitoring and Evaluation, Paris (France), 28-29 February 2008. Co-sponsored by the IEA and the International Task Force for Sustainable Products (ITFSP), this workshop will bring together public and private sector stakeholders to share information on effective frameworks for compliance, monitoring and evaluation in relation to energy efficiency measures. Visit the IEA website.

• 2008 14th Biennial CSP SolarPACES Symposium, Las Vegas (United States), 4-7 March, 2008. This four-day event is a technical meeting of the International Energy Agency’s Solar Power and Chemical Energy Systems (SolarPACES) Implementing Agreement, one of the IEA international collaborative R&D programmes. The Symposium will provide a venue for exchanging ideas and interacting with researchers, developers and policy makers from around the world. Attendees will learn about the most relevant R&D while discussing strategies and future paths to clean and sustainable utility-scale solar energy utilisation. Visit the SolarPACES website.

• 3rd IEA GHG International Oxy-Combustion Network Workshop, Yokohama (Japan), 4-6 March 2008. Organised by the IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme (IEA GHG), IHI, JPower and JCoal, this event will look into the different issues relevant to retrofitting or repowering of power plants with oxy-combustion technology with CO₂ capture. It will review the progress of various research and development activities in oxy-combustion technologies for power generation industry with CO₂ capture. Learn more from the CO₂ capture and storage pages of the IEA GHG website. IEA GHG is one of 41 programmes within the IEA collaborative network.

• 9th IEA Heat Pump Conference, Advances and Prospects in Technology, Applications and Markets, Zürich (Switzerland), 20-22 May 2008. This event will focus on technology, markets, policy and standards within a context of desired environmental benefits and energy conservation. Heat pumps will be addressed, along with air conditioning and refrigeration equipment, also systems for residential, commercial and industrial applications, together with heat pumping technologies for heating and cooling of low energy houses and systems for district heating and cooling. Visit the website of the IEA Heat Pump Centre and the conference website.

• Eurosun 2008 - 1st International Conference on Solar Heating, Cooling and Buildings, Lisbon (Portugal), 7-10 October 2008. Organised in co-operation with the IEA Solar Heating and Cooling Programmes (IEA SHC), this first international conference in the series is designed for scientists, technicians, architects, engineers, politicians and citizens of Europe and beyond. It will address different solar technologies for buildings, industry and other applications, also looking at questions such as testing and certification. Visit the IEA SHC website.

• 9th International Conference on Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies, Washington, DC (United States), 16-20 November 2008. Organised by the IEA Greenhouse Gas R&D Programme in collaboration with the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and with sponsorship from the United States Department of Energy, this is the latest in the series of Greenhouse Gas Control Technologies (GHGT) conferences, created in 1997. Visit the conference website.

• IEA-programme Clean Vehicle Awards go to: Ford; Plug-In Partners campaign; the late Paul MacCready. The 2007 Clean Vehicle Awards from the IEA Implementing Agreement on Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (IEA HEV) were announced on 4 December. Details can be found on the IEA-HEV website.
• IEA photovoltaic programme Lisbon Ideas Challenge design awards go to Portuguese and German contestants. This year's competition, organised on behalf of the IEA Photovoltaic Power Systems Programme (IEA PVPS) Task 10, focused on well integrated and designed urban renovation/rehabilitation plans. For details, visit the 2nd Lisbon Ideas Challenge website.