Climates changes, some bad news of 2013.

We can be optimistic and believe that soon new tools will enable a stronger fight to climate changes. We also have to be realist and accept that some facts damper clean energy progression. Here is what we count as the three saddest news of 2013.

The USA is expected to be oil self-sufficient within few years.

As unconventional gas had drop down the price of this raw energy, unconventional oil production will increase offer while internal US demand is lightly decreasing. Add to this the new more open rules of Mexico for oil development, and the fact that Canadian had difficulty to hand out their excessive oil sand capacity, this ended with a strong pressure on price reduction for crude oil.

Some stand that crude oil barrel may drop as low as $92 in 2017, beside an average of $112 in 2012. This is good news for US economy, but very bad news for cleantech and climate changes.

Subsidies will not last forever.

Even if we can count on green energy cost to continue to decrease, the price of those options are still far above fossil energies one. If crude oil cost drop too much, it will delay, or simply close the door to many clean alternatives. We need to stop the green house gas concentration that continues to increase on earth.  This request to install 5 to 10 times more clean energy facilities than what we actually do every year. Subsidies cannot achieve that goal. Price gap must disappear, but with fossil energy costs that stay low, we are far of it.

Coal is expected to become the first raw energy source of the world.

It should be clear for everybody that coal is the #1 enemy of fight against climate changes. More than just a greenhouse gas producer, coal also makes huge pollution; we received regular news and pictures of it from China and India.

Emerging countries needs energy, it’s link with economical progress. The problem is when you’re not to rich; you go with the most simple, rapid and cheapest solution. For coal, this mean low efficiency / high pollution facilities. China and India had important coal reserve, and growth fast. The used of clean (or cleaner) energy options just begin to be consider in the decision process of those two countries, but it is not true for all emerging nations.

There is only one-way to stop the coal progression: Clean electricity (wind, sun, water…) at 2-3 cent per KWh, which is feasible, but not achieved yet.