Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs - Energy technology innovation policy

China's Fuel Economy Standards for Passenger Vehicles: Rationale, Policy Process, and Impacts

Hongyan He Oliver, Kelly Sims Gallagher, Donglian Tian and Jinhua Zhang — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 23:29:10 -0500

"China issued its first Fuel Economy Standards (FES) for light-duty passenger vehicles (LDPV) in September 2004, and the first and second phases of the FES took effective in July 2005 and January 2008, respectively. The stringency of the Chinese FES ranks third globally, following the Japanese and European standards....The Chinese experience is highly relevant for countries that are also experiencing or anticipating rapid growth in personal vehicles, those wishing to moderate an increase in oil demand, or those desirous of vehicle technology upgrades."

Catalyzing Strategic Transformation to a Low-carbon Economy: A CCS Roadmap for China

Hengwei Liu and Kelly Sims Gallagher — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 15:32:49 -0500

China now faces the three hard truths of thirsting for more oil, relying heavily on coal, and ranking first in global carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions. Given these truths, two key questions must be addressed to develop a low-carbon economy: how to use coal in a carbon-constrained future? How to increase domestic oil supply to enhance energy security? Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS) may be a technological solution that can deal with today's energy and environmental needs while enabling China to move closer to a low-carbon energy future. This paper has been developed to propose a possible CCS roadmap for China.

Iran Sanctions: Who Really Wins?

Djavad Salehi-Isfahani — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 17:26:00 -0400

September 30, 2009

US and Iranian representatives meet this week at a time when trust between the two countries is at a low ebb following the revelation last week of a previously undisclosed Iranian nuclear facility under construction and the test firing of Iran's long-range missiles on September 28. Meanwhile, the Obama administration's policy of engagement with Iran has emerged as little more than the old policy of "carrots and sticks."

Institutions for Energy Innovation: A Transformational Challenge

Venkatesh "Venky" Narayanamurti, Laura Diaz Anadon and Ambuj D. Sagar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:57:10 -0400

"The technology-led transformation of the U.S. energy system that the administration is seeking is unlikely to succeed without a transformation of energy innovation institutions and of the way in which policymakers think about their design, according to scholars with the Belfer Center's Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group. They set out principles for a much-needed conversation among analysts, managers, scientists, and policymakers on how to enhance the effectiveness of these institutions."

Transforming Energy Innovation

Venkatesh "Venky" Narayanamurti, Laura Diaz Anadon and Ambuj D. Sagar — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 13:05:29 -0400

"The United States must change the way it produces and uses energy by shifting away from its dependence on imported oil and coal-fired electricity and by increasing the efficiency with which energy is extracted, captured, converted, and used if it is to meet the urgent challenges facing the energy system, of which climate change and energy security are the most pressing. This will require the improvement of current technologies and the development of new transformative ones, particularly if the transition to a new energy system is going to be timely and cost-effective."

Optimal Spatial Deployment of Carbon Dioxide Capture and Storage Given a Price on Carbon Dioxide

Michael J. Kuby, Jeffrey Bielicki and Richard S. Middleton — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 12:36:56 -0400

Carbon dioxide capture and storage (CCS) links together technologies that separate carbon dioxide (CO2) from fixed point source emissions and transport it by pipeline to geologic reservoirs into which it is injected underground for long-term containment. Previously, models have been developed to minimize the cost of a CCS infrastructure network that captures a given amount of CO2. The CCS process can be costly, however, and large-scale implementation by industry will require government regulations and economic incentives. The incentives can price CO2 emissions, through a tax or a cap-and-trade system, or involve the purchase of CO2 by oil companies for enhanced oil recovery from depleted oil fields.

Realistic Costs of Carbon Capture

Mohammed Al-Juaied and Adam Whitmore — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 13:37:39 -0400

There is a growing interest in carbon capture and storage (CCS) as a means of reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. However there are substantial uncertainties about the costs of CCS. Costs for pre-combustion capture with compression (i.e. excluding costs of transport and storage and any revenue from EOR associated with storage) are examined in this discussion paper for First-of-a-Kind (FOAK) plant and for more mature technologies, or Nth-of-a-Kind plant (NOAK).

DOE FY 2010 Budget Request and Recovery Act Funding for Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment: Analysis and Recommendations

Laura Diaz Anadon, Kelly Sims Gallagher and Matthew Bunn — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:27:51 -0400

A new analysis of energy research, development, demonstration, and deployment (ERD3) funding in the Obama administration's FY2010 budget and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 finds that the total available for energy research development and demonstration alone and ERD3 in FY2010 would double and increase by two-thirds, respectively, compared to FY2009 (based on certain assumptions). These substantial funding increases—coupled with a range of institutional innovations the administration is implementing and movement toward putting a price on carbon emissions—will help accelerate innovation for a broad range of energy technologies. This report analyzes DOE's budget request for ERD3 and the Recovery Act and makes recommendations for further action by Congress and the administration.

DOE Budget Authority for Energy Research, Development, & Demonstration Database

Kelly Sims Gallagher and Laura Diaz Anadon — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 12:01:10 -0400

This document contains June 2009 updates to our database on U.S. government investments in energy research, development, demonstration, and deployment (ERD3) through the Department of Energy. The update includes funding for ERD3 from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The database, in Microsoft Excel format, tracks DOE appropriations from FY 1978–2009 and the FY 2010 budget request. It also includes several charts.

In-use Vehicle Emissions in China: Beijing Study

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 22:29:42 -0400

China's economic boom in the last three decades has spurred increasing demand for transportation services and personal mobility. Consequently, vehicle population has grown rapidly since the early 1990s, especially in megacities such as Beijing, Guangzhou, and Tianjin. As a result, mobile sources have become more conspicuous contributors to urban air pollution in Chinese cities.

Tianjin was our first focus city, and the study there took us about two years to complete. Building upon the experience and partnership generated through the Tianjin study, the research team carried out the Beijing study from fall 2007–fall 2008.

Beijing was chosen to be our second focus city for several reasons: it has the largest local fleet and the highest percentage of the population owning vehicles among all Chinese cities, and it has suffered from severe air pollution, partially due to the ever-growing population of on-road vehicles.

Proposed Roadmap for Overcoming Legal and Financial Obstacles to Carbon Capture and Storage

Wendy B. Jacobs, Leah Cohen, Leah Kostakidis-Lianos and Sara Rundell — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 21:49:52 -0400

Many existing proposals either lack sufficient concreteness to make carbon capture and geological sequestration (CCGS) operational or fail to focus on a comprehensive, long term framework for its regulation, thus failing to account adequately for the urgency of the issue, the need to develop immediate experience with large scale demonstration projects, or the financial and other incentives required to launch early demonstration projects. We aim to help fill this void by proposing a roadmap to commercial deployment of CCGS in the United States.

A Joint Workshop on Promoting the Development and Deployment of IGCC/Co-Production/CCS Technologies in China and the United States

Lifeng Zhao, Yunhan Xiao and Kelly Sims Gallagher — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:27:31 -0400

The workshop examined issues surrounding Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle (IGCC) coal plants, which turn coal into gas and remove impurities before the coal is combusted, and the related carbon capture and sequestration, in which the carbon dioxide emissions are captured and stored underground to avoid releasing carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Though promising, advanced coal technologies face steep financial and legal hurdles, and almost certainly will need sustained support from governments to develop the technology and move it to a point where its costs are low enough for widespread use.

A Technology-Based Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy for 2030

Melissa Chan and Laura Diaz Anadon — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 18:07:31 -0400

"A Technology-Based Greenhouse Gas Reduction Strategy for 2030" was presented by Melissa Chan and Laura Diaz Anadon of the Energy Research, Development, Demonstration & Deployment (ERD3) Policy Project at the U.S. Society of Ecological Economics 2009 Conference, Washington, D.C., June 1, 2009.

Center Hosts U.S.-China Workshop on Clean Energy and Carbon Collection, Sequestration

Sasha Talcott — Wed, 27 May 2009 10:10:14 -0400

With both China and the United States relying heavily on coal for electricity, senior government officials from both countries have urged immediate action to push forward technology that would reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired plants. They discussed possible actions at a high-level workshop in April jointly sponsored by the Belfer Center's Energy Technology Innovation Policy (ETIP) research group, China's Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

China to the Rescue?

Kelly Sims Gallagher — Thu, 07 May 2009 19:59:43 -0400

"...[T]he Chinese may not buy GM's and Ford's assets today, but they could rescue the U.S. industry in another way: by setting an example of good industrial policy for the United States to follow. Fuel efficiency standards in China, Japan, and even some European countries will push up demand for these sorts of cars. If U.S. firms are to remain internationally competitive, they will need to have more to offer in this regard. But Washington will also have to motivate American consumers to purchase efficient cars...."

Policy for Energy Technology Innovation

Laura Diaz Anadon and John P. Holdren — Fri, 01 May 2009 22:16:04 -0400

"The United States ought to be the leader of the world in the energy technology innovation that is needed. It has the largest economy, uses the most energy (and within that total the most oil), has made the largest cumulative contribution to the atmospheric buildup of fossil carbon dioxide that is the dominant driver of global climate change, has a large balance of payments stake in competitiveness in the global energy technology market as well as a large stake in the worldwide economic and security benefits of meeting global energy needs in affordable and sustainable ways, and possesses by many measures the most capable scientific and engineering workforce in the world. The actual performance of this country in energy-technology innovation, however, has been falling short by almost every measure...."

Acting in Time on Energy Policy

Kelly Sims Gallagher — Fri, 01 May 2009 20:15:41 -0400

"The book's title—Acting in Time—refers to the persistent problem in U.S. energy policy that typically just enough is done to satisfy the short-term political imperatives, but not enough is done to actually solve the underlying problems themselves. As a result, many of the fundamental economic, environmental, and security-related challenges arising from patterns of U.S. energy production and consumption have become more intractable. Some now approach a point of crisis."

Acting in Time on Energy Policy

Kelly Sims Gallagher — Fri, 01 May 2009 18:53:33 -0400

Energy policy is on everyone's mind these days. The U.S. presidential campaign focused on energy independence and exploration ("Drill, baby, drill!"), climate change, alternative fuels, even nuclear energy. But there is a serious problem endemic to America's energy challenges. Policymakers tend to do just enough to satisfy political demands but not enough to solve the real problems, and they wait too long to act. The resulting policies are overly reactive, enacted once damage is already done, and they are too often incomplete, incoherent, and ineffectual. Given the gravity of current economic, geopolitical, and environmental concerns, this is more unacceptable than ever. This important volume details this problem, making clear the unfortunate results of such short-sighted thinking, and it proposes measures to overcome this counterproductive tendency.

Senior Obama Administration and Chinese Government Officials Call for Rapid Development of "Clean" Coal Technologies

Sasha Talcott — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 15:39:19 -0400

April 21, 2009

With both China and the United States relying heavily on coal for electricity, senior government officials from both countries urged immediate action to push forward technology that would reduce carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired plants. The leaders spoke April 16 at a high-level workshop jointly hosted by China's Ministry of Science and Technology, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group at Harvard Kennedy School's Belfer Center. The workshop aimed to develop concrete and specific opportunities for U.S.-China cooperation on advanced coal technologies, and the group will submit policy recommendations to both the Obama Administration and the Chinese government.

Scaling Dynamics in Energy Technologies: Historical Evidence & Implications

Charlie Wilson — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 20:23:43 -0400

Historical patterns of growth across a range of energy technologies are used to explore "scaling". Scaling is used to describe a particular form of growth that is (i) both rapid and substantive, taking into account the overall size of the energy system, and (ii) occurs at multiple levels from the technical unit and/or plant to the industry as a whole (e.g., from a wind turbine or wind farm to total installed wind capacity or manufacturing output). Scaling dynamics are assessed in historical time series data on vehicles, jet aircraft, refineries, and power plants (nuclear, coal, gas, wind). In those cases for which S-shaped growth is clearly evidenced, logistic function parameters are used to compare scaling across different technologies.

Preliminary Policy Recommendations for Enhancing Energy Innovation in the U.S.

Laura Diaz Anadon, Matthew Bunn, Kelly Sims Gallagher and Charles Jones — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 15:36:33 -0400

The Obama administration and the 111th Congress face enormous challenges and opportunities in tackling the pressing security, economic, and environmental problems posed by the energy sector in the United States and worldwide. Improving the technologies of energy supply and end-use is a prerequisite for surmounting these challenges in a timely and cost-effective way. This article is adapted from the executive summary of the Belfer Center Energy Technology Innovation Policy (ETIP) report, "Tackling U.S. Energy Challenges and Opportunities," by Laura Diaz Anadon, Kelly Sims Gallagher, Matthew Bunn, and Charles Jones.

Tackling U.S. Energy Challenges and Opportunities: Preliminary Policy Recommendations for Enhancing Energy Innovation in The United States

Laura Diaz Anadon, Kelly Sims Gallagher, Matthew Bunn and Charles Jones — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 14:50:03 -0500

ETIP’s Energy Research, Development, Demonstration & Deployment (ERD3) Policy Project has developed recommendations for energy innovation in the United States. These recommendations lay out a comprehensive strategy for investment in energy innovation, new approaches to managing the effort, and policies for moving new technology into the marketplace.

Positioning the Indian Coal-Power Sector for Carbon Mitigation: Key Policy Options

Ananth Chikkatur and Ambuj D. Sagar — Sat, 31 Jan 2009 14:22:09 -0500

The domestic and international steps outlined in this paper could greatly advance the development and implementation of a GHG-mitigation strategy in the Indian coal-power sector, while allowing the sector to contribute suitably to the country’s energy needs. The key to success will be adopting a deliberate approach, with short- and long-term perspectives in mind, that allows for the development of an integrated energy and climate policy.

Acting In Time On Energy Policy

Tue, 27 Jan 2009 15:23:50 -0500

This seven-minute video captures the essence of the Acting in Time on Energy Policy conference and highlights recommendations given by participants during each of the six panels.

Advancing Carbon Sequestration Research in an Uncertain Legal and Regulatory Environment: A Study of Phase II of the DOE Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Program

Craig A. Hart — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 14:47:20 -0500

This paper examines the legal and regulatory barriers encountered in carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) research, development and demonstration (RD&D) projects under the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Regional Carbon Sequestration Partnerships Program.

Belfer Center Newsletter Winter 2008-09

Sharon Wilke — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 14:09:11 -0400

The Winter 2008-09 issue of the Belfer Center newsletter features recent and upcoming research, activities, and analysis by Center faculty, fellows, and staff on critical global issues. "What should the next president do first?" is a question raised in this issue. Belfer Center experts respond to the question with advice on what they consider priority issues of national security, climate/energy policy, and the economic crisis.

The Winter 2008-09 issue also features take-aways from the Center’s recent “Acting in Time on Energy Policy” conference hosted by the Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group. In addition, it spotlights Belfer Center Faculty Affiliate Richard Clarke and new Kennedy School Professor Nicholas Burns.

Experts Identify Most Urgent Energy Policy Needs at Acting in Time Conference

Sam Milton — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 13:02:55 -0400

On September 18-19, the Belfer Center’s Energy Technology Innovation Policy (ETIP) research group hosted a major conference on U.S. energy policy. Under the auspices of the Consortium for Energy Policy Research at Harvard, led by William Hogan and Louisa Lund, and with the cooperation of Harvard University Center for the Environment, ETIP brought together members of academia, research centers, government, business, and non-governmental organizations for intensive discussion on future energy policy directions for the United States. Click here for photos.

Setting Priorities in Energy Innovation Policy: Lessons for the UK

Jim Watson — Thu, 16 Oct 2008 12:12:16 -0400

This paper analyzes the role of governments in supporting a transition towards more sustainable, low carbon societies, drawing on experience from Europe, the USA and Japan. The paper concludes with five implications for energy innovation policy that are aimed at UK policy, but are also relevant to other countries.

Socio-Political Evaluation of Energy Deployment (SPEED): An Integrated Research Framework Analyzing Energy Technology Deployment

Jennie Stephens, Elizabeth J. Wilson and Tarla Rai Peterson — Sat, 04 Oct 2008 15:15:56 -0400

This paper proposes a systematic, interdisciplinary framework for the integrated analysis of regulatory, legal, political, economic, and social factors that influence energy technology deployment decisions at the state level.

Electric Cars, 'Cap and Trade,' and More

Corydon Ireland — Thu, 25 Sep 2008 10:29:40 -0400

"Acting on Time on Energy" conference, held at Harvard on 18–19 September 2008, brought together business leaders, investors, academics and government officials, to discuss energy pollcy for the next U.S. Administration. Click here for photos.