As we approach the new year, the challenge to provide affordable and sustainable electricity to the planet’s population remains a major challenge for policymakers. In this endevour, gas-fired power generation provides an easy solution in the absence of reliable sources of renewables across the world, experts say. Up to 770 million people around the world still lack access to reliable electricity and while renewables are growing rapidly — and these investments are essential — increases are not occurring fast enough. Renewable energy is still projected to provide less than half of global electricity supply by 2040.
Furthermore, high renewables penetration can lead to fluctuations in power supply that cannot yet be addressed by today’s battery energy storage solutions. “The challenge in the power sector is not quite as straightforward as simply providing lower carbon power. We need to solve for the energy trilemma of supplying more reliable, affordable, and sustainable power, in the context of increasing global demand for electricity,” explains Joseph Anis, President & CEO of GE Gas Power Europe, Middle East, and Africa.