World Decarbonization through Global Electricity Interconnections

Ettore Bompard, Daniele Grosso, Tao Huang, Francesco Profumo, Xianzhang Lei and Duo Li
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Ettore Bompard: Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy
Daniele Grosso: Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy
Tao Huang: Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy
Francesco Profumo: Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy
Xianzhang Lei: Global Energy Interconnection Research Institute Europe GmbH, 10117 Berlin, Germany
Duo Li: Department of Energy, Politecnico di Torino, 10129 Torino, Italy

Energies, 2018, vol. 11, issue 7, 1-29

Abstract: The challenge of worldwide energy decarbonization is crucial to ensure sustainable development. The achievement of decarbonization encompasses not only a considerable exploitation of renewable energy sources, but also a paradigm shift in final energy uses towards their massive electrification. Electrification based on Global Energy Interconnections (GEI) is one of the possible pathways towards decarbonization in energy systems. In this paper, we critically discuss the idea of decarbonization through global interconnections in an ‘electricity based’ world, contrasting it against the typically desirable attributes for energy in terms of security, efficiency, sustainability, and affordability. We provide a comparative analysis of global interconnection with other internationally proposed visions of future energy scenarios. The analysis shows that the GEI option could be particularly beneficial from an environmental point of view; however, it requests deep and relevant modifications in the energy markets and regulations, in which a common framework based on the cooperation among different countries is needed.

Keywords: energy transition; decarbonization; global energy interconnection; energy attributes; interconnection technologies (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q Q0 Q4 Q40 Q41 Q42 Q43 Q47 Q48 Q49 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2018
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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