Putting Petrodollars To Work
The United Arab Emirates has decided that there might come a time when oil is not the primary source of energy. It has also decided to do something about that eventuality. From today's NY Times:
Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, the fourth largest OPEC oil producer with about 10 percent of the known reserves, is seeking to become a center for the development and implementation of clean-energy technology.
Last year, the emirate launched the Masdar Initiative (masdar is Arabic for source), which has signed up major oil and technology companies, universities around the world and U.A.E. ministries to help develop and commercialize renewable-energy technologies backed by hundreds of millions of dollars of Abu Dhabi’s money.
What is refreshing about this news is that the UAE is not taking the path that some other countries in the region are pursuing: nuclear power. Equally as refreshing, however, is the underlying premise of this bold initiative: clean and safe energy is economically viable. By putting its own oil derived money behind the initiative, Abu Dhabi makes it clear that the planet needs to head in other directions for its energy sources.
One of the UAE's partners in this bold endeavor is an American university:
...Masdar announced an even more ambitious project to develop a graduate-level research center in combination with M.I.T. that will be focused on renewable-energy technologies. Scientists who join the program will be able to attend M.I.T. courses in Boston and will be assisted in developing research and courses at Abu Dhabi. M.I.T. administrators liken the effort to one that the university spearheaded in Bangalore during the 1960s that helped create the high-tech corridor there.
The US might want to take a lesson from this small but oil-rich nation. Committing millions now may very well save billions (and the planet) later.
Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, the fourth largest OPEC oil producer with about 10 percent of the known reserves, is seeking to become a center for the development and implementation of clean-energy technology.
Last year, the emirate launched the Masdar Initiative (masdar is Arabic for source), which has signed up major oil and technology companies, universities around the world and U.A.E. ministries to help develop and commercialize renewable-energy technologies backed by hundreds of millions of dollars of Abu Dhabi’s money.
What is refreshing about this news is that the UAE is not taking the path that some other countries in the region are pursuing: nuclear power. Equally as refreshing, however, is the underlying premise of this bold initiative: clean and safe energy is economically viable. By putting its own oil derived money behind the initiative, Abu Dhabi makes it clear that the planet needs to head in other directions for its energy sources.
One of the UAE's partners in this bold endeavor is an American university:
...Masdar announced an even more ambitious project to develop a graduate-level research center in combination with M.I.T. that will be focused on renewable-energy technologies. Scientists who join the program will be able to attend M.I.T. courses in Boston and will be assisted in developing research and courses at Abu Dhabi. M.I.T. administrators liken the effort to one that the university spearheaded in Bangalore during the 1960s that helped create the high-tech corridor there.
The US might want to take a lesson from this small but oil-rich nation. Committing millions now may very well save billions (and the planet) later.
Labels: Renewable Energy, The Environment
posted by Diane at 4:40 AM
2 Comments:
interesting stuff you have got here keep up the good work.kewl blog you have like to be in touch
regards Biby - Blog
The renewable energy field was blocked years ago. OPEC embargoed the West and used the extra money from upward market pressure to buy out the various Congressional lobby interests.
Carter was president and every day the hostage crisis in an OPEC nation was discussed.
Upon Bill Clinton's departure from Arkansas one of the first items to die there was the use of renewable energy at a community college, then the world's largest photovoltaic display.
Its powersharing agreement was based upon a costly buyback scheme that was a precursor to the Enron accounts billable sheets of a later time.
Utilities bought back power at marginal rates and 'shared power' at night or low output times to sizeable markups.
http://users.aristotle.net/~russjohn/engineering/mccc.html
Remember, Jimmy Carter's scheduled visit to announce this power venture to the world was halted by the failed hostage rescue in Iran.
America was on the precipice of becoming a world leader in energy policy decades ahead of others.
The largest customer after MCCC and NWMCC was Saudi Arabia, who used the plant for water desalinaztion and distillery, because water there is worth more than oil here. They powered and bnuilt greenhouses with it in future hopes of making sandy deserts lush.
-Mr.Murder
PS- the power provider(Entergy) went on to be one of Enron's largest co-conspirators. They built an NFL team with the money... in Cheney's back yard of Houston.
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