Posts Tagged by Craig Shields
Renewable Energy: Vision or Mirage
| December 12, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Wind Energy |
Think we advocates of renewables in the U.S. have trouble? Our friends in the U.K. are running into a buzzsaw of misinformation, like the report “Renewable Energy: Vision or Mirage”, published today by the Adam Smith Institute and Scientific Alliance. The report includes:
“Wind does little to reduce carbon emissions.”
and
“Nuclear and gas are the most viable energy sources for the near future.”
What a remarkable thing to say, when the U.K. has already installed enough wind turbines to provide clean electricity to more than 3.2 million homes, according to RenewableUK, the trade association representing the wind, wave, and tidal energy industries. RenewableUK also makes the point that I always do about nuclear: even if you consider it safe, it takes a minimum of eight years to permit and build a reactor, and the cost overruns are legendary. Referring to it as “viable” seems ridiculous.
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Happy Birthday Voltaire!
| November 21, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Politics |
It’s the 317th birthday of Voltaire, one of my favorite people in history. I loved Candide, the work for which he’s best known today, but I admire him even more for his free-minded political philosophy, exemplified by this pithy remark: “As long as people believe in absurdities they will continue to commit atrocities.”
I invite you to contemplate the state of the world for a moment and realize how true this is.
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Electric Transportation Conference in Los Angeles — Craig Shields to Speak on the EV Adoption Curve
| July 6, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
I’m speaking at an Electric Transportation conference in Los Angeles in a few weeks, in which I’ve been asked to take on the issue of the EV adoption curve – a subject near and dear to my heart. Here’s Boston Consulting Group’s take on the matter, in which they expect to see pure (battery) EV and plug-in hybrids growing 5% globally by 2020. It’s a bit unclear what this means. 5% more EVs on the road than today? 5% of new car sales? 5% of total cars on the roads?
In any case, they’re looking at some of the right variables: oil prices, battery energy densities, consumer willingness to pay a bit more for an eco-friendly car, and improvements in the economy of internal combustion engines. But what they’ve missed is what I would call the “sociological phenomenon” of EVs.
I predict that the power of the “word of mouth” that takes place when we get more than a few hundred LEAFs and Volts on the road (not to mention EVs from BMW, Ford, Chrysler, Mitsubishi, etc.) will be enormous. We’ve seen countless times that consumer demand – even for stupid products – can explode in a short period of time. I predict that in spades for EVs.
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Hot News from Washington DC: EVs are Good
| April 20, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
I just had a meeting with Jeff Siegel of GreenChipStocks at the Electric Drive Transportation Association conference. When we were finished talking business, we compared notes on the event.
While it’s good to see all this happening, my personal belief is that politics, being, as it is, about consensus, tends to make for some really boring presentations. This is sad, because in truth, the migration to EVs (and renewables) is chock full of interesting and important controversy. When one considers the competition for establishing standards, the fights for subsidies and incentives, and so forth, there is actually very little agreement.
All you’re left with is that “EVs are good,” and that “the details will emerge over time.” I’m not sure we need a conference to present that.
I write this from Union Station, waiting for my train to Philadelphia. Staying at Mom’s; driving to NYC in the AM.
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Cold Fusion — Hoax or Legitimate Science?
| April 10, 2011 | Posted by Craig Shields under Nuclear |
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2GreenEnergy's Craig Shields Heading Back East for the Holidays
| December 10, 2010 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
I’ll be on the East Coast (heading north from Washington DC to Boston) for the week between Christmas and New Years. If anyone wants to meet me to discuss a clean energy business idea over a cup of coffee (or a beer, depending on the time of day), please hit “Contact” and let me know.
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Clean Diesel Start-up DieselTek: Managers and Investors – Part Six in a Series
| July 18, 2010 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
Lance Miller, president of clean diesel start-up DieselTek discusses the harmony between the company’s managers and its investors. In my experience, this is commonly a sticking point for fledgling organizations, where investors want to make a quick filling, drive to a liquidity event, e.g., an IPO or a merger with a publicly traded organization, and get out. This often contrasts with the intention of managers who may a deep and abiding passion for the subject, and may wish to make it their life’s work.
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How Are Great Start-ups Built? Core Trust and Affinity? Or Cold, Rational Assessment? – Part Five in a Series
| July 11, 2010 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Business |
Lance Miller, president of DieselTek, speaks with on how start-ups form in clean diesel — or anywhere, for that matter. Lance corroborates my own belief that great partnerships are built on core, innate trust and affinity than on a cold, rational appraisal of a partner’s value in some sort of mathematical equation.
As it turns out, both Lance and the company’s founder and CEO, Eric Wheeler, have had their hands on mechanical devices — and had life circumstances that steered them towards entrepreneurship — since they were boys.
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Electric Vehicles and Renewable Energy
| June 23, 2010 | Posted by Craig Shields under Electric Vehicles |
Sam Smith discusses the use of renewable energy to fuel electric vehicles with me on a recent episode of the 2GreenEnergy Report.
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Toward a Sustainable Energy Policy
| April 2, 2010 | Posted by Craig Shields under Renewables - Politics |
On behalf of 2GreenEnergy, Craig Shields speaks on the Energy Industry, and the changes in perspective that are required if we’re to have a sustainable energy policy.
