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The role of flexibility in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond: Contributing to a sustainable and resilient energy future in Europe
- Source :
- Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews, Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews
- Publication Year :
- 2021
- Publisher :
- The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd., 2021.
-
Abstract
- The energy sector provides fuel for much of everyday life, particularly economically and socially. Fighting against the COVID-19 pandemic, a well-functioning and resilient energy sector is vital for maintaining the operation of critical infrastructures, including, most importantly, the health sector, and timely economic recovery. Notwithstanding its importance in everyday life and crises, the energy sector itself is currently in a complex and far-reaching transformation to combat climate change whilst supporting the transition to a low-carbon economy and society, mainly through the development of variable renewable energy sources (RES) such as wind and solar photovoltaics. This paper highlights the need for energy resilience as countries face the triple challenge of the COVID-19 health crisis, the consequent economic crisis, and the climate crisis. Focusing on Europe, it is advanced here that with the ability to balance fluctuating electricity generation and demand, flexibility allows the energy sector to utilise low-carbon RES reliably, ensuring a more resilient and sustainable energy future. This paper derives five urgent policy recommendations for Europe that address possible impacts of COVID-19 on the economic and societal prerequisites for flexibility in energy systems.
- Subjects :
- Energy [C07] [Engineering, computing & technology]
Natural resource economics
020209 energy
media_common.quotation_subject
Climate change
Sustainable development goals
Energie [C07] [Ingénierie, informatique & technologie]
02 engineering and technology
Article
Renewable energy sources
Variable renewable energy
0202 electrical engineering, electronic engineering, information engineering
media_common
Flexibility (engineering)
Electricity system flexibility
Resilience
Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
business.industry
COVID-19
Renewable energy
Electricity generation
Sustainability
Economic recovery
Business
Psychological resilience
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 18790690 and 13640321
- Volume :
- 140
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- Renewable & Sustainable Energy Reviews
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi.dedup.....8835e01f51294ff6a2bdb08c8680722d