No Hot Air offers consultancy services on the impact of shale gas to end users, financial institutions, regulators and throughout the oil and gas industry. We think that the impact of the shale gas revolution needs to be understood by a wider audience than conventional energy experts, the majority of whom came late to the shale game and still predict shale’s future using outdated viewpoints. Simply put, we think that many energy experts prefer to make good money spinning out problems instead of offering solutions. Good news and energy haven’t been used in the same sentence for some time.That needs to change. We think one of the biggest energy risks most people have is that they have been talked into believing that they have one.
Nick Grealy, principal and publisher of No Hot Air since 2008 has been highlighting the sudden emergence and predicting a future permanence of secure, scalable and affordable gas supply from the start, at a time when most of the world’s energy policy was built on a view of gas as being both finite and expensive. Shale has already changed the game across the energy industry in North America. Even today, electricity production using nuclear, large-scale renewables and Coal Carbon Capture and Storage are centrepieces of UK energy policy, but not for much longer.
No Hot Air refers to No Carbon. We think the scientific consensus for human caused global warming is compelling. But we see the hoax lying in how much we are expected to pay to avoid it. Gas represents an immediate, secure and low cost option to replace coal in generation. Official UK government statistics highlight how total UK carbon could be reduced by 30% by 2020 by replacing coal with clean and low cost gas. Similarly, a switch to increased natural gas vehicles in the freight transport sector could see a further 10 % drop in total emissions, again, with little investment. Improvements in efficiency and emerging technology such as LED lighting can then reduce demand and emissions by at least another 10% bringing us to a 50% reduction in emissions by 2030 for little or no investment.
Natural gas can be a bridge fuel to a low or no carbon future. At the same time, local energy is sustainable energy that enriches local communities. Natural gas thus provides a tripe win for the planet as a whole, local communities and all energy users.