Deep decarbonisation through advanced energy systems solutions

Sustainability and climate change (mitigation) will define this century. The Paris Climate Agreement from December 2015 urges to reach net-zero emissions (i.e. carbon emissions-carbon sinks=0) by the middle of this century to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5 °C from the pre-industrial time [1]. Eight years later, in December 2023, in Dubai, the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) finally succeed to adopt a fossil fuel phase-out agreement to transition away from fossil fuels in energy systems, “in a just, orderly, and equitable manner”, to achieve the Paris goals by 2050. Energy stands in the focus of emission reductions as around 80% of all energy is still fossil fuel based and three-quarters of all greenhouse gas emissions originate from fossil fuels, notably coal and oil. The European Union has earlier on committed to the carbon neutrality target by 2050, which binds all member states. Deep decarbonisation is already underway through the present technology base offering workable and scalable clean energy solutions. The energy transition to carbon neutrality is complex involving new elements both on the supply and demand side. Complexity often equals to flexibility in the energy system context, which will be increasingly necessary in the future decarbonised energy systems. Advanced system solutions to these quests are already emerging. The technological progress and the new scientific discoveries underway provide new hope to combat the climate change. As stated earlier, new technologies are an important part of the energy transition to carbon neutrality. “But the energy transformation is not merely a technical and economic issue. It is about people, about societies, values and behaviours. Technology is an integral part of the society and an expression of collective intentionality through aggregation of sundry individual choices.” [12].