Renewables’ rise alters gas energy equation

The way in which gas is used is set to change fast, as the fuel develops into a natural partner for renewable energy, delegates at the World Gas Conference were told

"The world of gas that we are used to thinking about – a long-term supply baseload that goes into market, forecast for 20 to 30 years doesn’t exist anymore,” Marco Arcelli, executive vice president, upstream gas division, at Italy’s Enel Energia said. Instead, gas will have to be used flexibly to support intermittent renewable energy supplies – mostly from wind and solar – whose falling cost means they are going to be increasingly widespread, regardless of how quickly coordinated clean energy policy develops around the world. “We need a back-up that is environmentally sustainable, affordable and, more importantly, can pick up load fast – and gas, of course, is the natural answer to this,” Ar