Letter from Europe: The trouble with the trilemma
Pursuing three different goals as part of the same package may mean achieving none of them
The transition away from fossil fuels is often framed as part of an ‘energy trilemma’, with lowering carbon emissions packaged with ensuring affordability and maintaining security of supply. Wrapping several goals together is generally a bad idea. It tends to be a result of negotiations among many diverse parties, each one with somewhat different objectives. The outcome is a compromise with a number of goals, each one of them usually challenging in its own right. The UN-endorsed sustainable development goals (SDGs) are a good example of this. There are 17 of them, and while there is nothing wrong with making efforts to achieve them all, what is problematic is believing they can all be achiev
Also in this section
24 October 2024
Producers in the region see significant gains to be made by boosting output using the infrastructure already in place
23 October 2024
Markets have seen no material disruption from the war so far, but as the fighting goes on it is a matter of when, not if
23 October 2024
Majors in the region are pushing boundaries and could see significant upside, but longer-term risks remain
22 October 2024
Angola is unlikely to meet the official timeline for an IPO of state-owned oil giant Sonangol in 2026