Browsing by Subject "Energy transition"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3
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    David against Goliath? Challenges and opportunities for energy cooperatives in Southern Europe
    (Elsevier, 2023) Delicado, Ana; Pallarès-Blanch, Marta; García-Marín, Ramón; Valle, Carolina del; Prados, María-José; Geografía
    Unlike in some northern European countries, renewable energy cooperatives in Portugal, Spain and Italy are few and represent a very small share of the energy market. This article aims to understand the social, political, economic and cultural factors that affect the development of renewable energy cooperatives in southern Europe, but also the opportunities and benefits cooperatives offer over other energy providers in the energy transition. It is based on a comparative analysis of four case studies of cooperatives in Portugal, Spain and Italy, relying on document analysis, observation and interviews with cooperative representatives, complemented with legal, policy and statistical data for contextualisation. We ascertain that energy policies have favoured large utility companies and concentrated energy generation, while a lack of civic culture of participation and mistrust of cooperatives have also hindered their development. Furthermore, we show how cooperatives have unique features that make them valuable actors in energy systems: promotion of environmental and social values, local embeddedness, flexibility to diversify activities, ability to mobilise networks of similar organisations and fostering democratic governance and participation.
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    Segunda contradicción del capital y minería metalífera: los cercamientos sobre el agua en San Juan (Argentina).
    (Universidad de Murcia, Servicio de Publicaciones., 2025) Gómez Lende, Sebastián; Sin departamento asociado
    El capital siempre ha tendido a destruir las condiciones naturales que le sirven de sustento, generando fracturas metabólicas derivadas del agotamiento y/o polución de los bienes comunes ambientales. A la luz de esa tesis, este artículo aborda la relación entre agua, cercamientos hídricos y minería metalífera en la provincia de San Juan (Argentina) durante las últimas décadas. Valiéndose de fuentes secundarias, el trabajo discute la confiabilidad de los datos disponibles acerca del consumo de agua de los principales proyectos metalíferos, compara esa información con la demanda hídrica de la población y analiza los conflictos ambientales desatados por el acaparamiento y contaminación del agua por parte de las compañías mineras en zonas áridas declaradas en emergencia ambiental. Los resultados muestran que la minería sanjuanina no sólo despilfarra caudales varias veces mayores a la demanda hídrica básica de la población, sino que también contamina el agua a gran escala, generando fracturas metabólicas que tenderán a profundizarse aún más debido a la crisis climática y la transición energética.
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    The challenges of energy market reform:what can the Spanish Presidency achieve?
    (Universidad de Murcia, Servicio de Publicaciones., 2023) Hancher, Leigh
    The contribution examines the achievement of the three core objectives of European energy policy in the aftermath of the energy crisis of 2022. Energy security, sustainability and competitiveness have been at the root of European energy policy for many decades but progress in achieving them has been mixed. Member states can rely on their rights to choose their own energy mix. The European Union’s initial response to the energy crisis was to invoke a little used Article 122(1) of the Treatyon the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU)to adopt a series of rapidly enacted emergency legislation to promote solidarity between the 27member states.This article questions whether that response has led to an increased centralization of powers for the EU institutions at the expense of national governments? Can the EU institutions now set the policy agenda for the energy transition more efficiently? Are the EU state aid rules likely to be implemented more strictly to ensure a transition away from fossil fuels before 2050 or do national governments remain firmly in the driving seat? In the alternative, are there any emergent trends from the management of the crisis that are likely to be perpetuated in the longer term as Europe seeks to transitionas rapidly as possibleto a net zero carbon economy?