Renewable Energy Production is Catching Nuclear Energy

Renewable energy is defined as energy that comes from a source that is naturally replenished in a timeframe that makes it feasible for humans to collect and use it. The last part of the definition is included because supplies of things like oil and coal do, technically speaking, renew over time. It’s just a very, very long time.

Renewable energy comes from sources such as sunlight, wind, waves, geothermal heat, rain, and tides. Consequently, it rates very highly in terms of environmental health and safety.

Production of Renewable Energy Grows

According to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF), while the building of clean energy installations slowed a bit last year, energy generation from renewable sources increased thanks to the record amount of capacity that was brought online in 2016. In fact, it reached its highest level ever, accounting for 19 percent of our country’s overall energy production portfolio. Based on the strength of numbers like those, BNEF has labeled renewable energy the “new normal” in energy production. This is a pronounced change in perception.

Natural gas and coal are still the top producers of electricity in the U.S., but production in both areas dropped slightly last year. Renewable energy’s growth has put it in a position that few could have imagined just a decade ago: it is fast approaching nuclear energy’s 20 percent mark in the energy mix.

Energy with a Strong Record for Environmental Health and Safety

In addition to being more cost-effective than many other sources, renewable energy provides other benefits including that:

• It is abundant. It has been said that if we could capture all the solar energy that strikes our planet in a day, we could meet our power needs for a year.
• It is dependable. The forces used to generate renewable energy may vary somewhat in their short-term output, but over the long-term they are very reliable.
• It creates a foundation for energy independence. The sources we need to create renewable energy are all within our country and therefore within our control, both in terms of production and pricing.
• Its many forms provide important energy diversity. As noted above, renewable energy can be harvested from a wide variety of sources. Consequently if a wind farm is not producing at peak for a period of time, it is possible that the nearby hydroelectric facility can fill in the gap.

Energy Harvesting and Production Facilities are Critical to Success

For the renewable energy sector to continue its growth and achieve its objectives, it is critical that it have access to key services related to bringing a facility online. These include:

• Full service engineering and design, for bringing promising ideas to life
• Project management, for ensuring that projects stay on track and meet goals
• Capital planning and portfolio management, to keep construction or renovation initiatives aligned with business objectives
• Environmental health and safety services, including assessments and exercises
• Owner’s representative services from industry experts with over 20 years of industrial project experience

It is also important that care be taken to minimize the environmental footprint of new facilities and new collection technologies. We have an excellent reputation among industry stakeholders, both in renewable energy and oil and gas. Our team works closely with energy companies in the design of their assets to ensure that the organizations are able to operate efficiently, effectively, and in an environmentally conscious way.

We leverage cutting-edge technology to produce solutions that makes sense both for the client and the environment. It can be a challenge to satisfy this diverse set of needs, but we have a deep commitment to environmental health and safety as well as the financial success of energy companies and their partners.

APECS achieves outstanding results on energy facility construction and renovation initiatives because of our 30+ years of experience helping our clients meet their engineering, design, project and portfolio management, capital planning, and environmental health and safety needs.

Contact APECS, Inc. today to learn more about how we can help with your next energy project.