2026 is going to be an important year for addressing climate change and the energy transition. The Financial Times, looks at the key tests we face this year: the EU’s carbon border tax, the solar and storage boom, sustainability reporting by business, whether there will be a roadmap for fossil fuel phase-out and electric vehicle development. These and many other themes will be discussed by EiD this year as we try to manoeuvre through multiple crises. The article provides an important quote by Jules Kortenhorst, who you may remember as the first CEO of the European Climate Foundation and who is now co-chair of the Energy Transitions Commission: “The energy transition is at a tipping point — not of possibility, but of policy and implementation.” Remember that!
With winter fully here in the northern hemisphere, many turn to the slopes for skiing. While we are aware that there has been global warming, it was a shock to read in the Guardian this week that with the snow line edging higher, 186 French ski resorts have shut, while global warming threatens dozens more. “In France, there are today 113 ski lifts totalling nearly 40 miles (63km) in length that have been abandoned, nearly three-quarters of them in protected areas. It is not just ski infrastructure. The Mountain Wilderness association estimates that there are more than 3,000 abandoned structures dotted around French mountains, slowly degrading Europe’s richest wild terrain. This includes military, industrial and forestry waste, such as old cables, bits of barbed wire, fencing and old machinery. . . . Some believe the resorts should remain memorialised landscapes, honouring generations of people who lived and skied here; others believe they should be returned to wild landscapes with their disintegrating machinery removed.” What do you think should happen?
The Financial Times reports that mini nuclear reactors are already losing their glow. “Nascent technologies don’t come more hyped than small modular nuclear reactors. . . . If all the stars align — which is to say that government policy is supportive, industry delivers and the technology works — there could be a global fleet of 1,000 SMRs with aggregate capacity of 120 gigawatts by 2050, the International Energy Agency forecasts. . . . As a fledgling technology, SMRs still have a lot to prove. One issue is that, while smaller nukes require smaller cheque books, their cost per unit of capacity is higher than those of their massive conventional cousins.” There are also security and waste issues: “Three-quarters of the world’s uranium hails from a small handful of countries, and enrichment is dominated by Russia and China. Several studies suggest SMRs will produce higher levels of nuclear waste than traditional plants.” Wouldn’t it be simpler to focus on improving energy demand and relying more on solar and wind technologies?
There are two upcoming industrial energy efficiency events not to miss:
- The next eceee Zero Carbon Industry 3–5 February 2026 in Rome offers three days of discussions on industrial decarbonisation, competitiveness and industrial renewal. Information is available here.
- World Sustainable Energy Days (WSED) will be held in Wels, Austria on February 25-27, 2026, with dedicated conferences on pellets, energy efficiency, energy communities, industrial energy transition, young energy researchers and smart e-mobility. You can register here.
In planning travel over the upcoming weeks, here are some useful ideas to help you along:
- The Man in Seat Sixty-One explains how to travel comfortably & affordably by train or ferry, rediscovering the pleasure, romance & adventure of the journey.
- Travel off Path describes a brand new train route launching next spring that looks set to connect 3 of Europe’s most incredible capital cities – Prague via Berlin to Copenhagen.
- Check out the Good Night Train website for the unique way to travel through Europe while you sleep.
- World Walks provides us with walking holidays in Europe.
- For those who want to combine hiking with food and wine in Europe and Australia, check out the Hedonistic Hiking website. Watch their slide presentation for available tours in 2026.
- Cycling for Softies provides us with the 15 best cycling holidays in Europe in 2026.
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), a German philosopher and cultural critic who was famous for uncompromising criticisms of traditional European morality and religion, gives us a good message to start the year: “He who has a why can endure any how.”
EiD welcomes your views about this week’s selection of posts on the zero-carbon energy transition:
- Ecological myopia: why climate action keeps falling short
- Europe’s climate ambitions face a political reality check
- New report from the IEA on demand flexibility
- Heat, health and hope: Spain’s response to a warming climate
- From doubt to dogma: understanding the climate debate in America
- With the window closed on staying below 1.5°C, what happens now?
- France has once again become a major exporter of electricity
- When the planet becomes a character: climate change and the new weird
- Canada’s energy transition – the elephant in the room: fossil fuels and Canada’s climate failure
- “Night trains are a niche market and will remain so”
Please send your comments on any of the posts. Please recommend EiD to your friends and colleagues.
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Energy in Demand - Sustainable Energy - Rod Janssen 