Fresh Vision

...insightful submissions on contemporary issues.

Issues Affecting the Deployment of Solar Power in Nigeria

1.0: INTRODUCTION: Energy utilization is a core attribute of humanity. With increasing population also comes an increase in the demand for energy. The IEA in its World Energy Outlook, projects about 83% increase in global energy demand in the next 20 years (IEA 2014a). Although countries naturally turn fossil fuels as part of their energy mix due to its plentiful and reliable nature the same report reveals that there would be significant increase in renewables.

Aside the fact that fossil fuels are exhaustible, their combustion also has immense adverse effect on the climate with (GHG) emissions, capable of bringing the world to an abrupt end.  Already, the cost of renewable energy is dropping across several countries, as at 2014, new wind power was cheaper than new coal and gas power in Australia, China and the United States (Sussams, et al 2015). Electricity from roof-top photovoltaic systems is also cheaper than grid supply in many countries and places across the world. (Chen 2014).

Being naturally replenishing resources, the place of renewable energy in the global energy mix is sacrosanct, and tireless effort is required in a bid to perhaps completely transition from fossil fuels to renewable sources of energy.

As the most populous country in Africa – a mineral rich continent – it is poignant to reflect of on the issues affecting the energy industry and the role of renewable energy technology for Nigeria. With renewable electricity as focus, the challenges of its deployment, as well as a review of existing commercial risks and policy instruments that could enhance the growth of industry are discussed in this article, with strategic recommendations proffered by comparing tested risk mitigation approaches and solutions that have been successful in other Countries across the globe.

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…carbon budget, un-burnable carbon, and carbon taxes on of the future of oil and gas. industry.

  1. Simplifying the concepts of Carbon budget and un-burnable carbon.

Climate change has been a topical issue since the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), also known as the Earth Summit.  Indeed climate change is happening, as can be witnessed as increased in global warming, decreasing ice caps, flooding of low lands and other ripple effects on humans and the natural environment. Amongst other deliberations in the Summit was for alternative sources of energy to replace fossil fuels, which delegates linked to climate change. Offshore Production and flareFollowing this was an agreement on the Climate Change Convention, which has garnered global support of its conclusions – there global warming does exist, and that it is causes by human activities emitting CO2 – formulating the Kyoto Protocol in 1998 and the Copenhagen Accord in 2009. However, real commitments were only made in 2015 Paris Agreement, signed by 196 countries and by November 2016, have been ratified by 115 countries. In doing so they have committed in Article 2 to significantly reduce the impact of climate change by

holding the increase in the global average temperature to well below 2oC above pre-industrial levels and to pursue efforts to limit temperature increase to 1.5oC above pre-industrial levels,” (UNFCCC 2015).

Scientists believe that the 1.5 °C goal is will require zero emissions sometime between 2030 and 2050. (Sutter et al 2015) In the light of this commitment, it is obvious that present carbon emissions have to be curtailed. Thus, a

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Food For Thought – NOT GOOD ENOUGH ?

The top 7 excuses on the road to success: _*

atelophobia

  1. “I’m not good enough.”

Reality: There are people not as smart, talented or experienced as you who got started and are already ahead of you.

  1. “I don’t have the time.”

Reality: Success doesn’t come from having time. It comes from making time.

  1. “I don’t have the money.”

Reality: You don’t need money to make money. You need a mission. Then deliver value to those who have the money.

  1. “I don’t know the right people.”

Reality: You can change who you know and who knows you today. Start by being the kind of person you would want to know.

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Natural Disasters In The World Today

natural disasterThe fear of losing one’s life appears to be the greatest fear of all humans. While some people undergo mind revolution schemes to build sufficient courage necessary for surmounting dire challenges of life which sometimes may include giving up once life, the greater majority will rather take a neighbour’s life to remain alive. The old still dread death, at least unplanned!

 Certain circumstances however are clearly beyond man’s control, some have been with us since creation, other appear to be evolving as a consequence of how man operates this planet. Mankind is in permanent quest for a solution to natural disasters, be it technological or spiritual. Indeed nothing just happens. There is sufficient cause for every occurrence.

 From Bible history, some people opine that there may have been a natural disaster that made the world without form and void after The Beginning in Genesis 1:1, which warrant the mandate “…replenish the earth” in Genesis 1:28. Most religious people also look forward to a cataclysmic end of the world in what can be classified as the greatest unpreventable natural disaster yet to come. see 2 Peter 3:10 -12., while there exist the  prophetic warning of coming  “famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places” as  sure signs  before the end. Mat 24:7, Mark 13:8 and Luke 21:11.

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Ideas For Inventions

Grab an invention

Inventions and patents are much desired by researchers for career progression and more importantly needed by the society for advancement. In school groups, my observation shows that the seeming most brilliant person may not end up an inventor.

When you pursue a vision, you certainly get an invention. Someone said “Vision without action is a daydream; action without vision is a nightmare” Essentially, you have to sit down to think, develop the vision and begin to work at it; acquiring relevant knowledge and applying them to the task at hand.

Clearly, anyone who is excellent at what he does with the knowledge he has acquired, but doesn’t create anything new lacks imagination and perhaps is disconnected from the source of ideas for invention.

The man who wins a Nobel Prize in Chemistry or Physics is certainly not the first professor in his field of study, he may not even be the most hardworking, but somehow while working on a vision, more vistas open, new idea drops and something is invented or nature’s truth is unravelled.

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Tithing today !

Tithe may be defined as one tenth of somebody’s income or produce paid voluntarily or as a tax for the support of a church or its clergy.

The patriarch Abraham first gave tithes in Gen 14: 18-20, at an encounter with Melchizedek king of Salem, who was the priest of the most high God. Jacob also vowed to God  in Gen 28:22 saying “and of all that thou shalt give me I will surely give the tenth unto thee.” Today it is quite difficult to monetize gifts that are not in cash, so as to pay tithes on them.  Tithing had by this time become a tradition in Israel.  In Numbers 18: 20 -26 the LORD gave a clear instructions  to Moses not to give any inheritance to the Tribe of the Levites as HE had chosen them to be priests and thus should live by the tithes the rest of tribes of Israel would pay to them.  Truly in Joshua 13:33 when the inheritance was shared amongst the tribes, none was given to the tribe of Levi, as the LORD had commanded.  So clearly the Tithes were for the Priests.

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LICKING THE BLADE

The true story is told how an Eskimo kills a wolf. An Eskimo is a member of the very cold northern areas of North America, Russia and Greenland.

He coats his knife-blade with blood and let it freeze. The he adds another coat of blood and let it ten another. As each coat freeze, he adds another smear of blood until the blade is hidden deep within a substantial thickness of frozen blood. The he buries the knife-blade up in the frozen tundra. The wolf catches the scent of fresh blood and begins to lick it. The wolf licks it more feverishly until the blade is bare. Then he keeps on licking harder and harder. Because of the cold, he never notices the pains of the blade on his tongue. Its craving for the taste of blood is so great that he does not realise its taste has been satisfied by its own blood. It licks the blade till it bleeds to death, swallowing its own life.

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Created For God’s Pleasure.

I imagine a static world just before the creation of man. Then in Gen 1:27, (KJV) records, “So God created man in his [own] image, in the image of God created he him”  (MSG) puts it thus “God created human beings; he created them godlike, Reflecting God’s nature”  (CEV) says “So God created humans to be like himself ” (DRB)  “And God created man to his own image: to the image of God he created him” (GNB) says “ So God created human beings, making them to be like himself.”

Upon Man’s arrival the Bible tells how a clear mandate to be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth, subdue it: and have dominion over every living thing in earth was given to Man in Gen 1:28. God had been satisfied with the standard of His creations that He now had the confidence to commit, their management into the hand of Man. He must have indeed been satisfied also with capacity of Man to discharge this duty effectively. Being his creator He knew the content and the endless possibilities from a godlike creature for further creations. To be fruitful

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Koffi Annan’s Nobel Lecture

Kofi Annan

Great speech by a man I’ve got great admiration for; quintessential Koffi Annan, who in this pace-setting presentation, outlines his dream for the United Nations in the 21st Century. More than a decade after, with my dear nation enmeshed in religious intolerance and emerging terrorism, I ponder with grave concern our sincerity in achieving the Millennium Development Goals. If this is also part of the “Butterfly Effect” in the world of human activity, then why not for the better?,  that the Labours of our heroes past will not be in vain.

Please reflect on his soul- searching Transcript below.

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Instruments of Peace.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.

Where there is hatred, let me sow love.

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