energy security - sources ✅ & ❌

oil

✅ - indispensable for transport, easy to transport ❌ - dominated by TNCs and energy-producing countries 15 countries have 93% of global reserves (Venezuela & Saudi Arabia are top producers), potential for geopolitics e.g. Iran & the USA - Strait of Hormuz blocked has a global impact

gas

✅ - cleanest of the fossil fuels, increasing number of proven reserves ❌ - difficult to transport (potential for explosion) and requires large investments, dominated by Russia (25%) and the USA (25%)

coal

✅ - more evenly distributed, inert so easy to transport, China, Russia and the USA have the largest coal reserves ❌ - has high CO₂ and particulate emissions

nuclear

✅ - moderate and predictable cost of energy, large global reserves of uranium ❌ - public concern over nuclear waste storage and accidents, output cannot be varied to meet demand

solar

✅ - high potential in LICs, domestic energy resource, power generation possible at different scales ❌ - intermittent, difficult to store the energy

China is world leader

wind

✅ - simple technology, no CO₂ emitted, domestic energy resource, proven technology that is possible at all scales, good public support ❌ - intermittent and difficult to store the energy

UK is the world leader

biomass

✅ - energy crops are an efficient use of marginal land, cheap in the short and long term, available at different scales and in all countries ❌ - CO₂ sink is lost when crops cut down/land cleared to create room for the crops

HEP

✅ - low operating costs, output can be varied to meet demand, domestic energy resource ❌ - requires large amounts of land so causes conflict, environmental impacts on drainage basin

tidal

✅ - generation periods are predictable, domestic energy resource, good public support ❌ - intermittent power generation, ecological impacts on drainage basin

wave

✅ - produces regular electricity, less environmental impact than tidal, low carbon emissions when operational ❌ - difficulty in transmission from offshore, requires large areas of sea

geothermal

✅ - clean and sustainable, output can be varied to meet peak demand, low CO₂ emissions ❌ - reliant on specific geology - only viable in certain locations