Paul Connolly

Building in wood has a distinguished past and a bright future

Wood - once thought old-fashioned - is taking over from steel and concrete as the building material of choice because of its sustainability, high quality, and the way it enables swift construction, such as with Skellefteå’s new 20-story wooden…

Sara kulturhus - wood, sustainability, and Spider-Man!

Skellefteå’s resplendent new 20-story wooden cultural center is an architectural masterpiece that celebrates timber and challenges local window cleaners. Oskar Norelius and Robert Schmitz, project architects for Skellefteå’s new Sara kulturhus, are…

Sara kulturhus’s energy solution is sustainable and kind

Skellefteå’s new cultural center is not only a pioneer in the use of renewable energy but is also providing clean power to its central Skellefteå neighbors. Most buildings consume a lot of energy - around 40% of all energy consumption, and a similar…

“We Have The World’s Best Gas Scrubber - And Now The Most Affordable”

There’s no mistaking the excitement in Frode Helland-Evebo’s voice. Pacific Green Marine Technologies’ Vice President of Marine Direct Sales is in no doubt why he left his previous employer, Clean Marine to join Pacific Green in late summer. “The…

4 Reasons Investors Should Be Alert to Opportunities In Emissions Control

Green investment is on the rise, and emissions control is becoming one of the hot topics within the sector. Despite huge efforts in some quarters, CO2 emissions rose globally in both 2017 and 2018, and drastic action is needed to curtail climate…

The 5 ways to tell Ireland is the best battery market in the world

Ireland does not usually loom large as a major market for energy storage asset investors and owners. Compared to markets such as Australia, China or the US, its total potential is limited. But there are at least five reasons why, on a per-capita…

Stone Blind book review: Fun female-focused retelling of male-dominated Greek Perseus myth

Female-focused retellings of Greek myths have reached peak popularity recently. Pat Barker (The Women Of Troy), Margaret Atwood (The Penelopiad) and Madeline Miller (Circe) have all successfully picked at the seams of the traditionally male take on…

4 keys to winning in Spain’s world-leading push for CSP

Spain, the world leader in CSP capacity for the last decade, looks set to retain its crown with an ambitious procurement plan from next year. The country announced a draft Ministerial Order with an auction calendar that aims to procure a minimum of…

The manual that puts CSP ahead of other energy technologies

CSP, like most sources of energy, has been subject to its fair share of scientific studies and research papers. There’s a large body of research covering everything from solar fields to heat transfer fluids. But a CSP study published in June was…

Why clean tech investors might feel at home in a park

The UK’s attractiveness for clean energy investment has been on the rise in recent years. As of 2021, the nation ranked fourth globally on EY’s Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Index, ahead of low-carbon energy leaders France, Australia and…

How to store renewable energy

Alfa Laval is supplying technology and acting as an investor in a revolutionary new energy storage solution which could solve one of the biggest challenges facing renewable energy. The announcement late last year of a $26 million, Series A funding…

Are You A Toxic Parent?

In his new book about how we treat and understand children, Australian educationalist John Marsden – the author best known for his Tomorrow, When The World Began series – cuts straight to the chase when considering contemporary parenting. “We are…

How My Girls Helped Me Break The Cycle Of Family Violence

A son would be the perfect way to exorcise the brutal relationship I’d had with my own father - or so I believed. Instead, here’s why my girls are the best things that ever happened to me. The birth was all a bit of a blur. My girlfriend Donna was…

Report urges framework for Norwegian research evaluation

Working group sets out principles to improve legitimacy of quality assessments A study conducted by a government-appointed higher education working group has recommended the creation of a new framework for research evaluation to improve the country’s…

Is concessional finance key to CSP in 2021?

It’s hard to finance large infrastructure projects in many parts of the world. Banks and other traditional financiers often shy away from making big commitments in developing markets or those with perceived risks such as exchange rate volatility or…

Saudi Arabia gears up to reap renewable riches

Saudi Arabia, whose oil has fueled the advance of western societies over the last half century, is leading the charge to a sustainable, low-carbon future. The Kingdom is blessed with one of the best solar resource potentials in the world and is…

Ivan Østvik: ‘Hydrogen will become a low-cost energy source and zero-emission fuel’

Ivan Østvik, Project Manager, Norled AS, is a naval architect by profession who’s worked with ship design, marine technology, and offshore wind for more than 25 years. Since 2015, he has been developing “green” ship projects in Norway, focusing on…

Jenny Larfeldt: ‘You could build everything on hydrogen’

Professor Jenny Larfeldt is Principal Key Expert at Siemens, working on industrial gas turbines. She joined Siemens in 2004 as a Combustion Team Manager. In 2014, she was appointed as the Senior Combustor Expert with over ten years’ experience in…

H2 Q&A with Lauri Vartia: ‘We need to focus on cases that deliver results’

Lauri Vartia is Linde’s Senior Manager for Clean Hydrogen in Northern Europe. He has more than two decades of experience working with industrial gases at Linde, and in his current role, focuses on charting a path for clean hydrogen in the region.…

Göran Lindbergh: ‘I think we’ve only started to see hydrogen’s possibilities’

Professor Göran Lindbergh is head of department of applied electrochemistry at the KTH Royal Institute of Technology and has long been preeminent in the field of the electrification of the transport sector, including fuel cells and the use of…