Sustainable energy is the future but until then we really do still need fossil fuels. At least if we want to keep warm next winter and the winters after that, according to Hans Overdiep, Energy Transition Manager at GasTerra. An interview with Overdiep appeared at the end of February in the 'Chemistry and Innovation' special issue of the Metro. Overdiep stressed that, as long as green energy cannot meet all our energy needs, natural gas is a good back-up as it is the cleanest fossil fuel.
John Kerkhoven, director of the consultancy Quintel Intelligence, agrees with Overdiep. Kerkhoven is the person who came up with the idea for the online Energy Transition Model (ETM). This model gives the visitor a picture of current and future energy supplies, visualising the effect of specific choices. Kerkhoven concludes: 'Look on it as a tool which helps people to get an idea of what is going to happen in the energy field in future. That may seem complicated, but it is not.'