Energy economist at Ghent University. Trying to help figure out the energy transition in all its social, political, economic and technical complexity.

Joined August 2008
495 Photos and videos
Sam Hamels retweeted
Everyone who cares about climate should understand this. Texas, with no pro-climate policies, has blown passed California in clean energy. In large part because Texas has less red tape and makes it easier to build.
Texas just passed California in utility-scale solar. And it's not close in wind or energy storage.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
There's never been an investment like the investment in railroads. (This graph has a log scale!)
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Sam Hamels retweeted
(And Lagarde is right this time. Europe is not; and the data indicates that the continent does not face an energy crisis, with the cost of electricity and natural gas not far from historical norms; yes, it faces high oil prices and potential jet-fuel scarcity)
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The primary energy fallacy linkedin.com/pulse/primary-e…
The use of primary energy on the vertical axis is an old trick by the fossil fuel industry to mislead people into thinking that one unit of fossils = one unit of renewables. In fact, one unit of primary energy for wind or solar electricity is the equivalent of three units of fossil fuels for electricity. Another trick is to pretend we need all those fossils if we switched to renewables. In fact, if we switch to renewables, 12% of the fossil fuel energy disappears because that is how much energy is used to mine-transport-refine fossil fuels uranium for energy, and we wouldn't need to do that anymore A third trick is to pretend we need so much energy if we go to all electricity powered by renewables. In that case, because EVs use 75% less energy than gasoline/diesel vehicles, heat pumps use 75% less energy than combustion heating, etc., energy demand goes down another 42%. In sum, this plot illustrates the real story of where we are and where we need to go. The proper metric is end-use energy, not primary energy. web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/… and here's the paper web.stanford.edu/group/efmh/…
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Sam Hamels retweeted
For the first time ever, heat pumps outsold gas boilers in Germany in 2025. 48% of all new heating systems installed last year were heat pumps. Gas fell to just 39%. A decade ago, heat pumps had a 7% market share. The transformation has been remarkable.
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Solar batteries will win in developing countries because unlike fossil fuels, it doesn't require good institutions to build. This will also boost global development, contra @davideoks
Lebanon is one of the most surprising clean energy stories in the world. Solar went from <1% of electricity in 2020 to nearly 30% by 2024. Not because of policy - because the state grid collapsed and people installed rooftop solar out of sheer necessity.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
In het energiedebat worden twee soorten afhankelijkheid vaak op één hoop gegooid. Toch is het verschil fundamenteel. Hernieuwbare technologie importeer je één keer. Fossiele energie moet je élke dag blijven importeren. demorgen.be/meningen/de-zon-…
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Ivm komend tekort aan #gas door #IranWar‌ HR Gasketel rendement 95% => 100 kWh gas = 95 kWh warmte. Stel: warmtepomp aangedreven door elektriciteit waarvoor alle elektriciteit in gascentrale wordt gemaakt. Rendement gascentrale 60% (op maximum vermogen). Dus met 60% rendement levert 100 kWh gas 60 kWh elektriciteit. Warmtepomp heeft COP van 3-5. Nemen we COP 4 => de 60 kWh elektriciteit uit die gascentrale levert 240 kWh warmte. Dus de 100 kWh input in gascentrale levert 240 kWh warmte. Ook met COP3 nog steeds een flinke besparing: 100 kWh gas levert 180 kWh warmte. Plaats daarbij ook zonnepanelen en het wordt nog beter. We hebben héél veel tijd verloren door warmtepompen uit de markt te prijzen door hoge taksen op elektriciteit.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Happy Solar Pessimism Chart Update Day to all who celebrate
NEW | The world installed a record 814 GW of solar and wind capacity in 2025 ☀️⚡️ That's over 1,000 TWh of electricity generation per year... ...enough to displace nearly twice Qatar's annual LNG export volume in gas generation 🔥❌ Fossil fuels crisis? Wind and solar deliver.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Electric trucks and other electric commercial vehicles will take over their markets faster than personal electric cars. Fleet owners and operators care about cost per mile, not just up front cost. And electric drive trains are cheaper in energy and maintenance per mile.
Something nobody around you sees coming yet, but is actually happening: electric trucks at scale
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Same data, two different charts! A reminder that context - and proper explanation etc is vital!
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Onze noorderburen mogen BE wel dankbaar zijn. Tot nu toe kochten we dit jaar gemiddeld 2GW* aan stroom uit Nederland, waardoor onderbenutting van hun centrales vermeden werd. We helpen ook voorkomen dat hun zonnepanelen en windturbines afgeschakeld moeten worden.
Onze zuiderburen mogen NL wel dankbaar zijn. Tot nu toe leverde Nederland dit jaar netto (!) gemiddeld 2000 MW (!) 'prik' aan België. In dezelfde periode 2025 was dit gemiddeld 1200 MW en in 2024 was dit nog 'slechts' gemiddeld 800 MW. #grafiekvandedag
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Every politician should be required to write a 10-page paper on unintended consequences of government policy before they can take office.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
"Drill a shale well, feed a power plant for months. Drill a geothermal well, feed a power plant for decades." -Overheard at a Midland, TX dive bar
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Sam Hamels retweeted
This is Kristina Solovyova. Russian terrorists killed her in Zhytomyr striking residential buildings with drones on December 23. She was only 4🕯
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Sam Hamels retweeted
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My unpopular opinion / Hot Take : I actually do not desire to see technology advance any further.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
23 Dec 2025
Replying to @gerardgovers
De meeste mensen slapen een keer per dag. 8 uur in normaal stopcontact (2kW) -> 100 km rijbereik in de batterij (1/3)
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Nice Nano Banana Pro prompt for weather app: CITY=Prague,Czechia Present a clear, 45° top-down isometric miniature 3D cartoon scene of [CITY], featuring its most iconic landmarks and architectural elements. Use soft, refined textures with realistic PBR materials and gentle, lifelike lighting and shadows. Integrate the current weather conditions directly into the city environment to create an immersive atmospheric mood. Use a clean, minimalistic composition with a soft, solid-colored background. At the top-center, place the title “[CITY]” in large bold text, a prominent weather icon beneath it, then the date (small text) and temperature (medium text). All text must be centered with consistent spacing, and may subtly overlap the tops of the buildings. Square 1080x1080 dimension.
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Sam Hamels retweeted
Energy transitions can happen faster than we think: In 2000 almost 90% of Denmark's electricity was from fossil fuels. In 2024 less than 10% of Danish electricity was from fossil fuels.
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