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Perspectives for the Energy Transition: Investment Needs for a Low-Carbon Energy Transition. IEA/Irena, March 2017, 204 p. http://www.irena.org/menu/index.aspx?mnu=Subcat&#38;PriMenuID=36&#38;CatID=141&#38;SubcatID=3828This joint study looks at the potential for decarbonisation in the energy sector in G20 countries and around the world...Reforming the Chinese Electricity Supply Sector: Lessons from International Experience / Michael G. Pollitt, Chung-Han Yang, Hao Chen. Energy Policy Research Group, 2017, 70 p. (EPRG Working Paper 1704) http://www.eprg.group.cam.ac.uk/eprg-working-paper-1704/We begin with a brief background to the current Chinese power market reforms which began with the State Council No.9 Document of March 2015. We introduce 14 different electricity reform elements from international experience. Under each of these reform elements we will discuss: its theoretical significance; general reform experiences with it; and its application in the Chinese context. Our motivation is how China might bring down the currently high industrial price of electricity. We identify four promising sources of price reduction: the introduction of economic dispatch of power plants; rationalisation of electricity transmission and distribution; reduction of high rates of investment; and rebalancing of electricity charges towards residential customers. We draw out some overall lessons and identify some important points for future research into Chinese power market reform.Social Costs of Electricity Generation : Categorising Different Types of Costs and Evaluating Their Respective Relevance / Sascha Samadi, Energies, vol. 10, n° 3, 2017, 37 p. http://www.mdpi.com/1996-1073/10/3/356Various electricity generation technologies using different primary energy sources are available. Many published studies compare the costs of these technologies. However, most of those studies only consider plant-level costs and do not fully take into account additional costs that societies may face in using these technologies. This article reviews the literature on the costs of electricity generation technologies, aiming to determine which types of costs are relevant from a societal point of view when comparing generation technologies. The paper categorises the relevant types of costs, differentiating between plant-level, system and external costs as the main categories. It discusses the relevance of each type of cost for each generation technology. The findings suggest that several low-carbon electricity generation technologies exhibit lower social costs per kWh than the currently dominant technologies using fossil fuels. More generally, the findings emphasise the importance of taking not only plant-level costs, but also system and external costs, into account when comparing electricity generation technologies from a societal point of view. The article intends to inform both policymakers and energy system modellers, the latter who may strive to include all relevant types of costs in their models.