The myth of gas as a bridge fuel

The report challenges the narrative of fossil gas as a necessary 'bridge fuel' for grid flexibility. It argues that Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGTs), which dominate new developments, are designed for baseload rather than peakload, and using them for flexibility reduces their lifespan and increases emissions. The document highlights that gas plant profitability is often maintained through costly consumer-funded capacity mechanisms and notes a critical global shortage of gas turbines. It concludes that sustainable alternatives—such as battery storage, pumped hydro, demand-side response, and grid enhancements—provide more efficient and cheaper flexibility, urging financial institutions to cease support for new gas projects.

• Combined Cycle Gas Turbines (CCGTs) are designed for baseload generation and are poorly suited for the rapid power modulation required for peakload flexibility. Using CCGTs for peaking purposes leads to premature component ageing, higher maintenance costs, and reduced profitability.
• Using CCGTs for peak demand increases environmental pollution and CO2 emissions intensity. During startup and shutdown, these plants initially operate like Open Cycle Gas Turbines (OCGTs), and emissions of NOx, CO, and VOCs can increase, potentially exceeding legal limits.
• The economic viability of gas plants is often sustained by capacity mechanisms funded by consumers and taxpayers. In Europe between 2015 and 2024, fossil gas plants received 48% (€43.5 billion) of the total €90 billion in capacity mechanism payments.
• A significant shortage of gas turbines is delaying or causing the cancellation of new projects. Major producers GE Vernova, Siemens Energy, and Mitsubishi control over 70% of production; GE Vernova clients may wait until 2030 for orders, and costs have risen from US$800 per kilowatt in 2021 to US$2,600-US$2,800 per kilowatt currently.
• Sustainable alternatives provide more efficient and cheaper grid flexibility than gas. These include Battery Energy Storage Systems (BESS) for short-duration needs, Pumped Hydro Storage (PHS) for daily/weekly cycles, demand-side response (DSR), and inverter-based resources (IBR) for synthetic inertia and fast frequency response.

APA

Sebrecht, P.-A. (2026). The myth of gas as a bridge fuel. Reclaim Finance. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Reclaim-Finance-The-myth-of-gas-as-a-bridge-fuel-2026-02.pdf

Chicago

Sebrecht, Pierre-Alain. The myth of gas as a bridge fuel. Reclaim Finance, 2026. https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Reclaim-Finance-The-myth-of-gas-as-a-bridge-fuel-2026-02.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sebrecht |first1=Pierre-Alain |title=The myth of gas as a bridge fuel |publisher=Reclaim Finance |date=February 2026 |url=https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Reclaim-Finance-The-myth-of-gas-as-a-bridge-fuel-2026-02.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sebrecht2026myth, author = {Sebrecht, Pierre-Alain}, title = {{The myth of gas as a bridge fuel}}, institution = {Reclaim Finance}, year = {2026}, month = feb, url = {https://reclaimfinance.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/Reclaim-Finance-The-myth-of-gas-as-a-bridge-fuel-2026-02.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }