Opinion:
¶ “Eight Zero-Emission Transport Items That *Need* To Be In The Next Reconciliation Bill” • There were several provisions in the infrastructure bill that we worked hard to make sure were included (and were as good as possible), but almost none of them go as far as we would have liked or climate needs demand. Here are eight we need. [CleanTechnica]
Capitol building (Wendy Maxwell, Pexels)
¶ “Contradictory Headlines Show Fossil Fuel Market Confusion” • It surely must be turmoil in the fossil fuel future predictions industry. Huge variations can be found in expectations of supply and demand. A recent newsletter from mining.com showed this in its headlines, all in the one issue of its energy news digest. My head is spinning. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “Plugin Vehicles Score 15% Market Share In China In July!” • Plugin vehicles continue to see record or near-record levels in China, having scored 231,000 registrations in July. That pulls the year-to-date tally to 1.3 million units, which is already more than this market had in the whole year of 2020. … And remember, we are still just at July. [CleanTechnica]
Wuling HongGuang Mini EV (David290, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
¶ “Australia’s Big Four Banks To Stop Lending To Thermal Coal Mining And Coal Fired Power Plants” • The Commonwealth Bank, ANZ, Westpac, and National Australia Bank all committed to stop fossil fuel financing. They are increasing commitments to sustainable lending, and they are reducing their exposure to the risks of climate change. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Northland Signs Up Locals To Back ScotWind Bid” • As part of its ScotWind bid, Northland Power has signed memoranda of understanding with the Western Isles Council and the region’s higher education institutions. The agreements cover topics ranging from domestic use of hydrogen to development of local skills for offshore wind farms. [reNEWS]
Offshore wind farm (Northland Power image)
¶ “Italian Energy Giant Plans Another 1,000 MW Of Renewables In Australia And Seeks Retail Licence” • Italian energy giant Enel, the biggest EU utility by some metrics, is seeking a retail energy licence in Australia to support its plans to grow its solar and wind portfolio by another 1,000 MW and provide power to industrial and commercial customers. [Renew Economy]
¶ “‘Green Steel’: Swedish Company Ships First Batch Made Without Using Coal” • The Swedish venture Hybrit said it was delivering the steel to truck-maker Volvo AB as a trial run before full commercial production in 2026. Volvo has said it will start production in 2021 of prototype vehicles and components from the green steel. [The Guardian]
Iron made in the green steelmaking process (Hybrit image)
¶ “Spain Looks To Cut Soaring Power Prices With More Renewables” • Spain, one of the fastest-growing renewable energy markets in Europe, is looking to award 3.3 GW of new wind and solar capacity. The Spanish government expects that the additional supply of electricity will help it cut sharply rising power prices, Bloomberg reports. [Oil Price]
India:
¶ “By Upgrading Old Wind Turbines, India Can Achieve Its Renewable Energy Targets” • India’s current installed wind power generating capacity is 39.2 GW. The country is targeting 60 GW by 2022. Progress is now slow. But the best sites for wind are the ones with the oldest turbines, and repowering them could put that goal within reach. [Scroll.in]
Wind turbines (Pixabay, Pexels, CC0)
¶ “India Proposes New Green Energy Rules To Promote Renewable Power” • The Indian government has proposed a new set of rules “Draft Electricity (promoting renewable energy through Green Energy Open Access) Rules, 2021” for purchase and consumption of green energy, including green hydrogen and waste-to-energy plants. [Mongabay-India]
¶ “Maharashtra Renewable Plans Back On Track, Powered By Lower Costs” • So far, 2021 has been a good year for renewable energy growth in Maharashtra. MSEDCL is finally happy with the bids it received for its recent tenders. With prices dropping to as low as ₹2.42 (3.3¢) for its last solar tender and ₹2.62 (3.5¢) for its Solar+Wind hybrid tender. [Saur Energy]
Mumbai, Maharashtra (Vijit Bagh, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “Tesla Aims To Become A Retail Electric Provider In Texas” • Tesla is looking to become a retail electricity provider in Texas, according to Energy Choice Matters. The article noted that Tesla is seeking the certificate and it applied for Option 1 Texas retail electric provider certificate. Tesla already offers retail electricity in Australia and the UK. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “BlackRock Acquires US Wind And Solar Portfolio” • BlackRock Real Assets acquired National Renewable Solutions, a renewable energy developer focused on early stage wind and solar projects in the US. BlackRock has a current project development pipeline of more than 3.5 GW, with assets in Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Nevada. [reNEWS]
Wind farm (Johanna Montoya, Unsplash)
¶ “Community Power Plan Gets A Charge” • The Plainfield Selectboard voted unanimously to join the Community Power Coalition of New Hampshire, a nonprofit energy aggregator that buys power for municipalities while limiting their legal and financial liability. Lebanon had already voted in favor of an agreement with the coalition. [Valley News]
¶ “New Criminal Charges Filed In SC’s Nuclear Plant Failure, Revealing How Project Unraveled” • A second high-ranking employee of Westinghouse Electric faces criminal charges that relate to the multi-billion dollar failure of the SCANA nuclear project, an 18-page indictment shows. It was made public in US District Court in Columbia, South Carolina. [The State]
Have a resoundingly serene day.
geoharvey 
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