Opinion:
¶ “New Research Findings Showing That Renewables Are Poised To Crush Fossil Fuels In The Market” • Costs of renewables have fallen faster than expected. And deployment has been faster than predicted, reducing costs even further. With this virtuous cycle, we have come to a point that a rapid clean-energy transition is the least expensive path forward. [interest.co.nz]
Wind farm (Charl Folscher, Unsplash)
Science and Technology:
¶ “Solid-State Batteries Could Use Electrolyte Derived From Cellulose” • Scientists from Brown University and the University of Maryland are using cellulose nanofibrils derived from wood as a starting point for a solid-state electrolyte for batteries. The material is paper-thin, which allows it to bend and flex to absorb stress as the battery cycles. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “China Unveils Plan To Cut Fossil Fuels But Fails To Announce New Emissions Target” • China plans to cut its reliance on fossil fuels to below 20% by 2060, according to a published cabinet document. While the document detailed new measures on how the world’s biggest polluter will decarbonize, the country is not updating its pledge to reduce emissions. [CNN]
Wind farm in China (林 慕尧, Chris Lim, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
¶ “CO₂ Levels In The Atmosphere Reach A Three Million Year High, Putting The World ‘Way Off Track’ On Climate Goals” • The concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere has once again reached record highs, a UN report says, putting the planet on course for warming that far exceeds critical limits to stave off catastrophic climate change. [CNN]
¶ “Australia Pledges To Reach Net Zero Emissions By 2050” • Australia promised to have net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Over the next twenty years, it will invest over A$20 billion (£11 billion, $15 billion) in such technologies as carbon capture in soil, low-cost solar energy, and green industry development. But the country has no plan to limit fossil fuels. [BBC]
Sydney (Road Trip with Raj, Unsplash)
¶ “Panasonic Unveils New 4680 Prototype Battery Designed For Tesla” • Panasonic unveiled a new prototype battery designed for Tesla, Reuters reported. It was designed to help Tesla lower its production costs and is intended to strengthen the ties between the two companies. But it’s not a lithium-iron-phosphate battery, the type Tesla said it will adopt. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “London Drivers Ditch Diesel As New ULEV Rules Kick In” • Drivers in London are being charged £12.50 to enter the city’s new Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle zone if they are behind the wheel of a gasoline-powered car manufactured before 2005 or a diesel-powered car made before 2015. Buses and large trucks will be charged £100 a day. [CleanTechnica]
London (Charles Postiaux, Unsplash)
¶ “Singapore Studying Geothermal Energy As Potential Source For Power Generation” • Energy from underground heat could help to power cooling systems and water desalination processes in Singapore. Exploratory studies will be carried out in the northern and eastern parts of Singapore for geothermal energy, the Energy Market Authority announced. [CNA]
¶ “Egypt To Greece Subsea Cable To Deliver North African Renewable Energy to Europe” • Egypt is closer to becoming a regional electricity hub by clinching a deal with Greece to build the EU-backed EuroAfrica Interconnector subsea cable to transmit renewable energy from North Africa to Europe via Cyprus. [Journal of Petroleum Technology]
EuroAfrica Interconnector route
US:
¶ “West Coast Slammed By Record-Breaking Bomb Cyclone” • The last installment of a parade of storms barreled into the West Coast on Sunday, unloading more heavy rain that resulted in serious flooding and debris flows across drought-stricken and wildfire-ravaged California. The storm even broke some all-time 24-hour precipitation records. [Yahoo News]
¶ “First Of Two Possible Nor’easters Poised To Drench NYC To Boston” • A powerful storm has formed off the Atlantic coast, and it is poised to bring miserable weather conditions to areas from the mid-Atlantic coast to New England over this week. Weather forecasters say it’s just the first of multiple storms that are taking aim at the Northeast. [AOL]
Bomb cyclone (NASA image)
¶ “Tesla Surpasses $1 Trillion Valuation After Hertz Order” • Tesla surpassed a market value of $1 trillion, after it struck a deal to sell 100,000 vehicles to the car rental firm Hertz, which drove shares up 12.6%. It is the fifth company to top $1 trillion, after Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google-owner Alphabet. Elon Musk’s Tesla shares are worth $230 billion. [BBC]
¶ “Tesla Isn’t The Only Company Elon Musk Propelled Over A $100 Billion Valuation” • Elon Musk’s space exploration company SpaceX reached a rare milestone – a $100 billion market value. According to reports, SpaceX entered an agreement with existing and new investors for selling $755 million worth of shares at $560 per share. [CleanTechnica]
SpaceX takeoff (SpaceX, Unsplash)
¶ “Update: Is Gas Cheaper Than Electric In Joe Biden’s America?” • Many people, new to the EV discussion, still think of an electric car as a luxury item. As gas prices in California start to approach $8 per gallon, however, even the most staunch opponents of EVs are asking themselves, “Is gas cheaper than electric?” The answer is undeniable: “Of course not!” [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Old Nissan LEAF Batteries Being Used For Grid-Scale Storage In California” • Batteries that get swapped out of cars typically still have about 80% of their original capacity. B2U Storage Solutions uses old Nissan LEAF batteries to store grid electricity when there is an excess and sell it back to the grid when it is in short supply. [CleanTechnica]
Have a gloriously delightful day.
geoharvey 