Opinion:
¶ “The Misguided Push To Weaken Nuclear Safety Standards Is Gaining Steam” • Imagine a future where experimental nuclear reactors are scattered across the US landscape like so many Starbucks, in densely populated and rural areas alike. This is the future that many in the nuclear industry and their supporters are working overtime to achieve. [The Hill]
NuScale Power Voygr (NuScale image)
World:
¶ “$4.6 Billion Plant In South Africa Will Make ‘The Fuel Of The Future’” • In Nelson Mandela Bay, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, thousands of hectares of land could one day become the world’s largest green ammonia plant. While ammonia has many uses, as fertilizer and a chemical feedstock, green ammonia may become the fuel of the future. [CNN]
¶ “Crucial System Of Ocean Currents Is Heading For A Collapse That ‘Would Affect Every Person On The Planet’” • A vital system of ocean currents could collapse in a few decades if the world continues to pump out planet-heating pollution, scientists warn. The event would be catastrophic for global weather and “affect every person on the planet.” [CNN]
Atlantic Ocean (Jacob Buller, Unsplash)
¶ “Deadly Mediterranean Wildfires Kill More Than Forty” • The long heatwave shows no let-up, and temperatures are expected to rise above 44°C (111°F) in parts of Greece. The heaviest death toll so far is in Algeria, where the 34 victims included ten soldiers surrounded by flames in an evacuation in the coastal province of Bejaia, east of Algiers. [BBC]
¶ “Hyundai And Seoul National University Launch Battery Research Center” • Hyundai Motor Group and Seoul National University teamed up to open the Joint Battery Research Center at the highly regarded South Korean university. The aim: world domination. Or, well, in slightly less menacing terms, “global leadership in the battery field.” [CleanTechnica]
Building at Seoul National University (Maru4u, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
¶ “’Global China’ Is A Big Part Of Latin America’s Renewable Energy Boom, But Homegrown Industries Are Key” • Renewable energy’s rapid rise in Latin America is under Chinese influence. China’s government and banks have pushed the continent’s energy transition. Chinese companies produce about 90% of all wind and solar technologies installed there. [GreenBiz]
¶ “China Surpasses Renewable Energy Targets Five Years Ahead Of Schedule” • A report by Global Energy Monitor, an NGO that monitors wind and solar farms, China has exceeded its ambitious goals. The report reveals that China is set to double its renewable energy capacity by 2025, reaching a milestone of 1,200 GW of solar and wind capacity. [Microgrid Media]
Solar array in China (李大毛 没有猫, Unsplash)
¶ “Trafford Approves £750 Million Battery Storage Project” • In the UK, Carlton’s push for a £750 million battery energy storage system at Trafford Low Carbon Energy got planning permission from the metropolitan borough council. Carlton Power says its infrastructure project will be “the world’s largest” battery energy storage system. [Place North West]
US:
¶ “Florida Ocean Temps Surge To 100°F As Mass Coral Bleaching Event Is Found In Some Reefs” • Multiple reefs near the Florida Keys are completely bleached or dead in a grim escalation that took place in as little as two weeks, experts told CNN. A buoy in the Florida Bay hit 101.1°F at a depth of 5 feet, one of the highest temperatures ever recorded anywhere. [CNN]
Sailing at Key West (Jonathan Wheeler, Unsplash)
¶ “US Lawmaker Greg Casar Begins Thirst Strike Over Heat Laws” • A US congressman will go without food and water in a protest over a Texas law overriding protection for people who work outdoors in intense heat. More than 400 workers have died in heatwaves since 2011. There are no federal protections for workers exposed to heat. [BBC]
¶ “Another New Solar Cell Factory For The USA, Another Win For Bidenomics” • In the world of Bidenomics, clean power is a job-creating dynamo touching off a US manufacturing boom. The latest example is a new 2-GW PV cell factory that originally was supposed to be built in Germany. Instead its 350 jobs will go to Colorado Springs. [CleanTechnica]
New solar cell factory in Colorado (Courtesy of Meyer Burger)
¶ “Panasonic To Produce Higher-Energy-Density Batteries In USA With Silicon From Nexeon” • Panasonic says that it is always working to improve battery energy density to provide longer range for EVs. And naturally, Panasonic’s aim is to do so at lower cost. Now it plans to produce better EV batteries, starting in 2025, in De Soto, Kansas. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Stellantis And Samsung SDI Are To Build A Second Battery Gigafactory In USA” • StarPlus Energy is a joint venture Stellantis and Samsung SDI formed for a battery gigafactory that is to begin operations in the first quarter of 2025 in Kokomo, Indiana. Now they have announced a second US battery gigafactory that will open in 2027. [CleanTechnica]
Chrysler Airflow Concept (Courtesy of Chrysler)
¶ “Brightnight, Rivian, And The Nature Conservancy Unite To Transform Starfire Coal Mine Into Kentucky’s Largest Renewable Power Project” • The Nature Conservancy, Brightnight, and Rivian announced that Starfire Mine, once one of the largest US coal mines, will be the site of a solar energy center. Its capacity will be 800 MW. [The Nature Conservancy]
¶ “First Solar Secures An Order For An Alabama Project” • The Tennessee Valley Authority ordered 279 MW (DC) of thin film solar panels from First Solar for a solar project in Alabama. The Lawrence County Solar Project is expected to start commercial operation in 2027. It reflects TVA’s growing emphasis on solar in the region. [reNews]
Have a plausibly dreamy day.
geoharvey 
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