Opinion:
¶ “Lessons From The ‘Living Without Russian Gas Miracle’” • Before the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the EU imported half its natural gas from Russia. Many warned that closing the gas pipes from Russia would lead to an economic recession and severe job losses. But when gas imports were cut by 85%, there was little loss. What happened? [CleanTechnica]
Tanker (Scott Tobin, Unsplash, cropped)
¶ “The Nuclear Energy Trap” • Nuclear reactors are being pushed as an answer to global warming. But the problem is that they cannot survive it. That’s only the start of serious issues with the world’s newly found love affair with nuclear energy. This article examines the likelihood of nuclear energy as a fixit for global warming, or is it a victim? [Pressenza]
Science and Technology:
¶ “New Zinc Batteries Take On Dunkelflauten And Dendrites, Too” • More renewable energy is pouring into the grid, sparking the demand for new, low-cost energy storage. A European consortium has come up with a new solution that could fit the bill, in the form of grid-scale zinc batteries that double as green hydrogen generators. [CleanTechnica]
Wind turbines (Dan Meyers, Unsplash)
World:
¶ “Inside Efforts To Avert Environmental ‘Catastrophe’ In The Red Sea” • Moored five miles off the coast of Yemen for more than 30 years, a decaying supertanker carrying a million barrels of oil is finally being offloaded by a UN-led mission, hoping to avert what threatened to be one of the world’s worst ecological disasters in decades. [CNN]
¶ “Sustainable Energy For South African School With Sun Exchange Solar Project” • Solar leasing platform Sun Exchange and power producer CVE South Africa announced the funding of a large solar-plus-battery project to provide clean power and load shedding relief to one of the largest technical high schools in South Africa. [CleanTechnica]
Previous Sun Exchange project (Courtesy of Sun Exchange)
¶ “BasiGo Partners With AC Mobility To Bring Electric Buses To Rwanda!” • Nairobi-based electric bus pioneer BasiGo has launched BasiGo Rwanda Ltd, a new entity focused on electrifying the public transport system in Rwanda. BasiGo has partnered with AC Mobility, Rwanda’s provider of automated fare collection systems for public transport. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Manitoba Plans To Use Wind Power To Double Or Triple Energy-Generating Capacity Over The Next Two Decades” • Manitoba plans to rely on wind farms and other forms of green power to boost generating capacity from 6,600 MW right now to somewhere between 10,000 and 16,000 MW by the 2040s, according to a new energy policy. [CBC]
Wind turbines (Arteum.ro, Unsplash)
¶ “UK Renewables Generation Hit Record Levels In 2022” • UK renewables generation has reached a record share of the energy mix, according to data from the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero. Renewables made up 41.5% of electricity generation, compared with 39.6% in 2021, as both wind and solar reached record levels. [Power Technology]
US:
¶ “Wind And Solar Are Propping Up The Texas Power Grid Amid A Brutally Long Heat Wave” • As Texas bakes under a sweltering heat dome this summer and people crank their air conditioners, the state’s energy demand has smashed records. But the power has stayed on and prices haven’t spiked tremendously. Thank wind and solar, energy experts say. [CNN]
Solar parking lot in Texas (ndiggity, CC-BY-SA 4.0, cropped)
¶ “DOT Proposes New Car Standards That Would Raise Fuel Economy Modestly And Push The Sale Of EVs” • The Biden administration proposed modest increases to fuel efficiency standards for the vehicles most Americans drive. The proposal fits alongside the administration’s push for increasing the share of electric vehicles on the roads. [CNN]
¶ “Heat Pumps And Floating Wind To Lead Zero Emissions Campaign In Maine” • When the people of Maine realized how much money they could save each winter by switching to heat pumps, they began installing them in record numbers. In fact, the Maine blew by a target of 100,000 heat pumps by 2025 two years ahead of schedule. [CleanTechnica]
Portland (Jeana Bala, Unsplash)
¶ “Scorching heat strains US air conditioning capacity” • Energy providers warn Americans to be frugal with air-conditioning this weekend, as intense heat and increased demand could lead to blackouts. Nearly 200 million Americans are under “dangerously hot conditions” alerts with temperatures expected to soar past 100°F (38°C) in several major cities. [BBC]
¶ “The First US Utility-Scale Offshore Wind Farm Just Got The First US-Built Offshore Substation” • The first US-built offshore substation is now standing at New York’s South Fork Wind, the first utility-scale offshore wind farm in US federal waters. South Fork Wind’s 1,500-ton, 60-foot-tall offshore substation came from Texas to New York by ship. [Electrek]
Installing the substation (South Fork Wind image)
¶ “More Extreme Heat Means More Risk For Our Power Grid, Experts Say” • Extreme heat like what hit the Chicago area this week can stress the power grid by spiking demand for electricity. As air conditioning units kick into high gear to keep homes and businesses cool, the high temperatures can cause problems at power stations, experts warn. [Daily Herald]
¶ “Federal Regulators Approve New Rules To Ease Backlogs” • The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission finalized long-awaited new rules intended to reform how power generation projects get connected to the electric grid. FERC Chairman Willie Phillips said there are 2,000 GW of power projects stuck in interconnection queue. [Idaho Capital Sun]
Have an excitingly cool day.
geoharvey 