World:
¶ “EU Poised To OK Major Plan To Meet Climate Goals And Better Protect Nature Despite Farmer Protests” • The European Union is on the brink of approving a major plan to fight climate change and better protect nature in the 27-nation bloc after protests from farmers and opposition from the biggest party in parliament led it to be diluted. [ABC News]
Cows graze in the Netherlands (Leon Ephraïm, Unsplash)
¶ “Drax: UK Power Station Still Burning Rare Forest Wood” • A power company that has had £6 billion in UK green subsidies has kept burning wood from some of the world’s most precious forests, the BBC has found. Papers obtained by Panorama show Drax took timber from forests in Canada that it had claimed were “no go areas.” [BBC]
¶ “Japan’s Wooden Satellite Shows Us That We Should Give Wood A Fresh Look” • Given the skills of Japanese woodworkers, environmental issues of re-entry of old satellites, and early test results, there are now plans for the country to put up a small wooden satellite, which will spend six months in space testing for deformation. [CleanTechnica]
Small wooden satellites (JAXA image)
¶ “Renault 5 E-Tech Electric – 249 Mile Range, €25,000 Base Price, 4 Doors, And A Hatch” • Electrive says the Renault 5 E-Tech Electric is the first vehicle to use Renault’s AmpR Small platform. It is 3.92 m, 1.77 m wide, and stands 1.5 m high, and it has a 2.54 m wheelbase. It will come with a choice of three motors and two battery sizes. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Germany Launches 5.5-GW Offshore Tender” • Germany’s Federal Network Agency has launched an offshore wind tender comprising a total of 5,500 MW on three pre-investigated areas in the North Sea. The three sites are located about 110km north-west of Borkum on the edge of the border with the Dutch exclusive economic zone. [reNews]
Offshore wind turbines (insung yoon, Unsplash)
¶ “Record Year For Wind Farms Raises Hope For EU Goals” • A record year for building wind farms and rebounding investments in the sector have raised hopes that the EU may achieve its clean energy targets, industry group WindEurope said. The group said EU policies to speed up project permits was encouraging for the sector. [Offshore Engineer Magazine]
¶ “Renewable Energy Power Costs Fall In APAC” • The levelised cost of electricity, or LCOE, generated from renewable sources is declining significantly in the Asia Pacific region, reaching an all-time low in 2023, according to Wood Mackenzie’s latest analysis. This fall makes renewable energy increasingly competitive with conventional low-cost coal power. [reNews]
Wind turbines (Master Wen, Unsplash)
¶ “SA’s Largest Private Renewable Energy Plant Gets Green Light” • Construction of the three 110-MW Impofu wind farms in South Africa will begin in March. It is the country’s largest pure private renewable energy plant. After over a decade of planning and stakeholder engagement, the wind farms are planned to be operational in 2025. [Cape Business News]
US:
¶ “Up To Twelve Feet Of Snow Heading To California Mountains: What To Expect” • Up to 12 feet of snow is heading to California’s Sierra Nevada mountains as a winter storm bears down on the West Coast. Winter storm watches are in place for California, Oregon and Washington. The storm will spread to southern California with heavy rain. [ABC News]
Snow (Les Anderson, Unsplash)
¶ “At Least Five Active Wildfires Are Burning In The Texas Panhandle, Scorching More Than 370,000 Acres” • Hutchinson County is dealing with a “disaster” as fires have caused significant damage to homes and businesses and caused power outages and water shortages. A local state of disaster has been declared for the Texas Panhandle city of Amarillo. [CNN]
¶ “NREL Requests Proposals From US Manufacturers of Small And Medium Wind Turbine Technology” • Managed by NREL for the DOE’s Wind Energy Technologies Office, CIP awards a type of subcontract and national laboratory technical support to US component suppliers and makers of wind turbines of small and mediums sizes. [CleanTechnica]
Bergey Excel 15 (Josh Bauer and Brian Bechtold, NREL)
¶ “Midwest Braces For Severe Storms, Possible Tornadoes” • The Midwest braced for severe storms that could bring tornadoes, as damaging winds and hail hit on Tuesday night. Chicago and northern Illinois are also facing an enhanced threat for tornadoes and hail. Meanwhile, blizzard warnings are in effect for parts of North Dakota and Minnesota. [ABC News]
¶ “New Hope For EV Sales Sparked By New $400 Million Factory, Somewhere In The USA” • For all the gloom and doom over EV sales, the US automotive market continues to attract investors. The news is that Israeli startup Addionics is putting up $400 million to bring its 3-D EV battery architecture to automotive stakeholders in the US. [CleanTechnica]
Fantasy EV (Courtesy of Addionics, via YouTube)
¶ “US DOE Announces Funding for Tribal Clean Energy Projects” • The US DOE announced $25 million in funding to support clean energy technology deployment on Tribal lands. This investment will strengthen Tribal energy sovereignty through local clean energy generation, while increasing energy access, reliability, and security. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Texas Wildfire Causes Brief Shutdown Of Nuclear Weapons Facility” • A series of wildfires swept across the Texas Panhandle, prompting evacuations, cutting off power to thousands, and forcing at least the temporary shutdown of a nuclear weapons facility as the blazes were fed by strong winds, dry grass, and unseasonable heat. [FireRescue1]
Have an enthusiastically received day.
geoharvey 