World:
¶ “Major Power Outage Hits Balkan Region As Countries Swelter In An Early Summer Heat Wave” • A major hours-long power outage hit much of the Balkans as the southern European region sweltered in an early heat wave that sent temperatures soaring to over 40°C (104°F). Several countries were left with almost no electricity for hours. [ABC News]
Evening in Kotor, Montenegro (Dragisa Braunovic, Unsplash)
¶ “Canada Follows Europe, China, And The USA With Provisions Against Greenwashing; Oil & Gas Industry Freaks Out” • The Canadian government is taking significant steps to combat greenwashing with the introduction of new provisions in Bill C-59. The Oil & Gas Industry is circling the wagons, or maybe advancing to the rear, in confusion. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Shell Opens Megawatt Charger for Trucks And Vessels in Amsterdam” • Shell developed its first megawatt charger at the Energy Transition Campus Amsterdam. Both electric trucks and electric ships can use the charging system. The capacity of the megawatt charger is equal to about three regular 350-kW fast chargers that trucks use. [CleanTechnica]
Megawatt charger (Image from Shell)
¶ “Hunter Water Signs Renewable Energy Deal With AGL” • NSW-owned Hunter Water announced it’s entering into a Retail Renewable Power Purchase Agreement with AGL. AGL will provide renewable energy and certificates from a wind farm to power Hunter Water’s largest sites, with a goal of hitting 100% renewables by 2030. [Government News]
¶ “Philippines Emerges As Southeast Asia Renewable Power Pacesetter” • The Philippines has leapfrogged its Southeast Asian neighbors to become a regional leader in clean-power projects as fewer investment restrictions and green-minded policies attract investment. Changes have helped secure a pipeline of 99 GW of wind and solar developments. [The Japan Times]
Manilla (Alexes Gerard, Unsplash)
¶ “Global Data Center Electricity Use To Double By 2026: IEA Report” • Data center electricity usage is set to double by 2026, an International Energy Agency report says. It blames the rise of demand on such workloads as AI and cryptocurrency mining. Data centers consumed 460 TWh in 2022, but that could rise to 1,000 TWh in 2026. [Data Center Dynamics]
¶ “EnBW And Total Win Leases In €3 Billion German Offshore Tender” • EnBW and TotalEnergies have won development rights in the latest German offshore wind tender after agreeing to pay just over €3 billion in total lease fees. EnBW secured the 1-GW N-12.3 site in the German North Sea, and a RWE-TotalEnergies partnership won area 1.5GW N-11.2. [reNews]
North Sea (Robert Katzki, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “FEMA Is Ready For An Extreme Hurricane And Wildfire Season, But Money Is A Concern, Mayorkas Says” • The head of the Homeland Security Department said the agency tasked with responding to disasters is prepared for what is expected to be an intense hurricane and wildfire season, but he’s concerned about looming budget shortfalls. [ABC News]
¶ “Coal Capacity Factor Drops from 55% to 35% in 10 Years in PJM” • Use of the coal fleet in PJM, the largest US wholesale electricity market, has fallen over the last decade, driven largely by higher relative fuel costs. Since 2013, the PJM operators have retired about 34 GW of coal capacity and switched about 2 GW of coal capacity to other sources. [CleanTechnica]
PJM, based on EIA data
¶ “USDOT Awards Nearly $60 Million in Advanced Vehicle Technology Grants to Arizona, Texas, And Utah” • The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration announced that it is awarding $60 million in grants to advance connected and interoperable vehicle technologies. The grants are to recipients in Arizona, Texas, and Utah. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Some US Regions At Risk Of Energy Shortfalls In Extreme Summer Conditions” • Parts of the US could be at risk for power supply shortages if electricity demand peaks are higher or if less electricity is generated than expected, according to the 2024 Summer Reliability Assessment by the North American Electric Reliability Corporation. [CleanTechnica]
Areas at risk – Please click on the image to enlarge it.
¶ “Sunrise Wind Receives Final Approval From US Department of the Interior” • Sunrise Wind, New York’s largest offshore wind project, had its construction and operations plan approved by the US Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management. It is the final permit needed from BOEM to move the project forward. [Renewable Energy Magazine]
¶ “Driving On Sunshine: Car Cover Charges EVs With Solar Power” • Solar company GoSun has rolled out a foldable car cover that harnesses the power of the sun to add miles of range for EV drivers. The solar cover, which can charge EVs with electricity generated by the sun, is said to be able to provide about 30 miles of energy. [NBC Los Angeles]
GoSun car cover (Image from GoSun)
¶ “New York Approves Plan To Add Six Gigawatts Of Energy Storage By 2030” • Governor Kathy Hochul announced that the New York State Public Service Commission has approved a new framework for the state to achieve 6 GW of energy storage by 2030. The nation-leading amount is at least 20% of the state’s peak power load. [Power Engineering]
¶ “Georgia Power Customers Paying Extra After Completion Of State’s Nuclear Power Plant” • As temperatures rise, so does your electric bill. Georgia Power customers are getting hit twice this summer with the increased costs associated with cooling their homes plus a 5% increase that went into effect on May 1 when plant Vogtle’s fourth unit came online. [Yahoo]
Have a perfectly refreshing day.
geoharvey 
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