Science and Technology:
¶ “Manganese Cathodes Could Boost Lithium-ion Batteries” • Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries use supplies of nickel and cobalt, which are limited. Research led by the DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory opens up a potential low-cost, safe alternative in manganese, the fifth most abundant metal in the Earth’s crust. [CleanTechnica]
Manganese (Han-Ming Hau, Berkeley Lab and UC Berkeley)
World:
¶ “Groundbreaking Held For EGL2 Subsea Link” • Ground has been broken for a 2-GW subsea link between Scotland and England. EGL2’s subsea cable will go 436 km (271 miles) from Peterhead to the coast of East Yorkshire at Fraisthorpe Sands, and run underground for 68 km (42 miles) to a new HVDC converter station at Drax. [reNews]
¶ “Rezolv, APA Ink Romania Wind Offtake” • Rezolv Energy has signed a virtual power purchase agreement with Italian company A2A for electricity produced by the Vifor wind farm in Romania. The VPPA provides for the purchase of 150 GWh per year of renewable energy. Rezolv has signed six VPPAs since June, for a total of 460 GWh per year. [reNews]
Wind farm (Rezolv image)
¶ “Energy Transition Opens New Vistas For Solar, Wind Power Companies” • Over the past three months, Anhui Huasun Energy Co Ltd has been racing against time to make solar modules for a gigantic PV project on the edge of China’s Taklamakan Desert, its largest. A boom in technology and industry that is coming about in China is clear. [China Daily]
¶ “Italy Deploys 4.2 GW Of Solar In January-August Period” • Italy added around 5 GW of renewable capacity, of which 4.2 GW was solar power, in the first eight months of 2024, according to Gestore dei Servizi Energetici, the Italian energy agency. This means Italy’s cumulative PV capacity reached 34.48 GW at the end of August. [pv magazine International]
Solar plant in Italy (Balfabio, CC-BY-SA 3.0, cropped)
¶ “Romania Unveils A 7-GW Offshore Plan” • The Romanian government published a roadmap to help realize a potential up to 7 GW of offshore wind capacity in the country, supported by the European Commission and World Bank Group. The plan was produced as part of the project “Internal energy market and energy transition in Romania.” [reNews]
¶ “Solar Levelized Cost Of Electricity 56% Lower Than Lowest-Cost Fossil Fuels” • Solar has taken center stage in global energy development as costs have fallen to record lows. IRENA, the International Renewable Energy Agency, reported data through 2023, noting that solar levelized cost of electricity has fallen 90% since 2010. [pv magazine USA]
Solar energy (Michael Förtsch, Unsplash)
¶ “Fortescue Targets 2-3 GW Of Renewables To Achieve Its Real Zero By 2030 Goals” • Fortescue’s climate transition plan gives comprehensive details of how the mining giant is planning, and will 100% eliminate fossil fuels from their Australian iron ore operations by 2030 using a number of measures, including using solar energy. [pv magazine Australia]
¶ “The Presence Of IAEA Inspectors At Key Substations Critical To Nuclear Power Plants Could Deter Russia From Attacks” • The decision to expand monitoring missions to the main substations that support nuclear power plant operations may help prevent Russian aggression threatening nuclear facilities, the director of energy programs of the “Razumkov Center” said. [ТСН]
Substation (American Public Power Association, Unsplash)
US:
¶ “How Climate Change Put Florida’s Big Bend To Greater Risk Of Tropical Threats” • Helene’s path in the Northern Caribbean and Eastern Gulf of Mexico went across very warm ocean waters. The warmer than normal sea surfaces in these regions were 200 to 500 times more likely due to human-caused climate change, Climate Central’s Climate Shift Index says. [ABC News]
¶ “Hurricane Helene Live Updates: One Dead In Florida As Category 4 Storm Makes Landfall” • Helene made landfall in the Big Bend region of Florida as a major Category 4 hurricane with 140 mph winds. Since that time, it has moved around 100 miles inland into Florida and Georgia and has been downgraded to a Category 1 hurricane. [ABC News]
Hurricane Florence, 2018 (Alexander Gerst, public domain)
¶ “American Climate Corps Has Already Put 15,000 Young Americans To Work” • As part of his commitment to tackle the climate crisis, President Biden launched the American Climate Corps to mobilize young workers on clean energy, conservation, and climate resilience. Some 15,000 young people have been put to work in the clean energy. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Renewable Energy Sources Now Provide Over 30% Of US Generating Capacity” • A SUN DAY Campaign review of data in two new reports by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the US Energy Information Administration reveals that now over 30% of total US utility-scale electrical generating capacity is renewable. [Renewables Now]
Wind turbines (Louis Moncouyoux, Unsplash)
¶ “World-First Geothermal Energy System Heading For US Air Force” • The US Air Force has pushed the renewable energy envelope since the early 2000s, especially for large solar arrays. Now it is turning its attention to a new system aimed at pushing the boundaries of the US geothermal energy industry far beyond its current limitations. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Training A Million Apprentices for Cleantech And Climate Jobs by 2035” • This week, the US Climate Alliance set up the Governors’ Climate-Ready Workforce Initiative. It is a bipartisan coalition of 24 governors who together account for roughly 60% of the country’s economy and 55% of its population. It is to train a million apprentices by 2035. [CleanTechnica]
Have s patently positive day.
geoharvey 
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