Opinion:
¶ “Why Aren’t Lessons From Fukushima Disaster Being Used In Draft Energy Plan?” • The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry released a draft outline of the next Strategic Energy Plan. It removed the phrase stating “Japan … will reduce its dependence on nuclear power as much as possible,” which the government has heretofore upheld. [The Mainichi]
IAEA inspection at Fukushima (IAEA Imagebank, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
Science and Technology:
¶ “More Bad News For Fossil Fuels: The Rise Of The Drop-In EV Charging Station” • When the Extreme E off-road EV racing series featured a modular, transportable, off-grid, drop-in DC fast charging station a few years back, it seemed like a niche solution for a niche problem. But now, a number of companies are producing similar systems. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ “XPENG Center in Australia Launches In Sydney” • The EV story of the year is the expansion of Chinese EV companies globally. The latest chapter in that story is XPENG setting up a big new headquarters in Australia, the first XPENG center in the Southern Hemisphere. It is at a prime location near the entrance to Sydney Airport’s domestic precinct. [CleanTechnica]
XPENG center in Sydney (XPENG image)
¶ “Oil Consumption Growth Trends In China, India, And The USA: Is 2025 Forecast Accurate?” • The US Energy Information Administration published an article, “India to surpass China as the top source of global oil consumption growth in 2024 and 2025.” It compares how and why oil consumption is growing in the two countries. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Hitachi Wins €2 Billion Contract From Amprion” • Hitachi Energy has signed contracts worth over €2 billion with German transmission system operator Amprion for converter stations for two high voltage DC links. The four stations are for a high-power transmission system to bring clean energy from the North to industrial load centers in the West. [reNews]
Hitachi HVDC (Hitachi image)
¶ “Wind Power Generation Hits Second Record In Matter Of Days” • Last Sunday, wind turbines in the UK, including both onshore and offshore, set a record by generating 22.4 GW of electricity. It was the first time they produced more than 22 GW. On Wednesday, the UK’s wind turbines generated 22.5 GW, breaking the days-old record. [Proactive Investors]
¶ “KENC Bags Offshore Jack-Up Contracts” • KENC Engineering secured contract awards from a leading, undisclosed transport and installation contractor relative to a UK offshore wind project. The contracts entail engineering scopes to outfit a purpose-built jack-up vessel to contribute with the safe and efficient installation of the monopiles for the UK project. [reNews]
Jack-up vessel (KENC image)
US:
¶ “Environmental Groups Sue Over California Support For Polluting Biofuels” • Several environmental groups are suing California air regulators over their recent update of a climate program, saying they failed to address the pollution impacts of biofuels. They also say biofuels compete with food production and contribute to deforestation. [ABC News]
¶ “Abandoned Oil And Gas Wells In Us Bring Fears Of Leak Dangers” • More than 3.5 million abandoned oil and gas wells are littered across the US. An estimated 14 million Americans live within a mile of one of the wells. Leaking wells can contaminate groundwater and spew carcinogens and potent greenhouse gases into the environment. [ABC News]
Abandoned gas well (Steve Hillebrand, USFWS, public domain)
¶ “Trucking Will Electrify, But What Hills Must Be Flattened?” • One of the primary challenges of electrifying freight trucks in the US comes down to adequate charging infrastructure without compromising freight operations. The economics of electric trucks, battery availability, scaling manufacturing, etc, could be another set of challenges. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Qcells Solar Factory In Georgia Gets $1.45 Billion Loan Guarantee” • As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America agenda, the DOE’s Loan Programs Office announced the closing of a $1.45 billion loan guarantee to Hanwha Q Cells Georgia, Inc, a leading North American crystalline silicon solar maker. [CleanTechnica]
Qcells factory in Georgia (Qcells image)
¶ “Musk And xAI Colossus Brings Spike In Emissions And Demand For Electricity To Memphis” • Elon Musk’s latest brainstorm is Colossus, a new supercomputer facility for xAI located in an old Electrolux factory in Memphis, Tennessee. Initial estimates suggest that the system’s power consumption could range between 42 to 56 MW. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “IRA Set To Boost US Economy $2 Trillion” • An independent study commissioned by the American Clean Power Association revealed that the Inflation Reduction Act will potentially boost the US economy by nearly $2 trillion over the next decade. The report found that the law will incentivize significant investments and create millions of jobs. [reNews]
Wind turbines (Natalia Blauth, Unsplash)
¶ “AI Data Centers To Bolster Renewable Energy Demand Even Under Trump, Says MUFG Americas CEO” • The broad shift towards renewable energy in the US will continue even under the incoming administration of Donald Trump, said the head of the Americas arm of Japan’s largest banking group, Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group. [MSN]
¶ “California Officials, Ports Plan Infrastructure For Offshore Wind” • The California State Lands Commission and the port officials of Long Beach and Humboldt announced an agreement on December 18 for “a comprehensive framework” to advance upgrades to port infrastructure that would support offshore wind power development. [WorkBoat]
Have a nicely unruffled day.
geoharvey 