World:
¶ “Major Test Case For New Geothermal Technology Launches In Small German Town” • Geothermal companies are using techniques developed in the oil and gas industry to drill deep and extract heat from dry, hot rock. One of them, Eavor, is starting up its first commercial power plant in the town of Geretsried, turning it into a proving ground. [ABC News]
Geretsreid (Martinus KE, CC-BY-SA 4.0, cropped)
¶ “How Trump’s ‘Drill, Baby, Drill’ Pledge Is Affecting Other Countries” • US President Donald Trump’s “national energy emergency”, embracing fossil fuels and ditching clean energy policies, is already influencing other countries. In response to his “drill, baby, drill” slogan and withdrawal from the Paris climate agreement, some countries may follow suit. [BBC]
¶ “Canadian Know-How: EVs Aren’t Useless In The Cold” • There are lots of people who make this dumb claim: “EVs don’t work in the cold! I’ll never be able to buy one because I don’t live in sunny southern California.” But there’s just one problem: it’s 100% false. The Canadian Automobile Association did the tests and gave us the proof. [CleanTechnica]
Charging an EV in snow (JUICE, Unsplash)
¶ “UK’s National Grid Does Some Mythbusting” • The grid can get overloaded as it is. Common sense dictates that adding any more load, such as EVs, would be a disaster that leaves us all freezing or frying to death. Right? There’s just one problem with this: It’s not true. At all. And now we have more proof from the UK’s National Grid! [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Irish Wind Displaces Gas Spending Of €1.2 Billion” • Wind generation in Ireland and Northern Ireland displaced almost €1.2 billion worth of gas and carbon credits in the wholesale market in 2024, according to Baringa. The analysis, commissioned by Wind Energy Ireland, shows a total of 13.2 TWh of electricity was generated by wind turbines. [reNews]
Irish wind farm (SSE image)
¶ “GreenGo To Develop 6-GW Electrolyser In Mauritania” • GreenGo Energy has signed its first African agreement, for the development of a green hydrogen project in Mauritania. With this agreement signed, GreenGo Energy has started the early development for 6 GW of electrolysis, 6.8 GW of onshore windpower, and 6.3 GW of solar PVs. [reNews]
¶ “Kinergy Advancement Partners With Perak State Agency To Develop 29 Renewable Energy Projects” • Kinergy Advancement Bhd’s subsidiary KAB Energy Holdings Sdn Bhd is working with Perbadanan Kemajuan Negeri Perak to develop 29 potential renewable energy projects in the Maylasian state of Perak. Their total capacity is over 1,800 MW. [The Edge Malaysia]
Countryside in Perak (Photo Dharma, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
¶ “Philippines Banks On Solar” • Given the limited scale of solar in the Philippines, it is perhaps surprising that Solar Philippines New Energy Corp will build a 3.5-GW solar and 4.5-GWh battery Terra Solar project on the island of Luzon. Some 2.5 GW of solar and a 3.3 GWh of battery storage will be in the first phase, to be built by April, 2026. [pv magazine International]
¶ “Solar Energy Project Expands To Sixty New Sites In West Sussex” • More schools and buildings in West Sussex will soon generate their own renewable energy. This is because the West Sussex County Council is expanding its Solar PV and Battery Storage program. It plans to install renewable energy systems at sixty more sites in the county. [The Argus]
Solar farm in Sussex (Ian Cunliffe, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
US:
¶ “Renewable Energy Projects That Kowtow To King Trump And King Musk Get Funded” • Renewable energy companies have started to kowtow to King Trump, King Musk, and their lackeys in order to keep their renewable energy projects viable in the state of flux that is now the US government in all its branches. Montana Renewables is an example. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “NASCAR Blows Off Trump’s Attack On EV Charging Stations” • If all goes to plan, President Trump will take time out from wrecking things to enjoy the Daytona 500 stock car race. There, the North American Stock Car Racing Association is showing off the new ABB NASCAR EV prototype race car, along with thirty new EV charging stations. [CleanTechnica]
ABB NASCAR EV prototype (Courtesy of ABB)
¶ “Nearly Half Of School District’s Bus Fleet Will Run On A Renewable Energy Source: Cow Poop” •In Colorado, the Eagle County School District will soon have nearly half its school bus fleet running on a renewable energy source. The school board approved converting an additional eight buses to a system that burns renewable natural gas. [VailDaily.com]
¶ “Trump Orders Threaten US Wind Projects” • According to recent analysis by financial data firm FactSet, up to 89% of US undeveloped wind projects are at risk as a result of Trump’s Day One directive, which paused offshore wind lease sales in federal waters as well as approval, loan, and permit issuance for onshore and offshore projects. [Newsweek]
Power County Wind Farm (energy.gov, public domain)
¶ “Three TVA Nuclear Reactors Are Shut Down At Once, Pushing Utility To Ramp Up Fossil Fuels” • Six of the 94 commercial nuclear reactors in the US were not generating electricity as of Feruary 14, according to the US NRC. Three of those are owned by the Tennessee Valley Authority. All three outages are due to unplanned generator trips. [Knoxville News Sentinel]
¶ “Iowa Nuclear Plant Seeks Unprecedented Restart” • Shuttered nuclear power plants have never been restarted in the US, but the Duane Arnold Energy Center near Palo is poised to be among the few that try. Its owner, NextEra Energy, hopes to finish its restoration of the facility that closed in 2020 in about three years, according to an NRC filing. [The Gazette]
Have a memorably lovely day.
geoharvey 