World:
¶ “European Authorities Push Back On Tesla FSD” • In France, the Direction Générale de la Concurrence, de la Consommation et de la Répression des Fraudes concluded that Tesla has engaged in “deceptive commercial practices” harmful to consumers. The investigation began in 2023 as the result of multiple complaints submitted by French drivers. [CleanTechnica]
Tesla in France (Sergey Sokolov, Unsplash)
¶ “Denmark Grants Extension For Nysted And Middelgrunden” • The Danish Energy Agency has approved lifetime extensions for two of the country’s oldest offshore wind farms, allowing them to continue generating green electricity for at least another decade. Nysted was granted a 10-year extension, and Middelgrunden has an additional 25 years. [reNews]
¶ “Bernhard Schulte Christens CSOV ‘Windea Curie’” • Bernhard Schulte Offshore took delivery of its Commissioning Service Operation Vessel ‘Windea Curie’ from Ulstein Verft. It is to be deployed on a charter to offshore grid operator TenneT. The 89.6 meter vessel will support the TenneT offshore transmission platforms in the North Sea. [reNews]
Windea Curie (Bernhard Schulte image)
¶ “UK Rejects Support For $33 Billion Moroccan Subsea Renewable Energy Link” • The UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero announced that it is not contemplating a contract for difference for Xlinks’ £24 billion Morocco-UK Power Project. The contract would have ensured a fixed price per MWh of electricity. [Power Technology]
¶ “Taiwan Streamlines Offshore Wind Approvals” • Taiwan’s Ministry of Economic Affairs introduced a new regular review system in a bid to accelerate administrative procedures for offshore wind project approvals. The Ministry convened the Energy Administration and Industrial Development Bureau to jointly reform the approval process. [reNews]
Turbine installation (Shimizu Corp image)
¶ “Which Countries Get The Most Electricity From Solar And Wind?” • Here are the ten countries that rely on solar and wind sources most for their electricity. All of them used solar and wind for at least a third of their electricity in 2024, a report from the Energy Institute says. For leading countries, that figure was two-thirds or more. [Canary Media]
¶ “Why Is There Disquiet Over Safety Of Torness Nuclear Power Plant?” • Calls have been made for Torness nuclear power station to be shut down after an inspection found Torness’s Reactor 1 had an estimated 585 cracks in its core bricks, which are essential for safe operation. The cracks could heighten the chances of a radioactive incident. [East Lothian Courier]
Torness Nuclear Plant (gailhampshire, CC-BY-SA 2.0)
China:
¶ “Solar News: China Leaps Forward While US Falls Back” • Last April, Xi Jinping, the president of the People’s Republic of China, said in a speech that in the past five years, China has “the world’s largest and most complete new energy industry chain.” China has over 1,000 GW of installed solar capacity. But US solar power is being held back by politics. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Frontier Pro PHEV: Is It Nissan’s Future Of Global Pickups?” • At Auto Shanghai in April, Nissan launched the Dongfeng-Nissan N7 and presented the Frontier Pro Plug-in Hybrid pickup truck, which will be delivered by about the last quarter of this year. The pickup was designed for, and will be built for, specifically the Chinese market. [CleanTechnica]
Nissan Frontier PHEV (Nissan Press Center)
¶ “China-SCO Green Efforts Deepening” • Renewable energy cooperation between China and other Shanghai Cooperation Organization countries gained clear momentum in recent years, driving substantial growth in green energy capacity in the vast region and contributing significantly to global decarbonization efforts, industry experts said. [China Daily]
US:
¶ “How Is Tesla’s Robotaxi Rollout Going? Experts Weigh In” • Tesla did a limited driverless taxi service launch in Austin, Texas. Elon Musk has promised to produce millions of robotaxis as soon as next year, but some experts questioned the company’s ability to do that. One Morningstar analyst expects Tesla will not scale up robotaxis earlier than 2028. [ABC News]
Tesla Model Y (Lekhaki, CC-BY-SA 4.0, cropped)
¶ “Leap Powers National Grid’s Virtual Power Plant Initiative In Massachusetts” • Leap, a leading virtual power plant platform, and National Grid, one of world’s largest energy utilities, have announced expansion of their grid services collaboration to selected National Grid facilities in Massachusetts, providing easy access VPP opportunities. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “SolarEdge Expands US Manufacturing In Salt Lake City” • SolarEdge Technologies, Inc, a global leader in smart energy technology, announced it is ramping up its manufacturing site in Salt Lake City. In Q1, the site started making the SolarEdge ‘USA Edition’ Home Battery, marking the company’s commitment to supporting US energy independence. [CleanTechnica]
Salt Lake City (Anh Phan, Unsplash)
¶ “Luján Reintroduces Community Solar Bill To Counter GOP Attacks On Clean Energy” • As Congressional Republicans push legislation to gut key clean energy incentives, Senator Ben Ray Luján (D-NM) has reintroduced a bill aimed to expand access to community solar for customers who were historically shut out of the clean energy transition. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Microgrids Closer To Reality For Oregon Communities” • The Oregon Legislature approved two bills, House Bill 2065 and House Bill 2066, that opened the doors for community-owned microgrids. They could increase renewable energy development in the state, provide grid resilience and reliability, and relieve pressure on transmission lines. [OPB]
Have a widely appreciated day.
geoharvey 