World:
¶ “Eiffel Tower Closes Early As Europe Swelters Under A Heat Wave” • As a heat wave scorches most of Europe, the Eiffel Tower announced it would close early with France expected to hit very high temperatures. Paris is expected to reach 38.3°C (101°F), and the Eiffel Tower closed at 4 pm local time, a statement on the landmark’s official website said. [ABC News]
Eiffel Tower (Kirsten Drew, Unsplash, cropped)
¶ “Spain And England Record Hottest June As Heatwave Grips Europe” • Spain’s weather service said the “extremely hot” June “has pulverised records,” with an average temperature of 23.6°C (74.5°F). In England, the Met Office said June’s mean temperature of 16.9°C set a new record for that month; the UK as a whole saw its second warmest June on record. [BBC]
¶ “Scania Adds Electric Trucks And Buses to South Australian Fleet” • Swedish truck and bus maker Scania has quietly grown its presence in Australia. Now Scania is producing sixty fully electric city buses for the South Australian government to be used in Adelaide. Notably, SA uses wind and solar energy to meet over 60% of its grid demand. [CleanTechnica]
Scania electric truck and bus (Scania photo)
¶ “XPENG Sales Soar 242%!” • The whole Chinese EV market has been going up, and up, and up, but XPENG has shot through the roof and is on the way to the moon. XPENG’s monthly sales rose 224% in June 2025 compared to June 2024! In the second quarter as a whole, the company’s sales were up 242% compared to the same quarter of 2024. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “VinFast Inaugurates Second EV Plant In Vietnam” • VinFast, the Vietnamese automotive manufacturer, started operations at its new EV plant in the Vũng Áng Economic Zone, Hà Tĩnh Province. The facility, its second EV plant, is about 430 km (267 miles) from its main factory in Hai Phong. Four more Vinfast factories are under construction. [CleanTechnica]
Vinfast Hà Tĩnh facility (Vinfast photo)
¶ “UK Grid Set For £8.9 Billion Expansion” • Ofgem has given the provisional green light to a multi-billion-pound investment to power the biggest expansion of the UK’s electricity grid since the 1960s. An initial £8.9 billion investment is being committed to Britain’s high-voltage electricity network, with a further £1.3 billion ready to go. [reNews]
¶ “North Star Cuts Emissions By 18%” • The UK’s largest ship operator North Star is celebrating progress towards a net-zero fleet after reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 18% since 2022. The company, based in Aberdeen, had a 15% year-on-year cut in Scope 1 greenhouse gas emissions. The findings were revealed by strategic projects manager Jen Redman. [reNews]
Jen Redman (North Star image)
¶ “India’s Renewable Power Output Soars 24.4% in H1 2025 As Coal Usage Slips” • India’s renewable energy generation recorded its fastest growth in over two years, marking a major step in the country’s clean energy transition. A Reuters analysis shows that renewable power output surged by 24.4% YOY to reach 134.43 TWh in the first half of 2025. [Pratidin Time]
US:
¶ “Republican Budget Bill Dismantles Climate Law Passed By Democrats” • The Republican budget bill approved by the Senate removes a proposed tax on solar and wind energy projects but phases out tax credits for wind, solar and other renewable energy quickly. The GOP plan would dismantle the climate law passed by Democrats in 2022. [ABC News]
Wind turbine (Drew Bae, Unsplash)
¶ “What’s Next For Trump’s Sweeping Policy Bill As House Takes Up Senate Version” • Senate Republicans wrangled just enough votes to pass President Trump’s major tax and immigration bill. The legislation now heads back to the House for final approval, but it’s likely to face some headwinds there, especially because it increases the national debt. [ABC News]
¶ “Trump Says He’ll ‘Look’ At Deporting Elon Musk As Feud Reignites” • President Trump told reporters his administration will “have to take a look” at deporting Musk after the Tesla CEO reignited the feud over Trump’s spending bill. Musk, a South African national and a naturalized US citizen, made several posts slamming the bill as “utterly insane.” [ABC News]
Elon Musk (The White House, public domain)
¶ “Big Horrible Budget Bill To Kill Countless American Jobs” • Republicans in the Senate did pretty much what many of us had predicted. They passed a huge budget bill that will blow up the US deficit by providing massive tax cuts to billionaires and big corporations while cutting policies that actually support the US economy and create jobs. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Tesla Is Circling The Drain, Thanks To Stupid Elon Tricks” • The latest Electric Vehicle Intelligence Report suggests that Tesla is in desperate trouble. In an email to CleanTechnica, Jeff Coote of EVIR said, “Tesla’s favorability just cratered 27 points. Purchase intent? Down 32. It’s now the only major EV brand underwater across every demographic.” [CleanTechnica]
Tesla (Vlad Tchompalov, Unsplash)
¶ “A Georgia Town Solidly Backed Trump But Could Fall Victim to Green Energy Cuts” • Republicans in Congress want to gut the subsidies for renewable energy in a bill that is likely to pass soon. Cartersville, Georgia, is in a an area that backed Trump with 75% of the vote all three times he was on the ballot. But Cartersville depends on renewable energy growth. [The Well News]
¶ “Building A Nuclear Power Plant Would Be A Costly Endeavor, Experts Say” • Governor Kathy Hochul announced plans for New York state to build a nuclear plant. It’s not a renewable resource, but it would produce carbon-free power while it operates. There are many concerns about with nuclear power, and some experts question its affordability. [NY State of Politics]
Have an altogether excellent day.
geoharvey 
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