Opinion:
¶ “Why Grid Forming BESS Technology Is Crucial To Future Renewable Energy Supply” • Battery energy storage systems can supply more responsive grid inertia than the synchronous power generators of traditional systems. Global generating additions from 2024 to 2034 will be dominated by renewable energy that requires BESS support. [Wood Mackenzie]
Power lines (Dmitriy, Unsplash)
World:
¶ “Oil Is Going To Take A BIG Hit” • While the US is clearly far behind the world at large, and especially China and Europe, what is clear from our May report is that the car industry is electrifying. With 25% of new vehicles being plugin vehicles, we don’t actually see a big hit to the oil industry yet. That time is coming, however, and soon. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “These Tiny Creatures Gorge, Get Fat, And Help Fight Global Warming” • Zooplankton gorge themselves and grow fat in spring before sinking hundreds of meters into the deep ocean in Antarctica. This locks away as much planet-warming carbon as the annual emissions of roughly 55 million petrol cars, stopping it from further warming our atmosphere. [BBC]
Copepod (Janek Lass, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
¶ “European Central Bank Boldly Goes Where Others Fear To Tread” • This year, Europe is baking in extreme heat that has contributed to several deaths. The heat, along with a degradation of nature, can be seen as a political failure. Nevertheless, the European Central Bank is determined to keep climate change as part of its planning agenda. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “BYD Electric Truck Sales Up 333%” • BYD’s commercial vehicle sales started rising considerably at the end of 2024, and they’ve been soaring in 2025. In June, sales were up 333% year over year. Even better, across the first half of the year, sales were up a whopping 711%. They rose from 3,740 in H1 of 2024 to 30,344 in H1 of 2025. Stunning. [CleanTechnica]
BYD electric trucks (Courtesy of BYD)
¶ “UK Gives BP-EnBW Green Light For 1.5-GW Mona” • UK Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has granted planning consent to BP, EnBW’s 1.5-GW Mona offshore wind farm. The 96-turbine array is the first Round 4 development to reach the milestone. The project is to connect to the National Grid’s Bodelwyddan substation in north Wales. [reNews]
¶ “Inch Cape Welcomes First Export Cable Delivery” • Inch Cape Offshore Limited confirmed the arrival of its first export cable at the Port of Blyth. The 85 km long, 220-kV dual circuit AC cable arrived aboard the barge Dong Fang Hai Gong 07, towed up the River Blyth estuary by the tug Brent. Installation will be carried out in three sections by Enshore Subsea. [reNews]
Cable-laying barge (Ithica image)
¶ “Norway Clears Test For GE 18-MW Giant” • The Norwegian regulator granted GE subsidiary Georgine Wind permission to install an 18-MW turbine in the municipality of Gulen as part of a test program to advance offshore wind technology. The project, if built, will feature an 18-MW offshore turbine with a rotor of up to 250 metres in diameter. [reNews]
¶ “DEME Launches Second Norse WTIV” • DEME has launched its second wind-turbine installation vessel, Norse Energi, at the Yantai CIMC Raffles yard in China. The GustoMSC-designed jack-up can handle turbines with rotor diameters above 300 meters and XXL monopiles of up to 3000 tonnes in water as deep as 70 meters. [reNews]
Norse Energi (DEME Group image)
¶ “India Renewable Power Output Grows At Fastest Pace In Three Years” • India’s renewable power output rose at its fastest pace since 2022 in the first half of 2025, a Reuters analysis shows. Renewable power output jumped 24.4% to 134.43 billion kWh for January–June 2025, according to a Reuters analysis of data from the federal grid regulator. [MSN]
¶ “EDF To Spend Estimated $7 Billion On Extending Life Of Nuclear Plants” • French utility EDF expects to spend €6 billion ($7.05 billion) on extending the life of twenty nuclear reactors, after getting the go-ahead from the country’s nuclear regulator. The ASN said state-owned EDF could proceed with upgrading safety standards at its 1300-MW reactors. [MSN]
Cattenom nuclear plant (Stefan Kühn, CC-BY-SA 3.0, cropped)
¶ “High-Voltage Line Powering Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant Restored” • Specialist personnel from Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s national power company, restored the operation of the high-voltage transmission line supplying power to the temporarily occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant. The line had been cut by shelling. [Ukrainska Pravda]
US:
¶ “Madre Fire In California Explodes To More Than 52,000 Acres In One Day” • A California wildfire exploded overnight, with the massive blaze prompting evacuation orders and a highway closure. The Madre Fire ignited Wednesday afternoon in San Luis Obispo County, according to Cal Fire. It has since grown to more than 52,500 acres. [ABC News]
Madre Fire (Bureau of Land Management)
¶ “US EV Tax Credits Ended Sooner Than Expected In Big Bad Budget Bill” • Two weeks ago, it looked like the Republican plan to cut EV incentives may lead to a huge surge in EV sales through the end of the year, but that was based on the plans proposed in the early stages of the bill. As it turns out, the EV tax credits are ending on September 30, 2025. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Shale’s Self-Inflicted Crisis: Wastewater Injection Is Sinking Profits” • The shale industry is facing problems it created. Across major shale-producing basins, particularly East Texas and the Permian, excessive wastewater injection practices have created areas with extreme overpressure, threatening the economic viability of shale production. [CleanTechnica]
Have a particularly praiseworthy day.
geoharvey 
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