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Energy Week #478 – 6/30/2022 (to be recorded on 7/1/22
Minute 0: Introduction
Thursday, June 23
FedEx delivery truck (FedEx image)
Minute 2
¶ “Brightdrop Delivers 150 Electric Vans To FedEx” • FedEx and Brightdrop announced that the first 150 Zevo 600 electric vans have been delivered to facilities around southern California. This would make for one of the biggest deployments of electric vans to date. It’s also the fastest GM has brought a vehicle from design to market in its history. [CleanTechnica]
Children in Bangladesh (Nayeem Is J Preenon, CC-BY-SA 4.0)
Minute 5
¶ “Millions Affected As Deadly Floods Hit India And Bangladesh” • The South Asian nations of India and Bangladesh, home to more than 1.3 billion people, have been particularly badly hit by the rains, prompting some of the worst flooding in the region in years. Extreme weather events are increasingly frequent due to climate change. [CNN]
Bombed PVs (Ukrainian war crime investigators and Solar Generation)
Minute 8
¶ “Solar Power Plants Are More Missile Resistant” • Probably all of us have seen them the images of death and destruction in Ukraine. Every one has been heart rending. But, there’s one interesting piece of good news that came out of the country recently. It is the proof that it’s pretty difficult to take out a solar power plant. [CleanTechnica]
German nuclear plant (Felix König, CC-BY-SA 3.0, cropped)
Minute 11
¶ “Could Germany Keep Its Nuclear Plants Running?” • As Germany seeks to fuel its economy and ward off a recession considered likely if faltering Russian gas supplies stop entirely, some are calling for nuclear plants to stay open. Utilities say constraints in sourcing fuel rods and expert staffing make that impossible. [The Indian Express]
Friday, June 24
Natural gas pipe-laying ship (Philfaebuckie, CC0 1.0 public domain)
Minute 13
¶ “Germany Declares Gas Crisis As Russia Cuts Supplies To Europe” • Germany activated the second phase of its three-stage gas emergency program, after Russia reduced the amount of natural gas it supplies. This takes Germany one step closer to rationing gas to industry, which would be a huge blow to the manufacturing heart of its economy. [CNN]
Massachusetts solar array (Agilitas Energy image)
Minute 16
¶ “Two SMART Projects From Agilitas Energy Bringing Renewable Energy To Massachusetts” • Agilitas Energy, a developer and operator of distributed energy storage and PV systems, announced two Solar Massachusetts Renewable Target projects in its pipeline. They will help accelerate the Bay State’s transition to renewable energy. [CleanTechnica]
Saturday, June 25
Hawaiian Duck (Eric Tessmer, CC-BY-SA 3.0)
Minute 19
¶ “Wildlife Officials Want To Make It Easier To Relocate Climate-Imperiled Species” • The Endangered Species Act typically allows species to be introduced outside of their current range, but only within its historical range. But for some species, all of that range is becoming uninhabitable. New policy is needed, according to wildlife officials. [National Audubon Society]
Ukrainian wheat field (Polina Rytova, Unsplash)
Minute 22
¶ “World Leaders Are Facing Crises On All Fronts. Putin Will Be Watching If They Fail” • As the G7 approaches, Russian President Vladmir Putin’s officials are hinting at nuclear Armageddon, China is increasingly assertive, a global food crunch is on the way, oil prices are spiking, and both global economic slowdown and a cost-of-living crisis are looming. [CNN]
House lit up in a blackout (Tesla image)
Minute 24
¶ “Tesla Invites New Round Of Californians To Enroll In Virtual Power Plant” • Tesla recently launched of its new virtual power plant in partnership with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E). The virtual power plant will allow Powerwall owners to opt into the program to help stabilize the electric grid and end blackouts in California. [CleanTechnica]
Sunday, June 26
Firefighters training (Matt C, Unsplash)
Minute 27
¶ “What Firefighters Can Teach Us About Preparing The Grid For Extreme Weather” • Preparing for emergencies and preventing disasters requires planning, equipment, and communications. This is as true for operating the electric power system in extreme weather as it is for fighting fires. For emergencies, firefighters and utilities both share resources. [CleanTechnica]
Hybrid solar-wind plant in Germany (Toksave, CC-BY-SA 3.0)
Minute 30
¶ “Energy Shock Tests G7 Leaders’ Climate Resolve” • Leaders of the Group of Seven nations are under pressure to stick to climate pledges. Germany is in an awkward position as G7 summit host, having recently announced that it will burn more coal to offset a drop in Russian gas supplies amid deteriorating ties over the war in Ukraine. [France 24]
Ford F-150 Lighting (Ford image)
Minute 32
¶ “Ford Ends Leasing Buyout Provision For Electric Vehicles” • It used to be that leasing a car was a way for some people to drive more car than they could otherwise afford. One advantage was that the person leasing the car could purchase it at the end of the lease period for a predetermined price. But such a deal may not be available at Ford anymore. [CleanTechnica]
Monday, June 27
Vineyard (Daniel Salgado, Unsplash)
Minute 35
¶ “Full-Bodied With Notes of Band-Aid and Medicine” • Vintners are no strangers to the vicissitudes wrought by climate change. Warmer temperatures have been a boon to some in traditionally cooler regions who are rejoicing over riper berries. But scorching heat waves, wildfires, and other climate-driven calamities have more often ruined harvests. [The Atlantic]
Monument Valley (Florian Schneider, Unsplash)
Minute 38
¶ “Arizona DOT Wants You To Suggest Sites for EV Charging Stations” • The Arizona Department of Transportation has an interactive map that gives EV enthusiasts a chance to express their views on where EV chargers should be installed. As pioneers of a new technology, and many of EV drivers know a lot more about such things than state officials do. [CleanTechnica]
Launch in 2016 (SpaceX, Unsplash)
Minute 40
¶ “Climate Damage Caused By Growing Space Tourism Needs Urgent Mitigation” • Researchers from UCL, the University of Cambridge and MIT used a 3-D model to explore the impact of rocket launches and re-entry, and the impact of projected space tourism. The damage done by space launches was shown to be almost incredibly polluting. [CleanTechnica]
Tuesday, June 28
Patagonia (ORPC image)
Minute 43
¶ “Portland Renewable Energy Firm To Install Power System At Other End Of The World” • Ocean Renewable Power Co, based in Portland, Maine, is a developer of renewable power systems that generate electricity from river and tidal currents. It plans to install a new power system more than 6,400 miles from Maine next year, in Chile. [Mainebiz]
Woman watering crops (USAID Africa Bureau, public domain)
Minute 46
¶ “Fertilizer Shortage Hits African Farmers Battling Food Crisis” • Fertilizer, the key ingredient needed to help crops grow, is in short supply globally. Global prices have sky-rocketed in part because of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The crisis has left many African countries, which are very dependent on foreign imports, scrambling to find solutions. [BBC]
Electric ferry (Courtesy of Candela)
Minute 48
¶ “Sleek Electric Ferry Flies Over Water, Picks Off Diesel Ferries” • If all goes according to plan, commuters in Stockholm will be able to climb aboard the world’s fastest electric ship, the Candela P-12 Shuttle, when it goes into service from the suburb of Ekerö to the city center next year. Candela is already well known for its sporty-looking electric boats. [CleanTechnica]
Wednesday, June 29
NextEra expected costs (NextEra image)
Minute 51
¶ “We Don’t Need Base Load Power” • Base load power often supplies the electricity in the middle of the night, but we can use power from other sources instead. The issue is not technical. It is just a matter of cost. Because of low battery costs, our electricity can be cheaper and better. We can use them, save money, and have a better system. [CleanTechnica]
Airbus concept airplane (Airbus image)
Minute 54
¶ “Green Hydrogen In Play For Airbus Hydrogen Hub Scheme” • Airbus has just signed an agreement with the global industrial gas firm Linde to help carry out a plan to develop hydrogen hubs at airports around the world. There are different ways to bring this about, including some that are entirely free of all polluting emissions. [CleanTechnica]
Offshore wind farm (Nicholas Doherty, Unsplash)
Minute 56
¶ “European Council Reaches Agreement On Its Renewable Energy Directive” • The European Council agreed to set a new binding EU-wide target of 40% of energy coming from renewable sources in the overall energy mix by 2030, up from the previous 32% target. Energy production and use account for 75% of the EU’s emissions, the EC said. [PV Tech]
Minute 59: Finis
Notes: Energy Week #478 – 6/30/2022
George Harvey, blogger, author, and journalist for Green Energy Times and CleanTechnica, computer engineer
Tom Finnell, electrical engineer, transmission grid expert, world traveler, philanthropist, and philosopher
Energy, Renewable Energy, Wind Power, Solar, Batteries, Nuclear, Coal, Oil, Gas, Climate Change
Energy Week with George Harvey and Tom Finnell 