By Karina Hershberg, PE For most of human history, work and activity has been shaped by the sun. During the day, humans could farm, socialize, and build. At sunset, activity had to slow down, and shelter found. Energy was only used when energy was available, during daylight hours. We were leading Net Zero Carbon lives
Environment
I saw an interesting post by Tesla on its LinkedIn page about the story of Neville and Linda Hicks, who are part of South Australia’s Virtual Power Plant. Tesla shared a snippet of their story and a news article by ABC 7.30 on how rewiring Australian households could save them up to $6,000 per year.
A coal fired power plant in Jiayuguan, Gansu province, China. Qilai Shen | Bloomberg | Getty Images Even with the current drive toward more renewable energy sources, global carbon emissions are going to increase through 2050, unless there are significant changes in policy or technology between now and then. That’s according to a new report
Magali Sanchez-Hall, a Wilmington resident for over two decades, has struggled with asthma her entire life. She says the health issue stems from her proximity to oil and gas drilling. Emma Newburger | CNBC LOS ANGELES, CALIF. — Stepping out of a coffee shop near Interstate 110 in the Wilmington neighborhood of Los Angeles, you’re
A poppy seed from your morning bagel is about 1,000 times larger than a bacterial cell. That small cell is about 1,000 times larger than the chemical structures National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) researchers are creating and studying to transform how we use energy. A Smaller, Stranger World At such a small scale, the world
A worker adjusts a pipeline valve at the Gazprom PJSC Slavyanskaya compressor station, the starting point of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, in Ust-Luga, Russia, on Thursday, Jan. 28, 2021. Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images LONDON — Winter isn’t even upon us yet and Europe is already experiencing a gas market crisis with
In this article @NG.1 The Point of Ayr Gas Terminal in Talacre, Wales, on September 20, 2021. Christopher Furlong | Getty Images A global energy crunch is sending natural gas prices soaring in the U.K., Europe and Asia hitting record highs. However, experts say the stratospheric prices seen in Europe are unlikely to carry over
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced a new National Community Solar Partnership (NCSP) target: to enable community solar systems to power the equivalent of five million households by 2025 and create $1 billion in energy bill savings. Reaching these milestones will help achieve the Biden-Harris Administration’s goals of achieving 100% clean electricity
SunPower has launched a new program, SunPower 25X25, which is aimed at increasing clean, renewable energy access in historically marginalized communities. Notably, whether inspired by it or just coincidental (I’d guess the former), this lines up perfectly with a new initiative from the Biden administration — the Justice40 Initiative. Aside from bringing cheap and clean
Another month, another mysterious tweak to Tesla’s referral program. Back in September, Tesla surprised us with the sudden removal of its cars from the referral program. Prior to September 18th, 2021, you could get 1,000 free miles of Tesla Supercharging with the purchase or lease of any Tesla vehicle as long as you used a
Workers photographed walking past a section of solar panels at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai on March 20, 2017. STRINGER | AFP | Getty Images DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United Arab Emirates will invest more than $160 billion to become the first Gulf state to achieve net zero carbon
Headlines are highlighting Europe’s energy challenges at present, with extremely high natural gas prices shocking consumers and corporations. But this was entirely predictable, and in fact was predicted. The real problem was the pivot to natural gas as a bridge fuel, and too much focus on building efficiency instead of fuel switching. Historic natural gas
ESS is a manufacturer of iron flow batteries in the state of Oregon. At the present time, lithium-ion batteries account for about 85% of grid-scale energy storage. That technology is time-tested and reliable. Prices continue to fall, but lithium-ion batteries have some issues. They use materials like lithium, cobalt, manganese, aluminum, and nickel that can
Life-cycle assessments are ways to gauge the impact of any product or process. What is the cost of a system over a defined period of time? Life-cycle assessments are really important as we consider the transition to renewable energy sources, especially as we share insights into a zero emissions future with newbies or cynics. Life-cycle
Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin back in 2011. FABRICE COFFRINI | AFP | Getty Images LONDON – After Russia rode to Europe’s rescue and offered to increase gas supplies to the region amid soaring prices, experts said one thing had become abundantly clear: Europe is now largely at Russia’s mercy when it comes to energy,
An exciting new initiative has been created by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to catalyze the development of cybersecurity solutions for the nation’s clean energy grid of the future. The Clean Energy Cybersecurity Accelerator brings together federal infrastructure and expertise, asset owners in the energy sector, and
In this article TSLA It’s been five years since Tesla acquired SolarCity for around $2.6 billion. To convince shareholders to approve the deal, Elon Musk hosted a splashy event in Hollywood, where he held up a shiny roof shingle, which he said was a miniaturized solar panel. SolarCity was founded in 2006 by Musk’s cousins,
Gas prices approaching $5 a gallon are displayed in front of a Shell gas station on October 05, 2021 in San Rafael, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images Gas prices have steadily climbed higher this year, and Americans are now paying the most at the pump in seven years. The national average for a gallon
The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) Wind Energy Technologies Office (WETO) provides global leadership in fundamental wind energy science research, development, and validation activities that enable low-cost wind energy. The Office pursues opportunities across all U.S. wind sectors — land-based utility-scale wind, offshore wind, distributed wind — as well as addressing market barriers and system
Genex Power, which is focused on developing a portfolio of renewable energy generation and storage projects across Australia, has announced the execution of a supply agreement contract with Tesla for its Bouldercombe Battery Project in Queensland. The company noted that the Tesla energy storage devices are some of the best products available on the market
In this article TSLA F DAI-DE A Volvo C40 Recharge photographed in Stockholm, Sweden, on March 2, 2021. CLAUDIO BRESCIANI | AFP | Getty Images The CEO of Volvo Cars has told CNBC that the automaker’s shift to electric vehicles is the reason behind its planned listing on the Nasdaq Stockholm stock exchange. The company
Workers cut up coal carts in Dec. 2019 at a coal mine in Mentougou, west of Beijing, where many mines have been shut as China scrambles to cut carbon emissions. Greg Baker | AFP | Getty Images China needs to bolster its coal supply to avoid an economic slowdown this quarter, but Beijing’s icy relations
Wall Street may be on the verge of an uncharacteristically painful quarter. Wharton finance professor Jeremy Siegel, who’s known for his positive market forecasts, is sounding the alarm on the market’s ability to cope with inflation. “We’re headed for some trouble ahead,” he told CNBC’s “Trading Nation” on Friday. “Inflation, in general, is going to
A general view shows the Wujing Coal-Electricity Power Station in Shanghai on September 28, 2021. Hector Retamal | AFP | Getty Images BEIJING — Local Chinese authorities have abruptly ordered power cuts at many factories in the last week, reflecting a system trying to react to a number of directives from Beijing, and macroeconomic developments.
The YouTube channel “Corridor Crew” has shared an awesome video demonstrating just how many solar panels it would take to power the world. The video starts off with the host showing us a future time, 2100, and what it would be like if the world successfully transitioned to sustainability and there were no more climate
BOULDER, Colorado — Feeling overwhelmed with details when it comes to going solar? Don’t know where to start? Need to see the numbers for yourself? Check out your neighbor’s solar system and decreased energy bills! The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) invites you to attend their 26th annual ASES National Solar Tour this weekend, October 2-3.
Steam rises from the cooling towers of the Lippendorf power plant south of Leipzig, Germany. picture alliance | picture alliance | Getty Images LONDON — Euro zone inflation hit its highest level in 13 years in September, as the bloc battles surging energy costs. Headline inflation came in at 3.4% last month, according to preliminary
Climate activists have been turning up the heat on two Democratic holdouts who are on the verge of smothering President Biden’s ambitious climate plans, the well known coal stakeholder Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia and the somewhat lesser known but spotlight-grabbing Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona. Whether or not they continue to hold out
As we trend toward more renewables and distributed energy resources (DERs), the design of the electric distribution system itself imposes physical limitations. These system constraints could lead to issues like overloaded power lines and faults that propagate freely. But what if we could restructure the underlying system to support greater renewable integration and system resilience?
Originally published by Oak Ridge National Laboratory. A team led by the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory has found a rare quantum material in which electrons move in coordinated ways, essentially “dancing.” Straining the material creates an electronic band structure that sets the stage for exotic, more tightly correlated behavior — akin to tangoing
Aerial view of the Diablo Canyon Nuclear Power Plant which sits on the edge of the Pacific Ocean at Avila Beach in San Luis Obispo County, California on March 17, 2011. Mark Ralston | AFP | Getty Images California is not keeping up with the energy demands of its residents. In August 2020, hundreds of
Courtesy of RMI.By New Energy Nexus Philippines The Philippines is one of the most vulnerable countries in the world to climate change. Sea level rise is three to four times faster in this island nation than the global average, and it gets hit with an average of 20 typhoons a year. Energy equity is also a major concern as 10 percent
In this article PXD EOG RRC DVN XOP XLE The energy rally rolls on. The XLE energy ETF has raced ahead of the broader market again in the past month, rallying nearly 13% against the S&P 500‘s 4% drop, as global demand for oil outpaces its supply. An output decision from OPEC+ when the bloc