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It’s been a busy month, and a few weeks have really skipped by us since my final “Cleantech News of the Week” replace. So, it is a two-week abstract of a few of the greatest information we’ve seen and op-eds we’ve written.
Clear Vitality
The world is transferring right into a clear power future, and there’s little doubt about that. One knowledge level displaying us that is indisputable fact that the world is investing nearly twice as a lot cash into clear power than fossil fuels this 12 months. Equally, forecasts for the way a lot clear power can be put in in coming years preserve having to be revised upward.
Within the US, nearly all new energy capability added within the nation this 12 months has come from renewable power sources.
We simply handed the two-year anniversary of the Inflation Discount Act, and analysis reveals that “Red states” (primarily Republican states) have acquired essentially the most funding, regardless of really having far much less of the inhabitants than Blue states. (As a reminder, the Inflation Discount Act was handed by Democrats after they managed Congress, with no help from Republican politicians.)
Maybe on a associated notice, Tina Casey discusses how a lot agrivoltaics and neighborhood solar energy are a match made in heaven.
Steve Hanley additionally mentioned photo voltaic progress and success in Germany, the UK, and Texas.
On the subject of wind energy, the US Division of Vitality has three new reviews out on our rising wind power future.
Sadly — not due to radiation or something like that, however due to primary economics, practicality, and monetary effectivity — some are nonetheless losing their time on new nuclear energy.
However let’s finish with one thing enjoyable — walkable photo voltaic PV flooring. Okay, this might not be essentially the most environment friendly use of photo voltaic PV, but it surely’s a enjoyable choice to discover.
Electrical Automobiles
350 mayors throughout the US have pledged to affect a minimum of 50% of their municipal fleets by 2030 and improve their EV infrastructure by 500% by 2035. The pledge was made as a part of the 2nd anniversary of the Inflation Discount Act.
Now we have a enjoyable new month-to-month report from Jose Pontes during which he does a “market roundup” of the highest international locations on this planet and their EV gross sales traits. These of us into quantity enjoyable are completely loving this.
Colombia shouldn’t be a type of main markets, however we even have a report on this booming younger market, which has seen EV gross sales develop 240% just lately.
Nevertheless it’s not all about new EVs. The good information for almost all of people that store the used automobile market is that used electrical car costs have come down tremendously prior to now a number of months — by 20.5% 12 months over 12 months within the 2nd quarter.
On the subject of Tesla, we mentioned what must be coming from an upgraded Tesla Mannequin Y, just lately noticed undercover, and likewise a super-trimmed-down and cheaper Mannequin 3 for Mexico.
Concerningly, Tesla’s favorability dropped from amongst Democrats 39% to 16% in simply 6 months this 12 months! There are some anticipated causes for that, however they go a bit broader than we in all probability assume, as a result of
On the constructive entrance for Tesla, it received a comparatively small 9% tariff added to the bottom EV tariff of 10% for electrical automobiles produced in China and shipped to the EU. That ought to assist shield it from a giant gross sales drop in Europe.
Over in China, EV startup Zeekr has now set a brand new excessive bar for how briskly an electrical automobile (on the market in the marketplace immediately) can cost. The corporate additionally simply reached 300,000 cumulative gross sales.
Chinese language EV corporations Zeekr, BYD, and NIO additionally proceed their speedy enlargement in markets all over the world, most just lately into Japan, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, and the UAE.
At residence, China’s received a brand new “cash for clunkers” program to incentivize extra EV gross sales and get extra outdated polluting automobiles off the street.
We’ve additionally had a couple of broader articles concerning the EV management of China — how long-term imaginative and prescient and 20 years of coverage initiatives have led to China dominating the clear power and EV markets. All of the whereas, too many within the US — together with in energy available in the market or politics — have been complacent, entitled, and afraid of change. On that matter, GM and Ford have, sadly, adopted the short-term, anti-community, short-sighted steerage of Jack Welch — and it’s not turning out nicely.
Sticking to US challenges, the most recent information is that the rollout of Tesla Supercharging adapters for non-Tesla manufacturers shouldn’t be going nicely — it’s going very slowly as a result of an unexplained glacial tempo of manufacturing of those adapters by Tesla. Hopefully that may change quickly.
A police chief in Georgia explains how he went from EV skeptic to EV lover. It’s a enjoyable story.
Many anti-EV folks like to assert “they’re not as green as you think they are.” Nicely, that’s bunk. And on that matter, the US Division of Vitality factors out that “a small electric SUV with a range of 300 miles produces 52% fewer life cycle greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions than a comparable gasoline vehicle.”
George Harvey wrote a enjoyable little thought train on what’s going to occur as we come to the tip of the fossil gas period.
And over in Kenya, we’ve received the constructive information that the federal government there’s shopping for 1,000 electrical autos for its workers, a rising development of robust authorities coverage in direction of EVs over in Africa.
Robotaxis
Maybe these must be within the part above, however I’m giving them their very own class.
The most important information is that Waymo has tripled its weekly paid robotaxi journeys in simply 3 months!
Additionally, the corporate has a brand new, Sixth-generation self-driving system simply launched which might drive in additional excessive climate, is cheaper than ever, and was developed sooner than ever.
Different
The 2028 Olympic Video games in Los Angeles are reportedly going to be car-free. It’s laborious to think about that in one of the vital auto-dependent cities on this planet. However that’s the objective. As a part of that, we’re anticipating to have electrical air taxis on the 2028 Olympics! The truth is, the extra bold objective is to have these electrical air taxis in operation for the 2026 World Cup within the cities of Los Angeles and San Francisco.
On the matter of electrical air taxis, the important thing firm behind these plans talked about above, Archer Aviation, additionally simply offered 116 of its Midnight electrical plane to Future Flight International.
Relating to the approaching presidential election within the US, I additionally mentioned one thing I’d a lot moderately not focus on — how the Trump administration goals to dismantle local weather motion, clear power progress, and even basic items just like the Nationwide Climate Service and Division of Vitality if Trump is elected once more. That’s a part of a Mission 2025 agenda constructed by dozens of former Trump admin folks and other people very near Trump and JD Vance, and it basically goals to “drown the government in the bathwater,” as Grover Norquist as soon as suggested.
Okay, I’ll finish on one other unhealthy notice. I identified in an op-ed just lately that, satirically and sadly, it appears the folks most afraid of immigration to the US (a rustic constructed by immigrants) are additionally most probably to disregard the underlying local weather disaster that’s inflicting a lot of this immigration. Ugh.
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