BYD expands EV shipping fleet as wars upend freight costs and key trade routes
restofworld.org · “Renting a car carrier with capacity of about 6,500 cars now costs $95,000 a day, up from $50,000 in February” Oct 23Microsoft abandons UK AI supercomputer as grid struggles to keep up
theregister.com · “Getting them connected to the grid, and keeping the neighbors happy, is proving rather more difficult.” Oct 20Amazon to fund 12 small nuclear reactors at former Indiana coal plant
techcrunch.com · “The most recent nuclear power plants built in the U.S. suffered from egregious budget overruns and slipped timelines.” Oct 20- Oct 9
World's first enhanced geothermal power plant completed in just 23 months
techcrunch.com · “From groundbreaking to commercial operations, the first block at Cape Station took 23 months to complete.” Oct 2Awkward: Saudi Arabia's new EV brand takes on the U.S. rival it already controls
restofworld.org · “Combined, their full-capacity targets are roughly 10 times what the domestic market can plausibly absorb near-term.” Oct 1
Soaring U.S. diesel prices slam local communities as fuel costs surge
cbsnews.com · “One Georgia food bank said it will spend an extra $100,000 this year on diesel, money that otherwise would have gone to feed families.” Sep 29South Africa joins the global resistance against American data centers
restofworld.org · “A massive data center is trying to jump the queue and take our land, water and energy.” Sep 17- Sep 16
Higher-enriched uranium for datacenters has DoE all aglow
theregister.com · “Nusano expects each unit will produce 5.9 metric tons (MT) of HALEU per year, with the first unit scheduled to be operational in 2031” Sep 15Diesel prices are nearing $6 a gallon for the first time ever
cbsnews.com · “There’s just not enough diesel right now in Russia to export any volume of it, and that’s unfortunately a big problem for a global economy that sees almost every piece of heavy machinery needing diesel.” Sep 10Google commits over $15B to AI infrastructure in Finland
esgdive.com · “Google’s deal will begin with it receiving a smaller amount of electric capacity, before it expands to allow for the purchase of up to 50% of the plant’s capacity from 2030-49.” Sep 10Global stocks slide as Brent crude surpasses $100 a barrel
aljazeera.com · “The benchmark crude contract rose to $100.19 on Wednesday, its highest level since July 24, when a memorandum of understanding between the United States and Iran was in place, and its price was on the downswing.” Sep 10DOE Approves $1.9 Billion Loan to NextEra for Google's Revived Nuclear Plant
techcrunch.com · “The facility’s owner, NextEra Energy, has received a $1.9 billion loan from the U.S. Department of Energy to finance the refurbishment.” Sep 9Think your EV holds its value? China has some bad news for you
restofworld.org · “Exporting the car is the easy part. Building the ecosystem that supports its second and third owner is much harder.” Sep 8Oil Surges Toward $100 as US-Iran Attacks Escalate
finance.yahoo.com · “The latest rally followed a weekend escalation in which the U.S. military struck three Iranian oil tankers after Iran launched ballistic missiles at two U.S. Navy warships.” Sep 8Fervo and Google sign world's largest deal for next-gen geothermal power
canarymedia.com · “Even though right now we don’t have clarity yet on how this will service a data center … we know that it will be a foundational building block” Sep 2
Green Party wants to slam the brakes on UK datacenter construction until water and energy use are sorted
theregister.com · “A pause on building new datacenters would simply send investment and good jobs abroad, while leaving Britain dependent on overseas computing for the processing of sensitive health and defense data.” Aug 29
UK wants datacenters to pay a fee for grid connection requests
theregister.com · “The electricity demand connections queue has more than tripled in size in less than a year, and consumers should not bear the risks created by speculative projects taking up space in the system” Jul 31Why Is Everyone Trying to Build a Solid-State Battery?
construction-physics.com · “If, however, the liquid electrolyte were replaced with some sort of solid material, these dendrites might stop being a problem.” Jul 31Indian EV makers beat Tesla and BYD on energy efficiency
restofworld.org · “Indian manufacturers are beating Tesla and BYD at building energy-efficient electric cars.” Jul 29Canadian Lab Extracts 90% of Nuclear Waste Danger in 24 Hours
autonocion.com · “Moltex projects that a single 300 MW SSR-W could run for its full 60-year life on recycled fuel from about 260,000 used CANDU bundles.” Jul 26Meta Will Build Its First Canadian Data Center in Alberta
finance.yahoo.com · “This is the first of its kind, the first of its size, the first of its scale, but it won’t be the last.” Jul 9Google's Exponential Path to Climate-Wrecking Digital Bloat
ketanjoshi.co · “The company’s total electricity consumption jumped from 31 terawatt hours (TWh) in 2024 to 43 TWh in 2025. This is very easily the biggest increase in their electricity consumption ever.” Jul 7PJM grid operator orders emergency steps to avoid large-scale outages
devdiscourse.com · “PJM is running generators at full capacity and reducing electricity demand to avoid outages.” Jul 3- Jul 1
Belgium stops decommissioning nuclear power plants
dpa-international.com · “Belgium reverses its 2003 nuclear phaseout and will keep all seven reactors operating past 2035.” Apr 30Solar and batteries can power the world
nworbmot.org · “Combined solar PV and battery costs have fallen below the levelized cost of fossil generation in every major grid region.” Apr 3
Britain today generating 90%+ of electricity from renewables
grid.iamkate.com · “Wind, solar, and hydro combined to produce more than 90 percent of UK grid power across a 24-hour period for the first time.” Mar 28Honda is killing its EVs
techcrunch.com · “Honda is canceling its 2027 EV platform and pulling back to hybrids only.” Mar 15Ireland shuts last coal plant, becomes 15th coal-free country in Europe
pv-magazine.com · “Moneypoint, Ireland’s last operating coal plant, has shut down for good.” Mar 9First Solar Car Rolls Off Validation Assembly Line At Aptera
aptera.us · “These first vehicles will be used to complete the key tests and optimization required to sell our first vehicles to customers.” Mar 7
The AI boom is causing shortages everywhere else
washingtonpost.com · “Power, water, copper, concrete, and high-end memory are all in short supply because of AI infrastructure buildout.” Feb 7Walmart Begins Building Out Nationwide EV Charging Network Across America
finance.yahoo.com · “With a store or club located within 10 miles of approximately 90% of Americans, we are uniquely positioned to deliver a convenient charging option.” Feb 1
US electricity demand surged in 2025 – solar handled 61% of it
electrek.co · “Of the new electricity demand the US grid added in 2025, 61 percent was met by new solar capacity.” Jan 17Ford F-150 Lightning outsold the Cybertruck and was then canceled for poor sales
electrek.co · “Ford has discontinued the F-150 Lightning despite outselling the Cybertruck for two consecutive quarters.” Jan 14
Energy Department Closes $1 Billion Loan to Restart Pennsylvania Nuclear Plant
energy.gov · “The Energy Department announced it closed a $1 billion loan to accelerate the restart of a Pennsylvania nuclear power plant that will deliver 850 megawatts of electricity.” Nov 18Solar and Wind Now Growing Fast Enough to Meet All New Electricity Demand
ember-energy.org · “For the first time across a sustained period, renewables generated more electricity than coal globally.” Nov 15Palisades Becomes First US Nuclear Plant to Return from Decommissioning
utilitydive.com · “The Palisades nuclear plant in Michigan has officially returned to operational status after being in decommissioning for three years.” Nov 8New Catalyst Converts CO2 to Fuel at Record Efficiency
sciencedaily.com · “When compared to noble metal catalysts such as platinum, the new catalyst demonstrated a 2.2-fold higher formation rate and a 1.8-fold higher yield.” Nov 5French Highway Wirelessly Charges EVs Faster Than Tesla Superchargers
techradar.com · “A system that allows continuous charging on the move could eliminate lengthy refueling stops altogether.” Nov 1
US Datacenters Turn to Coal as Climate Goals Go Up in Smoke
news.slashdot.org · “Coal generation increased nearly 20 percent year-to-date.” Oct 10
US Warns Hidden Radios May Be Embedded In Solar-Powered Highway Infrastructure
reuters.com · “Undocumented cellular radios found in foreign-manufactured power inverters and battery management systems.” Sep 12Solar Power Has Begun to Transform the World's Energy System
newyorker.com · “Solar power and HVDC cable technology now allows moving energy across continents, oceans, and time zones.” Sep 3
America's Clean Hydrogen Dreams Are Fading
hardware.slashdot.org · “Three-quarters of proposals will not meet this deadline,” according to Wood Mackenzie, regarding the shortened qualification window for Biden-era tax credits. Aug 11Hyundai To Help Build Nuclear-Powered Datacenter In Texas
hardware.slashdot.org · “This agreement is significant in that it allows us to participate from the early stages of this project and contribute to the creation of the world’s largest integrated energy and artificial intelligence campus.” Aug 4Researchers Map Where Solar Energy Delivers the Biggest Climate Payoff
hardware.slashdot.org · “In California, a 15% increase in solar power at noon was associated with a reduction of 147.18 metric tons of CO2 in the first hour.” Aug 1
Nickel Workers Powered the EV Battery Boom. Now, Layoffs Have Hit.
restofworld.org · “As people now rely on wages from nickel, layoffs will cause poverty.” Jul 23Datacenter Growth Estimates Likely Exaggerated
theregister.com · “Fulfilling all US datacenter forecasts through 2030 would require 90 percent of all the growth in the global AI chip supply.” Jul 10Dangerous Mines: Zimbabwe's Lithium Mining Boom
restofworld.org · “Local people are the losers.” Jul 8Is This the Electric Grid of the Future?
technologyreview.com · “Nebraska is the only 100% public power state, with utilities owned and managed entirely by the state’s own communities.” Jul 3Taiwan Is Creating an Offshore Wind Industry to Fuel Its Semiconductor Factories
restofworld.org · “It’s like constructing a building in a place that is constantly shaking and completely unpredictable.” Jul 2
DARPA program sets distance record for power beaming
darpa.mil · “The team recorded more than 800 watts of power delivered during a 30-second transmission from a laser 8.6 kilometers (5.3 miles) away.” Jun 15Wendelstein 7-X sets new fusion record
heise.de · “The fact that we were able to raise the triple product to tokamak level with long plasma duration times marks another important milestone on the way to a stellarator suitable for power plants.” Jun 3
Google to Back Three New Advanced Nuclear Projects
esgtoday.com · “Our collaboration with Elementl Power enhances our ability to move at the speed required to meet this moment of AI and American innovation.” May 8
How the April 28, 2025, power outage in Portugal and Spain impacted Internet traffic and connectivity
blog.cloudflare.com · “In Portugal, Internet traffic dropped as the power grid failed, with traffic immediately dropping by half as compared to the previous week, falling to approximately 90% below the previous week within the next five hours.” Apr 28Bezos-backed Slate Auto debuts analog EV pickup truck that is decidedly anti-Tesla
techcrunch.com · “The company is saying it will start under $20,000 after the federal tax credit (providing that still exists next year).” Apr 25Data Centers Can Slash Power Needs With One Coding Tweak
spectrum.ieee.org · “It is sort of a best case because the 30 percent applies to the network stack or communication part of it…” Apr 21Fossil fuels fall below 50% of US electricity for the first month on record
ember-energy.org · “In March 2025, fossil fuels accounted for less than 50% (49.2%) of electricity generated, for the first month on record.” Apr 21Tesla Releases Stripped-Out RWD Cybertruck That Is So Much Worse For Not Much Less Money
jalopnik.com · “While the RWD Cybertruck was said to have a starting price of under $40,000 back then (and then around $61,000 last year when it was available to order but never actually entered production), you’ll now have to pony up $71,985 for it, including $1,995 destination.” Apr 13Tesla Solar Sales Declined for 4 Straight Quarters, Then Tesla Stopped Publishing the Numbers
cleantechnica.com · “The company published the numbers for those 4 quarters, but then, in the next quarter, Q1 2024, Tesla simply lamented that its solar installations had declined year over year but stopped publishing those figures.” Apr 9University of Michigan cracks rapid EV charging in freezing temps
electrek.co · “Charging an EV battery takes 30 to 40 minutes even for aggressive fast charging, and that time increases to over an hour in the winter.” Apr 5
Tesla Sales Fall Off A Cliff Globally, Including Germany, Australia, And China
carscoops.com · “Tesla was proudly proclaiming less than a year ago that it would be selling 20 million electric vehicles annually by 2030.” Mar 9Suspicious Tesla Sales Surge Triggers Canadian Government Investigation
motorillustrated.com · “Over a three-day period, Tesla reported selling 8,600 vehicles at four locations across the country, resulting in $43 million in government rebates.” Mar 7Cabinet moves to reverse Italy's anti-nuclear stance
world-nuclear-news.org · “Italy’s Council of Ministers has approved a draft law calling for the government to adopt a series of legislative decrees to create the legal framework for the reintroduction of nuclear power, which was phased out following a referendum in 1987.” Mar 4
Electricity returns to most of Chile after a sweeping blackout, but questions remain
wlrn.org · “It is not tolerable that the daily lives of millions of Chileans are affected by the responsibility of one or several companies,” Boric said in his nationally televised address. Feb 26Nuclear fusion: WEST beats the world record for plasma duration!
cea.fr · “This was a 25% improvement on the previous record time achieved with EAST, in China, a few weeks previously.” Feb 18Carbon capture more costly than switching to renewables, researchers find
techxplore.com · “If you spend $1 on carbon capture instead of on wind, water, and solar, you are increasing CO2, air pollution, energy requirements, energy costs, pipelines, and total social costs…” Feb 15Tesla Cybertruck Drives Itself Into a Pole, Owner Says 'Thank You Tesla'
thedrive.com · “It failed to merge out of a lane that was ending (there was no one on my left) and made no attempt to slow down or turn until it had already hit the curb.” Feb 11To buy a Tesla Model 3, only to end up in hell
myteslaexperience.com · “Tesla acknowledges all faults in the vehicle (except for battery losses, a fact on which it has not yet formally commented).” Feb 10Cities Can Cost Effectively Start Their Own Utilities Now
kevin.burke.dev · “The average PG&E electricity charge now starts at 40 cents per kilowatt hour and goes up from there.” Feb 7A Pinch of Salt Boosts Aluminum Batteries
spectrum.ieee.org · “The researcher’s tests demonstrated that the resulting battery design can have an extremely long life, with the battery retaining 99 percent of its original capacity after 10,000 charge/discharge cycles.” Feb 6
23 percent of Teslas are dumped at the checkpoint in Denmark
boostedmagazine.com · “A total of 4,668 Tesla Model 3s of the 2020 model year were inspected between January 1 and November 21, 2024, and of those, 1,051 failed.” Jan 27Caltrain's Electric Fleet More Efficient than Expected
caltrain.com · “Caltrain is running its service on 100% renewable energy and is returning nearly a quarter of that energy to the grid,” said Michelle Bouchard, Caltrain Executive Director. Jan 25I got a heat pump, and my energy bill went up!
heatpumped.org · “My total energy bill more than doubled! This is not uncommon feedback to hear from homeowners after installing a heat pump, but there’s more to the story.” Jan 20World's darkest and clearest skies at risk from industrial megaproject
eso.org · “The proximity of the AES Andes industrial megaproject to Paranal poses a critical risk to the most pristine night skies on the planet,” highlighted ESO Director General, Xavier Barcons. Jan 11In Colorado, a marriage of solar energy and farming provides a model for a more sustainable future
ksjd.org · “The farm’s 3,276 solar panels generate enough electricity to power approximately 300 homes.” Jan 4
Why China Is Building a Thorium Molten-Salt Reactor
spectrum.ieee.org · “Prior to China’s pilot project, the last operating molten-salt reactor was Oak Ridge National Laboratory’s Molten Salt Reactor Experiment, which ran on uranium. It shut down in 1969.” Dec 31Satellite powered estimation of global solar potential
research.google · “With this expansion, we unlock the use of satellite imagery for solar potential estimation, resulting in 125 million new buildings with Solar API data across 23 countries.” Dec 19
Sol-Ark manufacturer reportedly disables all Deye inverters in the US
solarboi.com · “It truly is shitty that Deye didn’t run this geographical check at the initial installation of these inverters.” Nov 30How Oxide Cuts Data Center Power Consumption in Half
oxide.computer · “This eliminates the 70 total AC power supplies found in an equivalent legacy server rack within 32 servers, two top-of-rack switches, and one out-of-band switch, each with two AC power supplies.” Nov 21Which Power Plant Does My Electricity Come From?
practical.engineering · “Power brokers (mainly Enron) were manipulating the newly de-regulated market for bulk electricity, forcing prices to skyrocket.” Nov 19Regulators deliver successive blows to Amazon and Meta’s nuclear power ambitions
techcrunch.com · “The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), which oversees the U.S. electricity and natural gas grids, voted 2-1 on November 1 to deny the expansion of an existing data center power agreement that would have allowed Amazon to connect directly to the power plant.” Nov 5
Tesla releases rare blog post and it's an interesting one: Standardizing Auto Connectivity
electrek.co · “Tesla introduced a new 48-volt low-voltage electronic architecture in the Cybertruck, or a hybrid version of it, to be fair.” Oct 29Unlocking Arkansas' Hidden Treasure: USGS Uses Machine Learning to Show Large Lithium Potential in the Smackover Formation
usgs.gov · “It is important to caution that these estimates are an in-place assessment. We have not estimated what is technically recoverable based on newer methods to extract lithium from brines” Oct 22Amazon goes nuclear, to invest more than $500 million to develop small modular reactors
cnbc.com · “Amazon is the latest large tech company to buy into nuclear power to fuel the growing demands from data centers.” Oct 17Zap Energy shows off its new fusion power prototype, Century
techcrunch.com · “Ultimately, to operate as a commercial power plant, Zap’s reactor will need to spark 10 pulses per second for months on end.” Oct 10Tesla cancels its cheapest electric car
electrek.co · “Tesla often changes its vehicle trims without making any announcement or giving any explanation for the changes.” Oct 3
How much energy does desalinisation use? Is it “absurdly cheap”?
hannahritchie.substack.com · “This was far cheaper than I’d have guessed, and in a water crisis I would agree that this is “absurdly cheap”.” Sep 24Microsoft taps Three Mile Island nuclear plant to power AI
techcrunch.com · “Microsoft has agreed to purchase all of the power from the reactor over the next 20 years, a Constellation spokesperson told TechCrunch.” Sep 20GM electric vehicles can finally access Tesla Superchargers
theverge.com · “To gain immediate access, owners of electric Chevy, Cadillac, and GMC vehicles will need to purchase “GM approved” Tesla adapters through each brand’s smartphone app for $225.” Sep 19Researchers discover a surprising way to jump-start battery performance
eurekalert.org · “Experiments confirmed that charging at high currents has a huge impact, increasing the lifespan of the average test battery by 50%.” Sep 8
Iron as an inexpensive storage medium for hydrogen
ethz.ch · “The pilot plant can store around 10 megawatt hours of hydrogen over long periods. Depending on how you convert the hydrogen into electricity, that’ll give you somewhere between 4 and 6 megawatt hours of power.” Aug 31Breaking Down a Record-Setting Day in ERCOT
blog.gridstatus.io · “Shattering the previous record, battery discharge peaked 20% higher than the previous record, which was set only the day before.” Aug 21The gigantic and unregulated power plants in the cloud
berthub.eu · “These cloud-based management platforms could, by accident, after a hack, or intentionally, simultaneously shut down all their millions of solar panels (permanently). And then the entire European electricity grid would collapse.” Aug 19
Houston-area residents frustrated as they enter sixth day without power and air conditioning in punishing heat
cnn.com · “CenterPoint Energy says it’s hoping to restore power to an additional 350,000 customers by Sunday” Jul 13UChicago Prof. Shirley Meng's Laboratory for Energy Storage and Conversion creates world's first anode-free sodium solid-state battery: a breakthrough in inexpensive, clean, fast-charging batteries
pme.uchicago.edu · “The lithium commonly used for batteries isn’t that common. It makes up about 20 parts per million of the Earth’s crust, compared to sodium, which makes up 20,000 parts per million.” Jul 6Batteries: how cheap can they get?
aukehoekstra.substack.com · “In 2008 batteries were over $1500/kWh but now NMC battery cells (lithium batteries with a cathode from nickel, manganese and cobalt) can be bought for less than $100/kWh and the somewhat heavier lithium iron phosphate cells that are better in every way than those first cells can be had for just $47/kWh.” Jul 4
German firm Synhelion opens 'world's 1st' industrial solar fuel plant
interestingengineering.com · “It also set a target of achieving an annual production volume of one million tonnes of syncrude within 10 years.” Jun 28Solar generates fifth of global electricity on summer solstice midday peak
ember-climate.org · “In absolute terms, Ember expects solar to rise by 28%, from 157 TWh in June 2023 to 201 TWh in June 2024.” Jun 22
A Skeptic’s Take on Beaming Power to Earth from Space
spectrum.ieee.org · “In that respect, beamed power from space is like nuclear fusion, except at least 25 years behind.” May 10Lithium-free sodium batteries exit the lab and enter US production
newatlas.com · “We haven’t seen a weight-based energy density figure from Natron itself, but a 2022 article from Chemical & Engineering News put its sodium-ion batteries at 70 Wh/kg, around the very bottom of the sodium-ion energy density scale.” May 3
Tesla conducting more layoffs, including entire Supercharger team
electrek.co · “6-year veteran Rebecca Tinucci, Tesla’s Senior Director of EV charging, would be leaving the company on Tuesday, along with nearly all of her 500-person charging team” Apr 30
As AI booms, land near nuclear power plants becomes hot real estate
theregister.com · “The facilities will reportedly consume as much as 13 percent of the plant’s output.” Mar 26Giant 'sand battery' holds a week's heat for a whole town
newatlas.com · “That, the companies claim, equates to a week’s worth of Pornainen’s heat demands in winter, or a month’s worth in summer.” Mar 13Tests show high-temperature superconducting magnets are ready for fusion
news.mit.edu · “overnight, it basically changed the cost per watt of a fusion reactor by a factor of almost 40 in one day” Mar 8
The Ute Mountain Ute Tribe will construct one of the largest solar farms in the U.S.
ksut.org · “A proposed solar farm on the Ute Mountain Ute Reservation will have 2.2 million solar panels and will be eight miles long and one mile wide.” Feb 17
The Rise of Batteries in Six Charts and Not Too Many Numbers
rmi.org · “The unstoppable rise of batteries is leading to a domino effect that puts half of global fossil fuel demand at risk.” Jan 26Thailand discovers nearly 15 million tonnes of lithium
malaymail.com · “We are trying to find out how much can we use from the resources we found.” Jan 19A huge battery has replaced Hawaii's last coal plant
canarymedia.com · “Kapolei alone constitutes about 17% of Oahu’s peak capacity.” Jan 10QuantumScape's solid-state batteries pass latest test, could offer 500,000 km without range loss
electrek.co · “PowerCo recently completed an endurance test with QuantumScape’s solid-state cells and determined they can someday power EVs that can drive 500,000 kilometers with virtually no loss of range.” Jan 4
Amazon plans to make its own hydrogen to power vehicles
theverge.com · “The electrolyzer is plugged into the power grid, and fossil fuels still make up about 60 percent of the US electricity mix.” Dec 29First new U.S. nuclear reactor since 2016 is now in operation
eia.gov · “Originally expected to cost $14 billion and begin commercial operation in 2016 (Vogtle 3) and 2017 (Vogtle 4), the project ran into significant construction delays and cost overruns.” Dec 27Tesla shares 48V architecture with other automakers to move the industry
electrek.co · “To be frank, Tesla isn’t sharing its 48V architecture from the Cybertruck for purely altruistic reasons.” Dec 7Tesla is officially losing half $7,500 tax credit on two Model 3 trims
electrek.co · “Tax credit will reduce to $3,750 for Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive and Model 3 Long Range on Jan 1, 2024. Take delivery by Dec 31 for full tax credit.” Dec 5
Tesla open sources all design and engineering of original Roadster
teslarati.com · “Tesla has opened everything from Owner’s Manuals to Circuits and Connectors for the original Roadster.” Nov 23Northvolt develops state-of-the-art sodium-ion battery
northvolt.com · “It is based on a hard carbon anode and a Prussian White-based cathode, and is free from lithium, nickel, cobalt and graphite.” Nov 21The world’s 280 million electric bikes and mopeds are cutting demand for oil far more than electric cars
theconversation.com · “Their sheer popularity is already cutting demand for oil by a million barrels of oil a day – about 1% of the world’s total oil demand.” Nov 17Electric vehicle battery prices are falling faster than expected
goldmansachs.com · “Battery pack prices are now expected to fall by an average of 11% per year from 2023 to 2030.” Nov 17U.S. Reenters the Nuclear Fuel Game
spectrum.ieee.org · “The specialized fuel these advanced reactors will need is currently made on a commercial scale only in Russia.” Nov 15Can solar and wind power Britain? An update of David MacKay’s numbers
hannahritchie.substack.com · “In the last decade the cost of solar power has fallen by around 90%, and wind by 70%.” Nov 5
Desalination system could produce freshwater that is cheaper than tap water
news.mit.edu · “The researchers estimate that if the system is scaled up to the size of a small suitcase, it could produce about 4 to 6 liters of drinking water per hour and last several years before requiring replacement parts.” Oct 6
Microsoft is going nuclear to power its AI ambitions
theverge.com · “Microsoft thinks next-generation nuclear reactors can power its data centers and AI ambitions, according to a job listing for a principal program manager who’ll lead the company’s nuclear energy strategy.” Sep 27From zero to one hundred in 0.956 seconds
ethz.ch · “To ensure strong traction right from the start, the AMZ team has developed a kind of vacuum cleaner that holds the vehicle down to the ground by suction.” Sep 12Lithium discovery in US volcano could be biggest deposit ever found
chemistryworld.com · “An estimated 20 to 40 million tonnes of lithium metal lie within a volcanic crater formed around 16 million years ago.” Sep 9
Wendelstein 7-X reaches milestone: Power plasma with gigajoule energy turnover generated for eight minutes
ipp.mpg.de · “The energy turnover of 1.3 gigajoule was achieved with an average heating power of 2.7 megawatts, whereby the discharge lasted 480 seconds.” Aug 11Liquid-Metal Battery Will Be on the Grid Next Year
spectrum.ieee.org · “Ambri’s grid battery costs $180/kWh to $250/kWh depending on size and duration, the company says.” Aug 10China Has Switched On the Largest Wind Turbine Ever
popularmechanics.com · “Mingyang Smart Energy, the designer of the turbine, said in a LinkedIn post that the turbine will “produce 67 million kWh of power annually, enough for the usage of 80,000 residents, reducing C02 by 56,000 tonnes (61,729 U.S. tons).”” Aug 1
For Cheaper Lithium-Ion Batteries, Just Add Salt
spectrum.ieee.org · “Whether or not this will lead to practical batteries with associated cost savings remains to be seen.” Jul 28EU passes law to blanket highways with fast EV chargers by end of 2025
theverge.com · “The regulation also requires that ad-hoc charging payments can be made via cards or contactless devices, without requiring a subscription.” Jul 26This Fusion Reactor Is Held Together With Tape
spectrum.ieee.org · “That’s an aggressive timeline, and nearly every fusion project to date has fallen short of its optimistic promises.” Jul 17Sam Altman explains why he's helping to take nuclear microreactor company Oklo public via SPAC
cnbc.com · “In Jan. 2022, The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which is the nation’s top nuclear regulatory agency, denied its first application to build and operate its advanced nuclear reactor.” Jul 12Toyota claims battery breakthrough in potential boost for electric cars
theguardian.com · “Last month, the Advertising Standards Authority banned adverts by Toyota and Hyundai for exaggerating the speed at which electric cars could be charged and misleading consumers about the availability of rapid charging points across the UK and Ireland.” Jul 5
The SAE is standardizing Tesla’s EV charging plug as it racks up more wins
theverge.com · “Tesla’s formerly proprietary charging port was opened up last year in a bid to become the de facto EV standard in the US.” Jun 30Why Does Nuclear Power Plant Construction Cost So Much?
ifp.org · “Nuclear plant construction is often characterized as exhibiting “negative learning.” That is, instead of getting better at building plants over time, we’re getting worse.” Jun 15GM follows Ford in adopting Tesla's EV charging standard
theverge.com · “Unwilling to expend the money to build their own network, automakers were left to cobble together their own out of available third-party providers.” Jun 12North America is now the growth leader for new battery factories
electrek.co · “Europe has seen delays and cancellations of several planned battery factories, mostly due to high energy prices and other countries’ pro-clean energy and EV manufacturing policies luring projects away.” Jun 2
Tesla Model Y overtakes Corolla to be world's best-selling car in 2023
thedriven.io · “New data from JATO Dynamics has revealed that in the first quarter of 2023 the Tesla Model Y is the best-selling car in the world, selling 267,200 in the first three months of the year, eclipsing Toyota Corolla’s 256,400 sales.” May 26Microsoft just made a huge, far-from-certain bet on nuclear fusion
theverge.com · “Altman is Helion’s board chair and largest investor, The Washington Post reports, and may have been involved in brokering Helion’s power purchase agreement with Microsoft.” May 11
World's largest battery maker announces major breakthrough in energy density
thedriven.io · “CATL’s new condensed battery will have almost double the energy intensity of Tesla’s 4680 cells, whose rating of 272-296 Wh/kg are considered very high by current standards.” Apr 21One of the biggest battery recycling plants in the US is up and running
canarymedia.com · “Currently, 80 to 90 percent of what’s going into Ascend’s Covington facility is scrap materials from battery factories, including SK Battery America’s plant in Commerce, Georgia.” Apr 10For the first time, renewable energy generation beat out coal in the US
popsci.com · “According to data from the Department of Energy, less than 20 percent of wind and solar projects waiting to be connected are successfully completed.” Apr 2
Heat pump sales outpaced gas furnace sales in the US in 2022
electrek.co · “The IEA says that global heat pump sales will need to expand by well over 15% per year this decade if the world is to achieve net zero by 2050, and that multistory apartment buildings and commercial spaces in particular should be prioritized.” Mar 31U.S. Postal Service starts nationwide electric vehicle fleet, buying 9,250 EVs and thousands of charging stations
cbsnews.com · “As such, a contract has also been awarded for the agency to acquire 9,250 commercial-off-the-shelf internal combustion engine vehicles “to fill the urgent need for vehicles.”” Mar 2
How heat pumps of the 1800s are becoming the technology of the future
yaleclimateconnections.org · “To date, only about 10% of space heating requirements around the world are met by heat pumps.” Feb 18
Smaller, Cheaper Flow Batteries Throw Out Decades-Old Designs
spectrum.ieee.org · “They remain costly, though, with a capital cost of around US $800 per kilowatt-hour, more than twice that of lithium-ion batteries.” Jan 30The US certifies the first small modular nuclear reactor design
theverge.com · “The target price per megawatt of power from the plant jumped 53 percent this month to $89 per megawatt hour” Jan 24What Really Happened with the Substation Attack in North Carolina?
practical.engineering · “To an unknown but significant extent, power infrastructure gets its security through obscurity.” Jan 21The UK is wasting a lot of wind power
archy.deberker.com · “In 2022, a year characterized by extraordinary hikes in energy prices for consumers, we spent £215m on turning windfarms off, and then another £717m turning on gas power plants to replace the lost wind power.” Jan 12We need a lot more electricians if we're going to electrify everything
canarymedia.com · “Bureau of Labor Statistics data shows that about 21 percent of electricians will hit retirement age in the next 10 years.” Jan 11Snow go for NYC's electric garbage trucks that can't handle winter weather
gothamist.com · “We found that they could not plow the snow effectively – they basically conked out after four hours. We need them to go 12 hours” Jan 4
Power company money flows to news sites that attack their critics
npr.org · “Those accounts reflect a complex web of financial links, in which the six outlets collectively received, at minimum, $900,000 from Matrix, its clients, and associated entities between 2013 and 2020.” Dec 19Na-S Battery: Low-cost with four times the capacity of lithium
sydney.edu.au · “Our sodium battery has the potential to dramatically reduce costs while providing four times as much storage capacity.” Dec 15US Department of Energy: Fusion Ignition Achieved
energy.gov · “LLNL’s National Ignition Facility (NIF) conducted the first controlled fusion experiment in history to reach this milestone, also known as scientific energy breakeven, meaning it produced more energy from fusion than the laser energy used to drive it.” Dec 13A 100MW solar farm in Texas will mount panels directly on the ground
canarymedia.com · “Erthos claims it can build a solar power plant in half the time on one-third of the land, all while using 70 percent less cable and trenching.” Dec 9
Westinghouse sees a tech disrupter in its eVinci microreactor
power-eng.com · “Commercial deployment is targeted for 2027.” Nov 23
Texas solar and wind resources saved consumers nearly $28 billion over 12 years: report
utilitydive.com · “Solar and wind energy reduced wholesale energy costs in Texas by $7.4 billion in the first eight months of this year, creating average monthly savings of $925 million, according to a study IdeaSmiths released last week.” Oct 29Germany extends lifetime of all 3 remaining nuclear plants
dw.com · “Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday ordered Germany’s three remaining nuclear plants to remain in operation until April to fend off a possible energy crunch.” Oct 17Vogtle Unit 3 starts nuclear fuel load
georgiapower.com · “During fuel load, nuclear technicians and operators from Westinghouse and Southern Nuclear are scheduled to safely transfer 157 fuel assemblies one-by-one from the Unit 3 spent fuel pool to the Unit 3 reactor core in the coming days.” Oct 14
Gas leak in the Baltic Sea
forsvaret.dk · “The Danish Defense has no further comments at this time.” Sep 27- Sep 15
All poverty is energy poverty
omnibudsman.substack.com · “The developed world uses a lot of energy.” Sep 5
Application submitted for US molten salt research reactor
world-nuclear-news.org · “ACU plans for the MSRR to achieve criticality by December 2025.” Aug 22- Aug 14
- Aug 11
The First Small Modular Nuclear Reactor Was Just Approved by US Regulators
singularityhub.com · “SMRs could cost more than bigger nuclear plants, he adds, because they don’t have the same economy of scale.” Aug 6MIT invents $4 solar desalination device
freethink.com · “Those wicks are difficult to clean, and over time, the salt accumulation means they have to be replaced.” Aug 3
More invested in nuclear fusion in last 12 months than past decade
growthbusiness.co.uk · “This funding will allow fusion companies to push toward their ‘Kitty Hawk moment’ in the coming years.” Jul 23We're going to need a lot of solar panels
caseyhandmer.wordpress.com · “Global solar production last year (2021) was about 190 GW.” Jul 22Picking up free lithium cells off the street and making them safe for use
atomic14.com · “It’s terrible for the environment, but it’s a great source of free lithium cells for our projects.” Jul 17
Finland’s Green Party endorses nuclear power
allianceforscience.cornell.edu · “Finland’s is the first Green Party to adopt such a position.” May 23How many radioactive bananas would you need to power a house?
what-if.xkcd.com · “A banana contains about 100 calories of food energy, and if you incinerate whole bananas as fuel, it would only take about 10 bunches per day to keep your house running.” May 6
US Navy wirelessly beams 1.6 kW of power a kilometer using microwaves
newatlas.com · “In what it describes as the most significant demonstration of its kind in half a century, the US Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) beamed 1.6 kW of power over a kilometer (3,280 ft) using a microwave beam at the US Army Research Field in Maryland.” Apr 22California grid set record of 97% renewable power on April 3
solarpowerworldonline.com · “The peak, which occurred briefly at 3:39 p.m., broke the previous record of 96.4% set on March 27, 2022.” Apr 20Why Germany won’t keep its nuclear plants open
unchartedterritories.tomaspueyo.com · “In summary, about 80% of Germany’s energy comes from fossil fuels, and about 50% of that comes from Russia.” Apr 14A new heat engine with no moving parts is as efficient as a steam turbine
news.mit.edu · “On average, steam turbines reliably convert about 35 percent of a heat source into electricity, with about 60 percent representing the highest efficiency of any heat engine to date.” Apr 13
Majority in Japan backs nuclear power for first time since Fukushima
japantimes.co.jp · “Some 53% of people said nuclear reactors should restart if safety can be ensured, while 38% said they should remain shut, according to the poll conducted by the Nikkei.” Mar 28Tokamak Energy moves closer to commercial fusion
tokamakenergy.co.uk · “This is by far the highest temperature ever achieved in a spherical tokamak and by any privately funded tokamak.” Mar 13
Accelerating fusion science through learned plasma control
deepmind.com · “In a paper published today in Nature, we describe how we can successfully control nuclear fusion plasma by building and running controllers on the Variable Configuration Tokamak (TCV) in Lausanne, Switzerland.” Feb 17Major breakthrough on nuclear fusion energy
bbc.co.uk · “It’s not a massive energy output - only enough to boil about 60 kettles’ worth of water.” Feb 9
Nuclear startup Oklo gets thumbs-down from regulators. What does this mean for next-gen nuclear?
canarymedia.com · “The advanced nuclear reactor industry, such as it is, suffered a setback last week when the Nuclear Regulatory Commission denied Oklo Power’s application to build and operate the company’s Aurora compact fast reactor at a site in Idaho.” Jan 14The happiest number I've heard in ages
billmckibben.substack.com · “Here’s what people don’t always get about fossil fuel: it’s utterly wasteful.” Jan 8
Power
solar.lowtechmagazine.com · “When the voltage of the battery drops below 12V, and the whole page is coloured in blue, the solar charge controller shuts down the system and the website goes offline.” Dec 12
This Colorado 'solar garden' is a farm under solar panels
npr.org · “This year, the garden produced more than 8,000 pounds of produce, while the panels above generate enough power for 300 local homes.” Nov 14Long Range E-Bike
jacquesmattheij.com · “Working on a pack that size is like working on a live bomb.” Nov 12Helion
blog.samaltman.com · “Helion has a clear path to net electricity by 2024, and has a long-term goal of delivering electricity for 1 cent per kilowatt-hour.” Nov 5
Study: Recycled Lithium Batteries as Good as Newly Mined
spectrum.ieee.org · “Battery companies still hesitate to use recycled material in their batteries.” Oct 19Major nuclear fusion milestone reached as 'ignition' triggered in a lab
imperial.ac.uk · “This has produced more energy than any previous inertial confinement fusion experiment, and proves ignition is possible, paving the way for reactions that produce more energy than they need to get started.” Oct 12
MIT-designed project achieves major advance toward fusion energy
news.mit.edu · “That successful demonstration helps resolve the greatest uncertainty in the quest to build the world’s first fusion power plant that can produce more power than it consumes, according to the project’s leaders at MIT and startup company Commonwealth Fusion Systems (CFS).” Sep 8
GM Will Suck Lithium from the Salton Sea to Make Batteries
autoweek.com · “So GM has just signed an innovative agreement with a company called Controlled Thermal Resources to extract Lithium from superheated waters beneath the Salton Sea in the desert of Southern California.” Jul 17Simple, solar-powered water desalination
news.mit.edu · “In this way, the team’s demonstration device can achieve an overall efficiency of 385 percent in converting the energy of sunlight into the energy of water evaporation.” Jul 2
Scientists develop ‘cheap and easy’ method to extract lithium from seawater
mining.com · “According to the researchers, the cell will probably need $5 of electricity to extract 1 kilogram of lithium from seawater.” Jun 6
Ethereum's energy usage will soon decrease by ~99.95%
blog.ethereum.org · “Ethereum will be completing the transition to Proof-of-Stake in the upcoming months, which brings a myriad of improvements that have been theorized for years.” May 18US fuel pipeline hackers 'didn't mean to create problems'
bbc.com · “The pipeline carries 2.5 million barrels a day - 45% of the East Coast’s supply of diesel, petrol and jet fuel.” May 10
‘Insanely cheap energy’: how solar power continues to shock the world
theguardian.com · “In the year 2000, the International Energy Agency (IEA) made a prediction that would come back to haunt it: by 2020, the world would have installed a grand total of 18 gigawatts of photovoltaic solar capacity.” Apr 24'No one was driving the car': 2 men dead after fiery Tesla crash near The Woodlands, officials say
click2houston.com · “The accident has made national headlines because local officials investigating the accident say no one was driving the vehicle.” Apr 18A New Threat to New York’s Clean Energy Goals: Bitcoin Mining
nysfocus.com · “But today, Greenidge is back up and running as a Bitcoin mining operation.” Apr 16Cycling is ten times more important than electric cars for reaching net-zero cities
theconversation.com · “Strikingly, people who cycled on a daily basis had 84% lower carbon emissions from all their daily travel than those who didn’t.” Apr 7
How I heat my home by mining crypto currencies
blog.haschek.at · “So at the time I was making about 3.8$ profit a day with the miner.” Feb 23How Canadians Derailed a Train and Drove It to City Hall for Power After a Brutal Ice Storm
thedrive.com · “Rather than leave town, though, one Canadian mayor stepped up to bring in the biggest mobile power generators they could get their hands on: Diesel-electric freight train locomotives.” Feb 23What went wrong with the Texas power grid?
houstonchronicle.com · “Natural gas shortages and frozen wind turbines were already curtailing power output when the Arctic blast began knocking generators offline early Monday morning.” Feb 16