Renewable Energy
Droughts shrink hydropower, pose risk to global push to clean energy
SACRAMENTO, Calif./BRASILIA/SHANGHAI – Severe droughts are drying up rivers and reservoirs vital for the production of zero-emissions hydropower in several countries around the globe, in some cases leading governments to rely more heavily on fossil fuels.
The emerging problems
U.S. House bill would give tax credit for rare earth magnets
A Democrat in the U.S. House of Representatives introduced legislation on Tuesday extending tax credits to companies that domestically produce rare earth magnets, a sector currently dominated by China.
The bill is the latest in a string of U.S. …
Column: IEA’s roadmap shows difficult journey to net zero: Kemp
LONDON – Polarised responses to the International Energy Agency report on achieving net zero emissions by 2050 reveal the enormous challenges of the goal and differences about whether it is realistic in the timeframe.
Like the Rorschach inkblot test, …
Low-carbon hydrogen is not cheap and needs support, says major energy organization
Low-carbon hydrogen isn’t “cost competitive with other energy supplies in most applications and locations” and the situation is unlikely to change unless there’s “significant support to bridge the price gap,” according to the World Energy Council.
Published Tuesday, the …
Brazil’s offshore revival seeks to double crude output by 2030
RIO DE JANEIRO (Bloomberg) –If an energy transition is underway around the world, it hasn’t reached the streets of Ilha da Conceicao, the working-class district at the heart of Rio de Janeiro’s oil revival.
There, buses and trucks are …
Are electric cars ‘green’? The answer is yes, but it’s complicated
The number of electric vehicles on the world’s roads is surging, hitting a record number last year.
That would seem to be good news, as the world tries to wean itself off fossil fuels that are wrecking the
In push to supply Tesla, Piedmont Lithium irks North Carolina neighbors
In its quest to build one of the largest lithium mines in the United States, Piedmont Lithium Inc has overlooked one crucial constituency: its North Carolina neighbors.
ANALYSIS-Helpless bystander? Siemens Energy’s $5.9 billion wind power problem
FRANKFURT – Siemens Gamesa’s SGREN.MC profit warning last week served as a painful reminder for Christian Bruch, CEO of parent Siemens Energy ENR1n.DE, that there’s a big difference between owning a majority stake in an asset and having …
Carbon capture is expected to play a pivotal role in the race to net zero emissions. But not everyone agrees
LONDON — Carbon capture technology is often held up as a source of hope in reducing global greenhouse gas emissions, featuring prominently in countries’ climate plans as well as the net-zero strategies of some of the world’s largest oil …
BP, EnBW enter joint bid in Scottish offshore wind lease round
LONDON – BP and Germany’s EnBW said on Monday they had submitted a joint bid for Scottish offshore wind acreage which could support wind projects with 2.9 gigawatts of capacity.
Crown Estate Scotland’s ScotWind wind leasing tender is its …
Renewable electricity generation is growing — but it’s not enough to meet rising demand, IEA says
The planet’s demand for electricity is set for a strong rebound this year and next after dropping by approximately 1% in 2020, according to a new publication from the International Energy Agency.
Released Thursday, the IEA’s Electricity Market Report …
Greenvolt raises $177 million in IPO to fund expansion
LISBON- Portuguese renewable energy firm Greenvolt GVOLT.LS said on Wednesday it had raised 150 million euros ($177.29 million) in an initial public offering to fund its expansion, including in European solar parks and wind farms.
The IPO, which is …
Renewables surged in 2020 but world not yet on track for climate goals, BP says
Wind and solar power capacity expanded rapidly in 2020 while global energy demand cratered because of the pandemic, yet this did not yet reflect a “decisive shift” towards meeting U.N.-backed climate goals, BP said in its annual energy review.…
Aramco sees major hydrogen market forming amid historic pressure test for Big Oil
Saudi Arabia’s oil giant Aramco is stepping up efforts to promote initiatives in hydrogen technology and investments to reduce carbon emissions, after a harrowing investor smackdown for Big Oil.
“Hydrogen is real,” Aramco Chief Technology Officer Ahmad Al Khowaiter …
U.S. bans imports of solar panel material from Chinese company
U.S. Supreme Court backs refineries in biofuel waiver dispute
The U.S. Supreme Court on Friday bolstered a bid by small oil refineries to seek exemptions from a federal law requiring increasing levels of ethanol and other renewable fuels to be blended into their products, a major setback for …
Avitas delivers on new contract to provide continuous methane emissions monitoring for Roeslein Alternative Energy
HOUSTON – June 24, 2021 – Avitas, a Baker Hughes business, has been awarded a contract from renewable energy operator Roeslein Alternative Energy (RAE) to provide continuous methane emissions monitoring at its 22 biogas lagoons in Missouri. …
Traders beef up U.S. renewable fuel teams as demand soars
Commodity merchants and investment firms such as Citadel, Gunvor and Trafigura are bolstering U.S. teams that specialize in trading renewable fuels as demand soars, according to people familiar with the matter.
Many trading firms already have an established presence …
Big Oil’s move to offshore wind risks inflating seabed prices – Orsted
COPENHAGEN – The world’s largest offshore wind developer Orsted ORSTED.CO is concerned that Big Oil’s eagerness to harness wind at sea could push up prices for seabed leases, making the technology less competitive, its chief executive told Reuters.
European …
Singapore finance minister says city-state could become a regional hub for green finance
SINGAPORE — Singapore plans to invest more in building a new green economy, according to the city-state’s Finance Minister Lawrence Wong.
The climate emergency poses an existential threat but also provides new opportunities around sustainability, Wong told Martin Soong …
USDA grants biofuel producers $700 mln in COVID-19 aid
NEW YORK – The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) will give $700 million in aid to biofuels producers as part of a package to assist industries recovering from the financial devastation of the coronavirus pandemic, officials said on Tuesday.…
Repsol to present new green “transition” framework to investors
LONDON – Spanish oil and gas firm Repsol REP.MC has hired banks to present a new transition financing framework to investors that will allow the company to issue sustainability-linked bonds, according to a lead manager on Monday.
HSBC and …
Wind turbine giant Siemens Gamesa lays out plan to drive down cost of ‘green’ hydrogen
So-called “green” hydrogen production using onshore wind turbines could achieve price parity with fossil-based hydrogen by the year 2030, according to a white paper from Siemens Gamesa Renewable Energy.
In a statement on Wednesday the firm — a …
Big Oil (Probably) isn’t going away anytime soon. But it’s definitely changing
Big Oil is standing on the precipice of something. But no one can agree what it is. A long, slow decline? An abrupt collapse? A remarkable reinvention?
Mounting urgency about climate change has finally reached the boardrooms of …
U.S. seeks less costly clean hydrogen in climate fight
WASHINGTON – The Biden administration on Monday set a goal of reducing the cost of producing clean hydrogen, a fuel that could reduce dependence on others that emit greenhouse gases that cause climate change.
The Department of Energy (DOE) …