Fossil Fuels

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Baltimore-based US Wind announces a new offshore wind farm and other major developments.
• Costa Rica is considering a permanent ban on fossil fuel exploration and extraction.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The Tennessee Valley Authority implodes its oldest coal-fired power plant.
• The UK’s Ministry of Justice installs £1.1 million of roof-mounted solar on courts and prisons.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• In 2020, due to the pandemic, US energy emissions fell to the lowest level since 1983. 
• Belfast, Maine, sees 7 megawatts of community solar launch for Central Maine Power customers.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The final floating turbine is connected at the Kincardine floating offshore wind farm in Scotland.
• 2021’s most and least energy-expensive states, according to a new WalletHub study.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Dubuque may adopt a pilot program to help low- to moderate-income households install solar.
• In 2020, US fossil fuel consumption was at its lowest level since 1991.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

After an (American) holiday weekend largely dedicated to setting things on fire, we think it’s relevant to note something that caught on fire this weekend that absolutely shouldn’t have: namely, the sea.

Over the weekend, not only did a fire break out in the Gulf of Mexico but also in the Caspian Sea. Both incidents were, predictably, associated with fossil fuels.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• Battery electric cars now account for 11% of the UK market – tied with diesel.
• The US consumed more electricity powered by renewables than by coal in 2020, reports the EIA.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Governor Ron DeSantis (R-FL) just signed into law SB 1128/HB 919, “Preemption Over Restriction of Utility Services,” which was pushed through the legislature. It prevents local governments from deciding which energy path they want to take. In other words, Florida towns and cities are now unable to switch to 100% clean energy because they can’t ban fossil fuels.

Maine has become the first US state to pass statewide legislation to divest from fossil fuels. LD 99, “An Act To Require the State To Divest Itself of Assets Invested in the Fossil Fuel Industry,” was signed late Wednesday by Governor Janet Mills (D-ME). A divestment plan is now required by 2026.

Texas has been hit by a heatwave, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has asked residents to reduce electricity use until Friday because demand is up, but power supply is down. ERCOT stated yesterday, “Generator owners have reported approximately 11,000 MW [megawatts] of generation is on forced outage for repairs; of that, approximately 8,000 MW is thermal, and the rest is intermittent resources.” “Thermal” power in Texas largely refers to natural gas-fired power plants, which make up around 50% of annual energy production in Texas.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The US Department of the Interior suspends oil and gas leases in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge.
• Danish wind giant Ørsted bumps up its clean energy target to reach 50 GW of installed capacity by 2030.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The International Energy Agency’s new report details the global transition to clean energy by 2050.
• The Bahamas installs a hurricane-resistant solar hybrid microgrid on Highbourne Cay.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

The costs of most existing coal-fired power plants in the US are now more expensive than the total costs of wind and solar as a result of their plunging costs, according to a new study.

The BlackRock US Carbon Transition Readiness exchange-traded fund (ETF) (LCTU) launched last week. It broke records on its first trading day with $1.25 billion invested. But there’s a big problem with this ETF: It’s jam-packed with Big Oil companies.

In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):

• The US-hosted Leaders Summit on Climate kicks off today. Keep an eye on these three countries.
• Los Angeles City Council unanimously approves a Global Fossil Fuel Non-Proliferation Treaty.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has released its annual “Global Energy Review” report, and while there is some good news about the adoption of renewables, there is also some rather alarming news about an anticipated emissions surge in 2021.

Pennsylvania’s state government will source 50% of its electricity from seven new solar energy arrays. It will go into operation on January 1, 2023.

Duke Energy Florida has announced that it will build two more new solar farms in the Sunshine State. This time, they’ll be in Citrus and Hardee counties.

The utility reported in February that it is investing an estimated $1 billion to construct or acquire a total of 700 MW of solar farms from 2018 through 2022 in Florida and will more than quadruple the amount of in-service solar on the system over the next four years.

India’s coal power has continued to decline since reaching a peak in 2018, according to an analysis by independent climate and energy think tank Ember. India’s coal-fired electricity generation fell 5% in 2020 due to significantly reduced annual electricity demand as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. It is the second consecutive year that coal power has fallen, with coal generation down 8% in 2020 compared to 2018.

Governor Greg Abbott (R-TX) wants to fight Biden’s clean energy plan, despite being the No. 1 state in the US for wind power. Texas is also a rising star of solar power, not to mention the home of Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas. Yet, Abbott has issued an executive order to “protect” Texas’ energy industry from federal overreach, or in other words, President Joe Biden’s endorsement of clean energy. Or to put it another way, what Texas is already doing.