Shell and Norsk Hydro team up for green hydrogen November 9, 2021 Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) and Norsk Hydro (NHY.OL) are looking into jointly producing hydrogen from renewable electricity in a push to decarbonise their own operations as well as supply heavy industry and transport customers, Hydro said on Tuesday. Read more
Q&A: Options for the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant
Q&A: Options for the Diablo Canyon nuclear plant November 8, 2021 The Diablo Canyon nuclear plant in California, the only one still operating in the state, is set to close in 2025. A team of researchers at MIT’s Center for Advanced Nuclear Energy Systems, Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems…
Global initiatives take aim at ending the use of coal, financing to be trimmed by 99 percent
Global initiatives take aim at ending the use of coal, financing to be trimmed by 99 percent Energize Weekly, November 10, 2021 Global momentum to end of the use of coal-fired generation is growing as more than 40 countries last week pledged to end the use of coal, and key…
Dozens of nations back pledge to slash methane emissions at COP26
Dozens of nations back pledge to slash methane emissions at COP26 2 Nov 2021 Dozens of countries have joined a United States and European Union pledge to cut emissions of methane by at least 30 percent this decade, in one of the most significant climate commitments so far at COP26.…
Clean tech investment soars in 2021, IEA says it has to go much higher to curb emissions
Clean tech investment soars in 2021, IEA says it has to go much higher to curb emissions Energize Weekly, November 3, 2021 Clean tech investment, from both the public and private sectors, has been growing rapidly in 2021, but it still may not be fast enough to alter global emissions…
UGI Utilities gets approval from Pennsylvania commission for RNG pilot program
UGI Utilities gets approval from Pennsylvania commission for RNG pilot program October 25, 2021 UGI Utilities got the okay from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to purchase renewable natural gas (RNG) as part of a five-year pilot program. The pilot program seeks to explore how UGI Utilities can integrate renewable…
San Juan County takes steps to require power plant demolition upon closure
San Juan County takes steps to require power plant demolition upon closure October 21, 2021 With less than a year left before San Juan Generating Station’s scheduled closure, San Juan County officials are concerned that the facility could become an eyesore if it is retired in place rather than immediately…
Data shows ship crossed over oil pipeline that ruptured
Data shows ship crossed over oil pipeline that ruptured October 19, 2021 A massive cargo ship that was supposed to be at anchor was buffeted by high winds during a January storm and repeatedly crossed over an undersea oil pipeline that later ruptured off the Southern California coast, according to…
Climate-driven weather disasters threaten global energy infrastructure, IEA says
Climate-driven weather disasters threaten global energy infrastructure, IEA says Energize Weekly, October 20, 2021 Energy and infrastructure systems built over the last century are becoming more vulnerable to the ravages of climate change-driven extreme weather events, according to a series of reports. “Extreme weather events over the past year have…
State tells city residents not to drink tap water after three years of dangerous lead contamination
State tells city residents not to drink tap water after three years of dangerous lead contamination Oct. 12, 2021 Health officials in Michigan are advising residents in the city of Benton Harbor to rely on bottled water instead of tap water in response to elevated levels of lead in the…
DOE Announces $20 Million to Produce Clean Hydrogen From Nuclear Power
DOE Announces $20 Million to Produce Clean Hydrogen From Nuclear Power October 7, 2021 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) today announced $20 million in funding to demonstrate technology that will produce clean hydrogen energy from nuclear power. This innovative approach will allow clean hydrogen to serve as a source…
World energy consumption to rise 50 percent by 2050 with fossil fuels still dominant, EIA says
World energy consumption to rise 50 percent by 2050 with fossil fuels still dominant, EIA says Energize Weekly, October 13, 2021 Global energy consumption is forecast to increase 50 percent over the next 30 years if no policies or new technologies are introduced to curb demand, according to the U.S.…
Lynn Good projects $100B in spending on ‘clean energy transition’ at Duke Energy in the next 10 years
Lynn Good projects $100B in spending on ‘clean energy transition’ at Duke Energy in the next 10 years Sep 30, 2021 Touting Duke Energy Corp.’s sustainability goals at a presentation an S&P Global Inc. conference, CEO Lynn Good said the company will spend close to $100 billion on its transition to clean…
Why California is shutting down its last nuclear plant
Why California is shutting down its last nuclear plant OCT 2 2021 As blackouts and flex hours roil California, the state and the local utility responsible for its last nuclear power plant, Diablo Canyon, are pushing ahead with plans to shut it down. This despite the fact that nuclear energy…
Hydropower output plummets in parched U.S. West with no quick end in sight
Hydropower output plummets in parched U.S. West with no quick end in sight Energize Weekly, September 29, 2021 The heat wave that blanketed the western United States this summer drained the region’s hydropower output, a situation that will likely continue in 2022 and may even get worse, according to reports…
Utilities face greatest threat as climate risks intensify
Utilities face greatest threat as climate risks intensify 20 Sep, 2021 Climate change is pushing power, gas and water companies to the frontlines of an intensifying battle against natural disasters that is set to increasingly hit the profits of businesses around the world. Utilities face the highest combined physical risk…
Solar could power 45 percent of U.S. electricity by 2050 with multi-billion dollar investment, DOE says
Solar could power 45 percent of U.S. electricity by 2050 with multi-billion dollar investment, DOE says Energize Weekly, September 15, 2021 The U.S. could get 40 percent of its electricity from solar installations by 2035 and 45 percent by 2050 – through $225 to $560 billion in the power grid…
Los Angeles City Council approves transition to clean, carbon-free energy by 2035
Los Angeles City Council approves transition to clean, carbon-free energy by 2035 September 3rd, 2021 In a unanimous vote, the Los Angeles City Council yesterday (September 1) approved a motion introduced by Councilmembers Paul Krekorian and Mitch O’Farrelll requiring that 100 percent of the city’s electricity come from clean, zero carbon energy by 2035. Read…
Global EV sales bounce back from the pandemic, set to hit 14 million vehicles by 2025
Global EV sales bounce back from the pandemic, set to hit 14 million vehicles by 2025 Energize Weekly, September 8, 2021 Global electric vehicle sales have rebounded from the pandemic with a forecast of reaching 16 percent of all passenger car purchases by 2025, but the pace remains far short…
Fight over ‘peaker’ plants poses grid climate test
Fight over ‘peaker’ plants poses grid climate test 08/24/2021 A proposed natural gas power plant and pipeline project in southwestern Indiana are drawing fire out of concerns that they will add more pollution to a region saddled with fossil fuel infrastructure. Read more
Global clean energy technology investment reached a record $500 billion in 2020
Global clean energy technology investment reached a record $500 billion in 2020 Energize Weekly, August 11, 2021 Global investment in clean energy technologies reached a record $501.3 billion in 2020, with renewable energy generation accounting for 60 percent of the total, according to a BloombergNEF analysis. The 2020 figure represents…
U.S. Power Sector Sees Biggest One-Year Drop in Emissions in More Than Two Decades
U.S. Power Sector Sees Biggest One-Year Drop in Emissions in More Than Two Decades JULY 23, 2021 U.S. power sector emissions dropped 10 percent between 2019 and 2020, owing to greater energy efficiency, less reliance on coal, and the coronavirus pandemic suppressing demand for electricity, according to a new report. This…
Hydropower worries grow as Colorado River reservoirs continue to dry up
Hydropower worries grow as Colorado River reservoirs continue to dry up July 19, 2021 The water levels behind the Colorado River’s biggest dams are fast-approaching or already at record lows, thanks to a 21-year megadrought that’s squeezing water supplies across the Southwest. But the effects of drought are likely to…
TransAlta completes 2nd of 3 planned Alberta plant conversions to natural gas
TransAlta completes 2nd of 3 planned Alberta plant conversions to natural gas July 19, 2021 TransAlta Corp. has taken another step in its goal of becoming carbon neutral by converting the second of three planned coal-to-gas conversions at its Alberta Thermal power generation facilities near Wabamun. Read more
Clean electricity standard carries $1.8T upside – study
Clean electricity standard carries $1.8T upside – study July 12, 2021 A national clean electricity standard would save thousands of lives and yield other health and climate benefits that would outweigh the policy’s costs, according to a first-of-its-kind study. Read more
Western drought hurts hydropower production, California among the hardest hit states
Western drought hurts hydropower production, California among the hardest hit states Energize Weekly, July 14, 2021 The drought conditions smothering the West are crippling hydropower production with hydro-generation’s share of energy production forecast to be 6.5 percent this year – the lowest it has been since 2015, according to the…
New York City Department Of Environmental Protection Partners With Arcadis To Drive City-Wide Resilience
New York City Department Of Environmental Protection Partners With Arcadis To Drive City-Wide Resilience June 21, 2021 Arcadis today announced its partnership with the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to launch a $53 million program designed to engage property owners across the city with resiliency measures that improve local and…
Oklo has a plan to make tiny nuclear reactors that run off nuclear waste
Oklo has a plan to make tiny nuclear reactors that run off nuclear waste JUN 28 2021 The face of nuclear energy is changing, and one of the companies working to redefine what nuclear energy looks like is Oklo. The 22-person Silicon Valley start-up has a plan to build mini-nuclear reactors,…
IOUs cut carbon emissions in 2020, though the footprint remains big for some
IOUs cut carbon emissions in 2020, though the footprint remains big for some Energize Weekly, June 30, 2021 Coal-fired generation and carbon emissions are down among the largest investor-owned utilities, but even with sharp drops in emissions, the carbon footprint for some companies remains large, according to survey data from…
Xcel Energy Cuts Emission, Set to Attain Carbon Neutrality
Xcel Energy Cuts Emission, Set to Attain Carbon Neutrality June 8, 2021 Xcel Energy announced that it has achieved more than 50% of the carbon neutrality target and is among the few utilities that have pledged to cut emissions from the electricity generation process by 100%. Read more
Ten Communities Selected For EPA Roundtable Discussions On Lead In Drinking Water
Ten Communities Selected For EPA Roundtable Discussions On Lead In Drinking Water May 26, 2021 Today, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the ten communities that have been selected for virtual roundtable discussions on EPA’s Lead and Copper Rule (LCR) Revisions. The roundtables will foster dialogue on the experience…
Biden Administration Strikes Deal To Bring Offshore Wind To California
Biden Administration Strikes Deal To Bring Offshore Wind To California May 25, 2021 The Biden administration plans to open the California coast to offshore wind development, ending a long-running stalemate with the Department of Defense that has been the biggest barrier to building wind power along the Pacific Coast. Read…
Survey: Among Environmental Issues, Americans Most Worried About Water Quality
Survey: Among Environmental Issues, Americans Most Worried About Water Quality April 28, 2021 Among the most significant environmental concerns facing the country, Americans are the most concerned about the ones that affect water quality, according to the latest iteration of Gallup’s yearly environment survey. Read more
Black Hills Energy joins ONE Future Coalition, commits to reduce methane emissions
Black Hills Energy joins ONE Future Coalition, commits to reduce methane emissions May 03, 2021 by Chris Galford Black Hills Corp., operating utilities as Black Hills Energy, became the latest natural gas company to join the Our Nation’s Energy Future (ONE Future) Coalition last week, committing to reducing methane emissions throughout…
Global energy demand is forecast to rebound in 2021, IEA says
Global energy demand is forecast to rebound in 2021, IEA says Energize Weekly, April 28, 2021 Global energy production and demand is set to rebound from their pandemic doldrums in 2021with energy consumption up 4.6 percent, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The agency said in its annual Global…
Xcel Energy plans to transform its Colorado grid, boosting renewables and closing coal plants
Energize Weekly, March 3, 2021 Xcel Energy – in one of the country’s most sweeping initiatives to reconfigure a gird – has announced an $8 billion plan to double its renewable energy generation and storage in Colorado, add transmission and close all its coal-fired power plants in the state by…
European oil companies changing names and shifting their focus to alternative energy
Energize Weekly, February 17, 2021 European oil companies are continuing their push to reorient and rebrand themselves as comprehensive energy companies and not just producers of oil and natural gas. On Feb. 9, French oil company Total announced it was changing its name to TotalEnergies to reflect a broader strategy…
U.S. energy consumption will take years to rebound from pandemic, EIA says
Energize Weekly, February 10, 2021 It will take years for U.S. energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to return to 2019 levels after the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the country’s economy and the global energy sector, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). Energy consumption in…
Gas flaring is a problem from Texas’ Permian Basin to Russia’s Siberian oil fields
Energize Weekly, January 6, 2021 The U.S set a record for flaring of gas at well sites in 2019 and was part of a global pollution problem created by a handful of oil-producing countries, according to two energy agencies. An average of 1.48 billion cubic feet of gas was vented…
Global energy efficiency gains slow in 2020, hobbled by coronavirus pandemic
Energize Weekly, December 16, 2020 Energy efficiency gains slowed to their lowest level in a decade in 2020, and feeling the impact of the novel coronavirus pandemic, energy efficiency investment is projected to be down 9 percent year-on-year to $227 billion in 2020, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).…
Colorado adopts sweeping oil and gas rules, banning flaring, creating a 2,000-foot setback
Energize Weekly, December 2, 2020 Colorado has adopted the strongest oil and gas regulations in the country and reoriented its oversight agency from “fostering” oil and gas development to “regulating” the industry to protect public health, safety, the environment and wildlife. After more than a year of hearings and negotiations,…
UN rules to reduce carbon emissions from ocean vessels draw fire for being ineffective
Energize Weekly, November 25, 2020 New regulations to cut carbon emission from ocean cargo ships adopted last week by the United Nation’s maritime organization drew immediate fire from environmentalist and analysts who said they will do little to curb pollution. The International Maritime Organization (IMO) approved rules requiring short-term technical…
Voters weigh in on local and state energy issues from renewable energy to oil and gas taxes
Energize Weekly, November 11, 2020 Election returns on state and local energy issues were both literally and figuratively all over the map last week on issues ranging from renewable energy to oil and gas taxes. Voters in Alaska rejected a tax on oil operations while the industry was denied a…
Utilities are pledging zero-carbon emissions, but “the math doesn’t yet add up”
Energize Weekly, September 30, 2020 A growing number of investor-owned utilities (IOUs) have pledged to sharply reduce their carbon emissions or even cut them to zero, but two studies have found a gap between the pledges and those utilities’ performance. Forty-three of the country’s 55 IOUs have emission-reduction targets, and…
Could a Biden presidency be a boost to both the power sector and the oil and gas industry?
Energize Weekly, September 9, 2020 Joe Biden becoming president of the U.S. could be a boost for clean energy and perhaps somewhat ironically, for oil and gas – at least in the short run. That was the conclusion of energy industry consultants Wood Mackenzie and Rystad Energy in separate analyses.…
The Hartford to stop insuring and investing in coal and tar sands over climate concerns
Energize Weekly, January 8, 2020 The Hartford Financial Services Group said it will no longer insure or invest in companies mining or using coal or developing tar sands oil over concerns about risks linked to climate change. The company, based in Hartford, Conn., said it would not deal with companies…
Natural gas overtakes coal as a source of greenhouse gas emissions in the U.S. and Europe
Energize Weekly, December 18, 2019 Natural gas – while helping to lower overall greenhouse gas releases – has overtaken coal as a source of carbon dioxide emissions in the U.S. and the European Union, according to a report from the Global Carbon Project. While total fossil fuel emissions are projected…
Oil and gas investments of $1.4 trillion by 2024 will lock in greenhouse gas emissions, report says
Energize Weekly, December 18, 2019 Worldwide investment in oil and gas production, estimated at $1.4 trillion over the next five years, will lock in carbon emissions that will make it impossible to meet the goals to limit global warming, according to a report by a coalition of environmental groups. “While…
Companies join global effort to set science-based emission targets for their operations
Energize Weekly, December 11, 2019 Nearly 700 companies around the world are moving to adopt “science-based targets” for reducing their greenhouse gas emissions with 40 percent already having plans in place, according to the non-profit and governmental groups sponsoring the initiative. The Science Based Targets initiative (SBTi) – a collaboration…
Energy-related CO2 emissions in U.S. rise in 2018 for the first time in five years
Energize Weekly, December 4, 2019 Carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions from energy-related activities in 2018 rose in the U.S. for the first time in five years, posting a 2.7 percent annual increase to 5.27 billion metric tons, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). Driving the increase were higher emissions…
