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☆ Spain has produced enough renewable energy to power its entire country for a 9-hour work day
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-21 | by ( Sarah Al-Arshani | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

For nine hours on Tuesday, Spain was able to power itself entirely with renewable energy. Wind, solar, and water energy powered mainland Spain from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. one day last week. The record shows the expanding use of renewable energy. Renewable energy has grown in the past few years, according to Scientific American. The shift to green energy not only helps address the climate crisis by reducing emissions, it is also profitable and reduces costs.

Total capacity of LNG-fired power plants will be 22.4 GW by 2030, accounting for 14.9% of the mix from zero now. The country will have a fleet of 13 LNG power plants by 2030, with the first one scheduled to go online from the fourth quarter next year. At the end of 2020, installed capacity of all coal-fired power plants was 21.38 GW, or 30.8% of the mix. Capacity of coal-fired power plants will increase to 30.13 GW by 2030, accounting for 20% of the mix. WIND By 2030, wind capacity will reach 27.88 GW, including 6 GW of offshore wind capacity.

☆ Vietnam's PM approves $135 billion power plan for 2030
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

HANOI, May 16 (Reuters) - Vietnam's prime minister has approved a power plan that needs $134.7 billion of funding to develop new power plants and grids between 2021 and 2030, the Ministry of Industry and Trade said late on Monday. The ministry said half of office buildings and homes in Vietnam would be powered by rooftop solar panels by 2030. The country would also aim to generate green energy for exports, with a target of 5-10 gigawatts (GW) by 2030. A draft of the PDP8 seen by Reuters shortly before the ministry statement showed the plan would more than double the country's power generation capacity to 158 GW by 2030 from 69 GW at the end of 2020. Power plants using domestic gas and imported liquefied natural gas (LNG) would be the main source of the country's power generation mix by 2030, accounting for 37.33 GW, or 23.6%, according to the draft.

☆ Corporations are 'greenwashing' you. An expert explains how big companies mislead us into thinking they're making better choices for the environment when they could be making things far worse.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Tom Lyon | The Conversation | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

For example, a company may tout the $5 million in its renewable energy investments for the year. Lyon: Greenwashing is any communication that leads the listener to adopt an overly favorable impression of a company's greenness. You may get a company that says: Look at this, we invested US$5 million in renewable energy last year. Instead they're coming from a voluntary offset that's offered by some free-standing producer that's not included in a cap. You can look at the whole movement toward renewable energy and companies that produce solar or wind energy.

JOHANNESBURG, May 15 (Reuters) - South Africa's climate policy body on Monday suggested the government could delay retiring its ageing coal-fired power plants to address electricity shortages and said a power crisis had put the country on track to meet its climate goals anyway. The ruling African National Congress has recommended that state power utility Eskom delay the decommissioning of its ageing coal-fired power stations to help minimise rolling electricity outages. "The least-cost approach is to pull the coal plants off when they reach the end of their economic life," said Crispian Olver, executive director of the Presidential Climate Commission (PCC). South Africa relies on coal for electricity. South Africa's national target for emissions reductions is 398-510 MtCO2e by 2025, and 350-420 MtCO2e by 2030.

☆ Recycling 'end-of-life' solar panels, wind turbines, is about to be climate tech's big waste business
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Bob Woods | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +13 min

watch nowIndeed, the market for recycled solar panel materials is expected to grow exponentially over the next several years. One recipient of this federal funding is First Solar, the largest solar panel manufacturer in the U.S. Massive wind turbines, blades are almost all recyclableRetired wind turbines present another recycling challenge, as well as business opportunities. How the circular renewable energy economy worksPlayers in the circular economy are determined not to let all that waste go to waste. Vestas Wind Systems has committed to producing zero-waste wind turbines by 2040, though it has not yet introduced such a version.

☆ Looking for a Climate Career? They Might Have the Answer.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( Somini Sengupta | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

She became intrigued by land use changes, and then, gradually, by the links between climate change and sustainable food systems. Kolman, who grew up in Savannah, Ga., majored in physics and political science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “I spent my time in undergrad searching for a career where I could use my analytical skills to improve society,” he told me. A trip to South Africa, which has dealt with successive droughts exacerbated by climate change, brought home “the impacts of water insecurity.”He considered working in public policy but those plans changed after the 2016 election. Kossoff, who calls herself the “most recent climate convert,” grew up mostly in southwest Florida and studied business and chemistry at Emory University.

[1/2] Hywind Tampen floating wind farm structures are being assembled at the Wergeland Base in Gulen, Norway, June 7, 2022. But by 2035, the LCOE for floating wind is expected to fall to about 60 euros/MWh. It plans to set a specific target for floating wind this year. Britain aims to have 5 GW of floating wind installed by 2030 but a report by the UK Floating Wind Offshore Wind Taskforce, said 34 GW could be installed by 2040 if ports were upgraded. "South Korea will be commercial the quickest," said Cole at Corio Generation, which has 1.5 GW of floating wind under development there.

☆ The IRA isn’t good for just U.S. stocks. Here are some emerging markets names that will benefit too
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-23 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The Inflation Reduction Act does more than buoy U.S. clean energy stocks – it's also an opportunity for emerging markets firms. But the IRA also represents an opportunity for emerging markets firms. "This is a win, win, win," said Paul Desoisa, co-portfolio manager of the Global Emerging Markets strategy at Martin Currie, a specialist investment manager at Franklin Templeton. Here are some places where emerging markets firms stand to benefit. Some possible contenders include Korea's Hanwha Solutions, a multinational with a solar energy business Hanwha Qcells, abrdn's Khwaja said.

SL Naturenergie's predicament is common in the renewables sector where companies, from startups to medium sized and blue-chip firms, are competing for a limited pool of labour with appropriate skills. Currently it faces a shortage of around 216,000 skilled workers needed for the expansion of the solar and wind energy sectors, a study by German organisation KOFA, or the Competence Centre for securing skilled labour, showed. In many jobs in the renewable energy sector, pay is above average, he said, citing a renewable energy wage premium of more than 10% in construction and installation activities, as well as architectural and engineering services. Volker Quaschning, a professor of renewable energy systems at HTW university in Berlin, says a third of places on these courses at HTW are unfilled. Last month Germany also unveiled draft reforms on skills training accreditation and promoting immigration in a bid to plug labour shortages in the economy.

☆ Germany has shut down its last three nuclear power plants, and some climate scientists are aghast
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

16 April 2023, Baden-Württemberg, Neckarwestheim: The Neckarwestheim nuclear power plant. The era of commercial power generation with nuclear power plants in Germany came to an end on Saturday with the separation of the Isar 2, Neckarwestheim and Emsland nuclear power plants from the power grid. Picture Alliance | Picture Alliance | Getty ImagesAs of Sunday, April 16, Germany is no longer producing any electricity from nuclear power plants. With the separation of the Isar 2, Neckarwestheim and Emsland nuclear power plants from the power grid, the era of commercial power generation with nuclear power plants in Germany came to an end on Saturday. Nuclear energy is also often more expensive than wind and solar power, Quaschning said, adding, "there are no longer any real advantages with nuclear energy."

☆ Power firm SSE says backing renewables can help get Britain closer to energy self-reliance
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The chief executive of British power firm SSE says a rapid build-out of renewable projects can help the U.K. to secure its energy security and bring costs down for consumers. "Consumers everywhere across Europe have seen prices rise significantly," SSE CEO Alistair Phillips-Davies told CNBC's Arabile Gumede from the firm's Viking Wind Farm in the Shetland Islands, Scotland. Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in Feb. 2022 prompted a radical upheaval of Europe's energy supplies. U.K. Energy Security Secretary Grant Shapps reaffirmed the government's plan to deliver greater energy independence last month, pledging to seek to power the country by switching to home-grown sources, including nuclear and renewables. Asked whether the U.K. possessed enough wind energy to power at least most of the U.K., SSE's Phillips-Davies replied, "I definitely think the U.K. has got a huge amount of natural resources.

☆ Analysts love these 15 cheap stocks — and give one 250% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

But investors still have to contend with uncertainty as analysts continue to warn of a recession this year. Stock screen CNBC Pro screened for stocks in the S & P 500, Nasdaq Composite and MSCI World for cheap stocks with big upside. They met the following criteria: Stocks trading at a lower forward price-to-earnings ratio relative to their average five-year forward P/E multiple; "Buy" ratings from at least 40% of analysts covering them; Upside to average price target of 30% or more. First Solar and Broadwind Energy stood out for having among the highest potential upside on the list at 175% and 250%, respectively. Of the stocks on CNBC's screen, Valero Energy is trading at the steepest discount at 95%.

☆ From GE to Siemens, the wind energy industry hopes billions in losses are about to end
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Bob Woods | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

The wind farm includes 132 2-megawatt Gamesa G80 wind turbines along 12 miles of the Allegheny Front. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images News | Getty ImagesIt's been a tough couple of years for the U.S. wind energy industry. Although 2023 is expected to remain sluggish, GE Renewable Energy, Siemens Energy and Vestas Wind Systems, the leading makers of wind turbines — outside of China, which has built the world's largest wind energy infrastructure — and their suppliers are banking on growth over the next decade, particularly in the nascent offshore wind niche. "The wind energy market is stuck in this very strange paradox right now," said Aaron Barr, an industry analyst at Wood Mackenzie. Comparatively, the U.S. offshore wind industry is just ramping up after years of delays in permitting, environmental approvals and power purchasing agreements with utilities that buy wind energy.

☆ From black to green: How an oil-and-gas company pivoted to embrace wind energy — and is now raking in billions
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( Freya Graham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Like Sykes, it made a transition from black to green — and in doing so, it demonstrated it's possible for big energy companies to pivot to clean energy. To limit the influence of climate change, those emissions need to rapidly decrease — which means that big energy companies need to change their operations. A 2022 study found that 51% of the world's biggest publicly listed energy companies had not set out a strategy to reduce their emissions. Shell, for example, says it has about 50 gigawatts of renewable energy in operation, under construction, or in development. "If we could do the energy transition without them, I wouldn't be doing this," van Baal added.

☆ US gives final nod to huge power line from Wyoming to Nevada
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Nichola Groom | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 11 (Reuters) - U.S. officials on Tuesday gave final approval for a company owned by billionaire Philip Anschutz to begin building a massive transmission line that will deliver wind energy from blustery Wyoming to power-hungry California. The "notice to proceed" from the U.S. Bureau of Land Management allows TransWest Express LLC to break ground on its $3 billion line after more than 15 years of development. A separate Anschutz firm owns the 600-turbine Chokecherry and Sierra Madre wind farm in Wyoming, which is being built, that will send power through TransWest Express. TransWest Express construction will start later this year and the first stage will be completed in 2027, the company said. The line will run from south central Wyoming, through Colorado, Utah and Nevada to a substation outside of Las Vegas.

Summary Fossil fuel-fired power output rises fastest in nearly 3 decadesEmissions from power gen rose nearly a sixth to 1.15 bln tonnesCoal-fired power output up 12.4%, gas-fired output down 29%Share of coal in overall power output rose to 73.1%Renewables output rose 21.7%, share up to 11.8%SINGAPORE, April 5 (Reuters) - India's power generation grew at the fastest pace in over three decades in the just-ended fiscal year, a Reuters analysis of government data showed, fuelling a sharp surge in emissions as output from both coal-fired and renewable plants hit records. In the new fiscal year that began April 1, Indian power plants are expected to burn about 8% more coal. That is 3.4% of the International Energy Agency's estimate of annual global emissions of 33.8 billion tonnes in 2022. The government has defended India's high coal use citing lower per capita emissions compared with richer nations and rising renewable energy output. The green energy output helped prevent as much as 32.5 million tonnes of CO2 emissions from power that would otherwise likely have been produced with coal, calculations show.

After missing a target to install 175 GW in renewable energy capacity by 2022, India is now trying to boost non-fossil capacity - solar and wind energy, nuclear and hydro power, and bio-power - to 500 GW by 2030. Its renewable energy capacity, excluding big hydro and nuclear power, exceeds 122 GW, while non-fossil capacity currently stands at more than 175 GW, according to government data as of February 28. Coal currently accounts for over half of India's 412.2 GW power generation capacity. Out of the targeted 50 GW in new green energy tenders every year, 10 GW will be for installation on wind turbines, according to the memo. Solar currently makes up over half of India's renewable energy capacity, while wind energy accounts for nearly a third.

☆ EU agrees to double renewables by 2030 and UK unveils its long-awaited climate plan
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Reuters Emily Blumenthal | Emily Blumenthal | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

Two big announcements in European climate policy came Thursday. In 2021, the bloc got 22% of its energy from renewable sources, though the level varied significantly between countries. Sweden leads with a 63% renewable energy share, while in Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands and Ireland, renewable sources make up less than 13% of total energy use. UK climate strategyThe United Kingdom also announced its own climate strategy Thursday. It includes support for offshore wind energy, electric vehicles, green hydrogen, nuclear technology, home insulation and home heat pumps.

☆ US House Republicans face unity test with major energy bill
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( David Morgan | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

WASHINGTON, March 30 (Reuters) - The Republican-controlled U.S. House of Representatives is expected to vote on its first major legislation of the year on Thursday, a partisan energy bill that poses an early test of unity for House Speaker Kevin McCarthy's majority. The 175-page measure, dubbed the Lower Energy Costs Act, represents a top 2022 Republican campaign pledge to lower Americans' energy costs by scaling back Democratic President Joe Biden's climate policies and increasing oil and gas production through deregulation. 1 - House Resolution One, is the most important bill to this Congress," Republican Representative August Pfluger of Texas told reporters. Both Republicans and Democrats are keen to pass legislation that streamlines permitting for energy projects, but the disagreement over the House bill reflects gaping divisions over how to do that. "It does absolutely nothing to lower energy costs for American families.

☆ Goldman's strategy to play the $3 trillion energy revolution
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Sarah Min | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

There's a $3 trillion energy revolution coming, and Goldman Sachs has a strategy to play it. Given this, here are some ways investors can play the new energy revolution: Solar and wind Overall, the biggest investments will be in renewable energy, according to the note. That means the U.S. will need to significantly ramp up its solar, wind and other renewable energy capabilities. Meanwhile, for General Electric , the IRA will directly benefit its portfolio of energy businesses, GE Vernova, including wind energy. Elsewhere, Goldman Sachs highlighted buy-rated Baker Hughes , saying it will get a boost from carbon capture and hydrogen projects.

☆ The US is bleeding tech workers to other countries — it needs to move fast or risk falling behind.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Diamond Naga Siu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The US is losing tech workers to other countries. And so, many tech workers are opting to move and work there instead of the US. Plus, many of these countries are making their immigration systems easier for tech workers. My teammates Emilia David and Paayal Zaveri break down how the US is on the brink of losing an entire generation of tech workers. And it showed that Boomers and Gen Z both love many of the same cars, including the Toyota RAV4.

Very little green hydrogen, or hydrogen produced from green energy sources, exists today, as most current hydrogen is made using natural gas, and known as blue hydrogen. But several firms have committed to scaling up green hydrogen output over the coming decade, using solar or wind energy to power electrolysers that will split water into its constituent parts, hydrogen and oxygen. In turn, that should drive the cost of renewable-powered electrolysis below that of other forms of hydrogen production, and allow for a rapid global surge in green hydrogen output. FEASIBLE FUTUREWhile industry analysts can see a viable path to greater hydrogen supply, it is less clear how the demand side pans out. Such businesses are more likely to receive government support for energy system overhauls than factories due to their importance to the local and international economy.

☆ Britain to announce energy security measures by month-end
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, March 15 (Reuters) - British government measures to support energy security will be announced later in March, a budget document said on Wednesday without mention of any fresh incentives for oil and gas or renewable energy producers. "In addition to the measures in the spring budget, the government will set out further action later this month to ensure energy security in the UK and meet our net zero commitments," the government said in a budget document. "The Government has repeatedly ignored warnings from the renewable sector as it bulldozes through its tax raid on green electricity generators," said Rod Wood, managing director at wind energy developer Community Wind Power. "We are disappointed that it has not removed obstacles for offshore energy firms and the homegrown oil and gas producers." Reporting by Shadia Nasralla and Susanna Twidale Editing by David Goodman, Kirsten DonovanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Representatives of the renewable energy sector say those goals could be missed without policy changes, especially as other countries are doing more to attract investment in green power. Rod Wood, managing director at wind energy developer Community Wind Power, is among those seeking changes to the EGL in Britain's March 15 budget. OIL AND GAS SECTOR UNHAPPY TOOOil and gas producers, which have been subject to a windfall tax since May 2022, also want change. Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, in a meeting in December, rebuffed calls from the oil and gas industry to amend the windfall tax. Meanwhile, Britain's biggest oil and gas producer Harbour , has announced job cuts and shunned the latest licensing round.

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