Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders stuck together, Pete Buttigieg took the middle path, Marianne Williamson took on racism and Beto O’Rourke faded into the background.

New textile-based solar cells developed by Fraunhofer researchers, semitrailers could soon be producing the electricity needed to power cooling systems or other onboard equipment. In short, textile-based solar cells could soon be adding a whole new dimension to photovoltaics, complementing the use of conventional silicon-based solar cells.

Of all the efforts to break up utility monopolies in the U.S., the one unfolding in Arizona may be the most important to watch.

IEA report reveals that more than US $750 billion went to the electricity sector while US $715 billion was spent on oil and gas supply globally as the world continues on the path to electrification.

According to Martin Lim, COO of Electrify.Asia, a company facilitating peer-to-peer energy trading across the distribution grid, blockchain technology doesn’t take utilities out of the equation, but rather it adds another layer of potential revenue for them and helps reduce the cost of delivering energy to homes and businesses.

In an Australian first, Origin will install a 4-MW/4-MWh grid scale battery at its Mt Stuart Power Station in Townsville. Mt Stuart Power Station is a 414-MW open cycle gas power station, designed to supply electricity at times of peak demand and is the largest such facility in North Queensland. In the U.S., these plants are called “peakers.”

Continuing on U.S. President Trump’s campaign promise to revive the coal industry, on Tuesday, August 21, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced plans to significantly alter the Clean Power Plan (CPP), shrinking some of the emission reduction targets that were set in place under the CPP by former President Obama.

This week Autogrid announced that it entered into a partnership with Swell Energy to provide software for managing Swell’s growing fleet of distributed energy resources (DER).

On the premise that the nations of the world are not doing enough to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, Governor Jerry Brown, New York City’s former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other dignitaries convened a high-profile international gathering in San Francisco September 12-14 to inspire more ambitious action and showcase successful efforts.

U.S. President Donald Trump tapped Energy Department staffer Bernard McNamee to join the nation’s top energy regulator, potentially smoothing the path for a brewing bailout of money-losing coal and nuclear plants.

An effort to put a tax on carbon dioxide emissions just won an unlikely underwriter: a top producer of oil and gas.

According to the Microgrid Market Growth Potential - Industry Size Outlook Report 2024, the microgrid market is expected to reach $19 billion by 2024, nearly five times the original valuation of this business space in 2016.

An untimely resignation has given one Kentucky Republican a second shot at saving coal.

In October of this year, the European Parliament voted in favor of a ban of the ten most notorious single-use plastics that harm our planet and marine life, including straws, plastic cutlery and cotton buds. The vote also committed to a move towards a circular economy – recognizing the inherent value of the 2.12 billion tonnes of waste that is dumped globally each year. Yet questions remain about how we deal with the items not on the list, the ones where there are no obvious alternatives; the fruit trays, the ice cream tubs, the burger boxes. With waste generation expected to double by 2025 we must continue to act on this growing crisis and be more innovative with waste.

Italy’s Five Star Movement used to rave about towns like Montieri, a village in the verdant Tuscan foothills that burns little coal or natural gas. Instead, the local power plant harnesses steam rising naturally from hot springs deep underground to generate electricity.

2018 was another defining year for the lithium supply chain as the global population continued to make remarkable strides towards the implementation of clean energy and transportation. Although the clean energy and transportation industries are only in their early days, it has become apparent that renewables and electrification of transportation are an irreversible trend, one that has begun to disrupt many established industries.

Global funding for clean-energy projects sagged in 2018 after China’s decision to curb subsidies dragged down installations in the world’s biggest solar market.

Last week, Sunrun announced that its bid to supply 20 MW of residential solar + storage capacity into the New England ISO Forward Capacity Market for 2022-2023 was approved. According to Chris Rauscher, Director of Policy and Storage Market Strategy for Sunrun, this is not a pilot project or an experiment in any way.

Findings in a recently published European Union report showed that the Baltic States of Lithuania, Latvia, and Estonia make up over 30 percent of the EU countries that have already met their 2020 renewable energy targets.

This week, ConEdison subsidiary, Orange & Rockland Utilities (O&R) and Key Capture Energy (KCE) announced that O&R has selected KCE, an Albany-based, independent developer of utility-scale battery storage projects, will plan, design, install and operate O&R’s new battery storage project in Pomona.

This week energy developer BayWa r.e. published its Energy Report 2019, which surveyed 1,200 European corporations about their attitudes toward renewable energy.

Among my circle of friends and colleagues, everyone is aware of the impact of human activities on climate change - the melting of arctic ice, the destruction of species - and the major causes of it, namely, coal burning for electricity and fossil fuels burning for transport. What nearly everyone is unclear about is what specifically to do about it and how fast.

“Recognizing leaders in the power and energy industry not only gives us the opportunity to celebrate them and the projects that they are involved in, it also enables us to learn vital business and life lessons from these often exceptional individuals. We find out what makes them tick, what frustrates them and the processes they follow to address challenges – this is often inspiring, eye-opening stuff and cannot but contribute to the growth of the sector.“

Wind or solar now represent the least expensive option for adding new power generation capacity in approximately two-thirds of the world.

Here’s the latest wrinkle in the battery boom: National Grid Plc is paying consumers to tap electricity from their power-storage systems.

Worldwide investments in clean energy projects have hit a six-year low.

Consumers Energy says it’s happy with the launch of its electric vehicle charging station program and open to expanding the three-year, $10 million pilot.

New textile-based solar cells developed by Fraunhofer researchers, semitrailers could soon be producing the electricity needed to power cooling systems or other onboard equipment. In short, textile-based solar cells could soon be adding a whole new dimension to photovoltaics, complementing the use of conventional silicon-based solar cells.

The electric utility industry has been buffeted by two recent trends that threaten to upend the profitability, and in some cases the future viability of, those companies that are slow to adapt to a new, rapidly changing landscape. Specifically, in the past decade, the industry has had to grapple with both waning demand and the growth of distributed energy generation.

The Boeing Company is set to design and build a large, military unmanned air vehicle (UAV) in Australia, with the first flight set for 2020. The Australian government will invest A$40 million in the project.

Austrade has launched a digital health website showcasing Australia as an ideal location for developing, testing and launching the next generation of digital medical technologies.

Seoul-based genome specialist, Macrogen, has agreed a A$4.1 million investment in the Queensland microbiome testing and bioinformatics company, Microba.

UK company BAE Systems has been selected as preferred tenderer for the SEA 5000 program to deliver the Australian Government’s nine Future Frigates for the Royal Australian Navy.

News on the global hydroelectric industry from November-December 2014

The Brazilian bank Itau Unibanco Holding SA raised 1.05 billion reais ($408 million) to finance renewable energy and water treatment projects.

The Obama administration is proposing a $4 billion fund to reward states that exceed cuts in greenhouse-gas emissions, and wants Congress to back steeper royalty rates for oil, gas and coal extraction from public land.

President Barack Obama ordered the federal government to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent from 2008 levels over the next 10 years by shifting to renewable energy sources such as solar power.

Jim Keffer is Republican state lawmaker in Texas with a permit to carry a concealed weapon and doubts about whether human activity is causing global warming.

Changes to the United Kingdom's Feed-In Tariff program could have a negative impact on a number of generation sectors -- including small hydroelectric power -- according to a number of industry groups.

When I was sports editor for the college newspaper, I wrote a column that was, I'm sure now a decade removed, far less clever than I thought it was at the time. But since I am 1) pressed for time and 2) devoid of original thought at the moment, I present to you, dear reader, a special reprisal of the Michael Harris Daily Weekly Monthly Occasional Grab Bag of Sports Hydropower Stuff.

As the Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) of Zambia and Zimbabwe seeks to secure funding for the 2,400-MW Batoka Gorge hydroelectric facility, the region is experiencing rolling blackouts based on reduced inflow to existing hydroelectric generating facilities. 

Tidal energy developer Atlantis Resources Ltd. has entered into a partnership agreement with infrastructure developer, investor and fund manager Equitix worth at least US$714 million.

Canadian utility BC Hydro and the McLeod Lake Indian Band have forged an agreement that will give the aboriginal group "economic development opportunities and other benefits" related to the construction and operation of the Site C hydroelectric project.

Electricite de France (EDF) and the World Bank are joining with the government of Cameroon to fund the €$1.2 billion (US$1.3 billion), 420-MW Nachtigal hydropower plant.

Bolivia’s President Evo Morales has approved a supreme decree to carry out final design studies for the 3,251-MW El Chepete and 425-MW El Bala hydro projects in La Paz department.

The World Bank has approved US$390 million in additional financing to be used by Pakistan's Water and Power Development Authority for extensions of its Tarbela hydroelectric plant.

Zambia and Zimbabwe have appointed the African Development Bank (AfDB) as lead financial adviser for the construction of the 2,400-MW Batoka Gorge hydropower project, according to Zambezi River Authority (ZRA) Chief Executive Officer, Munyaradzi Munodawafa.
 

In Abuja, Nigeria, on Oct. 25, Nigeria’s Minster of State for Power, Works and Housing, Mustapha Shehuri, and Lv Zeziang, president of China Gezhouba Group International Company Ltd. (CGGC), joined other government and company officials in dedicating CGGC’s North Central and West Africa headquarters.