Author: David Odejide

While Tesla is increasing its production facilities in China, the company is not forgetting to build out infrastructure to support the EVs in the country. As a result, China is fast becoming one of the best places to own and operate a Tesla car because of the availability of charging stations. Tesla just opened its 100th Supercharger station and 1000th charging stalls in mainland China.

The landmark station is located in the Iconic Sky City Rafael site in Shanghai. To mark the occasion, Tesla China released a message that translated to “Travel conveniently with 100 Supercharging Stations and 1000 stalls that offer efficient charging. Enjoy pure electric.”

This milestone is not surprising, given that Tesla China now makes Superchargers in its Giga Shanghai facility, which can produce 10,000 units per year. This shows how far Tesla has come from April 2014 when it installed the first Supercharger in Jinqaio Town.

Tesla has the most extensive presence globally on the EV charging scene, with more than 25,000 charging points. A V3 Supercharger can add 250 km to the Model 3 in 15 minutes.

In June, Tesla completed the Silk Road Supercharger line, a stretch of more than 5,000 km from east China to the west.

Apart from Superchargers, Tesla has over 700 destination charging stations that contain 1,750 charging poles.

With the signals coming from Tesla, other non-Tesla electric vehicles will eventually use these Superchargers. Elon Musk, the CEO, has confirmed his company is working on opening up these chargers to all EVs, a significant boost to the spread of electric vehicles globally.

There are other charging networks in China, and some EV makers like NIO are building battery swapping stations, a faster but more technical way to get a full battery.

EV charging infrastructure is crucial to the adoption of EVs as governments promote them to combat environmental pollution.

China has become a hot spot for innovations and electric vehicle production, and many automakers are setting up operations because of the extensive supply chain. Ford, Daimler, Volkswagen, etc., all operate manufacturing facilities in the Asian country.

Very cheap models like the Wuling Hong Guang EV and more expensive models like the Tesla Model 3 and Zeekr 001 compete for local and global sales.

Saudi Arabia has been making huge strides in renewable energy, and it is complementing them with a battery energy storage system that will be the biggest in the world. The Gulf nation has awarded the contract to build the energy system to Huawei.

In turn, Huawei will partner with fellow Chinese company SEPCO111 on the Red Sea Project.

When completed, the battery energy storage system will have a storage capacity of 1,300 MWh and be hooked up to a 400 MW solar farm that local company ACWA Power is building.

Huawei has installed more than 8 GWh of battery system globally and will bank on its experience to deliver the project.

Saudi Arabia has selected a site for the project in NEOM, in the Tabuk Province. It is part of the nation’s plan to make NOEM a smart city. NOEM is entirely built from scratch and will rely completely on renewable energy like solar and green hydrogen.

This project is a good development for a country that is heavily dependent on revenue from hydrocarbon fuels. It shows Saudi Arabia’s seriousness about shifting to renewable energy both in its power generation and economy.

“This 1300 MWh off-grid energy storage project is the largest of its kind in the world and represents a milestone in the global energy storage industry,” Huawei said in a statement.

Dubai is building an 8.61 MWh energy storage system in the same region through its Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA). The project is located at the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park and uses Tesla’s lithium-ion batteries.

South Korea has upped its emission reduction target to 40% by 2030. This is a significant improvement over the Asian country’s target of 26.3% set in 2020. Both targets use 2018 emission levels as a base.

This new environmental goal was announced by the president of South Korea, Moon Jae-in, during a committee meeting on achieving carbon neutrality.

South Korea presently gets over 40% of its electricity from coal-powered stations, with only 6% coming from clean sources. The country’s manufacturing industry is heavily dependent on fossil fuels. This shows the great challenge South Korea will face in achieving the target.

Part of the strategy is to cut coal-plant generated power by half by 2030 and increase renewable energy share to 30.2%. It will also see 4.5 million vehicles powered by batteries and hydrogen on the road by 2025. Infrastructure for charging electric vehicles will also receive attention.

To reach the emission reduction goal, South Korea has earmarked about $10 billion. The goal for net-zero by 2050 is still in place, but it would be welcome if brought backward.

Back in 2020, President Moon Jae-in revealed the Green New Deal, which aimed to create new jobs and help the country recover from the effect of the pandemic.

President Moon Jae-in described the move, “This is the most ambitious reduction target possible under our circumstances. The goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions [by] 40% shows the nation’s strong willingness for carbon neutrality and responsibility toward the international community.”

This ambitious announcement comes ahead of the UN’s COP26 summit taking place in Glasgow, Scotland. It will start on October 31. The conference will try to get more ambitious action plans from participating countries on limiting global warming.

For many people passionate about environmental conservation, air travel remains a way they contribute to pollution because the aviation industry is a significant source of carbon emission, at 2–3% of all emissions due to human activities. While it might not be feasible to avoid flying altogether, two companies are joining forces to look for ways to reduce carbon emission in the sky with the help of green hydrogen.

Plug Power is collaborating with Airbus in this endeavor which will study the practicality of powering aircraft and airports with green hydrogen in the future.

At Airbus, green hydrogen holds lots of promise in cutting down the carbon emissions air travel is responsible for. The European company will work with Plug Power to develop a viable roadmap for introducing green hydrogen in airport operations and aircraft in the future.

The airport operation aspects that the joint study will focus on include swapping out fossil fuel with green hydrogen in powering airport facilities like transport equipment, heating buildings, and terminals, etc.

Green hydrogen can be produced from water through electrolysis. The process can be made more carbon-free by using power from renewable sources. Countless other industries are also investigating how green hydrogen can help them achieve lower carbon emission targets.

Airbus and Plug Play will select an airport in the US for a test run and serve as a template for other airports in North America.

Airbus first revealed its green-hydrogen airport idea in 2020, serving as its entry point into developing infrastructure to support aircraft running on green hydrogen.

Airbus VP of Zero-Emission Aircraft, Glenn Llewellyn, said about the partnership between the two companies, “We at Airbus see huge potential for green hydrogen to power our future zero-emission aircraft. This partnership with Plug Power — a true pioneer in developing green hydrogen infrastructure across the United States and key points across Europe and Asia — will enable us to leverage their expertise to decarbonize airports while preparing them for the arrival of hydrogen aircraft by 2035.”

Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority, CapMetro, in Texas, has signed the biggest contract for electric buses in the US. The company’s board of directors approved the purchase of 197 battery-powered city buses to swell the number to 200.

The order will cost CapMetro $255 million. In the main portion of the contract, Proterra and New Flyer will supply 56 electric buses. The rest are optional and include 126 40-foot buses and 15 60-foot bosses. CapMetro will get chargers and staff training too.

The new buses will serve the Expo Center and Pleasant Valley MetroRapid lines. CapMetro will take delivery of the first batch toward the end of 2022. They will feature modern amenities like USB charging ports, plug-in and overhead charging, open seating floor plan, digital passenger display, etc.

The electric buses will help CapMetro reduce air pollution, noise pollution, and fueling costs when operational.

The purchase of the electric buses is part of CapMetro’s plan to overhaul the city’s transport system. It includes a new rail system with underground stations and electrification of the fleet of buses.

According to CapMetro president and CEO Randy Clarke, “Today’s announcement is a major milestone for CapMetro as we strive to provide safe, clean, and equitable transportation for our community for generations to come. Public transportation has a bright future in Central Texas as we continue to bring Project Connect to life in the coming years. With this electric bus procurement, we are showing our dedication to a cleaner tomorrow.”

In the words of the president of Proterra Transit, Josh Ensign, “Proterra is incredibly proud to build on our strong partnership with CapMetro and deliver our newest, fifth-generation electric bus technology to help Austin realize its important goal of 100 percent zero-emission transportation. Through its embrace of next-generation electric bus technology and charging infrastructure, CapMetro is setting a model for others to follow in the transition to clean, quiet transportation for all.”

California is a leader in eradicating carbon emissions, and it has taken further steps to stamp out pollution from gas-powered lawn equipment.

This new ban will take effect from 2024, affects small off-road engines (SOREs), including leaf blowers and lawn mowers, generators, and emergency response equipment, according to bill AB 1346 signed by the governor.

The bill empowers the state’s Air Resources Board to prepare regulations that will support the move. However, the regulators have the authority to postpone some aspects of the ban based on what is technically feasible.

It seems AB 1346 targets the sales of new gas-powered SOREs but does not address their use.

In defense of the ban, SOREs contribute to pollution, despite their relatively small sizes. Because they have largely escaped regulation since they are not as visible as automobiles, the engines often do not fully combust fuel, leading to soot and other particulate exhausts. They also produce more nitrous oxide gases than passenger cars in the state. All these contribute to the smog that affects health.

Apart from gas pollution, SOREs also cause noise pollution because their operations are usually loud.

For Californians concerned about financial implications, the new bill points out that these SOREs have affordable zero-emission replacements. For example, there are electric lawn mowers with rebates to reduce their costs. In fact, bill AB 1346 gives provisions for state agencies to increase funding for such rebate programs.

Solar power is cheaper, cleaner, and reliable. For this reason, it is always exciting to see another country sign contracts for solar development. Iraq is the latest country to commit to a solar project that will generate 525 MW of electricity!

The project is also a unification of some sort as it will be handled by a consortium made up of Norwegian Scatec, Egyptian Orascom Construction, and local firm Bilal. It will work under a build, own, and operate model by an entity specially set up (SPV).

The provinces of Babel and Karbala will host the project in southern Iraq, and the total value is about half a billion dollars.

The consortium won the contract for 522 MW out of the 755 MW available on tender under an independent power producer (IPP) scheme.

Under the agreement, the electricity ministry will connect the installation to the grid under a transmission connection contract (TCC) and lease the land for the solar farms under a land-lease contract (LCC). This makes the ministry customer to the SPV.

The solar farms are scattered over seven locations. The Karbala produces the most electricity at 300 MW, and Sawa 1 in Muthana province generates the least at 30 MW.

Iraq is negotiating other contracts for more renewable energy that will bring more international firms into the country. These include Masdar, an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth company that will develop capacity for 1 GW solar energy production in five locations in the country.

Similarly, French TotalEnergies will develop another 1 GW of solar production. Also, Chinese Power China will generate 2 GW of solar energy in phases.

Iraq is working towards 10 GW of solar energy by 2030 to meet high energy demands in the country. It currently has 216 MW of renewable energy capacity.

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Wind turbines are environmentally friendly methods of generating energy, and it is great that they are catching on. The state of Maryland in the US is getting in on wind turbines as Orsted is setting up Skipjack Wind 1 offshore farm that will produce 120 MW and power 40,000 homes.

Apart from being a sustainable energy source, the project that will generate about 1400 jobs is worth $225 million in investments. Attached is another $20 million facilities for maintenance of the Skipjack Wind 1 installation.

Orsted will locate the farm 19 miles from the shores of the Delmarva Peninsula. It will come online in 2026.

The project will use GE’s Haliade-X 12 MW wind turbines.

The maintenance facility, which will be emission-free, is situated in Ocean City. It will create about 110 jobs and make Ocean City a hub for offshore wind jobs and other economic activities.

From the facility, Crew Transfer Vehicles will take off to service the wind farm. It will include a warehouse and office space for Orsted’s operation in the region. Some staff will live on the premises permanently, including maintenance technicians, operations staff, and engineers. There is no timeline yet, but it is safe to assume it will be completed before the farm itself.

Since all its operation is zero-emission, the CTVs are emission-free and will dock at the facility.

There has been opposition to the project, as some residents including the mayor of Ocean City, complain the presence of the turbines will ruin their view of the horizon.

”As the global leader in offshore wind energy, Ørsted firmly believes that the Ocean City community deserves full access to the incredible promise of this new American industry,” said David Hardy, CEO of Ørsted Offshore North America.

”We are excited to fulfill another commitment made to the State of Maryland and look forward to working with Ocean City residents, including its local fishing community, to make this a project that benefits all.”

In what is billed as the triumph of battery-powered locomotion over internal combustion engines, a plant that produced the culturally iconic, fuel-guzzling Hummer is now making electric vans!

If you were around at the time and were interested, you would probably remember the hulking Hummer SUVs from rap music videos. Those vehicles consumed tons of fuel and produced lots of carbon emissions. They also jostled other cars out of the way due to their hulking nature.

Environment conservation, however, is having the last laugh as the plant that made the Hummer will make pollution-free electric vans. The factory, located in Mishawaka, Indiana, has been taken over by Electric Last Mile Solutions (ELMS), who announced the delivery of its first batch of Urban Delivery EV electric vans to customers.

According to ELMS, these Class 1 electric vans are the first of their kind in the US, and the initial batch will go to Randy Marion Automotive Group. This dealership placed an order for 1,000 units.

ELMS started in August 2020, with CEO Jim Taylor leading the effort to buy the production facility. The company uses a model where part of the manufacturing is done in China, but the vans are finished in the former Hummer-producing factory.

The light-duty Urban Delivery EV van is 177 inches long, 64 inches wide, and 75 inches tall. It has a 2,100-pound payload capacity, 171 cubic feet of cargo space, and covers 125 miles on a single charge.

Following the Urban Delivery van is Urban Utility, a Class 3 van that will enter production in 2022.

Other companies are making electric vans, like Rivian who has a 100,000 unit order from Amazon, Canoo who has a model that will sell from $33,000, and Arrival in the UK. However, none has a production facility with a legacy as fascinating as ELMS’.

The push for clean and renewable energy just got a massive boost, with $400 billion promised by a group of governments and private sector players. This pledge came during a high-level summit that called for action on climate change during the UN General Assembly in New York, US.

As part of the agreement, hundreds of millions of people will access renewable energy, especially in developing countries. Energy efficiency will also see improvement.

About 35 countries took part in the new renewable energy pact. Global companies including TotalEnergies, Schneider Electric, and Google also committed.

Germany pledged to raise the share of its total electricity consumption to 65 percent by 2030. The European nation also committed to supporting partner countries to develop technologies like green hydrogen. A €7 billion fund will support it.

During the summit, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres tasked world leaders to cut the number of people with no access to electricity by half by 2025, from a total of 760 million. He mentioned four methods to achieve a sustainable energy future; reduce the number of people without access to electricity by half by 2025, accelerate the shift to clean energy sources, make energy accessible to all by 2030, and carry everybody along in the effort to reduce carbon dioxide.

Separately, China and the US made their environmental pledges. The Asian economic powerhouse promised to end financing coal power plants in overseas countries. At the same time, the US committed to doubling its climate assistance to developing countries.