“The favorite part of my job is that I get to come out here,” said Tommy Oneal, an environmental specialist at Duke Energy working on a floating solar installation in Florida. “I see eagles, alligators, and all kinds of cool stuff ... It’s fun, these issues make my job different every day. When I went to college, I never thought I’d be dealing with alligator issues.”
CLEAN ENERGY
Must Be Equitable
Biden announces $1 billion for climate upgrades to low-income housing. The fund, which comes from the Inflation Reduction Act and is managed by the Department of Housing and Urban Development, is meant to help low-income households install climate-friendly efficiency upgrades like rooftop solar panels, heat pumps, and better insulation. The grant program is expected to cover tens of thousands of households, many of them multi-family. Low-income communities are often hit the hardest by the effects of climate change, but tend to have lower access to home climate and efficiency upgrades. (Washington Post $)
$11 billion for renewable energy headed to rural communities. The Department of Agriculture announced the multi-billion dollar investment from the Inflation Reduction Act, which will help rural electric cooperatives, energy developers, and utilities bring more clean energy to rural Americans. This represents the largest investment in rural electrification since the New Deal was enacted in the 1930s. Officials say the program focuses particularly on vulnerable, disadvantaged, and Indigenous communities. (Associated Press)
CLEAN ENERGY
Is A Good Investment
Automakers put the pedal to the metal for EVs. With new management in place, Toyota is investing more than $7 billion to shore up its EV production, seeking to quintuple its EV sales in 2024 compared to the previous fiscal year. The Wall Street Journal reports that while Toyota has lagged in the EV market, it appears eager to speed up its pace now that EV sales are rapidly growing. Meanwhile, CNBC writes that Hyundai is aiming to become a top global EV maker by 2030. As part of its efforts, the automaker is building a $5.5 billion battery plant in Georgia with the goal of producing 300,000 EVs per year from the plant by 2025. (Wall Street Journal $, CNBC)
Wind power supply chains are getting back on track. While the supply chain shocks that occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic were especially acute for the wind industry, wind executives say the worst is now behind them. Wind turbine developers had been dealing with costly delays, shortages, and inflationary prices of key components. This quarter’s positive earnings reports show that supply chains and finances are once again moving in the right direction. (Bloomberg $)
CLEAN ENERGY
Is Replacing Fossil Fuels
The U.S. is building a domestic solar supply chain. Ohio is set to build the largest solar panel factory in the country, the latest sign that the domestic industry is rapidly ramping up. The facility is expected to produce enough solar panels to supply 5 gigawatts of power every year starting in 2024, and Reuters reports that solar companies across the U.S. have announced 47 gigawatts worth of new solar manufacturing capacity overall. Growing the domestic solar supply chain and reducing reliance on imports from Asia is a key goal of the Inflation Reduction Act. But with U.S. domestic industry still scaling up, President Biden vetoed a bill that would have reinstated tariffs of solar panels imported from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam, stating the temporary waiver will limit “uncertainty” in the domestic solar industry, according to CNN. (Reuters, CNN)
Floating solar panels are catching on. While they’ve long been popular in Asia, floating solar panels are finally getting attention in the U.S. — offering a new way to expand clean energy and limit land usage while conserving water at the same time. Research shows that thousands of cities could meet their total electricity demand with floating solar alone. While floating solar is generally more expensive than land-based solar and is limited to certain bodies of water without strong currents, it can bypass the land-use issues that often plague renewable energy projects. Floating solar can also help reduce evaporation in drought-threatened areas like California, and is less likely than land-based panels to overheat (and thereby lose efficiency). (Associated Press)
CLEAN ENERGY
Is Challenging
Two out of three U.S. car dealerships don’t sell EVs. While demand for EVs is rapidly growing, limited supply and the shortage of car dealers carrying EVs are keeping clean transportation out of reach for many drivers. A report from the Sierra Club found that in 2022, just 34 percent of the 801 dealerships surveyed nationwide had any EVs for sale. Many dealers claimed they want to sell electric cars and trucks, but inventory issues have posed a major bottleneck. But not everyone is on board: Of the dealerships that didn’t carry EVs, 45 percent of them said they would not offer any EVs for sale even if supply were not an issue. (The Verge)
MULTIMEDIA
Video: Offshore wind “bubble curtains” can protect marine wildlife
