Plus: Suncor invests $300 million in wind; Respol aims for net-zero by 2050; Telsa takes over 250,000 pre-orders for Cybertruck
Hi Everyone,
If you only have time to read one article, I suggest you read the first post from MIT Technology Review that shows why the electric car revolution will take longer then expected. A compelling case is made.
Yet Telsa took 250,000 pre-orders for it’s Cybertruck within a week of its unveiling. Meanwhile, eight other automakers aim to load up the US market with electric pickups by 2021, China aims for 25% of new car sales to be electric by 2025, and Audi announced plans for investing $12 billion in electric vehicles. Plus, battery prices are nearly half what they were three years ago. And those are just a few stories from the last couple of weeks. See more in the ‘headlines’ section below. Clearly, companies are taking the approach that they cannot risk being left behind, even though profits (as slim as they are) from electric vehicles may not nearly materialize the way some are forecasting.
I am going to skip a week again – it is just a very busy time of year. So watch for the final post of 2019 on December 22.
I hope you all have a great couple weeks. Continue to forward to friends, family and colleagues and encourage them to subscribe.
Thanks,
Peter
Why the electric-car revolution may take a lot longer than expected | MIT Technology Review
Comment: Like I said in my opening remarks, I recommend reading this article.
Excerpt: The problem is that the steady decline in the cost of lithium-ion batteries, which power electric vehicles and account for about a third of their total cost, is likely to slow in the next few years as they approach limits set by the cost of raw materials.
The findings sharply contradict those of other research groups, which have concluded that electric vehicles could achieve price parity with gas-powered ones in the next five years.
Transport decarbonisation having a ‘fundamental impact’ as Shell bids for leading position | Current News
Excerpt: “It is very clear to all of us in Shell that in ten or fifteen or twenty years, our sources of profit will be significantly different from what they are today,” Carré said, pointing to how in some markets, the stores on Shell’s retail sites have a “significantly higher” profit contribution that the fuel itself.
Shell is targeting a wide range of technologies, including battery electric vehicles, second generation biofuel and hydrogen for heavy goods vehicles “in the slightly more distant future”, as there are no clear answers as to which technologies will win the race in different markets.
Repsol to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050 at $5.3 billion cost | Reuters
Comment: This is an oil and gas industry first, I believe – as it sets the time frame for achieving the goal in 2050 and other milestones along the way (see figure). It is worth having a quick peak at the Repsol home page. Or better, their press release.
Excerpt: Giving extra impetus to its new goals, Repsol will link at least 40% of managers’ long-term variable pay to its emissions reduction targets.
Source: Repsol
Suncor going ahead with $300MM new Alberta wind farm | JWN Energy
Comment: Note the ‘double digit’ sustainable returns, including offsets for their core business.
Excerpt: “This unique investment approach in renewable energy is expected to generate double-digit, sustainable economic returns through power generation and retaining the generated carbon credits for utilization in the core business,” the company said.
Enel to Build 14GW of Renewables by 2022 as Decarbonization Race Heats Up | Greentech Media
Excerpt: Between 2020 and 2022, the Italian group will invest €11.5 billion ($12.6 billion) in additional renewable capacity, which it expects to equate to another 14.1 gigawatts of assets by the end that period, building on its existing 46-gigawatt renewables fleet, a large chunk of which is hydroelectric capacity.
Meanwhile, Enel will invest another €13 billion in grid infrastructure and enabling technology such as digitalization, automation and resilience. The firm’s energy transitions venture, Enel X, will add more than 300 megawatts of energy storage capacity and another 4 gigawatts of demand response resources.
Can First Nations Power Authority transform the energy industry? | National Observer
Excerpt: First Nations Power Authority is the only North American non-profit Indigenous owned and controlled organization developing power projects. One of its main goals is advancing Indigenous equity ownership and control on renewable energy projects, from start to finish.
In May, the FNPA signed a First Nations Opportunity Agreement with SaskPower for 20 megawatts of new utility-scale solar generation projects. The agreement is estimated to be worth $85 million over the course of 20 years. There are dozens of small- to large-scale projects involving solar, wind, biomass, geothermal, battery and other renewable energy technologies in various stages of development, Lonechild said.
Other headlines of interest…
Energy Storage
- Battery Pack Prices Fall As Market Ramps Up With Market Average At $156/kWh In 2019 | BloombergNEF
- Battery prices fall nearly 50% in 3 years, spurring more electrification: BNEF | Utility Dive
- Large-scale solar complex in South Australia taps 1414 Degrees’ thermal energy storage | Energy Storage News
Hydrogen
- Australia muscles into the global hydrogen market | E&E News ClimateWire
Solar (& Battery)
- Total opens New Caledonia’s largest solar power plant with battery storage | RenewEconomy
- Scottish Power lifts lid on major solar, wind, battery storage hybrid strategy for UK and Ireland | Current News
Wind (& Battery)
- Wyoming wind farm gets permit for 277 turbines | KOTA TV
- Vineyard Wins as Connecticut Chooses 804MW Offshore Wind Project | Greentech Media
Transport
- DC will permit 15,000 dockless vehicles in 2020 | Smart Cities Dive
- China Raises 2025 Sales Target for Electrified Cars to About 25% | BNN Bloomberg
- BMW invests $400 million in production of its Tesla Model Y competitor: the iNext | Electrek
- Toyota Revs Up Lineup with New 302 Horsepower RAV4 Prime | Toyota
- BMW and Great Wall are building factory to produce 160,000 electric vehicles per year | Electrek
- Audi accelerates electric vehicle plans with $12 billion investment | Electrek
- Eight electric pickup truck manufacturers to load up U.S. market by 2021 | Reuters
- Lincoln electric SUV to use Ford-backed startup’s ‘skateboard’ chassis: sources | Reuters
- Solar-powered trains could make rail transport greener | The Economist
Transition
- Big Oil’s Big Issue With Embracing ‘Big Energy’ | The Washington Post
- SOUTHEAST ASIA: Exploding energy demand eclipses solar and wind efforts | E&E News
Toyota Revs Up Lineup with New 302 Horsepower RAV4 Prime | Toyota
Comment: At 2.6 l/100 km ( or 38 km/l or 90 MPG) and 10 year 240,000 km battery warranty, I definitely have my eye on this one. Coming summer 2020 (to Canada). Has 60 km range on electric only. Impressive suite of features.
Source: Toyota