Energy Shift: Coal and gas remain power kings

Plus: A new battery charges in 5 min; SEC sharpening ESG teeth; Investors piling into hydrogen; Hyundai quietly dominating EV race

Hi everyone,

A belated Happy Canada Day and an early Happy Independence Day to those in the US.

In this issue, I am letting the articles do most of the talking. It was busy enough just keeping on top of the key stories over the past three weeks, so just a couple areas of comments. If you only have time for one story – check out the Feature Story where Nat Bullard unpacks graphs from bp’s latest Statistical Review of World Energy 2022.

Continue forwarding on to others and encourage them to subscribe. Feel free to share stories you think worthy of profiling here – or that I may have missed.

I am heading into some summer holidays, so watch for the next issue later in July.

Thanks,
Peter


Observations & Comments

Battery materials have become more expensive for the first time in many years. Demand from both EVs and grid batteries suggests this trend will not easily shift back to the slower march of cost reductions. Prices for some electric vehicles have gone up recently in response. For now, it seems as though high gas prices have continue to motivate buyers towards EVs, as I have not yet seen any hint of impact on sales. That said, my expectation is that the pinch on battery material availability over the next several years will broadly act as a brake on EVs and grid battery installations.


Feature Story

Four Charts Reveal Seismic Shifts in Global Energy Within One Lifetime | Bloomberg Green
Nathaniel Bullard | Sparklines

From the rise of wind and solar to China’s appetite for LNG, how the world gets its power has changed dramatically since the 20th century.

Every year, energy supermajor BP Plc performs a much-needed service for economists, analysts and long-term planners everywhere with its annual Statistical Review of World Energy. Published since the 1960s, it’s a trove of data on energy production and consumption, power generation, trade flows and other aspects of today’s energy system.

[Comment] Note the “pancakes” of coal and gas that still make up more than half of power generation globally. Also, while renewable power has seen incredible expansion, it mostly has taken over market share given up by nuclear. Gas looks to be as strong as it’s ever been. One thing is clear: we are not transitioning off fossil fuels for power generation anytime soon. 


Finance & Sentiment

The SEC War on Greenwashing Has Begun | BNN Bloomberg
For all the greenwashers out there on Wall Street, the party may really be over. There’s now little doubt that the US Securities and Exchange Commission actually means business in its bid to crackdown on misleading claims by managers of ESG funds.

$10.6trn investor coalition calls for G7 leaders to ‘radically redesign’ carbon pricing system | edie
Ahead of the G7 Summit in Berlin later this month, a coalition of institutional investors with $10.6trn in assets under management are calling for an agreement on changes to international carbon pricing policy, lest the aims of the Paris Agreement on climate fall out of reach.


Technology

Hydrogen 

BP’s $36 Billion Project Highlights Massive Green Hydrogen Hubs | Financial Post
BP’s acquisition of a stake and lead role in a $36 billion green hydrogen development in Western Australia is casting a spotlight on a slew of ambitious projects around the world that are promising to deliver massive amounts of the clean fuel.

Netherlands to build 10 GW national network for green hydrogen | pv magazine
The Netherlands is planning a €1.5 billion ($1.6 billion) green hydrogen network that will consist of 85% recycled natural gas pipes. It is expected to go online in 2027.

Siemens Energy and Air Liquide form a joint venture for the European production of large scale renewable hydrogen electrolyzers | Fuel Cell Works
Siemens Energy and Air Liquide announce the creation of a joint venture dedicated to the series production of industrial scale renewable hydrogen electrolyzers in Europe. With two of the global leading companies in their field combining their expertise, this Franco-German partnership will enable the emergence of a sustainable hydrogen economy in Europe and foster a European ecosystem for electrolysis and hydrogen technology. Production is expected to begin in the second half of 2023 and ramp-up to an annual production capacity of three gigawatts by 2025.

Adani, TotalEnergies join forces to develop green hydrogen network in India | S&P Global
Multinational infrastructure giant Adani Group agreed 14 June to pool its capital with the technology offered by French supermajor TotalEnergies to develop a green hydrogen hub in India, an investment analysts say represents the largest of its kind in the country to date.

NextEra’s Plan to Ditch Carbon Is a Huge Bet on Hydrogen | BNN Bloomberg
NextEra Energy Inc.’s plan to eliminate greenhouse gas emissions by 2045 without relying on carbon-capture systems or offsets marks one of the biggest bets yet to make hydrogen a central piece of the energy landscape.

Chevron Eyes $2.5 Billion Investments in Low-Carbon Hydrogen | BNN Bloomberg
Chevron Corp. plans to spend about $2.5 billion building up its hydrogen business this decade as the oil major accelerates investment in low-carbon technologies.

Hydrogen startup raises $198M for plants to produce green fuel | BNN Bloomberg
A startup aiming to slash the cost of green hydrogen by offering pre-designed manufacturing facilities raised $198 million in a series B funding round, as investors bet on a future powered by the climate-friendly fuel.

World record in hydrogen combustion in micro gas turbines | pv magazine
Scientists in Norway have managed to run a micro gas turbine plant on pure hydrogen. They claim their experiment paves the way for the use of existing infrastructure to generate heat and power with the green fuel.

Hydrogen combustion tech for residential water heaters | pv magazine
Japan’s Rinnai has unveiled what it claims is the world’s first 100% hydrogen combustion technology for residential water heaters. It is currently using the hydrogen water heater in demonstration projects in Australia, prior to commercialization.

Rio Tinto joins Gates to back renewable hydrogen startup as miners look to future tech | RenewEconomy
Anglo-Australia mining giant Rio Tinto has joined Bill Gates, Amazon and a host of other countries as investors in renewable hydrogen start-up Electric Hydrogen (EH2), that plans to build plants at scale to slash costs.

Bill Gates-Led Fund Backs Startup With Cheaper Way to Move Hydrogen | BNN Bloomberg
[Excerpt] Freshly produced hydrogen is injected into a pipeline containing natural gas, close to where hydrogen is made, and then recovered using H2SITE’s filter where it needs to be consumed. “It’s like being able to separate a great Bordeaux wine after it’s mixed with a common wine,” said Sebastien Arbola, executive vice president at Engie.

Carbon Capture 

World’s largest CCS project set for sanction in 2023 | Upstream
Australia’s Santos is progressing ambitious plans for what it is hailing as the world’s largest carbon capture and storage (CCS) project — a 10 million tonnes per annum development at its soon-to-be depleted Bayu-Undan gas condensate field in the Timor Sea.

China’s CNOOC completes first offshore carbon capture site | Reuters
Chinese state-owned oil and gas firm CNOOC Ltd has completed the country’s first offshore carbon capture and storage project designed to permanently bury carbon dioxide in the seabed, state media reported on Wednesday.

Shell to build ships to carry more CO2 over longer distances for CCS hubs | Reuters
Shell is building larger vessels that can carry more carbon dioxide over longer distances as part of the company’s plans to expand its carbon capture storage (CCS) business globally, the oil major said.

UK launches first CO2 storage licensing round, bidding to be ‘global leader | S&P Global
The UK on June 14 launched its first CO2 storage licensing round aimed at supplementing existing licenses and becoming a “global leader” in the field, with as many as 100 storage sites eventually needed.

Work begins on Mammoth, the world’s largest CO2 direct air capture plant | New Altas
[Excerpt] Climeworks has now broken ground on its second commercial direct air capture plant, which will also employ a modular architecture and is designed to soak up 36,000 tons of CO2 each year. Construction is expected to take 18 to 24 months, with CarbFix to store the captured carbon once operations begin.

The Grid 

[UK] Half of consumers happy to manage energy use five days a week, finds SPEN trial | Current±
Working with Octopus Energy, the trial saw the network operator notify the supplier when there was high generation output on the system forecast. Octopus then told participating customers to shift their energy usage to manage these periods, helping to balance the network.

Ocean Currents 

Japan’s Kairyu Sea Turbine Will Harvest the Never-Ending Power of Deep Ocean Currents | Singularity Hub
[Excerpt] Meanwhile, a similar ocean turbine called Kairyu was already in the water off the coast of Japan, undergoing a three-year trial to harness the power of deep ocean currents. The trial was deemed a success, and detailed in a report published by Bloomberg recently.


Energy Storage 

EV battery can reach 98% charge in less than 10 minutes | pv magazine

Image: Enovix

California-based Enovix said that it has demonstrated the ability of electric vehicle battery cells to charge from 0% to 80% capacity in as little as 5.2 minutes, and above 98% charge capacity in less than 10 minutes.

[Comment] I admit I hadn’t heard of this company before. Their website shows they have up until now focused on the market for handheld devices – laptops, phones and watches. Since EV batteries are just many multiples of smaller batteries, marketing for EVs makes sense. I did note they encase their batteries with stainless steel to constrain swelling for what they call “a whole new level of safety”, though is sure to add to the price tag. I did not see this story picked up by any other media sites I track, so it just made me wonder about the technology. Give the charging speed, one to watch.

US grid-scale energy storage quadruples | pv magazine
Grid-scale and residential storage installations have set new records in the United States, despite supply chain concerns and pricing issues. The volume of grid-scale energy storage installations in the United States increased four times over that seen in the first quarter of 2021, setting a new record in the first quarter 2022.

Macquarie’s Green Investment Group in 2GW battery storage development partnership with UK’s Bluestone | Energy Storage News
A joint development agreement (JDA) has been signed by Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (GIG) and renewable energy developer Bluestone Energy for up to 2GW of UK battery storage projects.

LG invests $450 million in producing Tesla’s 4680 battery cell format | Electrek
LG announced that it is investing $450 million into producing 4680 battery cells, a format pioneered by Tesla.

20GWh pumped hydro energy storage plant starting operations in Switzerland | Energy Storage News
A pumped hydro energy storage (PHES) plant with a capacity of 20GWh in Valais, Switzerland will begin operations on Friday 1 July. It features six turbines with a nameplate capacity of 150MW each meaning a maximum power of 900MW.

Quinbrook to build one of UK’s biggest batteries at site of old coal power station | RenewEconomy
Energy investment manager Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners is to build one of the biggest battery storage installations in the UK – a 230MW/460MWh facility to be located on the site of a former coal-fired power station.

Tesla Megapacks are about to replace Hawaii’s last remaining coal plant | Electrek
Tesla Megapacks are on their way to Hawaii in order to create a giant new energy storage system that is about to replace the state’s last remaining coal power plant.


Solar and Wind 

Shanghai Electric Rolls Out First EW8.X-230 Offshore Wind Turbine | Offshore Wind

Yes, those are people standing in front of this giant nacelle. Source: Shanghai Electric

Based on the Poseidon platform, the EW8.X-230 is a generator designed for the medium-low wind speeds normally experienced just above the sea surface off the Chinese shoreline, as well as the different stresses placed on the equipment dependent on wind direction, the turbine maker said.

Solar Developers Pledge $6 Billion to Boost US Manufacturing | BNN Bloomberg
A consortium of large US solar developers have committed to spend more than $6 billion on domestically produced panels in a move aimed at boosting the small American manufacturing sector.

Solar Material Price Jumps Most in 8 Months on Supply Woes | BNN Bloomberg
Polysilicon prices jumped by the most in eight months with maintenance scheduled at key facilities, threatening to raise the cost of solar panels as clean energy demand soars.

Oil Producers Are Planning the World’s Biggest Floating Wind Farm | BNN Bloomberg
A group of oil and gas producers including Equinor ASA, Shell Plc and TotalEnergies SE are considering building what would be the world’s largest floating wind farm off Norway to power their fossil-fuel activities. The companies are looking at options to build a 1-gigawatt wind farm to power operations in the Troll and Oseberg oil and gas fields, they said Friday.

First Solar bags 2 GW module order in US | pv magazine
National Grid Renewables and First Solar have partnered on multiple projects in the past, including the 200 MW Prairie Wolf Solar Project in Illinois and the 275 MW Noble Solar and 125 MWh Storage Project in Texas.

NextEra Energy plans to cut all carbon emissions by 2045, partly via FPL adding 140 GW of solar, storage | Utility Dive
NextEra Energy plans to eliminate all its direct and indirect carbon emissions by 2045, partly by growing Florida Power & Light’s solar fleet to 90,000 MW and its energy storage capacity to 50,000 MW.

EDF Renewables signs 1 GW of solar, storage contracts in New York | pv magazine
France’s EDF Renewables has won contracts for three large solar and storage projects, with a combined 1 GW of capacity.

A Swedish firm is about to build the world’s largest single offshore wind farm | Electrek
Stockholm-based wind farm and solar developer OX2 has applied for a permit to build a massive 5.5 gigawatt (GW) offshore wind farm in the Baltic Sea. If approved, it will be the largest single offshore wind farm in the world.


Transportation 

“Electrified streamliner:” Hyundai lifts veil on Ioniq 6 electric car | The Driven

Image: Hyundai

Following days of drip-fed teases on its social media platform, South Korean automaker Hyundai has finally fully unveiled the design of its next battery electric vehicle, the Ioniq 6.

Sorry Elon Musk. Hyundai is quietly dominating the EV race | BNN Bloomberg
Pipe down for a second Elon, the hottest things in the auto industry — the most electric electrics — now come from Hyundai Motor Co. Earlier this year, the South Korean carmaker rolled out two new battery-powered cars — the Hyundai Ioniq 5 and its sibling, the Kia EV6 — which promptly tore up the sales charts, passing the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Bolt and every other electric vehicle on the market not made by Tesla.

France bans short-haul flights where trains and buses take 2.5 hrs | Forbes
The French government has become the first large economy to ban short-haul flights where a train or bus alternative of two and a half hours or less exists–a move which was voted on in 2021 and comes into effect in April 2022.

[Comment] OK, this was from back in April, but I missed it. For those of us who live or have traveled in Europe, we know just how amazing the train systems are there compared to North America. Without being there to understand the reaction, my guess would be that this move would hardly be noticed and perhaps even seen as posturing. The inter-city train systems are that good. This 8 minute video explains Why Passenger Trains Suck in Canada. It is specific to Ontario, though it doesn’t get better elsewhere from what I’ve seen and heard.

Blockchain-verified sustainable aviation fuel scheme launched for business flights | edie
A new blockchain-enabled service whereby businesses can purchase sustainable aviation fuels (SAFs) equivalent to the amount needed to cover their business flights is launching today (20 June), spearheaded by Shell, Accenture and American Express Global Business Travel (Amex GBT).

Sony and Honda create joint EV company, and Sony gets top billing | Electrek
Sony and Honda have officially signed a joint venture agreement to establish a company to build electric cars together. The new company will be called “Sony Honda Mobility Inc.,” notably giving Sony top billing over the established automaker.

Canada Post unveils plan to convert half its 14,000 last-mile vehicle fleet to zero-emission by 2030, the rest by 2040 | Electric Autonomy
Canada Post is joining the transition to zero-emission vehicles, making a public $1-billion commitment this morning to reduce its environmental footprint, including transforming its 14,000-vehicle combustion fleet to “50 per cent electric fleet by 2030 and 100 per cent by 2040.”

VW and Siemens invest $450 million in Electrify America to accelerate EV charging infrastructure | Electrek
Volkswagen and Siemens announced that they raised $450 million for Electrify America to accelerate its deployment of charging infrastructure in the US.

Volvo Cars Announces New $1.25 Billion EV Plant In Slovakia | Inside EVs
Volvo Cars has announced plans to build a new manufacturing plant in Europe that will be dedicated exclusively to fully electric vehicles, supporting its goal of becoming an electric-only brand by 2030.

 

Circular Economy 

Tesla Co-Founder Partners With Toyota to Recycle Car Batteries | BNN Bloomberg
Toyota Motor Corp. is tying up with Redwood Materials Inc., a battery recycling company created by Tesla Inc. co-founder J.B. Straubel, to collect and repurpose cells from some of the earliest battery-powered vehicles.

Canada’s ban of single use plastics, explained | CBC
Canada’s Liberal government announced it will ban some single-use plastic items in an effort to achieve zero plastic waste by 2030, but only a limited number of products fall under the ban and some of the prohibitions don’t kick in until 2025.

Policy

G7 says no compromise on climate goals despite global energy crisis | RenewEconomy

G7 leaders have finished their three-day meeting in the Bavarian Alps with a commitment to the Paris Climate Agreement, even as they agreed that public funding could be necessary for some fossil gas projects to reduce dependence on Russian energy.

EU to ban new petrol and diesel car and van sales in 2035 | edie
Environment Ministers from the EU’s Member States have approved a ban on the sale of new light-duty vehicles with internal combustion engines for 2035.