Plus: South Korea to deploy 2000 hydrogen buses; US sees 5 years of clean investment in 9 months; Canada provides $13 billion incentives to VW
Hi Everyone,
Did you miss me? With my break over, the floodgate of stories is released in this issue. Brace yourself accordingly. Also, don’t miss the policy stories at the bottom. I kept all the introductory text in this issue, making it extra long.
If you ‘re wondering about that 5.2% in the headline, look no further than the first Finance article.
Please excuse the lightness of my comments, owing to my break. Continue to forward on to other who may be interested and encourage them to subscribe.
Thanks,
Peter
Finance & Sentiment
Phasing Out Fossil Fuels Hasn’t Worked. Europe Has a New Idea for COP28 | BNN Bloomberg
[Excerpt] Last month the EU agreed to boost its own renewables to 42.5% of the energy mix by 2030. The International Energy Agency, which will be involved with coming up with a global renewable target, estimated that the share of those technologies in the total global energy supply was a mere 5.2% in 2021.
Top US banks face little investor pressure on fossil-fuel financing | Reuters
Top U.S. bank investors gave only slim support on Tuesday to shareholder resolutions calling for the lenders to wind down new fossil fuel financing, setbacks for climate activists who had hoped for new constraints on the oil and gas industries.
Barça Ditching Private Jet for Train Points to Greener Football | Yahoo Finance
In a sign that climate action is starting to take root in professional sports, some of the world’s greatest football players took the train to work. FC Barcelona’s players chose the railway over a private jet when traveling to a recent match against Getafe CF, which plays on the outskirts of Spanish capital Madrid.
BNP Paribas: will no longer finance development of new oil and gas fields | Financial Post
BNP Paribas, France’s largest bank, will no longer provide any financing dedicated to the development of new oil and gas fields and it reiterated it targets a 80% cut of its oil exploration financing by 2030.
China’s Energy Market is Rebounding Strongly, Says UAE’s Adnoc | BNN Bloomberg
The United Arab Emirates’ main energy company said demand in China has rebounded quickly this year with the economy’s reopening, particularly when it comes to jet fuel.
Equinor, Partners Proceed With $9 Billion Brazil Gas Investment | BNN Bloomberg
Equinor ASA and its partners — Repsol Sinopec Brasil and Petrobras — are moving forward with plans to invest about $9 billion in oil and gas discoveries in Brazil’s Campos Basin.
New $10trn investor coalition pushes big businesses to reduce plastic packaging | edie
Almost 200 investors are pressing their clients for “more radical” action to reduce their reliance on plastics, including Aviva and Axa. The 185-strong group has today (4 May) sent a letter to executives at 30 of the world’s biggest consumer goods firms and grocery retailers, stating that a failure for faster action to phase down plastics at the source and to improve waste management is building up financial risks.
Technology
Hydrogen
More than 1,000 clean hydrogen projects worth $320bn announced, but few have reached FID: report | Hydrogen Insight
More than 1,000 renewable and low-carbon hydrogen projects requiring $320m of investment by the end of 2030 have been announced globally, although less than 10% have reached final investment decision, according to a new report from the Hydrogen Council lobby group.
South Korea signs deal with Samsung, Hyundai and others to put 2,000 hydrogen commuter buses on its roads by 2026 | Hydrogen Insight
South Korea has signed a “business agreement” with 14 companies — including conglomerates Samsung, Hyundai and SK Group — and 12 local governments to put 2,000 hydrogen-powered commuter buses on the nation’s roads by 2026.
NEL Hydrogen invests $400 million in Michigan electrolyzer plant | Energy News
[Excerpt] The facility is expected to have a production capacity of approximately 45,000 tons of electrolyzers per year, with operations slated to begin in 2023. The electrolyzers produced by Nel Hydrogen are highly efficient and can be used to produce green hydrogen from renewable sources, such as wind and solar energy.
Keppel, ExxonMobil to explore low-carbon ammonia solutions for Singapore | Reuters via Yahoo
[Excerpt] The deal aims to use low-carbon hydrogen for a 600 megawatt (MW) Keppel Sakra Cogen plant in Jurong Island. Currently under construction, the plant is expected to operate with at least 30% hydrogen and would have the capability of shifting to run entirely on hydrogen.
China Energy To Begin Construction Of Egypt’s $5.1 Billion Green Hydrogen Plant In May | Solar Quarter
According to a cabinet declaration, China Energy will begin construction of Egypt’s $5.1 billion hydrogen project next May.
German public transport company orders 52 hydrogen buses for €30m after rejecting battery-electric models | Hydrogen Insight
A regional public transport company in northeast Germany has ordered 52 hydrogen buses from Polish manufacturer Solaris for €30m ($32.9m), as part of plans to replace all 170 of its diesel buses with fuel-cell replacements.
Carbon Capture
Santos strikes deals to bury carbon dioxide under the Timor Sea | Syndey Morning Herald
Australian energy giant Santos has signed non-binding deals with four other gas producers to take their emissions and stash them in depleted gas reservoirs beneath the Timor Sea at its proposed Bayu-Undan carbon capture and storage project.
Buildings
German manufacturer to invest €450 million in heat pump expansion | pv magazine
Stiebel Eltron says it will quadruple its heat pump manufacturing capacity at its factory in Holzminden, Germany. It also plans to triple the number of industrial jobs it provides to 1,200 positions by 2027.
The Grid
EV drivers in Ontario with home charging to benefit from ultra-low overnight electricity pricing | Electric Autonomy
Comment: The new overnight rate of 2.4 cents per kWh is 67% lower than the current off-peak rate and 10 times lower than the current peak rate of 24 cents per kWh applied weekdays 4:00-9:00pm.
The Ontario Energy Board has finally woken up to the realization that EVs represent an opportunity to shave peak demand by providing incentives to charge off-peak – something electric system operators and utilities in countless other jurisdictions have figured out years ago. The prize? Doing so saves rate-payers a lot of money by not having to build out the grid for an ever higher peak demand from people coming home from work and just plugging in the cars. Now it is Alberta’s turn to do likewise as this province is even further behind. At least Ontario had an existing tiered time of use pricing model. Alberta has no time of use pricing for residential at all. If this sounds like a hobby horse for me, it is!
Small Modular Reactors
US ready to lend Poland $4 billion for nuclear energy plan | AP News
A project to develop small nuclear power reactors in Poland is moving forward, with Polish energy company Orlen and two U.S. government financial institutions signing an agreement Monday.
Energy Storage
GM and Samsung partner to build a new $3 billion battery cell factory in the US | Electrek
GM and Samsung SDI have announced that they are partnering to build a new $3 billion battery cell factory in the US to power GM’s electric vehicles. It’s a change for GM, which has so far been mostly partnered with LG Energy for its battery cell supply.
Engie to deploy 380 MW/1.52 GWh of battery storage in Belgium | pv magazine
Engie will deploy three giant batteries across three different parts of Belgium. All of the facilities will be able to provide power for up to four hours.
Tesla plans “many more” Megapack factories as grid battery sales quadruple | RenewEconomy
Tesla says it plans to build many more battery “mega-factories” as demand for grid scale battery storage soared nearly four-fold in the first quarter of 2023, outstripping the growth in electric vehicles.
WA to fund Australia’s biggest battery as part of $2.8bn renewable and storage plan | RenewEconomy
The Western Australia state government is to provide funding for a 2,000MWh big battery – the biggest in Australia – that will be built in the coal centre of Collie as it seeks to fast-track its switch from fossil fuels to clean energy.
Solar and Wind
US-Canada shared offshore wind backbone ‘could save almost $800m’ | ReCharge
While the US vision for offshore wind culminates in the vast reaches of the Gulf of Maine, a cross-border coalition of energy and transmission developers and suppliers is urging the nation to look even farther afield, to the windy sweeps of coastal Nova Scotia, Canada.
The US has seen 5 years’ worth of clean energy investments in just 9 months – here are the highlights | Electrek
The US utility-scale clean energy sector has announced more than $150 billion in capital investment since the Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law last August – the American Clean Power Association breaks it down in a new report.
New vertical PV system for parking areas | pv magazine
German module maker Luxor Solar and Japan’s AirWater are selling vertical PV systems for parking areas that can reportedly provide the same energy yield as conventional PV carports, but with less space.
A huge 2.5 GW floating offshore wind farm has applied for a permit | Electrek
Sweden-based Freja Offshore, a joint venture between floating offshore wind developer Hexicon and Mainstream Renewable Power, has applied to the Swedish Ministry of Climate and Business for a permit for a huge floating offshore wind farm.
WA plans huge switch to solar and storage as part of stunning 50GW green energy boom | RenewEconomy
Western Australia is planning a massive switch to large-scale solar and storage in its grid as part of a hugely ambitious vision to build 50GW of new energy capacity in just 20 years.
See also: WA to fund Australia’s biggest battery as part of $2.8bn renewable and storage plan
Oklahoma is about to get one of the largest solar cell factories in the US | Electrek
Enel North America has named Oklahoma as its preferred choice for its planned 3-gigawatt (GW) solar panel and cell factory.
RWE lines up Siemens Gamesa for a gigawatt of onshore wind turbines | ReCharge News
Green power development giant RWE has signed a framework agreement with Siemens Gamesa under which the manufacturer is slated to supply 1GW of its largest onshore wind turbines for projects in Europe.
Transportation
Toyota launches bZ3, its first full electric sedan, driven by BYD powertrain | The Driven
IMAGE: FAW TOYOTA
Toyota has finally launched the new bZ3 electric sedan in China. The new model is driven by BYD’s battery and motor powertrain setup. This is the second electric car by the brand after bZ4X SUV was launched in 2022.
Comment: I was reasonably impressed to see that it saw 5,000 orders on the first day.
Biden Costs EV Makers Some Customers Until the US Builds More Batteries | BNN Bloomberg
[Excerpt] The stringent content rules are the stick Biden is using to get automakers and their battery suppliers to invest in the US. The carrot — manufacturing incentives that could render the country the most profitable place in the world to produce battery cells — is helping make the massive spending necessary an easy sell in board rooms.
Coke Canada Bottling announces purchase of six Class 8 Volvo VNR electric trucks | Electric Autonomy
Coke Canada will start using the trucks for customer deliveries in the Montreal area later this year. The announcement came two days after rival PepsiCo unveiled its first 18 Tesla Semis at a bottling plant in California.
Volkswagen reveals ID.Next electric sedan in a bid to win back market share in China | Electrek
Volkswagen stunned the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show by unveiling its new ID.Next electric sedan concept. The ID.Next was showcased next to the VW ID.7 Vizzion, the Chinese model of its new electric sedan produced by FAW Volkswagen.
New York City congestion pricing plan clears key hurdle | Financial Post
[Excerpt] The Federal Highway Administration approval is a milestone in efforts to implement the plan announced in 2019 to reduce traffic and provide funding to improve mass transit by using tolls to manage traffic in central Manhattan.
Subtext….
Hertz is adding up to 6,000 EVs to its rental fleet in Orlando | Electrek
Hertz announced today that it plans to add up to 6,000 rental EVs to its existing fleet in Orlando for leisure and business customers, as well as rideshare drivers. The rental car giant will also support the installation of up to 50 public fast chargers across the Greater Orlando area in partnership with bp.
Lordstown Motors Warns of Bankruptcy as Foxconn Deal Unravels | BNN Bloomberg
Lordstown Motors Corp. may be forced to cease operations and file for bankruptcy after manufacturing giant Foxconn told the electric-vehicle company that it’s prepared to pull out of a production partnership.
Chinese electric vehicle brands expand to global markets | AP News
[Excerpt] CEO Carlos Tavares of Stellantis, the parent company of Chrysler, Peugeot and FIAT, warned in January that Europe needs a strategy to compete with China’s lower prices. European-made electrics cost 40% more than Chinese models, according to Tavares.
Quebec, Ottawa and Nova Bus announce $2.1-billion deal for 1,229 electric buses | Electric Autonomy
Ten transit organizations in Quebec are banding together to procure up to 1,229 Nova Bus electric buses for $2.1 billion. The buy, if fully executed, may be the largest single purchase of electric buses to date in North America.
Boston kicks off rollout of 750 electric school buses with first of the fleet transporting students | Electrek
Boston Public Schools has kicked off an ambitious new program to eventually convert its entire fleet of 750 vehicles to electric.
BYD Seagull: Tesla’s Chinese Rival Unveils $11k EV | Global Village Space
Volkswagen stunned the 2023 Shanghai Auto Show by unveiling its new ID.Next electric sedan concept. The ID.Next was showcased next to the VW ID.7 Vizzion, the Chinese model of its new electric sedan produced by FAW Volkswagen.
Policy
Canada matched Joe Biden subsidies to win Volkswagen battery plant, pledging up to $13 billion | Financial Post
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s government agreed to subsidies that may top $13 billion over a decade to land an electric-vehicle battery plant by Volkswagen AG, the company’s first gigafactory outside Europe.
The EU has approved the world’s first carbon tax on imports | Yahoo Finance
After two years of negotiations, the EU’s 27 member states voted on Tuesday (April 25) to finalize a new law creating the world’s first carbon border tax. The tax, levied on imports, is a landmark piece of legislation, with the potential to transform the most polluting industries within the EU and beyond.
N.Y. ditches gas stoves, fossil fuels in new buildings in first statewide ban in U.S. | Washington Post
New York has become the first state in the nation to pass a law banning natural gas and other fossil fuels in most new buildings, a move that could help reshape how Americans heat and cook in their homes in the coming decades.
New Jersey halts electric vehicle rebates, demand too high | AP News
New Jersey residents looking to buy or lease an electric vehicle won’t be able to get a government rebate — at least temporarily — because the state program is so popular that it’s already running out of money, officials said.
Norway unveils 20 new offshore wind areas with floating to the fore | ReCharge News
Nation’s government to assess seabed from north to south for possible future deployment to help meet 30GW 2040 target.
Dutch government unveils more than €7.5bn of spending on green hydrogen in new climate package | Hydrogen Insight
The Dutch government has unveiled a massive €28.1bn ($30.8bn) climate package that aims to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 55% by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels), which includes just over €7.5bn of cash for green hydrogen.