View this email in a web browser.
OK Beemer: Why European luxury sedans are becoming a relic of the past and electric SUVs are on the rise
The rapid embrace of upscale electric cars by aspirational consumers like Dickson shows how battery-powered vehicles are primed to become a major force in the auto industry, with broad implications for mechanics, autoworkers, oil companies and environmentalists. While many have long predicted an electric car revolution, Tesla’s quick success in the luxury market — which often sets the direction for the entire automotive industry — shows that the tipping point may have already happened. Just two years after launching the Model 3 into production, Tesla far outsells vehicles in the luxury sport sedan segment by its direct competitors, including Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Audi and Lexus, according to Edmunds market data reviewed by The Washington Post. The company claims it has bested its all of its direct competitors from those brands combined, based on delivery data. [ read more … ]
Wind Energy
Conn. awards major offshore project to Vineyard Wind
Vineyard Wind won a contract with Connecticut to develop an 804-megawatt offshore wind project, state regulators announced yesterday. The news hands the developer a major victory as it works to break a federal permitting logjam on its first project, an 800-MW proposal contracted to supply power to Massachusetts. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management brought that development to a halt this summer, saying a cumulative environmental evaluation of other projects in the area was needed before it can proceed.
[ read more … ]
The Department of Interior’s review of potential cumulative impact of East Coast offshore wind energy development may continue into late 2020.
The Department of Interior’s review of potential cumulative impact of East Coast offshore wind energy development may continue into late 2020. But industry advocates say the nascent U.S. industry’s momentum is continuing, with new contracts and commitments, and expectations of new Bureau of Offshore Energy Management offshore lease sales in New York Bight and California waters. “In 2020 we’ll have additional leases coming on line in New York and California. This will become a bicoastal industry,” Liz Burdock, president and CEO of the Business Network for Offshore Wind, told audiences at the 40th annual International WorkBoat Show in New Orleans Thursday. [ read more … ]
Wind woes increase in world’s cheapest market
More and more wind farms face delays in India as developers struggle to make their projects work in the world’s cheapest market. About 2 gigawatts of wind power generation auctioned by the federal government since February 2017 is running behind schedule, according to BloombergNEF. That number has more than quadrupled since February, threatening to derail the nation’s renewable-energy ambitions.
[ read more … ]
Offshore Wind May Help The Planet — But Will It Hurt Whales?
“Tail! Tail!” shouts Dr. Howard Rosenbaum, a marine biologist, before grabbing his crossbow, as we close in on a humpback whale. Rosenbaum gets into position on the bow of the boat, stands firmly with legs apart, takes aim, and fires at the 40-foot cetacean. The arrow that he releases doesn’t have a point – it has a hollow 2-inch tip to collect skin and blubber, and a cork-like stopper to prevent it from penetrating too deeply. [ read more … ]
Solar Energy
Court blocks Trump on solar tariffs
The Trump administration’s decision to extend solar tariffs across one previously exempted type of panel was blocked by a federal trade court yesterday, handing a temporary victory to the industry. Bifacial solar panels, which absorb sunlight on both sides and can generate about 10% more electricity than traditional panels, were granted an exemption back in June from the president’s tariffs on solar imports. [ read more … ]
States
Political whiplash takes Wisconsin from skepticism to activism
Wisconsin’s chief executive once believed climate change was an unproven theory instead of a public priority. Times have changed. In 12 months, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers has rolled back the science-squelching policies of Scott Walker, the former Republican governor who questioned climate science and briefly ran for president in 2016. The state that helped catapult President Trump into the White House has adopted an unapologetically progressive agenda aimed at understanding climate change while preparing its 5.8 million citizens for the environmental changes ahead. [ read more … ]
Climate Policy
Pelosi expects major climate bill before the 2020 election
The House is poised to take up major climate change legislation before next year’s elections, once the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis submits its policy recommendations, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) told reporters this morning. “That is the purpose of the Select Committee, not just to be an academic endeavor, but to report to the legislative committees so that we can act upon it and build along the way, in the public, the fact that Congress is acting,” Pelosi said at a news conference to tout the Democrats’ trip to Madrid for United Nations climate talks. [ read more … ]
Energy and Commerce plan on its way, but details still hazy
Energy and Commerce Committee Democrats are hoping to produce draft legislation to address climate change across the U.S. economy in the coming weeks, but a hearing yesterday showed they’re still in a sticky political conundrum. An Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee hearing yesterday capped off weeks of work focused on decarbonizing various sectors of the U.S. economy — from transportation to electric power to manufacturing. The panel is expecting more work on the issue after the holiday break. [ read more … ]
Republicans send mixed messages on Madrid talks
Republicans are unified in their opposition to the Paris climate agreement, but they’re sending inconsistent messages on the United States’ role in international climate negotiations. Shortly after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi landed back in Washington, D.C., after taking 14 other Democrats to Madrid for United Nations climate talks over the weekend, Republican senators were on the floor blasting the California Democrat for wasting her time. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), who has acknowledged man-made climate change, called the trip a “performance art for the coastal elites.”
[ read more … ]
EVs
Battery prices fall nearly 50% in 3 years, spurring more electrification: BNEF
Average market prices for battery packs have plunged from $1,100/kWh in 2010 to $156/kWh in 2019, an 87% fall in real terms, according to a report released Tuesday by Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Prices are projected to fall to around $100/kWh by 2023, driving electrification across the global economy, according to BNEF’s forecast. [ read more … ]
FERC
Is FERC overstepping its authority and hurting renewables? States, power groups question PURPA plan
States, competitive market groups and other stakeholders criticized a federal proposal to overhaul the Public Utilities Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA), in comments filed Tuesday, questioning the potential impacts those changes could have to the country’s renewable energy momentum. Stakeholders, including the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) and Electric Power Supply Association (EPSA) raised concerns that the notice of proposed rulemaking (NOPR) issued by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission in September would unduly impact states outside regulated power pools. Meanwhile, states participating in regional transmission organizations (RTOs) and independent system operators (ISOs) had their own concerns about the potential impacts of the proposed rule. [ read more … ]
Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.