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Renewables will total 22 percent of U.S. electricity generation in 2022, says government
Renewable energy will comprise nearly a quarter of electricity generated in the U.S. this year, according to projections from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. The number represents an increase from 2020 and 2021, both of which saw about 20 percent generation from renewables. The EIA further projected the proportion will increase to 24 percent renewables in 2023. [ read more … ]
Wind Energy
New Jersey Steps Into Patent Dispute Between GE and Siemens Gamesa
Back in June, a jury in Boston, Massachusetts, ruled that GE infringed on one of Siemens Gamesa’s patents related to structural support of large offshore wind turbines and awarded the company a royalty rate of USD 30,000 per megawatt. Siemens Gamesa has since sought the permanent injunction against the use of Haliade-X turbines on offshore wind projects. In an amicus brief filed this week in the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts, the State of New Jersey said that ”the relevant case law requires that there be a workable balance between protecting the patentee’s right and protecting the public from the injunction’s adverse effects.”The amicus brief also claims that Siemens Gamesa will suffer ”no irreparable harm” if Ocean Wind is exempt from any injunctive order, saying that ”any alleged harms to SGRE may be redressed by money damages”. [ read more … ]
Inflation Reduction Act
State climate action could be supercharged by the Inflation Reduction Act
The landmark legislation, which President Biden signed into law on Tuesday, also contains a slew of smaller but significant investments in climate action at the state level. These lesser-noticed provisions could supercharge efforts to slash emissions and bolster clean energy across all 50 states, according to climate-conscious governors and advocates. “These are perhaps the smallest and most exciting investments,” Washington Gov. Jay Inslee (D), who mounted a climate-centric presidential campaign in 2020, told The Climate 202. “When the tale is told, I think these will be shown as the most effective provisions,” Inslee said. “These are not eye-popping numbers, but I think they will be eye-popping results.”
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Climate
A New Round of Colorado River Cuts Is Announced
With water levels in the Colorado River near their lowest point ever, Arizona and Nevada on Tuesday faced new restrictions on the amount of water they can pump out of the river, the most important in the Southwest. And the threat of more cuts looms. This week, those two states along with five others failed to meet a deadline for agreement on much steeper cuts in water use, raising the prospect that the federal government will step in and mandate further reductions. [ read more … ]
EVs
Why Buying an Electric Car Just Became More Complicated
If you’re a well-paid lawyer eyeing an electric Rivian sport-utility vehicle, you might want to buy it before New Year’s Day. If you’re a middle-class nurse saving up for a compact Chevrolet Bolt, you might want to wait until January. Those calculations — and a host of others pertaining to the red-hot electric vehicle market — come courtesy of an energy, tax and health care law that President Biden signed on Tuesday. It includes more than $370 billion in spending and tax incentives meant to address climate change, largely by encouraging people, businesses and electric utilities to reduce their use of fossil fuels. One incentive is the extension of a tax credit for the purchase of electric cars and trucks that can be worth up to $7,500. But that extension is complicated.
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Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.