Archive for the 'Energy' Category
Chesapeake Energy Chief Executive Dies in Fiery Car Crash, a Day After Indictment
March 2nd, 2016Hmm. Via: Reuters: Former Chesapeake Energy Chief Executive Aubrey McClendon, a brash risk-taker who helped transform the U.S. energy industry with shale gas, died when his car slammed into an overpass on Wednesday, one day after being charged with breaking federal antitrust laws, police said. He was 56. McClendon was alone in his 2013 Chevy […]
Solar, Wind, Gas Dominate New U.S. Generating Capacity in 2016
March 2nd, 2016Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — Combined new solar and wind generation (16.3GW) is double that of new gas power plants (8GW). Via: Ars Technica: Today, the US Energy Information Administration released data on planned additions to the US power grid this year. The year is notable because it will see […]
Here’s How Electric Cars Will Cause the Next Oil Crisis
March 1st, 2016Via: Bloomberg: A shift is under way that will lead to widespread adoption of EVs in the next decade. Battery prices fell 35 percent last year and are on a trajectory to make unsubsidized electric vehicles as affordable as their gasoline counterparts in the next six years, according to a new analysis of the electric-vehicle […]
Mercedes Coming for Tesla: First of Four Pure EV Models Available in 2018
February 24th, 2016This Mercedes news was from December 2015. I just spotted it because Korean firm SK Innovation was recently selected by Mercedes to supply the lithium ion cells for the vehicles. Via: Car Magazine: Mercedes-Benz will launch the first of four electric cars in 2018, as it begins an all-out assault on Tesla. CAR magazine revealed […]
Hawaii Getting 52-Megawatt-Hour Tesla Powerpack System (Hint: That’s a Very BIG Battery)
February 17th, 2016Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — Wow! As far as I can tell, Japan’s Hokkaido Battery Storage Project is the largest battery bank in the world. This new one in Hawaii will be #2. Via: Pacific Business News: Tesla Energy, a division of California serial entrepreneur Elon Musk’s Tesla Motors, will […]
Petrofascism: The Koch Brothers’ Dirty War on Solar Power
February 16th, 2016Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — Via: Rolling Stone: After decades of false starts, solar power in America is finally poised for its breakthrough moment. The price of solar panels has dropped by more than 80 percent since President Obama took office, and the industry is beginning to compete with coal […]
Entergy Says Indian Point Nuclear Plant Leak Isn’t Safety Risk
February 8th, 2016Mmm hmm. Via: Bloomberg: Entergy Corp. said elevated levels of radioactive material found in groundwater at the 2,000-megawatt Indian Point nuclear power facility north of New York City don’t pose a threat to public safety. Increased levels of tritium, a radioactive isotope of hydrogen, were found in three monitoring wells out of several dozen at […]
Steorn: “If This Is All Some Mad Ploy It Is Quickly Running Out Of Road”
February 1st, 2016Several years after their humiliating failure to demonstrate anything at all resembling free energy technology, Steorn now has a couple of Orbo products for sale. There’s a mobile device USB charger and a basic mobile phone. No external power needed, according to Steorn. After watching this latest chapter in the bizarre story of Steorn unfold […]
‘Exascale’ Wind Turbines
February 1st, 2016Via: Engadget: The US Department of Energy’s plan to generate 20 percent of the nation’s electrical power from wind by 2030 is ambitious, to say the least. To pull it off, the turbines will need to be located offshore, where winds are steadier and stronger. However, putting wind turbines in the ocean is also far […]
Official Projections for Solar Adoption May be Much Too Conservative
January 29th, 2016Disclosure: I sell solar power systems in New Zealand. — Via: FastCompany: If solar power prices fall in line with other technologies, we could see continued price-drops of 10% a year. That’s according to an historical analysis of 53 technologies that finds a distinct pattern in how major innovations perform over time. If so, the […]
