Friday, November 15, 2019
Recycling, Renewables and Sustainable Business 9
1 US oil drillers face growing issue of water disposal
https://blogs.platts.com/2019/11/12/us-oil-drillers-water-disposal/
For every barrel of oil produced from the average Permian Basin well, about three barrels of water get pumped out with it. The water-to-oil ratio is lowest in the established Midland Basin, but more exaggerated in the Delaware and other Texas basins.
2 Tesla’s Newest Gigafactory Is Heading To The Heart Of Europe
https://oilprice.com/Latest-Energy-News/World-News/Teslas-Newest-Gigafactory-Is-Heading-To-The-Heart-Of-Europe.html
Tesla plans to build a gigafactory in Germany, chief executive Elon Musk said, adding the facility will also include a design center.
“Everyone knows that German engineering is outstanding, for sure. That’s part of the reason why we are locating our Gigafactory Europe in Germany. We are also going to create an engineering and design center in Berlin, because Berlin has some of the best art in the world,” Musk told media, as quoted by CNBC.
3 Lithium producers hit by first big downturn of electric vehicle era
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-lithium-conference-producers-idUSKBN1XN0HV
The burgeoning lithium industry, which produces the powerhouse metal used to make electric vehicle (EV) batteries, has entered its first major downturn, an unwelcome bruising for investors eager to help combat climate change.
4 Show Me The Money: Capital For A Renewables Future
https://www.woodmac.com/news/opinion/show-me-the-money-capital-for-a-renewables-future/
A significant share of capacity (100-120GW of 170GW) is still expected to be awarded under fixed remuneration auctions through 2030. The role of passive and low-WACC investors, such as pension funds, is likely to increase over the long term as a result. Even a 1% increase in pension capital could provide an additional US$15-20 billion for renewable energy projects. As countries scale their auction plans, small developers are likely to consolidate their portfolios. Their share would decline.
5 Windmills and batteries to attract billions in the green energy revolution
https://www.bloomberg.com/professional/blog/windmills-and-batteries-to-attract-billions-in-the-green-energy-revolution/
The renewable energy transition promises to reduce carbon emissions, but it’s happening at different speeds around the world. Read on for some key insights from BloombergNEF’s New Energy Outlook 2019, which provides a detailed road map to the future.
6 ExxonMobil introduces new sustainable solutions and innovative applications at K2019
https://k2019.exxonmobilchemical.com/en/newsroom/exxonmobil-introduces-new-sustainable-and-innovative-applications
ExxonMobil will demonstrate at its K2019 pavilion (FG10.1) how, by working together and utilizing combined expertise, customers across the value chain can create differentiated sustainable solutions for a range of applications including: packaging, automotive, consumer products, agriculture, building and construction, hygiene and personal care, and lubricants.
7 A Third Of All Americans Live Somewhere That Will Use 100% Green Energy
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kensilverstein/2019/11/14/a-third-of-all-americans-live-somewhere-that-will-use-100-green-energy/
The clean energy movement is getting most of its traction nowadays at the local level, where cities and states are behind the sharp spike in demand for renewable energy. And now at least a dozen states and districts and 200 cities and counties have committed to achieving 100% clean energy.
8 The Uncertain Future Of Hydrogen As Transportation Energy
https://www.forbes.com/sites/bradtempleton/2019/11/12/whats-hydrogens-future-as-transportation-energy/
Hydrogen is often touted as an important transportation “fuel” in the future, though it has never gotten significant traction. One reason is confusion over what it is – it’s not an energy source, though it is used like a fuel, but rather a form of energy storage. You take some other energy source (today it’s natural gas, in the future it’s renewable electricity) and you generate the hydrogen, which you can then turn back into useful energy through a fuel cell, or even by burning it.
9 Montana lawmakers seek more time for Keystone XL public, tribal input
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-pipeline-keystone-idUSKBN1XO2ZY
Montana lawmakers representing Native American tribal members called on the state’s congressional delegation and the U.S. State Department on Thursday to extend the public comment period for the environmental review of the Keystone XL pipeline, saying tribes were not properly consulted.
10 Air pollution nanoparticles linked to brain cancer for first time | Environment
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/nov/13/air-pollution-particles-linked-to-brain-cancer-in-new-research
The ultra-fine particles (UFPs) are produced by fuel burning, particularly in diesel vehicles, and higher exposures significantly increase people’s chances of getting the deadly cancer. Previous work has shown that nanoparticles can get into the brain and that they can carry carcinogenic chemicals.
11 Volkswagen to invest 60 billion euro in e-mobility, digital tech by 2024
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-volkswagen-strategy-idUSKBN1XP1CN
Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) will invest 60 billion euros ($66.12 billion) by 2024 to develop electric and hybrid cars as well as digital technologies, the multi-brand car and truckmaking group said on Friday.
12 Equinor Considers Larger Role in US Renewables
https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/equinor-considers-larger-role-in-us-renewables
The Norwegian oil giant has been evaluating potential onshore renewables investments in the U.S., according to Michael Wheeler, the company’s principal strategist for North America. And in floating offshore wind, where Equinor is the global leader, California beckons as a future market.
13 Top three western wind OEMs ‘to control 60% of market by 2028’
https://www.rechargenews.com/wind/1876160/top-three-western-wind-oems-to-control-60-percent-of-market-by-2028
The leading three western wind turbine OEMs – Vestas, Siemens Gamesa and GE – by 2028 are expected to boost their control in the global market to 60%, or 48GW per year, up from 47% and 32GW in 2019, analyst Wood Mackenzie said.
14 EPA small refinery exemptions in the Renewable Fuel Standard explained
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=41995
The Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) mandates the amount of renewable fuels refineres must blend into the U.S. transportation fuel supply. As part of the RFS program, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) can grant annual waivers to some petroleum refineries, called small refinery exemptions (SREs), which are provided under conditions of economic hardship. Although these SREs lessen the number of tradable compliance credits that refineries can use to comply with the RFS program, actual biofuel consumption is influenced by additional market factors.
