Tag Archive for: solarandwind

ISES explains how much solar PV energy could be harvested from freed-up agricultural land in densely-populated countries with declining populations.

Declining populations free up agricultural land for large amounts of solar in densely populated countries

The global population is expected to increase from 8 billion people today to 9.7 billion by mid-century. Strong growth is particularly evident in Africa, which will add a billion people.

However, in many countries, population is stable or even falling. There are nine countries with populations larger than 20 million people that are expected to have lower populations in 2050 than today: China, Russia, Japan, Germany, Italy, South Korea, Spain, Ukraine and Poland. The combined population of these countries is expected to fall by 10%, from 2 billion people today to 1.8 billion people in 2050.

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Source: PV Magazine

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Iron-air batteries capture that energy and turn it into electrical current—then recharge by reversing the reaction, “unrusting” the iron and returning it to its metallic form.

How iron-air batteries could fill gaps in renewable energy

Weirton, West Virginia has iron in its blood. The town got its first iron furnace back in 1790. Then, in 1909, Ernest Weir bought 105 acres of land to build one of the country’s largest steel mills. The mill named for Weir employed more than 10,000 workers, provided essential town infrastructure, and eventually became West Virginia’s largest employer. “My grandfather worked in the mill, my father worked in the mill, my brother, myself,” Weirton city councilor and former steel worker Enzo Fracasso told West Virginia Public Radio in 2019. “The mill made a lot of people, tens of thousands of people, raise a family, send children to school, live the American dream.”

But just as happened in other parts of the Rust Belt, business sagged as international competition heated up. Weirton Steel declared bankruptcy in 2003 and was eventually bought out by multinational steel manufacturer ArcelorMittal. Much of the original mill was demolished in 2019.

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Source: PBS

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The California state now has enough large-scale batteries to supply 5,600 megawatts of electricity, up from 500 megawatts in 2020.

California grid sees tenfold spike in battery storage in 3 years

California has, in just three years, seen a tenfold increase in batteries plugged into its grid as solar and wind installations take the place of aging gas-burning power plants.

The state now has enough large-scale batteries to supply 5,600 megawatts of electricity, up from 500 megawatts in 2020, the California Independent System Operator reported Tuesday. That’s enough to power 3.8 million homes for about four hours before the batteries need to be recharged, according to the operator.

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Source: Bloomberg

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The states leading the way in clean energy deployment are California and Texas and they are also in first place for wind and solar jobs.

Which states have the most solar and wind power jobs?

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Renewable energy is one of the fastest-growing employers in the United States, and the states leading the way in clean energy deployment — California and Texas — are also in first place for wind and solar jobs.

Clean energy technologies, including solar and wind, accounted for nearly 87% of net new electric power generation jobs last year, adding 22,279 jobs in 2022, according to the Department of Energy’s 2023 U.S. Energy and Employment Report. Solar had the largest number of jobs gained, adding 12,256 workers and wind — both onshore and offshore — added 5,416 jobs in 2022.

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Source: Canary Media

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The energy sector added almost 300,000 jobs last year, about a 3.8% growth rate from 2021 to 2022, according to an annual study by the US DOE.

Energy workforce grew 3.8% last year; clean energy jobs increased in every state

The energy sector added almost 300,000 jobs last year, about a 3.8% growth rate from 2021 to 2022, according to an annual study released Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Every state saw an increase in clean energy jobs, a sector which grew 3.9% nationally, according to the 2023 U.S. Energy and Employment Report. Overall U.S. employment grew 3.1% across the same period.

“We’re only getting started,” Bob Keefe, executive director of the national, nonpartisan business group E2, said in a statement

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Source: Utility Dive

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China set a target of 1,200GW of utility-scale wind & solar capacity by 2030, but a new GEM report says it is set to meet the goal 5yrs early.

China on course to reach solar and wind power goals five years ahead of schedule

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China’s central government has set a target of 1,200 gigawatts (GW) of utility-scale wind and solar capacity by 2030, but a new Global Energy Monitor (GEM) report says the country is set to double its current capacity and meet the goal five years early, a GEM press release said.

Prospective projects that have already been announced or are in construction or pre-construction  equal about 371 GW of wind capacity and 379 GW of solar capacity — approximately the same amount as the currently installed operating capacity of China, according to the Global Solar and Wind Power Trackers.

“This new data provides unrivaled granularity about China’s jaw-dropping surge in solar and wind capacity. As we closely monitor the implementation of prospective projects, this detailed information becomes indispensable in navigating the country’s energy landscape,” said Dorothy Mei, project manager at GEM, in the press release.

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Source: Eco Watch

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Solar and wind power hit a new record this year, generating more U.S. power than coal for the first five months of the year.

Solar and wind generated more electricity than coal for record 5 months

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Solar and wind power hit a new record this year, generating more U.S. power than coal for the first five months of the year, according to preliminary data from the Energy Information Administration.

It’s the first time on record that wind and solar have out-produced coal for five months, according to industry publication, E&E News, which first calculated the figures.

Official EIA data, which is released with a lag, shows wind and solar energy out-producing coal for January, February and March, while real-time figures “indicate that same trend continued in April and May,” EIA spokesperson Chris Higginbotham said in an email.

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Source: CBS News

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The DOI said it hopes to increase the economic certainty of renewables projects sited on public land by reducing costs for developers, and pass along savings to ratepayers.

Proposed update to public land rules could provide 80% reduction in renewable project fees, says Interior

The Department of the Interior announced Thursday a proposed update to right-of-way regulations for solar and wind energy projects on public land that it hopes will reduce capacity fees by around 80%, as well as streamline application reviews.

In a release, the department said that its Bureau of Land Management would use authorizations established under the Energy Act of 2020 — which it used in 2022 to reduce fees by around 50% — to codify further reductions in acreage rents and capacity fees.

The proposed rule would also expand the BLM’s authority regarding the leasing of priority areas for wind and solar development, including allowing the bureau to accept leasing applications without going through a full auction, and accept non-competitive applications that are in the public interest.

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Source: Utility Dive

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The first of many solar and wind projects in China’s deserts is now online, and it’s capable of powering 1.5 million households.

The first of China’s desert solar and wind projects is online, and it’s huge

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The first of many solar and wind projects in China’s deserts is now online, and it’s capable of powering 1.5 million households.

This first phase of this solar and wind project is in the Tengger Desert, which lies on the southern edge of the Gobi Desert. It has an installed capacity of 1 million kilowatts, and it’s expected to generate 1.8 billion kilowatt-hours each year, according to its operating company, China Energy.

It’s also China’s first ultrahigh-voltage power transmission channel and the first major renewable project that transmits clean power from the Gobi Desert and other arid regions to the Hunan province.

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Source: electrek

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California’s power grid operator says $9.3B in new projects is needed over the next decade to support the state’s shift to renewable energy and plug-in cars.

California grid needs $9.3 billion upgrade in renewables shift

California’s power grid operator says $9.3 billion in new projects is needed over the next decade to support the state’s shift to renewable energy and plug-in cars.

The California Independent System Operator on Monday identified 46 projects that will be needed to help planned solar plants and offshore wind farms plug into the grid while improving reliability in a state that has been plagued with blackouts. CAISO identified the projects, including new or upgraded power lines and substation equipment, in a draft transmission plan. Its board is expected to vote on the plan in May.

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Source: Bloomberg

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