Weekend reads - Smart Energy Decisions

GHG Emissions, Solar, Sourcing Renewables  -  December 5, 2020

Weekend reads: Restoring Maryland's oysters with solar power; Delays in the USPS electric vehicle transition

 It's the weekend! Kick back and catch up with these must-read articles from around the web.

USPS delays announcement on possible electric vehicle fleet deal (Axios) The U.S. Postal Service is likely to be upgrading its fleet of trucks with electric vehicles soon, but the decision has been pushed back to next year. Driving the news: USPS told automotive website Trucks.com on Tuesday that it expects to announce which companies it will select for a potentially $6 billion deal to build as many as 180,000 delivery vans in the second fiscal quarter of 2021. USPS has now delayed the decision multiple times.

Renewables = 70% of New US Power Capacity in 2020, Solar = 43% (CleanTechnica) The renewable energy revolution continues, with renewable energy accounting for a greater and greater share of new US power capacity year after year. In the first three quarters of 2020, renewable energy — almost entirely solar and wind energy — accounted for 70% of new US power capacity, based on official utility-scale power plant data from FERC and small-scale solar power estimates from CleanTechnica. (Small-scale solar includes rooftop solar and small ground-mounted solar power plants.)

Webinar: 2020 Energy Industry Review and 2021 Forecast (Bloom Energy) Wednesday, December 09, 2020, 2:00 PM EST/ 11:00 AM PST. 2020 has been a year riddled with challenges. As the world emerges from collective lockdown and slowly fights its way back to normalcy, US electric markets stand at a crossroads. Looking forward to 2021, the path to recovery and further progress will be shaped by the events of 2020. In this webinar, our expert analysts from Bloom Energy will discuss the trends they are watching after a year of unprecedented crises, and the steps businesses can take to prepare for the challenges ahead. REGISTER HERE

Accelerated Electrification Coupled with Renewables Can Put China on Path Toward Carbon Neutrality (BloombergNEF) Today, BloombergNEF (BNEF) and Bloomberg Philanthropies released “China’s Accelerated Decarbonization” – a new white paper detailing how China could take major steps toward its recently announced carbon neutrality pledge. These will involve the electrification of final energy use in sectors such as industry and road vehicles, coupled with accelerated deployment of renewables. China is the world’s largest carbon emitter, accounting for 28% of global emissions in 2018. Progress toward carbon neutrality will be no small feat as its energy demand and emissions are still rising. Around 90% of China’s emissions come from electricity and heat production, industry, and transport.

Could solar power help restore Maryland’s oyster population? (WTOP News) Aquaculture is a growing industry in Maryland. Boosting the state’s oyster population can benefit watermen, who have more oysters to harvest, and the water quality of the Chesapeake Bay. But it’s not easy. It’s actually quite muddy, and cleaning off that mud requires manual labor. It’s also not that efficient. Typically, an oyster half shell has about 10 oyster spat implanted on it and tossed in the water. About 3% of those seeds ever grow big enough to be harvested and eaten. A Baltimore-based company is trying to change that. Solar Oysters LLC is building barges powered by solar energy that take up significantly less space in the water than typical aquaculture facilities, which can spread acres wide on the bottom of rivers and the Chesapeake Bay.

Western Australia to build Australia’s longest electric vehicle charging route (The Driven) Western Australia says it will spend up to $21 million on a newly unveiled electric vehicle strategy, which will include the creation of Australia’s longest electric vehicle charging network and a modest EV target for “eligible” government fleets. The charging network will run from Kununurra in the north to the state capital Perth, down to Esperance in the south and to Kalgoorlie in the east. “This announcement represents an exciting time in Western Australia, with the state contributing some of the most significant funds of any Australian jurisdiction towards charging infrastructure that will facilitate the uptake of this environmentally sustainable technology,” Innovation and ICT Minister Dave Kelly said in a joint statement.

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