March 12, 2022

Weekend Reads: War in Ukraine Shows Global Need for Renewables; GM's Vehicle-to-Grid Plans for CA

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

Seeing the Future of Energy Through a Coal Company’s Solar Strategy (Bloomberg) We are two weeks into Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and only just beginning to understand the long-term implications for energy, trade, technology and climate. I attempted a broad inquisitive view last week. Needless to say, it did not include specifics such as the U.S. and U.K. banning the importation of Russian oil, or a short squeeze sending the spot price of nickel to more than $100,000 a ton. This war is requiring us to update our priors, so to speak. Clearly, there are immediate economic implications to massive trade in globally-priced commodities like oil, just as there are specific security implications to importing massive quantities of gas from one country (Russia) into a supply-constrained market (Europe). There are also less immediately acute but nonetheless significant longer-term trajectories that deserve re-examination, such as nickel’s role in electric vehicle batteries. EV batteries already constitute 7% of global nickel demand, a ratio that will soar as the market expands.

As War Rages, a Struggle to Balance Energy Crunch and Climate Crisis (The New York Times) As the world reels from spikes in oil and gas prices, the fallout from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has laid bare a dilemma: Nations remain extraordinarily dependent on fossil fuels and are struggling to shore up supplies precisely at a moment when scientists say the world must slash its use of oil, gas and coal to avert irrevocable damage to the planet. While countries could greatly reduce their vulnerability to wild swings in the oil and gas markets by shifting to cleaner sources of energy such as wind or solar power and electric vehicles — which is also the playbook for fighting climate change — that transition will take years.

Webinar: Energy Storage & Demand Response - A Lucrative Combination (Enel X) Wednesday, March 23, 2022, 2:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time. As the energy grid continues to change, grid operators are rewarding energy users who are flexible with their energy use. Battery energy storage systems make flexibility easier. At their simplest, batteries allow users to store energy when prices are low and then use that stored energy when prices on the grid are high. But to maximize revenue, energy storage can be used in tandem with grid services like demand response. Optimized energy storage systems balance a variety of regulatory requirements and value streams for larger savings and earnings. Join our upcoming webinar featuring experts from Enel X as they discuss how energy storage and demand response create value, both individually and together. REGISTER HERE

California wants to use electric cars to back up the power grid (Vox) General Motors and Pacific Gas and Electric this week announced a joint pilot program to test ways GM’s electric vehicles could help the California utility’s customers keep the lights on, either by providing backup power to homes during blackouts or feeding energy back into the grid when demand is especially high. It’s a significant step towards enabling EVs to become big batteries on wheels. The idea behind the pilot is deceptively simple: An EV owner plugs their car into a charger at home, and instead of electricity simply flowing into the car’s battery, electricity can also flow out of it to provide power to buildings — a concept called “vehicle-to-grid,” which essentially makes the car an extension of the power grid itself.

Going green to make green: How sustainability is creating a new world of investor opportunities (Sacramento Business Journal) For a long time, one of the myths that kept us from properly battling climate change was that green initiatives would be bad for the economy. Sustainable energy sources and environmentally friendly practices, we were told, would bring markets screeching to a halt and create lasting harm. Over the last decade, the green revolution has proven that theory to be demonstrably false and has created amazing opportunities to make money while also making the world a better place. And the benefits of this trend are being filed all over the world, including here in Sacramento.

Webinar: Managing Fleet Electrification - Real-life insights from GM, Houston, Portland and Genentech (eIQ) Wednesday, March 30, 2022, 2:00 PM Eastern Daylight Time. We’re seeing an explosion in the transition to Fleet Electrification with new EV models, billions allocated to manufacturing investments, new state and federal incentives, growing charger networks, and utility programs. But the decision process for fleet leaders remains complex as both private corporations and public entities struggle to manage these variables while protecting the operational reliability of their vehicles - and their bottom line. This webinar will bring together a panel of experienced EV experts from General Motors, Evolve Houston, and the City of Portland, Oregon, who will share real-life strategies and learnings in a discussion with Yann Kulp, co-founder of eIQ Mobility the leading Fleet EV Advisory provider in North America. REGISTER HERE

Bahrain's first solar panel manufacturer is blazing a trail for renewables (CNN) Bahrain, a tiny island state of less than 2 million people off the Arabian Peninsula, has long punched above its weight economically, due to its rich oil and gas reserves. Oil provides about 70% of government revenue -- but Bahrain's reserves are expected to run out within the next decade. This -- and the global push to transition away from dirty fuels -- means that the kingdom is looking for ways to diversify its economy and energy mix. This is good news for Solar One, Bahrain's first solar panels company. Since its founding in 2017, the startup boasts of contributing over two megawatts of solar to the country's energy mix — enough to power around 380 US homes. It's a drop in the ocean, but it hopefully marks the beginning of a sea change.

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