Energy Efficiency, GHG Emissions, Sourcing Renewables  -  February 4, 2023

Weekend Reads: The West as Net Zero Hub; Wind + Water = Fuel

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

Net zero requires massive tracts of land. Habitat conservation lies in the details. (Anthropocene)  The push to power more of the modern world with electricity—and to get those electrons without burning fossil fuels—isn’t entirely green. Vows to steer down a path to “net zero” carbon emissions around the middle of this century have become a centerpiece of climate policies for companies, states and entire countries. Such moves are considered critical if the world is going to keep temperature increases well below 2°C, a threshold commonly cited as a point when the effects of global warming become severe. 

‘No regrets’ approach to big batteries, green hydrogen and grid reliability urgently needed, analysts say (Utility Dive)  While they are potential key resources of a net zero emissions energy sector, advanced long-duration battery technologies and green hydrogen generated from water with clean energy face perplexing uncertainties. First, they may not be ready until the late 2030s and early 2040s, global consultant DNV said Oct. 13. Or Form Energy’s 100-hour battery systems will see “broad commercialization” by 2024, as the company said Dec. 22, and green hydrogen will “play a major role in global emissions reductions by 2030,” as reported by RMI Oct. 11.

Inside the Audacious Plan to Use 10,000 Nuclear Microreactors to Wean the World Off Gold (Forbes)  Anhour west of Houston, where suburban sprawl surrenders to cow pasture, sits a cavernous industrial workshop in which welders and pipefitters assemble equipment bound for oil refineries and drilling platforms in the Gulf of Mexico. “These guys have been working for decades to modularize components for high pressures and temperatures,” says Bret Kugelmass, 36, the founder and CEO of Washington, D.C.–based Last Energy. That’s why he came here, to VGas LLC, when he wanted a prototype of the small, modular nuclear fission reactors he’s betting could play a big role in cutting down on fossil fuels.

Revenge Of The Virtual Power Plants, Part Infinity (CleanTechnica)  Oh the irony, it burns. Former President Trump sailed into the Oval Office on a pledge to save coal jobs, but his administration set the stage for punching the energy transition into warp speed. Take virtual power plants, for example. Everybody is talking about virtual power plants now, but the field was a sleepy one until Trump’s own hand-picked chair of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission opened up the floodgates.

Texas Project Will Use Wind to Make Fuel Out of Water (Inside Climate News)  Oil made Texas an energy giant, but even this petroleum powerhouse is working hard to secure a footing beyond fossil fuels. It already generates more wind energy than any other U.S. state, and soon the mighty air that lashes its high plains will power a novel new process: the production of vehicle fuel from water. Scientists say this technology, called “green hydrogen,” plays a big part in the world’s hopes to transition from fossil fuels and reduce carbon emissions.

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