Michelle Lewis

Systemic tax abuse, corruption, and money laundering slow down climate action, says the United Nations’ High-Level Panel on International Financial Accountability, Transparency and Integrity for Achieving the 2030 Agenda (FACTI Panel).

The FACTI Panel, which includes former world leaders and central bank governors, business and civil society heads and academics, says bankers, lawyers, and accountants who enable financial crime must face punitive sanctions.

The panel has today released its final report, “Financial Integrity for Sustainable Development,” in which it says stronger laws and institutions are needed to prevent cross-border corruption and money laundering. As much as 2.7% of the global GDP is laundered by criminals annually.

Electrek spoke with Dalia Grybauskaitė, FACTI co-chair and the former president of Lithuania, about how governments can tackle climate change with global finance reform.

Lithium-sulfur (Li-S) batteries, given their light weight and theoretical high capacities, are a promising alternative to conventional lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries for large-scale energy storage systems and electric vehicles. But Li-S batteries currently suffer from poor longevity.

Now, scientists from the Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST) in Korea have discovered a new catalyst material’s ability to significantly improve lithium-sulfur battery life, giving them great commercial potential.

• Xos Trucks to become publicly traded on Nasdaq through merger with NextGen Acquisition Corporation.
• EV charging industry association ChargeUp Europe gains its 12th member, ABL + reev.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Newly inaugurated US President Joe Biden wasted no time in rejoining the Paris Agreement to fight climate change on January 20. After 30 days, the US has today officially once again become part of the 189-country agreement.

• Texas utility ERCOT said that frozen wind turbines were the “least significant factor in the blackout.”
• The US installed record amounts of wind and solar in 2020, despite the pandemic.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Electrek spoke with Derya Baran, assistant professor of material science and engineering at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia, about solar trends.

Baran’s work pushes boundaries in the solar sector, including inventing inkjet-printed solar panels so light they can rest on a soap bubble. She was recognized by the MIT Technology Review as a 2020 Innovator Under 35 in the MENA region.

We asked Baran what she sees as the top 5 future solar trends. This is what she said.

• Geothermal company Dandelion closes a $30 million Series B funding round led by Breakthrough Energy.
• Scottish-made tidal turbine generates power in Japan.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

California’s Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) will use global energy storage tech company Fluence’s AI-powered Trading Platform to optimize its battery energy storage system at Moss Landing.

• French-headquartered Total wants to be “no more an oil and gas company but an energy company.”
• Five ways to save energy and weatherproof during cold (or warm) weather.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Microsoft cofounder, philanthropist, and innovator Bill Gates just released his much anticipated book, How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need. He describes it, simply, as “a plan for eliminating greenhouse gas emissions.” And as usual, the internet is responding with polarized excitement and conspiracy theories.

• Texas is experiencing extremely cold temperatures and has had to implement rolling blackouts.
• Ford is the first US auto manufacturer to join the initiative promoting responsible mining.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

India’s coal power has continued to decline since reaching a peak in 2018, according to an analysis by independent climate and energy think tank Ember. India’s coal-fired electricity generation fell 5% in 2020 due to significantly reduced annual electricity demand as a result of the COVID-19 lockdown. It is the second consecutive year that coal power has fallen, with coal generation down 8% in 2020 compared to 2018.

• The Duster brothers have a green plan, including EVs, for their family-owned funeral home.
• The Scottish government awards more than £633,000 to 45 e-bike projects across the country.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Scientists at the University of Maryland have developed a transparent wood that “is a promising candidate for applications in energy-efficient buildings” – and the method they used is surprisingly simple.

• As GM and other carmakers ramp up their electric vehicle plans, the US national grid needs a boost. Here’s how.
• US lawmakers who most vehemently oppose Biden’s energy plans receive the most money from the fossil fuel industry.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

LG Business Solutions USA today announced the release of two new solar panels with even higher output. According to LG, they are the company’s most powerful and highest-performing modules to date.

• Poland’s largest utility will jointly develop two offshore wind farms in the Baltic Sea with Orsted.
• Why is Wood Mackenzie shutting down Greentech Media, a valuable source of green energy news?
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Danish wind turbine manufacturer Vestas today announced the launch of its new offshore wind turbine – the V236-15.0MW. It replaces US conglomerate GE’s 14MW Haliade-X as having the distinction of being the world’s largest offshore wind turbine.

• A wind turbine technician apprentice tells the Guardian about his experiences in his new role.
• Electric vehicle battery technology company Enevate secures an $81 million investment.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

Electric vehicle DC fast charging network Electrify America has opened 30 solar EV charging stations in rural California – and they’re free for customers.

• More than 8 million people died in 2018 from fossil fuel pollution, double the number previously thought.
• Nevada looks to green energy to diversify its tourism and gaming economy.
• BOEM restarts the environmental permit review for the first major US offshore wind farm.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

By 2030, renewables will collectively surpass natural gas to be the predominant source of electricity generation in the US, according to the US Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Annual Energy Outlook 2021. But that’s not enough.

• Shell Energy Europe BV will supply Amazon with green energy from an offshore wind farm.
• Increasing US building retrofits with energy-efficient US-made products would create 170,000 jobs.
• UnderstandSolar is a free service that links you to top-rated solar installers in your region for personalized solar estimates. Tesla now offers price matching, so it’s important to shop for the best quotes. Click here to learn more and get your quotes. — *ad.

High-speed rail is part of everyday life in many parts of the world – but not in the US, where the car is still very much king. US Transport Secretary Pete Buttigieg wants to change that, and so do a lot of US residents and companies, but it’s going to be an enormous challenge.