Developers plan to expand US battery storage capacity to more than 30 gigawatts (GW) by the end of 2024, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
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Here are the Top 3 stories about solar industry happenings that Electrek readers got most excited about in 2023.
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India’s Waaree Energies announced today that it will open its first US solar panel factory in the Houston area.
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Less than a month after announcing three separate partnerships to establish electric Vertical Takeoff and Landing (eVTOL) operations in South Korea, zero-emission aviation developer Overair is turning its sights back on its native US. Today, Overair has shared news of two separate memorandums to research, develop, and implement eVTOL operations in North Texas.
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As the brutal heat wave in Texas continues, Electrek spoke with Julia Souder, CEO of the global nonprofit Long Duration Energy Storage Council and chair of the Global Renewables Alliance, about how big battery storage is helping to keep the Texas grid online.
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Wind, solar, and nuclear generated up to 55% of total power in Texas in the record-breaking end-of-June heat – keeping the natural gas share below 50%.
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Texas solar and wind are going to double by 2035, but if the state’s grid isn’t upgraded, then all that power is going to go to waste, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).
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Volkswagen is rolling out an autonomous driving vehicle test fleet with ID. Buzz EVs in Austin.
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The US oil and gas sector was responsible for $77 billion in total health impacts in 2016, according to a newly released study.
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I traveled to Austin to check out John Deere’s second-gen 310 X-Tier E-Power electric backhoe – here’s what I learned.
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Texas A&M University scientists have been working with metal-free, water-based battery electrodes, and they’re finding that the difference in energy storage capacity is as much as 1,000%.
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Renewable energy retailer Octopus Energy US today announced that it’s going to give Texas electric vehicle drivers cheaper electricity rates when they smart charge their EVs at home.
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Texas is hot below ground and full of folks with oil and gas drilling expertise, so that makes it ripe for a geothermal energy boom, according to a new study from researchers at five Texas universities.
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EV tech and infrastructure giant Siemens eMobility today announced that it will locate its second US manufacturing hub for EV chargers in Carrollton, Texas, outside of Dallas.
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A year on from the big Texas freeze that knocked out the state’s power system and caused at least 246 deaths, new research released yesterday found that rooftop solar could have supplied more than enough electricity to meet the shortfall on all but two of the 13 days when power production fell short of forecasted demand.
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Texas has been hit by a heatwave, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has asked residents to reduce electricity use until Friday because demand is up, but power supply is down. ERCOT stated yesterday, “Generator owners have reported approximately 11,000 MW [megawatts] of generation is on forced outage for repairs; of that, approximately 8,000 MW is thermal, and the rest is intermittent resources.” “Thermal” power in Texas largely refers to natural gas-fired power plants, which make up around 50% of annual energy production in Texas.
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In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):
In today’s Electrek Green Energy Brief (EGEB):
As Electrek reported in December 2019, “Nearly half of US states impose fees on EV owners or will consider adding fees in 2020. The ill-conceived idea is to make up for gaps in roadway infrastructure investments usually derived from gasoline taxes.” Next up? Texas.
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Tesla has been on a tear lately, and it looks like CEO Elon Musk is trying to think of new ways to spend some money. Tonight he dropped a hint that, in addition to current gigafactory projects in China and Germany, Tesla is considering one in Texas.
A new look at a burgeoning solar boom in Texas reveals an unlikely source behind much of the demand — oil and gas companies.
[We’re back!] Electrek Green Energy Brief: A daily technical, financial, and political review/analysis of important green energy news.
Today in the return of EGEB, a new report shows corporations bought a record amount of clean energy in 2018. In Texas, corporations and cities alike are looking to add more wind turbines before a federal tax credit is phased out. Meanwhile, officials and residents in Vermont are looking to take action following a 2018 report that showed emissions actually increased in spite of the state’s efforts.
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Tesla has been leading direct sales battles this year on several fronts in Utah, Connecticut, Indiana, and several other states.
They lost the battle in the Lone Star State this week after bills to allow direct sales by automakers died in Texas state House and Senate.
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During a convention held in Dallas last week, Texas state GOP delegates endorsed new Tesla-backed language in the party platform to allow direct sales of vehicles in the state. About 90 percent of the more than 8,000 delegates supported the new proposal.
This new support is likely to be a big help for Tesla’s next effort to push new legislation in order to sell its cars through company-owned stores in Texas – something the company has been trying to do since 2013.
Tesla had a booth at the convention and discussed its situation in the state with thousands of delegates.
Under the current state’s laws governing car sales, as an automaker, Tesla cannot sell its vehicles to consumers and is required to go through third-party dealerships – something the company refused to do as per its business model.
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