Nevada battery recycler wins $2B loan from Energy Department
MCCARRAN, Nev. — (AP) — A Nevada company that recycles batteries for electric vehicles has won a $2 billion green energy loan from the Biden administration. The Energy Department said its conditional commitment demonstrates its intent to finance the Nevada project, but several steps remain before officials approve a final loan. The process would recycle end-of-life battery and production scrap and remanufacture it into critical materials, the Energy Department said in a blog post. Straubel, Redwood’s CEO, told The Associated Press last year that recycling battery materials will help the U.S. establish its own electric-vehicle supply chain. "Every battery that we can recycle is one battery worth of materials that we don't need to mine again.''
wftv.comBattery recycling firm wins $2B loan from Energy Department
WASHINGTON — (AP) — A Nevada company that recycles batteries for electric vehicles has won a $2 billion green energy loan from the Biden administration. Redwood recently announced plans to build a new $3.5 billion battery manufacturing and recycling factory in South Carolina. The process would recycle end-of-life battery and production scrap and remanufacture that into critical materials, the Energy Department said in a blog post. That will provide enough battery materials to produce more than a million electric vehicles a year domestically, the company said. Straubel, Redwood’s CEO, told The Associated Press in a recent interview that recycling battery materials will help the U.S. establish its own electric-vehicle supply chain.
wftv.comHouse GOP seeks new restrictions on use of US oil stockpile
WASHINGTON — (AP) — For the second time this month, House Republicans are seeking to restrict presidential use of the nation’s emergency oil stockpile — a proposal that has already drawn a White House veto threat. The administration said last month it will start to replenish the reserve now that oil prices have gone down. “House Republicans will vote to raise gas prices on American families ... and help Putin's war aims by interfering with our ability to release oil,'' Jean-Pierre said, referring to the current GOP bill. The heated rhetoric is part of a larger fight over oil drilling and climate change. “Whether on land or at sea, oil drilling poses an unacceptable risk for our wildlife, wild places and waterways,'' said Lisa Frank of Environment America, an advocacy group.
wftv.comManchin pushes to delay tax credits for electric vehicles
WASHINGTON — (AP) — Ratcheting up his criticism, Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin on Wednesday moved to delay new tax credits for electric vehicles, a key feature of President Joe Biden's landmark climate law. Manchin’s bid to delay the tax credits surfaced as Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and White House climate adviser Ali Zaidi visited the Washington, D.C., Auto Show on Wednesday to highlight the administration’s efforts to boost electric vehicles and related infrastructure. During the midterm election campaign, Republicans criticized Biden and other Democrats for supporting electric vehicles, citing their relative high costs and batteries made in China. The Manchin bill directs Treasury to stop issuing tax credits for vehicles that don’t comply with battery requirements. ___Follow the AP's coverage of electric vehicles at https://apnews.com/hub/electric-vehicles.
wftv.comGranholm ecstatic at red state surge in renewable energy: 'This is fantastic!'
“With respect to Texas, what an opportunity for every state to be able to produce clean energy. "We want to be able to see energy, clean energy produced in every pocket of the country — blue states, red states — really, it helps to save people money, so it’s really all about green." In August, President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) into law. Since then, companies have announced tens of billions of dollars in renewable energy projects nationwide, Politico reported Monday, including a large percentage in Republican-led states where lawmakers voted against the legislation. I don’t think it’s inconsistent with my vote.”The new law's $369 billion in climate-related spending over 10 years targets five areas: consumer clean energy costs, decarbonizing various sectors of the economy, domestic clean energy manufacturing, environmental justice, and agriculture and land use.
wftv.comSecretary of energy praises Texas's green energy production surpassing California's
During a White House briefing on Monday, Yahoo News Senior White House Correspondent Alex Nazaryan asked Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm about reports that Texas will surpass California in the production of green energy. She praised those reports and said it’s a goal to have green energy be produced in “every pocket of the country.”
news.yahoo.comStudy: Puerto Rico should go solar to meet clean energy goal
Government officials vowed to ramp up from 3% to 40% renewable energy by 2025, and 60% by 2040. Amid the threat of powerful hurricanes, Puerto Rico has suffered from chronic power outages blamed on a disintegrating power grid following decades of neglect and lack of maintenance. A senior official at the U.S. Department of Energy said the $1 billion approved by U.S. Congress in December to help restore Puerto Rico’s grid is not sufficient. "The urgency has only grown after Hurricane Fiona…wreaked so much havoc," said Granholm, who is expected to visit Puerto Rico this month. This year, scientists expect to study the possibility of using marine, hydropower and pumped storage hydropower as additional sources of renewable energy, among other things.
wftv.comVP Harris touts Arizona-California power transmission line
TONOPAH, Ariz. — (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and two cabinet secretaries on Thursday celebrated the start of construction of a new high-capacity power transmission line between Arizona and California, which they hope will lead to future solar energy farms in the desert outside Phoenix. Harris said expanding the electrical grid will allow the nation to deploy more renewable energy, a crucial ingredient in addressing climate change. “I think we’ve turned the page, and there's consensus that it's time to take this crisis seriously,” Harris said. The power line known as the Ten West Link will stretch 125 miles connecting electrical substations in Tonopah, Arizona west of Phoenix and Blythe, California on the border between the two states. A climate bill enacted last year includes $3 billion for new transmission lines, and Granholm said the administration is working to speed up approvals.
wftv.comCES 2023: Companies tout environmental tech innovations
The Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to soon require publicly traded U.S. companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions. There’s still some room for improvement in the sourcing of Goodyear's rubber, said Sean Nyquist of Forest Stewardship Council, which works to certify sustainable rubber. Several tire companies are on a similar path, he said. “We’re all scanning to see what has the best impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and getting to our ultimate goal of saving the planet.”___Associated Press writer Suman Naishadham contributed from Washington. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment___For more coverage of CES, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/technologyCopyright 2023 The Associated Press.
wftv.comCES 2023: Companies tout environmental tech innovations
The Securities and Exchange Commission is expected to soon require publicly-traded U.S. companies to disclose their greenhouse gas emissions. There’s still some room for improvement in the sourcing of Goodyear's rubber, said Sean Nyquist of Forest Stewardship Council, which works to certify sustainable rubber. Several tire companies are on a similar path, he said. “We’re all scanning to see what has the best impact on reducing greenhouse gas emissions and getting to our ultimate goal of saving the planet.”___Associated Press writer Suman Naishadam contributed from Washington. For all of AP’s environmental coverage, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/climate-and-environment___For more coverage of CES, visit: https://apnews.com/hub/technologyCopyright 2023 The Associated Press.
wftv.comOppenheimer wrongly stripped of security clearance, US says
WASHINGTON — (AP) — The Biden administration has reversed a decades-old decision to revoke the security clearance of Dr. J. Robert Oppenheimer, the physicist called the father of the atomic bomb for his leading role in World War II’s Manhattan Project. U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the 1954 decision by the Atomic Energy Commission was made using a "flawed process" that violated the commission's own regulations. The theoretical physicist was later accused of having communist sympathies and his security clearance was revoked following a four-week, closed-door hearing. In stripping Oppenheimer of his clearance, the Atomic Energy Commission did not allege that he had revealed or mishandled classified information, nor was his loyalty to the country questioned, according to Granholm's order. Years later, an Atomic Energy Commission lawyer concluded after an internal review that “the system failed" and a “substantial injustice was done to a loyal American," according to the secretary's order.
wftv.comFusion breakthrough is a milestone for climate, clean energy
The breakthrough will pave the way for advancements in national defense and the future of clean power, Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm and other officials said. Proponents of fusion hope it could one day displace fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources. Producing carbon-free energy that powers homes and businesses from fusion is still decades away. “It’s almost like it’s a starting gun going off,” said professor Dennis Whyte, director of the Plasma Science and Fusion Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and a leader in fusion research. Billions of dollars and decades of work have gone into fusion research that has produced exhilarating results — for fractions of a second.
wftv.comWhat is nuclear fusion and could it change our energy future?
Nuclear fusion, after all, is the same energy that powers the Sun and every other star in the universe. But what is nuclear fusion, and how did the team of scientists in California succeed in achieving what Granholm characterized as a "breakthrough?" Fission vs. fusionNuclear fission is the opposite of nuclear fusion in that the former unleashes energy by splitting heavy atoms apart. "Fusion on the other hand does not create any long-lived radioactive nuclear waste." "Fusion could generate four times more energy per kilogram of fuel than fission (used in nuclear power plants) and nearly four million times more energy than burning oil or coal," IAEA says on its website.
wftv.comFusion breakthrough could be climate, energy game-changer
WASHINGTON — (AP) — Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced a “major scientific breakthrough” Tuesday in the decades-long quest to harness fusion, the energy that powers the sun and stars. Researchers at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California for the first time produced more energy in a fusion reaction than was used to ignite it, something called net energy gain, the Energy Department said. White House science adviser Arati Prabhakar, appearing with Granholm, called the fusion ignition “a tremendous example of what perseverance really can achieve" and "an engineering marvel beyond belief.'' Proponents of fusion hope that it could one day produce nearly limitless, carbon-free energy, displacing fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources. "We should be pushing towards making fusion energy systems available to tackle climate change and energy security.”Net energy gain has been an elusive goal because fusion happens at such high temperatures and pressures that it is incredibly difficult to control.
wftv.comUS Department of Energy expected to announce fusion energy breakthrough
The U.S. Department of Energy is expected on Tuesday to announce a breakthrough in the search for a clean, renewable energy source. >> Read more trending newsThe announcement is expected after reports surfaced over the weekend that scientists had for the first time produced a fusion reaction that created a net energy gain. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm is set to announce a “major scientific breakthrough accomplished by researchers at DOE’s Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory” around 10 a.m. EST. In the past, scientists experimenting with fusion were unable to produce more energy than the process consumed, according to the Times. A source told Reuters that the process would need to be about 100 times bigger in order to produce commercial amounts of energy.
wftv.comUS scientists set to announce fusion energy breakthrough
WASHINGTON — (AP) — Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was set to announce a “major scientific breakthrough” Tuesday in the decades-long quest to harness fusion, the energy that powers the sun and stars. Proponents of fusion hope that it could one day produce nearly limitless, carbon-free energy, displacing fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources. "We should be pushing towards making fusion energy systems available to tackle climate change and energy security.”Net energy gain has been an elusive goal because fusion happens at such high temperatures and pressures that it is incredibly difficult to control. Billions of dollars and decades of work have gone into fusion research that has produced exhilarating results — for fractions of a second. Riccardo Betti, a professor at the University of Rochester and expert in laser fusion, said an announcement that net energy had been gained in a fusion reaction would be significant.
wftv.comUS scientists set to announce fusion energy breakthrough
WASHINGTON — (AP) — Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was set to announce a “major scientific breakthrough” Tuesday in the decades-long quest to harness fusion, the energy that powers the sun and stars. Proponents of fusion hope that it could one day produce nearly limitless, carbon-free energy, displacing fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources. "We should be pushing towards making fusion energy systems available to tackle climate change and energy security.”Net energy gain has been an elusive goal because fusion happens at such high temperatures and pressures that it is incredibly difficult to control. Billions of dollars and decades of work have gone into fusion research that has produced exhilarating results — for fractions of a second. Riccardo Betti, a professor at the University of Rochester and expert in laser fusion, said an announcement that net energy had been gained in a fusion reaction would be significant.
wftv.comOfficials to announce long-awaited fusion energy advance
WASHINGTON — (AP) — Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was set to announce a “major scientific breakthrough” Tuesday in the decades-long quest to harness fusion, the energy that powers the sun and stars. Proponents of fusion hope that it could one day produce nearly limitless, carbon-free energy, displacing fossil fuels and other traditional energy sources. "We should be pushing towards making fusion energy systems available to tackle climate change and energy security.”Net energy gain has been an elusive goal because fusion happens at such high temperatures and pressures that it is incredibly difficult to control. Billions of dollars and decades of work have gone into fusion research that has produced exhilarating results — for fractions of a second. It takes enormous resources and effort to advance fusion research.
wftv.comGM venture to invest additional $275M at Tennessee plant
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — (AP) — A joint venture between General Motors and South Korean battery company LG Energy Solution announced Friday that it will invest an additional $275 million to expand a Tennessee battery cell factory for electric vehicles. Officials with the companies had already pledged to spend $2.3 billion to build a battery plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee. The Tennessee plant is one of three lithium-ion battery factories being built by the joint venture, Ultium Cells LLC. Last year Toyota announced it would build a $1.3 billion battery plant in North Carolina. Tennessee officials announced plans last month to invest $3.2 billion to develop a cathode materials plant for electric vehicle batteries.
wftv.comFeds offer $1B to keep California's last nuclear plant open
WASHINGTON — (AP) — The Biden administration on Monday announced preliminary approval to spend up to $1.1 billion to help keep California's last operating nuclear power plant running, even as officials turned down a request for financial aid to restart a closed nuclear plant in Michigan. Approval of the funding came as the Energy Department turned down a request by the Palisades nuclear plant for funding to restart operations. Gretchen Whitmer had brought together a coalition to develop a plan that would have reopened a non-operational nuclear plant for the first time in U.S. history. Palisades owner Holtec International said they fully understood that attempting to restart a shuttered nuclear plant would be both a challenge and a first for the nuclear industry. Nuclear plant owners or operators can bid on credits for financial assistance to keep operating.
wftv.comFeds offer $1B to keep California's last nuclear plant open
The Biden administration on Monday announced preliminary approval to spend up to $1.1 billion to help keep California's last operating nuclear power plant running, even as officials turned down a request for financial aid to restart a closed nuclear plant in Michigan. The Energy Department said it was creating a path forward for the Diablo Canyon Power Plant on California's central coast to remain open, with final terms to be negotiated and finalized. The plant, which had been scheduled to close by 2025, was chosen in the first round of funding for the administration's new civil nuclear credit program, intended to bail out financially distressed owners or operators of nuclear power reactors.
news.yahoo.comPoland chooses US to build its first nuclear power plant
WARSAW, Poland — (AP) — Poland says it has chosen the U.S. government and Westinghouse to build its first nuclear power plant, announcing an important step in its efforts to burn less coal and gain greater energy independence. U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm said the $40 billion project would create or sustain more than 100,000 jobs for American workers. “This is a HUGE step in strengthening our relationship with Poland to create energy security for future generations to come. The deal is for the first three reactors of a nuclear power plant that is to be built in northern Poland, with officials saying it should start producing electricity in 2033. State Assets Minister Jacek Sasin suggested there could still be a role for South Korea in the project, saying that “this is not our last word” and that more talks are being held in Seoul next week concerning the large nuclear energy project.
wftv.comUS awards $2.8B in grants for EV batteries in 12 states
WASHINGTON — (AP) — The Biden administration on Wednesday awarded $2.8 billion in grants to build and expand domestic manufacturing of batteries for electric vehicles in 12 states. The announcement comes as the administration seeks to boost production and sales of electric vehicles as a key part of President Joe Biden's strategy to slow climate change and build up U.S. manufacturing. Electric vehicle sales are expected to rise dramatically between now and 2030 in the U.S. and globally. But even at the start of the next decade, they will amount to just over one-third of U.S. new vehicle sales. Producing advanced batteries and components in the U.S. "will accelerate the transition away from fossil fuels to meet the strong demand for electric vehicles, creating more good-paying jobs across the country,” she said.
wftv.comBiden plans floating platforms to expand offshore wind power
WASHINGTON — (AP) — The Biden administration on Thursday announced plans to develop floating platforms in the deep ocean for wind towers that could power millions of homes and vastly expand offshore wind in the United States. And that’s why we set this big, hairy audacious goal'' of 15 gigawatts of floating offshore wind by 2035. More than half of the nation’s offshore wind resources are in deep waters where traditional offshore wind foundations are not economically feasible, Haaland said, adding that "floating wind will help us reach areas once not attainable. And this is critical because floating wind will help us build on the administration’s goal of 30 gigawatts of offshore wind by 2030.'' Norway-based Equinor, which operates the 30-megawatt Hywind Scotland project, is building a huge, floating offshore wind farm off Norway to provide electricity for offshore oil and gas fields.
wftv.comOfficial: Idaho computer chip plant makes US more resilient
Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm says a $15 billion investment in a new semiconductor plant by Boise, Idaho-based chipmaker Micron in its hometown is a step in protecting the United States from the vulnerabilities of a globalized market made clear by the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine.
Oil industry says Granholm meeting sends 'positive signal'
Groups representing the oil industry and refiners say a meeting with Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm was productive and should send a signal to markets that the United States is committed to long-term investments in the oil and refining industry.
Biden, Chevron chief trade sharp words over gas prices
In a pointed back and forth, the head of Chevron has complained that President Joe Biden has vilified energy firms at a time when gasoline prices are at near record levels and the president responded that the oil company CEO was being “mildly sensitive.”.
Energy secretary: US offshore wind jobs should be union jobs
The U.S. energy secretary and Danish wind developer Orsted say they want American union workers to build offshore wind farms to dot the U.S. coastlines — the building trades workers who could otherwise be left out of a transition to renewable resources.
Raimondo: Inquiry on solar imports follows the law
Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo pushed back forcefully Wednesday against critics — including some within the Biden administration — who say a government investigation of solar imports from Southeast Asia is hindering President Joe Biden’s ambitious climate goals.
Nations agree to release 60M barrels of oil amid Russian war
The International Energy Agency’s 31 member countries have agreed to release 60 million barrels of oil from their strategic reserves “to send a strong message to oil markets” that supplies won’t fall short after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Biden revives 'clean energy' program with $1B loan guarantee
The Biden administration has issued its first clean energy loan guarantee, reviving an Obama-era program that disbursed billions of dollars in guarantees to help launch the country’s first utility-scale wind and solar farms a decade ago but has largely gone dormant in recent years.