All posts tagged: renewable

Trump admin’s cancellation of wind energy projects causes business turmoil | Renewable Energy

Trump admin’s cancellation of wind energy projects causes business turmoil | Renewable Energy

Published by Sam Flores

French energy giant TotalEnergies is embroiled in a lawsuit between seven US states and the federal government as the administration of President Donald Trump upends domestic energy policy, shutting down some wind energy projects while pushing fossil fuels. It has also raised questions about the predictability of the business and investment environment under a president who has peddled back many policies that were set up under his predecessor, President Joe Biden, a Democrat, including on investing in renewable energy. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list The case is tied to two offshore wind farms that TotalEnergies had planned in the US. The larger one, Attentive Energy, was to be built 54 miles (87km) south of Jones Beach, New York, and would have powered a million homes and businesses in New York and New Jersey. The smaller one, Carolina Long Bay, was meant to start operations in the early 2030s in North Carolina. In March, TotalEnergies agreed a deal with the Trump administration to abandon those plans for $928m and invest in oil and …

Scientists turn carbon dioxide into renewable methane using microbes

Scientists turn carbon dioxide into renewable methane using microbes

Published by Jenni Sidey

As wind turbines spin and solar panels soak up sunlight, one major problem continues to shadow the clean energy transition: storing energy for long periods of time. Batteries can help for hours or even days, but seasonal storage remains far more difficult. Researchers at Penn State now believe tiny microbes could help solve part of that challenge. An international team led by Bruce Logan, director of Penn State’s Institute of Energy and the Environment, has developed a larger and more efficient reactor that converts carbon dioxide and renewable electricity into methane, the main component of natural gas. Their findings show that microbial electrosynthesis systems can scale up dramatically without losing performance. The work offers a possible pathway for storing renewable energy in chemical form while reusing carbon dioxide that would otherwise enter the atmosphere. A graphical abstract of the study. (CREDIT: Water Research) “Traditionally, large-scale, long-term storage means pumping water uphill and letting it flow back down through turbines,” Logan said. “If you’re talking seasonal storage, you really need to put that energy into a …

EU approves €1.3bn to accelerate renewable hydrogen production

EU approves €1.3bn to accelerate renewable hydrogen production

Published by skeptic

The European Commission has approved a €1.3bn German state aid programme to expand renewable hydrogen production across Europe. The funding, cleared under EU State aid rules, will support projects selected through the European Hydrogen Bank’s “Auctions-as-a-Service” mechanism following the 2026 auction round. Germany’s plan is designed to finance new hydrogen infrastructure and large-scale electrolyser projects connected to both the Danish Hydrogen Backbone 1 pipeline and the German Hydrogen Core Network. The initiative is expected to help build up to 1,000 MW of electrolyser capacity and produce as much as 10 million tonnes of renewable hydrogen, while avoiding an estimated 55 million tonnes of CO2 emissions. The approval marks another major step in the EU’s push to scale renewable hydrogen production as part of its wider decarbonisation strategy. Brussels sees hydrogen as central to cutting industrial emissions, reducing reliance on Russian fossil fuels under the REPowerEU plan, and achieving climate neutrality targets by 2050. Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, explained: “This investment in renewable hydrogen production is a step towards Europe’s …

Europe’s dilemma – to use China’s turbines to meet its renewable targets or not

Europe’s dilemma – to use China’s turbines to meet its renewable targets or not

Published by skeptic

Europe’s wind turbines have become part of a wider struggle over energy security, industrial power and the west’s dependence on China. European wind power capacity has surged dramatically in recent years. Wind energy now supplies 17% of EU electricity up from 13% in 2019. Offshore wind has expanded particularly rapidly, with installed capacity growing strongly over the past decade. But Brussels wants renewables to provide at least 42.5% of the EU’s total energy mix by 2030. Wind is “pivotal” to this strategy, according to the European Commission’s wind power action plan. The challenge for Europe is to meet its 2030 target, it needs to build 33 gigawatts (GW) of new wind turbines annually. So far, data from 2022, 2023 and 2024 indicates that Europe has averaged only around 16-19 GW of new installations per year. This leaves a significant gap between Europe’s target and its implementation. Across the Atlantic, the picture is just as uncertain. The US Inflation Reduction Act introduced during Joe Biden’s presidency promised a surge in renewable energy investment, including wind. But …

‘Immense irony’ as Iran war fuels ‘boom’ in renewable power – UN climate chief | Science, Climate & Tech News

‘Immense irony’ as Iran war fuels ‘boom’ in renewable power – UN climate chief | Science, Climate & Tech News

Published by skeptic

The conflict in Iran has “supercharged” the “boom” in renewable power, the United Nations’ climate chief has said. It comes as electric vehicle numbers in Britain hit a record high of two million yesterday, amid a worldwide buying spree. Oil and gas prices have soared as the conflict in Iran chokes off about a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) supplies and spreads misery. Simon Stiell, head of the UN’s climate body (UNFCCC) said in a speech in Paris this morning: “From this tragedy, an immense irony is unfolding.” In a veiled reference to US President Donald Trump, who has pursued a policy of “energy dominance”, he said: “Those who’ve fought to keep the world hooked on fossil fuels are inadvertently supercharging the global renewables boom.” Mr Steill was speaking at a meeting in Paris to prepare for the upcoming COP31 climate talks in Turkey in November, a process strained by the withdrawal of the US and a world preoccupied by conflicts. Image: Simon Stiell celebrating the final deal from the COP30 …

New US method triples renewable natural gas yield from waste

New US method triples renewable natural gas yield from waste

Published by skeptic

A research team at Washington State University (WSU) has developed a sewage treatment method that significantly increases renewable natural gas output while halving disposal costs. The pilot study, published in the Chemical Engineering Journal, focuses on improving anaerobic digestion, a widely used wastewater treatment method in which microbes break down organic material to produce biogas. Traditional systems struggle with complex polymers in sewage sludge, leaving behind large volumes of unusable biosolids and producing gas with high carbon dioxide content. The WSU team introduced a pretreatment phase before digestion. Sludge is exposed to high temperature and pressure with a controlled amount of oxygen. Under these conditions, oxygen acts as a catalyst, breaking long molecular chains into simpler compounds that microbes can more easily process. Following this, researchers deployed a newly isolated bacterial strain capable of converting carbon dioxide and hydrogen directly into methane. The result is a cleaner, higher-value fuel stream. According to lead researcher Birgitte Ahring, the organism operates with minimal inputs, requiring little more than water and basic nutrients, which simplifies scaling and reduces …

Converting waste into African renewable energy through biomass gasification

Converting waste into African renewable energy through biomass gasification

Published by skeptic

REFFECT AFRICA integrates renewable energy solutions based on the biomass gasification technology to optimise the water-energy-food nexus. Through three demonstrator plants in Ghana, Morocco and South Africa, it transforms agricultural wastes into bioenergy, drinking water and biochar Demographically, Africa’s population is projected to experience massive growth, rising from approximately 1.2 billion in 2018 to over 4.4 billion by the year 2100. Currently, according to the International Energy Agency (2020), nearly 600 million people in Africa lack continuous and reliable access to electricity, particularly in rural areas of the sub-Saharan region. Furthermore, approximately two-thirds of the population in sub-Saharan Africa depends on agriculture for their livelihood (World Bank Open Data, 2024). Agriculture is a sector that generates a vast amount of agri-food waste, which, in most cases, remains unexploited, representing a valuable source for renewable energy generation and local employment. Fig. 1: Main approach of the REFFECT AFRICA project The REFFECT AFRICA project addresses the development and integration of renewable energy sources for African communities, both grid-connected and off-grid. With the goal of closing the water-energy-food …

War-driven energy crisis gives China a boost for its renewable exports

War-driven energy crisis gives China a boost for its renewable exports

Published by Sam Flores

TAIPEI, Taiwan — As the oil and gas crisis set off by the war in Iran drives governments to accelerate their transitions to renewable energy, one country above all stands to benefit. China dominates renewable energy supply chains, producing a vast majority of the world’s solar panels, wind turbines, batteries and electric vehicles. Exports of these technologies were already climbing to new heights in the first two months of 2026. Now volatility in the supply of fossil fuels is set to give sales another big boost. Source link

EU approves €6bn to scale Italian renewable hydrogen production

EU approves €6bn to scale Italian renewable hydrogen production

Published by skeptic

The European Commission has cleared a €6bn Italian support mechanism designed to expand renewable hydrogen production, marking a significant policy step toward decarbonising energy-intensive sectors. The programme targets large-scale output of low-emission hydrogen for use in transport and industry, aligning with broader EU climate and industrial strategy goals. Commenting on the fiscal backing, Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition, said: “This scheme will support the production of renewable hydrogen in Italy for sectors where it can contribute the most to reducing emissions. “The scheme will contribute to the clean, just and competitive transition.” Funding model targets market gap Italy’s scheme is structured around two-way Contracts for Difference (CfDs), a financial mechanism intended to stabilise hydrogen producers’ revenues. Under this model, developers bid for a fixed “strike price” for hydrogen through a competitive process. If market prices for conventional fuels fall below the agreed level, the Italian government compensates producers for the shortfall. Conversely, if fossil fuel prices rise above the strike price, producers return the difference to the state. This approach …

New platinum-free photocatalyst turns sunlight and water into renewable energy

New platinum-free photocatalyst turns sunlight and water into renewable energy

Published by Jenni Sidey

A small beaker of water can look ordinary. Under the right light, it can also become a quiet factory. In a chemistry lab at Chalmers University of Technology in Sweden, researchers have shown that sunlight, water and tiny particles of electrically conductive plastic can quickly produce hydrogen gas. The advance matters because it avoids platinum, a scarce and expensive metal that often sits at the center of solar hydrogen research. The work describes a platinum-free way to speed the chemical steps that turn water into hydrogen. The team says the method could make solar hydrogen more efficient, more sustainable and far cheaper to scale. The idea may sound simple, but it targets one of the hardest bottlenecks in clean hydrogen science. Hydrogen is an energy carrier. You can store it, transport it and use it later, much like electricity. When you use hydrogen, the by-product is water. That promise has kept hydrogen in the spotlight as countries push toward renewable energy systems. Yet hydrogen only helps the climate if you can make it cleanly and …