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Fabric-based solar cells on the horizon

New textile-based solar cells developed by Fraunhofer researchers, semitrailers could soon be producing the electricity needed to power cooling systems or other onboard equipment. In short, textile-based solar cells could soon be adding a whole new dimension to photovoltaics, complementing the use of conventional silicon-based solar cells.




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Sunverge raises $11 million for utility distributed energy resource controls

The round was led by Ecosystem Integrity Fund with participation from Equinor Energy Ventures and Evergy Ventures




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In battle to break up utilities, Arizona steps to the front line

Of all the efforts to break up utility monopolies in the U.S., the one unfolding in Arizona may be the most important to watch.




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On the brink of blackouts, Texas makes case for power plant boom

It may be time to start building power plants in Texas again.




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BNEF finds that hydrogen’s plunging price could boost its role in a carbon-free future

The cost of producing hydrogen gas with renewables is likely to plummet in the coming decades, making one of the most radical technologies for reducing greenhouse gases economical.




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Covering Climate Now signs on more than 170 news outlets

MORE THAN 170 NEWS OUTLETS from around the world have now signed up for Covering Climate Now, a project co-founded by CJR and The Nation aimed at strengthening the media’s focus on the climate crisis.




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Ameren Missouri to bring customers solar energy at night

Ameren Missouri, a unit of Ameren Corp., filed plans with the Missouri Public Service Commission to build three solar + storage facilities across Missouri




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Clean energy investment set to hit $2.6 trillion this decade

The global energy supply is turning greener.




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Elantra vs. Corolla, 2020 BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe review, VW's EV plans: What's New @ The Car Connection

2020 Hyundai Elantra vs. 2020 Toyota Corolla: Compare Cars The 2020 Toyota Corolla and 2020 Hyundai Elantra are two compact cars—and hatchbacks—that are great values with thrifty hybrids. Mailbag: What's the difference between car, crossover, and SUV anyway? "Why isn't an SUV a station wagon or a crossover?" a perplexed reader wrote...



  • Today in Car News

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Explorer vs Pilot, 2020 Genesis G70 review, Camry vs Sonata Hybrids: What's New @ The Car Connection

2020 Honda Pilot vs. 2020 Ford Explorer: Compare Crossover SUVs Two of the bestselling three-row SUVs, the 2020 Honda Pilot and 2020 Ford Explorer, go about their family business a bit differently. Pickup trucks outsell cars for the first time, and it may not be temporary The Ford F-150, Ram 1500, and Chevy Silverado have been the best-selling...



  • Today in Car News

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Report: Traffic fatalities decreased, miles driven increased in 2019

Estimated traffic fatalities decreased in 2019 despite an increase in driving, according to a report from the NHTSA released on Wednesday. There were projected to be 36,120 traffic fatalities in 2019, which is a 1.2% decrease from 2018. It marks the third consecutive year of declines from a post-recession high point of 37,806 traffic fatalities in...




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Review update: The 2020 Mercedes-Benz AMG GLC 43 SUV "nose" the right spice level

These are halcyon days for fleet-footed crossover SUVs. Saucy ‘utes like the 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC 43 AMG hardly look like they’re just as quick as their smaller siblings but stopwatches don’t lie. In the example above, Mercedes says the GLC43 crossover takes just 4.7 seconds from 0-60 mph compared to the C43 sedan’s time...




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IIHS reports that new Jeep Wrangler SUV rolled over on its side during driver-side crash

The IIHS reported Thursday that the new Jeep Wrangler, which was last comprehensively updated for the 2018 model year, tipped over onto its passenger side during its driver-side small overlap crash test. The insurance industry-funded safety watchdog said the Wrangler was tested three times, twice by the agency and once by the automaker. The...




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Mobile fast-charging: A must-have for electric truck and bus fleets?

Fully electric delivery trucks, cargo vans, shuttle vehicles, and transit and school buses are all due to become increasingly common as fleets go green and diesels are retired. That’s where a recent surge of interest in mobile-charging solutions comes in. As a backup plan for the times when charge points and infrastructure won’t quite...




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Last-mile electric van, clean-energy pinch, mobile charging for trucks: Today’s Car News

Nissan’s Leaf-based van for Europe gets larger. More mobile charging is on the way for bigger electric trucks. And could the pandemic pinch material supply for EV makers and the clean energy sector? This and more, here at Green Car Reports. The coronavirus pandemic could tighten the supply of some materials needed for the creation of...



  • Today in Car News

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2020 BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe, 2020 Genesis G70, 2020 Chevrolet Corvette: The Week In Reverse

We spent some time in the 2020 BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe; we drove the 2020 Genesis G70; and coronavirus has affected the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette. It's the Week in Reverse, right here at Motor Authority. The 2020 BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe is a more stylish four-door alternative to the 7-Series. We found it has a Teutonic rumble from its twin-turbo...



  • The Week In Reverse

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Colin Chapman's Lotus Esprit is for sale

A Lotus Esprit formerly owned by company founder Colin Chapman is up for sale through British dealer Mark Donaldson. As detailed by Motor Sport, the car is a 1981 Series 3 Turbo model with some modifications specified by Chapman, including power steering and a pollen filter to help alleviate his hay fever. The car rides on a lowered suspension...




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Camry Hybrid vs. Sonata Hybrid, mobile charging, Cash for Clunkers redux: The Week in Reverse

Sales of which electric car plunged the steepest leading into the U.S. pandemic slowdown? Which automaker reaffirmed its commitment to hydrogen fuel cells? This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending May 8, 2020. Our biggest combination of stories this week related to the most...



  • The Week In Reverse

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Off Grid Electric Raises $25M to Help Power a ‘Solar Revolution’ in Africa

DBL Partners, the same venture capital fund that supported SolarCity for many years, has led the largest venture capital funding for distributed energy in Africa. Off Grid Electric announced today that it raised $25 million in a Series C investment.

Off Grid Electric, based in California and Tanzania, is installing solar in over 10,000 homes and businesses per month with what it calls “its radically affordable solar leasing platform.” The company designs, manufactures, sells, installs and services solar home units in Tanzania and is announcing today that it will be entering




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Inspiring Young Women To Pursue Careers in Energy

At last night’s PennWell Awards Ceremony, Kim Greene, a 24-year veteran of the power industry, was named the POWER-GEN 2015 Woman of the Year.

Greene began her career as an engineer with Southern Company in 1991 and ascended to leadership roles at Mirant and Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), before returning to Southern Company Services in 2013 to become President and CEO. She was a keynote speaker at POWER-GEN International in 2014.

Today, she serves as chief operating officer of Southern Company and is responsible for overseeing system operations, which include generation, transmission, engineering and construction services, system planning, and research and environmental affairs, as well as the company’s competitive wholesale generation businesses.




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Sustainable Women Series: How to Build a 75 Percent Net Zero Community

What does it take to build a 75 percent net zero community and the “largest Emerald-rated community” in the world? Tabitha Crawford explains how her team combined solar, HVAC, and sustainable building practices to build 250 net zero homes while keeping construction costs at a 3 percent premium.




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Sustainable Women Series: Green Innovation in Electrical Design & Perfecting Pizza Delivery

Care Technology provides technological solutions to the needs of customers through innovations like energy-efficient LED lighting and transportable heat sources that operate without power racks or induction heaters. We spoke to co-founder Belinda Wong about the production of their sustainable offerings and the benefits of green technology.




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Sustainable Women Series: Setting a National Net Zero Energy and Green Building Precedent

Almost ten years ago, Built Green, an environmentally-friendly residential building program of the Master Builders Association of King and Snohomish Counties, began a project to develop the first net energy townhome complex in the United States. The project was created to revolutionize green housing and prove that green building could be done affordably.




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Sustainable Women Series: 62 Million People (& Counting!) for 100 percent Renewable Energy Cities

The idea of communities, cities, states, or countries being powered by 100 percent renewable energy used to be perceived as fantasy. Enter the Go 100% Renewable Energy Project, which aims to perpetuate the clean energy movement by creating a revolutionary online platform that showcases real-time 100 percent renewable energy progress. So far, the project has mapped 8 countries, 59 Cities, and 61 Regions/States, representing more than 62 million people who have set, reached, or surpassed official 100 percent renewable targets in at least one sector (electricity, transportation, heating/cooling). Discover what’s driving the shift to 100% RE, the common trends emerging, and learn more about the Go 100% project with Founding Director of the Renewables 100 Policy Institute Diane Moss!




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Sustainable Women Series: Building & Powering an Award-Winning Net Zero Energy Home

Can a home be beautiful, powered entirely by solar energy, use sustainable heating and cooling systems and save it’s owners roughly $3,500 a year? Why, yes it can. Just ask Joanne Coons, who built her award winning, single-family, Net Zero Energy Home in 2010. Sustainable Woman Joanne talks Net Zero standards, efficient appliances and goods, her 10kW solar panels and more.




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City Utility Trials Voltage Optimization in First for Western Canada

The city utility for Lethbridge, Alberta is starting a voltage optimization trial that is expected to deliver energy savings for customers while reducing overall energy usage in the city’s electricity distribution system.




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Trump Said to Mull 2015 Grid Emergency Law to Save Coal Plants

The Trump administration is weighing a broad array of strategies for keeping coal and nuclear power plants online as a matter of national security, with options ranging from invoking a 68-year-old law to a three-year-old one, according to a senior Energy Department official.




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Why More Solar and Wind on the Grid Should Be Driving Today’s Investment Decisions

A new LBNL report offers concrete suggestions about what investments today will be most beneficial in tomorrow’s renewable energy future.




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U.S. Department of Energy announces funding for six marine energy projects

The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded a total of $6.7 million in funding to six recipients, with the goal of developing innovative marine energy technologies "capable of generating reliable and cost-effective electricity from U.S. water resources."




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Want To Save the World with Your Brilliant Clean Energy Idea?

A new partnership between Enel and InnoCentive focuses on the power of the crowd to solve many of the world’s sustainable energy challenges.




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Global Investments in Electricity Beat Investments in Oil and Gas for Second Year in a Row

IEA report reveals that more than US $750 billion went to the electricity sector while US $715 billion was spent on oil and gas supply globally as the world continues on the path to electrification.





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New DERMS Partnership Helps Utilities Use Residential Batteries as Virtual Power Plants

This week Autogrid announced that it entered into a partnership with Swell Energy to provide software for managing Swell’s growing fleet of distributed energy resources (DER).




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Global Climate Summit Celebrates Emission Reduction Progress; Calls for Bolder Action to Meet Paris Climate Goals

On the premise that the nations of the world are not doing enough to meet the goals of the 2015 Paris Climate Agreement, Governor Jerry Brown, New York City’s former Mayor Michael Bloomberg and other dignitaries convened a high-profile international gathering in San Francisco September 12-14 to inspire more ambitious action and showcase successful efforts.




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Ohio’s PowerForward Roadmap Aims to Shape the Grid of the Future

A new roadmap for the future of Ohio’s electric grid can benefit all types of interest groups, but the next few years will be critical for the plan to achieve its goals.




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Electric Vehicle Fast-Charging Infrastructure Provider Picks Up the Pace

This week, EVgo, a provider of public electric vehicle (EV) fast-charging stations in the U.S., said it was accelerating the pace at which it is constructing fast chargers and will add hundreds of EVgo fast chargers in California before the end of 2018.




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Report: $2.4 Trillion Clean Energy Investment Needed To Avoid Climate Catastrophe

The world must invest $2.4 trillion in clean energy every year through 2035 and cut the use of coal-fired power to almost nothing by 2050 to avoid catastrophic damage from climate change, according to scientists convened by the United Nations.




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U.S. Department of Energy To Bring $40B Cash to POWER-GEN International

After wallowing in limbo for the first part of 2018 awaiting re-authorization, the Loan Program Office (LPO) at the Department of Energy is back in business with about $40 billion burning a hole in its proverbial pocket. Mike Reed, Director and Chief Engineer of the Technical and Project Management Division of the LPO and his team are planning to hit POWER-GEN 2018 in Orlando, Florida in December to identify people and projects that might need financing.




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Centrica says distributed energy tech could slash UK emissions

The UK could meet a significant slice of carbon emissions’ target if it more widely deployed distributed energy technologies.




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IRENA: Egypt Could Meet Up to 53 Percent of Electricity Demand with Renewables

Egypt has the potential to meet up to 53 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2030, according to a new report by the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA). The Egypt Renewable Energy Outlook, released in Cairo last week in the presence of Egyptian government officials and regional decision makers, found that pursuing higher shares of renewable energy could reduce the country’s energy bill by up to $900 million annually in 2030.





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Global Electrification Goals Are Driving Microgrid Market

According to the Microgrid Market Growth Potential - Industry Size Outlook Report 2024, the microgrid market is expected to reach $19 billion by 2024, nearly five times the original valuation of this business space in 2016.




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Industry and Academia Partner To Train Next Generation of Digital Grid Experts

Last week, Siemens and Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) announced a new new academic partnership that they say will provide students with the skills needed to operate and advance the nation’s energy grid.




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Opportunity, Or What Happens When Utilities and Regulators Get Serious about Decarbonization

Utilities across the country are increasingly taking a proactive role on initiatives to advance clean energy and grid modernization. But to hear a utility CEO like Kipp focus unequivocally on one of the most critical drivers for the growth of solar and storage was striking — and yet another sign of the sector’s ongoing transformation.




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DigiKoo: A German Solution to the Utility Data Sharing Conundrum

For most of their history, in North America, electrical utilities have been centralized distribution networks. Utility operated generation resources are the hub of the network and electricity flows one-way via distribution networks largely controlled by the same utilities. In this model, there has been little reason for utilities to share anything but a small slice of data about their operations with anyone else other than themselves.




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Electricity is the ‘New Fuel of Choice’ Says IEA

According to the International Energy Agency, “2018 is the year of electricity” and global electricity supply “is being transformed by the rise of renewables”.




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Ontario to Set Targets for Industries to Cut Carbon Emissions

Ontario plans to cut carbon gas emissions by 30 percent from 2005 levels by 2030, setting reduction targets for industries and encouraging private investments in clean technologies.





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Surprised by Cheap Clean Energy, Coal Stalwart Adds Renewables

Marubeni Corp., the Japanese trading house for whom coal makes up about a quarter of its power generation, never expected renewable energy prices to plunge as much as they have.




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Nevada National Security Site Installs Solar, Begins Era of Net-zero Energy Buildings

The Nevada National Security Site (NNSS) inaugurated the Mercury Solar Project late last month and moved it further down the path of sustainability, giving NNSA its first net-zero-energy building.