Global coal-fired generation rebounds in 2021 with continued expansion in some countries Energize Weekly, July 28, 2021 Global coal-fired electricity generation is making a rebound in 2021 as billions of dollars in government support continue to flow to the sector and new coal-fired plants are being built or planned around the world. Coal-fired electricity generation,…
Western drought hurts hydropower production, California among the hardest hit states Energize Weekly, July 14, 2021 The drought conditions smothering the West are crippling hydropower production with hydro-generation’s share of energy production forecast to be 6.5 percent this year – the lowest it has been since 2015, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).…
More than half the U.S. faces electricity supply problems in the face of a long, hot summer Energize Weekly, July 7, 2021 More than half the U.S. – primarily in the West, Texas, Midwest and to a lesser extent, New England – is at risk of energy emergencies this summer, according to the North American…
Pandemic leads to solar industry job losses, as installations set a record Energize Weekly, May 12, 2021 Solar industry employment dropped 6.7 percent last year to 231,474, despite a record-setting year for installations, according to the 2020 National Solar Jobs Census. The cross trends are explained by increases in labor productivity which ranged from 2 percent…
Global energy demand is forecast to rebound in 2021, IEA says Energize Weekly, April 28, 2021 Global energy production and demand is set to rebound from their pandemic doldrums in 2021with energy consumption up 4.6 percent, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA). The agency said in its annual Global Energy Review that government stimulus…
Energize Weekly, April 7, 2021 Cities and towns across the U.S. installed or purchased a record 3.7 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity in 2020, a 23 percent increase over 2019, according to the clean energy consultant, RMI. The RMI analysis was based on data from the Local Government Renewables Action Tracker, which showed nearly 100…
Energize Weekly, March 24, 2021 Solar installations in the U.S., even in the face of the pandemic economy, set a record in 2020 with 19.2 gigawatts (GW) of capacity – a 43 percent increase over 2019, according to an industry market report. “The year 2020 was a record-setting year for the industry and it won’t…
Energize Weekly, February 24, 2021 The near collapse of Texas’ electric grid was caused in the main by a failure of the natural gas system from the wellhead to pipeline to gas turbine, according to an analysis by the International Energy Agency (IEA). “Texas has a power shortage because it has a gas shortage,” the…
Energize Weekly, February 10, 2021 It will take years for U.S. energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions to return to 2019 levels after the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the country’s economy and the global energy sector, according to the federal Energy Information Administration (EIA). Energy consumption in the agency’s “reference case” will…
Energize Weekly, December 9, 2020 Coal mining and coal-fired electricity generation in the U.S. and Europe continues to decline, but in Asia, coal-fired demand is projected to increase through 2030 thanks to national policies and Chinese financing. In the U.S., coal mine production capacity fell in 2019 to 590 million short tons – a 28…
Energize Weekly, November 11, 2020 Election returns on state and local energy issues were both literally and figuratively all over the map last week on issues ranging from renewable energy to oil and gas taxes. Voters in Alaska rejected a tax on oil operations while the industry was denied a tax break in Louisiana. Columbus,…
Energize Weekly, May 13, 2020 A new front was opened last week in the battle between Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association and some of its electric cooperatives, as United Power, its largest member, filed a complaint in a Colorado district court charging subterfuge and breach of contract. Meanwhile on May 18, hearings will open at…