January 31 NEC Energy News
¶ “Can Nuclear Fusion Power The Race To Net Zero?” • The IPCC’s landmark report in 2018 concluded that the world needs to reach net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050 to have a good chance of limiting global warming to 1.5°C. Estimates for when fusion might come into use range from 2030 to 2050, and beyond. That’s not soon enough. [Energy Monitor]
¶ “Nuclear Disaster In Japan Did Something Strange To Trees” • Trees outside Fukushima Daiichi are definitely acting weird, according to a study published recently in the journal Plants. Conifers in the area near the nuclear plant are showing unusual growth patterns, with the degree of irregularity in proportion to the distance from the plant. [Futurism]
¶ “Tesla #1 In World EV Sales In 2021” • After a walk in the park in 2019 and 2020, Tesla had another comfortable win of its 4th consecutive Best Seller title in 2021. However, with its market share eroding (12% in 2018, 17% in 2019, 16% in 2020, and 14% in 2021), a competitor might challenge Tesla in 2022, and that would most likely be BYD. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Are Auto-Dealership Protection Laws Holding Back Electric Vehicle Adoption?” • Bloomberg’s Liam Denning and The Atlantic’s, Robinson Meyer both argue that antiquated dealer-protecting state laws are delaying the transition to EVs by distorting the US auto market. They point out that EV sales are higher in the states that don’t restrict direct sales. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Electric Car Market Grows To 29% In Europe As EV Sales Explode!” • While the overall car market continues falling off a cliff, at -22% YOY in December, Europe’s passenger plugin car market had a near-record month, with 280,200 registrations. The record was 281,000 registrations in December 2020, which was inflated by the CO₂ mandate rush. [CleanTechnica]
¶ “Bloomberg Predicts Massive Fall In Green Hydrogen Prices” • Although “blue” hydrogen, made from natural gas backed up by carbon capture and storage (a technology which struggles to be economically viable), is cheaper today than “green” hydrogen, made from water using renewable energy, according to a report by BloombergNEF. [CleanTechnica]
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