Building & Transportation Electrification
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🎀 AlphaStruxure partners with Maryland county on first East Coast bus depot to produce green hydrogen
Construction on the depot, which will serve a fleet of 200 hydrogen buses through an electrolyzer, is scheduled to conclude by the end of 2025. By Patrick Cooley • May 18, 2023 -
🐼 NREL energy audit tool may help cities meet climate, building decarbonization goals
Local governments often lack the staff and resources to conduct energy audits on thousands of buildings, an engineer at the National Renewable Energy Lab said, but technology can help overcome those challenges. By Joe Burns • May 17, 2023 -
𒅌 Explore the Trendline➔
bombermoon via Getty ImagesTrendlineThe Utility Dive Outlook on 2023
2023 promises to be another busy year for the U.S. energy transition as stakeholders move to implement new clean energy measures while tackling growing security, reliability, equity and affordability challenges. By Utility Dive staff -
♎ Biogas groups, lawmakers jockey for changes as EPA nears final rule to bring EVs into biofuel RIN market
Republicans expressed skepticism in an April 25 letter to EPA about the agency’s authority to create a new branch of the Renewable Fuel Standard related to electricity markets rather than traditional fuels. By Jacob Wallace • May 12, 2023 -
Deep Dive
𝄹 Hawaii leads the way on advanced rate design with default time-of-use rates, fixed charge innovations
Hawaii’s planned granular cost study still must prove to other states that the new TOU rates, fixed charge framework, and new way of defining costs will allocate costs accurately, analysts said. By 🔴 Herman K. Trabish • May 9, 2023 -
🎀 US, South Korea sign EV battery deal
Last week, GM and South Korea-based battery manufacturer Samsung SDI jointly announced partnering to build a $3 billion U.S. battery production plant. By Sara Samora • May 4, 2023 -
ꦯ Affordable, all-electric and energy-efficient housing gets $15M boost from NYC initiative
The initiative “will demonstrate to the affordable housing market a highly replicable new construction solution,” said Doreen Harris, president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority. By Ysabelle Kempe • May 3, 2023 -
💯 EnergyHub, Synop partner to expand revenue opportunities for commercial EV fleets
The partnership will offer utilities a “full, vertically integrated solution” to manage load associated with electric vehicle chargers, said Mark Braby, chief commercial officer at Synop. By 🌼 Robert Walton • May 3, 2023 -
ꦏ Edison International CEO Pizarro backs Western RTO, highlights SCE efforts to prep grid for heavy duty EVs
“We are seeing customers really start to embrace and adopt EVs today, including operators of medium- and heavy-duty vehicle fleets,” Pedro Pizarro, president and CEO of Edison International, said during an earnings call. By ℱ Kavya Balaraman • May 3, 2023 -
Opinion
❀ Why EV operations minutiae, not big strategic announcements, will decide the success of the EV transition
The “announce first, solve barriers later” mindset so predominant in the vehicle electrification industry today is a drag on progress. By Matt Lichtash • May 2, 2023 -
🥀 First state law banning gas in new buildings likely to pass in New York
Environmental and social justice advocates worry it will include a “poison pill” provision backed by the oil and gas industry. By Ysabelle Kempe • May 1, 2023 -
💯 After Ninth Circuit tosses Berkeley gas ban for new buildings, climate-focused cities examine their options
Other “totally lawful opportunities” exist for local governments to phase out gas in new buildings, such as through building codes, said a senior fellow at Columbia Law School’s Sabin Center for Climate Change Law. By Ysabelle Kempe • April 28, 2023 -
🦋 Hyundai, SK On plan $5B Georgia EV battery plant
The venture will supply batteries to power Hyundai, Kia and Genesis EVs by the second half of 2025. By Megan Ruggles • April 27, 2023 -
꧃ Tesla says lack of lithium refining capacity will become EV production ‘choke point’
The EV maker is expanding its lithium production in the U.S. and calling on other companies to do so, too. By Kate Magill • April 26, 2023 -
Sponsored by GridX
🌸 Avoiding the potential ramifications of modern rate structures
How to get modern rates done right to ensure successful implementations. April 24, 2023 -
🦩 Italian energy company Enel to reportedly bring 10,000 EV chargers to North America
Enel X Way would join big players like Tesla and Walmart, along with convenience store chains like Pilot, in the increasingly busy electric vehicle space. By Jessica Loder • April 20, 2023 -
Opinion
💜 Covering infrastructure costs to support commercial EV charging is worth it for utilities and ratepayers
If utilities pay up front for all of the customer- and utility-side make-ready investments needed to electrify fleets in their service territory, the resulting revenues will outweigh the investment cost at no additional cost to ratepayers. By Pamela MacDougall • April 20, 2023 -
Opinion
ꦬ New York’s plan for transforming its electricity generation will reduce reliability at extreme cost
Permitting and grid interconnection delays mean it's highly unlikely that enough new generation will be added to meet the state’s goal of having 100% zero-emission electricity production by 2040. By Arnold Wallenstein • April 19, 2023 -
🐟 EPRI launches 3-year initiative to address grid constraints, develop tools to serve coming EV loads
EVs2Scale2030 will develop a timeline of anticipated electric vehicle charging loads, down to the distribution circuit level, said EPRI Director of Transportation Britta Gross. By 🌱 Robert Walton • April 19, 2023 -
Deep Dive
🌳 With looming EV load spikes, PG&E, Duke, other utilities adopt new rate design and cost recovery strategies
New dynamic time-varying rates and demand charge adjustments from California to the Carolinas could align customer usage with utility costs to make EVs a system benefit, rate design experts said By ෴ Herman K. Trabish • April 18, 2023 -
ꦉ Booming EV sales amp up the pressure on cities and companies to meet charging demand
“This is a wake-up call,” an executive at an energy management company said. “The transformation required to enable widespread vehicle electrification will be a massive challenge.” By Dan Zukowski • April 13, 2023 -
🥀 ‘Grid-friendly’ standards for EV supply equipment could help ensure power system reliability: NERC
The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects electricity consumption by the transportation sector will increase from 12 billion kWh in 2021 to more than 145 billion kWh in 2050. By ෴ Robert Walton • April 12, 2023 -
♐ The country’s most EV-friendly metro areas
While only 4.7% of multifamily buildings nationwide offer electric vehicle charging stations, the concentration varies widely from place to place. By Mary Salmonsen • April 12, 2023 -
💧 Tighter EPA vehicle emissions standards may speed up EV transition
The new emissions standards would apply to 2027 through 2032 model-year vehicles, but they would not mandate EVs, leaving it up to automakers to decide how to meet the rules. By Dan Zukowski • April 12, 2023 -
🗹 Walmart to install EV chargers at thousands of stores by 2030
The big-box retailer already has around 1,300 chargers at 280 of its sites but plans to further leverage its vast store network. By Jessica Loder • April 10, 2023 -
ꦉ State transportation electrification plans fail to consider grid needs, new ESGI paper warns
Managed charging will be vital because by 2050 transportation could represent more than a quarter of global electricity use, the group said. By 🌳 Robert Walton • April 5, 2023