The Key Word in "Clean Energy Transition" is Transition

Greetings,

As you can guess, it is with a bit of a heavy heart that I send this out. I have said that this newsletter is never intended to be about politics. Policy is another matter, however. And the energy and climate policy changes that the Congressional Budget Bill in the U.S. Congress will make are not just major but monumental. They will set back our country’s decarbonation efforts to a significant degree - and speaking of degrees, the contribution to temperature rise will likely be significant as well.

I will leave it at that for the moment. You are no doubt seeing elsewhere all sorts of info about the Bill and its provisions. But I will offer some additional thoughts from a policy standpoint in my Op Ed that appears later in this newsletter.

Meanwhile … I want to pose a question to you.

There are so many developments happening so quickly these days that the number of items I want to include in the section called “Things That Caught My Eye” grows quickly. Sometimes the bundle of items grows more quickly than I can get to writing my Op Ed. Which makes me wonder if I should send out the two pieces separately at different times. But in saying that I fear that would lead to too many emails from me, and no one likes getting too many emails these days.

So - I am asking those of you who have a thought on this to let me know (by replying to this email).

I hope your summer has started off well!

Dan

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Links to Past Issues

The Wrong Kind of Energy Independence & Energy Dominance

Our Money, Our Mouths, and Our Climate

My Last Newsletter for a While

Two Guys Walk Into a Bar And Talk About Energy

Are you Ready to Test Your Climate Vocabulary?

A Different Kind of Message From the Climate Scientists

Climate Fiction and Climate Reality

Thoughts on Climate Descendants

Emissions as a Choice in Flying

The Forgotten Climate Holiday in April (not Earth Day)

Climate Change and the Snail Darter

St. Patrick's Day and Climate Change

Charging My Car in Manhattan

Step Into These Shoes Wearing a Climate and Energy Hat

Resilience Recognition is Rising - But There is That Other Thing

There is no "O" in Climate Change

It was an Instagram COP - And I am Finally OK with That

How to Talk About Climate With Your Crazy Uncle at Thanksgiving

Monty Python and Climate Change

What You Need to Know About NIMBYism

H mm..So How Much Did My Heat Pump Really Cost?

What it Means to Be a Climate Voter

The Climate Conundrum of Air Conditioning

Predictions Made About Utilities Made 10 Years Ago - How Did They Hold up?

My Vote For The Most Under-Appreciated Impact of Climate Change

10 Things I Should Have Written About

So I Went to the COP - Here Are My Top 10 Takeaways.

Efficiency and Clean Energy - Faster vs More

Efficiency & Clean Energy - More vs. Faster

It's Time For A Climate Vote - On the Record

Good COP, Bad COP .....Thoughts Before Glasgow

One of These Things is Not Like the Others

What I Should Have Written About

The Serenity of Being a Climate Voter

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Some Things That Caught My Eye

The Number of Court Cases on Climate Continues to Grow

From time to time, I highlight some of the proceedings that climate advocates have initiated in various countries and (in the U.S.) states. The cases that have reached verdicts have been a mixed bag, with some wins for the climate advocates and some for the fossil companies being sued.

A new Report from the Grantham Institute is a snapshot of the over 300 cases that have concluded or are underway around the world.

https://www.lse.ac.uk/granthaminstitute/publication/global-trends-in-climate-change-litigation-2025-snapshot/

The States are Where the Action is

While much of the clean energy policy focus and debate is at the federal level, it is the States that actually make (or don’t make) things happen. States are where new generation is getting approved, plant retirements are delayed, and steps are taken to keep costs low while ensuring electricity demand is met by electricity supply.

The Clean Energy States Alliance is out with a new Report that shows what individual states are doing to meet the increasingly complex task of decarbonizing while increasing supply.

https://www.cesa.org/resource-library/resource/load-growth-what-states-are-doing/

A Snapshot of Worldwide Carbon Pricing

I often refer to the rest of world as having embraced carbon pricing. The newly published 2025 Trends in Carbon Pricing shows that approximately 40% of industrial emissions are now subject to some form of carbon pricing policy. The percentage has risen due to new policies established by China to include cement, aluminum, and steel in their carbon pricing policy.

Overall, 28% of worldwide emissions are subject to carbon pricing. Further growth is expected due to emerging policies expected in Turkey, India, and Brazil

https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/253e6cdd-9631-4db2-8cc5-1d013956de15/content

ERCOT CEO: Chance of Texas Blackout in 2024 was 16% … In 2025 it's Less Than 1%. The Reason: Solar & Storage

Even with demand growing due to data center and other factors (a prediction for a record-hot summer, the CEO of the Texas Grid says that the chance of grid problems is the lowest in years. He cited the addition of more utility-scale solar and battery storage as making the difference.

https://insideclimatenews.org/news/28062025/texas-battery-storage-solar-reduces-summer-blackout-risk/?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_3QQveYZZzWHanZl1jvsb7b-YGGAHXkfgrjXczGi8W5BSeTVxj_VAu7-SWiVx-o8okIDnp59bwOdhQGtOvASOSjc45jw&_hsmi=369168276&utm_content=369168276&utm_source=hs_email

More on the Climate Conundrum of Air Conditioning – Greater Future Demand Than Data Centers?

I have talked a lot about air conditioning in a climate context, and two years ago sent you an Op Ed calling A/C the ultimate Climate Conundrum, given its dual role in creating emissions and then allowing a way to deal with the global warming contribution of those emissions. (https://conta.cc/45hibqs).

The article linked below has some important new statistics and shows that earlier predictions on the speed and magnitude of A/C adoption are being exceeded.

https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2025/06/30/why-is-air-conditioning-adoption-accelerating-in-mexico/

California Rolls Back its Landmark Enviro Law That led to Unforeseen Circumstances

The California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) has been considered to be a keystone in policy to protect the environment. But the law proved to be so good at doing that other public policy goals like housing were handcuffed and stymied by NIMBYs.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/30/us/california-environment-newsom-ceqa.html

As US Policy Looks to Cut Back on Electrification, Other Countries are Rushing Ahead

A new Report from clean energy think tank Ember has found that Vietnam, Bangladesh and other nations are growing their share of electricity in the total energy mix faster than the US. In the case of China, it has doubled electricity’s share as a proportion of primary energy to nearly a quarter. The report contrasts this with electricity shares in the US and Europe, which have stagnated.

The report focuses on the ways that electrification not only increases efficiencies of business operations, but also lowers the costs of such, making these countries economies more competitive.

https://ember-energy.org/latest-insights/the-electrification-imperative/

Snapshot on Fusion

Google has signed its second contract for fusion-generated electricity. The first one is for power to begin delivery in 2028. The new one is for power to begin in the early 2030’s. Both are aggressive.

https://thehill.com/policy/technology/5377626-google-strikes-deal-fusion-power/?email=467cb6399cb7df64551775e431052b43a775c749&emaila=12a6d4d069cd56cfddaa391c24eb7042&emailb=054528e7403871c79f668e49dd3c44b1ec00c7f611bf9388f76bb2324d6ca5f3&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=06.30.24 %E2%80%94 Energy %26 Environment -- RF

China and the U.S. Are Picking Different Paths – Which one do you Think Will Win

You know about the moves being made in the U.S. to once again make us a fossil-fueled economy. Meanwhile, as has been evident for some time now, China is placing its bet on Clean Energy – not just for itself but supplying it to the world. This unlocked article shows the contrast between the two big players. If you have not read anything else about China quest to be at the top of the Clean Energy pile.

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/06/30/climate/china-clean-energy-power.html?rsrc=flt&unlocked_article_code=1.S08.1g74.HOxwyQmkNsDc&smid=url-share

Strange Words from a Top Federal Energy Official

At a time when forecasts for growth in electricity demand are high, and at a time when 95% of electricity added to the grid last year was from renewables, public comments from the DOE Secretary seem to not in line with those facts. According to the Washington post, the Secretary recently told a House Committee that technologies like wind and solar are “just a parasite on the grid, because you just make the other sources turn up and down as you come and go”.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/06/28/solar-green-energy-tax-bill-trump/

The Evolving Dichotomy of Climate Impacts Facing the Ag Sector

For some places, it is too much heat. For others it is too much rain. Here’s the story on heat.

https://grist.org/extreme-heat/extreme-heat-growing-threat-rural-america/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily

Salmon or Power – Whether to Break an Agreement in the PAC-NW

Washington State said its power needs will double by 2050 – and that was before some of the AI/Data Center forecasts came in. There is an agreement in place to help the Salmon run. But it’s a new day for the electricity system and what it powers.

https://grist.org/indigenous/salmon-tribal-sovereignty-and-energy-collide-as-u-s-abandons-resilient-columbia-basin-agreement/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily

Climate Visas? Yes – A Nation Just Created the First One and Half of Another Nation has Applied

Nearly half of the population of the tiny Pacific Island-Nation of Tuvalu have applied for a “Climate Visa” created by Australia.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/27/climate/a-special-climate-visa-people-in-tuvalu-are-applying-fast.html?unlocked_article_code=1.S08.EjQL.rcaXSJLWf0FQ&smid=url-share

How a Changing Climate is Changing Ag in One State

Agriculture in the State of Vermont has changed over the centuries, going from potash to sheep to dairy cows to Hereford beef. Since 1900, the average temperature has increased 2 degrees. The average annual rainfall has increased 21 percent. More changes in what is grown and raised is happening.

https://vtdigger.org/2025/06/29/the-surprising-shifts-climate-change-is-bringing-to-vermont-farms-rice-paddies-peaches-and-saffron/

It’s Obvious That Emissions Per Capita from Private Jets is High, but …

The total annual emissions from those flights represents one-third of that from the entire aviation system. The Private Jet number is 25% higher than a decade ago. These flights are usually referred to as short-haul flights, and their efficiency is dampened by the fact that planes burn a significant amount of fuel taking off and climbing.

https://wapo.st/4lpH7nd

https://theicct.org/pr-air-and-ghg-pollution-from-private-jets-2023-jun25/

The “Make American Nuclear Again” Project

Former DOE Secretary and Texas Governor has a new company, and it is planning quite the project in the Texas Panhandle. Four large reactors, new gas plants, and a lot of data centers is what is being referred to as data center campus.

https://wapo.st/4458IEB

Wait, What? AI Will Cut Emissions More Than It Adds to Them?

That is one of the many interesting discussion points in the new IEA Report on the Transformative Impact of AI on Energy.

https://www.iea.org/reports/energy-and-ai/executive-summary

Is the U.S. Consciously Losing the EV Industry to Others?

The new “World EV Outlook” report from BNEF provides a number of global statistics which indicate that the U.S. is falling behind in its share of the EV market. It shows that emerging markets are adopting EVs at a faster pace than western countries and China is on its way to dominating the global EV industry.

https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/eenews/2025/06/20/gop-moves-sap-us-ev-market-as-china-roars-ahead-report-finds-00413180

Not Your Every-Day Announcement: A State Moving to Build a New Large-Size Nuke

Amid all the focus on and talk about small modular nuclear reactors (SMRs), the State of NY has decided to use its NYS Power Authority arm to build its own major nuclear facility. It will be the first such plant attempted in over two decades.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/5364641-new-york-nuclear-energy-project/?email=467cb6399cb7df64551775e431052b43a775c749&emaila=12a6d4d069cd56cfddaa391c24eb7042&emailb=054528e7403871c79f668e49dd3c44b1ec00c7f611bf9388f76bb2324d6ca5f3&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=06.23.25%E2%80%94 Energy %26 Environment -- RF

Shoulder Seasons May no Longer be a No-Brainer for Utilities and the Power Sector

The Spring and Fall so-called “shoulder seasons” have traditionally been a time when utilities and power companies did not have to worry about whether supply was enough to meet electricity demand. They usually took advantage of the period to take plants offline for maintenance and repairs. But that may not be the case going forward as increasing demand and increasing temperatures present new shoulder-period challenges.

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/shoulder-season-reliability-a-growing-concern-in-ercot-other-isos-aurora/750939/?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-98gSfrutNci5Vwdd-6K4f8uKElihVimOa7K4yRYQ-SNjX2zawt5gpw6QUR6xT2aBumDAvHrRJpTk2QdgkvYKQ_q79OAQ&_hsmi=368056010&utm_content=368056010&utm_source=hs_email

China has Reached a Tipping Point – a Good Tipping Point

Carbon Brief has issued a new Report on China’s Greenhouse Gas Emissions, and it says that China’s overall GHG emissions have dropped for the first time. While only a 1% drop, it was accomplished during a period when China’s overall energy use and economic activity increased.

https://www.vox.com/climate/414297/china-carbon-emissions-climate-change-clean-energy-tariffs

https://link.vox.com/view/60c90fa32b40fa1032b0591enuay5.1got/3defb851

Opposition in Virginia Stops a Gas-Fired Data Center

Folks in Virginia have won a battle against a gas-powered data center, but as with most things, the story may not be over.

https://grist.org/energy/this-rural-community-fought-one-of-the-countrys-biggest-gas-powered-data-centers-and-won/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily

Fusion is Just Around the Corner – But how far Away is the Corner?

Fusion garnered some great news headlines over the past 12 months as a new breakthrough in the lab was achieved and investors like data center companies began to invest to help accelerate it. On the latter point, the article below cites at least 43 funded efforts that are underway. But even backers of fusion projects admit that they don’t expect to deliver all that soon and that the early power might be expensive.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-19/have-china-s-carbon-emissions-finally-peaked?cmpid=BBD062325_GREENDAILY&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=250623&utm_campaign=greendaily&embedded-checkout=true

Some are Saying That China’s Emissions Have Peaked

As I have noted before, China has increased emissions based on deploying new fossil power plants over the past two decades, but they have also ramped up renewables and cleaned up their manufacturing sector in order to be more competitive. This podcast with a China expert presents the case.

Electrifying Chores Outside the House

Electrification inside the home gets all the attention, but there are plenty of opportunities to do the same with outdoor lawn and gardening equipment. I can personally vouch for the benefits (including noise reduction) of having an electric mower, electric week whacker, and electric pole saw.

https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/electrification/colorado-landscapers-electric-lawn-equipment?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8Kc76EpZcyPMUsTP-zGjiDZQepYH-C8wmjM9aqXbmKi4aza9KGzEonfAjG4CM1e7CyPfoUcHzRnAECtaq1EqSQDDZuQA&_hsmi=368060461&utm_content=368060461&utm_source=hs_email

Electricity Prices and Rates versus Total Electricity Bills

The focus (and the complaints) is almost always on electricity prices, as in how much a kWh costs, and that influences the size of the power bill. But it may be total bill that deserves more focus. The article linked is about Michigan, but in it there are tables that show how all 50 states rank on price/kWh and on total bill. It shows that a high kWh price does not always lead to the highest total bill.

https://www.mlive.com/environment/2025/06/why-are-michigans-residential-power-rates-so-high-this-is-getting-outrageous.html?utm_campaign=Newsletter&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-99d2m_6NlDA2vOmgAlDc6MtlRFQCHzUmRyMde5aceWgK2tkJEdJcdANQEJS3emZbSaK-nIjKTzeD6dRsHViZRu9-uREw&_hsmi=368056437&utm_content=368056437&utm_source=hs_email

Some of the Biggest Food Growing Regions in the World May Experience Large Climate Impacts

Marginal food-growing areas will certainly suffer, but major areas like the U.S., Ukraine and Russia may suffer inordinate yield reductions.

https://www.vox.com/climate/417164/crop-food-rice-wheat-climate-change-midwest?ueid=1a9879292cf708655369e57c2f0d1aec&utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=TEx 6/23&utm_term=Sentences

https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09085-w

Documents Revealed in NYS Court Case Reveal That Federal Reviews of Offshore Wind Projects has Ceased

In court proceedings in NYS, documents surfaced that indicated that the Federal Fish & Wildlife Service and the Army Corp of Engineers have simply stopped processing applications for offshore wind projects. Wind Developers have stated that slowing down or ceasing to process permit requests will result in them cancelling projects.

https://heatmap.news/plus/the-fight/spotlight/onshore-wind-trump-permits

How Eight of the Top Ten States in Clean Energy Deployment in Early 2025 Voted

A new Report by the American Clean Energy Association indicated that they voted Republican. The Report argues that If you look at a recent window, or in the recent past, clean energy deployment has had a good run. But that was then, and this is now and the now, let alone the future, is hard to predict in the face of a lot of negative signs.

https://www.utilitydive.com/news/clean-power-deployments-neared-record-in-q1-2025-ACPA/749429/?utm_source=Sailthru&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Issue: 2025-06-03 Utility Dive Storage %5Bissue:73737%5D&utm_term=Utility Dive: Storage

What’s Happening in Investment in the Global Energy Transition?

A new report from Bloomberg NEF looks at everything from renewables and nuclear to electrified transport and heat, hydrogen, carbon capture and sustainable materials. It also looks at how decarbonization is faltering as investments continue to work against those efforts.

https://about.bnef.com/insights/finance/energy-transition-investment-trends/

What’s Happening in Investment in EVs and Batteries?

It is a turbulent time for EVs and batteries in a U.S. context as Congress is trying to eliminate most of the support for those sectors in the major Bill it is moving. But the market for both of those products is global and the player that is making the market move is China. The folks at Rhodium Group have put out a Report looking at what the present situation is and where things might be headed.

https://rhg.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Global-Clean-Investment-Monitor-Electric-Vehicles-and-Batteries.pdf

Three Signs of Coal’s Potential Come-Back

The first is the Administration’s move to re-establish the National Coal Council, an advisory body to the federal government which was disbanded during the previous administration.

https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/06/18/2025-11223/national-coal-council

https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/04/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-reinvigorates-americas-beautiful-clean-coal-industry/

The second is federal approval of the expansion of a coal mine in Montana while cutting short the environmental review process and approving operations for nine more years.

https://www.doi.gov/pressreleases/interior-approves-bull-mountains-mining-plan-modification?utm_campaign=heatmap_am&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9DNXo3kt5GQUWzE0uRkkiqHWcvPHlCklWPI_VwQe9Uf0gWqIqPPLOgbCXe53eu64LYhd-I

The third is the return of black lung disease.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/19/well/black-lung-appalachia-coal-miners.html?unlocked_article_code=1.RE8.HRMv.atKsTgHLHq8L&smid=url-share

How One Word Makes the Administration’s New Proposed Rule on Emissions so Significant

That one word is “Significant”. The proposed revamp of regulations for power plant emissions cites the fact that emissions from power plants have decreased in recent years and based on that, the power sector in general is not “significant” to emissions reduction efforts.

https://heatmap.news/climate/trump-epa-power-plant-rules?utm_campaign=heatmap_daily_free&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_8mfeW_SKCzJ_k-tb5AqfI9Kh4QbIKR3tEPEEgnyM8f0d3u4F74L2_nkY-FPZo7MQwz0TX7OnMmvlWGIQZ04RiJZd8ig&_hsmi=367487090&utm_content=367487090&utm_source=hs_email

Inflation is Down but Electricity Prices Are Up

While there are signs that inflation has been tamed for the moment, Electricity prices have gone up 4.5% so far this year. And there are a lot of further price hikes coming down the pike at utilities around the country.

https://heatmap.news/economy/trump-electricity-inflation?utm_campaign=heatmap_daily_free&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-_ayuK80CfO0LPKJpzAAjcgGUVmitD0DbXMYxe5TMddLbnM38kvEf8td93BPUuhCb8Zs3m1-yAzsVfh-YwQ30Gkj0x-0Q&_hsmi=367176962&utm_content=367176962&utm_source=hs_email

Texas Legislature Creates a Lot of New Money for Microgrids as a Back-Up Strategy

The Legislature passed a new law that encourages (to the tune of $1.8 Billion) the construction of more microgrids, which it defines as combinations of small gas-fired power facilities, solar installations and batteries. The deployment will be targeted to hospitals, nursing homes, water treatment plants, police and fire stations, and other critical facilities.

https://grist.org/energy/texas-finalizes-1-8b-to-build-solar-battery-and-gas-powered-microgrids/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=daily

How the IEA Views AI and the Electricity System and Looks at AI Applications

This recently released “Observatory”, as the International Energy Agency calls it, talks about new approaches to gathering data and information on this new nexus, and also looks at AI applications for efficiency, innovation, resilience and competitiveness in the energy sector.

https://www.iea.org/data-and-statistics/data-tools/energy-and-ai-observatory?tab=AI for energy&casestudy=AI-powered wind speed forecasting&utm_campaign=AI-Energy Nexus&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9pCBgecymkP2K5DtzLpMYLwaqv0mPzmM6wTEYgBZYE1nJemrQHwxBi4DV0II_mbTjA6SGgWeE4T8PtRS7uz9Yy4SqyIw&_hsmi=367424273&utm_content=367424273&utm_source=hs_email

If You Are Someone Who Needs to Know How Much Power AI Will Require ….

…Or if you are just interested in the topic, you should read this analysis and comparison of the different forecasts that have been made, as well as all the other info presented.

https://steelforfuel.substack.com/p/why-does-nobody-know-how-much-energy?publication_id=1517909&post_id=165099407&isFreemail=true&r=4ejbgt&triedRedirect=true&utm_campaign=email-post-title&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-9INoVMDT385hKQKwNyFy8Abib3J_55T78DrXaUdXSuySQWX5ZkmiiPWSIDCA-CC-eeaF0FW6slKLxzYG4Y3wyZ93wWVA&_hsmi=367424273&utm_source=post-email-title

Head of ChatGBT Says a Significant Fraction of World’s Electricity Use Should go to AI

The challenge with AI of course is that AI requires new, incremental electricity, as existing electricity is mostly “spoken for”. And the problem is that incremental data center demand may be met in part (maybe large part) by gas-fired generation.

https://futurism.com/openai-altman-electricity-ai?utm_campaign=AI-Energy Nexus&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-8zCeuKWCksi28c55hrLMCKVOXpRvVMgQxwbdW5V04cM7cJDvX7xwZzSBwTpZIhULf8et98U6Hgcnupg9Vnsqs7FlpGGQ&_hsmi=367424273&utm_content=367424273&utm_source=hs_email

A New Study Looked at How Much Aforestration Would Really be Needed to Offset Reserves of the 200 Largest Fossil Companies

The Study looked at two questions: Is it economically viable, and how much space would be needed. On the first, it showed that if the cost of offsetting exceeded $150 per ton of CO2, it would exceed the market valuation of the reserves. On the second question, it found that relying on afforestation as an offset would require covering an area the size of North America and Central America with trees.

https://www.nature.com/articles/s43247-025-02394-y?utm_campaign=heatmap_am&utm_medium=email&_hsenc=p2ANqtz-982ayvAd0rOUmSymQtOTfqgKD9wi_T31LP3ScpXeiOnxX9IHiWx1rBduO_s6zCCitL0j6KPdjUjCIr4rJIGnIIB2i-0A&_hsmi=367718852&utm_content=367718852&utm_source=hs_email

What Happens When the Gas Industry Doesn’t Like Rules that Curtail New Gas Appliances

The article below is a good read on how a Coalition led by the gas industry organized, got active and successfully defeated rules intended to begin the transition from gas appliances.

https://floodlightnews.org/california-board-hits-pause-on-plan-to-phase-out-gas-appliances/?ref=im-a-reader-newsletter

Update on Carbon Pricing

A new survey shows a majority in favor almost everywhere, but that existed in Canada before they put it in place. In the beginning customers were getting more savings than they paid, but when energy prices rose, that changed, and so did the politics of it.

https://grist.org/climate/a-majority-of-people-around-the-world-support-a-carbon-tax-even-if-theyre-paying-it/

Europe has Halved its Coal Use Since 2013, and this Country and one Other are Coal-Free

Ireland is shutting down its last coal power plant, following the example set by the UK.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-06-20/ireland-shuts-last-coal-plant-as-europe-s-phaseout-accelerates?cmpid=BBD062125_GREENDAILY&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=250621&utm_campaign=greendaily

Investments in Battery Plants are a Good Example of Bringing Back Manufacturing

Of course, those investments must last and not be cancelled or taken away and the battery sector is still being birthed. There is a lot underway in the sector and the linked article below presents a good snapshot of the situation.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/climate-environment/2025/06/19/electric-vehicle-battery-plants-us-manufacturing/

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gotten limaNot Ea

The Key Word in "Clean Energy Transition"

is Transition

A transition is not used to refer to a moment in time when things change. It is used to describe a time span over which things change from one state or condition to another.

A transition can be an evolution of something where the original “thing” is still there but is now different. Or it can be an eventual, gradual, and total replacement of the first thing by the second.

Transitions happen all the time, including for all of us personally. Industries go through transitions as they react (or don’t) to developments ranging from new inventions to new government requirements.

When the automobile was invented around the year 1885 (by a German guy named Benz), it was a rarity to see one on a road. Horses and carriages continued to dominate for many years. But the transition from horses to the autos was set in motion based on a variety of benefits coming from autos, ranging from the high cost of keeping horses to the elimination of horse “exhaust” despoiling the streets and highways.

I don’t know when the last horse-drawn carriage was in use instead of a car, but it certainly was a while after cars arrived. There was a transition.

The clean energy transition has already been a long one (since starting in the 70’s) and is still underway, While the road has been bumpy, the transition has not been stopped. And the more that has been learned about the harm of non-carbon pollution (e.g. NOx, SOx, etc.) and carbon pollution, and the more that has been learned about how renewable energy can be much cheaper than fossil energy, the more reason has been demonstrated for continuing this transition.

it is natural for people and companies that are involved in and tied to an “old” thing to not like the idea of being replaced. After all, some who have a whole cake to themselves don’t always like the idea of having to share it.

Existing players can choose to recognize a transition and adapt or maybe switch teams. But that is easier said than done. And sometimes if the transition is somewhat radical, it may be too much of a stretch. For example, those in the horse-drawn carriage industry can’t say they didn’t see what was coming. But they couldn’t turn their horses into autos.

In the case of the clean energy transition, some oil and gas companies did try to go with the flow and invest in or even become renewable energy entities (remember the ads by BP that said the letters stood for “Beyond Petroleum”?) But that didn't last long.

Governments can have, and usually do, have a big role in transitions of entire industries. The benefits of a transition can cause governments to provide financial support to help make the transition happen faster.

When the energy sector changed from wood and water to coal, oil and gas, the federal government stepped in, having seen the benefits of the new energy types and put a variety of different subsidies in place to help grow the fossil fuel industry.

In the case of the clean energy transition, the federal government has also stepped in to make it happen, providing tax incentives, rebates, subsidies, etc. They notably did not reduce or eliminate the tax breaks for oil, gas & coal to help with the transition, but at least it helped clean energy industry begin to grow and compete.

Having grown and matured, renewable energy is now not only competitive with fossil fuels, but also cheaper, and that is why the vast majority of the power added to the grid in recent years is from renewable projects.

We are still in the transition, however, and clean energy is still a relatively new industry, and that is why recent Congresses have seen fit to provide incentives to the sector to help it move even faster than it already has.

But it seems the oil & gas industry has determined that it would be easier to put their effort (and their dollars) into stopping the clean energy transition as opposed to adapting to it, becoming part of it, or trying to compete with it.

This determination has been demonstrated in the major Budget Legislation that has now become law. It also has been demonstrated in a number of policy actions by the Executive Branch.

In taking these steps, the federal government is acting in direct opposition to the majority of Americans that are concerned about climate change and who want the federal government to take action to stop it.

Maybe that chicken will come home to roost at some point in the future and policymakers (new and/or old ones) will change course and return to supporting a clean energy transition. But the important thing is that a transition can be hard to start up again after it has been stopped. At a time when for both climate and economic reasons we need a faster transition, the current one may not just have been slowed down but possibly halted.

We are already losing the race to address our carbon emissions problem. We are doing some good things, but they are not big enough nor being done fast enough to keep up with the pace of emissions and the increases in atmospheric concentrations of CO2.

And now it looks like we will fall farther behind in addressing emissions. It also looks like we will be paying higher energy prices under the new Budget Law, and that will harm our global competitiveness.

However, while new federal policy will likely slow down (or worse) the clean energy transition in the U.S, it will not stop it globally. The rest of the world wants nothing to do with fossil fuels other than as part of a true transition. Countries like Pakistan and Vietnam are going straight to electrification and avoiding as much fossil energy as they can.

And then there is the 800 lb. Panda.

Yes ....China has built a lot of coal plants, but its real focus is its transition to a clean energy economy. It is doing this so that that prices to its consumers will be lower, and so that its manufacturing sectors can spend less on energy in their production efforts and be more competitive. Also, China is laser-focused on being the main supplier to the world of what other countries need for their own clean energy transition.

The U.S? We yielded the solar technology and product sector to China some time ago. We are about to hand the EV industry over to them as well. Same with the kind of research necessary for the next chapters of the clean energy transition.

Meanwhile, the Congress and Administration are trying to take the horses out of the barn and put them on the road again.

Sad ….

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The Wrong Kind of Energy Independence & Energy Dominance

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Two Guys Walk Into a Bar And Talk About Energy

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