Weekly-ish News - Episode 36 (January 6, 2022)

What's the Alternative?

If you have any feedback or suggestions, please feel free to find me on Twitter @archduketyler

Electric Vehicles:

There was a really interesting study released recently that looks at winter range loss for many EV models and compares them.

• There's a fantastic chart in there you should absolutely look at.

Tesla had an incredible year in 2021, selling over 930k vehicles.

Tesla is recalling around 475k Model S and Model 3 vehicles.

• 356k Model 3; 120k Model S
• The Model 3 recall is for the rearview camera, which has a possible wiring issue.
• The Model S recall is for the latch on the frunk which may release while driving.

Ford is once again increasing F-150 Lightning production targets, up to 150k annually.

• This is the second doubling we've seen since the announcement.

We now have official word that the electric Chevy Silverado won't be built until early 2023 at the earliest.

• The vehicle will apparently be unveiled at CES (Consumer Electronics Show) on January 5.
• A comparison between the F-150 specs and Silverado specs.

We officially have EPA range estimates for the Polestar 2 at 270mi (435km) for $47,200.

• This is a range bump over the expected range of 265mi (426km)

Rivian is still expected to start deliveries of the R1S (SUV) in January of 2022.

ABB's charging network now supports "Plug and Charge" tech, so you shouldn't need to use an app or anything to start charging.

The charging company Voltempo apparently has a charging product that can output 1,000kW (1MW) of power, which can be split over 24 individual plugs.

• No vehicles can remotely accept that much power, but it's cool that it's being worked on by a commercial entity.
• There is a demo version of this "HyperCharging" system in Birmingham, UK, with a commercial installation to be built in 2022.

Rivian is building a $5b manufacturing plant in Georgia.

• This will result in around 7,500 jobs.

Toyota will build a $1.29b battery manufacturing facility in North Carolina with production beginning in 2025 and produce 1.2m battery packs per year.

The electric bus manufacturer, Proterra, will build a battery manufacturing facility in South Carolina, a $76m investment.

• They expect to launch the plant in the second half of 2022.
• Target production is in the few GWh/year ballpark.
• This will be their third battery factory.

The American Battery Technology Company (ABTC) has been awarded $2m by the United States Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC) for the development of scaled recycling of batteries.

The company Compass Minerals has demonstrated the ability to produce battery-grade lithium from the Great Salt Lake.

• Most of their production will be using existing brine ponds.
• Commercial production is expected to begin in 2025.

The company VFlowTech out of Singapore has launched a pilot EV charging site that uses redox flow batteries to provide on-site energy storage.

GM has delivered its first electric delivery trucks (the BrightDrop EV600) to FedEx.

• No details on how many have been delivered and how many remain to be delivered.

The German commuter rail company, Deutsche Bahn, has ordered 44 battery-electric Flirt Akku trains, expected to go online in 2025.

• Each of these trains has a 325 passenger capacity and can travel at least 80km (50mi).

Daimler has delivered 20 electric buses with solid-state batteries to Bremen's transit system.

• They have ordered 15 more, as well.

A study looking at synthetic fuels finds that they emit just as much pollution as petroleum-based fuels.

• This is a perfect example of why we need to retire the words "clean" and "green" from the lexicon when it comes to talking about emissions.
• Yes, burning these fuels produces the same emissions as burning their fossil alternatives (well, nearly the same emissions).
• This is also a problem with biodiesel, renewable diesel, and renewable natural gas.
• This is especially an issue because tailpipe emissions disproportionately affect disadvantaged communities.
• There isn't really a good solution to this problem.

United Airlines flew a route between Chicago and Washington, D.C. with one engine running on 100% Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).

• SAF is basically renewable diesel, but for jet fuel.
• Since it's similar to renewable diesel, we can expect similar carbon reductions in the 60% region.
• Airlines are currently limited to 50% blends of SAF and fossil jet fuel.
• One engine ran on 100% SAF and the other engine ran on fossil jet fuel.
• This allowed them to compare performance directly, and they showed that differences are minimal.

Energy:

Amazon is ahead of schedule with their push to being 100% renewable, on track to hit that goal by 2025 as opposed to the previous goal of 2030.

• This includes a recent announcement of 18 new wind and solar projects.
• Their total renewable generation is now 12GW, which is 65% of their total usage.

Appalachian Power has announced that it will add 500MW of solar and wind by 2025.

• Their renewable portfolio is currently around 20% of their production.

Solar prices continued dropping in 2021, down by around 12% on average and storage costs dropped by around 10%.

Duke Energy in North Carolina has finalized a net metering agreement for residential solar.

• Credits for any net monthly exports at an annualized rate (weighted average rate for all hours assuming a fixed block of energy) for avoided energy cost
• A monthly grid access fee for solar facilities with a capacity greater than 15 kW
• A monthly minimum bill that ensures recovery of costs related to the distribution system
• Non-bypassable charges to recover all costs related to DSM/EE, storm cost recovery and cybersecurity
• Ability for customers who install net-metered generation prior to the implementation of new rates to elect to remain on their existing rates until January 1, 2027

A company called Monolith has conditional loan approval from the Department of Energy (DOE) to build a plant that will produce zero-carbon hydrogen and carbon black.

• This company makes hydrogen and carbon black from methane, apparently with no carbon emissions from exhaust.
• They use both fossil and renewable natural gas as a feedstock.

Policy:

The White House has announced a goal of going 100% electric for the Federal light-duty fleet by 2027.

A recent poll suggests that a slim majority (55%) of American voters support full transition to electric vehicles by 2030.

• It's always worth being skeptical of polls.
• The support for EVs is stronger in younger voters and minority voters.
• Air quality was the largest reason for support, followed by climate change.