Last week, Hurricane Ida knocked out all 8 transmission lines into New Orleans. In Baton Rouge, it took out our communications along with our electricity — with the exception of those who had Verizon. Although most of Baton Rouge is getting back online, New Orleans as well as smaller towns and cities still don’t have power.
Someone shared an article by Canary Media with me, and after reading it, I fully agree. We need microgrids here in Louisiana, yet our leaders don’t seem to want them. Advocates have been trying for years to make our local grid resilient, but oddly, our leaders don’t seem to want that. Why?
This isn’t the first time I’ve seen governments (local, state, etc.) purposely refuse to do things that benefit everyone. It’s like they want us to have messed up grids so that we suffer during disasters. The article cited another article by Canary Media that showed the outcome following local authorities’ repeated dismissals of proposals to invest in decentralized and resilient grid upgrades.
In 2016, a New Orleans-based nonprofit, Alliance for Affordable Energy, had a great alternative to Entergy New Orleans’ plan to build a new natural-gas-fired power plant. That idea was to build clean electricity resilience from the ground up — an integrated resilience plan that challenged Entergy New Orleans to try to find an alternative to a central power plant. The plant would be subject to known vulnerabilities — such as the impact of a category 4 hurricane.
The Alliance for Affordable Energy called for pursuing distributed microgrids. The article aptly described these as self-powered islands of solar power, batteries, and backup generation that could provide electricity during grid outages. If only we had these during Ida. Executive director Logan Atkinson Burke shared how this was frustrating. “Had we taken the time and initiative to plan for distributed generation, distributed solar-plus-storage, and more energy efficiency, people would be more prepared to shelter safely and comfortably,” Burke said. “We’ve been advocating for microgrids to be built within the city for years for precisely this reason.”
Here’s Why Entergy Doesn’t Want Distributed Energy
The problem is Entergy’s long-standing opposition to distributed energy. The utility has consistently opposed including local renewable energy and energy storage in its own plans. Utilities also get an incentive when they convince regulators to approve large power plants instead of enabling customer-sited distributed energy such as rooftop solar. The article pointed out that vertically integrated utilities such as Entergy are paid a guaranteed rate of return on capital investments, including power plants. Self-supplied customer energy reduces the revenue and profits Entergy and other utilities earn from selling electricity.
It’s all about money, profits, and greed. They make more money from weakening our defenses against disasters such as Ida than they would from strengthening them. And we, the people, end up paying the price. And our government readily caters to this greed. Not just Louisiana’s — this trend is seen elsewhere as well.
Car dealerships in Connecticut, for example, lobby legislatures to prevent Tesla and Rivian from coming to their state and opening a sales center. This hurts the economy, but they do it anyway. It’s all about greed, money, and profits.
On today’s high-powered episode of Quick Charge, we’ve got Honda fuel cell manager David Perzynski here to talk about Honda’s forty year history developing hydrogen powertrains, and the role Honda sees for HFCEVs in a battery dominated world.
In the course of the conversation we talk about several hydrogen articles posted in 2024, as well as some Honda projects related to CES. You’ll be able to read more about those, below. Enjoy!
New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news!
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Sixthreezero’s wide range of electric bike models includes some fairly out-there models, but the company’s new four-wheeled electric bike really charts a new direction in the industry. Take a look at the new ANYterrain Stabilized 4-wheel Electric Bike.
It’s a mouthful of a name, but the ANYterrain Stabilized 4-wheel Electric Bike hauls more than just a bunch of extra words. The bike is rated to carry up to 350 lb (159 kg), and the 750W motor ensures it has the power to do so. With speeds of up to 20 mph (32 km/h), the quad bike is just as fast as most Class 1 and 2 e-bikes.
But the real game changer here is the design, offering four-wheeled stability that riders can’t get from a conventional three-wheeled trike.
Not only do four wheels provide better stability with a wider footprint, but the steering on the bike uses leaning geometry to take turns more naturally, helping riders feel even more stable.
With 20″ wheels in the rear and 16″ wheels in the front, the quad bike keeps a fairly low center of gravity. All four wheels use 4″ fat tires for better offroad riding and more comfortable shock absorption compared to narrow tires, and the rear wheels even feature a differential to better apply the motor’s power to the ground.
A twist throttle makes it easy to roll on that power, and a D/R switch on the bars lets riders put it in reverse for cases where they need a little help wiggling around in tight spaces. Pedaling backward from a stop can also engage the reverse. At 120 lbs (54 kg), this isn’t the type of bike you can just pick up and move around the garage without a little help so that reverse feature will likely come in handy.
A 48V and 20Ah battery offers 960Wh of capacity, which the company says translates into a range of up to 50 miles (80 km).
The battery is housed under a cargo basket in the rear, though a bench seat can be swapped for the basket, allowing riders to carry a passenger with them.
Electrek’s Take
This certainly won’t be a mass market type of e-bike, but I can see a real use case for neighborhood riding and local errands, especially for folks who don’t feel stable on a bicycle or even a trike.
Despite trikes offering great stability when going straight, some people can feel uncomfortable making turns on a trike, especially at higher speeds, because they can sometimes feel tippy under certain scenarios. This quad bike can still tip if you take a turn sharp enough, but the wider stance combined with the leaning steering means riders will even more stable than on a trike.
And since this will likely be used more by older riders, the reverse is an important feature for letting folks park the bike easily without dismounting and dragging it around.
There could be some legal hurdles in some areas that define “bicycles” as having either two or three wheels, but I’m guessing most cops aren’t jumping at the opportunity to ticket grandma for riding her quad bike on the local rails to trails network.
I love seeing more options like this, and I commend Sixthreezero for providing such interesting options to add to the market.
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Who said you had to break the bank to drive an electric vehicle? Several EV lease deals are available this December for under $300 or even $200 per month, but the savings may not last long. Here are some of the best EVs to consider leasing right now.
Electric vehicles accounted for nearly 9% of all vehicle sales in the US in the third quarter, its highest level on record.
“The growth is being fueled in part by incentives and discounts,” According to Stephanie Valdez Streaty, director of Industry Insights at Cox Automotive. The other part is the influx of more affordable models hitting the market.
In addition to the $7,500 federal tax credit, some discounts on EV models are reaching $10,000 to upwards of $20,000.
The massive incentives slash monthly payment prices, in many cases making them even more affordable than comparable gas-powered cars. According to a new Experian report, leasing accounted for 45% of all new EV transactions in the third quarter. That’s up significantly from 25% last year and just 9.5% in Q3 2022.
Including incentives, the average monthly payment for leasing an EV was $198 less than if you financed a new model.
With Trump’s transition team reportedly planning to “kill off” the $7,500 EV tax credit, the savings could largely disappear. As buyers rush to take advantage of the discounts, EV sales are expected to surge this month.
EV lease deals for under $300 a month this December
To close out the year strong and make room for new models, several companies are offering significant discounts on popular electric models, including Kia, Hyundai, Honda, GM, Ford, Stellantis, and more.
According to online automotive research firm CarsDirect, several EV models are even available for lease for under $300 or even $200 per month right now. You can view offers in your area at the bottom.
Lease From
Term (months)
Due at Signing
Effective rate per month (including upfront fees)
2025 Nissan LEAF
$129
36
$2,529
$199
2025 Kia Niro EV
$149
24
$3,999
$315
2024 Kia EV6
$159
24
$3,849
$319
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 5
$159
24
$3,999
$326
2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6
$159
24
$3,999
$326
2024 Nissan Ariya
$169
24
$6,219
$428
2024 Fiat 500e
$179
42
$2,979
$250
2024 Toyota bZ4X
$219
39
$2,999
$296
2024 Honda Prologue
$229
36
$1,299
$265
2024 Ford F-150 Lightning
$230
36
$6,206
$402
2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E
$251
36
$5,440
$402
2024 Subaru Solterra
$279
36
$279
$287
Tesla Model 3
$299
36
$2,999
$382
Tesla Model Y
$299
36
$2,999
$382
2024 Chevrolet Equinox EV
$299
24
$3,169
$431
Best EV lease deals for under $300 a month in December 2024
The 2025 Kia Niro EV remains one of the most affordable electric cars on the market, with leases starting at as low as $149 for 24 months. With $3,999 due at signing, the effective rate is just $315 per month. That’s even cheaper than the plug-in hybrid model at $414 per month (including $3,499 due at signing).
Kia also offers a $199 per month for 36 months EV lease deal. With $3,999 due at signing, the effective cost is just $310 per month.
The EV6, Kia’s dedicated EV based on the same platform as Hyundai’s IONIQ 5, is listed with lease prices as low as $159 for 24 months. With $3,849 due at signing, the 2024 Kia EV6 Light Long Range RWD trim costs just $319 per month to lease.
Speaking of the IONIQ 5, Hyundai’s electric SUV is also available to lease this month for under $200. Through its “Hyundai Getaway Sales Event,” Hyundai is offering a $159 for 36 months lease offer on the IONIQ 5. Hyundai’s big savings come as the upgraded 2025 model is arriving at dealers.
You can also snag the 2024 Hyundai IONIQ 6 for the same $159 per month. With $3,999 due at signing the effective cost is just $326 per month.
Nissan’s Ariya electric SUV is another top choice, with lease prices starting at as low as $99 per month. However, that’s only available in Colorado. In other parts of the country, like New York, the 2024 Nissan Ariya is listed at $169 for 24 months. With $6,219 upfront, the effective rate is $428 per month.
Fiat’s compact 500e EV is available to lease for $179 for 42 months this December. With $2,999 due at signing, you can lease the 2024 500e INSPI(RED) trim for just $250 per month.
You can score Fiat’s EV for even cheaper in some areas. For example, one dealership in Colorado is offering a $0 for 27 month lease deal with $0 down, making the 500e essentially free.
Honda’s Prologue was the third best-selling EV in the US last month as sales continue surging this year. In a year end promo, Honda made the electric SUV even more attractive with a 0% APR offer and up to $6,000 off.
Although not under $200, you may want to consider a few other EV lease deals this month. For example, Honda is offering its electric Prologue at just $259 per month for 36 months. With $2,999 due upfront, you can drive off in Honda’s electric SUV for just $342 per month. That’s less than a Honda Civic at $279 per month despite costing nearly twice as much.
At just $299 for 24 months, the 2024 Chevy Equinox EV is also worth a look. With $3,169 due at signing, you can lease the electric Equinox for just $431 per month.
Tesla is offering three free months of Supercharging and Full Self-Driving in its year end deals. However, you must take delivery by December 31, 2024.
Ford is another company making a strong end of year push with big savings on electric models. Through its new “Power Promise”, all EV buyers get a free Level 2 home charger and Ford will cover the cost of standard installation.
Ready to take advantage of the savings? We can help you find the best EV lease deals in your area. Check out our links below to view offers on popular electric models in your area.
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