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Here’s an interesting coincidence. This morning, I was reading the latest email from Bloomberg Green about how Europe is struggling with high energy prices right now and has to make a decision — build more unnatural gas capacity or install more renewable energy. It’s a question fraught with weighty political considerations.

Then I came across an article in Renew Economy about how South Australia has not lost a single hour of electricity due to load shedding since 2018. In the four years prior to that, its energy grid shed 7 million hours of electricity. The difference? South Australia has made a major commitment to renewable energy and grid scale battery storage since the catastrophic power outage that hit the state in 2016.

Energy analyst Simon Holmes à Court tells Renew Economy the blackout “was seen by many as the end to the state’s — and Australia’s — renewables ambitions.” Instead, it marked the beginning of the renewable energy and battery storage miracle in South Australia.

Dan van Holst Pellekaan, South Australia’s energy minister, said this week, “Five years ago South Australia was plunged into a statewide blackout that put lives at risk, inflicted immense damage on our economy, and made us the laughing stock of the nation. Today South Australia has the best performing electricity grid in the nation as the Marshall government’s energy policies have strengthened what was a fragile, unstable, and highly vulnerable electricity network.”

The blackout was triggered by strong storms that toppled several transmission towers and three transmission links. It quickly became a political football and an ideological battleground between those who were in favor of renewables and those who opposed them.

It amplified the “when the wind don’t blow and the sun don’t shine” meme, but far from putting a stop to renewables in South Australia, those attacks ensured that more work was done to underpin the massive rollout of large-scale wind and solar that followed.

In the past 12 months, South Australia can boast of being a world leader in renewables. Today it gets 62% of its electricity from wind and solar. At the time of the blackout, that number stood at 48%. It leads the world in rooftop solar, which could supply 100% of the state’s electricity by the end of this year. That is unheard of in a gigawatt-scale grid, Renew Economy says.

South Australia boasts new resources, including three big grid-scale batteries — at Hornsdale, Lake Bonney, and Dalrymple North. It also has several large-scale virtual power plants and new synchronous condensers that, in conjunction with those batteries, provide critical grid services that were once delivered by coal and gas.

The state is adding even more wind and solar capacity, including the country’s biggest wind and solar hybrid project at Port Augusta, and has a huge pipeline of new wind, solar, battery and hydrogen projects that will be unlocked by the new transmission link to New South Wales.

The Liberal government has a stated target of reaching “net 100 per cent renewables” by 2030, but is likely to get there well before then. It is looking to produce five times the state’s grid demand from renewables in the future in order to make renewable hydrogen and become a renewable export superpower.

Image credit: Renew Economy.

Van Holst Pellekaan noted that South Australia is the only state in the country to avoid forced outages since 2018. By comparison, the two Australian states with the greatest dependence on coal-fired generating stations — Queensland and New South Wales — have suffered the most load shedding in recent years. And still the naysayers at the state and federal level continue their cynical attacks on renewables.

In actuality, says Simon Holmes à Cou, the 2016 blackout turned out to be merely a bump in the road and a warning to the country’s energy regulator and the other states to raise their renewable energy game and get on with decarbonizing the grid.

“South Australians were let down by the former Labor Government’s chaotic energy policies that resulted in us having some of the most unreliable and expensive electricity in the world,” says van Holst Pellekaan. “The Marshall government has made over two dozen substantive interventions to get energy security back under control since coming to government.

“What makes this achievement even more extraordinary is that the Marshall government has delivered a $303 reduction for the average household after bills went up $477 under the last two years of Labor. (Emphasis added.) “And we still have more benefits on the way for South Australian via Project EnergyConnect, the interconnector between South Australia and New South Wales.

The Problem In Europe

In today’s Bloomberg Green email, Akshat Rathi says, “Europe’s going through an energy crunch with electricity prices at record highs and fears that the continent may have to shut factories to ensure homes have gas for heat.” Drivers in the UK are panicking about finding petrol for their cars while EV drivers — who typically charge up at home overnight — are driving wherever they please. In a delicious irony, the range anxiety shoe is now on the other foot and interest in electric cars is skyrocketing.

Rashti points out that Europe and the UK are subject to precisely the same polarizing notions about renewable energy that have afflicted Australia for the past 5 years or more.”If Europe’s climate policies are your primary bugbear, for example, you might say something like: ‘Green warriors are on a mission to stamp out prosperity as we know it.’” In fact, The Telegraph ran a story with that exact title recently.

On the other hand, if you’re bound by a climate law as the UK government is, you could double down on the energy transition, Rathi says. “The U.K.’s exposure to volatile global gas prices underscores the importance of our plan to build a strong, home-grown renewable energy sector,” Kwasi Kwarteng, the business secretary who’s also responsible for energy issues, wrote on Twitter. “In moving away from fossil fuels, we can insulate ourselves.”

It all depends on the larger sentiment around tackling climate change. “If the political context is favorable to the transition, people are going to leverage the crisis to double down on renewables,” says Nikos Tsafos, an energy and geopolitics expert at the Center for Strategic & International Studies. “If the political context is against the transition, people are going to use it as a way to have it slow down.”

Public opinion is often influenced by simplified narratives that may not always reflect the facts, Rathi writes. And crises present a ripe opportunity for opinion makers who know that fear sells. [See Naomi Klein’s The Shock Doctrine for more on this topic.] That’s why some UK newspapers have run front page articles about a “Winter of Woe” or how energy bills are headed for a “Catastrophic Price Rise.”

Whether those new arguments take hold, however, depends on the existing base of knowledge and prevailing narratives. “The oil industry’s propaganda around climate issues has been pervasive in the US for decades,” says Carroll Muffett, president of the nonprofit Center for International Environmental Law. “While we’ve seen industry efforts in the EU, they’ve never reached the levels of pervasiveness, funding and coordination we’ve seen in the US.”

The Takeaway

The experience of South Australia strongly supports the notion that renewable energy can and will meet all of society’s needs for electricity and do it without adding carbon dioxide to the atmosphere and at lower cost than thermal generation. And yet, social media influencers seem to be able to take the perfectly obvious and make into a fog of fear and doubt with just a few keystrokes. People simply cannot bring themselves to question something they read online, like the Covid vaccine makes utensils stick to your skin or that Democrats are running a child pornography ring out of a pizza parlor in Georgetown. In the age of artificial stupidity, ignorance is rampant upon the land.

The internet was supposed to bring the collective brain power of all the world’s citizens together to solve the existential problems that beset humanity — war, poverty, hunger, and inequality , for example. Instead, it has fragmented us into smaller and smaller groups where opinions and beliefs overrule common sense. The potential to power all of humanity’s needs is within our grasp but is in danger of slipping through our fingers.

We have one chance to get this right. What is troubling is how many people are willing to throw renewable energy under the bus because of something they saw online posted by an agent of the fossil fuel companies who knows what levers to pull to fill our minds with fear. My old Irish grandmother talked about people with two perfectly good eyes who lacked the power to see what was right in front of them. Unless we rediscover the ability to engage in critical thinking, we are doomed.

 

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BMW ups the ante with the fastest, most powerful electric maxi-scooter

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BMW ups the ante with the fastest, most powerful electric maxi-scooter

BMW Motorrad’s futuristic electric scooter just got its first real refresh since beginning production in 2021. The BMW CE 04, already one of the most capable and stylish electric maxi-scooters on the market, now gets a set of upgraded trim options, new aesthetic touches, and a more robust list of features that aim to make this urban commuter even more appealing to riders looking for serious electric performance on two wheels.

The BMW CE 04 has always stood out for its sci-fi styling and high-performance drivetrain. It’s built on a mid-mounted liquid-cooled motor that puts out 31 kW (42 hp) and 62 Nm of torque. That’s enough to rocket the scooter from 0 to 50 km/h (31 mph) in just 2.6 seconds – quite fast for anything with a step-through frame.

The top speed is electronically limited to 120 km/h (75 mph), making it perfectly capable for city riding and fast enough to hold its own on highway stretches. Range is rated at 130 km (81 miles) on the WMTC cycle, thanks to the 8.9 kWh battery pack tucked low in the frame.

But while the core performance hasn’t changed, BMW’s 2025 update focuses on refining the package and giving riders more options to tailor the scooter to their taste. The new CE 04 is available in three trims: Basic, Avantgarde, and Exclusive.

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The Basic trim keeps things clean and classic with a Lightwhite paint scheme and a clear windshield. It’s subtle, sleek, and very much in line with the CE 04’s clean-lined aesthetic. The Avantgarde model adds a splash of color with a Gravity Blue main body and bright São Paulo Yellow accents, along with a dark windshield and a laser-engraved rim. The top-shelf Exclusive trim is where things get fancy, with a premium Spacesilver metallic paint job, upgraded wind protection, heated grips, a luxury embroidered seat, and its own unique engraved rim treatment.

There are also a few new tech upgrades baked into the options list. Riders can now spec a 6.9 kW quick charger that reduces the 0–80% charge time to just 45 minutes (down from nearly 4 hours with the standard 2.3 kW onboard charger). Tire pressure monitoring, a center stand, and BMW’s “Headlight Pro” adaptive lighting system are also available as add-ons, along with an emergency eCall system and Dynamic Traction Control.

BMW has kept the core riding components in place: a steel-tube chassis, 15-inch wheels, Bosch ABS (with optional ABS Pro), and the impressive 10.25” TFT display with integrated navigation and smartphone connectivity. The under-seat storage still swallows a full-face helmet, and the long, low frame design means the scooter looks like something out of Blade Runner but rides like a luxury commuter.

With these updates, BMW seems to be further cementing the CE 04’s role at the high end of the electric scooter market. It’s not cheap, starting around €12,000 in Europe and around US $12,500 in the US, with prices going up from there depending on configuration. However, the maxi-scooter delivers real motorcycle-grade performance in a package that’s easier to live with for daily riders.

Electrek’s Take

I believe that the CE 04’s biggest strength has always been that it’s not trying to be a toy or a gimmick. It’s a real vehicle. Sure, it’s futuristic and funky looking, but it delivers on its promises. And in a market that’s still surprisingly sparse when it comes to premium electric scooters, BMW has had the lane mostly to itself. That may not last forever, though. LiveWire, Harley-Davidson’s electric spin-off brand, has teased plans for a maxi-scooter-style urban electric vehicle in the coming years, but as of now, it remains something of an undefined future plan.

Meanwhile, BMW is delivering not just a concept bike but a mature, well-equipped, and ready-to-ride electric scooter that keeps improving. For riders who want something faster and more capable than a Class 3 e-bike but aren’t ready to jump to a full-size electric motorcycle, the CE 04 hits a sweet spot. It delivers the performance and capability of a commuter e-motorcycle, yet with the approachability of a scooter. And with these new trims and upgrades, it’s doing it with even more style.

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I found this cheap Chinese e-cargo trike that hauls more than your car!

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I found this cheap Chinese e-cargo trike that hauls more than your car!

If you’ve ever wondered what happens when you combine a fruit cart, a cargo bike, and a Piaggio Ape all in one vehicle, now you’ve got your answer. I submit, for your approval, this week’s feature for the Awesomely Weird Alibaba Electric Vehicle of the Week column – and it’s a beautiful doozie.

Feast your eyes on this salad slinging, coleslaw cruising, tuber taxiing produce chariot!

I think this electric vegetable trike might finally scratch the itch long felt by many of my readers. It seems every time I cover an electric trike, even the really cool ones, I always get commenters poo-poo-ing it for having two wheels in the rear instead of two wheels in the front. Well, here you go, folks!

Designed with two front wheels for maximum stability, this trike keeps your cucumbers in check through every corner. Because trust me, you don’t want to hit a pothole and suddenly be juggling peaches like you’re in Cirque du Soleil: Farmers Market Edition.

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To avoid the extra cost of designing a linked steering system for a pair of front wheels, the engineers who brought this salad shuttle to life simply side-stepped that complexity altogether by steering the entire fixed front end. I’ve got articulating electric tractors that steer like this, and so if it works for a several-ton work machine, it should work for a couple hundred pounds of cargo bike.

Featuring a giant cargo bed up front with four cascading fruit baskets set up for roadside sales, this cargo bike is something of a blank slate. Sure, you could monetize grandma’s vegetable garden, or you could fill it with your own ideas and concoctions. Our exceedingly talented graphics wizard sees it as the perfect coffee and pastry e-bike for my new startup, The Handlebarista, and I’m not one to argue. Basically, the sky is the limit with a blank slate bike like this!

Sure, the quality doesn’t quite match something like a fancy Tern cargo bike. The rim brakes aren’t exactly confidence-inspiring, but at least there are three of them. And if they should all give out, or just not quite slow you down enough to avoid that quickly approaching brick wall, then at least you’ve got a couple hundred pounds of tomatoes as a tasty crumple zone.

The electrical system does seem a bit underpowered. With a 36V battery and a 250W motor, I don’t know if one-third of a horsepower is enough to haul a full load to the local farmer’s market. But I guess if the weight is a bit much for the little motor, you could always do some snacking along the way. On the other hand, all the pictures seem to show a non-electric version. So if this cart is presumably mobile on pedal power alone, then that extra motor assist, however small, is going to feel like a very welcome guest.

The $950 price is presumably for the electric version, since that’s what’s in the title of the listing, though I wouldn’t get too excited just yet. I’ve bought a LOT of stuff on Alibaba, including many electric vehicles, and the too-good-to-be-true price is always exactly that. In my experience, you can multiply the Alibaba price by 3-4x to get the actual landed price for things like these. Even so, $3,000-$4,000 wouldn’t be a terrible price, considering a lot of electric trikes stateside already cost that much and don’t even come with a quad-set of vegetable baskets on board!

I should also put my normal caveat in here about not actually buying one of these. Please, please don’t try to buy one of these awesome cargo e-trikes. This is a silly, tongue-in-cheek weekend column where I scour the ever-entertaining underbelly of China’s massive e-commerce site Alibaba in search of fun, quirky, and just plain awesomely weird electric vehicles. While I’ve successfully bought several fun things on the platform, I’ve also gotten scammed more than once, so this is not for the timid or the tight-budgeted among us.

That isn’t to say that some of my more stubborn readers haven’t followed in my footsteps before, ignoring my advice and setting out on their own wild journey. But please don’t be the one who risks it all and gets nothing in return. Don’t say I didn’t warn you; this is the warning.

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OPEC+ members agree to larger-than-expected oil production hike in August

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OPEC+ members agree to larger-than-expected oil production hike in August

The OPEC logo is displayed on a mobile phone screen in front of a computer screen displaying OPEC icons in Ankara, Turkey, on June 25, 2024.

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Eight oil-producing nations of the OPEC+ alliance agreed on Saturday to increase their collective crude production by 548,000 barrels per day, as they continue to unwind a set of voluntary supply cuts.

This subset of the alliance — comprising heavyweight producers Russia and Saudi Arabia, alongside Algeria, Iraq, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Oman and the United Arab Emirates — met digitally earlier in the day. They had been expected to increase their output by a smaller 411,000 barrels per day.

In a statement, the OPEC Secretariat attributed the countries’ decision to raise August daily output by 548,000 barrels to “a steady global economic outlook and current healthy market fundamentals, as reflected in the low oil inventories.”

The eight producers have been implementing two sets of voluntary production cuts outside of the broader OPEC+ coalition’s formal policy.

One, totaling 1.66 million barrels per day, stays in effect until the end of next year.

Under the second strategy, the countries reduced their production by an additional 2.2 million barrels per day until the end of the first quarter.

They initially set out to boost their production by 137,000 barrels per day every month until September 2026, but only sustained that pace in April. The group then tripled the hike to 411,000 barrels per day in each of May, June, and July — and is further accelerating the pace of their increases in August.

Oil prices were briefly boosted in recent weeks by the seasonal summer spike in demand and the 12-day war between Israel and Iran, which threatened both Tehran’s supplies and raised concerns over potential disruptions of supplies transported through the key Strait of Hormuz.

At the end of the Friday session, oil futures settled at $68.30 per barrel for the September-expiration Ice Brent contract and at $66.50 per barrel for front month-August Nymex U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude.

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