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Oh the irony, it burns! Solar power is supposed to open the door on a new era in which humans and their ecosystems exist in harmony, but for now the record is still stuck on fossil energy. Oil, gas, and coal producers continue to dig up carbon from underground and disburse it about the surface, and solar power is becoming an enabler, providing power to operate — and equip — drilling sites and mines.

More Solar Power For Fossil Fuels

The use of solar power in the fossil energy industry should come as no surprise. After all, extractive energy sites need energy to operate, and the expense of building new transmission lines or ferrying fuel to remote locations can be formidable.

Solar power became the solution after the first practical solar cell was introduced in 1954. Oil producers were the solar industry’s leading customer by 1980, with an emphasis on use at offshore drilling sites.

Those early solar devices were limited in scale, but that changed as solar technology improved. Drillers began installing the first large-scale solar arrays for oil and gas operations in the US as early as 2003.

Alongside a sharp drop in the cost of solar cells, the scale of solar activity at drilling sites and mines has picked up significantly in recent years.

Fossil energy stakeholders have begun leaning on solar power and other renewables to fend off critics with new pledges to reduce carbon emissions. However, when fossil energy stakeholders pledge to decarbonize, they mostly mean reducing carbon emissions from operations under their direct control. Once their product reaches the marketplace, it’s a different story.

In effect, renewable energy is giving fossil energy stakeholders license to keep pumping out more product, exploring more sites for extraction, and building new pipelines, leaving energy consumers to hold the carbon emissions bag.

More Solar Power For Sustainable Steel

That brings us to the latest news about solar power and steelmaking. Steel is one of those tough-to-decarbonize industries, and steel is also the material that makes pipelines and other fossil energy infrastructure. Fossil energy stakeholders could give themselves many brownie points for transitioning their infrastructure to steel made with renewable energy.

For example, last year CleanTechnica was among those to welcome plans for a new solar array at the longstanding Rocky Mountain steel mill in Pueblo, Colorado. The mill is currently owned by the North American branch of Russia’s leading steel and coal producer EVRAZ, and the project has been developed by Lightsource bp, a joint venture between bp and the solar firm Lightsource.

Aside from enabling the mill to offset about 90% of its electricity with solar power, the project also helps to hasten the closure of the nearby Comanche coal power plant.

Why Rain On The Solar Parade?

At the time, the steel mill’s ability to churn out a new generation of extended-length rails for railroads was so exciting that we totally forgot to take a look at its other branches of its business. Our friends over at Colorado Public Radio report that the mill is also known for producing well casings, mainly for oilfields in Texas and North Dakota, in addition to producing steel pipe for, you guessed it, pipelines.

The cat’s out of the media bag now. Earlier this week bp announced that the new solar array, dubbed Bighorn Solar, is now up and running,

According to bp, the new solar array will have the carbon-reducing effect of “removing 92,100 fuel-burning cars from the road,” which is fine if carbon emissions from the mill were the only emissions in question. The bigger problem is that millions of carbon-emitting cars still rule the global roadways, and millions of car buyers are switching over to bigger vehicles that burn more gas.

That’s a problem for bp and EVRAZ, both of which have taken the opportunity to burnish their green cred by touting “the world’s first steel mill to be powered largely by solar energy,” while continuing along with their fossil energy operations.

“It is the largest on-site solar facility in the US dedicated to a single customer, with more than 750,000 solar panels providing nearly all the plant’s annual electricity demand,” bp enthused in a press release earlier this week. “This will enable the mill to produce some of the world’s greenest steel and steel products.”

Dave Lawler, chairman and president of bp America, piled on with this comment:

“Bighorn Solar shows us what the future of American energy can look like. Renewable energy can create a more sustainable, competitive business. Projects like this can make companies more resilient and protect jobs through the energy transition. And it’s another example of how bp is working to help the US and the world reach net zero by 2050.”

Do tell! Just last summer, bp CEO  Bernard Looney seemed to be anticipating that the oil and gas industry would continue to be a leading customer for steel products, if not from the Rocky Mountain mill then from others. In a widely circulated interview with Bloomberg News, Looney foresaw a strong, continuing recovery in demand globally.

It’s Time To Get Serious About Decarbonizing

Looney is not alone. OPEC is also anticipating that oil demand will beat pre-pandemic levels by next year, and demand for coal is practically through the roof.

In terms of promoting a nice, green public image, that is a  problem for EVRAZ and bp. On its part, EVRAZ appears to be ready to resolve part of the problem. As of last January the company was reportedly mulling over the idea of spinning off its coal business to concentrate on steel making.

The sharp uptick in coal demand may have prompted EVRAZ to set those plans aside for now, but the idea could still be percolating. Vanadium is EVRAZ’s other main business branch, and that should help cushion the separation from coal, considering the growing market for vanadium in energy storage as well as steel making.

Last year, EVRAZ also launched a new vanadium R&D center in Switzerland, focusing on expanding its use in the steel industry. That still leaves the door open for fossil energy customers, but EVRAZ seems to have its eye on the growing demand for green steel by the auto industry, which is pivoting into battery electric cars as well as fuel cell electric trucks and other heavy-duty vehicles.

No such cushion is at hand for bp. The company is pretty much stuck tinkering around the edges of decarbonization while continuing to pump out oil and gas.

Still, cleantech investments by bp and several other fossil energy firms are not insignificant, and those that invest the big bucks on cleantech gain an important public relations edge over the others.

That could be the motivation behind two interesting solar power moves that bp made right in ExxonMobil’s backyard, the US. The biggest media play went to the company’s gigantic new 9-gigawatts solar acquisition in Texas, announced last June.

Less attention went to a 132-megawatt project in Arkansas, which bp also announced last summer. That sounds like peanuts compared to the Texas buy, and it is, but in the context of solar power growth in Arkansas it’s a huge step forward.

As of halfway through 2021, solar developers in Arkansas were drifting in the range of 12 megawatts or less. Activity finally began to scale up in 2019 after a sea change in the state’s solar policies. The Arkansas branch of Entergy was leading the way, and now bp has spotted an opportunity to stake its claim in a market ripe for rapid growth.

All else being equal, the surging cost of oil and gas for home heating should help juice solar activity in Arkansas and elsewhere, so stay tuned for more on that.

As for the Rocky Mountain steel mill, one day in the sparkling green future it will churn out less well casings and more parts for solar arrays, wind turbines and electric vehicles, but today is not that day.

Follow me on Twitter @TinaMCasey.

Photo: Solar power for Rocky Mountain steel mill courtesy of bp via prnewswire.

 

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Chevy drops new Silverado EV Stars & Steel Special Edition with a patriotic makeover

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Chevy drops new Silverado EV Stars & Steel Special Edition with a patriotic makeover

Chevy is celebrating America’s 250th anniversary with a patriotic lineup of special edition Stars & Steel models, including the electric Silverado EV pickup.

Meet the Chevy Silverado EV Stars & Steel edition

The new Stars & Steel collection is “a curated lineup of uniquely designed vehicles that embody purpose-driven patriotism and American craftsmanship,” Chevy said

Chevy is releasing five special-edition vehicles for 2026, including the Silverado EV, Corvette, Silverado LD, Silverado HD, and Colorado, in celebration of the country’s 250th anniversary.

Each vehicle is assembled in the US and will feature exclusive interior and exterior design elements, including American-flag-inspired graphics on the hood, as well as other premium options that “underscore patriotism,” according to Chevy.

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The Silverado EV Stars & Steel Special Edition will be available on the RST Crew Cab trim. Buyers can choose from Summit White or Black exterior colors, while a Sky Cool Gray interior with bucket seats offers “a bold electric interpretation” of the Stars & Steel theme.

Every 2026 Chevy Silverado special edition model includes American Flag-inspired stripes in Satin Silver or Satin Black and “250” flag graphics.

Chevy also added 24″ high-gloss black wheels, black nameplates, and a new Brembo heavy-duty brake system with red-piston front calipers, and larger 15.7″ brake discs.

Chevy-Silverado-EV-Stars-Steel
The 2026 Chevy Silverado EV Stars & Steel Special Edition (Source: Chevrolet)

For every Stars & Steel vehicle sold, Chevy will donate $250 to nonprofits that support veterans. Be on the lookout as the collection will make its first public appearance this weekend during the Army-Navy game on Saturday, December 13, 2025.

Chevy said production of the new lineup is expected to begin in early spring 2026, and prices will be announced at a later date.

The 2026 Chevy Silverado EV offers an impressive driving range of up to 494 miles and can tow up to 12,500 lbs. It’s available in three trims: Custom, LT, and Trail Boss, starting at $55,895.

If you’re interested in test-driving the electric pickup, we can help you get started. You can use our link to find available 2026 Chevy Silverado EVs in your area.

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Elon Musk delusionally claims Waymo ‘never had a chance’ against Tesla

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Elon Musk delusionally claims Waymo ‘never had a chance’ against Tesla

Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) this morning to dismiss Waymo’s progress in autonomous driving, claiming that the Alphabet-owned company “never really had a chance against Tesla” and that this will be “obvious in hindsight.”

The comment came as a direct response to a discussion about Waymo’s newly released safety data—a level of transparency that Tesla has yet to match.

The exchange started when Google DeepMind Chief Scientist Jeff Dean pointed out the massive disparity in validated autonomous mileage between the two companies. Dean noted that Tesla doesn’t have “anywhere near the volume of rider-only autonomous miles that Waymo has,” citing Waymo’s fresh milestone of 100 million rider-only miles.

Musk, who has promised a fleet of “1 million robotaxis” by the end of 2020 (a deadline that passed five years ago), responded with his usual bravado:

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“Waymo never really had a chance against Tesla. This will be obvious in hindsight.”

In fact, Tesla has zero Robotaxi miles with rider-only as its service still has in-car safety supervisors. Despite the safety drivers preventing an untold number of accidents, Tesla has a much higher accident rate with its supervised robotaxis than Waymo or average human drivers.

Even with this worrying situation, Musk said yesterday that Tesla plans to remove the safety drivers in the Austin Robotaxi within 3 weeks.

Musk’s comment is particularly ill-timed given the context. Waymo just released a massive tranche of safety data covering its operations across San Francisco, Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Austin. 

The data show that Waymo’s Driver avoids crashes at a rate significantly better than human drivers, with a 91% reduction in serious injury-causing crashes compared to human benchmarks.

Meanwhile, Tesla has yet to deploy a single vehicle without supervision for a commercial ride or even share anywhere near the amount of data Waymo shares..

While Tesla regularly releases a “safety report”, it was widely criticized by safety experts for being an “apples-to-oranges” comparison. Tesla’s report relied on airbag deployments as a proxy for crashes and lacked the granular injury data that Waymo provided. Furthermore, Tesla’s data covers a system that is supervised by a human 100% of the time, making it impossible to isolate the safety performance of the software itself.

Tesla frames the data as proving “FSD is better than human drivers”, but in truth, if you take the data, it faces value; it only compares “FSD with human supervision to human drivers.”

Electrek’s Take

I find it increasingly difficult to reconcile Elon’s statements with reality. Waymo is currently operating fully driverless commercial services in multiple major cities. Tesla is still testing a Level 2 driver-assist system that requires constant human attention.

Apple and oranges.

We are looking at two companies. One has nearly 100 million miles of documented, driverless driving with specific, published safety data showing it is safer than humans. The other has zero driverless miles, vague safety reports that rely on proxies like airbag deployments, and a CEO who has been promising “next year” for a decade.

For Elon to look at Waymo, which is currently operating the exact service Tesla has been trying to build for years, and say they “never had a chance” is baffling.

To put it in terms that a racing enthusiast like Elon might understand: He thinks Tesla is leading the race because he can see Waymo in his rear-view mirror. What he doesn’t realize is that he isn’t ahead; he’s actually being lapped.

When a car is a full lap ahead of you, it appears behind you on the track. But that doesn’t mean you are winning.

I understand that he believes that Tesla’s cheaper system will enable it to scale faster once it solves unsupervised self-driving, but there’s simply no evidence of that.

If Tesla removes the safety drivers from its fleet in three weeks, as Musk claims, which is a big if, it will officially be about 5 years behind Waymo and will still need to prove safety without a supervisor and then scale.

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Bo M2 review: The premium e-scooter unlike anything I’ve ever tested before

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Bo M2 review: The premium e-scooter unlike anything I've ever tested before

I’ve ridden a lot of electric scooters over the years. Most blur together – two wheels, a deck, a motor, and a series of compromises. But every now and then, one stands out. And after a couple of weeks riding the Bo M2 electric scooter, I can confidently say: this one’s different.

The Bo M2 is not your average e-scooter. It’s a purpose-built, premium commuter with some seriously refined features – and a price tag to match. At $2,490, it’s firmly in high-end territory. But for riders who want a serious transportation tool, not a toy, there’s a lot to like here.

Bo M2 scooter review

To see what I mean, check out my ride review video below. Then keep reading for even more details on this innovative electric scooter!

What makes the Bo M2 stand out?

Let’s start with the construction. The M2 is built around a single-piece aluminum unibody frame, which the company calls the Monocurve chassis, and it’s beautiful. No welds, no hinges, no rattling folding mechanisms. Just one sweeping curve of aluminum that feels solid as a rock and helps explain the scooter’s clean, futuristic aesthetic.

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This thing looks more like a design concept from a European mobility expo than something you’d expect to lock up outside a coffee shop. But it’s not just for looks (even if it does look beautiful). The rigid frame gives the whole scooter a planted, roadworthy feel. It doesn’t flex, wobble, or creak, even when you’re riding aggressively or hitting uneven pavement.

Even the most rigid of folding scooters will always have a bit of play in the folding area, but the Bo M2 just feels like a solid frame throughout – more like a motorcycle frame than a standing scooter frame.

And speaking of stability, let’s talk about the real magic trick here: the steering system.

The best handling I’ve ever felt on a scooter

The Bo M2 uses a proprietary feature the company calls Safesteer, which is essentially a built-in steering damper. Think of it as power steering for a scooter – but in reverse. Instead of making the steering looser or twitchier, it actually adds some light resistance and dampens those small, unwanted wobbles you often get when riding one-handed or over rough terrain. The result is that the bars don’t wiggle and they also naturally have a slight return pull towards the neutral position.

The effect is genuinely impressive. You can feel it from the first few feet of riding. At slow speeds, the front end feels calm and composed, not fidgety or loose. At high speeds, it tracks in a straight line with an almost eerie smoothness. I can even ride the scooter no-handed like a bicycle or motorcycle, though it just feels wrong to do so because I’ve spent my entire life knowing that you can’t ride a scooter no-handed… at least until now.

It’s one of those features you don’t realize you need until you experience it – and now I wish every scooter had it.

For newer riders or anyone who’s ever felt nervous about steering on a scooter, Safesteer is a game changer. And for experienced riders, it just makes the whole ride feel more premium.

Performance and range

The Bo M2 uses a 400W-rated motor with an actual peak output of 1,270W, and it delivers a top speed of 22 mph (35 km/h). That’s fast enough for most urban commuting in the bike lane and likely more than enough to keep pace with bike traffic.

It’s not going to pace a Class 3 e-bike in the US, but it’s still pretty fast for riding along on 10×2.5″ tires.

Acceleration is strong but not jerky, especially in Sport mode, which gives you full power. There’s also an Eco mode if you want to conserve battery or ride more gently. I mostly stuck with Sport mode, since it’s fun without feeling twitchy.

Range is rated at up to 26.2 miles (42 km), or one marathon, and while that’s best-case scenario, I could get over 20 miles (32 km) per charge riding at mixed speeds in the city. I’d call that sufficient for most daily commuters, and the 672 Wh battery charges in about 4.5 hours with the included fast charger.

Braking and control

Bo takes a slightly different approach to braking than most scooters. Up front, you get a sealed mechanical drum brake. Out back, there’s a regenerative electronic brakes with e-ABS that activates when you pull the left lever. The regenerative braking can pull as much as 1,000W of power, helping to (briefly) recharge the battery during each stop.

Braking is smooth and progressive, and the regen system is particularly satisfying. It slows the scooter down quickly and recaptures a bit of energy while doing it. Plus, there’s less maintenance to worry about with sealed drums and electronic brakes.

And of course, having the Safesteer system means you can brake hard without worrying about wobble or oversteer. Everything feels composed, like it was designed by automotive engineers… since it was.

Ride quality, comfort, and details

The ride comfort on the Bo M2 is among the best I’ve experienced on a scooter without full suspension. Part of that is due to the Airdeck system, which is a layer of EVA foam that adds vibration damping to the standing deck. Combined with the 10-inch tubeless pneumatic tires and ergonomic silicone grips, it smooths out a surprising amount of road chatter.

It’s not a plush, bouncy ride as you’d get with spring suspension, but it feels deliberate and connected to the road, like riding a high-quality urban bicycle. This will absolutely not make up for big pot holes, but it will feel better on normal rough roads then a typical rigid scooter. You’re giving up the advantages of long travel suspension for the benefit of rigidity, and the Airdeck system helps make swallowing that compromise a bit easier.

There are also a lot of thoughtful features that make the M2 feel like a real vehicle. The 800-lumen headlight is excellent, and the 270° daytime running light ring makes the scooter more visible from all angles. The rear light includes a brake alert, and everything is IP66-rated, so riding in the rain is no problem. Or at least it’s not a problem for the scooter. I’d still recommend you not ride in the rain unless you have to since its harder to be seen by cars and you do have to worry about loosing traction on slick surfaces like wet leaves, smooth pavement, etc.

The scooter comes with a MOUS Intralock phone mount (which I didn’t use because I’m married to the Peak Design phone lock system, but they do include an adapter if you want to stick it to the back of your own phone case). There’s also lockable anchor points for a U-lock and a built-in motor immobilizer that you can activate via the Bo smartphone app, giving you a bit more peace of mind in terms of theft prevention.

Is it worth the price?

At $2,490, the Bo M2 is definitely not cheap. You can get solid e-scooters for less than half that price. And so I will immediately tell you that this is not the scooter for everyone, or even most people. This is not a bang-for-your-buck scooter. This is something fancy for those who want to pay more for fancier features like steering dampers and a design that speaks to things no other scooter ever has.

This is a commuter-grade vehicle for someone who wants to ditch the car or bus and ride something premium, daily. And it genuinely delivers on that promise.

If you’re looking to spend less, Bo also offers the Bo M1, which shares much of the same design DNA but has lower power and a slightly reduced spec sheet. It starts at $1,990, saving around $500 compared to this higher spec version. But after riding the M2, I’d say the upgrade is worth it if you want the best experience.

And if you’re considering a Bo scooter at all, let’s just say that money probably isn’t your first concern. A scooter that was brought to you by former engineers at outfits like Jaguar and Land Rover was never going to be designed to compete on price, but rather on premium features and design.

Final thoughts

The Bo M2 is one of the most refined electric scooters I’ve ever tested. It’s beautifully built, thoughtfully engineered, and loaded with features that actually make a difference in day-to-day riding.

The steering damper alone puts it in a league of its own for ride stability, and the unibody aluminum frame gives it a level of build quality that most folding scooters can’t touch.

No, it’s not for everyone. If you just need a cheap ride for a few blocks, this is 100% overkill. But if you’re serious about getting something premium, you definitely want the standing ride of an e-scooter, and you want a daily commuter that feels more like a transportation appliance than a toy, the Bo M2 is worth every penny.

And with a scooter that rides this smoothly, you might actually look forward to your commute.

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