Connect with us

Published

on

In this article

Markus Krebber, CEO of RWE AG, photographed during a press conference on November 15, 2021.
Fabian Strauch/dpa | picture alliance | Getty Images

Hydrogen has a key role to play in the years ahead, especially in industrial applications, according to the CEO of German power company RWE.

“When you look long term, there is no way around hydrogen,” Markus Krebber, who was speaking to CNBC’s Annette Weisbach, said.

In an interview broadcast Tuesday morning, Krebber claimed this was because hydrogen was “the only technology … we currently know which is able to decarbonize those industries which cannot electrify like steel, but also some parts of the chemical industry.”

Described by the International Energy Agency as a “versatile energy carrier,” hydrogen has a diverse range of applications and can be deployed in a number of sectors.

It can be produced in a number of ways. One method includes using electrolysis, with an electric current splitting water into oxygen and hydrogen.

If the electricity used in this process comes from a renewable source such as wind or solar then some call it green or renewable hydrogen.

While there is excitement about the potential of green hydrogen in some quarters, it remains expensive to produce. Currently, the vast majority of hydrogen generation is based on fossil fuels.

Krebber told CNBC that it would take time to build a hydrogen economy and that his company wanted to — and would — play an active role. “But we need to be fast, because I think wherever green hydrogen is available it is a very competitive edge for the location.”

Growth plans

Krebber’s comments came as RWE laid out plans for the next decade that will be backed by a gross investment of 50 billion euros ($56.73 billion) in its core business between 2021 and 2030.  

In an announcement Monday, the firm said this would mean “an average of 5 billion euro gross each year for offshore and onshore wind, solar, batteries, flexible generation and hydrogen.”

Net cash investments — gross investment minus asset rotation — will amount to roughly 30 billion euros across the entire period, or 3 billion euros a year.

“Our growth plan is fully funded,” Krebber told CNBC. “We can finance it with our strong operating cashflow and then partly we do farm downs, so we sell stakes in our projects or partner with others.”

In 2030, the company is targeting “green” installed net capacity of 50 gigawatts and wants adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization to be 5 billion euros for its core business, in which nuclear and coal are excluded.

While the company is looking to expand its renewables capacity, fossil fuels are not out of the picture.

“With an installed capacity of 14 GW, RWE is currently operating the second-largest gas-fired power station fleet in Europe,” RWE said.

“Additional plants with a generation capacity of at least 2 GW, which will have a clear decarbonisation roadmap, are planned.”

At the end of last year, the RWE Group’s installed hard coal capacity amounted to 2.2 GW. Lignite, or brown coal, capacity stood at 8.5 GW.

Looking to the future and energy prices, Krebber sketched out some of the challenges ahead.

“Long term, when you think it through … [with] the current technologies and current costs we know, I think, a fully green energy world will be not more expensive than the old fossil world,” he said.

“The problem we are facing is that this transformation has to happen in a very short period of time,” he said. “Typically, we discuss investment cycles of 30 years but now, the entire transformation has to happen in 15 years. And that can create bottlenecks and drive prices.”

Continue Reading

Environment

Americans losing more choice due to tariffs as Kia EV4 is delayed indefinitely

Published

on

By

Americans losing more choice due to tariffs as Kia EV4 is delayed indefinitely

The Kia EV4 will be “delayed until further notice” in the US, according to a Kia rep and reported by InsideEVs. Kia said the change is because “market conditions for EVs have changed.”

The EV4 was expected to be released in 2026 at a price in the ~$30k range, entering Kia’s model like alongside the existing EV3 as the smaller, more affordable electric models below the EV6 and EV9. The EV4 will have the style of a boxy sedan, while the EV3 is a small SUV.

The EV3 is already available in Korea, Europe and other territories, but has not made it to the US (and may not ever).

The EV4 is not on the roads yet, but its release is imminent. And it seemed likely to make its way to the US. We saw the concept EV4 at the LA Auto Show in 2023, and the model was officially unveiled in the US at the New York Auto Show this April.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

Bringing that car to a US auto show with an official reveal suggested that the US would get access to this smart, more affordable Kia. And Kia said that the car would hit US roads in early 2026, which would have been just a few months from now.

Kia abruptly “delays” EV4’s introduction to the US

But now, a Kia rep has confirmed that the car won’t come to America after all, at least until further notice. Kia gave a statement to InsideEVs, saying:

“Kia’s full range of vehicles offers meaningful value and inspiring performance to customers. However, as market conditions for EVs have changed, the release of the upcoming EV4 electric sedan will be delayed until further notice.” 

We reached out to Kia to confirm, and received the same statement back.

The reversal is a bit of a surprise, and we’re not sure why we’re hearing this today in particular. Heck, we wrote a story about the EV4 GT’s interior just a couple hours ago.

So, unfortunately it looks like Americans will have one less potential choice to get away from the land-yacht disease currently infecting our populace. For what it’s worth, the EV4 is still listed as “coming 2026” on Kia Canada’s website.

We’ve seen models get delayed suddenly before, and while Kia did not directly say that the model will never come to the US, the fate of other “delayed” EV models in the past does not give us significant hope. Usually, a “delay” like this ends up meaning that the car just won’t ever make it to US roads (see: VW ID.7, Gen 2 Kia Soul EV, Ram 1500 EV, and others).

While Kia did not state a specific reason for the reversal, it’s not hard to guess what some of the influences are.

Electrek’s Take – EV4 likely delayed due to US policy changes favoring higher costs, dirty air

Since the EV4’s April reveal, republicans have continued their all-out assault on clean air, as in July a republican Congress passed a $4 trillion giveaway to wealthy US elites which also inflated the price of EVs by $7,500. Regulatory changes focusing on raising your costs and making your air dirtier are in progress, trying to force more gasoline and pollution on Americans and restricting access to cleaner, better EVs.

In addition to these actions opposing clean air, republicans are raising your costs in other ways as well. Unwise tariffs on basically every country in the world, which have been haphazardly implemented (due to the ignorance of the person unconstitutionally implementing them) and seem to change day-by-day, have increased prices for Americans and made business more difficult.

These tariffs would apply to the EV4. While Kia just started EV4 production in Europe, the US model would have come from Kia’s Korean factories. The ignoramus squatting in the US Oval Office did just ink a trade deal with Korea today, but given the lack of follow-through on previous trade deals, we wouldn’t be surprised if the terms of that change.

The difficulty of doing business in America has been in focus especially for South Korean firms, after a high-profile ICE raid at a Hyundai plant in construction in Georgia, which saw South Korean businessmen with visas detained and resulted in delayed construction on the plant and a swift popular pushback against US products in Korea. Kia and Hyundai are partner companies with a complex corporate relationship, so it stands to reason that Kia’s business decisions would be intertwined with Hyundai’s.

Many companies have recently cited a claimed but not substantiated lack of EV demand in the US as reasons for delaying their EV ambitions. To be clear, EVs have seen a long string of consistent sales growth in the US, stretching back more than a decade (with only a few interruptions to that growth, the largest being the start of COVID).

In the meantime, gas car sales peaked globally in 2017, and will never again reach that level of sales. This fact has been consistently underreported by media, alongside false headlines claiming EV sales are falling.

However, despite the record EV sales quarter the US just went through, it’s expected that the next year or so will see drops in EV demand. This is because of the pull-forward in sales experienced due to tax credit expiration, which caused a sales rush in Q3. Although, as has happened in other countries that suddenly ended purchase incentives, we’d expect perhaps a year of depressed sales before they begin to rise again.

But this likely drop in demand is hitting right around the same time the EV4 was supposed to launch in the US, so it’s not unreasonable for Kia to look at a market in a temporary downswing, especially when considering all the other factors laid out above (and the country’s current hostility to foreign investment, specifically investment from Kia’s partner company Hyundai), and wonder why they’ve gotten cold feet right now of all times.

While Kia didn’t lay out these reasons above in its statement, it sure seems likely that each of them could have had an effect on this decision.


The 30% federal solar tax credit is ending this year. If you’ve ever considered going solar, now’s the time to act. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them.

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

US reshores entire solar supply chain – as Trump puts $31B at risk

Published

on

By

US reshores entire solar supply chain – as Trump puts B at risk

New data from the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) shows that the US solar supply chain has been fully reshored, with manufacturing capacity growing across every part of the solar and storage sector.

A US solar system from start to finish

With Hemlock’s new ingot and wafer facility coming online in Q3 2025, the US can now produce every major solar component domestically, from polysilicon to modules. According to SEIA, 65 new or expanded solar and storage factories have come online this year, bringing $4.5 billion in private investment to US communities.

However, SEIA warns that more than 100 factories and $31 billion in the pipeline could be at risk if the Trump administration continues its attacks on solar energy.

Solar manufacturing is booming – for now

The SEIA Solar & Storage Supply Chain Dashboard reports major capacity growth across every segment since late 2024. As of October 2025, US module production capacity has surpassed 60 gigawatts (GW), a 37% increase from December 2024. Solar cell production has more than tripled, jumping from 1 GW to 3.2 GW.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

Battery cell manufacturing for stationary storage has climbed to over 21 gigawatt-hours (GWh), which SEIA says is enough to power the city of Houston from sunset to sunrise.

“This growth is a testament to the power of American innovation,” said Abigail Ross Hopper, SEIA’s president and CEO. “We’re building factories, hiring American workers, and showing that solar energy means made-in-America energy.”

Inverter manufacturing, which converts solar power into usable electricity, has jumped nearly 50% since the end of 2024, rising from 19 GW to 28 GW of capacity. Mounting system production is also up 14%, with 23 new factories added since 2024.

A pipeline under political threat

The US solar pipeline remains strong, with 23 GW of new module capacity, 34 GW of cell capacity, 25 GW of inverter capacity, and 95 GWh of battery cell capacity either under construction or announced. But SEIA says that Trump administration policies, regulations, and trade actions are creating uncertainty that could hurt progress.

“We’re seeing strong growth today, but that momentum isn’t guaranteed,” Hopper said. “If the administration continues down this path, they risk driving investment overseas, stifling job creation, raising costs on consumers, and handing America’s manufacturing advantage to our competitors.

“If the administration does not reverse its harmful actions that have undermined market certainty, energy costs will rise even further, and the next wave of factories and jobs could be at risk.”

Read more: The Trump administration just killed the US’s largest solar project


The 30% federal solar tax credit is ending this year. If you’ve ever considered going solar, now’s the time to act. To make sure you find a trusted, reliable solar installer near you that offers competitive pricing, check out EnergySage, a free service that makes it easy for you to go solar. It has hundreds of pre-vetted solar installers competing for your business, ensuring you get high-quality solutions and save 20-30% compared to going it alone. Plus, it’s free to use, and you won’t get sales calls until you select an installer and share your phone number with them. 

Your personalized solar quotes are easy to compare online and you’ll get access to unbiased Energy Advisors to help you every step of the way. Get started here.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

The Kia EV4 GT’s interior looks a little too familiar [Video]

Published

on

By

The Kia EV4 GT's interior looks a little too familiar [Video]

Kia’s electric hot hatch will be here before you know it. After getting a sneak peek of the EV4 GT’s interior for the first time, it looks a bit familiar.

First look at the Kia EV4 GT’s interior

Kia’s bringing the hatchback back in style. The EV4 is Kia’s first all-electric hatchback, also available as a sedan or fastback.

Although it’s already pretty cool-looking with Kia’s new design elements like the Digital Tiger Face grille, Star Map Lighting, and aggressive stance, the GT version promises even more style, performance, and fun features.

Kia revealed the electric hot hatch for the first time earlier this week, showcasing its new GT Wrap. The new foil design “infuses models in development with the energy and attitude that define Kia’s GT production models.”

Advertisement – scroll for more content

By reimagining the Gran Turismo for a new generation of drivers, Kia said it’s bridging the gap between its heritage and future innovation. The GT Wrap will be used for a new generation of Kia performance vehicles. It still features the signature neon color, which has become a “symbol of electricity,” Kia said.

Now, we are getting our first look at the interior. The video from HealerTV offers a closer look at the EV4 GT’s interior, free of camouflage.

Right off the bat, you can see this is clearly a Kia GT. It has about the same setup as the EV9 GT and EV6 GT, including the steering wheel, infotainment, and seat design.

Kia-EV9-GT-interior
Kia EV9 GT interior (Source: Kia)

The EV4 GT’s interior is essentially a blend of the regular EV4 and the EV9 GT. One slight difference is that the GT’s armrest has storage space rather than just a flat surface.

The back seats also look about the same as Kia’s other GT models. It appears to include ambient lighting on the door panel and back of the driver’s seat, like the EV9 GT.

Kia-electric-hot-hatch-GT-Wrap
Kia EV4 GT prototype with “GT Wrap” design (Source: Kia)

Although it has similar features, HealerTV noted that the EV4 GT still has a unique interior and decent design, which should help differentiate it. According to Autocar, which saw it firsthand, the interior “received a significant makeover” with lower-sitting seats, neon green accent colors throughout, and an added GT Mode button on the steering wheel.

Like Kia’s other GT vehicles, the electric hot hatch will be equipped with a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive (AWD) powertrain with around 400 horsepower.

The EV4 GT will launch in 2026, joining the EV6 GT and EV9 GT in Kia’s expanding performance EV lineup. Looking ahead, the EV3 and EV5 are also in line for a GT upgrade.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Trending