This Scottish EV charging hub is next-level extraordinary

Published

2 years ago

December 20, 2023

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The City of Dundee in Scotland planned and paid for an EV charging hub on a former gas station site, and they pretty much thought of everything.

A coastal city with a population of 148,000, Dundee takes its EV charging infrastructure rollout seriously: To date, it’s got 370 EV charging stations, 185 of which are owned by the city, and it’s nowhere near being done. (For size comparison, Savannah, Georgia, has a population of 148,000, and it has 275 EV charging stations.)

Dundee opened a new EV charging hub this year on Clepington Road that features 12 charge points, or five 50kW chargers and a single 150 kW charger.

There’s a convenience store and two restaurants across the street, and there are three beauty salons within a two-minute walk. Fairmuir Park is nearby if drivers want to take a walk while charging. There’s also a bench at the hub to just hang out.

Now, here’s where it starts to get clever. It’s covered by solar canopies that connect to two onsite battery storage units. The battery units house reused EV batteries, and each unit is capable of storing 100 MWh of electricity annually. That’s enough energy to power 5,000 charging sessions, based on a 20 kWh average consumption per session, or 13.5 sessions each day.

The batteries store excess solar power, and they charge from the grid at off-peak times when tariffs are cheaper and electricity is less carbon-intensive. That helps Dundee reduce costs and cut emissions.

The designers of the EV charging hub also put a lot of thought into accessibility. Measures include longer cables to allow for wheelchair-access vehicles, as well as level access from the parking bay to the charge point for wheelchair users and strollers. Carefully considered wheel stops prevent EVs from encroaching on the space between the front of the bays and the chargers.

And in a feature I’ve not seen elsewhere (but let me know in the comments section if you have), the charging hub’s solar canopy roof harvests rainwater for drinking. The rainwater is captured and funneled downward using gravity to a purifying machine powered by the solar canopy, where it’s filtered. That enables EV drivers to fill up their water bottles with complimentary clean drinking water. The rainwater is free from salinity and pollutants that can be found in groundwater.

The city is planning to fit all of its EV charging hubs with water-purifying machines. Once plans for installing EV charging hubs every 500 meters (1,640 feet) are met, the public will have access to clean water every half kilometer.

What do you think of Dundee’s EV charging hub? Let me know in the comments below.

Photos: Dundee City Council

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Environment

Exxon earnings fall on lower oil prices as OPEC+ raises production

Published

3 hours ago

October 31, 2025

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Exxon earnings fall on lower oil prices as OPEC+ raises production

An Exxon Mobil gas station in Lorton, Virginia, US, on Monday, Oct. 27, 2025.

Luke Johnson | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Exxon Mobil on Friday reported third quarter earnings that fell year over year, as oil prices tumbled due in large part to OPEC+ increasing production.

Exxon’s net income fell 12% to $7.55 billion, or $1.76 per share, compared to $8.6 billion, or $1.92 per share, in the year ago period. Excluding one-time items, the oil major posted earnings per share of $1.88.

U.S. crude oil prices have fallen about 16% this year as OPEC+ is increasing production and President Donald Trump’s tariffs have the market worried about an economic slowdown.

Exxon shares were down more than 1% in premarket trading.

Here is what Exxon reported for the third quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Earnings per share: $1.88 adjusted.
Revenue: $85.3 billion, vs. $87.7 billion expected

CEO Darren Woods said Exxon posted its highest earnings per share compared to similar quarters when oil prices were falling. Profits also took a hit due to bottom-of-cycle margins in its chemicals business.

However, production in Exxon’s lucrative offshore assets in the South American nation of Guyana hit a quarterly record of more than 700,000 barrels per day. Its assets in the Permian Basin also set a production record of nearly 1.7 million bpd.

Overall, Exxon produced 4.77 million bpd in the quarter.

Exxon’s production business recorded earnings of $5.68 billion, while its refining business posted a profit of $1.8 billion. Its chemicals product business saw earnings of $515 million.

The oil major’s capital expenditures stand at about $21 billion so far this year. It expects spending in 2025 to come in slightly below the lower end of its guidance range of $27 billion to $29 billion.

Exxon gave back $9.4 billion to shareholders in the quarter and raised its fourth-quarter dividend to $1.03 per share.

Environment

Chevron earnings beat Wall Street estimates as oil production hits record boosted by Hess acquisition

Published

3 hours ago

October 31, 2025

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Chevron earnings beat Wall Street estimates as oil production hits record boosted by Hess acquisition

Signage outside the Chevron Corp. headquarters in Houston, Texas, US, on Wednesday, Oct. 8, 2025.

Mark Felix | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Chevron on Friday reported third-quarter financial results that beat Wall Street estimates, as the company achieved record production due in part to its acquisition of Hess Corporation.

The oil major’s net income declined 21% to $3.54 billion, or $1.82 per share, compared with $4.49 billion, or $2.48 per share, in the same period last year. Its earnings decreased year over year due to falling oil prices and a $235 million loss on transaction costs associated with the Hess acquisition.

Excluding costs associated with Hess and foreign currency impacts, Chevron earned $1.85 per share, beating Wall Street estimates of $1.71 per share.

Here is what Chevron reported for the third quarter compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG:

Earnings per share: $1.85 adjusted vs. $1.71 expected
Revenue: $49.73 billion vs. $49.01 billion expected

U.S. crude oil prices have fallen about 16% this year as OPEC+ increases production and President Donald Trump’s tariffs have the market worried about an economic slowdown.

Even with lower prices, Chevron pumped a record 4.1 million barrels per day, a 21% increase compared with the same period last year. Higher production came from the Hess acquisition, the Permian Basin, the Gulf of Mexico and Kazakhstan, according to the company.

Chevron’s U.S. production business posted a profit of $1.28 billion, down 34% compared with $1.95 billion in the third quarter of 2024. It pumped 2 million barrels per day, up 27% from 1.6 million bpd in year-ago period.

International production recorded earnings of $2 billion, down 24% compared with $2.64 billion in the same quarter last year. Production increased 16% to 2 million bpd compared with 1.76 million bpd in the year-ago period.

Profits increased more than 300% to $638 million in Chevron’s downstream U.S. refining business, compared with $146 million in the third quarter of 2024. International refining posted earnings of $499 million, up 11% from $449 million in the year-ago period. Refining profits increased year over year due to higher margins on product sales.

Capital expenditures increased 7% to $4.4 billion over the year-ago quarter due to spending on legacy Hess assets. Chevron’s adjusted free cash flow increased about 50% to $7 billion over the year-ago period.

Environment

California quietly kills e-bike voucher program, funnels funds into cars instead

Published

6 hours ago

October 31, 2025

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California quietly kills e-bike voucher program, funnels funds into cars instead

California’s ambitious statewide electric bicycle incentive program is officially dead – and it didn’t even get a funeral. After years of buildup, delays, and surging public interest, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) has quietly ended the program, rolling the remaining $17 million of the original $30 million budget into its “Clean Cars 4 All” initiative without even making an official announcement.

The California E-Bike Incentive Project was originally hailed as a groundbreaking effort to make electric bikes affordable for low-income residents. Vouchers – not rebates – were designed to let buyers walk into a participating shop and ride out without covering the full price upfront. Base vouchers were worth $1,000, with up to $2,500 available for those purchasing cargo or adaptive e-bikes in priority communities. It was a model that other states were watching closely.

But from the outset, the program was plagued by setbacks. Years of delays meant the first vouchers weren’t distributed until late 2024, and even then, only after a chaotic launch that saw the website crash under the weight of tens of thousands of applicants vying for just 1,500 vouchers. A second launch attempt in April 2025 failed completely, locking out eligible users. While a final distribution round in May went more smoothly, an estimated 90% of eligible applicants were turned away due to limited supply.

To make matters worse, the program’s administrator, Pedal Ahead, came under fire for questionable practices in San Diego, further undermining confidence.

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Now, with no formal announcement or update on the program’s official website, CARB has quietly absorbed the funds into its Clean Cars 4 All program.

Electrek’s Take

This is an enormous letdown.

The California E-Bike Incentive Project had the potential to reshape car-heavy communities by giving low-income Californians access to clean, affordable micromobility. Instead, it was starved by mismanagement and then cannibalized to prop up car-centric policy.

It’s not that electric cars don’t deserve support, but this move reflects a broader failure of imagination. If we want a future with fewer cars, not just cleaner ones, then we need to start funding real alternatives. This was a huge missed opportunity to invest in a more livable California.