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New podcast! My old friend Tony Slade and I are experimenting with ‘10-Minute Climate’. On Apple and Spotify (soon YouTube as well). Let us know what you think…

What you need to know

Saudi is actually de-carbonising. Weird.

I don’t believe you. Well: 16GWe of solar imports in 2024 - enough to generate about 11% of their electricity. Do that for a few years and they hit goal: 50% clean electricity in 2030.
But they love oil? Free sun at home & sell fossils for $$$. Win/win, for them at least.
Read more: @CleanPowerDave

Solar overtakes coal in EU

Why this matters? New milestone: solar produced more electricity than coal across the EU in 2024.
Still burning coal?!? Sadly yes - Central and Eastern Europe.
Read more: Ember

EU & gas. Sees foot; decides to shoot it. Again.

Gas price up? Yes: Ukraine not piping it from Russia. Cold winter. Low wind. Storage below 60%, dropping 5% a week.
So, they’re doing something sensible, right? No. Germany told everyone they will fill storage by a deadline, no matter the price, and dump cost on consumers.
So prices up faster? Yes. Biggest jump for 2 years. An armada of US LNG is diverting from Asia to Europe to make more $$$.
Read more: EnergyFlux

One thing to worry about

As the ice melts, pre-historic trees are emerging in the Rocky Mountains (Popular Science).

One thing to be optimistic about

A new era of electric planes is coming.

This is the Heart X1: flies this year. Quieter & more efficient flights for 30 people over 800km (New Atlas).

If you’ve got more time, read this…

Trump signed a slew of Executive Orders banning renewable energy - just as snowdrifts (yes) appeared along the Gulf (of America) coast (Forbes).

Let’s see what’s real and what’s theatre…

• Trump says there’s an energy emergency! 

  • Err, no. The US is world’s biggest oil & gas producer, churning out more energy than it uses.

  • Verdict: Theatre.

• Trump wants to drill, baby, drill!

  • Probably drill less. Under Biden far more fossils product than under Trump 45 (Reuters). Prices aren’t high enough for Wall Street to finance big new drilling (FT)

  • Verdict: Irrelevant theatre. US drills whatever the President, and the market determines how much.

• Trump says energy will be cheaper! 

  • Unlikely. Renewables are the cheapest generation. Limit them, costs up. Plus Trump wants more gas exports: shipping overseas pushes up US prices.

  • Verdict: Unlikely.

• Trump is saving the US Auto Industry! 

  • No, he’s destroying its future. EVs are taking over. China has the best products. Miss this, US auto makers are stone cold.

  • Verdict: Seriously dumb. Even The Telegraph thinks so 😲.

• Trump has banned wind! 

  • Not all. Only new leases on federal land, not private land. Still, that’s about half (Heatmap). Pity, as states like Iowa now see wind as their biggest form of generation, as it’s cheap. (Iowa EA)

  • Verdict: Bad but not fatal.

• Trump killed the clean energy subsidies!

  • Not really. He stopped grants, but the big part is tax credits that need an Act of Congress to repeal (HoganLovells). As 70% of the money goes to Red States, it’s unlikely (Politico).

  • Verdict: Will slow investment, business confidence will be hit.

• Trump is saving birds and mammals from wind turbines!

  • Not really. Birds and mammals should fear oil drilling in Alaska’s wildlife refuges (AP). Anyway, turbines are not a big threat (Hannah Richtie)

  • Verdict: Come on, man

• Trumps has freed the lightbulbs! 

  • True! He wants to “safeguard the American people's freedom to choose from a variety of goods and appliances, including but not limited to lightbulbs" (White House)

  • Verdict: Freedom!! 🇺🇸🇺🇸🇺🇸

None of what he’s doing is good. But it’s not as bad as its sounds.

Remember, we’re in the middle of a clean-industrial revolution.

Trump is King Canute: demanding the tide stay out.

But it won’t.

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