DOE
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There's a lot of good data to be found in public reports from national labs and other government research papers, but it's not always easy to find or easy to parse. For years, federal Department of Energy collected and published that information—but it has eliminated that effort under the Trump Administration. So the Natural Resources Defense Council has stepped into the breach, releasing a new tool to track the reduction in cost and increase in adoption of solar and wind power, electric-vehicle batteries, and LED lightbulbs. READ MORE: Trump to slash clean-energy funding 72 percent...
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U.S. regulator rejects coal, nuclear bailout, says renewable energy may double by 2020
For much of last year, U.S. Energy Secretary Rick Perry pursued a plan that, in essence, would prop up the financially challenged U.S. coal and nuclear industries. His proposal, submitted to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission last fall, provided financial subsidies to electric-generation...
John Voelcker -
These six states have the highest electric-car adoption rates in the country
By now, many people would likely produce the correct answer when asked, Where in the U.S. are electric cars most popular? That would be California, which last year had almost seven battery-electric and plug-in hybrid cars registered per 1,000 people. But five other states have more than two plug-in...
John Voelcker -
Fossil-fuel lobbyists join renewable peers against DoE coal, nuclear support plans
Pity Energy Secretary Rick Perry, the man now running the cabinet department he couldn't remember that he wanted to eliminate altogether during a notorious 2011 presidential debate. He has pulled off an unusual feat, by uniting lobbyists for fossil-fuel interests with their counterparts advocating...
John Voelcker -
Energy Dept grid report downplayed renewables, stressed coal, fossil fuels
The Trump administration hasn't been coy about trying to champion traditional fossil fuels while downplaying the importance and falling costs of renewable energy. Earlier this year, Department of Energy secretary Rick Perry, previously governor of fossil-fuel producer Texas, called for a 60-day...
Sean Szymkowski -
Energy Dept disappoints US coal industry: no order keeping plants open
The Trump administration has reneged on one aspect of a promise widely discussed throughout the 2016 presidential campaign: reviving the coal industry. President Donald Trump declared the United States coal industry would thrive under his watch, but the Trump administration and the Energy...
Sean Szymkowski -
The Senate Committee on Appropriations recently exhibited a quality somewhat rare in U.S. politics these days: bipartisanship. The committee released a lengthy report on the 2018 fiscal year budget for the Department of Energy that walks away from the Trump Administration's efforts to defund clean energy. In fact, the committee voted on a bipartisan basis to boost funding, rather than slash it. DON'T MISS: Trump budget slashes EPA emission testing, hits makers with higher fees The Administration had called for massive cuts to the Department of Energy in its 2018 budget, specifically targeting...
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Trump DoE to critique renewables against coal for grid reliability
It is widely accepted in the energy industry that U.S. coal production will fall as a percentage of the total electric grid mix. That has little to do with its high carbon footprint per kilowatt-hour generated; it is largely due to far greater supplies of much cheaper fracked natural gas. It is...
John Voelcker -
SimpleFuel home hydrogen fuel dispenser wins $1 million DoE prize
Last week, the U.S. Department of Energy awarded a $1 million prize to a little-known team for what you might call a new garage appliance. The SimpleFuel team—actually a collaboration of three separate companies—won the prize, first offered in November 2014, for its hydrogen...
John Voelcker -
Trump: Rick Perry to lead Energy Department he vowed to eliminate
Former Texas Governor Rick Perry is President-elect Donald Trump's pick for Secretary of Energy.
Stephen Edelstein -
Fuel from emissions? Catalyst converts carbon dioxide to ethanol
At least in North America, ethanol is a contentious fuel. A decade ago, it was seen as a homegrown and carbon-neutral way to use less gasoline—and federal legislation mandated that increasing volumes be blended into U.S. fuel supplies. Much debate followed over using "food for fuel," its...
John Voelcker -
DoE energy-loan program (notorious for Solyndra) now turning a profit
The Department of Energy loan program that funded Solyndra is now turning a profit.
Stephen Edelstein -
The U.S. Department of Energy announced Monday that it would award almost $1 million to Drive Oregon over three years, to fund a regional marketing campaign that will promote the benefits of electric cars to regional consumers. The advocacy group plans to set up a permanent storefront in downtown Portland that will showcase a variety of electric vehicles and charging equipment. It will be located across the street from Electric Avenue, the city's array of charging stations for plug-in cars. DON'T MISS: Most electric-car-friendly U.S. cities: new ranking puts Portland on top The staff inside...
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DoE Program That Funded Tesla, Fisker To Restart; Alcoa In Line For Loan?
It's baaaaaaaaack. The U.S. Department of Energy's $25 billion low-interest loan program may be about to start awarding new loans. The DoE's Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVM) program endured intense political criticism for funding not only electric-car maker Tesla Motors but also...
John Voelcker -
DoE Reboots Advanced Auto-Tech Loan Program That Funded Ford, Nissan, Tesla, Fisker
It's baaaaaaaaaaaack. U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz announced yesterday that the DoE had revised and updated its Advanced-Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVM) program, which offers low-interest loans to carmakers and their suppliers. Any new loans, according to a Detroit News...
John Voelcker -
Fisker Assets Sold For $149 Million To Wanxiang, Chinese Parts Maker
The assets of bankrupt Fisker Automotive were sold to Wanxiang America at the close of an auction in Delaware bankruptcy court that lasted more than two days and lasted 19 rounds. Bloomberg reports that the Chinese company paid a total of $149.2 million for the company, or six times the price of...
John Voelcker -
Finding Alternative Fueling Stations? DoE Has An App For That
The DOE has made its Alternative Fueling Station Locator into an app.
Stephen Edelstein -
Car Charging Group Buys Ecotality Electric-Car Charging Network For $3.3 Million
Troubled electric-car charging company Ecotality's Blink network will be bought by the Car Charging Group
Stephen Edelstein -
The 2013 Nissan Leaf electric car is assembled in Smyrna, Tennessee, for North American sales. In fact, Nissan got a low-interest loan for $1.6 billion from the U.S. Department of Energy to make that possible. So why does every 2013 Leaf carry a window sticker saying that its U.S. and Canadian content is just 15 percent--while 80 percent of its parts content comes from Japan? Sticker shock The question arose in late July, coming from electric-car enthusiast Andrew Chiang, who photographed the sticker on a brand-new 2013 Leaf at Nissan Sunnyvale, in California. Chiang posted the photo in the...
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Energy Department To Sell Its Fisker Loan: Kickstarter, Anyone?
That sound you heard yesterday was the other shoe dropping. The U.S. Department of Energy is offering its loan to Fisker Automotive for sale to the highest bidder, with a remaining face value of $164 million. The DoE did the same a few weeks ago with a much smaller loan--$45 million--to Vehicle...
John Voelcker -
AM General Buys VPG, Defunct Natural-Gas Handicapped Van Maker
Less than a year ago, Vehicle Production Group seemed a success: The startup maker had built 2,500 MV-1 handicapped vans in a year, about one-quarter of them powered by natural gas. But this past April, VPG shut down due to a cash crunch that meant it couldn't make payroll. Now, its $50 million...
John Voelcker -
Tesla Repays $465-Million DoE Loan, Chrysler Bites Back At Claim
Ah, politics. Yesterday, Tesla paid off the balance of its U.S. government loan, using proceeds from its $1 billion-plus offering of stock and warrants last week, as CEO Elon Musk had said Monday it would in a tweet. The amount settled yesterday was $451.8 million, following installments paid by...
John Voelcker -
How Are Electric-Car Batteries Made? Photos From Nissan's New Plant
Making a battery for an electric car is more like assembling microelectronics than the kind of auto-plant scenes we think of, involving huge steel stamping presses and battalions of automated welding robots. Last month, in addition to driving a 2013 Nissan Leaf through the Tennessee countryside, we...
John Voelcker -
Can Tesla Raise More Than $1 Billion On Soaring Stock Price?
Investors in startup electric-car maker Tesla Motors [NSDQ:TSLA] have had quite the wild ride lately. Following its first-ever profitable quarter, with its share price soaring above $80, Tesla announced last Wednesday that it would issue new stock and warrants. Now, Tesla has quietly increased its...
John Voelcker