Can a 20-person startup with $25 million get Oklo’s fast-fission micro-reactor to market?
New generation of entrepreneurs aim to commercialize an advanced fission micro-reactor to compete against diesel gensets in remote and island communities. Technological and regulatory challenges abound.
Morning Brief: Energy secretary slams ‘radical environmentalists,’ touts gas and nuclear as California’s energy future
Also in the brief: $1 million fine at stake as Minnesota solar developers fault Xcel for project delays, more on interconnection.
SEPA rolls out blueprint for tackling integrated distribution planning
Order 2222 raises the stakes — distributed resources are already starting to have material impacts on utilities’ planning efforts, and higher penetrations of distributed resources will amplify the need for better forecasts.
Morning Brief: California modernizes its distributed energy interconnection rules, Pine Gate launches wave of Michigan solar
Also in the brief: Natron Energy, a supplier of fire-safe sodium-ion batteries using Prussian blue chemistry, has achieved a UL listing for its battery.
North America’s first lithium-ion battery recycling hub is coming to New York
Li-Cycle, a Canadian battery recycling firm, has chosen Rochester as the home for its planned $175 million recycling facility, which promises to deliver recycled battery materials, beyond just lithium-ion, at market scale.
Nextracker inks 1 GW supply deal and claims up to 12% bifacial yield gain
The 1 GW fifth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park in Dubai will feature NX Horizon trackers with the deal announced after the manufacturer published new bifacial yield gain claims.
Plasma enables smaller, more powerful NMC-811 cathodes
Batteries could shrink even more with smaller crystals in the cathodes. Battery packs in electric vehicles and consumer goods could become smaller, while still offering high performance.
How long will the lithium supply last?
Researchers have sounded the alarm. If no serious efforts are made on second-life battery use, recycling and vehicle-to-grid applications, decarbonization efforts may hit the buffers a lot sooner than expected.
NREL projects up to 7.5 TW of global, hydro-linked floating PV potential
A study into the benefits of linking solar with hydro in a full hybrid system configuration has found global potential of 7,593 GW, for an estimated annual power generation of 10,616 TWh and a 20% reservoir coverage.
Duke Energy, developers and regulators advance solar in the Carolinas with ‘queue reform’ and cluster studies
To address developers’ frustrations with its interconnection process, Duke Energy worked with solar industry associations to map out a second proposal aimed at rationalizing its interconnection process in 2022, after the existing queue is cleared.
