Global Climate News - April 5

Small modular reactors; Electric Vehicle Sales; SEC stays climate disclosure rule

Apr 06, 2024

Clean Energy Economics

M10 (182 millimetre) and G12 (210 millimetre) are larger size polysilicon wafers that are gaining market share in global solar installations. Prices for mono PERC M10 and n-type M10 wafers have fallen nearly 10% this week, while those for the mono PERC G12 and n-type G12 have fallen by ~4% and 7% respectively. A large inventory led to falling prices, but many manufacturers have reduced production output in the past weeks that may lead to prices stabilizing. pv magazine

Lead-cooled Small Modular Reactor

Small Modular Reactors are nuclear reactors with capacities between 10-300MW and use pre-fabricated components that can be shipped to the plant site to assemble the reactor (hence “modular”). They can use water, molten salts, metals, and gases for cooling. They have much lower construction times and lower costs per MW than large nuclear reactors, and can be built on land or as floating units on water.

UK-based newcleo has developed a small modular reactor that uses lead for cooling

Lead shows excellent properties for the nuclear application and is abundant, relatively low cost, shows high boiling temperature, does not interact with water, air or fuel – unlike sodium - and offers some radiation shielding. These characteristics allow achieving high efficiencies while working at atmospheric pressure, greatly simplify the reactor design and enhance passive safety in an accident scenario.

The company is working on reactors of 2 sizes. One of 30MW that can be used on islands, remote communities or even onboard large shipping vessels. The other of 200MW that can replace traditional power plants such as those based on coal or natural gas.

UK government recently also awarded funding to X-Energy (gas-cooled reactors) and Cavendish Nuclear for developing small modular reactors.

Power Technology | newcleo | X-Energy | Cavendish Nuclear

IAEA, 2022 - Advances in Small Modular Reactor Technology Developments (PDF)

Electric Vehicle Sales

Bloomberg analysis shows that once electric vehicles contribute 5% of new car sales in a country, their share grows much faster. In 2022, they found that 19 countries had crossed this threshold. In 2023, a total of 31 countries - including many in Asia (Thailand) and Eastern Europe - had crossed the tipping point.

No country in Latin America has reached the 5% tipping point. In Japan, US and South Korea adoption is slow even after having crossed the threshold.

Here are the top 15 countries by share of EVs in the market:

Several analyses published in the past month cite lack of sufficient EV chargers as the main reason why more people are not buying EVs.

ET Energy | Bloomberg March 24 and April 4

Top Stories

IAEA is helping Africa locate groundwater resources using isotope hydrology.
By analysing naturally occurring isotopes (a type of atom) in groundwater, scientists can assess the age, vulnerability and sustainability of water resources. The analysis of nitrogen isotopes in water can also be used to work out the source of pollutants which threaten aquifers, strengthening water security and resilience planning.
Large amounts of groundwater have been located using this technique in the Sahel basin - a semi-arid, barren and sandy area.
IAEA
In a joint study, Australia’s national science agency and the University of Toronto used data from remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and bottom trawls to determine the amount of plastic on the ocean floor. Based on ROV data, the researches estimate that
3 to 11 million metric tonnes (MMT) of plastic pollution resides on the ocean floor as of 2020. This is of similar magnitude to annual inputs from land and one to two orders of magnitude greater than what is predicted to be floating on the ocean surface.
Innovation News | Research in Elsevier
The UK government has launched a bidding process to support feasibility studies for zero emission shipping routes from the country to Netherlands, Norway, Denmark, and Ireland.
These studies will map out infrastructure required along the routes to enable vessels to access green fuels and power charging systems, as well as look at further regulations required to push the industry towards decarbonisation.
Offshore Energy | GOV.UK Press Release | Clean Maritime Demonstration Competition
Scientists at UC Berkeley began setting up a network of CO2 sensors in the San Francisco Bay Area in 2012. From 2018 to 2022, the sensors have recorded a drop of 1.8% annually, which is attributed to high EV adoption rates in the city. The research also helps understand whether EVs are actually helping reduce overall emissions from car use, which are typically calculated based on vehicle registrations and fuel consumptions. The sensors used by the Berkeley researchers cost less than $10,000 per sensor are being used by some cities (Los Angeles, Glasgow) for monitoring city air pollution. ET Energy | Berkeley News | BEACO2N Map
In Carbon insetting, companies attempt to reduce emissions created by their suppliers by investing in projects for reforestation, regenerative agriculture, renewable energy etc. A group of maritime organisations has introduced a carbon insetting program for zero-emissions shipping that will allow “cargo owners to fund carbon reduction projects directly”.
The project aims to develop, test, and validate methodologies for ships powered by swappable batteries and hydrogen, using the Smart Freight Centre’s Book and Claim framework, which separates emission reductions from the transportation of goods.
Offshore Energy | Press Release | Whitepaper - Carbon Insets for the Logistics Sector, 2020 (PDF)
The US Securities and Exchange Commission released a rule on March 6 this year, that would require listed companies to make extensive climate disclosures under scope 1 and 2. Several entities filed petitions against the SEC rule in the past weeks claiming an overreach of authority. The SEC has now announced a stay on the rule until all petitions have been addressed. Here’s an excerpt from the SEC statement on March 6:
[For scope 1 and 2] Companies will have to disclose a quantitative dataset of GHG emissions subject to a gatekeepers’ review. These gatekeepers must follow certain widely-accepted attestation standards, which includes a requirement that the gatekeepers be independent from the company. Moreover, companies will have to disclose if they dismissed or fired a gatekeeper over disagreements related to GHG emissions disclosures, making it harder to hide deceptive or irregular practices.
Utility Dive | SEC statement on April 4
France’s Economy Minister is urging energy companies and developers in the country to use French-made solar panels.
France wants to produce 40 percent of the solar panels it uses locally, Le Maire said, presenting it as an NZIA goal. However, the EU law set production targets for the entire bloc, not individual countries.
France is also providing state aid to several solar projects in the country, including tax credits worth up to €200 million for two solar panel factories. And it's easing rules to install solar panels on farmland.
Australia, US, India, the European Union have all been promoting the use of domestic solar panels as solar installations rise globally. POLITICO
US has announced $19.5 million in funding for 3 projects to install solar panels on water canals, as a water conservation measure. Solar Power World