Sydney Morning Herald: Tesla Says Its Batteries Could Fix Australia's Energy Problems in 100 Days

They are only starting to gain a foothold in the Australian market, but could batteries provide a near-overnight solution to the energy woes that have hit South Australia and risk spreading east?

At least one company believes so. In an elaborate launch in a former power substation in suburban Newport, in Melbourne's west, Tesla Inc. said its technology could provide a fix within 100 days.

The Californian company's energy products vice president Lyndon Rive said it could install up to 300 megawatts of grid-scale battery storage in that timeframe at a cost of about $66 million per 100 megawatts.

"If you had storage deployed during the blackout [in] South Australia, you wouldn't have had the blackout," Mr Rive said.

Bloomberg: Wind Power Blows Through Nuclear, Coal as Costs Plunge at Sea

“If you have a sufficiently large site with the right wind speeds, then I do believe you can build offshore wind at least at the same price as new build coal in many places around the world including the U.S.,” said Henrik Poulsen, chief executive officer of Dong Energy A/S, the Danish utility that has pioneered the technology and has become the world’s biggest installer of windmills at sea.

Across Europe, the price of building an offshore wind farm has fallen 46 percent in the last five years -- 22 percent last year alone. Erecting turbines in the seabed now costs an average $126 for each megawatt-hour of capacity, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. That’s below the $155 per megawatt-hour price for new nuclear developments in Europe and closing in on the $88 price tag on new coal plants, the London-based researcher estimates.

Politico: The Obama Idea to Save Coal Country

Even if every one of Obama’s environmental regulations -- the Mercury and Air Toxics Standards; the Cross State Air Pollution Rule; the Coal Ash Rule; the Effluent Limitations Guidelines for wastewater discharge, and Section 316(b) of the Clean Water Act -- were all struck down tomorrow, the effect on jobs in Appalachia would still be negligible. That’s because global demand for coal is slowing, and coal from Wyoming costs a fraction of the coal from Appalachia. Even without the Stream Protection Rule, the Appalachian economy still needs to be remade.

It turns out that one of the best ideas for how to rescue the region came from the same people who have been reviled for their role in burying the coal industry.

CNBC: This Is Why Oil Companies Are Not Drilling in the Arctic

Low oil prices have caused international oil companies to think twice about investing in Arctic extraction, but with prices on the rise it is only a matter of time before businesses tap into what has long been considered the final frontier for energy resources, according to Eurasia Group.

So far this year, oil has been trading at slightly over $50 per barrel, up significantly from the lows of early 2016 but still well below the highs of around $115 per barrel seen in mid-2014.

"In this current oil price environment, [Arctic drilling] is really not very feasible," Emily Stromquist, senior analyst at Eurasia Group, said.

EDF: 4 Signs Texas Could Lead the Clean Energy Economy -- But Will It?

“If you want to know how wind works for America, just ask a Texan.” That’s according to Tom Kiernan, CEO of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA), which just released its newest wind industry market report.

The AWEA report shows Texas is the nation’s indisputable wind powerhouse, including serving as home to nearly a quarter of America’s wind jobs. But wind is just one piece of the puzzle, and recent reports confirm the pieces are in place for Texas to blaze the clean energy trail.

Wind is thriving in Texas and solar is growing, while the electric grid remains reliable and billions in savings await. But the Lone Star State can do more: California has more than 10 times as many solar jobs with less than a quarter of Texas’ solar potential. When it comes to clean energy, will lawmakers during this 85th Texas Legislative Session position the state to lead the nation?