Solar, EVs and energy storage among the few technologies keeping pace with energy transition goals
Among 45 critical energy technologies and sectors assessed in a tracking report by the International Energy Agency, only seven are keeping hopes alive that climate, energy access and air pollution goals can be met.
Fortum pairs li-ion storage with hydropower plant in Sweden
The Finnish utility has switched on a 5 MW/6.2 MWh lithium-ion battery storage system at a hydropower plant in Sweden.
EVs may account for more than half of global car sales by 2040: BNEF
Electric vehicles could account for more than half of all passenger cars and buses sold throughout the world within the next two decades, according to a new report by BloombergNEF. Sliding lithium-ion battery costs will make EVs cheaper than vehicles based on internal combustion engines by the mid- to late-2020s, the research firm says.
LCOE for li-ion batteries has fallen to $187/MWh — BNEF
Lithium-ion batteries are increasingly posing a competitive threat to coal- and gas-fired generating plants when paired with solar and wind projects in a number of markets throughout the world, without the need for subsidies, according to new research by BloombergNEF (BNEF).
Innovation boosts lithium-ion battery recycling rate to over 80%
Finnish clean-energy company Fortum has achieved a lithium-ion battery material recycling rate of over 80% — against what it says is a current rate of 50% — with a low-carbon hydrometallurgical recycling process.
Volkswagen, Northvolt to set up battery research consortium
Automaker Volkswagen and Swedish lithium-ion battery producer Northvolt have announced plans to jointly form and lead a new organization, the European Battery Union (EBU), to conduct research on batteries used in transport and stationary energy storage applications.
Researchers upcycle plastic waste into battery anodes
A new approach could extract carbon from polyethylenes in a cost-competitive way, that could be scaled up. Researchers have also performed electric testing with the extracted carbon and found it suitable for use as anodes in Li-ion batteries, among multiple other uses.
Boom in electromobility unlikely to cause lithium shortage
The French Environment & Energy Management Agency (Ademe) has published a report in which analyzes the dynamics of lithium supply and demand in different scenarios of global electrification by 2050. The agency experts are convinced that only with a 75% penetration of electric vehicles there is the real risk of a marked decrease in the safety margin of lithium supply.
Australia: Sodium-ion batteries get commercial rollout as li-ion alternative
Sydney Water’s Bondi sewage pumping station will soon be storing solar energy through the use of 30 kWh of sodium-ion batteries, a cheaper alternative to the traditional lithium-ion batteries.
Siemens backs Northvolt’s Swedish battery factory plan with €10m
The German group has joined the project as a technology partner, and brings €10 million. Siemens will conduct digitalization of the value chain for Northvolt production and will be supplied with the factory’s products
