Welcome back climate leaders.

In today’s edition:

• 🔥 Energy startup achieves geothermal breakthrough

• 🛻 Ford drops the price of F-150 Lightning

• ⚡️ DOE commits $150m for contractor training

Read time: 4 minutes

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HOT TOPICS

Need to know

🛴 Growing shared mobility use likely to disrupt urban transportation, private car ownership

Growing popularity of shared mobility, including ride-hailing, car-sharing, and shared bikes and e-scooters, is expected to disrupt urban transportation and reduce private car ownership.

A recent survey by McKinsey revealed that over 25% of urban dwellers in 15 countries are considering giving up their private vehicles for alternative transportation options. In the United States alone, shared micromobility users took 121 million trips on bikes and scooters in 2021.

Repurposing parking garages, establishing designated stops, and collaborating with public transportation authorities are essential to accommodate shared vehicles and navigate the evolving urban transportation landscape.

Public transportation plays a vital role in reducing transportation emissions, but many systems in the U.S. are struggling due to the pandemic's impact on ridership. There is a concern that the focus on E.V.s may leave mass transit further neglected.

🪨 Energy Startup Says It Has Achieved Geothermal Tech Breakthrough

Startup Fervo Energy has achieved a significant breakthrough in geothermal technology. They recently completed a successful demonstration of their commercial pilot project, generating 3.5 megawatts of electricity in northern Nevada.

This marks the first time a company has shown that enhanced geothermal systems can be implemented on a large scale.

Fervo Energy plans to connect its Project Red site to the grid, powering Google's data centers in Nevada.

The significance of this achievement is that geothermal energy is no longer a resource for the future, but a viable solution today. Fervo Energy has ambitious plans to expand to other sites across the western US.

🔋 Big Automakers Grab $1 Billion Deal for Urgently Needed Battery Metals

Big automakers, including Volkswagen and Stellantis, have secured a $1 billion deal to acquire battery metals for their electric vehicles.

The deal involves the creation of a publicly traded mining company that will produce nickel and copper from Brazilian mines powered by hydropower. A special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC), along with mining giant Glencore, will contribute $100 million each to the transaction.

This move reflects the automakers' urgency to secure raw materials outside of China and meet stringent environmental and labor standards to qualify for substantial electric-car incentives. Other automakers have also made significant investments in lithium, copper, and nickel mining ventures in recent months.

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📈 Business & Markets

• Ford has reduced the price of its F-150 Lightning electric pickup truck due to improved manufacturing efficiencies.

• Amtrak's $75 billion plan aims to transform US train travel with a dramatic expansion.

• Beyond Meat's retail launch of the Stack Burger expands its lineup with a retail version of the Beyond Smashable Burger, hitting grocery shelves this summer.

🏛 Policy & Politics

• International Seabed Authority missed a deadline to regulate deep-sea mining, allowing companies to apply for permits without environmental protections.

• DOE invests $150M in grants to train contractors and expand residential energy efficiency projects.

• House GOP aims to cut billions from infrastructure spending, potentially hindering urgent public works projects.

🚀 Startups & Tech

• Terabase Energy and Sarcos Technology are competing to develop advanced robotic systems for building solar farms. Terabase raised $25 million and launched Terafab, capable of installing 1 GW per year. Sarcos partnered with Blattner Company to refine its own autonomous mobile robotic system.

• The IMO's new climate goals set a target of achieving net-zero emissions "by or around 2050" in the shipping industry. Companies may turn to ammonia or methanol as potential low-emission fuels.

• Should money be directed towards heavy industry emission capture or bolstering low-emission technologies? High-emitting sectors aspire to use carbon capture, removal, and storage to achieve sustainability goals.

🌎 Society & Impact

• Extreme heat poses challenges to electric vehicle (EV) batteries. In hot climates, EVs work harder to maintain both battery and passenger cooling.

• A proposed copper mine near protected national parks tests the balance of preserving wilderness and accessing critical minerals. Ambler Metals seeks to mine $7.5 billion worth of copper for renewable energy infrastructure.

• A climber clashes with a French mayor over Mont Blanc's future as the mountain melts. The dispute highlights tensions in the warming Alps and the ongoing debate on fixed gear in climbing.

BY THE NUMBERS

🔥 249. Total megatonnes of carbon emitted from the Canadian wildfires so far in 2023.

🥵 118. The high temperature at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport, a new record for above normal among another record for consecutive extreme heat days.

📈 100%. That’s how much the number of EV charging points has increased in the last 3 years.

ACCLIMATE RECS

• The what and why of a home energy audit.

• How the Canadian wildfires got so bad so fast.

• Heat waves impact your brain, too.

• The downside of EVs: more toxic tire particles.

• Anecdotal analysis says Armenia is heavily adopting EVs.

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