Westerville has become the first of 92 member-communities to reject the prospect of long-term ownership in a coal-fueled power plant proposed for Meigs County along the Ohio River.
Led by Westerville City Councilman Craig Treneff, council members shared numerous concerns about the project before voting it down 5-1. Treneff cited growing resistance to coal as an energy source, stating, "I don't want Westerville to be on the wrong side of environmental choices 20 to 30 years from now."
The proposal from American Municipal Power of Ohio would have locked the city into a 50-year contract with the utility to fund a new power plant, in return for rights on the power it produces. The plant, expected to begin operating in 2013, would have provided about 40 percent of Westerville's nonpeak electricity.
But the deal would have required the city to make monthly payments, regardless of how much, if any, energy the plant produced.
"I think it's a very wise decision. It's an extremely risky plant that could cause a lot of public health and environmental damage," said Sandy Buchanan, executive director of Ohio Citizen Action, after the vote.
AMPOhio President Marc S. Gerken quickly left the meeting and didn't respond to requests for a comment. Kent Carson, spokesman for AMPOhio, said Westerville's vote shouldn't influence other member communities who have yet to vote before a Nov. 1 deadline.
"They (Westerville) didn't say it was a bad project," Carson said. "They said it was not good for Westerville."
Treneff called the risk "impossible to quantify. I can't take a 50-year risk, not being able to predict that far ahead."
Councilwoman Kathy Cocuzzi also pointed out that, within 50 years, other energy sources might be an option. She suggested that the city might offer incentives to residents who use solar or geothermal heat sources.
"The only thing I'm committed to for 50 years is my marriage," she said.
The only proponent was Councilman Bill Highfield, who said that council should have supported the decision of the city-hired energy consultant to accept the deal.
"We have a responsibility to the people of Westerville to provide them with as stable of a financial future as is possible. If we can save them over a million dollars a year, I think that's pretty decent."
The average yearly rate savings has been about $70 per resident, he said.
Councilwoman Anne Gonzales said she doubted that AMPOhio would have been able to construct the plant in a timely manner. Since 2004, and the end of a long-term contract with American Electric Power, Westerville's power costs have risen sharply. This has prompted suggestions that the city get out of supplying power all together.
But Council Chairman Damon "Chip" Wetterauer praised the city's electric division, citing several infrastructure projects it has helped to fund.
"Make no mistake about it," he said, "the electric division is not for sale."
Switch-On Project Electric Trucks accelerate California freight decarbonization, deploying Volvo VNR Electric rigs with high-capacity charging infrastructure, zero-emissions operations, and connected safety features to cut greenhouse gases and improve urban air quality.
Key Points
A California program deploying Volvo VNR Electric trucks and charging to decarbonize freight and improve air quality.
✅ 70 Volvo VNR Electric trucks for regional logistics
✅ Strategic high-capacity charging for heavy-duty fleets
✅ Lower TCO via fuel savings and reduced maintenance
In a significant step toward sustainable transportation, the Switch-On project is bringing 70 Volvo VNR Electric trucks to California. This initiative aims to bolster the state's efforts to reduce emissions and transition to greener logistics solutions. The arrival of these electric vehicles marks an important milestone in California's commitment to combating climate change and improving air quality.
The Switch-On Project: Overview and Goals
The Switch-On project is a collaborative effort designed to enhance electric truck adoption in California. It focuses on developing the necessary infrastructure and technology to support electric vehicles (EVs) in the freight and logistics sectors, building on recent nonprofit investments at California ports. The project not only seeks to increase the availability of electric trucks but also aims to demonstrate their effectiveness in real-world applications.
California has set ambitious goals for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, particularly from the transportation sector, which is one of the largest contributors to air pollution. By introducing electric trucks into freight operations, the state aims to significantly cut emissions, improve public health, and pave the way for a more sustainable future.
The Volvo VNR Electric Trucks
The Volvo VNR Electric trucks are specifically designed for regional distribution and urban transport, aligning with Volvo's broader electric lineup as the company expands offerings, making them ideal for the needs of California’s freight industry. With a range of approximately 250 miles on a single charge, these trucks can efficiently handle most regional routes. Equipped with advanced technology, including regenerative braking and connectivity features, the VNR Electric models enhance operational efficiency and safety.
These trucks not only provide a cleaner alternative to traditional diesel vehicles but also promise lower operational costs over time. With reduced fuel expenses and lower maintenance needs, and emerging vehicle-to-grid pilots that can create new value streams, businesses can benefit from significant savings while contributing to environmental sustainability.
Infrastructure Development
A crucial aspect of the Switch-On project is the development of charging infrastructure to support the new fleet of electric trucks. The project partners are working on installing high-capacity charging stations strategically located throughout California while addressing utility planning challenges that large fleets will pose to the power system. This infrastructure is essential to ensure that electric trucks can be charged efficiently, minimizing downtime and maximizing productivity.
The charging stations are designed to accommodate the specific needs of heavy-duty vehicles, and corridor models like BC's Electric Highway provide useful precedents for network design, allowing for rapid charging that aligns with operational schedules. This development not only supports the new fleet but also encourages other logistics companies to consider electric trucks as a viable option for their operations.
Benefits to California
The introduction of 70 Volvo VNR Electric trucks will have several positive impacts on California. Firstly, it will significantly reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the freight sector, contributing to the state’s ambitious climate goals even as grid expansion will be needed to support widespread electrification across sectors. The transition to electric trucks is expected to improve air quality, particularly in urban areas that struggle with high pollution levels.
Moreover, the project serves as a model for other regions considering similar initiatives. By showcasing the practicality and benefits of electric trucks, California hopes to inspire widespread adoption across the nation. As the market for electric vehicles continues to grow, this project can play a pivotal role in accelerating the transition to sustainable transportation solutions.
Industry and Community Reactions
The arrival of the Volvo VNR Electric trucks has been met with enthusiasm from both industry stakeholders and community members. Logistics companies are excited about the opportunity to reduce their carbon footprints and operational costs. Meanwhile, environmental advocates applaud the project as a crucial step toward cleaner air and healthier communities.
California’s commitment to sustainable transportation has positioned it as a leader in the shift to electric vehicles amid an ongoing biofuels vs. EVs debate over the best path forward, setting an example for other states and countries.
Conclusion
The Switch-On project represents a major advancement in California's efforts to transition to electric transportation. With the deployment of 70 Volvo VNR Electric trucks, the state is not only taking a significant step toward reducing emissions but also demonstrating the feasibility of electric logistics solutions.
As infrastructure develops and more electric trucks hit the roads, California is paving the way for a greener, more sustainable future in transportation. The success of this project could have far-reaching implications, influencing policies and practices in the broader freight industry and beyond.
China Renewable Energy Law drives growth in wind power, solar thermal, and photovoltaic capacity, supporting grid integration and five-year plans, even as China leads CO2 emissions, with policy incentives, compliance inspections, and national resource assessments.
Key Points
A legal framework that speeds wind, solar thermal, and PV growth in China via mandates, incentives, and grid rules.
✅ 2018 renewables: 1.87T kWh, 26.7% of national power
✅ Over 100 State Council policies enabling deployment
✅ Law inspections and regional oversight across six provinces
China leads renewable energies, installing more wind power, solar thermal and photovoltaic than any other country, as seen in the China solar PV growth reported in 2016, but also leads CO2 emissions, and much remains to be done.
The effective application of Chinas renewable energy law has boosted the use of renewable energy in the country and facilitated the rapid development of the sector, as solar parity across Chinese cities indicates, a report said.
The report on compliance with renewable energy law was presented today at the current bimonthly session of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Assembly (APN).
Electricity generated by renewable energy amounted to about 1.87 trillion kilowatts per hour in 2018, representing 26.7 percent of Chinas total energy production in the year, aligning with trends where wind and solar doubling globally over five years, the report said.
Ding Zhongli, vice president of the NPC Standing Committee, presented the report to the legislators at the second plenary meeting of the session.
An inspection of the law enforcement was carried out from August to November, as U.S. renewables hit 28% record showed momentum elsewhere. A total of 21 members of the NPC Standing Committee and the NPC Environmental Protection and Resource Conservation Committee, as well as national legislators, traveled to six regions at the provincial level on inspection visits. Twelve legislative bodies at the provincial level inspected the law enforcement efforts in their jurisdictions.
The relevant State Council agencies have implemented more than 100 regulations and policies to foster a good policy environment for the development of renewable energy, as seen in markets where U.S. renewable electricity surpassed coal in 2022. Local regulations have also been formulated based on local conditions, according to the report.
In accordance with the law, a thorough investigation of the national conditions of renewable energy resources was undertaken.
In 2008 and 2014 atlas of solar energy resources and wind energy evaluation of China were issued. The relevant agencies of the State Council have also implemented five-year plans for the development of renewable energy, which have provided guidance to the sector, while countries like Ireland's one-third green power target remain in focus within four years.
The main provisions of the law have been met, the law has been effectively applied and the purpose of the legislation has been met, and this momentum is echoed abroad, with U.S. renewables near one-fourth according to projections, Ding said.
Shenao Power Plant Controversy intensifies as the EPA, Taipower, and New Taipei officials clash over EIA findings, a marine conservation area, fisheries, public health risks, and protests against a coal-fired plant in Rueifang.
Key Points
Dispute over coal plant EIA, marine overlap, and health risks, pitting EPA and Taipower against New Taipei and residents.
✅ EPA approved EIA changes; city cites marine conservation conflict
✅ Debate centers on fisheries, public health, and coal plant impacts
The controversy over the Shenao Power Plant heated up yesterday as Environmental Protection Administration (EPA) and New Taipei City Government officials quibbled over the project’s potential impact on a fisheries conservation area and other issues, mirroring New Hampshire hydropower clashes seen elsewhere.
State-run Taiwan Power Co (Taipower) wants to build a coal-fired plant on the site of the old Shenao plant, which was near Rueifang District’s (瑞芳) Shenao Harbor.
The company’s original plan to build a new plant on the site passed an environmental impact assessment (EIA) in 2006, similar to how NEPA rules function in the US, and the EPA on March 14 approved the firm’s environmental impact difference analysis report covering proposed changes to the project.
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That decision triggered widespread controversy and protests by local residents, environmental groups and lawmakers, echoing enforcement disputes such as renewable energy pollution cases reported in Maryland.
The controversy reached a new peak after New Taipei City Mayor Eric Chu on Tuesday last week posted on Facebook that construction of wave breakers for the project would overlap with a marine conservation area that was established in November 2014.
The EPA and Taipower chose to ignore the demarcation lines of the conservation area, Chu wrote.
Dozens of residents from Rueifang and other New Taipei City districts yesterday launched a protest at 9am in front of the Legislative Yuan in Taipei, amid debates similar to the Maine power line proposal in the US, where the Health, Environment and Labor Committee was scheduled to review government reports on the project.
More than 400 Rueifang residents have signed a petition against the project, including 17 of the district’s 34 borough wardens, Anti-Shenao Plant Self-Help Group director Chen Chih-chiang said.
Ruifang residents have limited access to information, and many only became aware of the construction project after the EPA’s March 14 decision attracted widespread media coverage, Chen said,
Most residents do not support the project, despite Taipower’s claims to the contrary, Chen said.
New Power Party Executive Chairman Huang Kuo-chang, who represents Rueifang and adjacent districts, said the EPA has shown an “arrogance of power” by neglecting the potential impact on public health and the local ecology of a new coal-fired power plant, even as it moves to revise coal wastewater limits elsewhere.
Huang urged residents in Taipei, Keelung, Taoyaun and Yilan County to reject the project.
If the New Taipei City Government was really concerned about the marine conservation area, it should have spoken up at earlier EIA meetings, rather than criticizing the EIA decision after it was passed, Environmental Protection Administration Deputy Minister Chan Shun-kuei told lawmakers at yesterday’s meeting.
Chan said he wondered if Chu was using the Shenao project for political gain.
However, New Taipei City Environmental Protection Department specialist Sun Chung-wei told lawmakers that the Fisheries Agency and other experts voiced concerns about the conservation area during the first EIA committee meeting on the proposed changes to the Shenao project on June 15 last year.
Sun was invited to speak to the legislative committee by Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) Legislator Arthur Chen.
While the New Taipei City Fisheries and Fishing Port Affairs Management Office did not present a “new” opinion during later EIA committee meetings, that did not mean it agreed to the project, Sun said.
However, Chan said that Sun was using a fallacious argument and trying to evade responsibility, as the conservation area had been demarcated by the city government.
ITER Nuclear Fusion advances tokamak magnetic confinement, heating deuterium-tritium plasma with superconducting magnets, targeting net energy gain, tritium breeding, and steam-turbine power, while complementing laser inertial confinement milestones for grid-scale electricity and 2025 startup goals.
Key Points
ITER Nuclear Fusion is a tokamak project confining D-T plasma with magnets to achieve net energy gain and clean power.
✅ Tokamak magnetic confinement with high-temp superconducting coils
✅ Deuterium-tritium fuel cycle with on-site tritium breeding
✅ Targets net energy gain and grid-scale, low-carbon electricity
It sounds like the stuff of dreams: a virtually limitless source of energy that doesn’t produce greenhouse gases or radioactive waste. That’s the promise of nuclear fusion, often described as the holy grail of clean energy by proponents, which for decades has been nothing more than a fantasy due to insurmountable technical challenges. But things are heating up in what has turned into a race to create what amounts to an artificial sun here on Earth, one that can provide power for our kettles, cars and light bulbs.
Today’s nuclear power plants create electricity through nuclear fission, in which atoms are split, with next-gen nuclear power exploring smaller, cheaper, safer designs that remain distinct from fusion. Nuclear fusion however, involves combining atomic nuclei to release energy. It’s the same reaction that’s taking place at the Sun’s core. But overcoming the natural repulsion between atomic nuclei and maintaining the right conditions for fusion to occur isn’t straightforward. And doing so in a way that produces more energy than the reaction consumes has been beyond the grasp of the finest minds in physics for decades.
But perhaps not for much longer. Some major technical challenges have been overcome in the past few years and governments around the world have been pouring money into fusion power research as part of a broader green industrial revolution under way in several regions. There are also over 20 private ventures in the UK, US, Europe, China and Australia vying to be the first to make fusion energy production a reality.
“People are saying, ‘If it really is the ultimate solution, let’s find out whether it works or not,’” says Dr Tim Luce, head of science and operation at the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), being built in southeast France. ITER is the biggest throw of the fusion dice yet.
Its $22bn (£15.9bn) build cost is being met by the governments of two-thirds of the world’s population, including the EU, the US, China and Russia, at a time when Europe is losing nuclear power and needs energy, and when it’s fired up in 2025 it’ll be the world’s largest fusion reactor. If it works, ITER will transform fusion power from being the stuff of dreams into a viable energy source.
Constructing a nuclear fusion reactor ITER will be a tokamak reactor – thought to be the best hope for fusion power. Inside a tokamak, a gas, often a hydrogen isotope called deuterium, is subjected to intense heat and pressure, forcing electrons out of the atoms. This creates a plasma – a superheated, ionised gas – that has to be contained by intense magnetic fields.
The containment is vital, as no material on Earth could withstand the intense heat (100,000,000°C and above) that the plasma has to reach so that fusion can begin. It’s close to 10 times the heat at the Sun’s core, and temperatures like that are needed in a tokamak because the gravitational pressure within the Sun can’t be recreated.
When atomic nuclei do start to fuse, vast amounts of energy are released. While the experimental reactors currently in operation release that energy as heat, in a fusion reactor power plant, the heat would be used to produce steam that would drive turbines to generate electricity, even as some envision nuclear beyond electricity for industrial heat and fuels.
Tokamaks aren’t the only fusion reactors being tried. Another type of reactor uses lasers to heat and compress a hydrogen fuel to initiate fusion. In August 2021, one such device at the National Ignition Facility, at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California, generated 1.35 megajoules of energy. This record-breaking figure brings fusion power a step closer to net energy gain, but most hopes are still pinned on tokamak reactors rather than lasers.
In June 2021, China’s Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) reactor maintained a plasma for 101 seconds at 120,000,000°C. Before that, the record was 20 seconds. Ultimately, a fusion reactor would need to sustain the plasma indefinitely – or at least for eight-hour ‘pulses’ during periods of peak electricity demand.
A real game-changer for tokamaks has been the magnets used to produce the magnetic field. “We know how to make magnets that generate a very high magnetic field from copper or other kinds of metal, but you would pay a fortune for the electricity. It wouldn’t be a net energy gain from the plant,” says Luce.
One route for nuclear fusion is to use atoms of deuterium and tritium, both isotopes of hydrogen. They fuse under incredible heat and pressure, and the resulting products release energy as heat
The solution is to use high-temperature, superconducting magnets made from superconducting wire, or ‘tape’, that has no electrical resistance. These magnets can create intense magnetic fields and don’t lose energy as heat.
“High temperature superconductivity has been known about for 35 years. But the manufacturing capability to make tape in the lengths that would be required to make a reasonable fusion coil has just recently been developed,” says Luce. One of ITER’s magnets, the central solenoid, will produce a field of 13 tesla – 280,000 times Earth’s magnetic field.
The inner walls of ITER’s vacuum vessel, where the fusion will occur, will be lined with beryllium, a metal that won’t contaminate the plasma much if they touch. At the bottom is the divertor that will keep the temperature inside the reactor under control.
“The heat load on the divertor can be as large as in a rocket nozzle,” says Luce. “Rocket nozzles work because you can get into orbit within minutes and in space it’s really cold.” In a fusion reactor, a divertor would need to withstand this heat indefinitely and at ITER they’ll be testing one made out of tungsten.
Meanwhile, in the US, the National Spherical Torus Experiment – Upgrade (NSTX-U) fusion reactor will be fired up in the autumn of 2022, while efforts in advanced fission such as a mini-reactor design are also progressing. One of its priorities will be to see whether lining the reactor with lithium helps to keep the plasma stable.
Choosing a fuel Instead of just using deuterium as the fusion fuel, ITER will use deuterium mixed with tritium, another hydrogen isotope. The deuterium-tritium blend offers the best chance of getting significantly more power out than is put in. Proponents of fusion power say one reason the technology is safe is that the fuel needs to be constantly fed into the reactor to keep fusion happening, making a runaway reaction impossible.
Deuterium can be extracted from seawater, so there’s a virtually limitless supply of it. But only 20kg of tritium are thought to exist worldwide, so fusion power plants will have to produce it (ITER will develop technology to ‘breed’ tritium). While some radioactive waste will be produced in a fusion plant, it’ll have a lifetime of around 100 years, rather than the thousands of years from fission.
At the time of writing in September, researchers at the Joint European Torus (JET) fusion reactor in Oxfordshire were due to start their deuterium-tritium fusion reactions. “JET will help ITER prepare a choice of machine parameters to optimise the fusion power,” says Dr Joelle Mailloux, one of the scientific programme leaders at JET. These parameters will include finding the best combination of deuterium and tritium, and establishing how the current is increased in the magnets before fusion starts.
The groundwork laid down at JET should accelerate ITER’s efforts to accomplish net energy gain. ITER will produce ‘first plasma’ in December 2025 and be cranked up to full power over the following decade. Its plasma temperature will reach 150,000,000°C and its target is to produce 500 megawatts of fusion power for every 50 megawatts of input heating power.
“If ITER is successful, it’ll eliminate most, if not all, doubts about the science and liberate money for technology development,” says Luce. That technology development will be demonstration fusion power plants that actually produce electricity, where advanced reactors can build on decades of expertise. “ITER is opening the door and saying, yeah, this works – the science is there.”
China Industrial Power Demand 2020 highlights COVID-19 disruption to electricity consumption as factory output stalls; IHS Markit estimates losses equal to Chile's usage, impacting thermal coal, LNG, and Hubei's industrial load.
Key Points
An analysis of COVID-19's hit to China's electricity use, cutting industry demand and fuel needs for coal and LNG.
✅ 73 billion kWh loss equals Chile's annual power use
✅ Cuts translate to 30m tonnes coal or 9m tonnes LNG
✅ Hubei peak load 21 percent below plan amid shutdowns
China’s industrial power demand in 2020 may decline by as much as 73 billion kilowatt hours (kWh), according to IHS Markit, as the outbreak of the coronavirus has curtailed factory output and prevented some workers from returning to their jobs.
FILE PHOTO: Smoke is seen from a cooling tower of a China Energy ultra-low emission coal-fired power plant during a media tour, in Sanhe, Hebei province, China July 18, 2019. REUTERS/Shivani Singh The cut represents about 1.5% of industrial power consumption in China. But, as the country is the world’s biggest electricity consumer and analyses of China's electricity appetite routinely underscore its scale, the loss is equal to the power used in the whole of Chile and it illustrates the scope of the disruption caused by the outbreak.
The reduction is the energy equivalent of about 30 million tonnes of thermal coal, at a time when China aims to reduce coal power production, or about 9 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG), IHS said. The coal figure is more than China’s average monthly imports last year while the LNG figure is a little more than one month of imports, based on customs data.
China has tried to curtail the spread of the coronavirus that has killed more than 1,400 and infected over 60,000 by extending the Lunar New Year holiday for an extra week and encouraging people to work from home, measures that contributed to a global dip in electricity demand as well.
Last year, industrial users consumed 4.85 trillion kWh electricity, accounting for 67% of the country’s total, even as India's electricity demand showed sharp declines in the region.
Xizhou Zhou, the global head of power and Renewables at IHS Markit, said that in a severe case where the epidemic goes on past March, China’s economic growth will be only 4.2% during 2020, down from an initial forecast of 5.8%, while power consumption will climb by only 3.1%, down from 4.1% initially, even as power cuts and blackouts raise concerns.
“The main uncertainty is still how fast the virus will be brought under control,” said Zhou, adding that the impact on the power sector will be relatively modest from a full-year picture in 2020, even though China's electric power woes are already clouding solar markets.
In Hubei province, the epicenter of the virus outbreak, the peak power load at the end of January was 21% less than planned, mirroring how Japan's power demand was hit during the outbreak, data from Wood Mackenzie showed.
Industrial operating rates point to a firm reduction in power consumption in China.
Utilization rates at plastic processors are between 30% and 60% and the low levels are expected to last for another two week, according to ICIS China.
Weaving machines at textile plants are operating at below 10% of capacity, the lowest in five years, ICIS data showed. China is the world’s biggest textile and garment exporter.
US Electricity Demand 2018-2050 projects slower growth as energy consumption, power generation, air conditioning, and electric heating shift with efficiency standards, commercial floor space, industrial load, and household growth across the forecast horizon.
Key Points
A forecast of US power use across homes, commercial space, industrial load, and efficiency trends from 2018 to 2050.
✅ 2018 generation hit record; residential sales up 6%.
✅ Efficiency curbs demand; growth lags population and floor space.
✅ Commercial sales up 2%; industrial demand fell 3% in 2018.
Last year's Houston cold winter and hot summer drove power use to record levels, especially among households that rely on electricity for air conditioning during extreme weather conditions.
Electricity generation increased 4 per cent nationwide in 2018 and produced 4,178 million megawatt hours, driven in part by record natural gas generation across the U.S., surpassing the previous peak of 4,157 megawatt hours set in 2007, the Energy Department reported.
U.S. households bought 6 percent more electricity in 2018 than they did the previous year, despite longer-term declines in national consumption, reflecting the fact 87 percent of households cool their homes with air conditioning and 35 percent use electricity for heating.
Electricity sales to the commercial sector increased 2 percent in 2018 compared to the previous year while the industrial sector bought 3 percent less last year.
Going forward, the Energy Department forecasts that electricity consumption will grow at a slower pace than in recent decades, aligning with falling sales projections as technology improves and energy efficiency standards moderate consumption.
The economy and population growth are primary drivers of demand and the government predicts the number of households will grow at 0.7 percent per year from now until 2050 but electricity demand will grow only by 0.4 percent annually.
Likewise, commercial floor space is expected to increase 1 percent per year from now until 2050 but electricity sales will increase only by half that amount.
Globally, surging electricity demand is putting power systems under strain, providing context for these domestic trends.
