OLA ELECTRIC MOBILITY ACQUIRES ETERGO

The Dutch electric scooter company Etergo spent much of the last year shopping itself around for new funding options. Now we’ve learned that Indian EV company Ola Electric Mobility has acquired Etergo.

Etergo had been valued at as much as $90M after its last funding round, but was apparently sold at a loss to Ola, according to Etergo’s CEO Bart Jacobsz Rosier.

The final purchase price hasn’t been disclosed, as Rosier explained to Cleantechnica:

I am not allowed to disclose the exact purchasing price, but it was at a significant loss and we felt that we needed to give away all of our entitlement from the purchasing price to all the investors, including all the crowdfunders

Ola originally began as a ride-hailing service before spinning-off its current operations in the EV industry as Ola Electric Mobility in 2019.

The company has already been working on its own electric scooter, but will now have access to Etergo’s advanced technology, which Rosier says will be combined with Ola’s current electric scooter developments - Link

XPENG

Last year, Tesla initiated a lawsuit against Guangzhi Cao, a former Autopilot engineer who quit to join Xpeng’s autonomous driving team.

In the lawsuit, the automaker claims that Cao downloaded the Autopilot source code to his personal device through Airdrop before leaving and selling it to Xpeng when joining the company.

Tesla wants proof that Xpeng is not using its Autopilot source code as part of its own driver-assist features, which are extremely similar to Tesla’s.

Now a tipster has pointed us to Xpeng’s website for its new P7 electric sedan, and it’s a clear copy of Tesla’s own website design - Link

SOCIAL DISTANCING

RIDE ON TIME

WALL OF VOODOO - RING OF FIRE

LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY - NOT BLACK BOX

SOCIAL DISTANCING

SOCIAL DISTANCING

LOOP ENERGY

Canadian hydrogen fuel cell technology powers thousands of buses and heavy trucks around the world. Now experts say our economy, energy markets and domestic fuel infrastructure could be aligning to put more on the road in this country

Last year marked two significant turning points for Vancouver-based Loop Energy, a 19-year-old firm that has developed hydrogen fuel cell “range extenders” for short- and long-haul trucks. The company secured its first commercial sale of the product in China, and then completed a deal to sell a minority stake to Cummins, a global manufacturer of diesel and alternative energy drive trains.

Last month, the run continued, when Loop secured another long-term contract in China, to support the conversion of Nanjing’s municipal bus fleet to hydrogen.

“We’re building on our momentum in China and we’re expanding in Europe and North America,” says Loop managing director George Rubin, who oversees the company’s global commercial strategy. The firm, he adds, will continue to seek “channel partners” in the truck and bus fleet markets, but not rail, marine or passenger vehicles. “We need to pick our battles.” link

JCB - HYDROGEN BUSES

The man behind plans for thousands of UK-built hydrogen buses across the country says Aberdeen could accommodate up to 200 of them as part of the move he hopes can lead the nations’ economic recovery.

JCB heir Jo Bamford claims his plans are “an ideal option for a Government that needs to boost UK manufacturing at this critical time whilst radically reducing our carbon emissions and air pollution”, and has already submitted his vision in a document to ministers.

As well as Aberdeen, plans are being drawn up to introduce a fleet of 3,000 state-of-the-art buses – in which passengers benefit from USB charging points and more spacious seating – in places such as London, Liverpool, Brighton, Birmingham, Manchester, Glasgow, Edinburgh and Belfast, with interest from relevant authorities.

Mr Bamford, who leads a green hydrogen production company, Ryse, and last year acquired Wrightbus, a UK manufacturer who have made the world’s first hydrogen double decker bus, proclaims that zero carbon, UK-made hydrogen technologies must play a pivotal role in driving the British economy forward - link - more like this (JCB) - link

SWINDON POWERTRAIN

Swindon Powertrain has launched the 'crate' electric motor for low-volume EV conversions that it first announced last year. 

Available to order now, it costs £6400 plus VAT. That price includes the 80kW (107bhp) motor itself plus the transmission and differential. Options for cooling, inverters and even a limited-slip differential are available.

Swindon Powertrain has perfected the formula when moving from concept form to production. It's actually smaller than what was originally proposed, at 441mm wide and 384mm long, and the firm claim the highest power/volume ratio of any automotive system. It weighs in at a touch under 50kg.

The powertrain was being developed in partnership with electric motor manufacturer iNetic and engineering firm Code, with funding coming from the Niche Vehicle Network, a body that supports more than 900 of Britain’s lowest-volume automotive production and engineering companies - Link

BEIJING JINGNENG

Beijing Jingneng, a Chinese energy utility, has announced plans to invest $3bn in a combined solar and wind plant with hydrogen to be used as an energy store.

The 5GW plant will be built in Inner Mongolia, and follows China General Nuclear Power Group’s aim of spending $2.5bn on a 1GW solar facility and a 2GW wind farm in the same area.

The plans were published on Friday by Chinese digital outlet The Paper.

Beijing Jingnen said the chosen site was at the junction of Mongolia, Shaanxi and Ningxia provinces, a good location with “rich mineral resources, convenient transportation network, and broad development prospects”, including rapid growth in coal mining, chemicals and the LNG industries - link

OPEN LETTER ON RENEWABLE HYDROGEN

LINK

EC URGED TO PRIORITISE GREEN H2

Major European electricity groups – including Enel, Iberdrola, Ørsted, and EDP – have issued a joint call urging the European Commission to prioritise renewable hydrogen in its upcoming pandemic recovery plan.

“Hydrogen produced via electrolysis powered by 100% renewable electricity has zero greenhouse gas emissions” and should be Europe’s top priority when supporting a clean hydrogen supply chain, the alliance says in a letter to the Commission - Link

(POT) FLOATING NUCLEAR POWER PLANT

Akademic Lomonosov, the world’s first floating nuclear power plant (NPP), has been fully commissioned in Pevek, Chukotka region in the Russian Far East.

The NPP was built by Russian state atomic energy corporation Rosatom via its electric power division Rosenergoatom.

Rosenergoatom director Andrei Petrov said: “Today we can consider the floating nuclear power plant construction project successfully completed. We finished our main task for this year – fully commissioned the FNPP in Pevek, Chukotka region.

“Today, it officially becomes the 11th nuclear power plant in Russia and the northernmost one in the world.” Power Technology - link - more like this - link

H2OZBUS

Australia’a largest bus operator has joined with a band of strategic partners to establish the H2OzBus project which aims to deploy hydrogen powered buses into Australia’s public transport network.

Transit Systems, which currently operates a fleet of ten hydrogen buses in London, has signed an MoU with fuel cell manufacturer Ballard Power Systems, industrial gas company BOC, infrastructure manufacturer Palisade Investment Partners and hydrogen solutions supplier ITM Power to roll out the buses in Australia.

The H2OzBus consortium says it is working towards agreement on feasibility, scope and funding with a view to deploying the 100 buses as a seed for more widespread roll-out.

Greg Balkin, general manager of new technology and innovation, believes the company can have the first buses on the road in 12 months time.

“It depends on the government’s involvement and engagement with it, the infrastructure needs to be in place as well as the bus,” he told Government News - LINK

NESPRESSO INCREASES RECYCLED CONTENT

Nespresso's first coffee machine capsules made using 80 per cent recycled aluminium have been launched today, as part of the Nestlé-owned brand's ongoing drive to boost its sustainability credentials.

The Switzerland-based firm claims the new aluminium coffee pods are the first on the market to feature such a high level of recycled content. The move that follows the recent introduction of fully recyclable packaging made from 95 per cent recycled material for its coffee pod machines - Link

SGH2

Lancaster, California will be home to a "greener than green" trash-to hydrogen production plant three times the size of any other green H2 facility. 

SGH2 says its process is the cleanest of all on the market, while matching the price of the cheapest producers – and pulling tens of thousands of tons of garbage out of landfills.

For better or worse, many world economies are gearing up to make hydrogen a significant part of the future energy economy. Japan and Korea in particular are making big moves and enormous investments to get this zero-local-emissions energy storage format up and running.

Production of hydrogen can vary from the relatively green (electrolysis of fresh water using solar or wind-based energy) to the profoundly filthy (gasification of brown coal) – and the filthiest are by far the cheapest. Adding carbon capture and sequestration to dirty processes simply makes them more expensive.

That's what makes this SGH2 project so interesting – the company claims it can take trash that would otherwise sit in a landfill and rot, and turn it into super-green hydrogen at bargain-basement prices - Link

20,000 WIND TURBINES

A controversial new law commits to doubling the number of wind turbines in France by 2028.

A new law, adopted by the French government on April 21, plans to increase the number of wind turbines from an existing 8,000 to 20,000 by 2028.

The plan, known as la programmation pluriannuelle de l’énergie (PPE) (which translates as "multi-year energy programme"), aims to reduce the use of nuclear energy for electricity production in France, replacing it with renewable energy sources - Link

WASTE TO JET FUEL

500,000 TPA Waste-to-Jet Fuel Facility a Step Closer to Take-Off in Lincolnshire

Oxford, UK based sustainable fuel technology firm, Velocys plc., has announced the resolution to grant planning permission for the Altalto Immingham commercial-scale waste-to-jet-fuel plant, by North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC)’s Planning Committee.

Oxford, UK based sustainable fuel technology firm, Velocys plc., has announced the resolution to grant planning permission for the Altalto Immingham commercial scale waste-to-jet-fuel plant, by North East Lincolnshire Council (NELC)’s Planning Committee. A formal decision notice will then be issued subject to the completion of standard legal agreements with NELC. All statutory consultees have indicated their acceptance of the plan.

The company explained that the proposed Altalto Immingham plant is to convert hundreds of thousands of tonnes per year of non-recyclable everyday household and commercial waste, otherwise destined for landfill or incineration, into cleaner burning sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). It will be the first commercial scale facility of its type in the UK - link

RENEWABLE ENERGY NO THANKS - (THIS WEEKEND)

Hundreds of renewable energy projects may be asked to turn off this weekend to avoid overloading the grid as the UK’s electricity demand plummets to record lows.

Britain’s demand for electricity is forecast to tumble to a fifth below normal levels due to the spring bank holiday and the shutdown of shops, bars and restaurants mandated by the coronavirus lockdown.

National Grid is braced for electricity demand to fall to 15.6GW on Saturday afternoon – a level usually associated with the middle of the night – and continue to drop even lower in the early hours of Sunday morning -link

LUSH REGENERATIVE FARMS

On the Caribbean coast of Guatemala is 556 acres of land that seems like it has been left to nature’s devices. 

The untrained eye would not guess that this is actually a farm on a former cattle ranch, where vanilla, coconut, cacao, ylang-ylang and avocado are grown as naturally as possible, in line with the agroforestry ethos.

This is one of Lush‘s regenerative farms, where they grow ingredients for their beauty products. Not only does this farm ensure that the ingredients are grown organically and ethically, but it also fights the environmental devastation that has taken a toll on Guatemala, a country torn apart by decades of deforestation and civil war - Link

ESSENTIAL KOREAN

SAMSUNG HYUNDAI COLLABORATION

Samsung and Hyundai have been collaborating on automobile technology for six years, but their partnership grew bigger this year. 

The two South Korean companies have decided to collaborate for electric cars. Apart from providing Exynos chipsets and OLED screens, Samsung will also supply batteries for future Hyundai electric cars.

It is being reported that Samsung has completed the test of its batteries for Hyundai cars. The collaboration between the companies is expected to accelerate after Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-Yong met Hyundai Motor Group’s Vice Chairman Jung Sun last week in a high-profile meeting. Samsung SDI’s flagship battery solution is expected to be used in Hyundai’s electric cars - Link

H2 MOBILITY DEUTSCHLAND

North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) remains at the forefront of German federal states in the development of hydrogen filling station infrastructure: 

H2 MOBILITY Deutschland and its shareholders Shell and Air Liquide have now jointly opened the federal state’s 18th hydrogen (H2) filling station in Dortmund. Bavaria is hard on NRW’s heels with 17 stations. 

Hydrogen is used to power fuel-cell electric vehicles (FCEV). Its advantages: no noise or pollutants, but the same use, speed, and range as cars with petrol or diesel engines. Hydrogen vehicles have ranges of 500 to 700 kilometres and can be refuelled in just three to five minutes.

The network of stations where fuel-cell vehicles can fill up with hydrogen is steadily expanding. Germany already has 83 H2 filling stations. The number of stations will be expanded successively according to demand. Already, there are 32 hydrogen filling stations in the Shell network in Germany - link

H2 STARTNETZ

German gas pipeline operators have presented a plan to create a 1,200-kilometre grid by 2030 to transport hydrogen across the country, which would be the world’s largest being planned so far.

The €660m ($715.8m) grid dubbed ‘H2 Startnetz’ would link consumption centres in North Rhine Westphalia and Lower Saxony states to 31 so-called ‘green gas projects for hydrogen production’ in Northern Germany, and also have links to Southern Germany, the grid operators’ association FNB Gas said - Link

HARLEY-DAVIDSON SCOOTER

Harley-Davidson has made impressive strides in electric vehicle development, and not just for its LiveWire electric motorcycle halo product. The company’s electric scooter prototype is positioned to be a much more affordable and accessible electric two-wheeler, and here is why it is needed now more than ever.

As much as I love the Harley-Davidson LiveWire, especially after doing an in-depth review of it this Spring, I think we can all agree that its $30k price tag keeps it out of reach for most riders.

And that’s ok – it was never meant to be a big seller. Rather, it was designed to demonstrate H-D’s ability to build a high quality electric motorcycle. Which it did in spades - Link

SOCIAL DISTANCING

DYSTOPIA

PABOCO

The quest to design more sustainable bottles has led a quartet of companies — Danish beer maker Carlsberg, spirits company Absolut (part of France’s Pernod Ricard), French personal care company L’Oreal and a European group of beverage firm Coca-Cola — to consider a seemingly unlikely material for containing liquids: paper.

Product development teams at all four companies are part of a "pioneer community" brought together and coordinated by an aptly named startup Paboco, shorthand for "paper bottle company." Together, they are working on prototypes of bio-based containers of varying shapes and sizes that use wood fiber, rather than glass or some form of fabric, to hold anything from lotions to carbonated beverages (a particularly thorny challenge).

Carlsberg, which got into the project more than four years ago, already has shown off two prototypes for beer bottles, while Absolut is preparing a pilot of its first-generation package, for its Absolut Mixt "cooler" product line, in an undeclared market this spring. (Some early versions are in the hands of consumers.) - link

I LOVE LUSH

There’s no doubt about it — we are in the midst of a plastic pollution crisis. 

We’ve all seen the viral images of turtles with straws stuck up their noses, or whales washed up with bellies full of plastic bags. And one of the biggest contributors to this plastic crisis is the space we operate in: the cosmetics industry.

By nature, cosmetics packaging is small and intricate, made up of many parts that are difficult to clean after use, resulting in the majority of this packaging going directly into landfills.

Consider that the cosmetics industry brings in a booming $500 billion every year and imagine the waste created by default. But it doesn’t have to be like this. As businesses, we can manufacture and sell products with no packaging, create closed-loop recycling systems and collaborate with suppliers to create innovative solutions for reducing waste — all while thriving - Link

BYD - HAN EV

Chinese brand BYD will launch its Tesla Model 3-rivalling saloon, the Han EV, in Europe following its home market debut in June, the company has confirmed. 

The Han EV is the brand’s electric flagship and the first passenger model to feature its new ‘Blade Battery’ technology, which is claimed to be simpler and more space efficient than rival battery packs, with improved range and “greatly enhanced” safety - Link

EV 1 - H2 0

Predicting the future is always risky. But it’s long been clear that vehicles are one of the main sources of air pollution that takes thousands of lives a year in the U.S. alone through lung disease, asthma, cancer and more. And that ultimately, the world would have to move toward vehicles that didn’t treat our shared air like a giant trash bin, emitting toxic substances every time they were powered on.

Two technologies could deliver vehicles with zero emissions: battery-electric powertrains and hydrogen fuel cells. For decades, hydrogen was presumed to be “the fuel of the future,” with electric cars limited to the niche of small, short-range urban cars.

That’s not how it’s played out. And as 2020 seems poised to be a big year for electric car development—pandemic aside—it’s worth examining how this happened - Link

BACK TO WORK - BUT NOT YOU JOHN

Last night Boris Johnson appeared on national television and told the UK that wherever possible, everyone in the country apart from people furloughed, people who can work from home, people with children not at school, people in a high risk group, people who rely on public transport and my colleague John should go back to work.

As a result, the clear message that lockdown is over, kind of, in a distancing sort of way for some people although ideally everyone should stay at home especially my colleague John was apparent in the cars, vans and lorries visible on the roads this morning.

Well done BJ – a classic example of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.

PRISENCOLINENSINAINCIUSOL

The Race - Yello - Walk the Dinosaur - Was Not Was

H2 ORKNEY

Scotland’s Orkney Islands produce more clean energy than their inhabitants can use. Their next step? Hydrogen. Here’s why that matters – and what the rest of the world could learn.

I’ve seen thousands of petrol pumps in my life, but this is my first encounter with a hydrogen refuelling station. It sits by the road in the Orkney Islands, an archipelago off the north-east coast of Scotland where residents have big dreams: they want to have their cars, ferries and boilers all running on hydrogen.

But Adele Lidderdale, a hydrogen project officer at the Orkney Islands Council, is a little nervous: one of her van’s sensors has been malfunctioning lately, she says, and might not accept fuel from the nozzle. Now, she plugs the nozzle into her van and steps back to the screen at the other end of the black hose. She looks relieved as the charging process starts with a hydraulic mumble from within the dispenser.

Three minutes later, the 1.4kg tank full, we drive off – all without using one single drop of petrol - link

RIP - HILLARD SWEET PEA ATKINSON

"He was the most flamboyant character I ever met," Was said. "It was three in the morning and we walked out into the hallway and he's wearing this orange ensemble - hat, shirt, socks and shoes all matched the exact same shade of orange". link

MEMORIES OF KRAFTWERK

Growing up with an older brother I was forced to listen to whatever he was listening to; initially the charts on a Sunday evening on radio one then later various heavy metal offerings. 

As such, at an early age I had a good understanding/repertoire of music I didn’t like.

Then in 1975 I heard Autobahn and discovered my genre within which I’ve remained to this day in the form of OMD, Depeche Mode, Simple Minds et al all of whom would either be a lot different or not exist if it weren’t for Kraftwerk.

Thank you, Florian Schneider and Kraftwerk, – RIP – a truly original man - link

PEROVSKITE CELL LEAF

Researchers from Rice University have built a simple new solar-powered device that can create hydrogen for fuel by splitting water. The system is very similar to other “artificial leaf” designs, but the team says it’s self-sufficient and relatively cheap to produce.

The system is made up of a perovskite solar cell, hooked up to electrodes made of a catalyst that electrolyzes the water. When sunlight hits the solar cell, it produces electricity that powers the catalyst, which then splits the water into oxygen and hydrogen. These bubble up to the surface where they can be collected for use.

The sunlight-to-hydrogen efficiency sits at around 6.7 percent, which is relatively high for these types of systems. But the most useful feature, the team says, is just how self-contained the new design is.

The solar cell and the electrodes are all in one unit – the solar cell components are encased inside a polymer shell that protects them from water damage while still letting sunlight through. The electrodes sit on the outside where they can split the water - Link

FLORIAN SCHNEIDER - A TRUE ORIGINAL

Florian Schneider, co-founder and keyboardist of the influential German electronic music group Kraftwerk, has died at the age of 73. Link

RIP FLORIAN SCHNEIDER

Florian Schneider, a founding member of the pioneering group Kraftwerk, has died, according to reports.

No official statement has been given by the band, although news of his passing has been confirmed by Billboard. Schneider, who was 73, co-founded Kraftwerk in 1970 alongside Ralf Hütter and went on to help shape the sound of popular music. He parted ways with the band in 2008.

Beginning as part of Germany’s influential krautrock scene, Kraftwerk would go on to help popularise electronic music. Their work with drum machines and synthesisers played a huge part in influencing the sound of pop music in the 1980s and beyond, as well in the origins of dance genres such as techno.

Schneider’s cause of death is not immediately known - link

GREEN TOMATO CARS

If you’ve ever been moved to test a car’s reliability, you could do worse than giving it to a cab driver – high mileages and intensive duty cycles tell you an awful lot about a vehicle. 

So where better to test a fleet of hydrogen fuel-cell cars than in that unforgiving environment?

Since 2015 a fleet of Toyota Mirai cars has been through just such a wringer with Green Tomato Cars (GTC), an ethical car company based in west London. Its 50 Mirais, which comprise 15 per cent of its total fleet, have covered well over a million miles between them.

“Certainly we broke a million miles last year,” says GTC founder Jonny Goldstone. “We must be well on the way to two million now.” - link

1984 OR 85

SOCIAL DISTANCING

E-FAN X CANCELLED

An Airbus and Rolls-Royce project to develop an experimental hybrid-electric aircraft, has been cancelled ahead of it ever making its maiden flight.

E-Fan X was launched in 2017 to explore the potential of hybrid-electric propulsion for commercial aviation and was due to take off next year 2021.

It was to use a 2.5MW power generation system – comprised of a gas turbine driven power generation system and high power electronics – integrated and flown on a 100-seater Bae146 airliner by the end of 2021 - Link

FIRST ATTEMPT - COVIS LOAF

Trust me; they're not as flat as they appear to be.

TESLA APPLIES TO GENERATE ELECTRICITY

Tesla has applied for a licence to generate electricity in the UK, documents show.

The US company, known for its electric vehicles, also has operations in battery energy storage and solar panel and solar roof tile manufacturing.

The application was made to the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority by Tesla Motors Co. It did not make clear why the firm had applied for the licence.

It was filed on Tuesday and signed by Evan Rice, Tesla's energy products sales director - Link

SAINSBURYS 02/05/2020