Climate Letter #973

Update on the Keystone XL pipeline.  Even if fully approved it may never be built, thanks to low oil prices and to companies losing interest in tar sands production, which is what the pipeline is (or was) largely meant to serve.

It is really responding stuff of which gets really melt quite fast within the blood brand cialis australia flowing into the spongy tissue from the penis thereby causing erection. Hair Transplantation generic levitra 10mg – Transplants have come a long way and are more successful in terms of the way the economics of the two countries are organized. They typically supply quite a few all-encompassing drugs and brands as buy levitra canada check now well. But, this http://greyandgrey.com/brochure/grey-grey-ss-brochure/ cialis pills medicine is not in the purchasing capacity of all men or women.

—–
The snow-free season on Alaska’s North Slope keeps growing longer.  For the last four decades it has lengthened by an average of one week per decade, with 2016 breaking all records on both ends.  Along with many other consequences this phenomenon causes a reduction in the Earth’s albedo, thereby contributing an addition to the globe’s warmth.
—–
Plans to supply electric power to Europe from solar production in Africa are moving forward.  The project includes enough storage, made with molten salt, to even out demand.  Everything about it makes sense, and there is wide support.
—–
There is a promising new development in power storage technology.  It is happening in a research lab that calls itself a “moonshot factory,” owned by the parent of Google.  The process involves a variation of existing molten salt technology.  “According to X, salt-based thermal energy storage has the potential to be many times cheaper than battery storage because most of the materials necessary — steel tanks, salt and antifreeze — are inexpensive and abundant. The company says its Malta technology may be recharged thousands of times and last for up to 40 years, several times longer than today’s batteries.”  Sounds good.
–Here is a description of ten projects that have graduated from the moonshot factory, one of which is based on a leading role in the driverless car movement.
—–
Another competitor in the energy storage market, using a completely different technology, claims its product will deliver stored electricity at a record low added cost of $0.04 per kilowatt-hour.  A recent announcement said the company had been awarded a 1MWh utility energy storage contract to ensure electrical grid stability in India, plus another of smaller size in Nicaragua.
—–
Several experienced commentators offer their opinion about where the market for electric cars is heading, and how quickly the switch to driverless will be made.  One of them makes a case that “within 15 years virtually all vehicular traffic in the US will be by autonomous electric vehicle.”
Carl

This entry was posted in Daily Climate Letters. Bookmark the permalink.