Tag Archives: Department of Energy

Houston hydrogen hub deal signed

As Evan Mintz likes to say on that cursed microblogging site, good news for Houston. The U.S. Department of Energy signed a deal with energy developers Wednesday for the creation of a $1.2 billion clean hydrogen hub based in Houston. … Continue reading

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

ERCOT will connect to the US grid

How about that? The power grid better known as the Texas Interconnection, operated by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), is famous for being isolated from the other major U.S. grids. But that may soon finally change. The Department of Energy (DOE) announced … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on ERCOT will connect to the US grid

City of Houston also gets a federal solar grant

Nice. Houston has received $2 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to advance its sustainable energy goals, which Mayor John Whitmire has yet to define for his new administration. The department announced Wednesday that it has selected the city … Continue reading

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Harris County gets federal grant for its climate action plan

Nice. The U.S. Department of Energy announced Thursday that it awarded Harris County one of 16 clean energy grants totaling $30 million, distributed to state and local governments nationwide. The Harris County grant of more than $1.6 million is the … Continue reading

Posted in Local politics | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Harris County gets federal grant for its climate action plan

Carbon capture project coming

Cool. A carbon removal project south of Corpus Christi is one of two sites selected by the Department of Energy to receive up to $1.2 billion to support the development of direct air capture technology. The project, which is being … Continue reading

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hydrogen hub Houston happens

Nice. The Texas Gulf Coast has been selected by the Biden administration as a clean hydrogen hub, one of seven locations across the United States set to receive billions of dollars in federal funding and private investment to help develop … Continue reading

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Hydrogen hub Houston?

It could happen. Houston-area leaders seeking to make the city one of the nation’s designated hydrogen hubs have received a push from the U.S. Energy Department. The department’s Office of Clean Energy Demonstrations received 79 “concept papers” from groups seeking … Continue reading

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Hydrogen hub Houston?

Here come some hydrogen-powered trucks

There’s more than one way to do no-emissions transportation. The first time Rodrigo Peña climbed into the Hyzon truck’s cabin and eased his foot off the break, it wasn’t the awe of being inside the first hydrogen-powered freight truck to … Continue reading

Posted in Planes, Trains, and Automobiles | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Here come some hydrogen-powered trucks

ERCOT makes it through, with an assist from the feds

In case you were wondering. A day after ERCOT asked the U.S. Department of Energy for an emergency order allowing its generators to bypass emissions standards to stave off potential outages, Texas’ electric grid met demand with ease on Saturday. … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

More battery power coming

Now here is something that might actually help the grid. A surge of new battery projects is expected to come online on Texas and California’s power grids, as developers seek to store the excess electricity produced by those state’s sprawling wind and solar … Continue reading

Posted in Technology, science, and math, The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on More battery power coming

Beware the renewable energy disinformation

It’s out there, in more ways than one. David Dunagan doesn’t want a 760-acre solar power plant to be built across his fenceline. The Old Jackson Power Plant will replace farmland in Van Zandt County with gleaming, metal panels. Though … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 27 Comments

The subpoenas come for Rick Perry

The first law of Donald Trump is that everything he touches turns to mud. Sooner or later, that mud gets on you. Democrats on the three U.S. House committees overseeing the presidential impeachment inquiry have subpoenaed documents from U.S. Energy … Continue reading

Posted in Scandalized! | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on The subpoenas come for Rick Perry

Texas’ uncertain nuclear future

Sometimes I forget that Texas has nuclear plants. By the standards of the U.S. nuclear energy industry, Texas’s two nuclear plants are fairly new. Neither one is more than three decades old, while many nuclear sites across the country are … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

We can make the end of coal in Texas happen

It’s already happening. It just needs a bit of a boost. Texas might have the perfect environment to quit coal for good. Texas is one of the only places—potentially in the world—where the natural patterns of wind and sun could … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Building a better turbine

Good to see R&D being done on improving wind energy. Universities and businesses across Texas are expecting to spend millions in the next few years honing the blades, gearboxes and generators that make up turbines designed to harness power from … Continue reading

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Building a better turbine