It's all Putin's fault.

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DAILY ENERGY NEWS | 5/03/22|

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Even fairy dust and unicorns have been hit by supply chain problems.

Daily Caller (5/01/22) reports: "Renewable energy prices have skyrocketed while new wind and solar installations have plummeted over the last year, even as governments continue to forge ahead with ambitious climate plans. While the U.S., European Union, other Western nations and international organizations have all pursued aggressive climate agendas that involve expanding renewable energy technology and infrastructure, prices have surged and profits have declined, according to industry reports and corporate earnings reviewed by the Daily Caller News Foundation. President Joe Biden has made a series of climate pledges, including a commitment to decarbonize the grid by 2035 and achieve net-zero economy-wide emissions by 2050, while pushing a long list of anti-fossil fuel policies. Commodity markets tied to global renewable energy development have been roiled by inflation, supply chain issues stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic and, more recently, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Even as project demand has stayed high, industry profitability has declined because of these factors.”

"Fertilizer shortages are real now because Russia is a big exporter of fertilizer. Even though fertilizer is not sanctioned, less fertilizer is coming out of Russia," she explained. "As a result we're working with countries to think about natural solutions like manure and compost and this may hasten transitions that would have been in the interest of farmers to make eventually anyway. So never let a crisis go to waste.”

–Administrator Samantha Power
U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)

Just a hunk, a hunk of burnin' bus...

Le Monde (4/29/22) reports: "149 electric buses will be taken off the streets of Paris temporarily "as a precaution" after two of the vehicles caught fire, public transport operator RATP said Friday, April 29. Following a second blaze on Friday morning, in which no one was hurt, "RATP has taken the decision to suspend use of 149 electric buses" of manufacturer Bollore's Bluebus 5SE model, the state-owned company said. The number 71 bus that caught fire in southeast Paris early Friday released thick clouds of black smoke and a strong smell of burning plastic, according to an AFP journalist on the scene. "The bus driver immediately evacuated all the passengers. Nobody was hurt," RATP said, while the city fire service said the blaze was put out by around 30 firefighters.”

China can hook you up.

Mining.com (5/01/22) reports: "A recent study by KU Leuven University shows that meeting the European Union’s Green Deal goal of climate neutrality by 2050 will require 35 times more lithium and 7 to 26 times the amount of rare earth metals compared to Europe’s current use. According to the paper, the energy transition will also require 30% more aluminum than what is employed today in the continent, as well as 35% more copper, 45% more silicon, 100% more nickel and 330% more cobalt. All these metals are considered essential for producing electric vehicles and batteries, renewable wind, solar and hydrogen energy technologies, as well as the grid infrastructure needed to achieve climate neutrality. "

Ya don't say?

Bloomberg Government (5/02/22) reports: "Nearly two dozen senators on Monday implored President Joe Biden to swiftly advance a trade probe that they said was already causing “massive disruption” in the U.S. solar industry. The investigation into whether Chinese companies are circumventing decade-old tariffs by assembling solar cells and modules in Southeast Asia “will severely harm” American businesses and workers “as long as it continues,” the 22 senators said in a letter to Biden. The group, led by Democrats Jacky Rosen of Nevada, Martin Heinrich of New Mexico and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, asked the Biden administration to quickly make a preliminary determination on the matter, rather than waiting until an Aug. 30 deadline to issue its initial findings. That could limit the domestic impact from the investigation and neuter the threat of retroactive tariffs on panels imported from Cambodia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam, which represent some 80% of imported supply in the U.S."

The solar industry has been on notice for a decade on trade issues with China. Will they ever work to disentangle their supply from China?

The Wall Street Journal (4/30/22) reports: "American utilities are anticipating a significant slowdown in the build-out of new solar farms amid a U.S. probe into Asian solar panels that has created uncertainty for developers and manufacturers and caused widespread delays and cancellations. Companies including NextEra Energy Inc., Xcel Energy Inc. and Southern Co. have recently flagged the effects that the solar panel probe, led by the Commerce Department, could have on projects in the works this year, with several anticipating monthslong delays in completion. California Gov. Gavin Newsom told the department in a letter Wednesday that the investigation has caused the delay of numerous new solar and battery storage projects expected to come online through 2024. At the request of a small solar-panel manufacturer in California, the Commerce Department is investigating whether Chinese solar producers are illegally circumventing tariffs by routing operations through Cambodia, Thailand, Vietnam and Malaysia."