Major Australian winemaker is to power its largest site with solar and wind

Source: Inhabitat

A large wine producer, Australian Vintage, is to power its largest site with solar and wind farms. The company signed a hybrid renewable power purchase agreement (PPA) with corporate retailer Flow Power.

Australian Vintage is the country’s third largest wine producer. Its PPA with Flow Power enables the wine company to purchase some of its renewable energy off-site. However, it will also have some solar on-site both on the ground and on its roof tops. In total, the agreement with Flow Power will provide its Buronga Hill winery, NSW, with 90% renewable energy.

But it is just the latest such deal sealed by an Australian business, seeking to lock in lower energy costs by sourcing off-site solar and wind energy. The article referenced below names other Australian businesses that have recently signed similar agreements.

Read more: Major winemaker Australian Vintage inks solar and wind PPA with Flow Power. One Step off the Grid, November 26, 2018.

Farming co-op to trial a solar and battery storage microgrid

Source: One Step off the Grid

"A Victorian solar and storage microgrid project geared at helping Australian farmers to tackle energy-related “pain points” including rising power prices and unreliable supply, has won state government backing. The agriculture co-op Birchip Cropping Group will receive $210,000 to develop the project at its local facility in the Mallee region."

"The microgrid, including 51kW of solar and 137kWh of battery storage capacity, will be developed by energy technology company SwitchDin and commercial microgrid developer Walnut Energy."

"According to a statement from SwitchDin, the Birchip project aims to demonstrate the value of energy resilience and self-sufficiency for rural industries. This will include testing the “islanding” capabilities of the microgrid – in which it cuts itself off from the grid to keep power on in the event of a network outage."

Read more: Farmers to tap solar and battery storage, in latest Victoria microgrid trial. One Step off the Grid, October 3, 2018.

Audi research leads to recycling of valuable EV battery materials

Audi A3 e-tron (Photo: Julie May)

“....Audi and Umicore have successfully completed phase one of their strategic research cooperation for battery recycling. The two partners are developing a closed loop for components of high-voltage batteries that can be used again and again. Particularly valuable materials are set to become available in a raw materials bank. Already before the start of the cooperation with Umicore in June 2018,

Audi had analyzed the batteries in the A3 e-tron plug-in hybrid car and defined ways of recycling. Together with the material technology experts, the car manufacturer then determined the possible recycling rates for battery components such as cobalt, nickel and copper. The result: In laboratory tests, more than 95 percent of these elements can be recovered and reused….”

Read More:
- New power from old cells: Audi and Umicore develop closed loop battery recycling. Audi Media Centre, October 26, 2018.
- Audi closes loop on EV batteries by recycling high value raw materials. The Driven, October 29, 2018.

This electric aeroplane could transform regional air travel

Source: The Driven

An all-electric aeroplane called Alice could transform regional air travel as we know it. The Israeli-based electric aircraft maker, Eviation, is building the first of its electric passenger planes in France.

The electric aircraft will carry up to 9 passengers, have a range of up to 1,000 kms and allow air travel providers to offer flights between regional centres, rather than through a central, city hub.

The costs of Alice’s emissions-free engine (if charged with renewables) are around 30% of conventional aircraft, which can cost $300 per flight hour for aviation fuel and $200 per flight hour for maintenance. This means that tickets would be much, much cheaper.

This plane opens up opportunities for not only passenger flights but also for cargo, medivac and Flying Doctor service flights.

Read more: This cheap, clean, electric airplane could reshape regional air travel. The Driven, November 12, 2018.

Recycled soft plastics are reprocessed in Australia to make useful products

Soft plastics can only be recycled in drop bins outside participating stores (Source: REDcycle)

In Australia, we can recycle most hard plastics in our recycling bins. But our bins do NOT take soft plastics. We can recycle clean soft plastics at participating supermarkets. You can find the recycling bins (pictured above) near the front of these supermarkets (mostly Woolworths and Coles).

This soft plastic recycling is called REDcycle, see: http://www.redcycle.net.au/ for details of what is (and is not) recyclable in this way. Please note biodegradable plastics are not recyclable.

The recycled soft plastic goes to an Australian company, Repas. The company produces a range of over 200 recycled plastic products in Australia using state-of-the-art machinery and robotics. The range includes bollards, signage, outdoor furniture (including school furniture), fitness equipment and Enduroplank™/Decking as well as products suitable for traffic control, parks and gardens and the utilities industry.

For more information see:

- REDcycle: http://www.redcycle.net.au/

- Repas: http://www.replas.com.au/

Sneak peek of new “cheap” Hyundai Ioniq EV coming soon.

Hyundai Ioniq EV. on show. (Source: The Driven)

The new Hyundai Ioniq EV due for arrival in Australia by the end of the year will be shown off to the public at the Australian Electric Vehicle Association expo in Brisbane on Saturday.

Some preliminary pricing last month, shared on social media, said the pure battery electric version would be around $44,000-45,000 (before on road costs) but some say this could be as low as $40,000.

While the Hyundai Ioniq has a smaller battery (28kWh) and less range than its Hyundai stablemate, the Kona SUV electric (only 280km compared to 480km), the price could be a clincher for many Australians who simply want an electric vehicle that serves their everyday needs.

Electric vehicles can not only save huge amounts of carbon (and particulate) emissions from polluting the air, but also save consumers massive amounts of money in fuel and maintenance costs. Fuel costs a third of petrol, maintenance is simple as there are far less moving parts, and there is 2/3 less greenhouse gas emissions (Even less if charged by 100% renewable energy, which is close in Tasmania and will be so in the ACT by 2020.)

Read more: Sneak peak of new “cheap” Ioniq EV at Brisbane expo, here soon. The Driven, November 14, 2018.

Energy storage set to boom in next 2+ decades (Bloomberg)

"The tumbling cost of batteries is set to drive a boom in the installation of energy storage systems around the world in the years from now to 2040, according to the latest annual forecast from research company BloombergNEF (BNEF).

The global energy storage market will grow to a cumulative 942GW/2, 857GWh by 2040, attracting $1.2 trillion in investment over the next 22 years. [It includes deployment of behind-the-meter and grid-scale batteries.] Cheap batteries mean that wind and solar will increasingly be able to run when the wind isn’t blowing and the sun isn’t shining.

BNEF’s latest Long-Term Energy Storage Outlook sees the capital cost of a utility-scale lithium-ion battery storage system sliding another 52% between 2018 and 2030, on top of the steep declines seen earlier this decade. This will transform the economic case for batteries in both the vehicle and the electricity sector….”

Continue reading: Energy Storage is a $1.2 Trillion Investment Opportunity to 2040. Bloomberg NEF, November 6, 2018.

Austria to let drivers of EVs go faster on highways

2019 Jaguar I-Pace S (Source: Green Car Reports) 

Austria is offering would-be electric-car owners (and current ones) a tempting incentive to go tailpipe-emissions-free: permission to drive faster than those with petrol, diesel or hybrid vehicles in certain conditions.

Drivers of EVs will be able to go faster during emissions-restricted times tied to high pollution levels. They will be allowed to go 81 mph (130 km/h), versus 62 mph (100 km/h), in a particular speed region that includes 273 miles (440 km) of roadways.

In 1996, a U.S. EPA memo cited data finding that just increasing the speed of fossil fuel transport from 55 mph (89 km/h) to 65 mph (105 km/h) would produce a net increase in vehicle pollution emissions of 20.7 percent more carbon monoxide and 1.3 percent more nitrogen oxides (as well as a big increase in carbon dioxide emissions).

The new policy also encourages cities and municipalities to provide free parking to electric vehicles. The move is in accord with the EU’s 2030 climate targets and the Paris Climate Agreement, with aims to cut Austria’s transport-sector carbon-dioxide emissions by 7.9 million U.S. tons.

Read more:
- Austria to let drivers of electric cars go faster. Green Car Reports, November 2, 2018.
- Electric vehicles get the green light to dive fast in Austria. Forbes, October 29, 2018.