MenuRussia and Iran signed a mutual defense and security cooperation pact on Jan. 17 — just days before President Trump’s inauguration. Both nations are primary opponents of the U.S., demonstrated by Russia’s war against Ukraine and Iran’s attempts to assassinate Trump, its regular proclamations of “Death to America, death to Israel!” and its backing of terrorist proxies Hamas,
Category Archives: United States
Renewables Meet Reality: Fuel Oil Still A Problem In New England
New England is traditionally associated with progressive approaches to the environment and the pursuit of renewable energy. States like Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Maine, legislated with binding laws that set limits on emissions to mitigate climate change. This is ironic because New England still relies on one of the world’s most polluting energy sources, fuel oil,
Texas Grid Needs Connectivity And Weatherproofing
The Texas power grid, 90 percent of which is managed by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), is unique in the United States. Unlike other states, Texas operates an independent power grid with very minimal connection to the two national grids: the Eastern Interconnection and the Western Interconnection. This independence is deeply rooted in
Hidden Costs, Rusting Relics: Decommissioning Wind Turbines In The US
The U.S. Wind Turbine Database contains more than 74,695 wind turbines built since 1980, spread between 1,699 wind power projects in 45 states. However, thousands of wind turbines are reaching the end of their operational lifespan and need to be either repowered to make way for updated (often larger) turbines or entirely decommissioned to allow
We Can No Longer Afford to Let China Do Our Rare Earth Mining
On Dec. 3, China banned exporting critical minerals such as gallium, germanium, and antimony to the United States. This came in the wake of the Biden administration’s announcement of new restrictions on the sale of chips and specialized chip-making machinery and software to China the day before. This exchange is merely the latest round in the ongoing battle for
The Blockchain Revolution In The Energy Market
Blockchain is moving beyond cryptocurrencies. By 2026, the market for blockchain in the energy sector is set to exceed $1.5 billion—a massive leap from just $127.5 million in 2018. Energy companies see immense potential in this technology, including how it can transform everything from grid management to green energy trading. Blockchain is a digital technology
The West’s role in solving Central Asia’s water crisis
The Caspian Sea, vital to Eurasia’s economy and environment, is shrinking at an alarming rate. The declining water level in the sea is one visible consequence of a larger regional water crisis faced by the C5 nations of Central Asia—Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan. This water crisis threatens the more than 82 million people who call the largely
U.S. COPing Out Of Global Climate Leadership?
Clean energy shares in the United States experienced a significant decline following Donald Trump’s election to a second term. The WilderHill Clean Energy Index fell by 6.7%, with solar companies like Sunnova Energy International Inc. and Sunrun Inc. dropping as much as 51% and 29%, respectively. The timing of this downturn is unfortunate, as green
Joe Biden’s Iran Oil Sanctions Failure
As Iran is spending billions of dollars funding Hezbollah in Lebanon, the Houthi militias in Yemen, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Gaza, and Katai’b Hezbollah in Iraq, the recently released Energy Information Administration (EIA) report on Iranian petroleum exports stands out as a sobering reminder that the Obama-Biden on-and-off sanctions on Tehran have failed. In fact, as the sanctions against the Kremlin over its invasion of Ukraine suggest, sanctions alone are
Google’s Search For AI-Enabling Secure Energy Goes Nuclear
As Google’s AI energy needs skyrocket, the company recently inked a deal with Kairos Power, a nuclear power company started in 2016, to meet Google’s growing energy needs. The deal between the two companies includes plans to bring a small modular reactor online by 2030 and produce up to 500MW by 2035, according to a