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New Delhi: India's fossil fuel emissions are projected to rise by 4.6 per cent in 2024, while China could see a marginal rise of 0.2 per cent, according to new research by a group of international scientists. As the UN climate conference in Baku, Azerbaijan, discussed raising trillions of dollars to tackle <keyword id="19907392" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Climate-change" source="keywords">climate change</keyword>, the group of scientists known as the "Global Carbon Project" warned that emissions from fossil fuels -- the main driver of warming -- could hit a record 37.4 billion tonnes in 2024, up 0.8 percent from 2023 levels. This comes despite rapid growth in renewable energy and a landmark agreement at COP28 in Dubai last year to move away from fossil fuels. The "<keyword id="23948569" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Global-carbon-budget-2024" source="keywords">Global Carbon Budget 2024</keyword>" report said total global CO2 emissions are set to go up from 40.6 billion tons in 2023 to 41.6 billion metric tons in 2024, which is on course to become the warmest year on record. "The impacts of climate change are becoming increasingly dramatic, yet we still see no sign that burning of fossil fuels has peaked," Professor Pierre Friedlingstein of Exeter's Global Systems Institute, who led the study, said. The 'Global Carbon Project' team said India, the world's most populous country and fastest-growing major economy, may see its fossil fuel emissions rise by 4.6 percent. According to a UN report released last month, India's greenhouse gas emissions surged by 6.1 per cent in 2023, contributing to 8 per cent of the global total. However, the country's historical contribution to global CO2 emissions stands at only 3 per cent. India's per capita emissions remain low at 2.9 tons of CO2 equivalent (tCO2e), far below the global average of 6.6 tCO2e. India, the world's third-largest greenhouse gas emitter, has pledged to reach net zero emissions (balancing emissions with removals) by 2070 and aims to achieve 500 gigawatts of renewable energy capacity by 2030. China's emissions, which make up 32 per cent of the global total, are likely to increase slightly by 0.2 per cent, though there is a chance they could decline, according to the data released on Wednesday. Emissions from the United States and the European Union, which contribute 13 per cent and 7 per cent of the global total, are both set to decline, with drops of 0.6 per cent for the US and 3.8 per cent for the EU. Emissions from the rest of the world, which together account for 38 per cent of global emissions, could see a rise of 1.1 per cent. The researchers said that in 2024, coal emissions will likely increase by 0.2 per cent, oil by 0.9 per cent, and gas by 2.4 per cent, globally. Coal, oil, and gas contribute 41 per cent, 32 per cent, and 21 per cent of global fossil CO2 emissions, respectively. However, given the uncertainty in projections, it remains possible that coal emissions could decline in 2024, they said. The report also pointed out that emissions from international aviation and shipping, which account for 3 per cent of global emissions and are tracked separately from national or regional totals, are expected to rise by 7.8 per cent in 2024. However, these emissions will still be 3.5 per cent below the 2019 pre-pandemic levels. Globally, emissions from land-use changes, like deforestation, have dropped by 20 per cent over the past decade but are expected to rise in 2024. Permanent CO2 removal through reforestation and new forest planting now offsets about half of the emissions from permanent deforestation, they added. Technology-based CO2 removal accounts for only a tiny fraction -- around one-millionth -- of CO2 emissions from fossil fuels. The report said that emissions from fires in 2024 have been above the average since the beginning of the satellite record in 2003, particularly due to the extreme 2023 wildfire season in Canada (which continued into 2024) and severe drought in Brazil. Land and ocean carbon sinks continued to absorb around half of the total carbon emissions, despite being negatively affected by climate change.

Global fossil emissions to reach record high in 2024; India's share to rise by 4.6 pc: Report

<keyword id="19936674" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reliance" source="keywords">Reliance</keyword> Industries Ltd, <keyword id="22746601" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indias-most-valuable-company" source="keywords">India's most valuable company</keyword>, plans to commission its first <keyword id="22746598" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="solar-giga-factory" source="keywords">solar giga-factory</keyword> in the current fiscal as it pivots a <keyword id="20534377" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="green-pathway" source="keywords">green pathway</keyword> to achieve <keyword id="20824969" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="net-zero-carbon-emissions" source="keywords">net zero carbon emissions</keyword> from operations by 2035. In its largest annual report, the firm said it is targeting to commission the first train of 20GW solar PV (photovoltaic) <keyword id="19914449" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="manufacturing" source="keywords">manufacturing</keyword> by the end of 2024-25 fiscal (April 2024 to March 2025) and scale up to 20GW in a phased manner over 2026. The solar giga factory will include <keyword id="19914449" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="manufacturing" source="keywords">manufacturing</keyword> of <keyword id="22746599" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="PV-modules" source="keywords">PV modules</keyword>, cells, wafers and ingots, polysilicon, and glass at a single location. The modules convert sunlight into electricity. It is also targeting industrialising <keyword id="22746600" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sodium-ion-cell-production" source="keywords">sodium-ion cell production</keyword> at the MW level in 2025 and first 50 MWh a year <keyword id="22746602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="lithium-battery-cells" source="keywords">lithium battery cells</keyword> pilot in 2026. <keyword id="19936674" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Reliance" source="keywords">Reliance</keyword> had in 2021 announced plans to invest USD 10 billion over three years to develop a new fuels business based on 100 GW of renewable power capacity by 2030. The plan involves setting up four giga factories for manufacturing renewables equipment, battery storage, fuel cells and hydrogen at Jamnagar in Gujarat. "We have made significant progress in establishing factories that will be part of our Integrated Solar PV Manufacturing," the firm said in the annual report. "New Energy will be commissioning its first train of Module and Cell Manufacturing in FY25." Solar panels manufactured in Jamnagar have obtained BIS certification. "Parallelly, work on <keyword id="19895602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="renewable-energy" source="keywords">renewable energy</keyword> development has commenced and Reliance has been allotted land in Gujarat," it said. "We aim to become the largest <keyword id="19895602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="renewable-energy" source="keywords">renewable energy</keyword> (RE) developer in India." Besides commissioning the first train of module and cell of 20GW of solar PV manufacturing, 2024-25 may also see industrialise sodium ion cell production at a MW level. Next year, PV factory is to be scaled to 20GW in a phased manner, and a battery giga factory starting with a 50 MWh a year <keyword id="22746602" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="lithium-battery-cells" source="keywords">lithium battery cells</keyword> pilot set up. In FY27, it plans to establish a cell-to-pack manufacturing facility of 50 GWh and will set up 100 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. The 100GW target will propel the company into the front rank of renewables ambitions globally, joining the likes of Enel, Iberdrola and oil players TotalEnergies and BP in the scale of capacity additions envisaged. Reliance said fossil fuels have historically fed India's power requirements. "Structural inefficiencies combined with rising costs of fossil fuel has resulted in expensive power for commercial and residential customers - average tariff of Rs 10 per kWh (unit)." Therefore, it is not feasible for India to keep relying on fossil fuels for its growth, it said, adding the use of fossil fuels-based energy increases dependence on imports and results in drain of foreign exchange. "Stable and round-the-clock cost-efficient green power is the need of the hour. India needs to solve this problem to maintain its growth trajectory and reach USD 32 trillion GDP by 2047," it said. Reliance said over the next 12 months, its focus is to bring new energy manufacturing facilities on-stream, operate them efficiently and start developing renewable energy generation projects. "Simultaneously, we would develop the supply chain locally for self-sufficiency and reduce the reliance on imports," it said. The firm aims to partner leading global climate technology and product companies and develop a business model which is flexible and adaptable to different technologies and future proofed to be always lowest life cycle cost and best in class. Reliance has snapped up multiple partnerships in the clean energy space, such as solar and electric mobility, while pursuing its oil and petrochemical plans. Jamnagar, the world's biggest single-site integrated refinery complex, has two refineries -- one domestic-focused and a newer only for exports -- that together can process low-grade crude and switch between fuels depending on prices.

Reliance to commission first solar giga-factory in FY25

<keyword id="19950119" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Tata-Consultancy-Services" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Tata Consultancy Services" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Tata Consultancy Services">Tata Consultancy Services</keyword> (TCS), has expanded its partnership with <keyword id="20167467" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Rolls-Royce" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Rolls-Royce" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Rolls-Royce">Rolls-Royce</keyword>, a British multinational specialising in civil aerospace, defence aerospace, services, and power systems, to advance sustainable aviation initiatives. According to a press release, the collaboration focuses on researching <keyword id="22499621" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="hydrogen-fuel-system-technology" source="keywords">hydrogen fuel system technology</keyword>, reinforcing the potential of hydrogen as a zero-carbon <keyword id="20178417" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="aviation-fuel" source="keywords">aviation fuel</keyword> of the future. TCS will supply engineering skills and support to Rolls-Royce to tackle three key challenges in enabling hydrogen for aviation- fuel combustion, fuel delivery, and fuel system integration with an engine. All elements must be validated for safe operation. This partnership highlights TCS's commitment to driving sustainable transformation across industries, aligning with its broader mission to harness technology for positive societal impact. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has set targets for net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Alan Newby, Director, Research and Technology, Rolls-Royce, said, "We welcome TCS to our hydrogen research programme and their engineering skills will play a valuable role in addressing our technology goals. We've already made great progress and having TCS with us gives us additional capability as we move forward on our journey to enable the energy transition for the aviation sector." The expanded partnership was announced at the Farnborough International Airshow, where TCS also showcased its technological prowess in the aviation industry. This collaboration builds on a long-standing relationship between Rolls-Royce and the Tata Group, including engine development and a robust supply chain commitment. TCS has worked with Rolls-Royce since 2010 in areas such as design, manufacturing engineering, control systems, software, after-market services, and IT services, supporting major civil and business aviation programs and the end-to-end product development lifecycle. Anupam Singhal, President - Manufacturing, TCS, said, "The partnership between TCS and Rolls-Royce is an exciting one that represents a powerful alliance in the quest for <keyword id="22500175" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="sustainable-aviation-solutions" source="keywords">sustainable aviation solutions</keyword>. We are aligned with Rolls-Royce's ambition for a greener future. This partnership is the perfect opportunity to put our technological strengths and passion for the environment to use for advancing innovation and fostering an eco-friendlier aerospace sector." TCS will leverage its deep domain knowledge of the aircraft manufacturing industry to support Rolls-Royce's engineering activities such as system design, component design, supply chain support, and program management. These services will help Rolls-Royce research hydrogen technology to address the challenges of fuel combustion, fuel delivery, and fuel systems integration with an engine, ensuring all elements operate safely. Regu Ayyaswamy, Senior Vice President and Global Head- Internet of Things and Digital Engineering, TCS, said, "TCS and Rolls-Royce have been partners in advancing engineering excellence for nearly a decade. The new partnership for research into hydrogen fuel systems represents a pivotal next step at a time when the aviation industry is faced with the urgent challenge of reducing carbon emissions while maintaining performance and efficiency. It aligns well with TCS' commitment to harness technology for positive societal impact and building a greener future." TCS has been on a mission to harness the power of technology for positive societal impact and drive sustainable transformation across industries. With more than 200 sustainability offerings, TCS is helping customers around the world in their sustainability journeys. As a Tata group company, TCS is also conscious of its impact on the environment. In 2021, TCS set an ambitious sustainability target to reduce its absolute emissions by 70 per cent across Scope 1 and Scope 2 by 2025 from the baseline year 2016 and to achieve net zero by 2030. By FY24, TCS had already reduced its absolute carbon footprint across Scope 1 and Scope 2 by 80 per cent over a baseline of 2016, exceeding its target achievement by 10 per cent, one year ahead of time. (ANI)

TCS collaborates with Rolls-Royce for hydrogen research programme

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon are venturing into nuclear power for data centers.</li><li>Nuclear power is reliable and carbon-free, crucial for AI-driven energy demands and climate goals.</li></ul>Nuclear power's stock is rising thanks to artificial intelligence's insatiable appetite for electricity.Tech giants including Microsoft, Oracle, and Amazon have struck deals in nuclear power this year in hopes of supplying their data centers with carbon-free electricity. The deals have buoyed the confidence of global financial institutions, 14 of which on Monday <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nuclear-power-banks-support-boost-output-microsoft-larry-ellison-2024-9">endorsed a goal to triple nuclear energy</a> by 2050. Bank of America and Goldman Sachs are among the signatories.It's a <a target="_blank" class="" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/nuclear-power-diablo-canyon-california-newsom-germany-japan">remarkable shift</a>, given that just five years ago the nuclear plant at Three Mile Island in Pennsylvania shut down in part because it couldn't compete with cheap natural gas. The site was also a symbol of the risks of nuclear energy after one reactor partially melted down in 1979. Now Constellation Energy, the owner of Three Mile Island, <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/three-mile-island-nuclear-plant-reopens-power-microsoft-ai-push-2024-9">plans to spend $1.6 billion over three years to reopen one reactor</a> that had safely operated for decades. Microsoft agreed to buy the electricity <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-plan-double-triple-data-center-capacity-2024-4">for its growing fleet of data centers</a>."It's only recently that people have come to appreciate the importance of [nuclear power] from a reliability perspective," Kathleen Barrón, executive vice president and chief strategy officer for Constellation, told Semafor during an event at Climate Week in New York City. "But even more so, that there just are no other resources on the grid that can operate when customers need it, consistently, without any air pollution or carbon emissions."All those factors make nuclear attractive to Big Tech companies, which made lofty climate promises but are still generating more emissions as they aggressively invest in electricity-hungry data centers. Earlier this year, <a target="_blank" href="https://l.businessinsider.com/e/evib?_t=c8e10479a20f45bba5aad6c5f6fbb009&amp;_m=0dbc78003e564580b4e87c95698d0e02&amp;_e=8U4bXw3HX8KDYSsPzOolGOCYuGSttGyuSAzwaclc6RLhG88pp5ZvENg7wFUaiGhas0CJQxM0PQO-UKfMbE1JyA%3D%3D">Microsoft reported a 30% spike in carbon emissions</a> between 2020 to 2023, blaming AI and all the carbon-intensive cement, steel, and microchips needed to build data centers. Google reported a nearly 50% increase in emissions since 2019, citing similar drivers.That climate dilemma isn't slowing the AI boom. Microsoft, Amazon, Google, Meta, and Apple are on track to spend a combined <a target="_blank" href="https://l.businessinsider.com/a/click?_t=c8e10479a20f45bba5aad6c5f6fbb009&amp;_m=0dbc78003e564580b4e87c95698d0e02&amp;_e=wWZA5Xoinj0sH2ZX3ugl_OzAKGrCiaQhI0tCdnLiYoGrY2K9XAQ9DXH1nfuXy-AVxR1I2cM5WdV4N__NEHyRgYfxy7pVcK_RoGnlzbfAMw0peO387D2ee0ZCHzEGiY5546lzxSGycKFUCR40aeM1KaciKqift090lKwLtQ-AzllnLeaMvGjH2Szgt7qYcBgSDAgaI_Mdcc7iH_aEDW-Bgh1nvCAEJ7ASTgU-RZ0dP8JOjrfM1r3GFWQ2YdecsSNiiMOGH1mQj_CO9LoLsPhlRawPXj44fGS-XAxiJXAiO3DhIdN0_A7HQjBdVIFETbbhh0ciFuWaBCHhWzClc4RKuys42wiLQFOopc9nCjwKVz5SFVkf_agp-59KZ3ilLlt162SzG2LHLnyVB6tPBRUdSpzM4IhgspSGtjURjCI2Cd8%3D">$200 billion</a> on fixed assets this year, with the majority of that money going toward data centers to support AI, according to a Bernstein research note from earlier this year. In the next five years, that spending could surpass $1 trillion.All the growth risks taxing an already-stressed power grid that uses a lot of dirty natural gas. The pipeline of data centers in places like Virginia and Arizona has <a target="_blank" href="https://www.businessinsider.com/data-centers-energy-demand-utilities-green-renewable-2023-10">already slowed the green energy transition</a>. The Electric Power Research Institute, an energy think tank, forecast that data centers could consume up to 9% of US electricity annually by 2030, compared to an estimated 4% today. And while tech companies are the largest buyers of solar, wind, and battery storage, it still isn't enough to meet the 24/7 needs of data centers.<h2 id="a02dd0e8-7117-4d44-8d2a-36fd9deff1d0">Delayed and over budget</h2>While nuclear power is around the clock, critics warn that it isn't a realistic solution to the data center problem. Hyperscalers need energy now and restarting a mothballed nuclear plant — let alone building new ones — can take years or even a decade. It's also an expensive gamble. Nuclear projects have a track record of going over budget. The most recent new US nuclear plant, built by Georgia Power, <a target="_blank" href="https://apnews.com/article/georgia-nuclear-power-plant-vogtle-rates-costs-75c7a413cda3935dd551be9115e88a64">arrived seven years late and $17 billion over budget</a>.Three Mile Island could run into similar problems, said Tim Judson, executive director of the Nuclear Information and Resource Service, which advocates against nuclear power and for renewables like solar and wind. He noted that the plant needed licensing approvals from the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and that reviving an old reactor that's been idle for five years could prove technically challenging.Barrón of Constellation Energy acknowledged that even with new federal tax breaks for nuclear energy, Three Mile Island wouldn't be economical to run without Microsoft, which agreed to pay a premium for electricity. Restarting the plant requires NRC approval following a safety and environmental review, as well as permits from state and local agencies. Constellation Energy said it will pursue a separate license renewal that extends operations to at least 2054.Judson is also concerned that Constellation Energy is talking to a regional grid operator, PJM, about putting the nuclear plant in front of a long queue of solar, wind, and battery storage projects waiting to be connected to the grid. He argued there'd be no need for a nuclear revival if renewable projects cleared those roadblocks faster.Nuclear's supporters disagree, including Arshad Mansoor, president and CEO of the Electric Power Research Institute. He told BI that no amount of renewables and battery storage will be enough to bring the economy to net-zero emissions. Data centers aren't the only driver of power demand. Electric vehicles and new manufacturing plants need electricity, too.Mansoor thinks the AI boom will actually accelerate a greener economy, noting that tech companies sparked greater deployment of wind and solar power."Now they've created a second spark, and it will not just be nuclear," Mansoor said.He predicted greater buy-in for geothermal, long-duration battery storage, and carbon capture and storage at gas plants — many more of which will be built in the coming years, Mansoor said.He also echoed what many tech executives said when defending AI's energy consumption: It will reduce emissions in the long run, such as by helping utilities manage the grid more efficiently and deploy renewables at peak demand times.However, it still isn't clear whether such benefits can offset soaring emissions.

Tech bros and bankers rally around nuclear power to fuel AI's rapid rise

<ul class="summary-list"><li>Montgomery County, Maryland aims to transition its electric bus fleet to zero-emissions by 2035.</li><li>The county is building microgrids with solar, battery storage, and eventually green hydrogen.</li><li>The microgrids are islands of power that are resilient during outages and emergencies.</li></ul>Montgomery County, Maryland, is on the cusp of a clean-transit transformation. Part of an old diesel-bus depot in Silver Spring <a target="_blank" href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/click/33308462.29808/aHR0cHM6Ly9hbHBoYXN0cnV4dXJlLmNvbS9uZXdzLXByZXNzLXJlbGVhc2UvYWxwaGFzdHJ1eHVyZS1jZWxlYnJhdGVzLWxhdW5jaC1vZi1pbnRlZ3JhdGVkLW1pY3JvZ3JpZC8_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1uZXdzbGV0dGVyJmVtYWlsPWNib3VkcmVhdSU0MGluc2lkZXIuY29tJng9ODEyOGUyOWUzMDdkOGMyNjIyODcwYzQzZDJlODMxYTIyY2U1MDA5MjU1YTE1MGQ1NDcxNzAzNWU4Y2IwZDBhNg/628bdf90094963f5ad0eef3eBf5d93db3">has already been redeveloped</a> into a charging station for dozens of electric buses, powered by a microgrid equipped with solar canopies, battery storage, and several backup gas generators. It's essentially a self-sustaining island of power, even during outages.A similar microgrid — twice the size of the one in Silver Spring — is expected to break ground early next year and be operational in 2025, county officials told Insider. The microgrid is set to power a transit center for 200 zero-emissions vehicles and be the first on the East Coast to produce <a target="_blank" href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/click/33308462.29808/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuYnVzaW5lc3NpbnNpZGVyLmNvbS9oeWRyb2dlbi1lbmVyZ3ktaGVscC1jbGltYXRlLWNyaXNpcy1idXQtc3RpbGwtaHVyZGxlcy0yMDIzLTEwP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09bmV3c2xldHRlciZlbWFpbD1jYm91ZHJlYXUlNDBpbnNpZGVyLmNvbSZ4PTgxMjhlMjllMzA3ZDhjMjYyMjg3MGM0M2QyZTgzMWEyMmNlNTAwOTI1NWExNTBkNTQ3MTcwMzVlOGNiMGQwYTY/628bdf90094963f5ad0eef3eBccca7a50">green hydrogen from renewables</a>. Green hydrogen is key for buses with longer routes, officials said, because electric buses average about 125 miles on one charge, or less than half the distance than on a tank of diesel. <div type="image" title="An electric bus charger" height="3024" width="4032" msid="105104812" hostid="261" sizebytes="675146"></div>"We are going to transition to a completely fossil-fuel-free transit group with electric and hydrogen buses," Michael Yambrach, the chief officer of energy and sustainability for Montgomery County, told Insider during a tour of the depot.The county aims to complete that transition by 2035 for its fleet of 380 buses and nearly 3,600 cars. It's part of a larger plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse-gas emissions. So far, 14 buses and about 100 cars are electrified.Yambrach said Montgomery County's efforts could be a model for other local governments trying to clean up their fleets, <a target="_blank" href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/click/33308462.29808/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cud3JpLm9yZy9pbnNpZ2h0cy91cy1wdWJsaWMtZmxlZXQtZWxlY3RyaWZpY2F0aW9uP3V0bV9tZWRpdW09bmV3c2xldHRlciZlbWFpbD1jYm91ZHJlYXUlNDBpbnNpZGVyLmNvbSZ4PTgxMjhlMjllMzA3ZDhjMjYyMjg3MGM0M2QyZTgzMWEyMmNlNTAwOTI1NWExNTBkNTQ3MTcwMzVlOGNiMGQwYTY/628bdf90094963f5ad0eef3eB9b811c13">which include millions</a> of city buses, school buses, police patrol cars, and other vehicles. Only about 2% of US public buses are zero emission, <a target="_blank" href="https://newsletter.businessinsider.com/click/33308462.29808/aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cudHJhbnNwb3J0YXRpb24uZ292L3VyYmFuLWUtbW9iaWxpdHktdG9vbGtpdC9lLW1vYmlsaXR5LWJlbmVmaXRzLWFuZC1jaGFsbGVuZ2VzL3RyYW5zaXQtYmVuZWZpdHMtYW5kLWNoYWxsZW5nZXM_dXRtX21lZGl1bT1uZXdzbGV0dGVyJmVtYWlsPWNib3VkcmVhdSU0MGluc2lkZXIuY29tJng9ODEyOGUyOWUzMDdkOGMyNjIyODcwYzQzZDJlODMxYTIyY2U1MDA5MjU1YTE1MGQ1NDcxNzAzNWU4Y2IwZDBhNiM6fjp0ZXh0PVRoZSUyMG51bWJlciUyMG9mJTIwdHJhbnNpdCUyMGJhdHRlcnksdGhlJTIwVS5TLiUyMHRyYW5zaXQlMjBidXMlMjBmbGVldC4/628bdf90094963f5ad0eef3eBa79655cd">according to federal data</a>. US transit agencies are buying more zero-emission buses and vehicles, but sourcing enough power and building the charging infrastructure affordably are major hurdles.Montgomery County opted to build a microgrid so it didn't have to rely on power from Pepco, the local utility. It hired AlphaStruxure, a joint venture of Schneider Electric and the private-equity giant Carlyle, to finance, develop, and maintain the microgrids. In return, the county pays AlphaStruxure monthly under a long-term contract. The company declined to disclose the total cost.<div type="image" title="A rendering of new sustainable transit center that will be built in Montgomery County, Maryland. Rooftop solar panels and battery storage will supply power for electric buses and cars." height="1200" width="2130" msid="105104813" hostid="261" sizebytes="383458"></div>A stand-alone system is more resilient in the event of an emergency outage, Yambrach said. The county has a pilot program with Pepco that allows the utility to tap power from battery storage at the Silver Spring bus depot when the grid is stressed. That is more climate-friendly than relying on firing up a dirty power plant.Renewable transit also benefits locals' quality of life by phasing out rows of noisy, idling diesel buses that create a lot of pollution."When they light up the buses, the diesel will just hang, and that's been a consistent issue with the neighbors," Don Scheuerman, the chief of the office of energy and sustainability at the Montgomery County Department of General Services, said. "So we're going to have resilience, we're going to have green power 98% of the time, and we're getting our greenhouse-gas emissions down."

See what the future of zero-emissions transit looks like in suburban Maryland

After reporting <keyword id="21767878" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="record-profits" source="keywords">record profits</keyword>, state-owned <keyword id="20459282" type="General" weightage="100" keywordseo="fuel-retailers" source="keywords">fuel retailers</keyword> <keyword id="19908045" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="Indian-Oil-Corporation" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="Indian Oil Corporation" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="Indian Oil Corporation">Indian Oil Corporation</keyword> (<keyword id="6354733" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="IOC" source="Orion">IOC</keyword>), <keyword id="19908646" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="BPCL" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="BPCL" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="BPCL">BPCL</keyword> and <keyword id="20052221" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="HPCL" source="keywords" meta.keywordsubtype="org" meta.entityname="HPCL" meta.hostid="153" meta.entityid="HPCL">HPCL</keyword> posted up to 90 per cent slump in their June quarter earnings as margins fell and they booked under-recovery on the sale of domestic cooking gas LPG at government-controlled rates. IOC, the nation's largest oil firm, reported 81 per cent drop in standalone net profit in April-June - the first quarter of current 2024-25 fiscal year - to Rs 2,643.18 crore as opposed to a profit of Rs 13,750.44 crore a year back, according to a company filing. Net profit also declined sequentially, when compared to an earning of Rs 11,570.82 crore in March quarter. Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd (HPCL) posted 90 per cent drop in profit to Rs 633.94 crore as compared to an earning of Rs 6,765.50 crore in April-June 2023 and Rs 2,709.31 crore in the preceding March quarter. Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL) net profit dropped to Rs 2,841.55 crore in April-June from Rs 10,644.30 crore a year back and Rs 4,789.57 crore in January-March, its filing showed. The three fuel retailers made extraordinary gains from holding petrol and diesel prices despite a drop in cost. The price freeze was justified in the name of recovering losses they had suffered in the previous year when they did not raise retail prices despite a surge in cost. The gains arising from the price freeze were eroded with petrol and diesel prices being cut by Rs 2 per litre each just before general elections and a fall in refining margins. Also, the three had uncompensated <keyword id="20866844" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="LPG-subsidy" source="keywords">LPG subsidy</keyword> - IOC booking under-recovery of Rs 5,156.23 crore in April-June, BPCL Rs 2,015.10 crore and HPCL Rs 2,443.71 crore, according to the filings. As per an order of the oil ministry, when market determined price (MDP) of LPG cylinders is less than its effective cost to customer (ECC), oil marketing companies (OMCs) have to retain the difference in a separate buffer account for future adjustment. However, as on June 30, 2024, the three firms had a net negative buffer as the retail selling price was less than MDP. The three retailers IOC, BPCL and HPCL had reported record profits totalling about Rs 81,000 crore in FY24 (2023-24), which was far more than their annual earnings of Rs 39,356 crore in pre-oil crisis years. This is because they resisted calls to revert to daily price revision and pass on softening in rates to consumers on grounds that prices continue to be extremely volatile - rising on one day and falling on the other - and that they needed to recoup losses incurred in the year, when they kept rates lower than cost. IOC in 2023-24 posted a standalone net profit of Rs 39,618.84 crore compared to Rs 8,241.82 crore in 2022-23. While the company could argue that FY23 was impacted by the <keyword id="21626914" type="General" weightage="20" keywordseo="oil-crisis" source="keywords">oil crisis</keyword>, the FY24 earnings are higher than even the pre-crisis years - Rs 24,184 crore net profit in 2021-22 and Rs 21,836 crore in 2020-21. BPCL posted a net profit of Rs 26,673.50 crore in FY24, higher than Rs 1,870.10 crore earnings in 2022-23 and Rs 8,788.73 crore in FY22. HPCL's 2023-24 profit of Rs 14,693.83 crore is compared with a Rs 8,974.03 crore loss in FY23 and a profit of Rs 6,382.63 crore in 2021-22, according to the filings. The losses in FY23 had led to the finance minister announcing Rs 30,000 crore equity infusion in the three firms. Mid-way through the year, that support was halved to Rs 15,000 crore. The support was to happen by way of equity infusion via a rights issue. But after the record profits of 2023-24, the equity infusion plan has now been scrapped. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had on February 1 last year, while presenting the annual Budget for the 2023-24 fiscal (April 2023 to March 2024), announced an equity infusion of Rs 30,000 crore in IOC, BPCL and HPCL to support the three state-owned firm's energy transition plans. In the interim budget that the finance minister presented in February this year ahead of the general elections, the capital support to the three oil companies was halved to Rs 15,000 crore. In the full budget for 2024-25, both plans have been scrapped. While other state-owned oil companies like Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) and GAIL (India) Ltd too have lined up billions of dollars of investment to achieve net-zero carbon emissions, the equity support was limited to the three fuel retailers, which had suffered huge losses in 2022 when they held retail petrol, diesel and cooking gas (LPG) prices despite a spike in raw material (crude oil) prices, following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. The board of IOC and BPCL had last year approved rights issues to raise to Rs 22,000 crore and Rs 18,000 crore, respectively. The government was to participate in the rights issue. The three companies, which control roughly 90 per cent of India's fuel market, 'voluntarily' have not changed petrol, diesel and cooking gas (LPG) prices, resulting in losses when input costs were higher and profits when raw material prices were lower. They posted a combined net loss of Rs 21,201.18 crore during April-September 2022 despite accounting for Rs 22,000 crore announced but not paid LPG subsidy for the previous two years. Subsequent softening of international prices and government giving out LPG subsidies helped IOC and BPCL post annualised profit for 2022-23, but HPCL was in the red. In FY24, things changed dramatically, and the three firms posted record earnings.

After record profits, state-owned fuel retailers Indian Oil, BPCL and HPCL see profit slump in Q1

Globally, the rate at which people are installing solar panels and buying electric vehicles is "perfectly in line" with what experts have said is necessary to reach net zero emissions by 2050. That's according to <keyword id="293700" type="General" weightage="60" keywordseo="fatih-birol" source="Orion">Fatih Birol</keyword>, the economist who leads the world's energy watchdog, the International Energy Agency (<keyword id="66776" type="General" weightage="80" keywordseo="iea" source="Orion">IEA</keyword>). Thanks to a "staggering" rise in clean energy generation and investment over the last two years alone, the prospect of halting global heating at 1.5°C remains intact, he added. After a summer of unparalleled climate disasters in Libya, Greece and Canada, should dread turn to optimism? In a recent update on humanity's progress with cutting greenhouse gas emissions, the IEA concluded that by 2030: <keyword id="560717" type="General" weightage="50" keywordseo="fossil-fuel" source="Orion">fossil fuel</keyword> demand must fall 25% -the energy efficiency of homes, vehicles and other appliances must double -methane emissions from the oil and gas sector must fall 75% The report assumes that renewable energy capacity will need to triple and replace coal, oil and gas at a rapid pace by the end of this decade to guard against catastrophic levels of warming. But despite sources like solar consistently defying even the most bullish predictions, fossil fuels have hardly budged: they supplied 82% of the world's energy last year and 87% in 2000. Why? Fossil fuels linger, wind power stalls "Rapidly increasing renewable energy hasn't cut coal and gas consumption at the same rate because humankind is using a lot more electricity than we used to, especially in Asia," says Malte Jansen, a lecturer in energy and sustainability at the University of Sussex. "[In Europe and North America] renewable energy has slowly eaten into the proportion of energy generated by fossil fuels, while all other energy sources (nuclear, hydro, biomass) have remained about the same. In Asia, electricity demand has tripled since the 2000s, with the bulk of this energy coming from fossil fuels." And while the report was glowing in its assessment of solar power's performance, it noted that planned projects for generating wind energy this decade trail what the IEA says will be necessary by 2030. Jansen says wind is a particularly valuable energy source during winter, when energy demand peaks. Unfortunately, the wind industry has been buffeted by inflation. "For those involved in the construction of an offshore wind farm, this means the cost of both the physical parts (such as the turbines) and the debt (bank loans) has gone up," says Phil McNally, a research fellow in electricity markets at UCL. McNally does not believe this setback heralds the end of cheap offshore wind, as some have claimed. Instead, he argues, it means governments must produce strategic plans to grow the sector which include how much energy they wish to procure in auctions with developers. Net zero must come sooner According to the IEA, "almost all countries" will also need to move their net zero target dates forward by several years. Most developed countries, including the US and Australia, aim to fully decarbonise by 2050. Under the UN principle of common but differentiated responsibilities, developing countries have a bit longer: India plans for 2070, for example. A team of energy experts at Australian National University (with support from nearly 900 engineers) recently argued that Australia could hit net zero as early as 2035. But in the UK at least, government policies on net zero are moving in the opposite direction. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently scrapped requirements on landlords to raise the energy efficiency of their properties and delayed the phase-out of petrol and diesel car sales from 2030 to 2035. "As my own analysis has shown," says Tim Jackson, a professor of sustainable development at the University of Surrey, "the UK's fair share of the global carbon budget, taking into account the development needs of the poorest parts of the world, will be exhausted before 2030. Forget 2050. The science is clear. Delay is tantamount to capitulation." We've been here before What can earlier energy transitions teach us about what is happening today? According to energy historian Vaclav Smil, past energy transitions took on average 50-75 years to ripple through society. We no longer have that kind of time says Liz Conor, an ARC Future Fellow at La Trobe University. "To farm fields and build cities, we've gone from relying on human or animal muscle to wind and water to power sailboats and mill grain. Then we began switching to the energy dense hydrocarbons, coal, gas and oil. But this can't last." "We were first warned in 1859 that when burned, these fuels add to the Earth's warming blanket of greenhouse gases and threaten our liveable climate," she says. Environmental limits have spurred the shift to new energy sources before. Take England's transition from burning wood to coal. "England was once carpeted in forest. Endemic deforestation drove the change to coal in the 16th and 17th centuries. Most English coal pits opened between 1540 and 1640," Conor says. Later, dwindling whale populations saw the US abandon whaling as a source of fuel and lubricant for crude oil extraction. But the dominance of coal, oil and gas today was not inevitable. Conor points to 1850s New England, where steam generated from burning coal was three times more expensive than water for powering textile mills. Smil's research documents how waterwheels and turbines "competed successfully with steam engines for decades". "The energy of flowing water was free. Digging up coal was labour-intensive. Why did steam win?" asks Conor. The answer, she says, referring to work by human ecologist Andreas Malm at Lund University, is capital. "Locating steam engines in urban centres made it easier to concentrate and control workers, as well as overcoming worker walk-outs and machine breaking," Conor says. Today's energy transition requires another active intervention, she adds. "Once solar panels and wind turbines are built, sunlight and wind are free. It is the resistance of the old guard - fossil fuel corporations - that is holding us back." (The Conversation) NSA NSA

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