** Global investment in renewable energy projects hit a fresh record this year but fell in the U.S., an analysis released this week shows. U.S. spending fell by $20.5 billion, or 36%, from the second half of 2024 in what the firm calls a response to the U.S. presidential election. It was the steepest drop of any country. The U.S., in the first half of 2025, wasn’t among the world’s top-five wind markets for the first time since 2016.
** A flooring manufacturer in Atlanta has just broken the record for the largest solar capacity in the metro area. According to Electrek, the rooftop solar on the Beauflor USA building is a 1,040-kilowatt system, with the ability to cut the manufacturer’s carbon pollution down by 1,014 tons per year.
** Utah lawmakers are eyeing more policy changes to further regulate renewable energy producers in the state, starting by disincentivizing the presence of solar farms in fields that could be “productive,” and adding a requirement to contribute to the communities that surround them.
** Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe said the push toward gas-powered engines is “very bad for the US auto industry.” “It blows my mind this is happening,” Scaringe said on a podcast. “But nonetheless, it is.” He said the “reprioritization of capital” would thin the competition in EVs and offer an opportunity for Rivian and Tesla.
** More than nine out of ten car dealers believe the used electric vehicle (EV) market is on the verge of a breakthrough, according to the latest Startline Used Car Tracker. The August report reveals 93% of dealers see the market as “close to a tipping point”, with 53% saying buyers are now much more comfortable with EVs and 51% reporting that they are becoming “just another car in stock.”
** The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday approved a waiver request that will allow NextEra Energy to restart the Duane Arnold nuclear power plant in Iowa by the end of 2029. NextEra shuttered the roughly 600-MW, single unit Duane Arnold power plant near Cedar Rapids, Iowa, in 2020 because of challenging economic conditions, reported Utility Dive.
World
** Refiners in India are planning to trim their purchases of Russian crude in the coming weeks, a modest concession to Washington’s pressure. State-run and private processors are expected to buy 1.4 million-to-1.6 million barrels a day for October loading and beyond, compared with an average of 1.8 million barrels a day in the first half of the year.
** Prices of two rare earth elements needed for super-strong magnets have surged to their highest in more than two years after U.S. miner MP Materials stopped raw material exports to leading magnet maker China amid rising demand.
** China has already made EVs cheaper than gas cars, while U.S. EVs carry a premium of about $14,000, though the gap has shrunk since 2019. Meanwhile, the Big Three remain unprofitable on EVs and slow to scale, a struggle tied to a lack of supportive policies from the federal government, according an expert.
** -India is exploring the idea of using gas-fired power plants only to meet the surge of electricity demand during the peak summer months of May and June due to higher costs, an adviser to the power ministry said on Tuesday.
