Scottish energy company Nova Innovation has created the first ever electric vehicle charge point using a source of tidal energy, on the island of Yell in Shetland. Tidal energy is an abundant renewable source on a planet covered by 70% water yet remains largely untapped.

The world’s longest undersea electric cable is set to be switched on this week, as testing begins for the 720km interconnector that will trade power between the UK and Norway. Electricity will start flowing through the €2bn North Sea Link in coming days, with the joint venture between the UK’s National Grid and Norway’s Statnett due to begin formal operations in October.

MIT engineers have discovered a new way of generating electricity using tiny carbon particles that can create a current simply by interacting with liquid surrounding them. The liquid, an organic solvent, draws electrons out of the particles, generating a current that could be used to drive chemical reactions or to power micro- or nanoscale robots, the researchers say.

Construction is set to begin in Australia on a grid-scale power generation and long-duration energy storage project combining solar power and thermal energy storage, after the company behind the project said this morning that funding has been secured.

Brazil's Mines and Energy Ministry met with industry representatives on Friday to discuss how large electricity consumers can reduce demand to ease pressure on the grid resulting from Brazil's worst drought in 92 years. The drought threatens electricity generation, which depends heavily on hydroelectric plants, and could hamper wider economic growth this year.

A major project aims to overcome a barrier to electricity grids that are entirely supplied by renewable energy. A group of leading nations will invest $248m over the next decade to solve the issue by 2030.

The seventh Sustainable Development Goal (SDG), SDG7, aims to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all. However, those nations which remain most off the grid, are set to enter 2030 without meeting this goal unless efforts are significantly scaled up, warns the new study entitled Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report, published by the International Energy Agency (IAE), International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA), World Bank, and World Health Organization (WHO).

Tesla CEO Elon Musk announced in 2015 that the electric-vehicle company would be getting into the energy business. Now, it’s starting to take off. On its Q4 2020 earnings call, the company said its battery deployments increased 83% in 2020, particularly thanks to the popularity of the Megapack, which stores energy for utilities.

With a harsh, desert climate and an average rainfall of just four inches (10 cm) a year, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) needs more freshwater. In search of a solution, it has been funding science projects from around the world to try to make it rain. One of these projects involves using catapults to launch small unmanned aircraft which zap clouds with an electric charge.

Burlington, Vermont has been running on renewable electricity since 2014. Shortly before Darren Springer interviewed for a job at the Burlington Electric Department (BED) in 2016, the city proudly proclaimed that it would become a “net zero energy city” by 2030. That meant no more gas or oil to heat residents’ homes and swapping out gas-powered cars for electric vehicles and more public transportation.

A heatwave and brisk economic activities have combined to set off record-breaking electricity consumption in southern Chinese provinces, prompting the state-owned power grid operator to ration power to factories and commercial services providers.

A $2 billion electricity transmission line which is expected to deliver long-term cheaper power in both South Australia and New South Wales has been given the green light. The Australian Energy Regulator (AER) has granted final regulatory approval for the interconnector, which was proposed by transmission companies in both states.