National

Whats Next

Axios What's Next

After decades of attempts to power cars with energy from the sun, the solar automotive age might finally be upon us.

Why it matters: With climate change accelerating and high gas prices squeezing consumers' budgets, the notion of filling up with free, clean solar energy is certainly enticing.

The catch: The amount of solar energy that can actually be captured by solar panels on a car's roof is limited, which is why the tech has yet to take off.

What's new: Germany’s Sono Motors, which went public on the Nasdaq last year, may have cracked the code with a $25,000 electric SUV called the Sion that's covered pretty much bumper to bumper in solar cells.

Instead of a solar glass roof, the Sion's 456 cells are integrated seamlessly into its plastic hood, fenders, sides, roof and rear panels.

Together, they provide enough energy to extend the car's 190-mile battery range by an average of 70 miles a week — or up to 150 miles per week in perfect conditions.

For people with short commutes in sunny locales, that could mean never plugging in again.

Driving the news: I checked out the Sion on a recent blustery, overcast day in Detroit during a stop on the car's first U.S. tour.

The conditions were a good reminder of the car's practical limitations. Sono says the sun can account for about 5,400 miles of range per year — about one-third most drivers' yearly average — but that all depends on the season, the weather and even how shady your parking spot is.

Details: From a distance, the Sion appears to have one of those trendy black matte paint jobs. Up close, however, you can see the rows of solar cells embedded in the car's body panels. 

How it works: Sono spent five years trying to perfect its patented injection molding process, which integrates monocrystalline silicon cells into the Sion's scratch-resistant, dent-proof polymer panels.

Depending on the time of day and the angle of the sun, different parts of the car capture the sun's energy and feed it to the Sion's 54-kWh lithium-ion phosphate battery.

Solar aside, the Sion's battery can charge in about 30 minutes when plugged into a DC fast charger, or in a few hours at an ordinary Level 2 charger. 

Even without solar power, the $25,000 Sion is an affordable EV (although it won't qualify for U.S. tax incentives because it's built in Europe).

Sono kept costs low by outsourcing production to Valmet Automotive, a well-known Finnish contract manufacturer — and it only comes in one style, with no optional features.

"You can have any color you want, as long as it's black," quipped chief operating officer Thomas Hausch, paraphrasing Henry Ford's famous comment about the Model T. 

And the company will sell its cars directly to consumers instead of through dealerships.

What they're saying: "They've found, in between the cracks, an opportunity that other automakers were not going after," said Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives. 

Be smart: A small handful of other companies, including the California-based Aptera and Dutch startup Lightyear, are also trying to crack the solar-powered EV nut.

What to watch: More than 20,000 Europeans have put down a $2,000 refundable deposit, Sono says, and it has another 22,000 orders from fleet customers, including a subscription car service called FINN. 

The company says it is "actively evaluating American partnership opportunities" to bring the car stateside.

Meanwhile, it's already generating revenue from selling solar retrofit kits for heavy trucks and buses.

Coming soon: A $25,000 solar-powered electric SUV

Sono Motors found a way to build solar cells into a car's body panels.

Image of the Sono Sion, a solar-powered SUV from German startup Sono Motors

The Sono Sion has solar panels embedded in its polymer body panels. Photo courtesy of Sono Motors

Solar power

Alternative energy

Electric vehicles

Ominous forecasts about the impact of climate change serve as the backdrop for the world — led by U.S. lawmakers and companies — to debate big action on the problem, which could upend energy systems and our way of life.

Energy & Environment

Pro Rata

Axios Pro Rata

Climate Deals

Oil giant Shell has progressed to the second round of bidding for Danish biogas producer Nature Energy, which is being sold by a private equity consortium for around $2 billion, per Reuters.

Why it matters: Fossil fuel companies plan to buy their way into the energy transition, as renewable natural gas is generally compatible with existing infrastructure. 

Earlier this week, BP agreed to acquire Houston-based biogas producer Archaea Energy for $4.1 billion, in a massive win for the SPAC that bought Archaea just last year for $1.15 billion.

Cap table: Nature Energy owners include Pioneer Point Partners, Davidson Kempner and Sampension.

The bottom line: Biogas can provide meaningful carbon reduction, particularly when it's made from waste such as landfills and food scraps, instead of crops specifically grown for fuel. However, methane leaks remain an issue."

Shell bids for Nature Energy, as biogas deals heat up

Fossil fuel companies want to buy their way into the energy transition.

Illustration of a hand painting a gas tank green.

Climate tech

After a record economic expansion, the coronavirus pandemic sent the U.S. economy into a recession as unemployment soared to staggering heights. The country now faces urgent questions about how much stimulus is needed for reeling consumers and businesses, and what a recovery might look like.

Economy & Business

The Interior Department on Tuesday announced the country's first lease auction for offshore wind development in the Pacific Ocean.

Why it matters: The move is a first step toward unlocking as much as 25 GW of new wind capacity for the Western U.S.

It's also the first lease sale in the U.S. for commercial-scale floating offshore wind.

Details: The Interior Department's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management in December will hold a lease auction for five wind areas off the coast of California.

The lease areas cover two regions on the Outer Continental Shelf, amounting to nearly 583 square miles.

Developments there are expected to generate at least 4.5 GW of electricity, according to American Clean Power. The group says that’s roughly enough to power 1.5 million homes.

The waters off the Pacific coast are deeper than the Atlantic. Developers there have to build wind turbines that float, instead of erecting them on platforms planted in the sea floor.

Be smart: The move was expected. The Interior Department issued a proposed sale notice in May for offshore wind energy development off California.

Of note: The U.S. military had for years opposed offshore wind development in the Pacific, stating that wind turbines would interfere with training exercises.

Zoom out: The global pipeline for floating offshore wind energy doubled in 2021 to 60 GW.

Europe has been a leader in developing such projects.

Three floating offshore wind projects came online in 2021, totaling about 57 MW, per the U.S. Energy Department. They include the largest floating offshore wind project: the 50 MW Kincardine Offshore Wind Farm off Scotland.

What's next: The Biden administration is aiming to develop 30 GW of offshore wind, and 15 GW of floating offshore wind.

U.S. announces first auction for Pacific offshore wind energy

Illustration for a for sale sign in the middle of a body of water

Wind power

Generate

Axios Generate

Qatar's energy minister sees his country supplying liquefied natural gas to Europe for decades, despite the EU's plans to pivot quickly to renewables in the wake of the Ukraine-related energy crisis.

Why it matters: This view confirms the anxiety among climate activists and some world leaders about locking in too much gas infrastructure.

Driving the news: European countries dependent on Russian gas to heat homes and power factories have been scrambling for alternative supplies and the infrastructure to receive them, and many are turning to tiny Qatar, a global gas powerhouse.

In a wide-ranging interview with Axios, Qatari Energy Minister Saad bin Sherida Al-Kaabi said Europe made a mistake in pushing to switch to renewable energy too quickly while remaining dependent on Russian gas supplies for baseload power.

Qatar and the U.S. rank as the world's top LNG suppliers, and Qatar will significantly increase its capacity when new facilities open in 2026.

Al-Kaabi met with energy secretary Jennifer Granholm and top Biden energy official Amos Hochstein on Thursday in Washington.

What they're saying: "Whether it's in the US and EU, in the Americas and Europe and Asia, gas is absolutely going to be needed for a very long time," Al-Kaabi said.

"So if they have other ideas in Europe and so on, well, if they materialize into something that's a reality, and that they can transform to something else, you know, good for them. But until then we'll be serving their markets."

What we're watching: Al-Kaabi said the global community is heading into the next round of UN climate talks in Egypt after a year of emissions backsliding. This is largely due to geopolitical developments including the uneven covid recovery and the war in Ukraine.

"Realistically, what are we gonna say in COP27?" Al-Kaabi said.

"Coal today is at its highest ever utilization in the history of humanity," he said, noting coal's high CO2 emissions compared to natural gas.

"I think we're in a very delicate situation that we have to be very careful" about pushing fossil fuels to the maximum without considering the climate consequences, he said.

"Global warming is a reality that we can't hide away from." He cited QatarEnergy, which he leads, for moving aggressively into solar, carbon capture and storage and blue ammonia projects.

The intrigue: He gave his own take on whether industrialized countries should set up a fund to compensate developing countries for the climate disasters they are already experiencing as a result of the developed world's emissions.

Qatar's official position on "loss and damage," as it is known in UN climate parlance, will be decided at the political level in his government, Al-Kaabi said.

Yes, but: The creation of a loss and damage fund will be a major point of contention at COP27 in Sharm El-Sheikh.

"I would not support putting a fund together or whatever they're trying to do to compensate [countries] because I think there are much bigger polluters than us that would not actually participate in doing it," he said.

Our thought bubble: This response illustrates the difficulty negotiators will have in coming away from COP27 with a tangible funding mechanism, given a perceived first-mover disadvantage.

Qatar's energy minister foreshadows COP27 fight

The issue of "loss and damage" will play an outsized role at COP27.

Photo illustration of Energy Minister for Qatar Saad Sherida al-Kaabi and an image of natural gas flames

Photo illustration: Annelise Capossela/Axios. Photo: Karim Jaafar/AFP via Getty Images

Fossil fuels

Climate change

Oil companies

The long-awaited Biden administration national security strategy puts climate change at the center of policymaking toward China, the Arctic, and many other parts of the globe.

Why it matters: The strategy released Wednesday by the White House integrates global warming into national security policy to an unprecedented extent, making clear the administration views the issue as “the existential challenge of our time.”

Driving the news: The shrinking window to meet the Paris Agreement targets is one of several dynamics at play that will either point toward a more stable world or help usher in “[a]n age of conflict and discord,” per the White House.

Zoom in: Previous climate change and security assessments from the military, the intelligence community and think tanks have pointed to climate change as a threat multiplier.

For example, climate change can worsen extreme weather and climate events, from hurricanes to droughts, leading to politically destabilizing mass migrations that can entangle the U.S. military in humanitarian relief missions.

The new strategy designates climate change as being among the greatest of the world’s shared challenges, which lies “[a]t the very core of national and international security,” along with food insecurity, terrorism and inflation. 

It states the U.S. is open to cooperating on shared challenges with rivals, pointing to climate talks with China. 

Yes, but: It also takes a swipe at China’s climate policies, stating the Chinese government “[a]lso continues to endanger the world with inadequate action on climate change domestically, particularly regarding massive coal power use and build up.”

Between the lines: The document nods to the fraught nature of the energy transition and the need to reduce the country’s dependence on hostile regimes “that seek to weaponize energy for coercion,” citing Russia as an example. 

Our thought bubble: The last time climate change played such a prominent role in a national security strategy was in the Obama administration’s 2015 strategy. It described the climate challenge in less dire terms: “Climate change is an urgent and growing threat.”

It also touted a climate agreement with China that helped pave the way for the Paris Agreement. 

Now, climate change impacts are far more severe, and the window to cut emissions sufficiently to meet the Paris targets is rapidly closing. At the same time, the U.S. is locked in far more heated competition with China.

Biden's national security strategy focuses on climate change

The White House's strategy integrates global warming into national security policy to an unprecedented extent.

Photo illustration of President Biden with abstract shapes and image of smokestacks.

Photo illustration: Allie Carl/Axios. Photo:Drew Angerer, Kevin Frayer/Getty Images

China is becoming the most formidable rival America has faced, and the risk of confrontation with Russia, North Korea or Iran still looms. Authoritarians are rising, the chaotic Afghanistan exit revealed the limits of U.S. power, and the pandemic, climate change and other critical challenges continue to pose grave threats.

World

A mix of politics, policy divides and a ticking clock thwarted legislation to speed permitting for energy projects ranging from fossil fuel pipelines to power transmission to renewables.

Catch up fast: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) on Tuesday threw in the towel for the moment.

Democratic leaders stripped his proposal from the bill to continue government funding past Sept. 30 after it became clear the measure lacked votes.

Why it matters: Renewables industry groups called the proposal needed to realize the goals of the climate bill, which invests in a huge buildout of wind, solar and other low-carbon energy.

But climate activists opposed making it easier to build oil-and-gas infrastructure — and specifically the bill's approval of the Mountain Valley Pipeline gas project. A number of progressive Democrats sided with them.

GOP lawmakers also want faster permitting, but some argued was too meager. And Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell was in no mood to give Manchin a political win.

The bottom line: Add it together and there just wasn't a viable political coalition.

What we don't know: Whether efforts to revive the plan, which the White House publicly supports, have a political pulse. 

Manchin — in a statement arguing lawmakers are putting politics before energy security  — vowed to keep pushing, as did Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

The White House — in a statement that blamed Republicans but stayed silent on Democratic opposition — also said it would keep seeking a way to move the measure.

Making sense of the Senate permitting collapse

Sen. Joe Manchin threw in the towel — at least for the moment.

Illustration of legislation being pierced with fountain pens. 

Congress

U.S. solar equipment manufacturing is about to grow, but there are miles to go before reaching the White House goal of becoming a global heavyweight.

Driving the news: First Solar said Tuesday it is planning to invest up to $1 billion in a new panel factory in the southeast.

The company is also spending nearly $200 million to expand production in Ohio.

Why it matters: It's among several early signs the new climate law will sway investment.

It created new tax breaks for clean energy manufacturing projects, and extended incentives for generation projects.

CEO Mark Widmar wrote the law has "delivered precisely the durable solar industrial policy that we’ve long advocated for."

SPI Energy last week cited the law in announcing new solar wafer manufacturing plans.

The big picture: Analysts expect billions of dollars in incentives will spur  other new announcements and help bring tentative plans to fruition.

"We expect that solar companies will prioritize bringing new ingot, wafer and module factories to the U.S.," Pol Lezcano, BloombergNEF's lead North American solar analyst, said via email.

"There is definitely going to be a boom in domestic manufacturing," Sylvia Leyva Martinez, a senior Wood Mackenzie analyst, tells Axios.

She said the combination of the manufacturing tax credits and extended credits for building new generation projects will work in concert.

The Solar Energy Industries Association, in a report, said the law could help lift U.S. manufacturing to 50 gigawatts of capacity by 2030 (but also cautions on several pitfalls).

Yes, but: The U.S. remains far behind China and other regions in the supply chain for panels and other equipment. 

Chinese manufacturers made 180 gigawatts worth of panels last year, per BloombergNEF.

In 2021 the U.S. manufactured enough panels to provide 8 gigawatts of generating capacity, Lezcano said.

BloombergNEF is tracking another 7 gigawatts already announced or under construction by companies including Hanwha Q Cells and First Solar.

What we're watching: How many more projects materialize — and when.

Martinez notes companies need specifics from the IRS on the tax programs. Developers also need to find adequate sites, among other steps, she said.

U.S. solar factories prepare for liftoff

Tax incentives in the new climate law are slated to boost domestic manufacturing.

Illustration of a firecracker rocket made from solar panels with a lit fuse. 

With the days turning shorter, Europe is facing a dire energy crisis that is increasingly testing political leaders and the public.

Why it matters: The ability of European countries to keep the lights and heat on this winter depends on how this crisis is managed.

A failure to secure adequate energy supplies could lead to political unrest and economic turmoil.

The big picture: The narrative has shifted from a threatening situation requiring urgent action to near certain peril that could cause the EU to dive into the depths of a recession, with worldwide knock-on effects.

Threat level: Energy prices continue to spike to record levels nearly every day, as Russia throttles back its shipments of natural gas to the EU in retaliation for Ukraine-related sanctions.

Last week, the U.K.'s energy regulator announced an 80% hike to the price cap that gas suppliers can charge customers, with another increase to come in January.

Price spikes could threaten lives this winter, as people have to choose between food and heat.

According to Reuters, the benchmark European gas price has jumped by at least 550% in the past year.

What's next: European Union energy ministers are likely to hold an emergency meeting in the coming days.

Some leaders, such as the prime minister of the Czech Republic, are seeking an EU-wide solution.

Ursula von der Leyen, head of the European Commission, signaled her support for reforming the bloc's electricity markets on Monday.

"The skyrocketing electricity prices are now exposing the limitations of our current market design," von der Leyen said via Twitter this morning.

"We are now working on an emergency intervention and a structural reform of the electricity market."

Catch up fast: The EU's 27 member states agreed in July to voluntarily cut gas consumption by 15% through March 2023.

Under that agreement, there is an option to impose mandatory gas consumption cuts.

Yes, but: Such measures may be difficult, given the diverse energy mix of countries within the bloc.

Also, it is clear that countries like Germany are rushing to fill their natural gas reserves for the cold season. But Europe will still need considerable imports — this time in the form of liquified natural gas — to get through the winter.

Between the lines: The situation in the U.K. illustrates the political pressures on leaders to act.

After last week's price hikes, a debate is raging over whether to cut taxes to reduce costs on residents, make direct payments to help people withstand the price spikes, or both.

What we're watching: With energy markets blinking red, the actions taken in the next few weeks will help determine how Europe fares this winter, and how high citizens' bills will climb.

Europe's soaring energy costs push leaders to consider major steps

Electricity market reform now appears to be on the table.

Illustration of the stars of the European Union flag forming a clock, with the time approaching midnight.

Europe

Science

Axios Science

Scientists have identified a previously unknown group of polar bears in southeast Greenland living in an environment with relatively little sea ice, potentially pointing toward a way to preserve some of the iconic species as Arctic sea ice melts. 

Why it matters: The research suggests polar bears can live in a wider variety of conditions than scientists previously thought — and, some scientists say, raises the possibility that some groups of polar bears in select locations could be more resistant to global warming's sweeping changes. 

However, many questions remain to be answered about the newly identified population and its ability to withstand rapid Arctic climate change. 

Driving the news: The newly discovered group of polar bears lives among the isolated fjords and glaciers of southeast Greenland.

Researchers tracked the group — which they say likely contains a few hundred bears — using satellite data and ground-based tracking devices. They published their findings today in the journal Science.

Polar bears typically use sea ice that freezes along the coastlines as their hunting ground to catch seals. But that ice is absent for more than 250 days each year in southeast Greenland.

During stretches when they don't have access to sea ice, polar bears typically move to land or head to other areas where they can find sea ice. 

But this newly discovered group was able to stay put and keep hunting, relying instead on freshwater ice from glaciers.

The intrigue: The study's authors say the population offers a window into how some animals might fare as climate change continues to transform the Arctic, where temperatures are increasing about three times as fast as the rest of the world.

"[S]ome polar bears can become established and adapt to this distinctive environment, which, in some areas, may provide a buffer to sea-ice loss," the authors write.

The newly discovered population could provide a focus for polar bear conservation efforts, similar to how ecologists are seeking out hardier coral species that can better withstand marine heat waves.  

But, but, but... The ice these bears rely on is also under threat. It may offer these bears a hunting ground now, because sea ice is disappearing first, but Greenland's glaciers are melting.

"These bears are subject to the same climate warming as all other polar bears,"  lead author Kristin Laidre of the University of Washington told Axios in an interview. 

Whether polar bears use sea ice or ice from glaciers, "the general contours of the story are the same — climate change melt and ice retreat," said John Whiteman, chief research scientist at Polar Bears International. Whiteman was not involved in the new study.

The pace of ice sheet deterioration will determine whether the population of bears "might do better for a little while" or "end up in jeopardy," Whiteman told Axios. 

"These bears can really shed light on our understanding about the species," Laidre said, "And maybe how other similar areas in Greenland and Svalbard might be really critical to the persistence of polar bears as a species when we lose Arctic sea ice."

Zoom in: The group of polar bears is genetically distinct from others in the Arctic, and the researchers propose it be considered a new 20th subpopulation. 

They estimate the polar bears have been genetically isolated for at least 200 years. But because the bears live for 15 to 20 years on average, there have not been enough generations in the subpopulation to determine whether they have genetic adaptations. 

"From a broad perspective, the lifestyle of these polar bears is similar to others: They're eating marine mammal prey and hanging out on ice in the ocean," Whiteman says. The difference lies in the type of ice these bears rely on versus other Arctic populations.

The big picture: As climate change progresses, scientists are trying to get a handle on which species can move to new areas, which can adapt to new conditions and which are at risk of dying out. 

Recent studies have documented physical changes — for example, larger legs and beaks — or shifts in behavior, including the timing of migration and reproduction, in animals as they face the effects of climate change.

What to watch: It's unclear whether the bears' ability to use the ice sheet is unique to this subpopulation, or whether scientists might find other polar bears relying on ice sheets now that they know to look for that behavior.

The researchers say the group warrants recognition from the International Union for Conservation of Nature as a subpopulation, a move that could impact conservation efforts for the bears and their habitat.

Polar bear discovery in Greenland raises cautious hopes for conservation

The new discovery may point the way to preserving some polar bears as the Arctic warms.

 A polar bear stands on a snow-covered iceberg that is surrounded by fast ice, or sea ice connected to the shore, in Southeast Greenland in March 2016. Photo: Kristin Laidre/University of Washington

A polar bear stands on a snow-covered iceberg surrounded by fast ice, or sea ice connected to the shore, in southeast Greenland in March 2016. Photo: Kristin Laidre/University of Washington

Greenland

A look at the scientific breakthroughs changing the world, explorations in space and in worlds beyond our own and the threats posed to us by our own planet, both out of our control and of our own making.

The Department of Commerce's probe into whether Chinese companies are skirting tariffs on solar panel shipments to the U.S. is delaying projects nationwide, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA).

Solar projects stalled as Biden administration probes Chinese imports

The Commerce Department is investigating whether Chinese companies are skirting U.S. tariffs.

Alternative energy

The big picture

Exclusive: Green hydrogen company raises $11 million in Series A

These technologies could bring America to net zero emissions by 2050

Exclusive: DOE launches push to meet hydrogen "Earthshot" goal

Climate change boosts support for divisive tech

Biden's climate plan tries to bring unions into clean energy

Wind and solar would struggle to replace coal-mining jobs

All Alternative energy stories