Energy & Environment

To Believe or Not to Believe? Breaking Down the Hype Around Tesla’s Battery Day

There is a familiar pattern when new electric vehicles enter the market: rave reviews, awards from environmental groups, and highly publicized waiting lists. But Tesla has taken the hype to a whole new level. “Battery Day” was last Tuesday, September 22, and thanks to the uncanny marketing prowess of its founder, Elon Musk, the company has built up serious excitement...

September 30, 2020

Energy & Environment

The 100% Renewable Dream: A Problem of Physics and Scale

Introduction  The drumbeat of press about the declining costs of installing wind and solar generators have led most of the public and our policymakers to believe that an “energy transition” from fossil fuels to wind and solar is just around the corner. However, this belief overlooks the fundamental physical limitations of producing electricity from wind and solar. There is a...

June 17, 2020

Energy & Environment

Trump’s new auto efficiency rule means safer cars and better choices

On Tuesday, the EPA and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration finalized what is likely their most impactful and controversial rulemaking to-date during the Trump administration, the Safer Affordable Fuel Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles rule. The SAFE rule modifies the 2012 Corporate Average Fuel Economy, or CAFE, standards, reducing the projected overall industry average required fuel economy for model...

April 1, 2020

Energy & Environment

What’s the true cost of renewables?

A recent study from Synapse Energy Economics (commissioned by the Sierra Club) claims that replacing the J.K. Spruce coal-fired power plant units owned by CPS Energy — San Antonio’s municipal utility — with wind and solar power “could benefit rate payers an average of $85 million each year from 2026-2040.” Unfortunately, the Sierra Club and...

July 7, 2019

Energy & Environment

Georgetown Calls For Increased Transparency

Texas Public Policy Foundation hosted an event in Georgetown, Texas — the city once famous, now infamous, for the claim that its municipal electricity utility uses 100 percent renewable energy. But reality has officially caught up with the hype. The city is losing millions of dollars in its electricity fund, spending nearly $30 million more...

February 22, 2019