Scotland power boss: Peak charging could cause grid problems

Nissan Leaf in ScotlandVastly greater numbers of electric cars on United Kingdom roads could pose problems for the power supplies used to recharge them—if, that is, they all plug in during the day. Frank Mitchell, head of SP Energy Networks a unit of ScottishPower, said a rush to electric cars in the U.K. could burden the power grid if owners opt to charge those...

Trump promised to save the coal industry; it hasn’t happened

Coal trains by Flickr user Kimon Berlin (Used under CC License)You may recall that President Donald Trump made some ambitious and audacious campaign promises about his plans to revive America's dwindling coal industry. Two weeks ago, The Washington Post fact-checked the president's delivery on those promises after his first year in office—in multiples of "Pinocchios," its measure of untruthfulness for...

Here’s how California’s carpool (HOV-lane) stickers work now

I-95/395 reversible HOV lanes, located in the middle of the freeway (pic by Mariordo at Wikimedia)For years, green-car buyers in California have enjoyed a special perk: access to high-occupancy vehicle lanes that can whiz past gridlock, even with just a single occupant. Now, updates to the rules signed into law in October by Governor Jerry Brown will likely change the way owners and shoppers view the coveted carpool-lane stickers and how they...

Effect of Trump solar-panel import tariffs on clean-power growth debated

Photovoltaic solar power field at Volkswagen plant in Chattanooga, TennesseeA majority of the photovoltaic solar panels used in the U.S. are imported from such countries as China, Malaysia, South Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. Now, environmentalists and energy analysts worry that the new 30-percent tariff on solar-panel imports announced last Monday by President Donald Trump may stymie the rapidly growing clean-energy...