Ukraine deployed more wind power projects than UK in 2022 despite war: Ukraine has installed more wind turbines since the onset of Russia’s invasion than the UK, which has installed only two turbines generating 1 MW since February of last year due to a ban on the deployment of onshore wind power ventures, The Guardian writes. Since the start of the Russian invasion, Ukraine has set up the 114 MW Tiligulska wind farm, the first ever renewables project to be built in a conflict zone. In April 2016, the UK government adopted legislation effectively banning the deployment of onshore wind power power projects for fear they would raise bills for British consumers. However, according to research by the Energy and Climate Change Intelligence Unit, the ban has cost UK taxpayers some GBP 800 mn over the past winter due to rising global energy market prices. Separate research by environmental nonprofit think tank Ember notes that wind and solar energy projects installed across Europe have saved the EU some EUR 12 bn since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Mineral exploration in Australia surges as US climate policy spurs EV production: Partnerships between Australian miners and US carmakers for the exploration and refining of battery metals are accelerating due to US tax incentives for EV production, Australian Trade Minister Don Farrell said in an interview with Bloomberg. Based on the US Inflation Reduction Act, tax credits on EV and low-carbon hydrogen manufacturing are granted to companies only if “a large portion of the minerals they use are extracted or processed in the US or a country with a US freetrade agreement,” which includes Australia, Farrell explains.

Australia replacing China with the US? While China is currently the biggest market for Australia’s minerals, the US has become increasingly appealing “given just how favorably treated Australia is in the Inflation Reduction Act,” Farrell said. Australia is the world’s top exporter of lithium, a key material in EV batteries, and has large reserves of nickel, cobalt, and rare earth minerals.

OTHER STORIES WORTH KNOWING ABOUT THIS MORNING-

  • Japan has increased its target for wind power generation from 5 GW currently to 140 GW by 2050, which would meet a third of the country’s electricity demand. (Reuters)
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