US Sets Historic Crude Oil Production Record- EIA Report

Get ready to supercharge your knowledge on the future of EV charging, as we discuss Gravity Mobility's groundbreaking 500 kilowatt station in Manhattan that's resetting expectations on how quickly we can juice up our rides. You'll be on the edge of your seat as we reveal Samsung SDI's cutting-edge battery plans that are not just a step but a leap towards ultra-fast charging and unprecedented energy density. Buckle up for a thrilling ride through the world of energy innovation, where geothermal giants like Vervo Energy and grid operators such as MISO are making big-dollar moves to fuel our future, while the legal system reminds us of the fiery consequences of neglecting climate change risks.

Amidst these electrifying developments, we keep you grounded with a reality check on the US's dominant streak in crude oil production, proving that traditional energy sources aren't stepping aside just yet. We're here to connect you with the latest energy achievements that are transforming how we power our lives, from the streets of New York to the courtrooms of the West. Tune in for a charged conversation that's as potent as the technology we're discussing, with industry experts and insiders guiding us through each innovation and its implications on our daily lives and the planet we call home.

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:00

I've got your energy stories for this the second week of March 2024. Well, it seems like EV charging may get a bit faster, as EV charging startup Gravity Mobility just cut the ribbon on the fastest public charging station in the US. This midtown Manhattan station is in a parking garage and it's designed for EV owners and fleet operators such as Uber and Lyft. These things are fast. At 500 kilowatts they can offer 200 miles of range in five minutes If your car can take that level of speed. That is, and few can. A December 2023 Motor Trend charging survey put the Hyundai Ioniq 6 at the top of the fast charging class, with 193 miles after 15 minutes of charging.

Speaker 1: 0:41

Most battery systems today can't absorb that much power that quickly. The cells and management systems simply aren't designed for it. But that will change as battery companies continue to tweak their chemistries and, to that end, samsung SDI just rolled out a roadmap to commercialize its battery tech to accommodate ultra-fast charging by 2026, going from 8 to 80% state of charge in about nine minutes. It also plans to offer an all-solid state mass-produced battery by 2027, increasing density by 40% over its current model and boasting 900 watt-hours per liter, which would give it the industry's highest density. For context, batteries have increased in density considerably, from about 55 watt-hours per liter in 2008 to 450 watt-hours per liter, for the best ones, by 2020. Samsung also plans to mass produce a battery by 2029 that will offer up to 20 years of cycle. Life company that supplies 3.5 megawatts of energy to a Google data center in Nevada and is currently drilling boreholes to support a 400 megawatt geothermal project in Utah, just raised $244 million in new funding. Vervo's recent technical paper demonstrated growing efficiencies and falling costs as new boreholes are completed, exceeding initial DOE projections.

Speaker 1: 2:03

The Midwest grid operator, miso, announced launchanche 2 of its four-part effort to bolster infrastructure to improve reliability and reduce curtailments. Tranche 1 cost $10.4 billion and Tranche 2 will further up that ante at an estimated price tag of between $17 and $23 billion. It includes several planned 765 kV high-voltage transmission lines traversing Minnesota, iowa, wisconsin, illinois, indiana, michigan, north Dakota, missouri. In MISO West, which includes Minnesota, iowa, north Dakota, wisconsin and Michigan's Upper Peninsula, 20% of facilities are overloaded, with annual curtailments reaching north of 15%. Facilities are overloaded with annual curtailments reaching north of 15 percent.

Speaker 1: 2:48

Miso may also need to think more about fire risk as utilities. High winds and dry undergrowth create an increasingly volatile and potentially costly mix in a changing climate. An Oregon jury just ordered Pacific Corp to fork over $42 million to victims of wildfires on Labor Day 2020, and last year another jury found it negligent for not preemptively cutting power to customers, despite warnings from fire officials, penalizing it for about $90 million. Then we come to Texas. Last week I noted that Xcel Energy had received a legal notice suggesting its equipment ignited the state-record 1 million acre smokehouse Creek Fire. Since then, a Texas A&M Forest Service investigation found that power lines ignited that fire, as well as the 140,000 acre Windy Deuce fire. Xcel acknowledged its equipment was involved in the first blaze but was not aware of allegations related to Windy Deuce. The language of the A&M report suggests trouble for Xcel, commenting that the pole quote appeared to be decayed at the base, unquote toppling into a grassy area. Further, a&m said the Windy Deuce fire was caused by a power line. That quote ran directly through the top of a small tree. Unquote made contact with limbs and with that contact led to the blaze.

Speaker 1: 4:00

And finally, the Energy Information Administration reports that the US produced more crude oil than any nation at any time. For the past six years in a row, crude oil production in the US, including condensate, averaged 12.9 million barrels per day in 2023, breaking the previous US and global record of 12.3 million barrels per day set in 2019. The EIA commented that the 2023 record is unlikely to be broken in the near term. Saudi Arabia's state-owned Saudi Aramco recently scrapped its plans to increase production capacity and they'd be the closest contender. If the Biden administration is set on crippling the domestic oil and gas industry, as some have alleged, it surely is doing a very poor job. Well, that's all for this week. Thanks for watching and we'll see you again next week.