Coming to America: Chinese EVs (Abridged bonus episode)
Release Date: 01/09/2026
Coming to America: Chinese EVs (Abridged bonus episode)
The Clean Energy Show
In this abridged January 2026 bonus episode of The Clean Energy Show, Brian Stockton and James Whittingham kick off the first podcast of 2026 with a packed update on clean tech, transportation, and air quality trends shaping the global energy transition. The show begins with developments in electric shipping, including Norway’s autonomous container ship Yara Birkeland and testing of the world’s largest battery-electric ferry, which will carry more than 2,000 passengers between Argentina and Uruguay. Listener mail sparks a brief but heated debate over whether corn is a vegetable, grain, or...
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The Clean Energy Show Holiday Grab Bag!
The Clean Energy Show
• U.S. Electric Vehicle Debate James breaks down the ongoing American EV culture wars, why they feel stuck, and how much is political theatre vs. real-world data. We're off this week for the holidays so we're playing our Patreon bonus episode from a month ago because we think it has some great stories in it. • EV Market Growth The hosts dig into the latest numbers showing EVs gaining traction globally—and why the economic case keeps getting harder to ignore. • Stockpiling Critical Minerals A look at why countries are hoarding minerals like lithium and nickel, what it means for future...
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The Most Important Stories of 2025
The Clean Energy Show
A look back at the biggest clean energy developments of 2025 — and we reveal why electric trucking in China may be the most important story of the year. We break down record global growth in solar, wind, and EV adoption, explain how renewables are now outpacing fossil fuels in new investment, and explore why China’s rising clean power generation is finally pushing its CO₂ emissions lower even as electricity demand grows CES 293 - Google Docs. (Letters are being held over until our next bonus episode.) The show also checks in on Norway, the world’s EV laboratory, where electric vehicles...
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The End of Daytime-Only Solar Has Arrived
The Clean Energy Show
How plunging battery costs are turning solar into reliable, around-the-clock power that can compete directly with fossil fuels. Brian Stockton and James Whittingham break down new findings from Ember showing that grid-scale batteries now make dispatchable solar cheaper than many new gas plants, fundamentally changing the energy landscape. The episode also explores why Big Oil is increasingly betting on petrochemicals and single-use plastics as EVs cut into fuel demand. A new IEEFA report reveals that a 70% global reduction in single-use plastics would deliver a major financial blow to the...
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How Kenya’s EV Revolution Is Changing Urban Transport
The Clean Energy Show
Nairobi’s ride-hailing sector hits 40% electric motorcycles as Bolt logs 4.8 million EV rides. Financing from M-KOPA and Watu helps riders switch to cheaper, cleaner bikes, and local companies like Roam and Ampersand expand assembly and charging. Norway agrees to study its post-oil future after a deal with the Greens to pass the 2026 budget. EV incentives begin to scale back as adoption goals are met: . Thermostats Part 2 with Brian and James reviews the McVeggie. He wonders if it’s actually just a mayo sandwich. They react to CNN’s Bill Weir covering Trump’s MPG rollback (full clip on...
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Solar Brings Dignity to Village Devastated by Chemical Weapons
The Clean Energy Show
Solar power brings new dignity to a Kurdish village devastated by a chemical attack 38 years ago. Steven Guilbeault resigns from cabinet over a pipeline deal he says breaks Canada’s climate commitments. North Carolina uses “super-roofs” and catastrophe bonds to cut hurricane losses. And Zillow removes climate risk scores from listings after backlash. Support The Clean Energy Show on for exciting perks including a monthly bonus podcast, early access to our content, behind the scenes looks, access to our members-only Discord community and thank-yous in the credits of videos and shoutouts...
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Al Gore is Angry at COP30 Fossil Fuel Lobbyists
The Clean Energy Show
The COP30 climate conference ended without references to fossil fuels after lobbying pressure. Al Gore criticized petrostates for blocking progress and argued the world has reached “Peak Petrostate.” Outside the UN process, 24 countries have agreed to coordinate on fossil-fuel phaseout efforts, with Colombia and the Netherlands hosting the first international conference in 2026. An archival look back at Gore’s 1992 Earth Summit warnings underscores the longstanding concerns. Support The Clean Energy Show on for exciting perks! Arkansas has launched its first-ever wind project: a 135...
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COP30: Fossil Fuel Lobbyists Fight a Phase Out of Fossil Fuels
The Clean Energy Show
Brazil’s environment minister Marina Silva is calling on nations to commit to a voluntary and “self-determined” fossil-fuel phaseout roadmap at COP30. Debate continues over how aggressive nations should be and how such a roadmap should be enforced. Source: Sodium-Ion Batteries That Work at -100°C Researchers at Purdue University have demonstrated a sodium-ion battery capable of operating reliably in extreme cold. The pouch cell was tested with real wind and solar inputs, raising possibilities for remote, polar, and space applications. Lightning Round At COP30 there are 50...
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The Vape-Powered House and Germany's Terrible Solar
The Clean Energy Show
A powers his entire home using batteries pulled from disposable vapes. It’s an ingenious (if slightly dangerous) recycling project that shows how creative energy storage can get. Germany — the country that started the global solar revolution — actually has worse solar potential than Saskatchewan’s darkest month! Still, by inspiring the boom that made solar cheap and widespread, Germany paved the way for countries like China to dominate solar manufacturing today. Join The Clean Energy Show on for free and get this month's bonus episode! Also this week: coal mines are heating homes...
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Australians Get Three Hours of Daily Solar Power
The Clean Energy Show
Australia’s new “solar sharer” program will give every household three hours of free solar power a day—even if they don’t have panels! It’s a bold experiment to shift energy use to the middle of the day when the sun is strongest. In California, the state quietly pulled the plug on its long-delayed e-bike rebate program, shuffling the remaining funds into clean car subsidies instead. The hosts argue it’s a short-sighted move that favors more expensive solutions over the most efficient ones. Meanwhile, South Korea now requires solar canopies over large parking lots...
info_outlineIn this abridged January 2026 bonus episode of The Clean Energy Show, Brian Stockton and James Whittingham kick off the first podcast of 2026 with a packed update on clean tech, transportation, and air quality trends shaping the global energy transition.
The show begins with developments in electric shipping, including Norway’s autonomous container ship Yara Birkeland and testing of the world’s largest battery-electric ferry, which will carry more than 2,000 passengers between Argentina and Uruguay. Listener mail sparks a brief but heated debate over whether corn is a vegetable, grain, or something else entirely.
The main stories focus on dramatic improvements in Beijing’s air quality, with PM2.5 pollution levels down nearly 75% since 2013, driven largely by China’s rapid adoption of electric vehicles. The hosts also break down how BYD has surpassed Tesla as the world’s largest EV seller, why Tesla’s sales declined in 2025, and how brutal competition inside China is squeezing margins for everyone involved.
Other highlights include China’s claim of producing the world’s first 100% recyclable wind turbine blade, signs that low-cost Chinese EVs could enter the U.S. market as early as 2027, and a wide-ranging Lightning Round covering batteries, heat pumps, solar growth, robotics, and plastics.
The episode closes with a troubling investigation into toxic air contamination aboard commercial airplanes — a hidden pollution problem affecting crews and passengers alike.
For the full, unabridged bonus episode, visit https://patreon.com/cleanenergypod and support the show.
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