Sign In or Create an Account.

By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy

Economy

The Rising Costs of Natural Catastrophes

On insurance and extreme weather, Nissan’s new business plan, and paint that cools

The Rising Costs of Natural Catastrophes
Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

Current conditions: A cloud of Saharan dust is sweeping toward southern Europe • Malaysia’s oppressive heat wave could last through mid-April • The water temperature is about 48 degrees Fahrenheit in Baltimore Harbor, where rescuers are searching for survivors after the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.

THE TOP FIVE

1. Soaring losses from natural disasters ‘a new norm,’ says insurance giant

Extremely costly natural disasters have become “a new norm,” and insured losses will double in 10 years due to climate change, according to one of the world’s largest reinsurers. In a report published today, Swiss Re, a firm that provides insurance for insurers, calculated that natural disasters resulted in insured losses of $108 billion in 2023, marking the fourth consecutive year of losses exceeding $100 billion. As Bloombergnoted, “only about 40% of economic losses globally are insured, meaning the total economic losses are much higher.”

The main reason losses were so high was the sheer frequency with which “medium severity” disasters occurred. These are events that cost between $1 billion and $5 billion, and they’re on the rise. Severe thunderstorms (also called severe convective storms, or SCS) have become “the second largest loss-making peril” behind tropical cyclones. The Midwest accounted for the highest percentage of insured losses from severe thunderstorms in the U.S. last year:

Swiss Re

The report calls for adaptation measures, but concludes that “in the face of climate change, adaptation and insurance can only go so far. Mitigation of greenhouse gas emissions is also essential to counter the build-up of physical risks.”

2. Nissan outlines plan to slash EV manufacturing costs

Nissan yesterday announced a new business plan it hopes will “ensure sustainable growth and profitability” as it faces competition from Chinese rivals. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the strategy leans heavily on electric vehicles. The Japanese carmaker will launch 16 new EV models over the next three years and slash EV manufacturing costs by 30% in an effort to reach cost parity with internal combustion engine vehicles by 2030. It’ll bring down costs by incorporating battery innovations and new manufacturing processes. And the company will make EVs in “families,” starting with a “main vehicle” and then building on that design with new variations that can be significantly cheaper and faster to produce.

3. EV startup Fisker faces bankruptcy

The New York Stock Exchange yesterday halted trading of electric vehicle startup Fisker Inc.’s shares and said it planned to delist the stock due to “abnormally low” share prices. The company had been in talks with a major automaker about a potential investment, but the deal fell through, which means its financials are in bad shape and bankruptcy may be looming. If the cash-strapped company fails, it would join the ranks of other embattled EV startups including Aptera and Detroit Automotive. Last week Fisker paused its EV production.

Get Heatmap AM directly in your inbox every morning:

* indicates required
  • 4. Trader Joe’s raises banana prices

    Trader Joe’s is hiking the price of bananas for the first time in two decades. The grocery chain has long sold individual bananas for just 19 cents, but has raised the price to 23 cents. A spokesperson told CNN the change was due to cost increases. Earlier this month, industry experts gathering at the World Banana Forum warned that climate change was hurting banana production and supply chains and that this would soon result in higher banana prices for consumers.

    5. Study shows how ‘cooling’ paints can reduce urban temperatures

    Special “cooling” paint can significantly reduce the temperatures of surfaces in cities and help pedestrians feel cooler, according to a new study published in the journal Sustainable Cities and Society. The research is the first demonstration of how paints made to reflect the sun’s heat actually perform in the real world. For the study, researchers at Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University covered surfaces such as walls, rooftops, and pavements in an industrial neighborhood in Singapore. They found those surfaces were up to 2 degrees Celsius cooler than uncoated areas during the hottest time of the day, and that this helped pedestrians feel 1.5 degrees cooler. “This is a minimally intrusive solution for urban cooling that has an immediate effect,” said the study’s lead author, Dr. E V S Kiran Kumar Donthu. “By reducing the amount of heat absorbed in urban structures, we also reduce heat load in buildings, consequently reducing indoor air-conditioning energy consumption.” Below you can see some of the coated test surfaces:

    Nanyang Technological University

    THE KICKER

    Ohio has approved the Oak Run Solar Project, a 6,000-acre solar farm in Madison County that will also graze 1,000 sheep and grow crops. The farm will be the nation’s largest “agrivoltaics” project.

    Yellow

    You’re out of free articles.

    Subscribe today to experience Heatmap’s expert analysis 
of climate change, clean energy, and sustainability.
    To continue reading
    Create a free account or sign in to unlock more free articles.
    or
    Please enter an email address
    By continuing, you agree to the Terms of Service and acknowledge our Privacy Policy
    Economy

    Trump Is Disabling the Agency That Could Fight China’s Rare Earths Embargo

    The Loan Programs Office is good for more than just nuclear funding.

    Xi Jinping and Donald Trump.
    Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

    That China has a whip hand over the rare earths mining and refining industry is one of the few things Washington can agree on.

    That’s why Alex Jacquez, who worked on industrial policy for Joe Biden’s National Economic Council, found it “astounding”when he read in the Washington Post this week that the White House was trying to figure out on the fly what to do about China restricting exports of rare earth metals in response to President Trump’s massive tariffs on the country’s imports.

    Keep reading...Show less
    Q&A

    You, Too, Can Protect Solar Panels Against Hail

    A conversation with VDE Americas CEO Brian Grenko.

    This week's interview subject.
    Heatmap Illustration

    This week’s Q&A is about hail. Last week, we explained how and why hail storm damage in Texas may have helped galvanize opposition to renewable energy there. So I decided to reach out to Brian Grenko, CEO of renewables engineering advisory firm VDE Americas, to talk about how developers can make sure their projects are not only resistant to hail but also prevent that sort of pushback.

    The following conversation has been lightly edited for clarity.

    Keep reading...Show less
    Yellow
    Hotspots

    The Pro-Renewables Crowd Gets Riled Up

    And more of the week’s big fights around renewable energy.

    The United States.
    Heatmap Illustration/Getty Images

    1. Long Island, New York – We saw the face of the resistance to the war on renewable energy in the Big Apple this week, as protestors rallied in support of offshore wind for a change.

    • Activists came together on Earth Day to protest the Trump administration’s decision to issue a stop work order on Equinor’s Empire Wind project. It’s the most notable rally for offshore wind I’ve seen since September, when wind advocates protested offshore opponents at the Preservation Society of Newport County, Rhode Island.
    • Esther Rosario, executive director of Climate Jobs New York, told me the rally was intended to focus on the jobs that will be impacted by halting construction and that about a hundred people were at the rally – “a good half of them” union members or representing their unions.
    • “I think it’s important that the elected officials that are in both the area and at the federal level understand the humans behind what it means to issue a stop-work order,” she said.

    2. Elsewhere on Long Island – The city of Glen Cove is on the verge of being the next New York City-area community with a battery storage ban, discussing this week whether to ban BESS for at least one year amid fire fears.

    Keep reading...Show less
    Yellow