(Future Farming) - In the heart of every farm lies a treasure trove of data waiting to be unlocked, a direct result of the increasing prevalence of sensor technology. Farmers must become more aware of the value of the data they collect throughout their operations.

(Gov Tech) - Lithium is a mineral that is used to make electric vehicle batteries, and right now, the only functional lithium mine in the entire country is located in rural Esmeralda County, Nev.

(Bristol) - Declining snowfall is changing the seasonal patterns of streamflow throughout the Northern hemisphere boosting chances of water shortages in the summer, scientists have found.

(Reuters) - U.S. crude oil stockpiles rose unexpectedly last week, while gasoline and distillate inventories also increased as refining ramped up and demand fell despite the kick-off of the summer driving season, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.

(Reuters) - North Carolina regulators have approved a state mining permit for Tesla (TSLA.O), opens new tab supplier Piedmont Lithium (PLL.O), opens new tab to develop one of the largest U.S. sources of the key electric vehicle battery metal, although key financing and local regulatory challenges remain.

(ARS USDA) - Higher temperatures caused by climate change threaten crop yields and ranch animal health, but a team of researchers from the Agricultural Research Service (ARS) has a plan that will not only save crops and livestock but help power farms and the nation as well.

(AG Web) - Government incentives aimed at mitigating climate change are almost sure to motivate you, and your landlords, to move toward no-till and cover crops. That’s the reason for our series of stories aimed at helping you convert to vertical farming systems, where those practices perform best.

(Reuters Breakingviews) - Exchanges between China and Arab states stretch back centuries along the ancient Silk Road. More recently, Saudi Aramco (2222.SE), opens new tab is doubling down in the People’s Republic, making energy investments in the world's second largest economy. The two sides can help each other quite a lot.

(Mining) - Against the arid, red dirt of the Australian Outback, the Mount Holland lithium mine emerges to approaching visitors as a colossal grey-tinged crater, with trucks the size of houses edging along its steep inclines.

(Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court on Tuesday upheld the Environmental Protection Agency's decision to grant California a waiver to set its own tailpipe emissions limits and electric-vehicle requirements.

(BrownField) - An agronomist says they’re seeing more cases of sulfur deficiency in soybeans.

(The Hill) - The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is edging toward greenlighting California regulators’ plan to set net-zero emissions standards for locomotives operating in the Golden State. This scheme that could quickly spread to other states, threatening reliable rail transport of goods throughout the country.

(Reuters) - Canadian National Railway said on Friday it has proposed an offer that included higher hourly wages, improved vacation leave and more consistent work schedules as part of negotiations with a union representing its employees.

(Fast Company) - Humans have been farming since the Neolithic era, long enough for their tools and practices to need a little TLC. That, of course, has become the near-singular focus in recent years of a growing crop of industry upstarts—some through technology, others by importing ingenious ideas outside of agriculture, still others by returning to fundamentals they believe got lost along the way. What makes the 2024 list of most innovative agriculture companies so impressive is that their products and services barely overlap, yet many could complement or even enhance the others.

(Utility Dive) - The funding from the bipartisan infrastructure law will go toward new, retrofitted and expanded battery and critical mineral production sites.

(SFN Today) - We know there are essential elements for plant growth. Sulfur is one of them, but there are two forms of sulfur. Taylor Purucker, crop nutrition lead for the Mosaic Company, talks about the two types of sulfur.

(Freight Waves) - The Surface Transportation Board recently closed the comment period for rail stakeholders to file their thoughts on whether reciprocal switching should be considered as an option to address subpar rail service in the U.S.

(The Wall Street Journal) - A prolonged slide in copper prices is challenging the world’s shift to renewable energy sources. Mining firms will need to dig up gigantic amounts of new copper over the next several years to supply the transition to renewables.

(Hydrocarbon Processing) - ExxonMobil Catalysts and Licensing LLC (“ExxonMobil”) has introduced ExxonMobil Renewable Diesel process technology (“EMRD”) to help meet the evolving needs for mobility, while utilizing renewable feedstock.

(Reuters) - U.S oil major Chevron Corp and renewable energy firm Gevo Inc will jointly invest in building and operating one or more facilities that would process corn to produce sustainable aviation fuel, the companies said on Thursday.

(Reuters) - BP Plc (BP.L) said on Tuesday it was conducting a joint feasibility study with Australian lender Macquarie Group (MQG.AX) to produce green hydrogen at the oil giant's former refinery site near Perth in Western Australia.

(Railway Age) - CSX has recently proposed to acquire Pan Am Railways. Although, as I explain below, I am usually critical of mergers, I believe this merger will substantially enhance the rail network in New England by bringing the region more directly into the national railroad network.

(Texas Standard) - It’s another example of Big Oil being pushed toward renewable energy. But achieving net-zero carbon emission goals will still be a big challenge. Texas-based oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. saw a major shakeup in the boardroom last week, with a new activist investor group called Engine No. 1 grabbing two spots on the company’s board of directors. The hedge fund has been targeting Exxon since December with its “Reenergize Exxon” campaign, pushing the company to rethink its business strategy in a time when green energy and climate activism is becoming increasingly mainstream.

(WSJ) - LONDON-- Royal Dutch Shell PLC detailed a first-of-a-kind shareholder vote over its pivot away from oil, asking investors to endorse its energy transition strategy in a nonbinding vote next month.

(Investing News) - Rio Tinto has commenced production of battery-grade lithium from waste rock at a lithium demonstration plant at the Boron mine site in California, United States. The demonstration plant is the next step in scaling up a breakthrough lithium production process developed at Boron, to recover the critical mineral and extract additional value out of waste piles from over 90 years of mining at the operation.

(Agriculture.com) - Ag input suppliers are betting big on microbial solutions for plant nutrition, and the Mosaic Company is one of the latest to enter the fray.
Last week, Mosaic – a producer and seller of phosphate and potash crop nutrients – entered into a strategic collaboration with AgBiome, a company with one of the world’s largest collections of diverse microbial communities. The goal is to discover, develop, and launch biological solutions to enhance soil fertility, the companies said in a press release.