Recharge Wrap-up: Shell stops AK ocean drilling, Lego Tesla Model S

Shell says it will halt exploratory drilling near Alaska's coast. While the oil giant has found some oil and gas below the waters, the amount it is finding is not worth the high costs of drilling. Shell also cites "the challenging and unpredictable federal regulatory environment in offshore Alaska" as part of its decision to move on from drilling in the Chukchi Sea, but it is possible public protests had an impact, too. Read more at Treehugger, and in the press release from Shell below.

The University of Central Florida's Electric Vehicle Transportation Center will host the EV Transportation and Technology Summit from October 20 to 22 in Cocoa, Florida. The summit is geared toward businesses and organizations with the goals of increasing EV awareness, reviewing current and near future technology, and pointing out deployment achievements and challenges. While its coverage will be more general, the event will focus especially on planning and infrastructure requirements. Learn more at Hybrid Cars, or at the event website.

The Tesla Model S still looks good when scaled down for a Lego minifig. A man named Cole Edmonson created a tiny brick version of the iconic EV, and managed to retain the car's distinguishing good looks. Edmonson provides a write-up detailing the process of creating the small, plastic Tesla copy. It's considerably more complicated than one would think. Check out the whole process at Brick Replicas, and read more from The Brothers Brick.

Renault and Donfeng will build an electric car in China based on the Fluence ZE. The joint venture between the two automakers - called Dongfeng Renault Automotive Company (DRAC) - will produce the car in its Wuhan plant in 2017. The car will be sold solely in the Chinese market under a local Dongfeng brand. "This EV agreement illustrates Renault's engagement as partner of COP 21," says DRAC CEO Jacques Daniel. Read more at Green Car Congress, or in the press release below.

By John Beltz Snyder