U.S. offers loan aid for world's biggest solar plant
The U.S. Department of Energy is offering $2.1 billion in conditional loan guarantees to support what will be the world's biggest solar power plant, the government's largest commitment to date for to solar energy. The aid will support construction of the first two units of Solar Trust of America LLC's 1,000 megawatt solar thermal Blythe Solar Power Project, the DOE said on Monday. Solar Trust of America is a joint venture between German companies Solar Millennium AG and Ferrostaal AG. "For the first time in mankind's history, a solar power facility will be built at a scale and output capacity equal to the very largest coal-fired and nuclear power plants operating in the world today," Solar Trust of America Chief Executive Uwe Schmidt said on a conference call with reporters. The first two units of the project near Blythe, California are capable of producing 484 MW of electricity using solar thermal trough technology. The project will create over 1,000 construction jobs, 80 operations jobs, and will avoid greenhouse gas emissions equivalent to those generated by about 123,000 vehicles. Solar Millennium's technology makes electricity by using trough-shaped mirrors to heat a fluid that generates steam that turns a turbine. The Blythe project's total pricetag is estimated at north of $6 billion, with the first phase costing about $2.8 billion. The announcement came a week after the federal program to support clean energy technologies escaped the axe in the final U.S. budget agreement for the current fiscal year.
Ford names Top 25 EV ready cities in the US
From New York City to Seattle, Wash., Ford this week named 25 U.S. cities that are paving the way for an influx of electric vehicles. By the end of 2012 there will be more than 20 plug-in vehicles on the market, said Mike Tinskey, manager of vehicle electrification and infrastructure for Ford. And major metropolitan areas and utility companies are working together to provide an infrastructure for public charging stations. "Over the next 12 months we will see at least 18,000 new charge stations in U.S. cities," Tinskey said. "People will start seeing charge stations in some pretty familiar places," he said. The Ford Focus EV will be available by the end of 2011, and many more electric vehicles makes from other automakers will be available over the next two years. Ford has complied the list to not only recognize which cities are getting EV-ready, but also to encourage other cities to start preparing, Tinskey said.
While the list of cities is diverse, it's not surprising that most of the cities flank the coasts while others dot the middle of the map. Honolulu is included, but Tinskey said pretty much the whole island of Oahu is getting EV-ready. The greater San Francisco Bay Area, not surprisingly, is also a larger geographical area that made it to the map. According to Tinskey, it's up to city governments to streamline the permit process for the installation of EV charging stations. And it's up to local utility companies to offer incentives for off-peak charging. "A lot of decisions need to be made, like what the signage should look like, and whether or not local businesses can charge for the electricity, or just for the parking spot," Tinskey said. "It ends up being an equal pull from the city and the local electric company. Then add a company like Ford, and it becomes the three-legged stool."
Google Invests $168 million in BrightSource Energy's Mojave Solar Plant
Google is no stranger to renewable energy investment, but now the Internet behemoth has its eyes set on bigger fish. BrightSource Energy's proposed solar thermal plant in the Mojave Desert will be one of the largest solar energy projects in the United States and will double the solar thermal installed capacity in the U.S. Google has made a $168 million equity investment in the project, along with NRG Energy's $300 million investment and $1.6 billion in loans from the U.S. federal government.
The Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System will be constructed in California's Mojave Desert. The project will provide 2,600 MW of grid electricity, powering 140,000 homes. The facility uses thermal solar energy as opposed to photovoltaic panels. Thousand's of reflective mirrors will superheat fluids to drive a steam turbine. The Ivanpah plant will recycle the steam back into water to reduce water consumption by 95 percent compared to similar facilities.
Renewable Energy Home Design
My premise is that we need a new Model for Housing, as the older homes will not hold their value by today's Renewable Energy standards, and the next generation buyers will quickly be drawn to a more energy efficient model. These new buyers are also looking for different designs than older homes typically offer for their lifestyle choices.
Plug-In Electric Vehicle Infrastructures USA 2011
One of the key takeaways from the event was that a lot of consumer education is required to continue the momentum of early adopters and to help cross over to a more mainstream market mid-century. EV ownership will require increased awareness about energy, not power, a new vehicle power train, batteries and conversion from miles per gallon to miles per kWt hour.
India Renewable Energy Market Trends Analysis and Forecasts
India Renewable Power Market Trends 2001 to 2020
Oregon's Electric Vehicle Charging Infrastructure Comes Along - But Slowly
Currently, the biggest limitation for drivers thinking about making the transition to EVs is the need for a reliable network of charging facilities to increase the range of these vehicles and to alleviate any fear of "running out of juice." Surveys indicate that ease and accessibility of charging rank at the top of potential buyers' concerns about electric vehicles.
MORE THAN 3,700 ATTEND PV AMERICA 2011 IN PHILADELPHIA, UP 23% FROM 2009 SHOW
Philadelphia - April 12, 2011 — The second PV America conference and expo which concluded here on April 5 attracted more than 3,700 industry attendees (up 23% from 2009) affirming that the mid-Atlantic region is a national powerhouse in solar energy. More than 200 exhibitors (25% increase from 2009) who occupied about 70,000 gross square feet of space showcased the latest products and technologies driving the growth of the photovoltaic industry. Further evidence of the growth in the region: more than 700 consumers walked the exhibit floor during Public Day.
In remarks delivered during the opening day general session, Rhone Resch, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) announced that "the region is now the largest market for PV in the United States and in 2010, the area from Washington DC to Boston installed more solar than all of California." He added that "the solar industry experienced a robust 139 percent growth in New Jersey and Pennsylvania had installed enough capacity last year to power 9,000 homes. Finally, he noted "that a recent report by SEIA and GTM Research projects demand for more than 3 gigawatts of new PV in the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast region by 2015, enough solar to power more than half a million homes."
The 2012 Olympic games in London are to be the most sustainable ever, but will miss initial renewable energy goals
The 2012 Olympics are gearing up for glory in London, and will be one of the most sustainable Olympics ever. The Commission for a Sustainable London 2012—the watchdog group monitoring the London Olympics' sustainability initiative—says the games are already on track to reduce its carbon footprint by 50 percent.
However, the watchdog group has also officially stated that the initial goal of 20 percent energy from renewable sources is being lessened to only nine percent. The Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) abandoned plans for wind turbines in Olympic park after design changes and safety regulations were implemented. Nonetheless, the ODA has claimed it will find other ways to reduce the games' carbon footprint.
G.E. Plans to Build Largest Solar Panel Plant in U.S.
In a move that could shake up the American solar industry, General Electric plans to announce on Thursday that it will build the nation's largest photovoltaic panel factory, with the goal of becoming a major player in the market. "For the past five years, we've been investing extremely heavily in solar," said Victor Abate, vice president for G.E.'s renewable energy business. "Going to scale is the next move."
The plant, whose location has not been determined, will employ 400 workers and create 600 related jobs, according to G.E. The factory would annually produce solar panels that would generate 400 megawatts of energy, the company said, and would begin manufacturing thin-film photovoltaic panels made of a material called cadmium telluride in 2013. While less efficient than conventional solar panels, thin-film photovoltaics can be produced at a lower cost and have proven attractive to developers and utilities building large-scale power plants. G.E. has signed agreements to supply solar panels to generate 100 megawatts of electric power to customers, including a deal for panels generating 60 megawatts with NextEra Energy Resources.
Vestas surprises with 7 MW offshore wind turbine
Danish wind turbine maker Vestas unveiled a new giant 7-megawatt offshore turbine on Wednesday and said it expected it to be in serial production in early 2015. Vestas, the world's biggest wind turbine manufacturer by market share, had only been expected to unveil a 6 MW turbine, not the towering 135-meter (443 feet) 7 MW unit, with its rotor diameter of 164 meters. The new turbine, whose rotor will trace a circle bigger than the London Eye ferris wheel and whose 80-meter blade is longer than nine London double-decker buses, is part of a push toward larger and larger units further offshore, where the wind power potential is high and public resistance can be avoided.
Chief Executive Ditlev Engel told a news conference in London that the new turbine, designed for North Sea conditions, was the first that Vestas has developed specifically for offshore wind parks and its single largest research and development ever. Wind currently accounts for just 2 percent of the global energy mix, but Vestas expects it to provide 10 percent in 2020, Engel said in a presentation. Most of the growth in offshore wind power capacity to 2025 will be in Europe, he said. President of Vestas Offshore, Anders Soe-Jensen, told the news conference the company expected the offshore wind market to grow by 8.4 percent annually from 2015 to 2025.
SEIA President Rhone Resch Highlights Solar Industry's Tremendous Growth at PV America Conference and Expo
Rhone Resch, president and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association ® (SEIA®) addressed the Opening General Session at the PV America Conference 2011 at the Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia to welcome small business owners, entrepreneurs, global corporate executives and energy leaders from around the country to the only conference focused solely on the fastest growing segment of the solar industry – photovoltaic solar (PV), the technology that converts sunlight to electricity. Mr. Resch's speech highlighted solar PV's tremendous growth in 2010, its potential for 2011 and how the Mid-Atlantic/Northeast region is now the largest market for PV in the United States. In total, 878 megawatts (MW) of PV capacity was installed in 2010, more than doubling 2009 installation totals. Smart federal and state policies, completion of significant utility-scale projects, expansion of new state markets and declining manufacturing and installation costs drove the industry's U.S. expansion. Click here for the full text of his remarks.
Optimal yields with photovoltaic systems - MLD technology most efficient
Photovoltaics is without doubt the most direct way of taking advantage of solar energy. When using photovoltaics, however, the efficiency of the various systems, and the feed-in tariffs to be expected should be kept in mind. On the one hand, the capacity of the solar modules used is important - on the other hand, the way in which these modules are used has considerable influence on their cost effectiveness.
Microwave-induced Plasma Gasification
Plasma2Energy is introducing a disruptive technology to the waste management market. There is no single technology that can deliver the performance that Plasma2Energy can achieve. That is why a third party validation is necessary to attract more attention from investors in this field.
Introduction to Emission Trading
Is carbon trading a way for developed countries to ease their collective conscience while continuing to emit more and more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere? In this essay I will try to analyze the basics of carbon trading and the means to fulfill individual goals of each country.
Records 4156 to 4170 of 5325
First | Previous | Next | Last
Featured Product
Quality assurance in the manufacturing industry
Efficiency and precision with CSP software. In the highly competitive world of manufacturing, quality assurance is a critical factor for success. CSP offers you state-of-the-art software solutions specifically designed to ensure the highest standards of quality assurance in the manufacturing industry.
