Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:April 20, 2005

News and Events

• NREL Reports Growth in Utility Green Power Sales in 2004
• Novozymes and NREL Cut Cost of Converting Biomass to Ethanol
• FERC: No Hydropower License Required for N.Y. Tidal Power Test
• Washington State Approves Green Building Law
• Wisconsin Paper Mills Cut Costs with Energy Efficiency, Hydropower

Site News

EIA Study Finds Minor Economic Impact from Greenhouse Gas Cuts

News and Events

NREL Reports Growth in Utility Green Power Sales in 2004

An increasing number of U.S. electric utilities are selling greater amounts of green power to their customers, causing the total utility sales of green power to increase to 1.9 billion kilowatt-hours in 2004, according to the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). Austin Energy, the nation’s leader in total green power sales for three years running, saw an increase in green power sales of more than 15 percent, exceeding 334 million kilowatt-hours in 2004. NREL’s annual “top ten” lists of utility green power programs shows many of the same leaders as in 2003, although the lists now include renewable energy sales from utilities in competitive electricity markets, which were formerly excluded. According to NREL, nearly 600 utilities in 34 states now offer green power to their customers as a voluntary option at a premium price. Several large utilities have also lowered their premiums, making green power increasingly affordable, according to NREL. See the NREL press release and “top ten” lists.

Here’s another sign of the maturing green power market: the Tenth National Green Power Marketing Conference will be held in late October in Austin, Texas, accompanied by the Fifth Annual Green Power Leadership Awards. The first conference (actually more of a workshop) was held just over nine years ago. DOE, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and the Center for Resource Solutions are organizing this year’s conference, which carries an appropriate theme: “A Decade of Marketing: Best Practices, Programs and Policies.” See the conference Web site.

Novozymes and NREL Cut Cost of Converting Biomass to Ethanol

Novozymes A/S announced last week that it has successfully achieved a 30-fold reduction in the cost of enzymes needed to convert biomass to ethanol. Since early in 2001, Novozymes has been working with DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) to reduce the cost of producing ethanol from cellulosic biomass, specifically the cobs, stalks, and leaves of corn plants, which are collectively referred to as corn stover. As opposed to starchy biomass sources such as corn kernels, such “woody” sources require special pretreatments and enzymes to release their carbohydrates and convert them into ethanol. The cost reduction was achieved through a combination of an improved pre-treatment process developed by NREL and new enzymes developed by Novozymes. Abengoa Bioenergy – an ethanol producer operating in both Europe and the United States – plans to test the improved process at its pilot plant in York, Nebraska, in 2006. See the Novozymes press release and the Abengoa Bioenergy Web site.

According to a recent study by the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), a short-term target of replacing up to 13 percent of petroleum-based fuels with biofuels appears feasible in the United States and Europe, using available cropland. And although some people worry that converting crops to fuels can hurt world food supplies, the FAO finds that producing energy from biomass could be a key to eliminating extreme poverty and hunger throughout the world. The FAO notes that biomass energy projects bring economic development opportunities to rural areas, creating jobs and generating new sources of incomes for farmers. See the FAO press release.

FERC: No Hydropower License Required for N.Y. Tidal Power Test

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) announced last week that a proposed 18-month test of tidal energy turbines in New York City’s East River does not require a hydropower license, but does require the necessary federal, state, and local permits. Verdant Power proposes to test six underwater turbines to determine their potential impacts on the environment and to study their performance. By 2007, Verdant Power plans to install 494 21-kilowatt turbines in the river near Roosevelt Island to form the Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy Hydropower Project, which will have a total capacity of about 10.4 megawatts. See the FERC press release and Verdant Power Web site.

A similar tidal current project is planned for Canada’s Race Rock Ecological Reserve, off the coast of Vancouver Island in British Columbia. The project received a $3 million grant from the EnCana Environmental Innovation Fund and is expected to start producing power in early 2006. See the EnCana Corporation press release (PDF 106 KB).

In other ocean energy news, a prototype wave power generator was launched in Australia in late March. Called the CETO wave energy converter, the device is mounted on the seabed floor and uses the pressure of passing waves to pump seawater into an onshore reservoir. A convent
ional hydropower turbine then generates power as the water returns to the sea. According to Pacific Hydro Ltd., one of the project developers, the seawater could also be pumped through reverse osmosis filters to produce fresh water. The seabed mounting is meant to avoid battering of the device by the ocean, as recently happened to another wave energy prototype, the Wave Dragon. After 21 months at sea in a Danish fjord called Nissum Bredning, the Wave Dragon prototype broke its mooring and blew ashore during a rough January storm. The company later towed the device to harbor and is modifying it for redeployment. See the Pacific Hydro press release (PDF 14 KB) and the Wave Dragon Web site.

Washington State Approves Green Building Law

Washington Governor Christine Gregoire signed a bill into law in early April that requires new public schools and other state buildings to meet green building standards. Under the new law, all major public agency facilities exceeding 5,000 square feet?including school buildings that receive state funding?would be required to meet the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council. Among other benefits, the new law is expected to yield a 20 percent savings in annual energy costs in the new buildings. See the governor’s press release.

In Arizona, Governor Janet Napolitano took a more direct route to encourage green building for new state buildings: in February, she issued an executive order. The order requires new state buildings to meet the Silver LEED standard, meet state energy efficiency standards, and supply 10 percent of their energy needs from renewable sources. The order allows new buildings to either generate their own renewable power or buy renewable energy credits. See the executive order (PDF 278 KB).

According to the U.S. Green Building Council, cities are also implementing green building requirements. In late March, the mayor of Scottsdale, Arizona, outdid her state’s governor, declaring that all new city buildings be certified to the Gold LEED standard. See the U.S. Green Building Council press release.

Wisconsin Paper Mills Cut Costs with Energy Efficiency, Hydropower

Stora Enso, a papermaking company with six paper mills in Wisconsin, has proved that significant energy savings are possible in the paper industry. Since 2001, Stora Enso has lowered its annual energy use at the six mills by 22 million kilowatt-hours and 3.6 million therms of natural gas, saving $3.5 million each year on energy. Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy, the statewide energy efficiency and renewable energy program, worked with the company to employ such technologies as a dryer management system, which automatically adjusts the operating conditions of the paper dryers to maximize their efficiency. Focus on Energy also helped the company refurbish two old hydroelectric generators at one of its mills. See the Focus on Energy press release (PDF 113 KB).

DOE considers papermaking to be part of the forest products industry, which is one of eight industries that are focused on by the Industries of the Future partnerships, part of DOE’s Industrial Technologies Program. A recent review of the program by the National Research Council concluded that it is a well-managed and effective program, which leverages its resources through a large and growing number of partnerships. See the Industrial Technologies Program Web site and the National Research Council report.

Industrial energy efficiency is also the subject of this summer’s conference sponsored by the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE). The 2005 ACEEE Summer Study on Energy Efficiency in Industry starts on July 19th in West Point, New York. See the ACEEE Web site.

Site News

Commercial Windows Initiative

The Commercial Windows Initiative, a project of the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance, works to increase the energy efficiency of windows used in small to medium-sized commercial and multi-family construction projects in the Northwest. Its goal is to dramatically increase the market share of energy-efficient commercial glazing. To do this, the initiative is working with architects, developers, window manufacturers, and utilities.

Energy Connections

EIA Study Finds Minor Economic Impact from Greenhouse Gas Cuts

DOE’s Energy Information Administration (EIA) released a report last week that examined the impacts of implementing a variety of government energy programs, tax incentives, and energy efficiency standards in combination with a greenhouse gas emissions trading scheme. The proposed programs aim to achieve reliable and affordable energy supplies while limiting the risks and impacts from global climate change, the U.S. dependence on oil, and other potential liabilities. The EIA study found that the combined proposals would cut U.S. energy use by 5 percent in 2025, compared with a business-as-usual scenario, and would simultaneously cut greenhouse gas emissions by 11 percent. The economic impact of achieving these cuts is slight, according to the EIA: By 2025, the U.S. gross domestic product would drop only 0.4 percent below the level in the business-as-usual scenario. “These changes do not materially affect average economic growth rates for the 2003 to 2025 period,” concludes the report. The study also found that the proposed government programs would pay for themselves by 2022. See the EIA report.

The European Union (EU) officially launched its greenhouse gas emission trading scheme in January, although so far only five EU countries have established online registries of their greenhou
se gas emissions. This Friday, April 22nd, the European Climate Exchange (ECX) will celebrate Earth Day by launching its trading of futures contracts for EU carbon dioxide emission allowances. The ECX is a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Chicago Climate Exchange (CCX), which launched a voluntary program to trade greenhouse gas emissions in the United States in late 2003. See the EU Emission Trading Scheme Web site, the EU’s list of national greenhouse gas emissions registries, the CCX press release, and the ECX Web site.

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