Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 26, 2007

News and Events

• North American Countries to Cooperate on Appliance Standards
• Energy Star Program Tightens Requirements for Computers
• Maryland Removes Utility Disincentives for Energy Efficiency
• Georgia and Michigan in Race to Convert Wood to Ethanol
• Growing Wind Industry Yields New Plants in Four States
• FERC Aims to Simplify Licensing for Wave and Tidal Pilot Projects

Energy Connections

• Report: Energy Efficiency, Diversity are Keys to Our Future Energy Needs

News and Events

North American Countries to Cooperate on Appliance Standards

The North American energy ministers agreed on Monday to cooperate on energy efficiency standards and on energy science and technology. U.S. Secretary of Energy Samuel Bodman met with Gary Lunn, minister of Natural Resources Canada (NRC), and Georgina Kessel, Mexico’s energy secretary, in Victoria, British Columbia. The ministers confirmed their commitment to further aligning energy-efficiency standards on key consumer products, noting that recent collaborative efforts had resulted in the harmonization of energy performance standards for refrigerators, air conditioners, and large electric motors. They identified seven additional energy-using products as potential candidates for harmonization and committed to strengthening trilateral cooperation on motor vehicle fuel efficiency and “standby power” consumption, that is, the energy used by electrical devices when they are switched off.

The ministers also endorsed the first-ever trilateral agreement on energy science and technology, establishing a framework to stimulate innovation and to share and help build capacity in all three countries. The ministers will work to identify specific ways to increase cooperation on research and development and to reduce barriers to the deployment of new technologies in a wide variety of areas, including biofuels, hydrogen, and electricity transmission. To further these efforts, the three countries will exchange scientific and technical personnel, who will participate in joint studies and projects. See the DOE press release and the NRC’s backgrounder on the trilateral agreement.

Energy Star Program Tightens Requirements for Computers

The Energy Star program has stiffened its requirements for computers that carry the Energy Star label. As of July 20th, computers must meet strict energy-use criteria in three operating modes: while in use, in sleep mode, and when turned off (in standby mode). To ensure these modes are actually used, all products must be shipped with the display set to go to sleep mode when inactive for 15 minutes or less, and with the computer set to go to sleep mode when inactive for 30 minutes or less (desktop-derived servers are exempt from the latter requirement). Computers must also employ more energy-efficient internal and external power supplies. The new specifications apply to a wide variety of products, including desktop and laptop computers, integrated computer systems (desktop systems in which the computer and display receive their power from one cord), desktop-derived servers, workstations, and game consoles. The Energy Star is a joint program of DOE and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

As noted on the Energy Star Web site, only the most energy-efficient computers will meet the new specifications, so consumers can initially expect to see fewer computer models bearing the Energy Star label. The site currently lists 118 products that meet the new criteria, but most are laptop computers, which have always been designed for energy efficiency in order to extend their battery life. Only eight models of desktop computers and two integrated computers are currently included on the list. But as manufacturers adjust to the new computer criteria, the new Energy Star-qualified computers are expected to save consumers and businesses more than $1.8 billion in energy costs over the next 5 years and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equal to the annual emissions of 2.7 million vehicles. See the announcement, the qualified product list (Excel 39 KB), the key criteria, and the full criteria (PDF 257 KB).

Maryland Removes Utility Disincentives for Energy Efficiency

The Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC) approved a new rate mechanism last week for the state’s largest utilities, eliminating a disincentive for the utilities to promote energy efficiency. The new rate mechanism allows the utilities to increase their rates for power distribution to make up for lost revenues if the demand for electricity drops, thereby “decoupling” their revenues from electricity sales. In the absence of the decoupling mechanism, utilities face a disincentive to encourage energy efficiency and conservation, because if those efforts are successful, their revenues drop. Under the new mechanism, the largest energy users bear an increasing cost burden as
other users benefit from improving their energy efficiency.

According to the Maryland PSC, decoupling is an approach that has been endorsed by environmental and industry groups and other public service commissions and utilities as a way of encouraging utilities to spearhead major energy efficiency programs. The approach was recommended in an energy report produced earlier this year by Governor Martin O’Malley. A report produced last year by the American Council for an Energy Efficiency Economy (ACEEE) also endorsed decoupling, and cited California and Oregon as leading examples of its implementation. See the Maryland PSC press release (PDF 48 KB) and the ACEEE report.

Georgia and Michigan in Race to Convert Wood to Ethanol

Efforts are now underway to build the first commercial plant in the United States to convert wood into ethanol, and the race is on to see if that first plant will be located in Georgia or Michigan. Range Fuels, Inc. was awarded a permit by the State of Georgia in early July to build a plant that will gasify wood waste and then convert that “synthesis gas” into ethanol. The company plans to break ground this summer on the first phase of the plant, which will produce 20 million gallons of ethanol per year when it starts production in 2008. Last week, Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm announced that Mascoma Corporation plans to build a commercial plant in that state that will convert wood chips and other non-food agricultural products into ethanol. The Mascoma process involves breaking down the biomass to free its sugars, and then fermenting the sugars into ethanol. No timeline has been announced for Mascoma’s proposed plant, but Governor Granholm wants the facility to be the first commercial-scale wood-to-ethanol plant in the country. See the press releases from Range Fuels and Governor Granholm, as well as the Mascoma Web site.

The world’s first commercial wood-to-ethanol plant just started production in Osaka, Japan. Verenium Corporation is licensing fermentation technology developed at the University of Florida for use at the plant, which can produce 370,000 gallons of ethanol per year. Verenium also operates a pilot-scale plant in Louisiana and is building an adjacent demonstration-scale plant that will be designed to produce 1.4 million gallons of ethanol per year. Construction of that facility should be complete by year’s end. See the Verenium press release.

While these projects are producing ethanol from wood waste, Citrus Energy LLC and FPL Energy, LLC plan to build a plant to convert citrus peels into ethanol. FPL Energy announced last week that the two companies have agreed to build a commercial-scale ethanol facility on the grounds of a Florida citrus processor. The facility will produce four million gallons of ethanol per year. See the FLP Energy press release and the Citrus Energy Web site.

Growing Wind Industry Yields New Plants in Four States

The burgeoning wind power industry has spurred the construction of new manufacturing plants in Arkansas, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and South Dakota. DMI Industries, a wind tower manufacturer, announced in May its plans to acquire a facility near Tulsa, Oklahoma, that will give the company the ability to produce larger towers for offshore wind plants and to ship them overseas. DMI intends to modify the existing plant for its purposes by early 2008. The facility features 500,000 square feet of production space and will ultimately employ up to 450 people. In late June, Knight & Carver held the grand opening for its new 26,000-square-foot wind blade production and repair facility in Howard, South Dakota, bringing at least 35 jobs to the state. Last week, LM Glasfiber announced that they will also build a new wind blade facility, to be located in Little Rock, Arkansas. The plant will begin operations early next year and will employ more than 1,000 people within five years. See the press releases from DMI Industries, Knight & Carver, and LM Glasfiber.

The small wind turbine market is creating jobs as well, as Kentucky Governor Ernie Fletcher announced in mid-July that Wind Energy Corporation will develop, build, and sell its helical wind turbines at a refurbished 133,200-square-foot facility in Morgantown. The project is expected to create 260 full-time jobs within five years and represents an investment of more than $6.1 million. Wind Energy will expand its headquarters operation in Elizabethtown, Kentucky, by adding 35 full-time technical and executive positions. See the governor’s press release.

The small wind turbine industry is one of the few renewable industries that is still dominated by the United States, according to a new study by the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). The 2007 AWEA Global Small Wind Market Study finds that 6,807 small wind turbines were sold in the United States in 2006, compared with an estimated 9,502 wind turbines sold in the rest of the world. U.S. manufacturers supplied 98% of the U.S. market and exported roughly half their product, which would equal about a third of the non-U.S. market. To help those manufacturers succeed, DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory is now offering to perform independent testing on commercially available small wind turbines. Up to eight competitively selected manufacturers will provide their wind turbines to N
REL for up to a year of testing, after which the results will be publicly available on the NREL Web site. Responses to the solicitation are due by August 22nd. See the AWEA report (PDF 449 KB) and the NREL solicitation.

FERC Aims to Simplify Licensing for Wave and Tidal Pilot Projects

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is considering an expedited licensing process for pilot projects involving wave and tidal energy technologies. As noted by FERC, wave and tidal energy technologies are in a developmental phase, presenting significant risks for developers because of a limited access to financing and a lack of information about the engineering and environmental performance of the technologies. To help advance those technologies, FERC is proposing a licensing process for pilot projects that could be completed within six months. The process would be available for pilot projects that are testing new technologies or determining appropriate sites for larger facilities. The pilot projects must be five megawatts or smaller in capacity, located in waters that have no sensitive designations, and removable or able to shut down on relatively short notice. The pilot projects could still be connected to the power grid, both for study purposes and as a source of revenue. FERC will convene a technical conference in Portland, Oregon, on October 2nd to review the licensing proposal. See the FERC press release.

Wave and tidal energy projects are moving forward in several U.S. locations. In June, officials in New York announced that a tidal energy system on the bed of the East River had started generating power for Roosevelt Island, which is part of the borough of Manhattan. The Roosevelt Island Tidal Energy (RITE) project was built by Verdant Power, Inc. and features six 35-kilowatt axial-flow turbines that are now generating 1,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity per day. The project is providing power to a supermarket and a parking garage on the island. Meanwhile, the Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) in California is working with the City and County of San Francisco and the Golden Gate Energy Company to explore tidal power options in San Francisco Bay, and the Snohomish County Public Utility District (PUD) in Washington State is examining seven possible tidal energy sites along its coast. See the press releases from New York City and PG&E, the Verdant Power Web site, the Snohomish County PUD Web site, and the full list of issued and pending permits and licenses on the FERC “Hydrokinetics” Web page.

Energy Connections

Report: Energy Efficiency, Diversity are Keys to Our Future Energy Needs

A new 422-page report from the National Petroleum Council (NPC) warns of “accumulating risks to the supply of reliable, affordable energy” and calls for an integrated national strategy that includes energy efficiency and the exploitation of diverse energy sources. The report concludes that the United States should incorporate energy policy into most of its foreign policy decisions and should create long-term opportunities for research and development in all phases of the energy supply and demand system.

“The study demonstrates that energy efficiency is a very near-term energy resource, and tapping it is essential to national energy strategy,” says Daniel Yergin, Vice Chair of the study and Chairman of Cambridge Energy Research Associates. “The challenge is that it involves thousands and thousands of decisions, not a few big decisions. But there is a focus on efficiency in the United States and around the world at a level never seen before. The study helps point the way.”

The 18-month study examines global energy use and supply through 2030 and involved more than 350 experts from diverse backgrounds and organizations. It concludes that the world is not running out of energy, but the world should not continue to rely on expanding energy production from conventional sources of oil and natural gas. The report also concludes that achieving U.S. energy independence is not practical in the foreseeable future, but notes that several steps can be taken to enhance U.S. energy security. See the NPC press release (PDF 124 KB), executive summary (PDF 1.4 MB), and full report (PDF 10.9 MB).

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