World’s Top Energy Ministers Launch Energy Efficiency Effort
The energy ministers from the Group of Eight (G8) industrialized countries and from China, India, and South Korea agreed this weekend to establish the International Partnership for Energy Efficiency Cooperation (IPEEC).The IPEEC will serve as a high-level forum for facilitating a broad range of actions that yield significant gains in energy efficiency. The partnership will support the on-going energy efficiency work of the participating countries and relevant international organizations by exchanging information on best practices, policies, and efforts to collect data.
The IPEEC members will also develop public-private partnerships for improving energy efficiency, participate in joint research and development efforts, and facilitate the dissemination of energy-related products and services. The energy ministers plan to hold the first IPEEC meeting before the end of the year. See the IPEEC declaration (PDF 26 KB).
The G8, by the way, includes Canada, the European Union, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United Kingdom, and the United States, which was represented by Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman. The energy ministers from this "G8 plus 3" group of countries also discussed high oil prices and a wide range of energy sources, including renewable energy.
The ministers committed to "enhance vigorously" their efforts to address and supply disruption risks, to improve energy efficiency, to promote non-conventional oil and alternative energy resources, and to diversify supply routes. They also noted that developing alternative transport and fuel technologies is essential to reduce the oil dependence of transportation throughout the world. See the DOE press release and the joint statement from the G8 plus 3 (PDF 46 KB).
The IPEEC declaration noted that energy efficiency is one of the quickest, greenest, and most cost-effective ways to address energy security and climate change while ensuring economic growth, a conclusion supported by a recent study from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE).
The report, released last week, notes that a 20% efficiency gain in the U.S. economy by 2030 could provide an estimated 800,000 net jobs while contributing to a slight increase in the nation’s gross domestic product. ACEEE notes that most national energy modeling efforts fail to account for energy efficiency’s contribution. According to ACEEE, if the energy efficiency resource were properly characterized by these models, the estimated costs of energy security and climate change policies would fall, while the benefits, net job creation, and consumer savings would rise. See the ACEEE press release and the full report.
DOE and Partners to Offer Prize for Efficient Lighting
DOE announced in late May that it plans to offer at least a $1 million prize for the development of energy efficient, solid-state lamps. The Bright Tomorrow Lighting Prize competition, or L Prize for short, was authorized by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 and challenges the lighting industry to develop LED (light-emitting diode) replacement technologies for today’s most widely used and inefficient lighting products. Specifically, the L Prize aims to find replacements for the 60-watt incandescent light bulb and the 4.75-inch-diameter halogen reflector lamp, technically referred to as a "PAR 38" ("PAR" stands for parabolic aluminized reflector, and "38" is the lamp’s diameter in eighths of an inch).
The replacement for the 60-watt bulb must use only 10 watts-an 83% energy savings-while the PAR 38 replacement will use only 15 watts, for an energy savings of about 87%. The winners must also meet a number of technical requirements relating to the warmth of the light, the distribution of light from the lamp, the dimensions of the lamp, the product lifetime, and the company’s ability to mass-produce the lamp. A future L Prize competition will call for the development of a "21st Century Lamp" that delivers more than 150 lumens per watt (lm/W), much more than the 90 lm/W required for the 60-watt bulb replacement and the 123 lm/W required for the PAR 38 replacement.
The legislation authorizes prizes of $10 million for the incandescent light bulb replacement and $5 million for the halogen lamp replacement, but actual prize amounts will depend on future DOE appropriations and private funding contributions. DOE currently plans to contribute $1 million to the prize purse. For the winner, the real winnings could be much larger than the actual prize, because the legislation also calls for federal procurement of the winning LED lamps. The lamps will also be promoted by the four major utilities in California, thanks to a Memorandum of Understanding between those utilities and DOE. See the L Prize Web site and the full competition requirements (PDF 6.85 MB).
GM Shifts Away from Trucks and SUVs, Toward Cars and Crossovers
General Motors Corp (GM) announced last week plans to cease production at four GM truck assembly plants in North America while adding additional shifts at two assembly plants for cars. According to Rick Wagoner, GM’s chairman and chief executive officer, U.S. consumer preferences are shifting permanently away from trucks and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) in favor of smaller cars and crossover vehicles.
As a result, GM saw significant increases in the retail sales of its Chevrolet Malibu, Chevrolet Aveo, and Pontiac Vibe in May, while its May sales of trucks to its dealerships are down by 36.7% from last year. Regarding cars and crossovers, "Our challenge in May was having enough vehicles available to sell," said Wagoner, but he also noted that "higher gasoline prices are changing consumer behavior, and rapidly … significantly affecting the U.S. auto industry sales mix. We at GM don’t think this is a spike or temporary shift; we believe that it is, by and large, permanent." See the GM sales figures for May and the speech Wagoner gave on June 3.
GM is also taking a number of longer-term, strategic actions to address high gasoline prices and the shift in consumer preferences, including the formal approval of the GM board of directors for the production of the Chevrolet Volt, a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle. GM intends to unveil a production version of the Volt "in the very near future," with a goal of delivering the vehicle to Chevrolet showrooms by the end of 2010.
The GM board also approved a next-generation Chevy compact car for U.S. and global markets, as well as a next generation of the Chevy Aveo, both of which will launch in 2010. GM will also start producing its 1.4-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine in the United States for use in the new Chevy compact car. GM is also "undertaking a strategic review" of the Hummer brand, and could either revamp the product line or sell the brand. The company also announced last week that it will offer a flex-fuel version of the 2009 Cadillac Escalade, allowing the vehicle to be fueled with E85, a blend of 85% ethanol and 15% gasoline. See the press releases about the strategic plans and the Cadillac Escalade.
Of course, GM’s sales trends are not unique to the company; all the large automakers are seeing similar trends. Ford Motor Company, for instance, saw a 20% increase in retail sales of its cars in May (compared to last year) and a 4% increase in car sales to its dealerships. Meanwhile, its SUV sales to dealerships were down 44% and its truck and van sales to dealerships were down 29% (note that both Ford and GM did not release retail sales information on their trucks and SUVs).
Toyota Motor Sales also saw big sales gains for its Yaris, Corolla, and Scion xB, although Toyota’s car sales overall were down by 21.3% in May, compared to last year. Toyota’s light truck sales are down by 15.9%, while Toyota’s Lexus division suffered sales drops nearly across the board. Likewise, American Honda Motor Company experienced a 30.7% increase in cars sales in May, compared to last year, while truck sales were down 11.4% and sales in its Acura division were down by 9.9%. See the Ford, Toyota, and Honda press releases.
Toyota Doubles the Range of its Fuel Cell Vehicle
Toyota Motor Corp has developed a new version of its fuel cell hydrogen vehicle (FCHV) that can travel about 515 miles on a single refueling. Toyota doubled the pressure of its hydrogen storage tanks to 70 megapascals, or about 10,150 pounds per square inch, which accounts for most of the increase in range. Toyota’s new "FCHV-adv" also combines a higher-performance fuel cell, enhanced regenerative braking to recharge the battery while slowing down, and a more efficient auxiliary power system to achieve a 25% improvement in fuel economy.
The extended range of the vehicle makes it much more practical for use in the United States. Even in places like California, which is developing a "Hydrogen Highway" of fueling stations, the refueling opportunities remain few and far between. However, the Toyota FCHV-adv should be able to make it from the company’s fuel station in Torrance to its demonstration site in Davis, a distance of about 400 miles. See the map of hydrogen fueling stations from the California Fuel Cell Partnership.
The improved fuel cell on the FCHV-adv also does a better job of rejecting water that forms within the fuel cell, increasing the vehicle’s ability to operate at low temperatures. According to Toyota, the new fuel cell stack can operate at temperatures as low as -22°F. The new fuel cell stack is also more durable, thanks in part to better degradation control for the fuel cell’s catalyst. The FCHV-adv was certified as a road-safe vehicle by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, and Transport on June 3. See the Toyota press release.
Duke Energy to Add Solar Power to 850 North Carolina Sites
Duke Energy Carolinas plans to spend $100 million over the next 2 years to install roughly 20 megawatts (MW) of solar panels throughout North Carolina. The utility filed an application on June 6 with the North Carolina Utilities Commission, asking for approval to implement the solar distributed generation program. If the program is approved, Duke Energy Carolinas will install solar power systems on rooftops or on the ground at more than 850 customer locations throughout the state, including homes, schools, stores, and factories. Duke Energy Carolinas would own and operate the equipment, but customers who offer their location for solar panels will be rewarded by the utility.
The program will help Duke Energy Carolinas meet its obligations under the state’s Renewable and Energy Efficiency Portfolio Standard, which requires 0.02% of the electricity sold in the state to come from solar power in 2010, increasing to 0.2% solar power by 2018. Once the solar power is converting into alternating current, it will provide roughly 16 MW of power, enough to serve more than 2,600 homes. The utility has also contracted to buy the entire electrical output from an 18-MW solar photovoltaic facility that SunEdison plans to build north of Charlotte. Construction is slated for mid-2009, with commercial operation by the end of 2010. See the Duke Energy press releases on the proposed solar program and the SunEdison facility.
A report issued by DOE’s Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL) in April found that renewable portfolio standards (RPS), such as the one in North Carolina, now apply to nearly 50% of the electricity load in the United States. When the report was published, RPS policies were in place in 25 states and the District of Columbia.
If those policies are met, roughly 60,000 MW of new renewable power facilities will be built by 2025, including 6,700 MW of solar power. And so far, the track record is good: from 1998 to 2007, more than 50% of the renewable power additions in the United States (excluding hydropower additions) occurred in states with RPS policies, including 165 MW of new solar generating capacity. In fact, the average compliance with state RPS policies was 94% in 2006, and so far, the programs have increased electricity rates by 1% or less. See the LBNL press release and the full report (PDF 1.5 MB).
Connecticut to Cut Greenhouse Gas Emissions 80% by 2050
Connecticut Governor M. Jodi Rell signed a bill last week that requires the state to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to 10% below 1990 levels by 2020 and to 80% below 2001 levels by 2050. House Bill 5600, "An Act Concerning Global Warming Solutions," requires the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) to determine the best strategies to meet the GHG limits. It also authorizes the DEP to work with other states and Canadian provinces to develop a cap-and-trade program to achieve the GHG limits. Connecticut is part of the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative, which is establishing a cap-and-trade program for GHG emissions for much of the Northeast.
The bill requires the DEP to evaluate the potential of low-carbon fuel standards for motor vehicles and home heating fuels to help achieve the GHG reductions. It also establishes a subcommittee to evaluate the impacts of climate change on the state and to recommend to the governor and the state legislature any needed changes to state and municipal programs, laws, or regulations to mitigate such impacts. See the governor’s press release and the full text of the bill, HB 5600.
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Kevin Eber is the Editor of EREE Network News, a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE).
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