President Obama Announces National Fuel Economy Policy
President Obama announced a national policy on Tuesday that increases fuel economy and reduces greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of all new cars and trucks sold in the U.S. It includes proposed new fuel economy standards covering model years 2012-2016, achieving an average fuel economy of 35.5 miles per gallon (mpg) for model year 2016. That exceeds the requirements of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, which required an average fuel economy of 35 mpg by model year 2020.
The standards will also reduce CO2 emissions from new vehicles by 30% by 2016. Over the lifetime of these new vehicles, they will save an estimated 1.8 billion barrels of oil and will avoid the emissions of 900 million metric tons of CO2. Cars and light trucks cause 17% of the CO2 emissions in the U.S.
The groundbreaking policy represents an unprecedented collaboration among the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), 10 of the world’s largest auto manufacturers, the United Auto Workers (UAW), leaders in the environmental community, the State of California, and other state governments.
Because the policy combines fuel economy regulations with GHG regulations for vehicles, it addresses the EPA’s need to set GHG regulations for vehicles while also addressing California’s request to set its own GHG regulations. 13 other states and the District of Columbia had planned to adopt California’s GHG regulations. Meanwhile, 10 major car companies and the UAW have embraced the national program because it provides certainty and predictability to 2016 and includes flexibilities that will significantly reduce the cost of compliance.
To put the new policy in place, the EPA and DOT intend to initiate a joint rulemaking for new vehicle standards. The proposed standards are expected to be divided into categories of vehicles, based on size, and are expected to include a variety of measures to allow flexibility in meeting the standards, including credits earned for actions such as implementing advanced air conditioning technologies and using additional technologies that reduce emissions. Such credits would be tradable among the auto manufacturers. See the White House press release and fact sheet, the press release from the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, and California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Web page on the new policy.
DOE Raises Award Ceilings for Smart Grid Projects
DOE announced the maximum award available for Smart Grid projects has been significantly increased. DOE announced in mid-April that it intends to provide nearly $4 billion in Recovery Act funds for Smart Grid projects. The funds will include $3.375 billion for the Smart Grid Investment Grant Program, which supports the deployment of Smart Grid technologies and grid monitoring devices, and $615 million for demonstrations of regional Smart Grids, utility-scale energy storage systems, and grid monitoring devices.
Based on feedback received after that announcement, DOE raised the award ceiling for Smart Grid deployments under the Smart Grid Investment Grant Program from $20 million to $200 million, and it raised the award ceiling for regional Smart Grid demonstrations from $40 million to $100 million.
Energy Secretary Steven Chu also teamed up with Commerce Secretary Gary Locke last week to chair a meeting of Smart Grid industry leaders at the White House. Because the smart grid relies on communications technologies, systems need consistent standards to ensure that devices from various vendors can interact, that today’s systems can meet future Smart Grid needs, and that Smart Grids provide high levels of reliability and security. The White House meeting encouraged industry executives to expedite the adoption of Smart Grid standards.
After the meeting, Chu and Locke announced the first set of 16 interoperability standards for Smart Grid technologies, based on the consensus of participants in a public workshop. The standards are recognized by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) and address a wide range of subjects, including smart meters, distributed power components, and cyber security. Future standards will address basic connectivity and data networking. DOE also provided $10 million in Recovery Act funds to NIST in support of its efforts to coordinate the Smart Grid standards. The first 16 standards will be open to public comment for 30 days after their publication in the Federal Register. See the DOE press release and the NIST Smart Grid Web page.
EPA Sets Energy Star Specifications for Computer Servers
Some computer servers will soon carry the Energy Star label, thanks to new specifications finalized by the U.S. EPA last week. Computer servers are the workhorses of the Internet, serving up text, image, and video files each time someone visits a Web page.
To earn the Energy Star label, servers will have to employ efficient power supplies that don’t degrade power quality and will have to include advanced power management features. To help server owners minimize energy consumption, servers must also be able to measure their real-time power use, processor utilization, and air temperature, and server manufacturers must provide purchasers with information on their server’s energy performance and energy-saving capabilities. On average, computer servers that carry the Energy Star label will be 30% more energy efficient than standard servers. Energy Star is joint program of DOE and the EPA. See the EPA press release and the Energy Star Web page for computer servers.
Electronic devices such as computer servers can be either villains or heroes for energy efficiency, depending on your viewpoint. The villainous viewpoint was expressed by the International Energy Agency (IEA) last week, when it released a report warning that the global energy use of household electronic devices may triple by 2030, unless policies are enacted to make them more energy efficient.
The report notes that 15% of household electricity consumption goes toward electronic devices such as televisions, computers, and mobile phones, and their share of household electricity use is steadily rising. However, available technologies could slow the growth in consumption to less than 1% per year through 2030, avoiding the need for another 260,000 megawatts of new power generating capacity, which is more than today’s generating capacity in Japan. See the IEA press release and a summary of the report (PDF 245 KB).
Of course, computer chips serve as the brains for today’s electronic devices, and semiconductors are the building blocks for computer chips, sensors, and many other electronic components. But semiconductors are the heroes of energy efficiency, not the villains, according to the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE). Had the U.S. economy grown to its present size using technologies from the mid-1970s, we’d be using 20% more electricity today, according to a new ACEEE report. In fact, the U.S. economy could expand by more than 70% through 2030 and still use 11% less electricity than today, thanks to energy efficiency gains from semiconductor-based technologies. For instance, semiconductors enable the improved operation of motors and help provide a variety of "smart" energy solutions, from smart appliances and smart buildings to the Smart Grid. See the ACEEE press release and report.
U.S. Wind Industry Marks Strong First-Quarter Growth
The U.S. wind industry installed more than 2,800 megawatts (MW) of new generating capacity in the first quarter of 2009, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). The growth rate is strong compared to the overall growth of 8,358 MW in 2008, which averages out to roughly 2,100 MW per quarter, but the growth is relatively weak compared to the fourth quarter of 2008, when the industry installed a record 4,112 MW of wind capacity.
New wind power projects were completed in 15 states, including the 400.3-MW first phase of the Fowler Ridge Wind Farm in Indiana, a project that earned Indiana the distinction as the state with the fastest growth in wind power capacity: a 75% increase in just one quarter. But looking ahead presents a less favorable view for the nation, as projects now under construction will only add another 3,400 MW of wind power capacity. Even if all those projects are completed this year, which is unlikely, the total installed capacity for 2009 would only reach 6,200 MW, a 26% drop from the record pace achieved in 2008. See the AWEA press release and report (PDF 197 KB), and for comparison, see the AWEA press release on the growth in 2008.
Despite the uncertain outlook, a number of companies are pressing ahead with efforts to build wind turbine manufacturing plants in the U.S. In late March, Vestas held a ground-breaking ceremony for two new manufacturing facilities in Brighton, Colorado, that will make wind turbine blades and nacelles (the bus-shaped housings at the top of the towers). Vestas is also building a tower factory in Pueblo, Colorado, and expects to employ 2,500 people in the state by the end of 2010. The company is also establishing a research center in Houston, Texas.
In April, NextEra Energy Resources (formerly known as FPL Energy) announced plans to build a wind turbine service facility near Story City, Iowa. And finally, in early May, Siemens announced plans to build a factory for wind turbine nacelles in Hutchinson, Kansas. Construction begins in August for the facility, which will initially employ 400 people. See the press releases from Vestas (PDF 26 KB), NextEra Energy Resources, and Siemens.
World’s Biggest Solar Tower Producing Power in Spain
Abengoa Solar began commercial operation of a 20-megawatt solar power tower plant near Seville, Spain, in late April. Called the PS20, the plant uses a field of 1,255 flat mirrors, or heliostats, to concentrate sunlight on a receiver mounted on a central tower. Water pumped up the tower and through the receiver boils into steam, which is then directed through a turbine to produce electricity. The new facility is located adjacent to one with half its capacity, called PS10, which was the world’s first commercial solar power tower plant. According to Abengoa Solar, the new facility is exceeding its predicted power output. See the Abengoa Solar press release.
Several companies are planning to build solar tower plants in the U.S., including BrightSource Energy, Inc., which is planning to build a 110-MW facility near Ivanpah, California. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) signed a contract to buy all the power from that facility when it is built, and last year, the utility signed contracts with BrightSource for up to 900 megawatts of solar power.
Last week, the utility increased its commitment to BrightSource, replacing the previous power purchase agreements with new agreements for a total of 1,310 megawatts of solar thermal power. BrightSource intends to start operating its Ivanpah facility in 2012 and then build six more projects as quickly as possible. The Ivanpah project is currently under review by the California Energy Commission (CEC). See the PG&E press release, the BrightSource technology description, and the CEC Web page for the Ivanpah project.
MIT Finds Increased Warming Threat if Greenhouse Gases Stay Unchecked
In the absence of new policies to limit greenhouse gas emissions, calamitous global warming appears much more likely now than it did six years ago, according to comprehensive climate modeling by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). The MIT Joint Program on the Science and Policy of Global Change uses a detailed computer simulation of global economic activity and climate processes and runs it 400 times, making slight changes to both the climate responses and the economic growth projections. The result is a probabilistic assessment of climate outcomes.
A similar study in 2003 found that a global temperature increase of 2.4°C by 2100 was the most likely outcome, but the newly updated study raised that to 5.2°C, with a 90% probability that the temperature increase would fall between 3.5°C and 7.4°C. In contrast, most climate scientists recommend that global temperature increases be maintained below 2°C. The scientists also examined the outcomes for greenhouse gas control measures that would stabilize the concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere at 550 parts per million (an equivalent of 675 parts per million when all greenhouse gases are accounted for), and found a median warming level of 2.3°C, with a 20% chance of keeping global warming below 2°C.
According to the MIT researchers, the new study differs from the older study in several ways. First, it draws on improved economic modeling and newer data that shows less chance of lower greenhouse gas emissions. It also accounts for the effects of volcanoes, which masked some warming in the 20th century; for soot, which causes warming; and for a lower removal of carbon dioxide by the oceans. Yet the model does not include potential positive feedbacks, such as the emission of methane by melting permafrost, which would make the outcomes even more drastic. See the MIT press release, the study, and an in-depth description of the scenarios and outcomes examined in the study.
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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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