Study Takes Air Out of Wind Power's Sails

A sharp increase in wind-power capacity in Europe is challenging utilities to stabilize their electric grids in the face of sometimes wildly fluctuating wind-energy levels, while calling into question some of the greenhouse-gas reducing claims of windmills, according to a recent study. Based upon a breadth of data drawn from European utilities in half a dozen countries and other reports, the study by ABS Energy Research in London puts a different spin on an energy source being hailed from Long Island to Lisbon as the possible savior from global warming and dependence on foreign oil. In one of its more dramatic illustrations, the study notes that western Denmark , which has several thousand wind turbines on land and offshore, was forced in 2004 to export some 85 percent of the wind-energy its mammoth turbines generated, often at a loss. That happened despite the fact that wind-power represents only 20 percent of the country’s total power production, ABS said. Worse, the carbon-emissions reducing potential of that power was compromised because two of the countries it exported to — Norway and Sweden — reduced their hydropower production sources to accommodate cheaper wind power. Meanwhile, Denmark ‘s primary power was still delivered by […]

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Whole Foods Offers Cards to Fund Wind Power Market

Whole Foods Market (Nasdaq: WFMI), the world’s leading retailer of natural and organic foods, has begun a program to offer customers a way to participate in the the growth of the U.S. wind market. Shoppers can purchase $15 and $5 Wind Power Cards at checkout counters at 80 stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Texas and Washington. The cards enable customers to buy certified wind energy credits equivalent to a household’s average monthly electricity consumption – 750 kWh for a family or 250 kWh for an individual. “Purchasing a Wind Power Card to offset your own energy consumption, or as a gift for others, is an affordable way to fight climate change,” says Quayle Hodek, Renewable Choice Energy’s chief executive officer, one of the companies that sells the cards. “Wind Power Cards do not reduce or replace conventional electricity bills, but they offer consumers an opportunity to ensure that the energy they take from the grid is replaced with clean, renewable energy derived from wind power.” In January, Whole Foods announced the largest corporate purchase of renewable energy credits in North America to offset all of its electricity use. “A purchase of a wind power card provides […]

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Conergy Subsidiary Secures ¬394 Million for Spanish PV Projects

A subsidiary of Conergy AG (CGY.F), the Voltwerk group, has completed the largest European PV financing agreement to date. Worth over 394 million euros, the financing enablers large-scale photovoltaic plants. The agreement includes debt financing for all Voltwerk’s PV projects in Spain currently under construction or in planning. Voltwerk will now be able to complete projects with a total peak output of at least 45 megawatts on the Iberian Peninsula in 2007. The company is investing in the technologically leading sun-tracking solar systems of Conergy AG, which provide an energy yield of up to one third greater than conventional systems. “This financing brings us significantly closer to our strategic goal of making 50% of our turnover abroad by 2008. This will enable us to strengthen our leading position in Spain,” explains Nikolaus Krane, CEO of voltwerk AG. Worldwide, it has over half a dozen large-scale solar thermal projects in the planning stages, including a large-scale solar thermal power plant in Spain. voltwerk AG is a leading company in the development and structured financing of projects in the renewable energy sector. The company develops, finances and implements solar and wind parks, solar thermal power stations, as well as bioenergy plants. Its […]

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First Solar Sets IPO

First Solar Inc., a thin film solar manufacture, has set its planned IPO at 17.5 million shares for an estimated price of $17-$19 per share. The stock will be listed on the Nasdaq under the symbol “FSLR.” Underwriters Credit Suisse, Morgan Stanley, Piper Jaffray, Cowen and Company, First Albany Capital, and ThinkEquity Partners LLC will have the option to buy an additional 2.63 million shares to cover over-allotments. First Solar expects to receive $222.8 million in net proceeds. It plans to use $150 million to build a manufacturing facility in Asia, $30 million to fund associated ramp-up costs, and about $26 million to repay debt. Assuming an offering price of $18 per share, First Solar’s initial market capitalization would be US$1.25 billion.

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UBS Launches EU Carbon Emissions Index

UBS (UBSN.VX), based in Switzerland, has launched a carbon dioxide emissions index for future contracts to trade under the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS). The index will be published in U.S. dollars, euros and Swiss francs and includes two European trading platforms — the European climate Exchange and the Nordic Power Exchange. UBS plans to extend the index to other greenhouse gases in the future.

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International Power Acquires 436 MW Wind Farm Portfolio

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Only One Ethanol Maker Recommended

Bank of America analysts, which recently began coverage of four ethanol producers, rated only one a “Buy” as the industry braces for squeezed margins on higher raw material costs and lower pricing power. Analyst Philippe Lanier rates Aventine Renewable Energy Holdings Inc. (AVR) as a “Buy” with a $50 price target. The ethanol industry has seen prices decline in tandem with the recent drop in oil prices. At the same time, corn costs are on the rise — a reversal of the market earlier this year that was marked by high ethanol pricing and low corn costs. While the rest of the ethanol producers will likely feel the margin crunch from current market conditions, Lanier said Aventine may be buffered from those risks due to its distribution business. “Aventine operates a large distribution network many of its peers lack, which results in lower costs and additional revenue, resulting in 50 percent higher profitability per gallon than its pure-play peers,” he wrote in a note to clients. Another Bank of America analyst, Eric Brown, rates Pacific Ethanol Inc. (PEIX) a “Sell,” saying the company will likely face eroding margins and capacity uncertainty in the coming months. “We have forecast that substantial […]

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GS AgriFuels Acquires NextGen Fuel

GS AgriFuels Corporation (GSGF.OB) has acquired NextGen Fuel, Inc., a producer of modular, continuous-flow multi-feedstock biodiesel process equipment, for $21 million. NextGen’s biodiesel process technology utilizes innovative and proprietary process intensification techniques to accelerate and enhance traditional biodiesel reaction kinetics, thus decreasing process time, reducing energy and raw material needs, and increasing product quality. These benefits translate to reduced up-front capital and ongoing operating costs by as mush as 50% versus traditional technologies. Additionally, NextGen’s systems can be manufactured and shipped to customers in as quickly as 12 weeks from the time of order. NextGen currently offers turn-key biodiesel production plants rated for 5 million gallons per year and 10 million gallons per year, but the modular and continuous-flow aspects of the technology make scaling plants up or down easy and cost-effective. “We see a robust and mostly untapped domestic and international market for the development of mid-sized biodiesel production facilities,” said Kevin Kreisler, GS AgriFuels’ chairman and CEO. “We believe that NextGen has commercialized an important technology that enables us to meet the needs of this market. The continuous-flow capabilities of the technology translate to substantially lower construction costs because less equipment and raw materials are needed versus batch […]

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