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World's First Hydrogen Society Gets Underway

Ten households in the small island community of Utsira, west of Haugesund in Norway will become independent of electricity from the mainland this summer. On July 1, Hydro's first power plant based on a combination of wind power and hydrogen starts production on the wind-swept island - Norway's smallest municipality. Hydro has set up this project with the support of the Research Council of Norway and the Norwegian Pollution Control Authority, making the small island of Utsira a showcase, both in Norway and in the rest of the world, for the development of renewable energy. When energy production starts, two large windmills and a hydrogen unit will demonstrate to the world how a community can meet its energy demand through renewable energy. Utsira has 230 inhabitants. If all goes according to plan, other island communities will be able to set up similar wind and hydrogen plants. Utsira has an average of only three or four days a year without wind. Although this is one of the stormiest areas of Norway, the wind can be too strong or too variable to ensure an even electricity supply at high enough voltage through wind power alone. Wind power plants in operation today depend […]

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LADWP Issues Request for Proposals for Renewable Energy Projects

Goal to Increase Renewable Power by 13% by 2010 and 20% by 2017 The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP), the nation's largest municipal utility, announced it has issued a request for proposals (RFP) for renewable energy projects. LADWP is seeking to acquire up to 1,320,000 megawatt-hours per year of renewable energy by the end of 2010. Under the direction of Mayor Jim Hahn, the City Council and the Board of Water and Power Commissions, LADWP is developing a Renewable Portfolio Standard (RPS) to increase its share of power generation through renewable energy sources — such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass — to 13% of its energy by 2010 and 20% by 2017. "This RFP marks a significant step forward towards reaching our goal of producing 20% of our energy from renewable resources by 2017," said Mayor Hahn. "Next week, the Mayor's Green Ribbon Commission will begin meeting to further develop a plan for Los Angeles by year's end." "The renewable energy RFP is a broad-based solicitation for hydro, wind, biomass, solar, geothermal, and other renewable energy projects," said Frank Salas, acting general manager. "We are seeking to attract high-quality proposals that will lay the foundation for […]

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U.S. C02 Emissions Up .9% for 2003

U.S. Department of Energy, Energy Information Administration U.S. carbon dioxide emissions from burning fossil fuels increased by 0.9 percent in 2003, from 5,736 million metric tons of carbon dioxide (MMTCO2) in 2002 to 5,788 MMTCO2 in 2003, according to preliminary estimates released today by the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The 2003 increase of 0.9 percent is below the average annual growth rate of 1.1 percent in emissions from 1990 to 2003. After a relatively large increase of 3.0 percent in 2000, due to weather-related factors and growth in the economy, emissions declined in 2001 by 1.8 percent. With moderate growth of 0.8 percent in 2002 and 0.9 percent in 2003, emissions still remain slightly below the 2000 level of 5,798 MMTCO2. Total U.S. energy-related carbon dioxide emissions have grown by 16 percent over the 1990 to 2003 period. Carbon dioxide emissions account for over 80 percent of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions and are a good indicator of total U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Factors that put upward pressure on emissions in 2003 included: economic growth of 3.1 percent; colder winter weather than in 2002, with a 3.8-percent increase in heating degree days; and, increased reliance on coal and petroleum in electric […]

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