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Surge of prototype projects could signal dramatic growth in ocean energy industry by Rona Fried, Ph.D. Is the global ocean energy industry at a turning point? With all the attention focused on energy efficiency and smart grid, and with more mature renewable sectors like wind struggling, we haven’t heard much about ocean energy in the last year or two. Financing is tight and venture capital is extra-cautious as the world struggles to get through this tough recession. It’s not the best time for a new industry to gain footing. High initial costs and long development lead times makes the industry dependent on government support. Ocean energy has received much less support than solar or wind, but that could change. Costs are high because prototypes must stand up to ocean storms, and in the U.S. they must navigate a confusion of overlapping offshore permitting authorities. After only a dozen wave and tidal prototypes were installed in 2009, more than 45 projects will have been tested in 2010 and 2011, according to IHS Emerging Energy Research. If these prototypes are successful, IHS believes the global ocean energy project pipeline is poised to begin scaling. They estimate that more than 1.8 GW of […]
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Philadelphia Eagles Power Stadium with Renewable Energy DOE: $400M Loan Guarantee for Abound’s Thin-Film Solar Manufacturing First Companies Earn Industrial Energy Efficiency Certification First Leaf, Volts Shipped DOT Redirects $1.2B in High-Speed Rail Funds DOE: $30M for Next Generation Biofuels Research Philadelphia Eagles to Power Stadium with Renewable Energy The Philadelphia Eagles recently announced it will power Lincoln Financial Field with a combination of onsite wind, solar and dual-fuel generated electricity, making it the world’s first major sports stadium to convert to self-generated renewable energy. SolarBlue will install the system, which includes 80, 20-foot spiral-shaped wind turbines on the top rim of the stadium; 2,500 solar panels on the stadium’s facade; a 7.6 MW onsite dual-fuel cogeneration plant; and a monitoring and switching technology to operate the system. The completion goal is September 2011. SolarBlue will invest over $30 million to build the project, and will maintain and operate the stadium’s power system for the next 20 years at a fixed annual price increase in electricity. The football franchise will save an estimated $60 million in energy costs. The system is expected to provide 1.039 billion kWh of electricity, enabling an estimated 4 MW of excess energy to be sold […]
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By Ardour Capital On December 1, the House Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming announced it will no longer exist when the next congressional session begins. The committee, which was established by Democrats in 2007 to study energy and climate issues, held over 50 sessions regarding environmental legislation. Global Solar Demand in 2011 Based on solar installations year-to-date and changes to feed-in tariff (FIT) programs made or announced in the major PV markets, we are raising our estimates for 2010 and 2011. We believe global demand will continue to grow steadily in 2011, but well below the pace of 2010. Germany will still be the main player, but several countries (such as Italy, the US, and Japan) will be gigawatt markets next year. We increase our 2011 global installation forecast to 17 GW, and introduce our 2012 estimate of 20.3 GW. Europe is on track to double installations in 2010; demand should be flat in 2011. The North American market will more than double in 2011. Geographic diversification will come from Asia and several new markets. Given our 2011 growth projections and compelling valuations, we see attractive entry points for these solar stocks: First Solar (NASDAQ: FSLR), Trina […]
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Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative Launched California Approves $4B High-Speed Rail Line 10 EU Countries Sign for North Sea Offshore Grid Oregon Biomass Cogen Plant under Construction Chevy Invests $40M in U.S. Clean Energy Projects Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Export Initiative Launched DOE joined seven other U.S. government agencies on December 7 in launching the Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Export Initiative, a coordinated effort to promote exports of renewable energy and energy efficiency technologies. In 2009, the US exported roughly $2 billion of manufactured renewable energy goods, which will be used as a benchmark for progress. The Department of Commerce and DOE co-chair the Trade Promotion Coordinating Committee Working Group on Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency for the federal agencies participating in the initiative. DOE is investing in market research and discovery that can help focus U.S. government resources for trade promotion. For example, DOE will identify U.S. manufactured energy efficiency products likely to be competitive in global markets, and in collaboration with U.S. trade associations, DOE will consider creating guides for foreign buyers that list technologies and services available from U.S. providers. The initiative, which will involve 23 agencies over the next five years, is […]
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This is the final broadcast of the Green Week in Review for the foreseeable future. Thank you to all of the show’s regular listeners, and we hope you will continue to follow the news coverage on SustainableBusiness.com, which will continue to be led by News Editor Bart King. In this week’s show… Obama Administration Backs Away From Expanded Offshore Drilling U.S. Interior Department Launches ‘Smart from the Start’ to Speed Offshore Wind Development EPA Finalizes Cellulosic Ethanol Target at 6.6M Gallons Now is the ‘Sputnik Moment’ for Clean Energy – Chu WWF Outlines Key Issues at Cancun Climate Talks Rich Nations Failing To Keep Copenhagen Funding Promise Brazil Limits Amazon Deforestation To Record Low Non-CO2 Pollutants Are Promising Target in Cancun Starbucks Moves Closer on Cup-to-Cup Recycling Goal Plus, a summary of the week’s top cleantech headlines. ++++ Email comments or questions to bart@sustainablebusiness.com
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Presidential Report Provides Roadmap for Transforming U.S. Energy System DOE Supercomputers Pursue Clean Energy Breakthroughs EPA Finalizes 2011 Renewable Fuel Standards DOE: $21 Million in Commercial Building Energy Assistance Electric Car Drives Length of Americas Emerging Economies Show Renewable Energy Leadership Presidential Report Provides Roadmap for Transforming U.S. Energy System The US should prepare a federal energy policy and update it regularly, according to a report released on November 29 by the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST). Accelerating the Pace of Change in Energy Technologies Through an Integrated Federal Energy Policy provides a roadmap for the federal role in transforming the U.S. energy system within one to two decades. The report recommends significantly increasing federal investments in energy-related research and development from the current $5 billion per year to about $16 billion per year. It calls for regular strategic Quadrennial Reviews of energy policy similar to the quadrennial reviews of the U.S. Department of Defense. The first one is targeted for early 2015. Reviewers would include presidentially appointed experts from academia, NGOs and industry. It also recommends the president engage the private sector, consumer representatives, and Congress in exploring options for new revenue streams that could […]
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Move over Renewable Energy, the Republicans are back. Cap-and-Trade is dead even though it was originally a Republican idea. Rather than adding new carbon taxes, cap-and-trade uses the free market to trade emission credits, but even that is now viewed as a "tax." If there’s any chance for a Renewable Energy Standard, it will likely be broadened to a Clean Energy Standard, which includes nuclear and carbon sequestration from coal. Its goal would change from encouraging the growth of renewable energy to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through all available sources. That would be a "net negative" for renewable energy. In a post-election news conference, President Obama said there could be opportunities to increase natural gas production and build nuclear plants, both of which are favored by the GOP. U.S. Senator Barbara Boxer (D-CA), chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee, and a champion for addressing climate change and environmental concerns, is thinking a lot smaller about what Congress can accomplish. She’s looking at applying clean energy incentives through the tax code and a possible program where landlords could get loans to retrofit apartment and office complexes. But Thomas Pyle of the free-market Institute for Energy Research thinks there […]
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The Green Week in Review is a podcast, hosted by SustainableBusiness.com News Editor Bart King. It’s posted every Friday morning and is about 15 minutes long. You can listen to it through your browser or download it to a portable media player. Sign up for our General News RSS Feed and it will be automatically downloaded to your computer each week. In this week’s show… G20 Re-Affirms Pledge to Cut Fossil Fuel Subsidies Green Building Market Grows 50% in Two Years LEED Projects Surpass One Billion Square Feet NRDC Founding Director Awarded Medal of Freedom Plus, a summary of the week’s top cleantech headlines. ++++ Email comments or questions to bart@sustainablebusiness.com
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Interior OKs Second Large Solar Project on Nevada Public Lands Public EV Charging Program Expands to Washington, D.C. Electric Vehicles Attractive for Fleets USDA Boosts 500 Rural Clean Energy Projects DOE Launches Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Advisory Committee G-20 Reaffirms Commitment to Cut Fossil Fuel Subsidies Interior Dept OKs Second Large Solar Project on Nevada Public Lands On November 15, the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) approved the second large-scale solar project on U.S. public lands in Nevada. The Amargosa Farm Road Solar Project, a 500 MW facility, will provide electricity to about 150,000 homes. Solar Millennium is expected to create 1,300 solar jobs and up to 200 permanent jobs. Last month, DOI green lighted the first solar project on Nevada public lands, First Solar’s Silver State North Solar Project, a 50 MW facility to be built in the Ivanpah Valley, 40 miles south of Las Vegas. The concentrating solar Amargosa Project will consist of two 250 MW parabolic trough plants equipped with thermal energy storage capability on 4350 acres in the Amargosa Valley. BLM, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the National Park Service worked closely with Solar Millennium to develop an innovative mitigation plan for […]
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The Green Week in Review is a podcast, hosted by SustainableBusiness.com News Editor Bart King. It’s posted every Friday morning and is about 15 minutes long. You can listen to it through your browser or download it to a portable media player. Sign up for our General News RSS Feed and it will be automatically downloaded to your computer each week. In this week’s show… Biden Launches Home Energy Scoring Program Researchers Find Dead, Dying Coral Near BP Spill Site Watch ‘The Story of Electronics’ Plus, a summary of the week’s top cleantech headlines. ++++ Email comments or questions to bart@sustainablebusiness.com
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