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Sustainable Energy News Around the World

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A May 15th New York Times article says that multinationals plan to continue reducing emissions regardless of Bush policy. In fact, many companies advocate action. For example, Peter Pestillo, chairman of the Visteon Corporation, one of the world’s largest auto parts makers, says that efforts to address environmental issues are not very expensive if identified early in the design process. Companies also continue to face strong pressure in Europe and Japan. Another NY Times article reports on government studies that conclude that depending on how aggressively the government supports efficiency gains in appliances and buildings, the growth of U.S. energy demand could drop by 20-47 percent. This would eliminate between 265 – 610 of the 1300 new large power plants the Bush Administration insists the country needs. The range also depends on the price of energy – the higher the price, the more efficient technologies become economically attractive. H Power Corp., a fuel cell development company, is bringing Residential Fuel Cells to California. They will be arriving over the next few months and will be marketed with their partner, Energy Co-Opportunity, Inc. (ECO). Altair Energy LLC, will be the non-exclusive distributor for the Southern California market, to sell, install and […]

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Solar Energy Will Be Standard Feature in New Homes

Shea Homes San Diego announced in January that it is introducing the “Shea High Performance Home.” All new homes will be built to standards that are 38 percent more efficient than California Title 24 guidelines and will offer solar electric power and water heating as standard features. Homeowners will be able to reduce their utility bills up to 80 percent compared to a conventionally built home. The company plans to build about 200 high performance homes over the next 18 months in its new Scripps Highlands community, located 15 miles north of downtown San Diego. 100 houses will be outfitted with solar panels that generate 1,500 kilowatt hours of electricity a year, in addition to conventional electricity. Another 160 homes will offer solar panels as an option. The panels add about $6,000 to the cost of a homes, which sell in the $400,000 – $600,000 range. As a result of the current California energy crisis, San Diego homeowners pay 10 times more for electricity and twice as much for natural gas as they did a year ago. Mark Brock, Shea Homes San Diego president notes, “The Shea High Performance Home gives our buyers much greater control when there are energy […]

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