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We Energies experienced record participation in its Energy for Tomorrow program during 2005, recording a 20 percent hike in sales of energy from renewable sources. The company Thursday reported sales of more than 50 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy so far this year. We Energies, the state’s largest utility, provides business and residential customers with the option of buying electricity from renewable resources such as wind, hydro and biomass. Waukesha-based companies Quad Graphics and GE Healthcare Technologies are among area businesses that, "led the way through their purchase of renewable energy," said Richard O’Conor, manager of We Energies renewable energy projects. The Energy for Tomorrow program debuted in 1996. About 12,000 energy users are participating in the program, the utility said. Source: The Waukesha Freeman, 12/24/2005.
At SRP, they're constantly looking for more efficient and more environmentally friendly ways to produce electricity. The SRP EarthWise Energy represents their environmental commitment to Arizona. Through SRP EarthWise, they offer an array of earth-friendly energy solutions for residential and business customers alike – including EarthWise Energy. When you sign up for EarthWise Energy, you'll support clean energy, and you'll play a major role in preserving precious natural resources.
A partnership between Minnesota's energy-producing southwest region and its energy-craving counties in the Twin Cities area looks to develop a mutually beneficial relationship. Earlier this month, metro and southwestern Minnesota county officials announced a partnership to harness wind energy in the state's southwest and ship it to the power-craving Twin Cities region.
The partnership between the metro and rural counties is exploring different ways to create more wind power in southwest Minnesota and then transmit it to the metro area. Hennepin County Commissioner Peter McLaughlin, who heads a metro-area task force working with the rural counties, says it's time to seriously look at how to substantially increase the metro region's use of this competitively priced, clean and renewable energy source.
The burgeoning metro region continually demands more energy, straining resources such as coal and nuclear energy plants that already are operating at maximum and near-maximum levels.
To the southwest, a geological formation known as the Buffalo Ridge is an ideal site to catch the wind and already is home to 685 wind turbines, some reaching more than 250 feet into the sky. Stretching from Watertown, S.D., and into Iowa, the ridge has one of the highest concentrations of turbines in the nation.
"[Wind energy] is the best thing that ever happened to us and that's why I'm excited about this project," said Jim Nichols, a farmer, former Lincoln County commissioner, former state senator, former Minnesota agriculture commissioner and longtime promoter of wind energy. "I've lived here and farmed here all my life," he said. "For a long time, Lincoln County was the poorest county in the state because it had no industry."
But wind energy changed that. Lincoln County is now home to 300 turbines, making wind energy a "cash crop" that has spread economic benefits across the countryside. Wind farm developers pay land owners $1,500 a year in rent for each turbine, Nichols said. And Lincoln County collects $500,000 a year in property taxes from wind farms, most of which are owned by large out-of-state developers.
Before turbines can capture energy for the Twin Cities and spin out profits for rural Minnesota, the details of putting the system together have to be worked out. One issue is getting the wind-generated energy from the rural areas to the urban areas, McLaughlin said.
Also to be determined is whether the counties would use the energy themselves or whether it would be sold to residential customers. At the very least, the counties and municipalities could tap into it to lower their energy costs. These are the details that the consortium will work on when it begins meeting next month, McLaughlin said. Source: Mary Lynn Smith, Star Tribune and Mike Kaszuba, Star Tribune, 12/27/2005.
County residents can soon comment about a Richmond-based energy company's plan to make electricity from methane gas buried under trash at the Newland Park Landfill – "green energy" production that a local official said would annually generate up to $100,000 for Wicomico County.
An application by Ingenco Wholesale Power LLC to build a 6-megawatt energy power plant at the landfill off Nanticoke Road in Salisbury is pending at the Maryland Public Service Commission, said Richard Schafer, PSC chief engineer. The 6-megawatt plant would be among several in Maryland and around the country applying the byproduct of decomposed solid waste as renewable energy, including a landfill in Prince George 's County, Schafer said.
Construction could begin as early as February, with a facility open as early as June – before the peak season for energy usage when demand is highest, said Rai Sharma, director of the Wicomico County Public Works Department.
Power generated from the 6-megawatt plant would be enough to supply about 5,000 homes that on average used 1.2 kilowatts per hour, Sharma said last week. The Wicomico landfill hauls in 100 or more dump trucks of trash daily, generating combustible gas that PSC officials say is clean, available and increasingly being harnessed for energy.
Before a PSC decision, Wicomico residents would have an opportunity to comment on the proposal at public hearings expected to be scheduled in January, Schafer said. Power producer Pepco Energy also has explored methane-fueled power on the Lower Shore, and held preliminary talks with officials in Worcester County, said Kim Price, a company spokeswoman.
To reduce the amount of methane seepage into the environment, the county burns off gas daily, a process that green energy conversion would eliminate. Reach Deborah Gates at 410-845-4641. By Deborah Gates, Daily Times Staff Writer, 12/27/2005.
High energy costs and green building initiatives could boost interest in the rooftop units. Fort Worth real estate mogul Ross Perot Jr. will be among the first to use a new alternative energy invention from a Plano-based company – the Mag-Wind rooftop turbine, which uses wind to generate electricity. Mag-Wind Co. L.L.C. in February will install one of its first five pre-production models – possibly the one nicknamed "Toto" by its inventor – atop the developer's Victory office building in downtown Dallas.
The founders of privately held Mag-Wind have been developing the patent-pending vertical-axis turbine since 1991. Each Mag-Wind can generate 900 to 2,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity a month, depending on the amount of wind. That's enough to power the average household, according to Bob Thompson, CEO of Mag-Wind.
Production of the units begins in March. Mag-Wind will sell the units exclusively through volume homebuilders, renewable energy-based distributors and utility power companies, which also will handle installation and connectivity to local power grids.
The Mag-Wind unit, made of aluminum, fiberglass and steel, measures 4-feet square and weighs 250 pounds. It retails for $6,599. The installed cost is $10,000 to $15,000, Thompson said. Mag-Wind says homeowners will earn back their investment in five to seven years.
Designed to last an estimated 20 years, Mag-Wind features no gears to wear or freeze. Its platform of aluminum sails, or wings, float on magnets. The platform base rotates around a stabilizing, vertically fixed shaft through its center. A circle of magnets on the inside of the base pass by a circle of coils to create electricity.
The small-scale, wind generation unit may be a first in North America, according to Cory Lowe, spokesman for the Rocky Mountain Institute, a nonprofit energy consultant in Boulder, Colo. that advised Texas Instruments Inc. on the green aspects of its new $3 billion chip manufacturing plant in Richardson.
"This is the first one I've heard of," said Lowe, noting RMI has advocated for large-scale wind generation for years. At the individual customer level, solar has been the standard, so Mag-Wind appears unique. "This is kind of new territory," Lowe said. "If it does all they claim it will do, the potential could be there. Generating electricity on a smaller scale can be profitable for both the energy producer and the customer." Source: By Margaret Allen, Staff Writer, Dallas Business Journal, 12/24/2005.
Driving to WaterFurnace Inc.’s corporate headquarters near Fort Wayne International Airport, one has an indelible impression of one of Indiana ’s biggest natural resources. It’s ground – wide, flat, open ground, broken only here and there by a factory or warehouse building. There’s ground stretching far as the eye can see. Wouldn’t it be great if all that ground could remain virtually undisturbed, yet we could use it to provide something we all need and now have to pay dearly for to get from somewhere else?
Indeed, that’s the premise of WaterFurnace’s business. The company is the nation’s largest designer and manufacturer of geothermal heating and cooling systems. For the past 20 years, WaterFurnace and a network of local installers have been quietly refining the technology and plying a steadily growing geothermal trade. But in the past few months, they’ve seen a jump in interest that roughly corresponds to the rise in the price of natural gas. “It’s about a 100 percent increase. It’s double the number of people this year calling in asking for a geothermal quote,” says Mike Miller, sales consultant for Korte Does It All, a Fort Wayne heating and air conditioning contractor that installs geothermal systems.
Interest in geothermal spiked after this year’s hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico, according to Jessica Commins, spokeswoman for the Geothermal Heat Pump Consortium in Washington. “Our manufacturers are telling us their shipments have doubled in the last three months, and we believe that this is due to natural gas prices that shot up around Hurricane Katrina,” she says, adding that geothermal had been shown to cut home heating and cooling bills by 50 percent to 70 percent, even before recent price increases.
Still, according to manufacturers and dealers alike, geothermal remains a hard sell locally. While several businesses, including Dupont Hospital, WaterFurnace’s own corporate headquarters and some area schools have geothermal systems, residential installations have been mostly in new, high-end construction, says Kent Kuffner, WaterFurnace’s marketing manager. The reason is cost, he says. “It looks like it’s more expensive,” Kuffner says, adding that a typical residential geothermal system costs about $5,000 to $6,000 more than a conventional furnace system to install. But he says that the amount comes to only about $30 a month when rolled into a mortgage, and that’s the number homeowners need to look at.
Overall, contractors say, perhaps less than 5 percent of the area’s homes are geothermal – slightly more than the less than 1 percent of homes nationally, according to Commins. She says there are about a million geothermal installations nationwide, but she did not have a breakdown of how many are in homes. Locally, most new geothermal homes have been in rural areas not served by gas lines, says Nick Caley of Collier’s Heating & Air Conditioning in Ossian. He says the area has yet to have an all-geothermal subdivision.
We’ve tried and tried,” Caley says. “I think … builders are more interested in selling granite countertops and upgraded flooring and brick than they are in my equipment. They’re thinking about buyers, and buyers don’t see the furnace." Still, Collier has put in about 20 percent more geothermal systems by the beginning of December – 86 – than it did in all of 2004, Caley says.
Federal and state programs now available or coming in 2006 to improve heating system efficiency or promote alternative energy sources should cut the geothermal cost for many homeowners and thereby increase its popularity. Regina Leffers, owner of Synergid Inc., in Fort Wayne, an environmentally friendly building contractor, says she thinks the region is “right on the verge” of major geothermal growth. “It’s beginning to be on people’s minds, now it’s hit on their pocketbooks,” Leffers says of geothermal. “The public has to demand something different.” Source: By Rosa Salter Rodriguez, The Journal Gazette, 12/25/2005.
If the thought of rising energy bills has you rushing out to buy insulation, hold off until after Jan. 1, when the recently enacted Energy Tax Incentives Act of 2005 kicks in. The act includes incentives to make your home more energy efficient and give solar a try. They come in the form of tax credits, reducing federal tax bills dollar for dollar. Unlike many federal programs, they are not phased out for higher incomes. The most generous credits are available for those who add solar water, heat or power to their homes. It wasn't long ago that installing virtually any kind of solar device was a labor of love without much economic value. But with the federal incentives – combined in many places with utility and state incentives – solar is looking like a much better deal.
The new energy law encourages taxpayers to claim a tax credit each year in 2006 and 2007 for these expenses: 30 percent of the cost of solar water-heating equipment, up to a $2,000 maximum tax credit for each tax year; 30 percent of the cost of solar equipment that generates photovoltaic electricity, up to a $2,000 maximum tax credit for each tax year, and 30 percent of the cost of a fuel-cell power plant, up to a $500 maximum tax credit for installation in a taxpayer's principal residence. Unfortunately, this technology isn't yet available for practical use to residential consumers.
Solar equipment – particularly solar water heaters – is a lot more reasonably priced, easier to install and generally more practical than it's ever been. While installing photovoltaic systems can be pricey with payback in the distant future, installing a solar water system can pay for itself quickly and, as energy prices rise, continue to save a homeowner increasing amounts of money.
A reliable system installed by a professional can cost as little as $3,500, with systems climbing to as much as $6,000 in cold climates where freezing is an issue. Once it's installed, the ongoing costs are near zero with only occasional maintenance needed. The federal tax credit will pay as much as one-third of that upfront, but in many states, such as California and New Jersey, there are other incentives available that pay as much as 60.
A much more extensive and expensive proposition would be to add a grid-tied solar-electric system to your home. Figuring out whether it makes economic sense for you can be accomplished by gathering up a few electric bills and showing them to a qualified solar installer who can do the calculations for you. Or you can try to estimate the return on investment yourself using a calculator offered by BPSolar.
The price will depend on how much electricity your home and lifestyle require, the amount of sunlight your region gets each day during peak sun hours, how sunny the location of your property is and how much money is available to you from state and utility rebates. Just to give you a ballpark figure, George Douglas, a spokesman for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, says experts at this federal research facility estimate that in New Jersey, purchasing and installing a photovoltaic system costs $9 per watt, and the average home requires 4,000 watts per year for a total cost of $36,000. This is offset by state incentives that can be as large as 70 percent, with the federal rebate on top of that. Plus the homeowner can sell back excess power to the utility company at rates that are about 50 percent of retail. Source: The Patriot-News, 12/25/2005.
Horizon Wind Energy and RES America Developments, Inc., have agreed to build the first 200-MW phase of the Cross Timbers Wind Farm in Shackelford County, Tex. RES has been developing the Cross Timbers Wind Farm over the last several years. Under the provisions of the sale, RES will complete engineering of the project and will construct the wind farm in 2006, while Horizon will own and operate the project. The transaction is expected to close by the middle of January 2006; terms of the sale were not disclosed.
The project is located approximately fifteen miles northeast of Abilene, Tex. The first phase, known as “ Mesquite,” is expected to provide enough power to supply approximately 63,000 homes. The sale provisions provide an option for Horizon and RES to build a second 200-MW phase, and an anticipated third 200-MW phase could bring the Cross Timbers project total to 600 MW.
Craig Mataczynski, president and COO of RES, said, “We are delighted to start construction of the Cross Timbers project. It is a reflection of the positive relationship we have developed with Horizon and RES’s success in the North American market. Horizon’s capabilities make it an ideal owner and operator of the project. Its extensive experience in the wind industry, coupled with its strong financial backing, will provide the support the project needs to reach its potential to be a major contributor to the Texas wind power market.”
The project will use 100 2-MW wind turbines. Interconnection, road, and design work are already well underway for the first two phases of the project. In October, Horizon and RES entered into an agreement to construct the 229-MW Wild Horse wind power project near Ellensburg, Wash. Wild Horse was developed by Horizon and will be owned by Puget Sound Energy. Horizon has contracted RES to construct the site infrastructure consisting of roadways, turbine foundations, and electrical collection system. Major construction also began in October. Source: AWEA Wind Energy Weekly #1172, 12/23/2005.
A micro power plant using biomass and inert gas, a residue of oil production, will be built at Gellenhaza in southwest Hungary, the mayor of the village told MTI on Wednesday. The feasibility study has been financed from a HUF 12 million award granted from an EU Phare CBC fund available to Hungarian and Croatian small projects, Endre Gellen said. The municipality plans to launch construction of the HUF 4 billion (EUR 16 million) micro plant in 2007. The project is to be funded from EU support and the central budget, he said. The facility is expected to go online in 2008 to generate 142 million kW power for about 50,000 households, the mayor said. The power plant will burn inert gas, which has so far been unused ventilated by the oil company Mol. The biomass will come from grass, willow and poplar grown in the vicinity. Source: MTI, 12/29/2005.
Electricity from the largest wind power farm on Indian land has begun flowing into California 's power-hungry grid thanks to a partnership between project sponsor, global investment and advisory firm Babcock & Brown and GE Energy Financial Services. Energy Financial Services invested $51 million in the 50-megawatt Kumeyaay Wind project near San Diego.
The wind farm comprises 25 turbines that each can generate two megawatts of electricity. After eight months of construction and a month of testing, the turbines are feeding power into the San Diego Gas & Electric grid from the Campo Indian Reservation atop the Tecate Divide 70 miles east of San Diego and 18 miles north of the Mexican border. Babcock & Brown, which will retain a substantial equity interest and remain the long-term manager, has six wind facilities in the United States that will go into service by year's end.
The Kumeyaay Wind farm annually will produce power sufficient for about 30,000 homes and will save approximately 110,000 tons a year in greenhouse gas emissions, compared with equivalent fossil fuel generation. It will help San Diego Gas & Electric meet its target of supplying at least 20 percent of its customers' electricity from renewable sources by 2010. The transaction is the second renewable energy investment in San Diego County by GE Energy Financial Services this year. The first, in April, was an investment in solar roofs covering 14 of the city's public schools.
Last week marked a dedication ceremony of the first phase of construction for a unique hybrid solar and wind project in New Jersey. Once completed, the project will showcase a half-MW, commercial scale solar project, and five commercial scale wind turbines working in conjunction to provide on-site power for an essential public good.
The project is located at the Atlantic County Utilities Authority wastewater treatment facility on the coast in Atlantic City, New Jersey. Community Energy of Pennsylvania was in charge of the wind component while the multi-array solar component was a joint venture between WorldWater & Power Corp. and New Jersey-based Alternity Power, a new division of construction contractor, the Conti Group.
The 504 kW solar electric system uses Sharp solar modules and a variety of Xantrex inverters spread out over five different arrays including two rooftop arrays, a large solar carport structure, and two ground-mounted systems. The dedication represented completion of the first phase of construction of the solar components, principally a large solar carport featuring 936 separate modules. The remaining 223 kW of solar arrays will be completed early next year. Source: SEPA Bi-Weekly News, 12/22/2005.
In 2005, over 15 countries moved to expand their geothermal power production, according to the Geothermal Energy Association, the US industry trade association. "The outlook for future growth is surging," commented Karl Gawell, GEA's Executive Director.
The United States is seeing its first wave of new geothermal power development in a decade. "The first new power plant resulting from a state Renewable Portfolio Standard was commissioned in Nevada in 2005. This is the first of many new plants that will deliver clean, reliable electricity to consumers," Gawell noted. "Over 500 Megawatts of new projects have secured power contracts in 2005, with more expected in the coming year," he added.
Recent analysis produced for the Western Governors’ Association demonstrates a near-term potential of 5,600 MW of new geothermal power. New power prospects were identified in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, and Washington. Today geothermal electricity is produced in only four states, but with continued federal and state support, this could triple by 2010, according to GEA. Source: GEA Update, 12/22/2005.
The Department of Energy’s Wind Powering America program and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association are accepting nominations for the 2005 Wind Cooperative of the Year Award. All electric cooperative members of NRECA are eligible to apply. Entrants will be judged on leadership and innovation in four areas:
All nominations are due by 5 PM EDT, January 16, 2006. Questions can be directed to Randy Manion at 720-962-7423
On Jan. 19 and 20, 2006, at Western’s Electric Power Training Center in Golden, Colo., the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association is sponsoring a Wind Interconnection Workshop. Co-sponsors include American Public Power Association, Utility Wind Integration Group, Western Area Power Administration and the USDOE Wind Powering America program.
Wind power is the fastest growing form of generation in the world today. Are you ready to integrate this resource into your power mix? This two-day workshop will answer your questions about interconnecting wind turbines and other distributed generation applications to public power distribution systems. Get an overview of wind energy, followed by an introduction to the Utility Wind Interest Group's new Internet-based tools program, designed to assess a distributed wind project's impact on the local distribution system. Training will cover the theory behind each tool and demonstrate them using actual cooperative feeder data. Additionally, Western’s Electric Power Training Center instructors will provide a tour of its impressive Electric Power Training Center and participants will get a preview of the EPTC's new hands-on Wind Power Simulator Integration Training Program-the nation's first-developed with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and the U.S. DOE Wind Powering America Program.
Participation is limited to the first 30 registrants, with electric cooperative and public power personnel receiving preference, so reserve your place today. To register, contact Debbie Rock Western Area Power Administration, 720-962-7271. For more information, visit the PRP Web site.
Register now for the three-part geothermal webcast series sponsored by Western Area Power Administration and the Utility Geothermal Working Group. The free teleconferences will cover economics, financing, permitting, transmission, environmental impacts, marketing, case histories, program development and project development for geothermal technologies.
Webcast sponsors include the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association CRN Program and the American Public Power Association DEED Program, among others. The topics and dates for the three webcasts are:
Each webcast begins at Noon EST (11 a.m. CST, 10 a.m. MST, 9 a.m. PST) and lasts for 2 ½ hours, including at least 30 minutes of questions and answers.
Participation is limited to the first 40 utilities that register. To register, email Debbie Rock. There is no charge for participation. About a week before each webcast, registrants will receive via email the dial-in instructions and the presentation file to follow during the webcast. Questions? Contact Guy Nelson, UGWG Team Leader.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Wind Powering America program, American Public Power Association and Western Area Power Administration invite you to participate in a teleconference scheduled for February 9, 2006 on Wind Energy Economics.
The scheduled teleconference will be limited to the first 40 callers, with preference given to electric cooperative and public power personnel. The teleconference is free, but sponsors ask that you reserve a spot in advance so that the maximum number of participants can be accommodated. Please sign up only if you know you will be able to attend as seating is limited. Register by contacting Debbie Rock at 720-962-7271.
A link to the presentations on the web will be provided to all registrants along with call-in information in the week prior to the teleconference. The teleconferences will be moderated by Bob Putnam of CH2M HILL, Technical Support contractor to NRECA. The teleconference is scheduled for 11 am - 1 pm CST. Hope you can join us!
For our eleventh annual symposium, the Wallace Stegner Center symposium will address global climate change, from the Arctic to the Rocky Mountain West. Speakers from around the United States and Canada, including scientists, politicians, policy makers, and community representatives will consider an array of scientific evidence of the earth's changing climate. Topics will include bore holes in Utah and other locations worldwide, melting permafrost, rising ocean levels, retreating glaciers, and changes in the troposphere. The symposium will address the current and potential effects of climate change, including the economic implications for both the developed and undeveloped world, affects on ecosystems worldwide, anticipated regional effects in the Rocky Mountain West, projections of future climate changes, and how to address global warming.
Registration fees are $95 if received by February 17; $125 if received on February 17 or later. University and College faculty, staff and students/seniors are $50 if received by February 17; $65 if received on February 17 or later. Twelve CLE credits are available for an additional $15. To register or for questions, please call 801-585-3440. This symposium is made possible through the generous support of the R. Harold Burton Foundation, Chevron, the Cultural Vision Fund, and the Nature Conservancy in Utah. Source: Jan Nystrom, Associate Director, Wallace Stegner Center for Land, Resources and the Environment, University of Utah, 12/12/1005.
Clarkstown South and Somers high schools are among 50 high schools in the state experimenting with solar energy. The program is designed to show students the role solar electric power can play in providing clean energy for homes, schools and workplaces.
Clarkstown South has the solar panels on the roof, while Somers has the panels on a rack behind the school. Each school has a two-kilowatt system, which costs about 24-thousand dollars. But with state incentives the schools paid just 15-hundred dollars.
Although the solar energy is reducing the school's electric bills, science teachers are using the solar systems to teach students about alternative energy. Students will chart electric output, and determine how much carbon dioxide emissions were eliminated by using the clean energy.
New York State 's Energy Research Development Agency says the solar systems can power about 30 computers in a school technology lab. Solar technology development is gaining momentum as government increases incentives, and businesses take advantage. Source: WNBC.COM, 12/27/2005
The Idaho Geothermal Energy Working Group is planning a several Farm Bill Grant Workshops throughout Idaho. The dates are January 18, 19, 20, & 25, 2006. Source: Gerry Galinato, Idaho Energy Division, 12/28/2005.
This EnergyNet Update summarizes progress made on state clean energy initiatives in 2005. This year, Delaware and Montana established renewable electricity standards. Meanwhile, Texas and Nevada increased their renewable electricity standards, with Texas more than doubling its original requirement. Several other states are considering an increase in their current standards, including Arizona, California, New Jersey, and Wisconsin.
To date, 20 states and the District of Columbia have implemented renewable electricity standards. The Union of Concerned Scientists projects that these requirements will support nearly 32,000 megawatts of new renewable power by 2017-an increase of 237 percent over total 1997 U.S. levels (excluding hydro). This represents enough clean power to meet the electricity needs of 20.3 million typical homes. By 2017, annual new renewable energy production from all state renewable electricity standards programs will reduce carbon dioxide emissions-the heat-trapping gas primarily responsible for global warming-by 77.1 million metric tons.
States wishing to include updates on their own energy campaigns next year should contact EnergyNet@ucsusa.org. Source: The Union of Concerned Scientists, 12/22/2005.
On behalf of the National Wind Coordinating Committee, I’d like to extend thanks to the speakers, presenters, and participants in the September 19, 2005 NWCC Southwest Power Pool Workshop II: Transmission and Wind, held in Topeka, KS. The summary from this meeting can be found online. Source: Katie Kalinowski, Outreach Associate, National Wind Coordinating Committee, 12/22/2005.
The California Energy Commission has recently posted its Renewable Energy Portfolio Standards Proceedings pertaining to public comments on Guidebooks and Reports for the December 7, 2005 Committee Workshop on Proposed Changes to the Renewables Portfolio Standard Guidelines and Procurement Verification Report. Source: CEC Release, 12/21/2005.
The Geothermal Resources Council has announced a call for papers for their premier 2006 GRC Annual Meeting to be held in San Diego, CA September 10 – 13, 2006, at the Town & Country Resort. The proposed 2006 technical program includes:
The GRC invites you to submit a paper related to one of the above session themes or a technical paper in geothermal research, exploration, development and utilization. The GRC deadline for receipt of draft technical papers is April 28, 2006. Additionally, the GRC 2006 National Conference will focus on university student participation, with its new “Year of the Student” program. The GRC is encouraging students in the fields of geology, engineering, and environmental sciences to submit draft papers for consideration by it Technical Program Review Committee. With U.S. Department of Energy assistance, the GRC will offer attendance scholarships to any student whose paper is accepted for presentation, and cash prizes for Best Student Oral and Poster Presentations.
The U.S. Internal Revenue Service requested applications last week for renewable energy projects to be financed with up to $800 million in "tax-credit" bonds. Unlike normal bonds that pay interest, tax-credit bonds pay the bondholders by providing a credit against their federal income tax. In effect, the new tax-credit bonds will provide interest-free financing for certain renewable energy projects. According to the American Public Power Association, this provides an effective new financing tool for public power companies, which are non-profit and cannot directly benefit from other tax credits.
Under the new Clean Renewable Energy Bond program, established by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, up to $800 million in tax-credit bonds may be issued by qualified bond lenders, cooperative electric companies, and government bodies (including public power systems). The borrower must be a cooperative electric company or a government body, and must use the financing for wind, biomass, geothermal, or solar energy projects, or for hydropower expansions, trash combustion facilities, or refined coal production facilities. The act allows government bodies to borrow up to $500 million for such projects, setting aside at least $300 million for cooperative electric companies. Since the federal government essentially pays the interest via tax credits, the IRS must allocate such credits in advance, which is why it is seeking applications now; they're due by April 26th, 2006. Source: UWIG, 12/21/2005.
The Union of Concerned Scientists has posted a summary of the Energy Bill (Conference report to HR 6). You can also find information from the Internal Revenue Service on Clean Renewable Energy Bonds.
The President intends to nominate Alexander A. Karsner, of Virginia, to be Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy. Mr. Karsner currently serves as Managing Director for Enercorp, LLC. Prior to this, he served as Director of Development & Senior Development Manager for Wartsila Power Development & Wartsila Diesel Development Ltd. He also served as Chief of Staff for the Honorable Moses Cheng Mo-Chi, former Member of the Legislative Council of Hong Kong. Earlier in his career, Mr. Karsner served as International Project Director for Tondu Energy Systems. Mr. Karsner received his bachelor's degree from Rice University and his master's degree from Hong Kong University. Source: Scott Sklar, 12/22/2005.
Per the Energy Policy Act of 2005, tribes are now eligible for DOE's Renewable Energy Production Incentive. REPI provides financial incentive payments for electricity produced and sold by new qualifying renewable energy generation facilities. Qualifying facilities are eligible for annual incentive payments of 1.5 cents per kilowatt-hour (1993 dollars and indexed for inflation) for the first ten year period of their operation, subject to the availability of annual appropriations in each Federal fiscal year of operation. Source: Lizana Pierce, Project Manager, U.S. DOE Tribal Energy Program, 10/17/2005.
Van Ness Feldman attorneys have released an issue alert entitled "Seven Northeast States Agree on MOU for 'Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative': Program Would Regulate Carbon Dioxide Emissions from Electricity Sector." On December 20, seven governors signed a memorandum of understanding committing their states to decrease carbon dioxide emissions from the electricity sector through a multi-state "cap-and-trade" program. The seven signatory states are Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, and Vermont. The MOU provides that the program will launch on January 1, 2009. Source: Van Ness Feldman, 12/28/2005.
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy has launched a new free e-bulletin to announce new and significant developments in EERE's programs and research. The “ EERE Progress Alerts” will be sent via email and posted online as new developments in technology research occur. The Progress Alerts are designed to make efficiency and renewable energy advocates, lawmakers, consumers and the media aware of breakthroughs and efforts as they happen. Subscribers will receive information on all EERE programs including renewable energy such as solar, geothermal, wind, hydropower, biomass and hydrogen along with vehicle technologies, buildings and industrial technologies and energy efficiency. Source: GEA Update, 12/22/2005.
A multi-billion-dollar state energy program could help the Coachella Valley maximize one of its best assets - the sun. The overall initiative would pump $3.2 billion into solar energy development in the state during the next 11 years and put panels on 1 million rooftops. One resort has already taken advantage of the state's current $421 million program and could save about $100,000 annually.
"Our energy bills kept going up up, up, up and up. It was killing us," said Art Brigman, CEO of Club Trinidad, a Palm Springs timeshare resort that once counted the Rat Pack among its well-heeled clientele. So Brigman led the charge to invest $1.4 million in an energy renovation that resulted in 670 new photo voltaic solar panels on the rooftop of the old club.
And with about 350 sunny days a year, he was well-positioned in the Coachella Valley. One of the world's most productive solar-generating areas is in the desert outside Barstow, about 80 miles to the north.
But the money behind the subsidies is gone. The pool of cash that delivered $421 million through the Public Utilities Commission to big projects such as Club Trinidad's is dry. Subsidies already have helped develop enough solar energy capacity to offset the demand of more than 30,000 homes on the state's strained power grid.
A proposal to continue funding the program with utility bill surcharges goes before the commission in January.
The new program would continue to collect funds through utility bills under the line item Public Purpose Programs.
The long-term assurances will give the solar industry more stability to make investments in itself. Critics have said the incentives subsidize production of today's expensive panels and don't encourage investment in research to make the technology more efficient.
Price is another barrier for local homeowners, even if the new incentives go into effect. For example, a system for a typical 2,000-square-foot desert home could still cost the buyer well over $20,000. It can take a decade or longer to recoup the cost through electric bills.
Still, Mike Mohr, owner of a Corona-based solar panel-installing firm, said high energy prices are a big reason solar power is finally moving from the energy fringe to the spotlight, especially in sunny Southern California. "I didn't think it was going to happen in my life. I've been doing this 30 years," said Mohr, whose company, Mohr Power Solar, installed the system for Club Trinidad. Brigman says it's inevitable more people will follow the trend, whether they want to or not. "Fossil fuels are going to run out," he said. "We are going to use them all up." Source: By Benjamin Spillman, The Desert Sun, 12/27/2005.
Southern Company has named Leonard Haynes executive vice president of supply technologies, renewables and demand-side planning in Southern Company's generation business unit. Among his responsibilities, Haynes will oversee the development of a renewable generation portfolio and the commercialization of the company's integrated gasification combined cycle technology, as well as demand-side planning.
Southern Company has invested more than $6 million over the last five years in renewable energy technologies, such as evaluating wind, solar and biomass as possible options. The company has successfully tested switchgrass as a biomass fuel, as well as expanded research into biomass for power generation by testing a gasification process, which has the potential to be cost-competitive when compared with other forms of renewable energy.
The company is currently participating in a joint effort with the Georgia Institute of Technology to determine if placing wind turbines off the coast of Georgia is a feasible and efficient renewable energy option for power generation. Southern Company also is partnering with the U.S. Department of Energy and the Orlando Utilities Commission to build an IGCC plant to demonstrate the cleanest, most efficient coal-fired generation technology in the world. The plant, located in Orlando, Florida, is scheduled to be in operation by 2011. Source: PR Newswire, 12/27/2005.
The final report for the Dakotas Wind Transmission Study is now available to the public. The study examined how the addition of 500 megawatts of wind generation in North Dakota and South Dakota would affect the region’s transmission system.
For the seven wind sites studied, major conclusions are that under normal system intact conditions, non-firm transmission is available most of the time across three monitored areas for up to 500 MW of new wind generation. However, some of the sites are limited to less than 500 MW without additional system enhancements. The study indicated that some overloads and dynamic stability problems resulted when wind generation was added, but dynamic line rating and reconductoring could mitigate those problems without adding new transmission lines to the system.
Western Area Power Administration received $750,000 of non-reimbursable funds from Congress in FY 2004 to perform the transmission study. Western developed the final study scope with input from the public. Public review and comments were also solicited as the study tasks were completed.
For more information about the Dakotas Wind Study or to receive a copy of the final study results, visit Western's Web site contact Sam Miller at 406-247-7466.
Energy experts predicted that the implementation of the Law on Renewable Resources on January 1, 2006 will open up a huge market in China for renewable solar energy. The new law is expected to boost the development of the country's solar power industry, said the experts.
The Law on Renewable Energy, which was approved by the National People's Congress Standing Committee in February this year, will encourage all units and persons to use solar energy-based generation systems. It is regarded as an important law for the safety of China 's environment and for the development of its energy resources.
Solar energy is developing rapidly worldwide. Over the past 20 years, China 's solar-based products have represented about 1 percent of the global market. China started research on solar batteries in 1958. Currently, more than 500,000 solar power generation systems have been installed in China 's rural areas and in some remote places, bringing electricity to at least 500,000 families. Economic observers predict that by the year 2020, renewable energy will account for about 10 percent of China 's total energy consumption. Source: www.chinaview.cn, 12/27/2005.
The Connecticut Clean Energy Fund has recommended that PPL Energy Services Holding LLC be named as one of three renewable energy projects to provide power to the state. PPL Energy Services, or Wallingford Energy LLC, operates a 243-megawatt gas-fired power plant on John Street and has been selected to provide four megawatts of energy using fuel cell technology.
The recommendation is the first in a series of steps in Project 100, a program created by the state legislature to develop 100 megawatts of renewable energy generation for state consumers. Connecticut Light & Power Co. will review the energy fund’s recommendations and analyze the proposals further.
Other candidates include a 15-megawatt biomass project by GDI Renewable Power in Watertown, and a 15-megawatt wind project by enXco. The combined 34 megawatts will generate enough clean energy to power about 25,000 average-size homes in the state.
PPL installed eight fuel cells since 2001 and if approved, the new project will be the company’s largest installation. The new cells will be next to the plant and will draw on gas and convert it to hydrogen. The new project will allow PPL to take on larger scale fuel cell production, and puts more fuel cell technology in the Northeast. Much of the existing technology is in California and Nevada.
Under a 2003 state energy act, the state’s two major utilities — United Illuminating Co. and Connecticut Light & Power — are required to enter into long-term power purchase agreements with developers to purchase a minimum of 100 megawatts of renewable energy. The energy legislation was created because renewable energy projects are difficult to finance without long-term contracts, said a spokesperson for the Connecticut Clean Energy Fund. Source: By Mary Ellen Godin, Record-Journal Business Editor, 12/27/2005.
U.S. venture capital firms poured $67.7 million into the solar energy sector in the first three quarters of 2005, up from $31.4 million for all of 2004, according to the Associated Press and Dow Jones. The new figurie is more than 30 times the amount invested in solar some 10 years ago, according to the report, which cited the National Venture Capital Association ( Arlington, Va. ), a trade group. It also represents more than a third of the $194.6 million invested by venture-capital firms in the entire U.S. energy industry.
Just two years ago, solar-power companies struggled to turn a profit. But now, solar panels are projected to remain tight until at least 2008, according to the report. “Demand for solar panels in Europe and Asia has blazed ahead of the United States, with Germany in the lead,” according to the report. “But California has a waiting list and orders have spiked in states such as Arizona, Vermont, Massachusetts, Oregon, Washington and New Jersey.” Source: EE Times, 12/27/2005.
Buried deep in the federal Energy Policy Act of 2005 are a handful of provisions with the potential to affect the health of Vermont 's rivers for years to come. Specifically, the provisions change the process through which hydroelectric dams are relicensed by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. Hydro power is a renewable energy source, but its generation also blocks fish passage up and down rivers. Dams may also create sudden changes in water levels that erode river banks, create an unnaturally slow-moving stretch of water upstream of the dam and reduce water levels below.
Conditions that lessen a dam's negative impact are often required in the dam's relicensing by FERC. Vermont has 38 hydroelectric dams subject to relicensing by FERC and 100 or more hydro power dams overall, but many of those are exempt from the relicensing process.
David Deen, the Vermont and New Hampshire Connecticut River steward for the Connecticut River Watershed Council, is concerned that the new law creates a loophole in National Environmental Policy Act for renewable energy projects. "It's been the bedrock of environmental protection since the '70s," he says, but the National Environmental Policy Act may no longer apply to the smallest hydro power generation projects, including most of those in Vermont.
The new law also allows hydro dam owners to build less expensive fish passages instead of using the designs recommended by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. The fish passages were once a mandatory part of the dam license renewal. Now the effectiveness of the cheaper solution will be decided on in a trial-like hearing.
Hearings will now also determine if a particular hydro project interferes with the designated use of federal land, such as recreation or forestry in a national forest. Dam licenses are usually valid for 50 years, so the relicensing process for a dam is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to improve the health of the affected river. While the federal regulations accompanying the new law took effect on Nov. 17, Vermonters will not feel much effect for years. The Canaan dam, on the Connecticut River, is up for renewal in 2009, although the relicensing process is already under way. The next hydro power dam license to expire in Vermont comes up for renewal in 2012. The public comment period on the federal rules closes Jan. 16. Source: By Madeline Bodin, Herald Correspondent, 12/27/2005.
The brown cloud hanging over the Valley like an unwanted holiday guest is a reminder to many of the need to move quickly toward renewable energy. Local momentum is beginning to build for the use of renewable sources, and the string of recent high-pollution advisories from the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality only causes that pressure to rise. Both Salt River Project and the Arizona Corporation Commission are ready to move on new policies aimed at using more renewable energy.
SRP is in the midst of reviewing its renewable energy portfolio and is likely to up its self-imposed mandate of producing 2 percent of all its power from renewable sources. Customers and the general public are helping to shape the company's renewable energy policy.
"We've heard from the public that we should do more," said Lori Singleton, SRP's manager of environmental initiatives. "I think we're going to raise our percentage quite a bit higher and set a target for a few years down the road." Approval of a new renewable energy percentage could be approved in February, she added, and existing incentive programs for customers likely would grow. Singleton said about 4,000 residential customers and 70 businesses opt in each month.
As SRP reworks its renewable energy goals, the Arizona Corporation Commission is on the brink of a major renewable energy mandate that would have a major affect on the likes of Arizona Public Service and Tucson Electric Power Co. In August, the ACC gave initial approval for a mandate requiring 15 percent of all electricity sold in Arizona to come from renewable sources by 2025. Today, only about 3 percent of the state's power comes from renewable sources.
While the cost of producing renewable types of power is higher than traditional fossil fuels, the gap slowly is narrowing. But many say Arizona – with huge amounts of sunshine, wind power in northern parts of the state and other geothermal and biomass potential – could become a national leader in renewable energy in part because of its geographic diversity. "We have a diversity of renewable energy resources here, but solar will always be the biggest," said APS Manager of Technology Development Peter Johnston. "There are limits on forests or animal waste, for example, but solar is potentially limitless." Source: By Adam Kress, The Business Journal of Phoenix, 12/25/2005.
Towns across the Cape are hopping on the wind power bandwagon. Town meetings have accepted the idea. Sites have been identified. Experts have been recruited to test wind speeds. But when it comes to the economics of land-based wind energy, trailblazing towns such as Orleans and Falmouth have discovered there's a complex set of hurdles to conquer to make wind turbines a reality.
Orleans is exploring a two-turbine system that calls for a developer to contribute $4.1 million and the Massachusetts Technology Collaborative to commit $3.2 million. In Falmouth, initial estimates by the technology collaborative show the town could earn $20,000 annually if a privately owned turbine is built at the town landfill to power the new wastewater treatment plant. If the system was owned by the town, collaborative data shows it could lose money.
Experts said recent changes in the federal Energy Policy Act and state legislation could change the fiscal picture and make it possible for municipalities to own onshore wind turbines. There also may be ways to group projects together to make them profitable for a private owner. Falmouth and Orleans are among the first communities in the state to move forward with plans for municipal turbines and could set a precedent for how other towns approach similar projects in the future.
Building wind turbines is an attractive option for towns seeking to offset the cost of electricity-hungry town buildings such as water treatment plants and to gain a measure of control over the local energy market, town officials and renewable energy experts said last month at a municipal wind workshop. The session was sponsored by Cape and Islands Self Reliance and the Waquoit Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve. But since municipalities have started to crunch the numbers, some town officials have started to question their assumption that wind turbines can generate revenue along with electricity.
Falmouth and Orleans aren't the first Bay State communities to explore the idea of having their own wind turbines. Hull and Princeton already have wind turbines that benefit those towns. Both have municipal light plants - a town-run electrical company that provides power to a captive audience in their towns. No Cape towns have their own light plants. That means if they own a turbine, they will have to sell any extra power they generate to the electrical company, which complicates the business of owning a turbine.
Legislative changes at the state and federal level could be good news for communities eager to erect wind turbines. Every kilowatt hour a turbine generates saves the town from having to buy that energy from the electric company at the retail price. Under current law, towns would have to sell excess energy they don't use back to the electric company at the lower wholesale rate.
For now, towns like Falmouth and Orleans are taking their projects one step at a time and considering all their options. Source: By Amanda Lehmert, Staff Writer, Cape Cod Times, 12/25/2005.
The state Public Regulation Commission has approved a program aimed at getting more people to invest in small solar energy systems. The commission approved a plan from Public Service Company of New Mexico that lets the utility pay owners of small photovoltaic systems the same per-kilowatt-hour rate for the electricity generated over the life of the program. The program is to run for 12 years, until 2018. That means owners of small photovoltaic systems who contract with PNM next year will be paid 13 cents per kilowatt-hour over the entire 12 years. Those who contract in later years will be locked into the per-kilowatt-hour rate at the time of the contract. Source: Associated Press, 12/28/2005.
Pacific Gas & Electric has refunded its customers more than $100 million in the last four years under a state-approved plan to offer public agencies and private companies rebates when they install solar technologies, the utility announced this week. San Francisco received $2.6 million in rebates that are allowing The City to expand its renewable energy projects.
The City is set to receive an additional $975,000 for solar panels The City’s Public Utilities Commission recently installed at the Southeast Wastewater Treatment Plant, nearly half the cost of the project. Currently, solar panels on city property generate about one megawatt of power a year. Future plans include new solar panels at Pier 96, at San Francisco International Airport and at San Francisco General Hospital. Together, the three projects could generate up to one additional megawatt — enough energy to power about a thousand homes for one year.
Earlier this month, the California Public Utilities Commission expanded the program to offer $300 million in rebates annually, up from $60 million. The project requires PG&E to charge its customers a small fee — about 60 cents per month — that is used to pay for the rebates. The $240 million annual increase “means dozens of solar projects on a waiting list from 2005 should about all get funded,” PG&E spokesman Paul Moreno said. Source: By Marisa Lagos, Staff Writer, The Examiner, 12/27/2005.
As heating bills rise this winter, a growing number of consumers are turning to solar power to provide electricity and hot water, according to state officials. The Wisconsin Focus on Energy program offers rebates to consumers who install the solar-powered systems. Program director Don Wichert said that the average solar electric system costs around $18,000 and a solar water-heating system is about $6,000.
This is a steep upfront investment, but some consumers said that the system pays for itself in five or six years, especially with costs being higher this winter. In addition to the Focus on Energy rebates, a 30 percent federal tax credit will kick in starting Jan. 1. Almost 200 people have applied for the state rebates this year, up from 90 people a year ago. Source: Channel 3000 and the Associated Press, 12/27/2005.
Xcel Energy said Wednesday it plans to add 775 megawatts to its Colorado wind power network by 2007 and that, taking into account the expansion plans of other utilities, this would make it the nation's largest user of the renewable energy source.
The next two largest wind generating utilities would be Southern California Edison and Pacific Gas & Electric, a spokesman for Minneapolis-based Xcel said, citing data maintained by the American Wind Energy Association. Xcel said it currently has 282 megawatts of wind power in service or under construction in Colorado, one of 10 states it serves. It expects to have more than 1,100 megawatts of owned or purchased wind capacity on its system by early next year and more than 2,300 megawatts of wind capacity by the end of 2007. One megawatt can meet the electricity needs of approximately 1,000 homes, the company said.
Xcel already offers a Windsource program in Colorado in which consumers voluntarily agree to pay special rates for wind-generated power. It is believed to be the nation's largest "green pricing" plan. Last year, Colorado voters approved a measure requiring utilities with at least 40,000 customers to produce 3 percent of their electricity from renewable energy by 2007. The requirement rises to 6 percent in 2011 and 10 percent in 2015.
Solar power would have to generate at least 4 percent of the renewable energy. Xcel said Wednesday it expects to meet the non-solar requirements much earlier than required. Separately, Xcel said it intends to acquire approximately 1,300 megawatts of natural gas-fired generation from new and existing facilities between 2007 and 2012. Xcel serves 3.3 million electricity customers and 1.8 million natural gas customers in the Midwest and West. Source: GrandForksHerald.com, 12/28/2005.
This news item comes to you as a service of Western's Renewable Resources Program.
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