WORLD RENEWABLES TO RISE

World energy use to rise by 56 percent, driven by growth in the developing world

July 25, 2013 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)

“Over the next three decades, world energy consumption is projected to increase by 56 percent… largely in the developing world, where growth is driven by strong, long-term economic growth. Half of the total world increase in energy consumption is attributed to China and India…Although petroleum and other liquids remain the largest source of energy, the liquid fuels share of world marketed energy consumption falls from 34 percent in 2010 to 28 percent in 2040. Renewable energy and nuclear power are the world's fastest-growing energy sources, each increasing by 2.5 percent per year…Natural gas is the fastest growing fossil fuel…[growing] by 1.7 percent per year…” click here for more

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SUN TO HIT $134BIL BY 2020

Solar PV Market Forecasts; Installed Capacity, System Prices, and Revenue for Distributed and Non-Distributed Solar PV

3Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

"…Following years of solar PV module oversupply and unsustainable, often artificially low pricing, 2013 is expected to be the year that the global solar PV market begins to stabilize. Market activity is shifting from Europe to Asia Pacific and, potentially, the United States…There is also considerable opportunity in…Chile, South Africa, and Saudi Arabia…By the end of the decade, solar PV is expected to be cost competitive with retail electricity prices without subsidies in a significant portion of the world. Navigant Research forecasts that annual revenue from solar PV installations will surpass $134 billion by 2020…” click here for more

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VIRGINIA LOOKS OFFSHORE FOR WIND

112,800 acres off Virginia coast to be auctioned for wind energy

Tamara Dietrich, July 23, 2013 (Hampton Roads Daily Press)

“Nearly 112,800 acres off the coast of Virginia are set to be auctioned in September for wind energy development — the second such competitive lease sale in the country, the federal government announced…The move was praised by federal and state officials and environmental groups for its potential to create jobs, strengthen the country's energy security and competitiveness and develop large-scale clean energy projects…Eight companies are prequalified to bid, including Dominion Virginia Power, which is both the largest power company in the state and the largest participant in the auction…” click here for more

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PIPELINE BUILDER REJECTS KEYSTONE DEAL ON COST

TransCanada Rebuffs EPA’s Call for Keystone Clean Energy

Jim Snyder & Jim Efstathiou Jr., July 18, 2013 (Bloomberg News)

“The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency says TransCanada Corp. (TRP) should be required to buy renewable power to run pumps along the route of its proposed Keystone XL pipeline, a measure the company said is unworkable and unnecessary…The EPA, in an April filing with the State Department, also said the U.S. should work with Canada to promote technology to capture and store underground the carbon-dioxide emissions generated in the production of Canadian oil….The State Department is reviewing the $5.3 billion project because it crosses an international border. TransCanada first applied for a permit for the project in 2008…” click here for more

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COLORADO XCEL RE-EVALUATES NET METERING ON COST

Colorado's Xcel Energy Signals For Change Of Direction On Net Metering

25 July 2013 (Solar Industry)

“…In filing its 2014 Renewable Energy Standard (RES) compliance plan with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), Xcel Energy says it intends to add 42.5 MW of new generation in 2014, including 24 MW of on-site (“small”) solar and 6.5 MW of community solar through the company’s Solar*Rewards program…The RES compliance plan also asks the CPUC to identify clearly the incentives provided to solar customers associated with [Net Energy Metering (NEM)]. The utility says NEM incentives ultimately are paid by non-solar customers across Xcel Energy’s service territory in Colorado…[and] the utility is requesting that the solar customers’ net costs - the benefits they receive less the costs Xcel Energy avoids as a result of their solar systems - be clearly spelled out…” click here for more

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JERSEY STOPS OFFSHORE WIND ON COST

New Jersey BPU rejects offshore wind project

Chris Mondics, July 21, 2013 (Philadelphia Inquirer)

“New Jersey utility regulators dealt a setback…to [the proposed Fishermen's Energy Atlantic City wind farm] off the beaches of Atlantic City, saying they were not satisfied that the project's economic benefits would outweigh the added cost of wind energy…The Board of Public Utilities voted unanimously to accept a staff finding that the [25 megawatt] project's costs would not be offset by environmental benefits along with added jobs and investment in the region…” click here for more

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REAGAN’S SEC-STATE TALKS ENERGY AND CLIMATE

A Republican Secretary of State Urges Action on Climate Change

David Biello, July 24, 2013 (Scientific American via Yahoo News)

“…[George Shultz, Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and key negotiator for the Montreal Protocol, one of the most effective global climate treaties ever:] “…In the energy area, we have to be constantly aware of three big objectives. Number one: we have to think of energy as a strategic commodity that is very important to our national security. Number two: we have to recognize that energy is the engine of the economy, so we want inexpensive, reliable, consistent energy. And number three: we have to recognize that energy produces pollutants as it burns, so it affects our environment. It affects the air we breathe; it affects the climate we create. So we have these three issues to keep in mind all the time, and you can't just do one or the other, but you've got to work on them all…” click here for more

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CHINA, EU SETTLE SOLAR TRADE DISPUTE

EU reaches 'amicable solution' with China on solar panel dispute

July 27, 2013 (AFP via The Economic Times)

“China and the European Union defused their biggest trade dispute by far on Saturday with a deal to regulate Chinese solar panel imports and avoid a wider war in goods from wine to steel…After six weeks of talks, the EU's trade chief and his Chinese counterpart sealed the deal over the telephone, setting a minimum price for panels from China near spot market prices…An EU diplomatic source said that in the solar agreement, the agreed price was 0.56 euro cents per watt, near the spot price for Chinese solar panels in July in Europe…Under the terms of the deal, China will also be allowed to meet [7 of Europe's 2012 16.9 gigawatt] solar panel demand…without being subject to tariffs under the deal…” click here for more

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WHEN INTRODUCING WIND

PSU study: Residents more responsive to wind farms if involved in process

Dan Seufert, July 17, 2013 (Plymouth State University via Plymouth Magazine)

“Plymouth State University's Viewshed Valuation Pilot Study of residents' attitudes on the value of scenic views affected by wind farms found discontent among Groton residents, where a wind farm went online…[The study] found widespread individual values-based opposition in the Plymouth area to current proposals from two European wind power companies…[It] also found that residents responded more favorably to wind farm projects if they were involved in the early proposal and planning stages…” click here for more

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NEW ENERGY, ENERGY EFFICIENCY AND UTILITY BOTTOM LINES

Consumer Solar Panels Undercutting Utilities’ Bottom Line

19 July 2013 (Smart Meters)

“A new Fitch Ratings analysis predicts that within the next five years rooftop solar power and energy-efficiency programs will reduce utility earnings and profit margins and depress investment in new transmission projects within five years… Fitch Ratings point to… utilities’ efforts in Louisiana and Idaho to penalize customers that add rooftop systems…[that] were defeated…” click here for more

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ARIZONA UTILITY BUYS WIND

TEP to buy power from wind farm near Willcox, 1st of its kind in area

David Wichner, July 19, 2013 (Arizona Daily Star)

“Tucson Electric Power Co. has won state approval to buy power from a planned wind energy farm…that would be the first utility-scale project of its kind in Southern Arizona…The Arizona Corporation Commission approved the 20-year power purchase agreement between TEP and Red Horse Wind 2 LLC, which was formed by Houston-based Torch Renewable Energy to build and manage the 220-acre project…Construction is expected to start later this year, pending environmental studies, and the farm is expected to go online in 2014…” click here for more

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THE INTERCONNECTION CHALLENGE

Cost of Interconnecting Power Projects to the Grid; What the heck is deliverability, and why does it matter in project development?

Tam Hunt, July 19, 2013 (Gereentech Media)

“Every renewable energy project must interconnect to the grid under “reliability” standards. This means that the project won’t cause the grid to fail due to the project’s exporting power -- or failing to export power…There is a second level of interconnection, however, in places like California and similar jurisdictions. It's known as “deliverability.” A project is fully deliverable when the power the project produces can physically get to where it’s most needed on the grid. A fully deliverable project means that there are no chokepoints on the grid stopping power getting to where it’s needed. So, reliability is about safety while deliverability is about versatility of the power provided to the grid…” click here for more

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THE GRID AND NEW ENERGY

Putting more wind power on the grid; Wind farms should get a big share in the energy development zones in the Mojave and Colorado deserts.

Editorial, July 23, 2013 (LA Times)

“Wind turbines tend to be overshadowed by solar power projects, which get most of the attention from the public and policymakers. That's the case again in a new government plan for renewable energy projects in the California desert. Though the wind industry shouldn't get all the land it wants, the desert master plan should provide more and better space for wind farms…[W]ind is a much bigger producer of electricity than solar…[with] 3.5 percent of the nation's electricity supply…[and] has been the fastest-growing producer of electricity worldwide over the last decade, largely because better-designed turbines have reduced costs by 80% over the last 20 years…” click here for more

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CALIF SHOWS SUN THE WAY

CPUC Report Demonstrates California’s Continued Solar Success

July 2013 (California Public Utilities Commission)

“The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC)… annual report on the progress of the California Solar Initiative…[shows] the program has installed 66 percent of its total goal, with another 19 percent reserved in pending projects. This equals an estimated 1,629 megawatts (MW) of installed solar capacity at 167,878 customer sites in the investor-owned utility territories through the end of the first quarter of 2013, enough to power approximately 150,000 homes and avoid building three power plants…” click here for more

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UTILITIES AND U.S. RATEPAYERS

Congratulations, Utilities! Customer Satisfaction Is Way Up In The U.S.

July 17, 2013 (Renew Grid)

“Despite ongoing severe weather across the U.S. resulting in longer outage periods per event, customer satisfaction with residential electric utilities has increased substantially from 2012 driven primarily by improvements in billing/payment, price and outage communications, according to a new report from J.D. Power…Editor's note: A recent study from Accenture reported that more than two-thirds of consumers did not "trust" their utilities. That study was taken globally, while the J.P. Power report focuses only on the U.S…” click here for more

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IT’S RENEWABLES AND NATURAL GAS NOW

Renewables Outpace Coal, Oil And Nuclear In The U.S. During First Half Of Year

July 19, 2013 (Renew Grid)

“Renewable energy sources, including wind, solar, biomass, hydro and geothermal, accounted for 24.93% of all new U.S. electrical generating capacity installed in the first six months of this year for a total of 2,144 MW, according to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's (FERC) latest Energy Infrastructure Update report…[R]enewables provided more new generating capacity than did coal (1,579 MW - 18.36%), oil (26 MW - 0.30%) and nuclear power (0 MW - 0.00%) combined. However, natural gas dominated the first half of 2013 with 4,852 MW of new capacity (56.41%)…Among renewable energy sources, solar led the way…followed by wind…” click here for more

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CA REGULATORS SAY PUT WIRES UNDERGROUND

Portion Of The Tehachapi Renewable Transmission Project Going Underground

July 15, 2013 (North American Windpower)

“The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has granted a request from the City of Chino Hills to put underground a segment of Southern California Edison's Tehachapi Renewable Transmission Project (TRTP)…The CPUC agreed with the City's assertion that the design of the above-ground line "ignores community values and places an unfair and unreasonable burden on residents."…Currently, the 3.5-mile segment of the 500 kV transmission line running through Chino Hills consists of massive transmission towers reaching nearly 200 feet tall and set in a narrow 150-foot right of way. The CPUC's decision…finds that it is in the public interest to construct an underground alternative…It will cost approximately $224 million…” click here for more

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TX REGULATORS WAIT FOR NEW ENERGY

ERCOT delays vote on target; Chairman sees ‘some validity’ in concerns on electricity reserves. Laylan Copelin, July 16, 2013 (Austin American-Statesman)   Reacting to objections from industrial customers and others, [the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) the managers of the state’s primary electricity grid…postponed a vote on whether to increase the target for electricity reserves….The issue pits two cogs of the state’s robust economy against one another: Generators who say they are losing money and manufacturers who say capacity payments amount to a subsidy that would cost consumers billions of dollars…ERCOT is already below its current reserves target of 13.75 percent, but it is considering raising the target to 16.1 percent above the projected peak demand for electricity. The Texas Industrial Energy Consumers suggested a 15 percent target… click here for more

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SOLAR TECHNOLOGY STANDARDIZING

PV roadmaps: For years, PV technologists have clung on to learning curves and roadmaps for the PV industry…

Finlay Colville, July 2013 (PV Magazine)

“The strong competition from hundreds of PV manufacturers during 2010 to 2012 has played a key role in pricing and trade cases being played out globally today. However, despite so many companies seeking to gain market-share, the supply landscape remains dominated by just ten suppliers that have provided almost half of all PV modules installed since the mid 1950s…As a result, the technology landscape has become heavily weighted towards the technologies used by these suppliers, and the number of other manufacturers that subsequently implemented identical process flows using the same substrate types. The most prevalent technology has been p-type multi c-Si, with over 50% of all PV panels currently installed using this module type.” click here for more

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NEW YORK STATE LOOKS TO OFFSHORE WIND

New York’s Atlantic Ocean Study to Support Ocean Industries Development and Offshore Wind Energy; Study is Significant Step in Strengthening New York State’s Ocean-Based Economy and Protecting Environment

July 10, 2013 (New York State Department of State)

“The New York State Department of State (NYSDOS)…released a comprehensive study on the physical, biological, wildlife and geographic characteristics of the Atlantic Ocean impacting New Yorkers. The results of the New York Offshore Atlantic Ocean Study will lay the groundwork for selecting offshore areas where wind development could be most suitable and appropriate and will serve to help protect habitats important to the environmental health and recreational and tourism priorities of the coastal communities as well as sustaining New York’s ocean-based industries…” click here for more

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TAKING GEOTHERMAL HOME

Geothermal Heat Pumps; Residential and Commercial Applications for Geothermal Heat Pumps: Global Market Analysis and Forecasts

3Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

“One of the most mature and stable platforms of renewable energy usage, geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) were first used in the 1940s, and current systems became commercially available in the 1970s. Today, GHP systems are being deployed in nearly every region of the world and in residential, commercial, institutional, and industrial environments with great success…[The market stands to experience significant growth as] the world economy recovers…The main barrier to GHP system deployment growth has been and remains to be the high upfront cost of system installation. Developments aimed to reduce this upfront cost are a primary focus of today’s R&D efforts. Navigant Research forecasts that installed GHP capacity will grow from 46.7 gigawatts thermal (GWt) worldwide in 2012 to 127.4 GWt in 2020…” click here for more

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WORLD MONEY COMES BACK TO NEW ENERGY

Q2 2013 Global Green Investment at $53.1B; Big growth outside EU not enough to counter Europe’s faltering markets.

Jeff St. John, July 11, 2011 (Greentech Media)

“The latest global green energy investment figures are in, and while the United States and China are way up, Europe remains way down -- a reminder of just how important a role government policy continues to play in the industry’s attempted post-recession recovery…Bloomberg New Energy Finance reported that global green energy investment grew to $53.1 billion in the second quarter of 2013. That’s a 39 percent improvement from the first quarter’s four-year low of $43.6 billion, and was driven almost entirely by quarter-over-quarter growth in the United States ($9.5 billion, up 155 percent) and China ($13.8 billion, up 63 percent)…” click here for more

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CALIF LOOKS TO THE PACIFIC FOR NEW ENERGY

California, catch the next big energy wave; 'Blue' projects that harness ocean energy are taking off elsewhere. Why not here?

David Helvarg, July 13, 2013 (LA Times)

“The first U.S. offshore wind turbine hooked into the U.S. power grid in June…off the coast of Maine, using a floating wind-generator prototype well suited for the deep ocean water typically found off the coast of California…Less than a month later, Britain inaugurated an offshore wind farm capable of powering half a million homes…[and] wave- and tidal-power generators and…[ocean thermal energy conversion] are being developed in Maine, Oregon, Scotland and China, but not in any significant way in California. Even Google, based in California, is making a major commitment to offshore wind powers but [not here]…California is the state most associated with alternative energy development, yet the state's greatest potential source of clean power (and its main geographic feature), the Pacific Ocean, is largely ignored…” click here for more

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THE SMART METER DOLDRUMS

Smart Meters; Smart Electric Meters, Advanced Metering Infrastructure, and Meter Communications: Global Market Analysis and Forecasts

3Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

"The smart electric meter market has entered a slow growth phase worldwide…[but] deployments will continue over the next several years, with smart meter penetration rates rising steadily in North America and in Europe…[B]oth France and the United Kingdom are on the verge of large-scale smart meter rollouts, though those projects will not accelerate for another year or so. Navigant Research forecasts that worldwide shipments of smart meters will peak in 2018, at 131 million annually, before slowing to 114 million by 2022…” click here for more

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ARIZONA UTILITY CUTS NET METERING

APS Offers New Solar Plan For Arizona Customers

12 July 2013 (Solar Industry)

“Arizona Public Service Co. (APS) is submitting a plan to the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) that will change the rate protocol for rooftop solar customers… The plan is built around two options. Under the net metering option, future rooftop solar customers would be compensated through the current net metering structure and pay a charge for their use of the grid, based on how much electricity they use…Under the bill credit option, net metering would be replaced by a bill credit given to solar customers for the energy they generate, at a price set by the ACC and based on the market rates APS pays other generators for power…” click here for more

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MIDWESTERN UTILITY WANTS WIND FOR OK, TX, NM

Xcel to Buy 700 Megawatts of NextEra, Infinity Wind Power

Ehren Goossens, July 11, 2013 (Bloomberg News)

“Xcel Energy Inc. (XEL), the biggest U.S. provider of wind power, plans to boost its wind capacity by about 14 percent to reduce fuel costs…Xcel’s Southwestern Public Service unit is asking regulators for permission to buy power from almost 700 megawatts of wind farms in Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico…The deal will save customers $590 million in fuel expenses over 20 years and the wind farms will generate power at costs lower than most of Xcel’s natural gas plants…” click here for more

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PLUG IN VEHICLES AND THE MILITARY

Alternative Drive Vehicles for Military Applications; Hybrid, Plug-In, and Biofuel Vehicles for Tactical and Non-Tactical Military Markets

2Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

“The U.S. military is the largest single consumer of energy and fossil fuels on the planet…To capture the economic, environmental, and strategic benefits offered by alternative fuels, the military is investing heavily in various types of alternative drive vehicles (ADVs), including hybrid electric vehicles (HEVs), plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs), and ethanol-powered vehicles, as well as vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology. Near-term strategies are focused on the adoption of microgrids, ADVs, and V2G technologies within the military’s non-tactical vehicle fleet. Navigant Research forecasts that military spending on ADVs for the non-tactical fleet will increase from over $435 million in 2013 to $926 million by 2020…” click here for more

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500MW WIND PROJECT FOR ARIZONA

Arizona wind farm to produce 500MW, power 175,000 homes

Graham Templeton, July 5, 2013 (Geek)

“…Wind energy exploits,not a natural resource, but a natural feature, and has very few negative side-effects…To generate substantial amounts of power requires significant investment in large scale wind farms — and now BP Wind Energy is doing just that. Nicely out of the way about 40 miles from Kingman in Mojave County, Arizona, this wind farm is set to produce anywhere from 425 to 500 megawatts of power for the area. That’s enough to power 175,000 homes…” click here for more

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GRADING THE STATES FOR SUN

Which US states are hot for solar power (map)?

Rani Molla, July 5, 2013 (GigaOm)

“Solar power technology is proliferating across the U.S. as costs drop and awareness grows…But the political atmosphere for solar power varies greatly state to state…[C]lean energy advocacy group Solar Power Rocks…ranked states based on a methodology that factors in five years’ of data regarding solar incentives, policy, infrastructure and metering, and assigned states a letter grade based on how easy or difficult it is to go solar…” click here for more

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OCEAN ENERGY RISING

Ocean Tidal Energy and Offshore Wind Energy Gaining Energy Department’s Attention

Brian Gabriel, June 28, 2013 (Business Administration Information)

“The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is beginning to show strong support for the emerging field of ocean energy…[which] includes tidal energy, wave energy and offshore wind energy…Energy from the ocean tides and offshore wind could prove to be a substantial source of energy in future years…” click here for more

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MEDIA AND CLIMATE CHANGE

Study: Media Still Largely Fail To Put Wildfires In Climate Context

Max Greenberg, July 3, 2013 (Media Matters)

“…Major television and print media outlets improved over last year in connecting climate change to wildfires in Colorado, New Mexico, California and other Western states, but still generally failed to mention the link. Only 6 percent of total wildfire items mentioned climate change, including 9 percent of major print coverage and 4 percent of TV coverage. In a 2012 study encompassing a similar period, only 3 percent of wildfire coverage mentioned climate change (6 percent of print articles, 2 percent of TV segments). Coverage of July 2012 wildfires improved on those numbers. [Media Matters, 7/3/12] [Media Matters, 8/6/12]…” click here for more

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1,000MW WIND PROJECT FOR NM

New Mexico To Lease Land For 1 GW Wind Farm

July 5, 2013 (North American Windpower)

“The New Mexico State Land Office is seeking lease bids for the El Cabo wind farm, a proposed 1 GW wind energy project that would be built on state trust land…[T]he project would be located on 33,600 acres in Torrance County and built in several phases over the next 10 years…” click here for more

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CHINA-JAPAN SOLAR BOOM TO DRIVE WORLD

Explosive Growth in Japan and China to Drive Annual Solar Photovoltaic Demand Above 35 Gigawatts…Strong risk to solar PV supply-chain at year-end if Japan and China project pipelines fail to materialize

July 2, 2013 (SolarBuzz)

“During the second half of 2013, global solar photovoltaic (PV) demand is forecast to reach 20 gigawatts (GW), up 22% Y/Y. This increase, driven largely by aggressive PV development in China and Japan, will drive full year 2013 PV demand to a record high of 35.1 GW…” click here for more

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THE $10 TRILLION OPPORTUNITY

Climate Change Is the Next $10 Trillion Opportunity

Jigar Shah, July 2, 2013 (Yahoo Finance)

“With a 20% shift in our annual infrastructure spending from 20th century technology to 21st century technology we can drive a new global $10 trillion economy by 2020…That was an undercurrent in a powerful speech President Obama delivered…demanding EPA set new standards for climate change to reverse its effect on our health and the environment. That bold action will help set goals to meet the desire of many to clean the environment…[and will] be an engine for growth for years to come…[But] the president passed on the opportunity to focus on how the United States will compete with Germany and Japan as the largest climate-based wealth creators…” click here for more

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MONEY COMING TO WIND

Banker: Capital for wind projects has 'never been more available' than right now

Andrew Engblom, June 28, 2013 (SNL)

“Many utilities are closing in on their renewable portfolio targets and have relatively little need for new power, but there is ample capital available to finance projects able to get power contracts…Wind and solar finance may have years ago been a niche, but with investors looking for safe and steady returns on capital wind projects — and with relatively few projects moving ahead so far this year — banks and other investors are eager to finance projects…” click here for more

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DEMAND REPSONSE GROWING, BECOMING AUTOMATED

Market Data: Demand Response; Residential, Commercial, and Industrial Demand Response Participation and Sites, Load Curtailment, and Spending: Global and Regional Market Sizing and Forecasts

2Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

“While demand response (DR) can be considered a relatively mature market in the United States, it is just emerging in other regions…The adoption of automated demand response (ADR) looks especially promising, specifically in Asia Pacific, which will most likely leapfrog directly to ADR as the market accelerates. In Europe, the need to integrate intermittent renewables like wind and solar power will drive utilities to implement ADR programs. Navigant Research forecasts that global load curtailment will grow from 55,638 MW in 2013 to 155,479 MW in 2020…” click here for more

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TRUST IN UTILITIES FALLING

Warning: Survey Says Consumers Are Losing Trust In Their Utilities

July 1, 2013 (Renew Grid)

“[J]ust 24% of consumers trust their utility to inform them of actions they can take to optimize energy consumption - a decrease of nine percentage points from 2012…[According to an annual survey by Accenture], this is the lowest level of trust since [the] multi-year global research program was launched four years ago. Furthermore, customer satisfaction has drifted lower globally, falling from 59% to 47% over the past year…” click here for more

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SO CAROLINA REVALS SUN’S NET METERING

South Carolina Considers Lifting Cap On Solar Power

William Pentland, June 29, 2013 (Forbes)

“South Carolina may soon join the ranks of states that have reconsidered the wisdom of imposing restrictive caps on net metering for customer-sited solar power systems…[T]he South Carolina Public Service Commission said it would convene a public workshop to evaluate changes to the 100-kilowatt net metering cap for solar…[which] has prevented customers, including Furman University, from installing more solar power…” click here for more

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NEW MEXICO ADDS NEW ENERGY

PNM plans to add more solar, wind to portfolio

July 1, (Seattle Post Intelligencer)

"New Mexico's largest electricity provider says it has a plan for adding more solar and wind power to its portfolio…[The Public Service Company of New Mexico proposal] must be approved by state regulators…[It] calls for building three solar generating stations in the Albuquerque area and purchasing more electricity from a wind farm in Cibola County…With the proposal, 83 cents would be added to the average residential monthly bill starting in 2014…” click here for more

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AUSTIN, TEXAS, APPROVES 570 MW OF NEW WIND

Austin Energy receives approval to purchase 570 MW of wind power

Bryan Schutt, June 29, 2013 (SNL)

“The Austin City Council…approved three new wind contracts totaling 570 MW, a decision that will push Austin Energy well ahead of its goal to use 35% renewable energy resources by 2020…Even with a short-term wind contract expiring in 2015, the new contracts will bring Austin Energy's total wind portfolio to 1,225 MW. The contracts have terms up to 25 years and fixed pricing between $23/MWh and $33/MWh…[T]he wind farms that will be supplying the electricity are in south Texas, where coastal wind patterns are more closely aligned with peak customer demand…” click here for more

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WORLD’S BIGGEST SOLAR TEST CENTER

A&M’s Killeen campus announces partnership on solar testing facility

Laylan Copelin, June 126, 2013 (Austin American Statesman)

“Texas A&M-Central Texas and a California company, PPA Partners, are announcing a partnership… that officials say will create the world’s largest solar testing site…The Center for Solar Energy will include a 50-megawatt solar farm on 500 acres that will be capable of testing 100 different solar technologies simultaneously under the same conditions. An additional 300 acres is set aside for offices and labs…” click here for more

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BIG MONEY IN HIGH POWER NETWORKS

Direct Current Distribution Networks; Remote and Grid-Tied Systems for Data Center Microgrids, Telecom/Village Power, Commercial Buildings, and Military Applications: Global Market Analysis and Forecasts

2Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

“The market for direct current (DC) distribution networks is not a single, cohesive sector. Rather, it consists of several disparate opportunities…Navigant Research forecasts that, under a conservative forecast scenario, revenue from DC distribution networks will grow from $2.8 billion annually in 2013 to $24.1 billion by 2025…” click here for more

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US INDICTS CHINA WIND CO FOR STEALING AMSC CODES

Sinovel Corporation and Three Individuals Charged in Wisconsin with Theft of Amsc Trade Secrets; Theft of Trade Secrets Allegedly Cheated Amsc of More Than $800 Million

June 27, 2013 (U.S. Department of Justice)

“A manufacturer and exporter of wind turbines based in the People’s Republic of China, two employees of that manufacturer and a former employee of a subsidiary of AMSC, a United States-based company formerly known as American Superconductor Inc., were charged…with stealing trade secrets from AMSC causing an alleged loss of more than $800 million to the company…A federal grand jury in the Western District of Wisconsin returned an indictment charging Sinovel Wind Group Co. Ltd., dba Sinovel Wind Group (USA) Co. Ltd.; Su Liying, 36, the deputy director of Sinovel’s Research and Development Department; Zhao Haichun, 33, a technology manager for Sinovel; and Dejan Karabasevic, 40, a former employee of AMSC Windtec GmbH, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AMSC, with one count each of conspiracy to commit trade secret theft, theft of trade secrets and wire fraud… If convicted, Sinovel faces a maximum penalty on each count of five years of probation and a fine of twice the gross gain or loss, meaning Sinovel would face a fine for each count charged of up to twice the alleged loss of more than $800 million…If convicted, Su, Zhao and Karabasevic each face a maximum penalty of five years in prison on the conspiracy charge, 10 years in prison for theft of a trade secret and 20 years in prison for wire fraud…” click here for more

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A CLOSER LOOK AT FUTURE SOLAR

Harvard Project Crunching Numbers On New Organic PV Materials

Michael Puttre, 27 June 2013 (Solar Inudustry)

“Borrowing a process used to discover new drugs and a networking technique used to search for signs of extraterrestrial intelligence, a team of researchers at Harvard University has published an initial material properties database for organic photovoltaic (OPV) applications…” click here for more

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THE SLOWLY GROWING FUEL CELL VEHICLE MRKT

Fuel Cell Vehicles; Light Duty Vehicles, Transit Buses, and Scooters: Global Market Analysis and Forecasts

2Q 2013 (Navigant Research)

“…The biggest challenge for automakers will be reaching sufficient volume to bring down system and balance of plant costs – which is leading several automakers, including Daimler, to form technology partnerships. The transit bus market also needs high volume to bring down costs. Europe continues to lead on fuel cell bus deployments, but annual orders are still well under 100, and the market needs to reach 1,000 orders annually to see major cost reductions. Finally, the global scooter market is in the millions, and fuel cells continue to be developed in an effort to capture some of that market. Navigant Research forecasts that worldwide sales of FCVs will reach the 1,000 mark in 2015 and then begin a period of strong growth, surpassing 2 million vehicles annually by 2030…” click here for more

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