Europe's largest wind farm, with 140 turbines, operated at less than a quarter of its capacity in 2009.

Researcher says that government subsidies are to blame.

More than half of Britain’s wind farms are operating at less than 25 percent capacity because they’re installed in areas without a continuous breeze, according to an academic study reported by the Daily Mail.

The study was based on official data provided by energy regulator Ofgem.

The worst locations cited in the study were a 9-turbine wind farm at Blyth Harbour in Northumberland, northern England, which managed to reach only 4.9 percent of its capacity, and a 4-turbine operation at Chelker reservoir in North Yorkshire operating at 5.3 percent capacity.

More than $400,000 a year can be earned in subsidies from one turbine operating at 30%.

Europe’s largest wind farm, located near Glasgow, ran at less than 25 percent capacity, according to research of the data from 2009.

The analysis was carried out by Michael Jefferson, a professor of international business and sustainability at the London Metropolitan Business School.

Jefferson placed the blame squarely on government subsidies, which he says encourage firms to site their operations badly because of their rush to take advantage of financial incentives. British consumers currently pay an extra £1 billion ($1.56 billion) per year on their fuel bills in order to subsidize the government’s push toward it’s renewable energy goals.

“There is a political motivation to drive non-fossil fuel energy, which I very much respect, but we need more focus,” Jefferson said. He suggests that stimulus funds should be reserved only for the windiest of projects in order to ensure that taxpayers are getting the most bang for their buck.

Operations that fall below 25 per cent should be deemed ineligible for renewable subsidies. “That would focus the mind to put them in a sensible place,” he said.

Britain has 2,906 wind turbines spread over 264 sites with a further 7,000 turbines planned for the next 12 years.

Jefferson has written extensively on energy policy, including contributions to various UN bodies. He was the Deputy Secretary-General of the World Energy Council for 10 years, where his work with the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change led to a certificate for his contributions to their award of a Nobel prize.

As election season heats up, Obama took on Republicans who he says would rather “stand on the sidelines” than do what’s necessary to create jobs.

President Barack Obama tours the ZBB Manufacturing Facility in Menomonee Falls, Wis., and is shown the battery making process by ZBB President and CEO Eric Apfelback, left, and ZBB employee Lonnie Mages, August 16, 2010. (White House Photo/Chuck Kennedy)

While visiting a Wisconsin battery plant that he touted as the future of renewable energy in America, US President Barack Obama predicted that his administration’s clean energy policies will create 800,000 jobs in the next two years.

The President also harshly criticized political opponents who blocked some of his administration’s policies in Congress.

“There are folks in Washington right now who think we should abandon our efforts to support clean energy,” Obama told the crowd at ZBB Energy Corporation’s manufacturing facility. “They’ve made the political calculation that it’s better to stand on the sidelines than work as a team to help American businesses and American workers.”

Obama toured ZBB Energy Corporation’s manufacturing facility, which received $1.3 million in Recovery Act State Energy Program loans in order to fund a $4.5 million factory renovation to triple their capacity to manufacture flow batteries and power systems.

President Barack Obama speaks to workers following a tour at ZBB Energy Corporation in Menomonee Falls, Wis. ZBB is a leader in the design and manufacture of advanced energy-storage products. August 16, 2010. (White House Photo/Chuck Kennedy)

“We expect our commitment to clean energy to lead to more than 800,000 jobs by 2012,” Obama declared. “And that’s not just creating work in the short term, that’s going to help lay the foundation for lasting economic growth.”

The advanced zinc bromide flow batteries and intelligent control platforms manufactured by ZBB, are crucial components to building a smart energy grid and expanding the commercialization of electric vehicles. They allow users to cut costs by shifting energy use to off-peak hours and bank intermittent sources of energy like the sun and wind for future use.

Obama highlighted the major advances America has made in battery technology in just a few short years. “I just want everybody to understand –just a few years ago, American businesses could only make 2 percent of the world’s advanced batteries for hybrid and electric vehicles — 2 percent.  In just a few years, we’ll have up to 40 percent of the world’s capacity.”

"Solar Energy is Now the Better Buy" after reaching a "Historic Crossover" according to a new study.

The costs for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems have fallen steadily while construction costs for new nuclear power plants have been rising over the past decade, which now makes electricity generated from new solar installations cheaper than electricity from proposed new nuclear power plants, according to a new report published by a retired Duke University professor.

Moreover, the report continues, solar costs are projected to continue its decline over the coming decade while nuclear costs are expected to rise further.

The report, “Solar and Nuclear Costs — The Historic Crossover: Solar Energy is Now the Better Buy,” was compiled by John O. Blackburn, Professor Emeritus of Economics and former Chancellor of Duke University, along with a student, Sam Cunningham.

Electricity generated from solar PV is now being sold by commercial developers to the utility companies at 14 cents or less per kilowatt-hour (kWh), while nuclear plants in the planning stages will be incapable of offering electricity cheaper than 14-to-18 cents per kWh, according to the report.

“The delivered price to customers would be somewhat higher for both sources,” the study notes.

Solar photovoltaic resource potential. (CLICK TO ENLARGE)

Cost estimates for new nuclear plants have risen dramatically since the much-heralded “nuclear renaissance” began during the past decade, says Blackburn. “Projects first announced with costs in the $2 billion range per reactor have seen several revisions as detailed planning proceeds and numerous design and engineering problems have emerged. The latest price estimates are in the $10 billion range per reactor.”

But Rod Adams, author of the Atomic Insights Blog, rejected the report and criticized the basis of the study, saying that the report’s nuclear cost projections rely on a paper written by a lone researcher with unclear qualifications. Mark Cooper’s “brief biography states that he has a ‘PhD from Yale’ but it does not specify his field of study. It indicates he is an ‘acivist/advocate’ with a rather wide range of interest areas including telecommunications regulations and energy consumer issues,” he writes. Adams also listed a number of papers on the subject which he says were ignored by Blackburn’s report.

“For many years the U.S. nuclear power industry has been allowed to argue that ‘there is no alternative’ to building new nuclear plants,” Blackburn’s report concludes. “This is just not true.”

GE is offering a $200 million dare to startup entrepreneurs, technology pros and other innovative thinkers: Find a way to “reinvent how energy is produced, distributed and consumed.”

That’s how Paul Koontz, a general partner with Foundation Capital, describes GE ecomagination’s new $200 million “Powering the Grid” challenge.

“Global power grids make up the largest networks in the world,” said Koontz, whose company is one of several partnering with GE on the challenge. “In most cases, the technology on which they are based is essentially 100 years old.”

That’s not good enough for 21st century society, according to GE. So the company is looking for the most innovative ideas it can find in three energy areas: grid efficiency, renewable energy and eco homes/eco buildings. The most promising entrants will get a chance to receive financial, technical and business support from GE and its challenge partners to help develop their ideas and bring them to the global market.

In addition to Foundation Capital, other companies investing in the GE ecomagination challege include Emerald Technology Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and RockPort Capital.

“This challenge is about collaboration and we are inviting others to help accelerate progress in creating a cleaner, more efficient and economically viable grid,” said Jeff Immelt, GE’s chairman and CEO. “We want to jump-start new ideas and deploy them on a scale that will modernise the electrical grid around the world.”

The challenge is open to any legal entity or individual aged 18 and up. Entries will be accepted over the next 10 weeks. In addition to entrants selected to work with GE on bringing their ideas to market, five entrants will be chosen as $100,000 innovation challenge award winners.

The GE ecomagination initiative is aimed at helping the world achieve a modern energy infrastructure that’s both efficient and “smart,” enabling two-way communications, automation and less energy waste across the grid.

“The electric power grid is the central nervous system of the global economy,” said Chuck McDermott, a general partner with RockPort Capital. “Though today’s grid is a 20th century engineering marvel, the smart grid of tomorrow promises to revolutionise how we manage our homes, offices and factories and to maximise the use of next-generation clean energy resources.”

Reproduced with permission from Greenbang.

Abengoa Solar plans to build the largest concentrating solar plants in the world in Arizona.

Two solar energy companies are looking to expand with the help of nearly $2 billion in new financing through the US Recovery Act, President Barack Obama announced over the weekend.

During his weekly address, Obama said the Department of Energy would provide $1.45 billion in conditional commitment funds to Abengoa Solar, as well as additional funding to Abound Solar Manufacturing for three massive construction projects.

Abengoa Solar plans to build the largest concentrating solar plants in the world in Arizona. When completed, the 250-megawatt facility known as Solana is expected to provide enough clean energy to power 70,000 homes.

“After years of watching companies build things and create jobs overseas, it’s good news that we’ve attracted a company to our shores to build a plant and create jobs right here in America,” Obama said of Abengoa. “In the short term, construction will create approximately 1,600 jobs in Arizona. What’s more, over 70 per cent of the components and products used in construction will be manufactured in the USA, boosting jobs and communities in states up and down the supply chain. Once completed, this plant will be the first large-scale solar plant in the US to actually store the energy it generates for later use — even at night.”

The Solana project will be able to store up to six hours of energy by using molten salt. The strategy will allow the facility to provide power even during cloudy weather and after sunset, enabling it to help meet the summer peak demand.

Meanwhile, Obama continued, Abound Solar “will manufacture advanced solar panels at two new plants, creating more than 2,000 construction jobs and 1,500 permanent jobs. A Colorado plant is already underway, and an Indiana plant will be built in what’s now an empty Chrysler factory. When fully operational, these plants will produce millions of state-of-the-art solar panels each year.”

While acknowledging the severe economic conditions facing many citizens, Obama said such projects can gradually help replace many of the jobs that have been lost in this recession.

“These are just two of the many clean energy investments in the Recovery Act,” he said. “Already, I’ve seen the payoff from these investments. I’ve seen once-shuttered factories humming with new workers who are building solar panels and wind turbines; rolling up their sleeves to help America win the race for the clean energy economy.”

Reproduced with permission from Greenbang.

Nearly eight in 10 US consumers — 79 per cent — say in a new survey that they’re ready to make short-term changes in their energy use habits to gain longer-term benefits.

Commissioned by GE, the national survey found that 72 per cent believe that, left unchanged, today’s energy sources and consumption habits could hurt the country’s economic growth. And 63 per cent said they’re willing to work with their power companies to help bring about changes in consumption patterns.

The vast majority of those polled — 88 per cent — said they are willing to use devices like smart meters if they could help better manage their energy use. Of this group, 82 per cent say they believe smart meters and smart appliances are vital technologies for the future.

Smart-grid technology is designed to make it easier for power companies to manage energy demand, incorporate more renewable sources and reduce power outages. It’s also aimed at helping consumers better understand and manage their energy consumption patterns and take advantage of off-peak times when energy costs might be lower.

According to GE, the survey findings indicate that people in the US are ready to see changes in the nation’s energy landscape.

“There are some things that are essential to achieving a desired quality of life, and Americans overwhelmingly agree that investing in our nation’s energy future is one of them,” said Bob Gilligan, vice president of digital energy for GE Energy Services. “The American electrical grid system has undergone little investment in the past 25 years. Even worse, most generation stations were built in the 1960s or earlier using even older technology. As a nation, Americans recognize that a cleaner, smarter and more efficient energy infrastructure will help create a competitive economic future. The key is to invest correctly — the right way rather than the easy way.”

Of those questioned in the GE survey, 70 per cent said they would rather see their power companies spend money to make existing infrastructure more efficient than invest in new power-generating plants. They also believe such improvements offer the potential for economic growth.

Respondents expressed support for smarter appliances, meters and grids for the following reasons:

• Desire to save money (95 per cent)
• Increased control over energy bills (90 per cent)
• Desire to make a difference for children or grandchildren (88 per cent)
• Help to reduce the number of power outages (86 per cent)
• Environmental concerns (85 per cent)

“Consumers are ready to think differently about how they use energy,” Gilligan said. “For those consumers that do not currently embrace smart grid technologies, more than a quarter of them (27 per cent) admit that they don’t understand the benefits of smart meters or smart grids. Therefore, it is important that continued consumer-friendly education is provided to address this gap in understanding.”

Reproduced with permission from Greenbang.

A new data center designed and built by UK-based Keysource is proving to be one of the most energy-efficient facilities of its kind in Europe.

There’s also a certain irony in that achievement, as the data center was built for an oil exploration surveyor, Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS).

The new data center in Weybridge, Surrey, has achieved an annualized power usage effectiveness (PUE) of just 1.17, rivaling some of the best results achieved by industry leaders like Google. PUE measures how much of total power consumption goes into actually running servers, as opposed to providing cooling and other non-computing functions. The average data center has a PUE of around 2.5.

The high efficiency of PGS’s data center helped provide a first-year energy cost savings of £650,000, as well as a power consumption savings of 6.7 million kilowatt-hours. That equates to a 2.9 million kilogram reduction in CO2 emissions.

“We went back to the drawing board to develop a data center of the future that was energy efficient, cost effective and supported today’s high-density hardware,” said Mike West, managing director of Keysource.

The data center uses Keysource’s Ecofris cooling system, which doesn’t require the use of additional chillers until outside temperatures reach 24 degrees C. This means that additional power for cooling is only needed for between 80 and 100 hours each year because the system is able to make the most of low UK ambient temperatures in combination with adiabatic cooling.

PGS was the first organization to adopt the Ecofris solution with the completion of the first phase of its data center installation last year. Keysource said its fine-tuning process and advanced performance monitoring helped reach the annualized PUE of 1.17, outperforming the design expectation of 1.2. A second phase of development, set to start later this year, aims to increase the IT load to 1.8 megawatts without affecting levels of efficiency.

“We are committed to reducing energy, so we needed to develop a data center that broke the mold using proven technology to provide a safe, efficient and environmentally responsible means of storing vital data,” said Mike Turff, global data center manager at PGS.

The new data centre has received a number of awards since it began operations, including a Data Centre Leaders Award, Information Age Award and UK IT Industry Award.

Reproduced with permission from Greenbang.

In the previous essay, I discussed some of the challenges that next-generation biofuels face according to a recently released USDA report:

Next-Generation Biofuels: Near-Term Challenges and Implications for Agriculture

Here are five positive notes from the report:

1. Renewable Diesel Plant Capacity

“Next-generation U.S. biofuel capacity should reach about 88 million gallons in 2010…” This is primarily a result of the expected start-up of a next-generation renewable diesel plant. I have reported on this technology before, as well as the efforts of first-generation biodiesel producers to slow it down and protect their own interests. My guess is that unlike the ConocoPhillips project that was killed after Congress voted to deny them the full tax credit, this project will receive the same tax credit as a conventional biodiesel producer. On a level playing field, I believe the hydrocracking approach is superior to first generation biodiesel, but our political leaders will need to stop playing games with the tax credits in order for next generation diesel to realize its potential. (For a complete explanation of the different kinds of renewable diesel, see my Renewable Diesel Primer).

2. Competitive Race

Companies are taking a number of different approaches to coming up with next-generation solutions, increasing the chances that a dark horse will arise as a contender: “There are about 30 next-generation companies in the United States developing biochemical, thermochemical, and other approaches, and experimenting with a variety of feedstocks, some of which are directly linked to agriculture..”

3. Open for Business

The first next-generation plants are expected to come online in 2010: “Range Fuels and Dynamic Fuels are expected to complete the first commercial next-generation biofuel plants in 2010.” I have certainly given Range Fuels a hard time over their public statements – especially in light of recent reports which this USDA report also flagged: “According to the EPA, however, the plant’s initial capacity has been reduced from 10 million to 4 million gallons per year and initial output will be methanol.” However, readers should not mistake my position as hoping that they fail. To the contrary, I hope they succeed, because we are going to need a lot of successes. I am just skeptical that they will achieve commercial (unsubsidized) success, and unhappy that they sucked up a lot of taxpayer funds based on their initial promises that clearly did not materialize.

I would further note, however, that Range Fuels and Dynamic Fuels may be the first U.S. plants that could be classified as next-generation commercial plants (although as I have pointed out, we had commercial cellulosic ethanol plants in the U.S. by 1920), but such plants do already exist overseas. Neste Oil, in fact, has built several plants based on the same sort of technology that Dynamic Fuels is employing. There are also other overseas companies doing gasification (the Range approach) that are further along than Range is.

4. Algae Research

Just as there are many different approaches to next-generation fuels, there are many companies taking many different approaches to producing fuel from algae: “More than 30 U.S. companies currently are experimenting with different approaches to producing algae-based fuels.” Some of these approaches are unconventional: “Although the majority of algae-to-biofuel companies are focusing on producing algae oil for traditional biodiesel production, some companies are using algae to produce ethanol (Algenol), or petroleum-equivalent fuels (UOP and Sapphire).” The challenge of course will be to drastically reduce production costs, but the potential is too great to ignore.

5. Production Costs Decrease

Both production and capital costs for cellulosic ethanol are falling. The report noted “POET recently reported it had lowered production costs for cellulosic ethanol, including capital expenses, from $4.13 to $2.35 per gallon in a year as of November 2009 at its South Dakota pilot plant.” The report further notes that estimates for a 100 million gallon cellulosic ethanol facility have fallen from the $650 million to $900 million range (2004 estimate) to $320 million (2009 estimate). However, the report notes that these estimates should still be considered speculative, since “there are no actual cost data for commercial operations since none are yet operational.”

As a body of work, I highly recommend you read the USDA report if you are interested in the status of next generation biofuel facilities. It is a sober, objective assessment of the challenges and opportunities that lie ahead as next generation fuel technologies continue to develop.

A landmark solar power bill pending in the New York State legislature would create thousands of green jobs and billions of dollars in economic output for the state, according to a new report released today by Vote Solar with contributing support from NRDC. It will create 22,000 new jobs and more than $20 billion in new economic activity by 2025 for less than the cost of one postage stamp (39 cents) on an average residential electricity bill.

A coalition of organizations – including Vote Solar, the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Solar Alliance, the Apollo Alliance, and the Alliance for Clean Energy New York – urged state legislators to pass the Solar Industry Development and Jobs Act and make New York a leader in the nation’s growing solar economy.

This comprehensive bill sets firm goals, lays out the necessary framework to attract solar investment, and ensures development of diverse market segments, from small residential installations to large utility-scale solar farms. The structure is based on successful models in other states, yet allows for the flexibility necessary to fit New York’s regulatory structure. The combination of long-term market certainty and competitive pressures means that it will enable the most solar development at the least cost to the ratepayer. The New York Solar Industry Development and Jobs Act is a fair roadmap for jumpstarting a real solar future for the Empire State.  For a more detailed description of the Solar Program please go here.

States leading the way in the solar industry, such as California, New Jersey and Colorado (see comparison chart below), have recognized the strategic importance and lasting benefits of solar development for their state economies — helping to bolster private investment and industry growth, enhance electric system reliability, lower transmission and distribution costs, increase energy security and improve local and regional air quality while lowering greenhouse gases.

Data Source: SEIA 2010

In the ever expanding clean energy economy, this bill will help make New York become an industry leader in solar power.

Under the blazing sun in Dubai, the newly expanded offices of one business are keeping cool with an environmentally friendly technology powered by … the heat of the sun.

Dubai’s first solar cooling plant is providing air-conditioned comfort in the offices of ESAB, a global supplier of welding products. The technology, developed in Scandinavia, uses a salt- and water-based heat pump powered by the sun to keep temperatures in the building cool even when it’s scorching outside. The system also gets a boost from the new building’s use of energy-storing concrete.

The innovative system was installed by Scandinavian Cooling/Kylsystem and Paxkent in collaboration with ClimateWell and Kingspan Renewables.

“We have cut the peak power needed in half by using the building as an energy storage and we have cut energy consumption in half by using solar cooling by ClimateWell,” said Lars Olof Johansson of Scandinavian Cooling/Kylsystem. “The result is the best indoor climate installation that we have ever done in our more than 30 years as indoor climate solution experts.”

Johansson added that the system “opens a new world of possibilities in countries with a good solar irradiation.”

“This is a stepping stone towards massive global growth for Solar Cooling,” said Gerard Whelan, managing director of Kingspan Renewables.

At the heart of ClimateWell’s chemical heat pump are two separate chambers: one containing hygroscopic (water-absorbing) salts, the other containing water. The two chambers are connected to take advantage of the fact that, when the water chamber is in a vacuum, the water will begin to boil to produce vapour as the salt absorbs moisture. That evaporation cools the water chamber, and coils of circulating water around that chamber are cooled in turn and can be used to cool the air.

ClimateWell claims the so-called 3-phase system provide excellent energy storage capabilities along with both high charge and discharge power. The technology, it says, can be used efficiently to deliver cooling and heating 24/7.

Said Johan Larsson of ClimateWell, “Whatever is cool in Dubai is cool anywhere.”

Reproduced with permission from Greenbang.