Bill O'Reilly took on both Obamacare and global warming Monday night, saying that the former could very well turn out to be a "chaotic disaster" and if it does, it will reflect how President Obama is viewed after he leaves office.
Hedge the bet on energy The Hill The U.S. Energy Department's recent announcement of the construction of a $14 billion nuclear power plant in Augusta, Ga. — the first one to be built in the United States in nearly 30 years — is welcome news. But it's not enough to reverse the ... |
PennEnergy | Duke Energy sues Westinghouse for $54 million Charlotte Observer Duke Energy says Westinghouse Electric owes it $54 million after Duke canceled a contract for the Levy County nuclear plant in Florida. Westinghouse was to provide two AP1000 nuclear plants for the site, which Duke put on indefinite hold last year. Duke Energy sues over cost of Levy County nuclear project Duke Energy files multimillion-dollar 'who owes who' suit over canceled ... Duke Energy Florida to sell unused nuclear fuel assemblies from retired ... |
With so many names to choose from among solar companies, investors may find it difficult to choose one.
Britain has awarded a 14-year, £7bn contract to manage the decommissioning of its nuclear sites to engineering contractors Babcock and US group Fluor. The deal covers some of Britain's oldest nuclear power sites, including Hinkley, Sizewell and Dungeness, and is one of the largest contracts the country has put out to tender.
Britain's Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) said the contract should save at least £1bn from the previous contract, handled by EnergySolutions for the past 14 years.
Dallas Morning News (blog) | UPDATE 1-Energy Future extends restructuring talks Reuters It is not the first time Energy Future has delayed a bankruptcy filing. Last October, many investors believed the company would miss an interest payment and file for bankruptcy, but the company made the $270 million payment and extended the timeframe ... Energy Future Holdings Seeks More Time for Restructuring Deal Energy Future Extends Annual Report Deadline as Bankruptcy Nears EFH files for SEC extension, delays interest payment as bankruptcy ... |
WDBJ7 | Duke Energy to begin cleanup in Danville this week WDBJ7 State lawmakers say they hear the frustration of people in southern Virginia, following the coal ash spill in the Dan River last month. On Thursday delegates and senators who represent that region questioned state officials on the long-term effects ... Rice County in discussions with Geronimo Energy for local solar power site State Briefs: Duke Energy to begin cleanup in Danville |
Enel Green Power to spend $287 mln on hydroelectric plant in Brazil Reuters Africa MILAN, March 31 (Reuters) - Italy's biggest renewable energy company Enel Green Power said on Monday it had started work on a new hydroelectric plant in Brazil. In a statement the company, controlled by Italian utility Enel, said the plant would cost ... Enel breaks sweat in Brazil |
eTurboNews | Kenya gets more green electricity eTurboNews Kenya will progressively get another 280 MW to feed the electricity starved country, as the latest of the geo thermal plants at Olkaria, located at the foot of Mt. Longonot in the Great African Rift Valley, started coming on line over the weekend. An ... |
Stop 'Emotional Vampires' From Draining Your Time, Energy CBS Local If you this sounds familiar then you may be dealing with an “emotional vampire.” “An 'emotional vampire' is a term that we use for people who suck the energy out of us. It's often a person who is really, really needy. They want everything from us all ... |
New figured published by the UK Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) have shown that renewable energy is becoming more and more a player in the wider scope of national energy production, with wind energy generation up 40% and coal and gas production and generation both decreasing over the 2013 period when compared to
Wind Energy Generation Increases As Coal And Gas Decrease was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
Originally published on Renewables International. By Craig Morris Did you know that Socrates gave lectures on solar architecture? But no, he’s not the one who invented it – that honor goes back at least to the Chinese, according to the update of John Perlin’s classic from the 1970s entitled “A Golden Thread.” The new version,
The History Of Solar was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
A proposed $250 million distributed solar project appears to have held its own in a Minnesota regulatory process that put it in competition with three natural gas options.
The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission on Thursday ordered Xcel Energy to pursue a power-purchase agreement with a Twin Cities solar developer to meet part of its projected generation shortfall later this decade.
Geronimo Energy’s 100 megawatt solar proposal will be paired with one or more natural gas projects, to be determined later, to provide up to 500 megawatts of new generation Xcel expects to need by 2019.
The agreements would be subject to further review by the PUC.
“It’s a big win for us,” said Betsy Engelking, a vice president at Geronimo Energy. “We participated in an RFP against natural gas and we were selected.”
The decision is also being touted as a landmark victory for solar, one that validates advocates’ claims that solar can be cost-competitive with fossil fuels in certain situations.
That position was bolstered in December when a judge who reviewed the competing bids concluded the most “reasonable and prudent” option was to include Geronimo’s solar project.
“Notwithstanding the statutory preference, it seemed that nonrenewable energy sources always won the head-to-head cost comparisons. Not anymore,” Judge Eric Lipman wrote.
Geronimo’s plan calls for building about 20 solar arrays adjacent to Xcel substations, where they can help meet demand on hot summer days without adding to transmission congestion.
Other bids submitted as part of the process included three separate natural gas proposals and an offer by Great River Energy to sell Xcel surplus capacity from its system.
The PUC disagreed with portions of the judge’s report, but ultimately agreed with his conclusion: that including the solar project is in the best interest of ratepayers.
“I would argue that we have the evidence in front of us to say the solar bid is in the public interest,” said Commissioner Nancy Lange, who made the motion to advance the project.
The commission unanimously approved the motion, but not before raising several questions about reliability and whether the solar installations would produce power when customers need it.
“I can’t tell you that these aren’t just paranoid concerns, but I really want to be sure when we hit system peak that we’re going to have a resource that’s going to deliver,” Commissioner David Boyd said.
Xcel Energy isn’t confident that will be the case with solar.
“[Solar] has a little more predictable pattern to it than wind power, but just like wind power it is a variable resource. I can’t count on it being there at peak,” said Jim Alders, Xcel’s director of regulatory strategy.
The Midwest’s regional transmission grid operator, MISO, requires utilities to maintain enough capacity to meet their peak demand, plus a reserve margin. From the Geronimo project, Xcel would get to count 72 megawatts toward the MISO requirement.
Kevin Reuther, legal director for the Minnesota Center for Environmental Advocacy, said the project will provide an opportunity to learn how well solar in Minnesota matches up with the hours when electricity demand is highest.
“To be honest, there’s still plenty to learn with how solar is going to perform, but in terms of system reliability, it’s not an issue. Xcel has a lot of capacity and a lot of redundancy built into the system,” Reuther said.
Reuther represented several environmental groups supporting Geronimo in the case (including Fresh Energy, a member of RE-AMP, which publishes Midwest Energy News).
John Farrell, a distributed solar expert with the Institute for Local Self-Reliance, said nationally he’s not aware of another case, certainly outside California, in which a solar bid has come out ahead of natural gas in a head-to-head competition.
“It’s really quite monumental that it’s happened in Minnesota,” Farrell said.
The next step is for Xcel and Geronimo to negotiate a power-purchase agreement for the solar project, which will be subject to approval by the PUC.
***
Editor's note: This article is reposted from Midwest Energy News. Author credit goes to Dan Haugen.
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Offshore wind has been given a boost with news of investment worth more than A 460 million in two projects aimed at generating power for hundreds of thousands of homes.
I'm 100% LED now - even my fridge light is LED. You don't need to go that far - I'm a little obsessed! It has taken me a couple of years of learning to get it right.
The first 3-D nanoscale observations of the structural changes that occur in the anode of a lithium-ion battery during operation (discharging and recharging) were recently achieved by researchers at the US Department of Energy’s Brookhaven National Laboratory. This achievement is expected to lead to a much greater understanding of such processes, and, as a result,
First 3-D Nanoscale Observations Of Structural Changes In Rechargeable Battery Material During Operation was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
Originally published on Gas2. By Zachary Coffey What do Canadian craft brews, classic American cars, and green energy have in common? Steam Whistle Brewing, a Toronto, Canada-based craft brewery that is an exemplary model of the green revolution infiltrating the brewing industry, combining our love of cool cars, green technology, and good beer into a
Steam Whistle Brewing — Combination Of Classic Cars and Green Energy was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
The Department of Energy and Climate Change appears to be in the difficult position of being committed to two potentially conflicting strands of policy development. On the one hand it is producing a new strategy to address fuel poverty (its predecessor having conspicuously failed, with fuel-poor households at a historic high), while at the same time it is consulting on proposals to lower energy bills by reducing the surcharges "green taxes" that fund fuel-poverty work.
Energy secretary Ed Davey launched a consultation in March with an upbeat speech on the future of the energy company obligation (ECO), the levy on energy suppliers that supports energy efficiency improvements. Extending its reach to 2017, he rightly said that "the obligations under ECO that meet the needs of the fuel poor cannot be compromised".
Wind, wave and tidal energy projects are projected to create up to 3500 jobs in the area by 2030, but they are dependent on a new transmission interconnector cable to carry the extra power.
CNBC.com | Risky business: protecting US energy supplies CNBC.com The energy industry's search for new sources of power will come to nothing if its delivery systems are vulnerable to attack and disruption. Cyberattacks are eclipsing terrorism as the primary threat facing the United States. In fact, penetrations of ... |
A high-energy biofuel — potentially capable of replacing or supplementing expensive missile fuels, such as JP10 — has been created via the use of a genetically engineered bacterium by researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology and the Joint BioEnergy Institute. For those wondering, the hydrocarbon in question, pinene, is actually exactly what it sounds
High-Energy Biofuel For Rockets, Missiles, And Other Aerospace Applications, Via Engineered Bacteria was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
Record Natural-Gas Need Keeps Bulls Betting on Advances: Energy Bloomberg Gas inventories dropped by 2.92 trillion cubic feet from the end of October to 896 billion cubic feet on March 21, making it the fastest pace of withdrawals for any U.S. heating season in data going back to 1995, according to the U.S. Energy ... |
A new "standby" fee proposed by Central Maine Power Co. would penalize Maine colleges and universities - including the 10 member institutions of the Maine Independent Colleges Association - and effectively create a significant disincentive for our pursuit of the economic, environmental and educational benefits associated with onsite generation of ... (more)
Herald Scotland | Doubt over isles green power cable must end Herald Scotland The central problem is that SSE and its subsidiary Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission, which is responsible for maintaining and investing in the transmission network in the north of Scotland, must get permission from Ofgem to spend the £750 million ... The heat is on as energy clash looms |
Six years ago, Elon Musk was on the verge of losing most of his fortune.
His rocket venture, SpaceX, had already experienced three failed launches. Meanwhile, Tesla was losing money fast -- and it was almost impossible to convince investors to pour money into an electric vehicle startup during the 2008 financial crisis. Musk was one setback away from becoming broke.
"I remember waking up the Sunday before Christmas in 2008, and thinking to myself, 'Man, I never thought I was someone who could ever be capable of a nervous breakdown,' but I felt, 'This is the closest I've ever come.' 'Cause it-- it seemed pretty-- pretty dark," said Musk, speaking to 60 Minutes reporter Scott Pelley.
Musk appeared on 60 Minutes Sunday evening to talk about his experience building two ambitious startups simultaneously. Although he is now held up as a model for entrepreneurial disruption, Musk admitted that his ventures could have easily turned into spectacular failures.
"I didn’t really think Tesla was going to be successful, I thought we would most likely fail," he said. "But I thought that we’d at least address the false perception that people had that an electric car had to be ugly and slow and boring like a golf cart."
Musk also talked about the role of government support in keeping Tesla afloat. He credited the Department of Energy's $465 million loan guarantee with helping the company scale production. But he said it was a 2009 investment from Daimler that provided Tesla critical life support.
"There was an investment that was necessary to survive, but it wasn’t actually the federal loan. The federal loan was very helpful, but the loan that was critical to our survival was the investment from Daimler, maker of Mercedes, in May of 2009. And they were the only ones, there was no other company – no other industry of any kind which we could get investments. So what the government loan did was accelerate our progress, but it did not save Tesla," Musk explained.
Watch the full 60 Minutes story on Musk's entrepreneurial saga below. You can also read Eric Wesoff's latest on Tesla's plans for a giga battery factory here.
The Institute for Policy Innovation released a report Friday that may not be good news for every American fixated on alternative energy sources.
Originally published on the ECOreport. SolarCity spokesperson Will Craven said that about 500 of their California customers have agreed to install batteries for power storage, but the state’s three biggest utilities have only connected 12 since 2011. He decided to go to the press after Southern California Edison (SCE) said they were going to charge
Solar Storage Scandal In California (In Depth) was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
German regions resist green energy reforms Reuters Germany's shift to green energy and away from nuclear power and fossil fuels is one of Merkel's flagship policies but the cost of ballooning subsidies is threatening to undermine it. The reform is aimed at scaling back incentives. Christine ... |
Guardian Liberty Voice | Reducing Energy With the Help of Technology Guardian Liberty Voice Reducing energy to save electricity today has been one of the main concerns in the world. People use electricity without paying attention to its importance. The use of too much electricity creates negative impacts as well as it will destroy a big part ... |
Regional politicians in Germany threatened on Sunday to block the government's long-awaited planned reform of its subsidies for renewable energy, piling pressure on Energy Minister Sigmar Gabriel as he finalises a draft law.
LIVING GREEN: Power to the pedal Newcastle Herald A pedelec assists a rider's pedalling via a small electric motor that cuts in whenever they are pedalling. Quality pedelecs vary the assistance level from the motor depending on the terrain, such as providing more power when riding up hills. In modern ... |
Scientist behind the Gaia hypothesis says environment movement does not pay enough attention to facts and he was too certain in the past about rising temperatures
Environmentalism has "become a religion" and does not pay enough attention to facts, according to James Lovelock.
The 94 year-old scientist, famous for his Gaia hypothesis that Earth is a self-regulating, single organism, also said that he had been too certain about the rate of global warming in his past book, that "its just as silly to be a [climate] denier as it is to be a believer and that fracking and nuclear power should power the UK, not renewable sources such as windfarms.
James Lovelock lives with his wife, Sandy, in an old coastguard's cottage less than 100 metres from Chesil beach in Dorset. To reach it, you have to drive along a rough, mile-long road, which in stretches has collapsed because of the winter storms that pounded the shingle spit. You must have had a devastating winter, I say when I eventually find the cottage. Not devastating, he insists, despite having been cut off by floods for four days, fascinating. Which sums up Jim Lovelock perfectly. The inventor/scientist/environmentalist is captivated by and curious about everything, which is why at 94 he radiates joie de vivre. He is the youngest 94-year-old you could ever hope to meet.
His new book, A Rough Ride to the Future, is part memoir of his long life in science and part prediction of whether humankind can survive. I had intended to ask him whether it was a final testament, but the question dies in my throat. He so obviously doesn't plan his life that way. He has mastered the art of getting old by not giving it a moment's thought.
3 Energy Companies That Can't Wait to Drill in the Arctic Motley Fool The Arctic's hydrocarbon potential is vast. Though the region represents only about 6% of the world's surface area, it could contain roughly a fifth of undiscovered global hydrocarbon reserves. According to estimates by the U.S. Geological Survey, the ... |
RedOrbit | Biofuel Alternative For High-Energy Rocket Fuel Produced From Engineered ... RedOrbit “We have made a sustainable precursor to a tactical fuel with a high energy density,” said Peralta-Yahya, an assistant professor in the School of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the School of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Georgia Tech. “We ... |
Democrats are pushing to pass a package of bills designed to increase the state's production of energy from solar power, wind and renewable fuels.
Originally published on Lenz Blog. It is of course correct that eventually all energy will be renewable, and the only question is how fast that happens. Fossil fuel will run out eventually. It is also correct (in my opinion) that we should rather not gamble with the amount of CO2 that can be safely released.
Elon Musk On 100% Renewable Energy, Solar Energy Potential, Li-ion Battery Components… was originally published on CleanTechnica. To read more from CleanTechnica, join over 50,000 other subscribers: Google+ | Email | Facebook | RSS | Twitter.
