And IBM announced that DOE's Argonne National Lab will use its next-generation Blue Gene supercomputer to enable significant advances in areas such as designing ultra-efficient electric car batteries. A 10-petaflop IBM Blue Gene/Q supercomputer named "Mira" will be operational in 2012 and made available to scientists from industry, academia and government research facilities around the world.
On November 30, 2010, DOE announced the largest ever awards of its supercomputing time on two computers, including the Jaguar, to 57 innovative research projects that are using computer simulations to perform experiments in areas including biofuels and climate change. See the IBM press release and the supercomputing news in EERE Network News.
Loan Guarantee for New Transmission Project in Southwest
DOE finalized its first loan guarantee for a transmission project. The $343 million loan guarantee, supported by the Recovery Act, will support development of the One Nevada Transmission Line (ON Line), which will help integrate existing transmission systems in northern and southern Nevada.
The ON Line project consists of a new 500-kilovolt 235 mile long transmission line that will carry 600 MG of electricity from Ely, Nevada to just north of Las Vegas. This is the first phase of the Southwest Intertie Project which, when finished, will carry 2,000 MG of electricity, enabling wind and solar resources in Wyoming, Idaho, and Nevada to power the southwest and California markets.
DOE's Loan Programs Office has issued loan guarantees or offered conditional commitments for loan guarantees totaling over $17.5 billion to support 18 clean energy projects. See the DOE press release and the Loan Programs Office website.
BOEMRE Preparing Assessment for Offshore Wind in Mid-Atlantic
Public comment for use in the environmental assessment (EA) of Mid-Atlantic offshore wind development is being accepted through March 11, says the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Regulation and Enforcement (BOEMRE).
The EA will analyze the impacts of leasing as well as associated site characterization surveys and assessments for the areas identified for priority commercial wind development.
Analyses will be initiated for designated "wind energy areas" off the coasts of Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and Virginia. On February 7, DOE and the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), which oversees BOEMRE, announced coordinated efforts to speed development of U.S. offshore wind energy resources.
The EA is part of DOI's "Smart from the Start" renewable energy initiative that facilitates environmentally responsible leasing of designated wind areas on the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf that are most suitable for development. See the BOEMRE press release and the notice in the Federal Register .
USDA Boosts Rural Wind Energy with Loan Guarantee
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) selected Basin Electric Power Cooperative to receive a $204 million loan guarantee funded by USDA Rural Development's Rural Utilities Service.
The guarantee is for 60% of the total $340 million project costs of the PrairieWinds wind farm project in central South Dakota. The coop plans to construct about 100 wind turbines to produce 151.5 MG of electricity. The loan guarantee will provide financing for engineering, procurement, construction, and commissioning of the wind farm.
When the PrairieWinds project is completed, Basin Electric will have over 700 MG of wind generation capacity in its portfolio. See the
USDA press release.
