Renewables & Efficiency

Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 9, 2003

*News and Events DOE Awards $89 Million to 19 States for Home Weatherization New Large Wind Power Plants Planned for New York, Washington New Catalyst Produces Hydrogen from Biomass Without Platinum Research Institute Advances Grid Connection Technology Indiana Fuel Terminal Offers Biodiesel, Easing Distribution Thirty Solar Cars to Race on Route 66 Starting July 13th*Energy ConnectionsU.S. Energy-Related Carbon Emissions Increased in 2002DOE Awards $89 Million to 19 States for Home WeatherizationDOE announced on July 1st its award of $89.4 million to 19 states for energy efficiency improvements to homes of low-income families. Low-income families spend an average of 14 percent of their income on energy, compared with 3.5 percent for the average American. The grants were awarded to Arizona, Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Maryland, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, New Mexico, Nevada, North Carolina, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, South Dakota, Utah, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. [sorry this link is no longer available]Weatherization reduces an average home’s energy costs by $215 a year. The program, which is administered through the states and 970 local agencies, gives a priority to low-income households with elderly members, people with disabilities, and children. See DOE’s Weatherization Assistance Program Web site at:[sorry this link is no longer available]New Large […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:July 2, 2003

*News and Events Xcel Energy Plans 450 Megawatts of Wind Power for Minnesota Helios Solar Airplane Crashes During Test Flight Wave Power Plant Now Supplying Denmark’s Electrical Grid Corn-Derived Plastic Provides Deli Packaging in U.S. Grocery Onsite Energy Cuts Energy Costs at Food Processing Plants Texas and Florida Schools Win Middle School Science Bowl*Energy ConnectionsNatural Gas Crisis Ahead: DOE Encourages Smart Energy UseXcel Energy Plans 450 Megawatts of Wind Power for MinnesotaXcel Energy has selected three wind power projects totaling 450 megawatts in capacity as part of its portfolio of new energy projects to meet its customer’s power needs over the next six years. The proposed projects include a 200-megawatt wind plant to be built near Chandler by enXco, a 150-megawatt wind plant to be built in Lincoln County by PPM Energy, and a 100-megawatt wind plant to be built by FPL Energy in Austin. The two larger plants are located inthe southeast corner of the state and the third plant will be located due south of Minneapolis, near the state’s southern border. The three projects were selected as the result of an all-source solicitation issued by Xcel Energy in 2001.“The strong showing of wind power in this bidding process […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:June 25, 2003

*News and Events G8 Plans to Boost Energy Efficiency and Renewables Worldwide DOE, USDA, and Interior to Promote Woody Biomass for Energy New Large Wind Power Additions Planned for Oklahoma, Oregon Massachusetts Launches $30 Million Green Power Project World’s First Offshore Tidal Power Prototype Now Operating Hydrogen Group Disputes Study on Potential Ozone Impacts*Site News Virtual-Web Energy Demonstration Construction Center*Energy ConnectionsReport Finds Carbon Emissions Growing Despite Restrictions G8 Plans to Boost Energy Efficiency and Renewables WorldwideThe group of eight leaders of large industrialized countries, known simply as the G8, recently set forth plans to encourage energy efficiency and renewable energy development around the world.The early-June G8 Summit, which brought together the leaders of the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, and France, resulted in a document that noted “the need … to support the development of cleaner, sustainable and more efficient technologies.” The document commits to promoting energy efficiency and encouraging rapid innovation and market introduction of clean energy technologies. To increase the share of renewable energy in global energy use, and to accelerate the development of fuel cell and hydrogen technologies, the G8 emphasizes collaborative research with an emphasis on achieving competitive energy prices. The […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:June 18, 2003

*News and Events Secretary Wants International Partners for Hydrogen Economy DOE Asks Eaton to Advance Hybrid Truck Systems University of Wisconsin Wins FutureTruck 2003 Solar Cars Zoom Down Route 66 Illinois Passes Biodiesel Tax Incentive and Grants Package Portland Sewage Plant Powers Itself with Biogas*Site News Virtual-Web Energy Demonstration Construction Center*Energy Connections Low Natural Gas Stores Concern DOE, Federal Reserve ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-Secretary Wants International Partners for Hydrogen EconomyU.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham has called on the European Commission (EC) to join the United States in forming what he called The International Partnership for the Hydrogen Economy. The Secretary issued the challenge Friday during his keynote to the EC’s Conference of the High Level Group on Hydrogen and Fuel Cell (HLG-HFC) Technologies convening in Brussels. In 2002,HLG-HFC Technologies–a coalition of EC auto and transport companies, utilities research institutes, and policy makers–made advances in hydrogen a top priority. At the same time, U.S. President George Bush established the Hydrogen Fuel Initiative to develop hydrogen infrastructure and hydrogen fuel cell-powered vehicles and introduced the Freedom CAR program to develop automotive systems that use hydrogen fuel.In his address the Secretary said an international partnership that includes devotion of substantial financial resources would […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:June 11, 2003

*News and Events DOE Selects Seven Universities to Advance HTS Wires ChevronTexaco Powers Oil Field with Large Solar Power System First Solar to Expand its Solar Manufacturing Facility State of Ohio Supports Fuel Cells with $20 Million in Grants Six North American Green Roof Projects Win Awards World’s Largest Hydropower Project Now Filling Up in China*Site News Builders Without Borders*Energy Connections BP Report: World Oil Supply Comfortably Exceeds Demand ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-DOE Selects Seven Universities to Advance HTS WiresDOE announced on June 5th its selection of seven U.S. universities that will help develop the next generation of high-temperature superconductor (HTS) wires. The universities — located in California, Massachusetts, Missouri, New York, Texas, and Wisconsin — will share $1 million for their research, which could play an important role inrelieving congestion in the nation’s electrical transmission and distribution systems. See the DOE press release at:[sorry this link is no longer available]Superconductivity is the ability of certain materials to carry current with no resistance at low temperatures. When used for wires, superconductors experience much lower energy losses than standard copper wires. Although typical superconductors require extremely low temperatures, HTS materials achieve superconductivity at temperaturesthat can be achieved with liquid nitrogen, making them […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:June 4, 2003

*News and Events Hawaiian Efforts Support Renewables, Efficiency, Fuel Cells New One-Megawatt Solar Installations Online on Both Coasts New Minnesota Law Supports Renewables, Requires Xcel Energy to Boost Funds and Install 300 Megawatts of Wind Power Iowa Utilities Propose a Wind-Powered Energy Storage Plant Efficiency Vermont Wins Award for Excellence in Government FutureTruck Competition Now Underway Near Detroit*Site NewsCenter for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy*Energy Connections California Power Outlook Positive Despite First Power Alert ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-Hawaiian Efforts Support Renewables, Efficiency, Fuel CellsRecent public and private efforts to advance renewable energy, energy efficiency, and fuel cells in Hawaii — including plans to spend up to $10 million in support of renewable power projects — are giving the state a new prominence in the clean energy arena. The Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO) is involved in many of these actions, including low-interest loans and rebates for solar hot water systems in Honolulu and the opening of the Hawaii Fuel Cell Test Facility, also in Honolulu. And in late May, HECO announced that its subsidiary, Renewable Hawaii, Inc., is requesting proposals forrenewable energy projects on the island of Oahu. The company has approval to invest up to $10 million in grid-connected power projects […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:May 28, 2003

*News and Events FedEx Introduces New Hybrid Electric Delivery Vehicles Three GM SUVs to Feature “Displacement on Demand” in 2005 Students on Cross-Country Trip in Vegetable-Oil-Fueled Bus St. Paul Cogeneration Starts Up a 25-MW Wood-Fired CHP Plant DynaMotive to Build Several BioOil Production Facilities POWER-GEN to Launch Renewable Energy Conference with ACRE*Site NewsUtah Wind*Energy Connections IEA Launches Database of Renewable Energy Policies ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-FedEx Introduces New Hybrid Electric Delivery VehiclesFedEx Express, a subsidiary of FedEx Corporation, unveiled a fuel-efficient hybrid-electric-diesel delivery vehicle last week that could become a standard delivery truck for the FedEx Express fleet. The FedEx OptiFleet E700 hybrid electric vehicle increases fuel efficiency by 50 percent while decreasing particulate emissions by 90 percent and reducing smog-causing emissions by 75 percent. Thus far, FedEx Express has agreed to purchase 20 OptiFleet E700s that will be deployed in four U.S. cities within the next year. FedEx expects to order more trucks as needed, and could potentially replace the company’s 30,000 medium-duty delivery trucks with hybrid electrics over the next decade.Eaton Corporation produced the hybrid electric powertrain for the vehicle, combining a four-cylinder engine with a motor and a Lithium-ion battery pack. FedEx worked with Environmental Defense to produce […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:May 21, 2003

*News and Events Eighteen Veterans Hospitals Earn the Energy Star Label UPS to Test Fuel-Cell-Powered Delivery Vehicles in Michigan Ethanol Industry Growing as States Consider New MTBE Bans Cal State Hayward to Install One Megawatt of Solar Power U.S. Wind Industry to Grow 25 Percent in 2003 Pennsylvania Launches a $5-Million Clean Energy Initiative*Site NewsInterfaith Coalition on Energy*Energy Connections New York and Connecticut May Face Power Problems this Summer ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-Eighteen Veterans Hospitals Earn the Energy Star LabelDOE and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) awarded the Energy Star to 18 Veterans Affairs medical centers on May 14th. The winning medical centers were identified and qualified through a joint effort of EPA, DOE’s Federal Energy Management Program, DOE’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory, and the Department of Veterans Affairs. The energy-efficient medical centers are located in 16 states: Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Massachusetts, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, and Washington State. See the DOE press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]The joint EPA/DOE Energy Star program for rating and labeling building energy performance, now in its fourth year, has recognized more than 1,000 U.S. buildings as models of energy […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:May 15, 2003

*News and Events DOE to Award $150 Million for Hydrogen Demonstration Project Dow Plant to Install up to 35 Megawatts of GM Fuel Cells DOE Funds Project to Cut Manufacturing Costs for Solar Cells SunPower Pilot Line Produces 20-Percent Efficient Solar Cell NASA, BMW and Two Utilities Draw on Waste Methane for Energy Washington Utility Signs Contract for Power from Wave Energy*Site NewsState Energy Efficiency Incentive Programs*Energy Connections EPA: Light-Vehicle Fuel Economy Increases Slightly in 2003 ———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-DOE to Award $150 Million for Hydrogen Demonstration ProjectDOE announced on May 8th a $150-million solicitation for a five-year project to demonstrate and validate hydrogen vehicles and infrastructure. DOE seeks proposals from industry teams — ideally consisting of an automobile manufacturer and an energy company in combination with hydrogen fuel cell manufacturers, small businesses, universities, and state or local governments — that will split the cost of the project with DOE. The projects might include building a fleet of hydrogen vehicles or installing hydrogen fueling stations. Proposals are due by August 14th. See the DOE press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]President Bush has proposed $1.2 billion in research funding for hydrogen and fuel cell technologies over the next […]

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Weekly Clean Energy Roundup:April 30, 2003

*News and Events DOE to Fund Eight Tribes to Develop Renewable Energy DOE Office Facility in Maryland Earns the Energy Star Label Architect Group Names the Top Ten Green Projects for 2003 Large Solar Power Systems Online in New Jersey, California Shell Hydrogen Opens Hydrogen Fueling Station in Iceland California Air Board Allows Fuel-Cell Focus in New ZEV Rules*Site NewsEuropean Commission End-Use Energy Efficiency Activities*Energy Connections Sandia’s “Z Machine” Reveals New Approach to Fusion Energy———————————————————————-NEWS AND EVENTS———————————————————————-DOE to Fund Eight Tribes to Develop Renewable EnergyDOE announced on April 24th its award of $1.3 million to eight Native American tribes to develop renewable energy projects on their lands. The funds will go toward feasibility studies on tribal lands located in Alaska, California, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Washington and Wisconsin. Although four of the tribes will investigate renewable energy resources in general, the other four tribes will explore the potential of specific renewable energy technologies, including biofuel for power production, biogas generation from manure and other biomass sources, wind power, and a hybrid power system using both wind power and hydropower. See the DOE press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]DOE’s Tribal Energy Program promotes tribal self-sufficiency […]

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