*News and Events
DOE Helps Launch an International Partnership for Hydrogen
DTE Energy to Build Hydrogen-Fueled Microgrid in Detroit
Hybrid Toyota Prius Named Motor Trend “Car of the Year”
Marine Corps Base Installs Large Solar Power System
CEC Report: California Green Power Could Increase 10-Fold
*Site News
Reflective Insulation Manufacturers Association
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NEWS AND EVENTS
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DOE Helps Launch an International Partnership for Hydrogen
Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham joined with ministers representing 14 nations and the European Commission to establish the International Partnership for a Hydrogen Economy (IPHE) last week. Representatives
from Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, the European Commission, France, Germany, Iceland, India, Italy, Japan, Korea, Norway, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States signed the Terms of Reference, formally creating the IPHE as an international mechanism to coordinate hydrogen research and hydrogen technology development and deployment. The IPHE will provide a mechanism to organize, evaluate and coordinate multinational research, development, and deployment programs that advance the transition to a global hydrogen economy. See the November 20th press release on the DOE Web site at:
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The spirit of cooperation also spilled over to the international fuel cell industry, as the world’s leading fuel cell organizations agreed to start collaborations on information sharing, education, regulation, and technical exchange. The U.S. Fuel Cell Council (USFCC), the Fuel Cell Commercialization Conference of Japan, Fuel Cells Canada, the
World Fuel Cell Council, and Fuel Cell Europe signed the agreement. The organizations collectively represent more than 300 businesses, research institutions, and others interested in fuel cells and hydrogen. See the joint press release on the USFCC Web site: [sorry this link is no longer available]
In addition, a coalition of hydrogen and fuel cell users and suppliers has come together to advance fuel-cell-powered buses. The National Fuel Cell Bus Technology Initiative is envisioned as a six-year, $150-million development effort to advance fuel cell and hydrogen technology. WestStart-CALSTART — a leading North American consortium for advanced transportation technologies — is coordinating the initiative. See the press release on the WestStart-CALSTART Web site: [sorry this link is no longer available]
DTE Energy to Build Hydrogen-Fueled Microgrid in Detroit
DTE Energy announced last week that its subsidiary, DTE Energy Technology, will build a $5.4-million microgrid project in Detroit, Michigan, at the facilities for NextEnergy, an organization that encourages alternative energy development within the state. As the name implies, microgrids are miniature power grids that can operate in
conjunction with the regional power grid or can operate in isolation. They are usually connected to the larger power grid in a way that allows them to maintain higher reliability and power quality for the electrical loads they serve.
The microgrid project will be fueled by hydrogen, natural gas, and solar power, and will include the use of several emerging on-site energy technologies, including fuel cells, microturbines, solar power systems, and internal and external combustion engines. It will also include underground electrical and thermal distribution systems to
provide electricity, heating, and air conditioning to the NextEnergy facility. In addition, the microgrid will have the capability to serve the broader energy needs of the entire research and business technology park where NextEnergy will be located, on the campus of Wayne State University in Detroit. DTE Energy expects to complete the project by December 2004. See the November 20th press release:
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NextEnergy was created by the State of Michigan to advance alternative energy technologies for both stationary and vehicular power systems, and to establish Michigan as a leader in these technologies. The NextEnergy facility will include a 5,600-square-foot “Power Pavilion,” which will house the microgrid, a hydrogen-fueling infrastructure,
office space, a laboratory, and product demonstration and exhibition facilities. See the NextEnergy Web site at:
As noted in this newsletter last week, DTE Energy is also developing a hydrogen technology park in Southfield, about 10 miles northwest of Detroit. See last week’s article:
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Hybrid Toyota Prius Named Motor Trend “Car of the Year”
Motor Trend magazine has named the hybrid-electric Toyota Prius as its 2004 Car of the Year. After weeks of exhaustive testing, the Motor Trend editors found the Toyota Prius to be “a user-friendly gas/electric hybrid capable of delivering an impressive 60 miles per gallon in city driving.” According to Kevin Smith, Motor Trend’s editor-in-chief, “We believe the performance, engineering advancements, and overall significance of the Toyota Prius merits the
distinction of Motor Trend’s Car of the Year. The Prius is a capable, comfortable, fun-to-drive car that just happens to get spectacular fuel economy. It also provides a promising look at a future where extreme fuel-efficiency, ultra-low emissions, and exceptional performance will happily coexist. That makes it meaningful to a wide range of car buyers.”
Motor Trend magazine is part of Primedia, Inc. See the Primedia press release at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
While domestic automakers are planning to introduce their own hybrid electric vehicles in the near future, they are also making substantial investments in less flashy energy-saving technologies. Ford Motor Company, for instance, is investing up to $325 million in two manufacturing plants, allowing them to build new rear-wheel-drive,
six-speed automatic transmissions. According to Ford, the new transmissions will increase fuel economy by 4 to 8 percent relative to a four-speed automatic transmission. By 2008, Ford expects 60 percent of its vehicles to have either six-speed transmissions or continuously variable transmissions. See the Ford press release at:
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Marine Corps Base Installs Large Solar Power System
One of the largest solar power systems in the country is now online at a U.S. Marine Corps base in Twentynine Palms, California. The Marine Corp base installed a 1.1-megawatt photovoltaic system, which will provide about 10 percent of the base’s electrical needs. The project earned a $4.5 million incentive award from the state’s Self Generation Incentive Program. Southern California Gas Company presented the award to the base last week. See the November 20th press release by selecting “Press Releases” on the Southern California Gas Company
Web site at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
A 1.05-megawatt solar power system is also under construction at California State University, Hayward. PowerLight Corporation is installing the system on four of the university’s largest buildings. When complete in December, the system will be able to provide about 30 percent of the peak electrical demand on the campus. See the press
release under “Top Stories” on the Cal State Hayward Web site at: [sorry this link is no longer available]
Other recent solar power installations in California include a 191-kilowatt system — combined with a 360-kilowatt cogeneration system comprising six microturbines — at Pierce College in Los Angeles, a 245-kilowatt thin-film system at Shell Solar Industries’ manufacturing building in Camarillo, a 120-kilowatt water-pumping system installed by WorldWater Corporation at a Bakersfield facility operated by Lehr Brothers Inc., a 120-kilowatt system installed by Nextek Power Systems on a Target retail store in El Cajon, and a 59-kilowatt system installed at the University of California, Berkeley. See the press releases from Pierce College, Shell Solar, WorldWater Corporation, Nextek Power Systems, and UC Berkeley at:
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http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/11/19_solar.shtml
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2003/11/19_solar.shtml
CEC Report: California Green Power Could Increase 10-Fold
With all the new solar power installations cropping up in California, it may come as no surprise that the California Energy Commission (CEC) sees a great potential to boost the state’s use of renewable energy. In fact, a report adopted by the CEC last week says that although the state currently draws on renewable energy for 11 percent of its
electricity, the state could produce about 10 times more electricity from renewable energy than it does today. The document will be submitted to the California legislature on December 1st in support of the state’s new Renewable Portfolio Standard, which requires that 20 percent of the state’s retail electricity sales come from renewable
energy sources.
The CEC also approved its 2003 Integrated Energy Policy Report on November 12th. The report calls more stringent energy efficiency targets, an accelerated timeframe for the Renewable Portfolio Standard, more ambitious renewable energy goals beyond the 20 percent goal, and efforts to encourage cogeneration and distributed generation throughout the state. In addition, the report recommends establishing a goal of reducing the consumption of petroleum for transportation by 15 percent from current levels by 2020. See the CEC press releases at: http://www.energy.ca.gov/releases/index.html
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SITE NEWS
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Pennsylvania State University Hydrogen Energy Center
Pennsylvania State University’s Hydrogen Energy Center conducts
research in hydrogen storage, production, and fuel cell technologies.
It also is working to identify new uses of hydrogen for environmental
remediation.
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| Kevin Eber is the Editor of EREE Network News, a weekly publication of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE). |
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