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IBM Allocates $1 Billion for Green Data Centers

IBM (NYSE:IBM) announced “Project Big Green,” a $1 billion a year initiative to dramatically increase the level of data center energy efficiency. The plan includes new products and services for IBM and its clients to sharply reduce data center energy consumption, transforming the world’s business and public technology infrastructures into “green” data centers. The savings are substantial — for an average 25,000 square foot data center, clients should be able to achieve 42% energy savings. IBM’s initiative targets corporate data centers where energy constraints and costs can limit their ability to grow. The initiative includes a new global “green team” of more than 850 energy efficiency architects from across IBM. According to analyst firm IDC, roughly 50 cents is spent on energy for every dollar of computer hardware, expected to increase by 54% to 71 cents over the next four years. “The data center energy crisis is inhibiting our clients’ business growth as they seek to access computing power,” said Mike Daniels, senior vice president, IBM Global Technology Services. “Many data centers have now reached full capacity, limiting a firm’s ability to grow and make necessary capital investments. Today we are providing clients the IBM action plan to make their […]

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U.S. Senate Panel Sets 35 Mpg Auto Standard by 2020

The Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation today approved the first vehicle fuel economy act in 16 years. S. 357, the Ten-in-Ten Fuel Economy Act, would revise corporate average fuel economy standards to achieve a nationwide fleet average of 35 miles per gallon by the year 2020. The bill also would create, for the first time, fuel economy standards for medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks, and would provide the Secretary of Transportation expanded authority to prescribe and enforce fuel economy standards. Said Chairman Daniel K. Inouye (D-Hawaii), “In the last sixteen years, our passenger car and light truck fleets have been virtually frozen in terms of fuel economy savings, while the effects of global warming have become more pronounced and the oil exporting regions of the world have become more hostile and more unstable.” “Ten-in-Ten mandates the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to increase the fuel economy of the nationwide fleet of passenger cars and light trucks to 35 mpg by 2020, and then continue to improve fuel economy by four percent per year for the next ten years. For the first time, medium-duty and heavy-duty trucks will be subject to fuel economy standards, which will address a significant […]

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U.S. Senators Obama, Harkin Introduce Low-Carbon Fuel Standard Legislation

U.S. Senators Barack Obama (D-IL) and Tom Harkin (D-IA) have introduced legislation establishing a National Low-Carbon Fuel Standard to reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions in the short and long-term. The bill requires a reduction of about 180 million metric tons in emissions in 2020 – the equivalent of taking over 30 million cars off the road. The standard embraces the growth of the renewable fuels market and and provides incentives for lower carbon emissions in their production. “It’s time to act on climate change,” said Harkin, Chairman of the Senate Agriculture Committee. “We’ve got to begin reducing greenhouse gas emissions, and emissions from our vehicles need to be a part of that. This bill sets a standard that establishes a steady downward trend for life cycle greenhouse gas emissions of our transportation fuels. Because biofuels generally have lower life cycle greenhouse gas emissions, this bill also promotes rural economic development and national energy security.” The U.S. relies on imports for 60% of the petroleum it consumes, and the oil used in the U.S. transportation sector accounts for one-third of our nation’s emissions of greenhouse gases. The National Low Carbon Fuel Standard Act of 2007 will: * Provide near-term demand certainty […]

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Electric Car Firm Tesla Raises $45M

Tesla Motors, an emerging electric car manufacturer, has completed a $45 million venture funding round, the fourth since its 2003 launch. The latest round brings Tesla’s total funding to $105 million. Tesla plans to use the funding to begin mass production of the Tesla Roadster, to launch a company-owned sales operation and to develop the electric sports sedan, “WhiteStar.” The Tesla Roadster, priced at over $90,000 and designed to accelerate from zero to 60 miles per hour in four seconds, sold out its first production run in four months. There are 400 reservations on its waiting list, including California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The “WhiteStar” will be a five-passenger sedan for the 2010 model year. The investment round was led by venture capital firm Technology Partners and Elon Musk, co-founder of PayPal. All of Tesla’s major investors also participated, including Vantage Point Venture Partners, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, JP Morgan Bay Area Equity Fund, Valor Equity Partners and Compass Venture Partners.

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