March 20, 2009

Since the Department of Energy was founded in 1977, it has been headed by an economist, a businessman, a retired admiral, an engineer turned financier, and several lawyers and politicians. It has been part of the presidential spoils -- a home for a defeated senator like Spencer Abraham -- and a safe way to diversify the cabinet with an African-American, a Lebanese-American and a couple of Hispanics.

It has been a province of Washington insiders. The first two secretaries, James Schlesinger and Charles Duncan, had been secretary of defense, and several others held another cabinet position before or after serving at Energy. Journeyman politician Bill Richardson -- a congressman, an ambassador, a governor, presidential candidate and almost-secretary of commerce -- served a stint.

March 18, 2009

Of the top five utility stocks in 2008, only two ended the year in positive territory. The third best-performing stock, Unisource, was down 6.9 percent. What happened and will it happen again this year? Lots of factors are at play.

Barry Abramson, utility analyst at Gabelli Funds, took a look at five of the worst-performing stocks of 2008 to parse the negatives. Constellation, of course, is a case apart, although companies heavily invested in merchant trading were all hurt. Looking at other underperformers, however, reveals a distinct set of negative factors. New Mexico's PNM was squeezed by a need for rate increases, which hadn't happened for several years, despite rising costs. It got partial relief last year, but not enough to lift earnings anywhere near where they had been five years ago. At the same time, its fuel and operating costs continued to rise. As a result, the stock was punished, down a whopping 53 percent.

Source: The Great Lakes IT Report
Posted: Tuesday, 17 March 2009
by Matt Roush

Two Michigan entrepreneurs say they plan to begin putting thousands of people to work in the wind energy industry this summer.

Global Wind Systems Inc. says it will employ 300 at its Novi assembly operations by this fall, building the central hubs of huge 1.5 megawatt wind turbines. CEO Chris Long likens the hubs to "70-ton school buses" in shape and size.

Meanwhile, Gilbert Borman and his Borman Holdings LLC hope to act as a supplier of gears to Global Wind Systems.

The dirty little secret of today's rapidly growing American wind power industry is that virtually all of its hardware is imported from Europe, which has been pursuing wind power for 30 years now. Long and Borman aim to change that, with the enthusiastic support of state officials like Stanley "Skip" Pruss, director and chief energy officer of the state Department of Energy, Labor and Economic Growth.

Long said Michigan's long legacy manufacturing expertise gives it substantial advantages in wind turbine manufacturing, and global demand is astounding.

Source: The Great Lakes IT Report
Posted: Monday, 16 March 2009
by Matt Roush

The global economic downturn is even hitting solar energy.

Rochester Hills-based Energy Conversion Devices Inc. (Nasdaq: ENER) said Monday that it will eliminate 70 jobs in solar panel production at the older of its two Auburn Hills plants based on current economic conditions.

The company also announced a two-week production hiatus effective Sunday, March 22. And it said that when it finishes the basic construction of its latest new plant in Battle Creek, it will defer the purchase of equipment and hiring of operating personnel. It's also minimizing the use of temporaries and consultants.

The company blamed "the present impact of credit availability on project flow in the global pipeline for photovoltaics.

Homer and Linda Bailey recently captivated the House of Representatives Energy and Technology Committee when they told their story about installing a 10kW wind turbine at their home in Cass City. The Bailey's plight opened lawmaker's eyes to the problems associated with installing renewable energy systems; problems Michigan GREEN is working to circumvent as our industry continues its upward growth.

The Bailey's decision to install a wind turbine arises from their commitment to live an environmentally friendly lifestyle, along with combating the continually rising energy costs, and to take advantage of the prevailing winds. Unknowingly, the Bailey's newly established wind turbine put them front and center, according to Linda as "the poster children for reasons not to try renewable energy alternatives."