July 10, 2009

The U.S. military is not just setting standards in the areas of advanced weaponry. It's also leading the renewable energy charge. It's involved in solar, geothermal and wind projects and its stake in the field will continue to grow.

Consider the solar arena: If you thought the biggest solar array in the Americas was in the Southwestern United States, you'd be right. At 140 acres, the site's 70,000 panels produce peak energy of 14 megawatts, or enough energy to supply 14,000 homes.

But what may not be widely known is that the solar site is at the Nellis Air Force Base in Nevada, providing about one-fourth of the base's power, with the capability of selling renewable credits back to NV Energy. The site, completed in late 2007, can produce about 30.1 million kilowatt hours per year.

June 26, 2009

America is having car troubles. The fall of General Motors and Chrysler is causing domestic manufacturers to re-think their mission and to develop the next generation of transport. The movement now appears to be headed to a greener future and perhaps with those vehicles that run mostly on electricity.

And while the automotive sector plans to introduce its first so-called plug-in vehicles that can charge from any conventional outlet by 2011, those cars will not soon make a dent in the overall market. The central question then becomes whether such cars and trucks will create for themselves a long-term spot within the transport realm or whether they will go by the way of earlier versions of the all-electric vehicle.

Wind Power Is A Valuable Renewable Energy Source; But How Do You Capture The Power Of The Wind And Use It Later? Xcel Energy Has A Test Project In Minnesota That The Company Hopes Will Provide Some Answers. 
 
If there is one thing the Midwest has in abundance, it is wind.  A study published in April 2009 by the American Wind Energy Association showed that Minnesota and Iowa were among the top four producers of wind energy in the United States in 2008, along with Texas and California. So it stands to reason that Xcel, already the country's biggest wind-power provider, is testing the storage of wind energy in batteries at Luverne, Minn. The Luverne project is the first of its kind in the country.

Public Act 295 called for the creation of the Wind Energy Resource Zone Board to assist with more forward-looking planning approach to the interconnection of wind energy projects. The Michigan Public Service created the board and was tasked to identify a list of regions of the state with the highest wind energy harvest potential limited to commercial-scale wind energy. The board identified four regions and the counties and townships located within.

June 15, 2009

Despite a depressed world economy, renewable energy investments drew the majority of investment dollars that went into the global power sector last year. That enabled the green space to account for 40 percent of all additions to generation. As to be expected, wind and solar power garnered the preponderance of capital.

The principal factors that will drive future investment in sustainable fuels and technologies will be the global focus on climate change and energy security in combination with a more promising financial picture. Indeed, scores of countries are preparing for the next round of climate talks that are to occur in Copenhagen, Denmark, in December and which will take over once the Kyoto Protocol expires in 2012.