Alternate Energy

Hydrogen-Aided Solar Powered Biofuel Production Process Greatly Reduces Costs
A team of researchers at Purdue University found a new way to expand the biofuel industry by creating a concept for a new production process. Until today, one of the main obstacles has been the cost o…..

Utility-Scale Solar on BLM Desert Lands Will Generate Substantial Income for Taxpayers
Desert lands in solar-rich Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, and Utah will not just supply our nation with abundant, clean, safe, fuel-free solar power – but will also generate ver…..

M&As span from vertical farming to biomass, solar
Demand-side management company sets IPO pricing and the cleantech sector raises more than $132 from VC and PE globally, among 39 deals we spotted in the last seven days. …..

N. America Weekly: Ameresco looks for IPO exit
Silicon Valley venture capital firm closes a $350M new fund, while M&As range from flywheel energy storage to vertical farming. …..

Asia Weekly: China cleantech funds in vogue again
Four Asian cleantech companies announce VC or PE funding this week whilst two Chinese cleantech funds raise capital. The Chinese government also emphasizes its commitment to pioneer smart grid tech. …..

FloDrive Turbine – 1kW Hydroelectric Generator to Power Homes in Developing Countries
Students at Cambridge University have recently created a portable hydroelectric generator that is able to supply up to 1 kW of electricity when installed in free-flowing rivers. Called the “FloDrive…..

Europe Weekly: Novacem cements relationship with Lafarge
Carbon negative cement company Novacem issues an innovative bond to accelerate its commercialisation, while there are nine other VC or PE deals. …..

Wind stakeholders cite uniformity as key to more projects
From a news release issued by RENEW Wisconsin: Collectively drawing upon the individual roadblocks that developers experienced in permitting wind energy projects in Wisconsin, a group of renewable en…..

VC fund fundraising remains depressed
Just a really quick follow-up on my last post regarding cleantech venture investments… Entrepreneurs need to realize that this is unlikely to change very soon. Why? Because VCs themselves are still…..

Jenkins ‘Empanelated’ At Grist
Over at online environmental magazine Grist.org, I’ve been featured among a panel of “seven of Grist’s favorite journos and wonks” each offering their two cents on what (if any) changes to climate an…..

Radio Interview on the USDA Ethanol Report
Join the forum discussion on this post I have had family visiting me for the past two weeks, which has slowed my posting down a bit. I am trying to finish up the followup story to the essay on the M…..

In Defense of ‘Energy-Only’
Over at NRDC, David Doniger writes a last-ditch defense of a diminished, utility-only cap and trade proposal while categorically rejecting any “energy-only” legislation — e.g. legislation lacking a …..

Ascent Solar Receives R&D 100 Award for Flexible CIGS on Plastic Substrate
Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. (NASDAQ:ASTI) announced today that it has been honored with the prestigious R&D 100 Award, presented annually by R&D Magazine to recognize the 100 most technologically …..

Vestas Technology R&D Opens New Engineering Site in Louisville, Colorado
Vestas, the world’s leader in producing high-tech wind power systems, announced today that it will open an Engineering Site in Louisville, Colo., to support Vestas Global and enhance Vestas’ wind powe…..

The shocking statistics behind world CO2 emissions
http://www.fly.co.uk/co2-emissions.html …..

Tower Tech to supply wind towers to Spain’s Gamesa
From an article by Tom Content in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Manitowoc-based Tower Tech will supply wind towers to the Spanish wind turbine provider Gamesa for wind farms that will be installed …..

Manitowoc wind tower maker plans to hire 60 workers
From an article by Charlie Mathews in the Manitow Hearld Times Reporter: MANITOWOC — Paul Smith is excited to hang a “Jobs Open” sign at Tower Tech’s manufacturing plant on the Manitowoc River …..

Green Stocks; Company Profile for Smart Battery Technology Company; mPhase Technologies, Inc. (OTC.BB: XDSL)
July 9, 2010 (Investorideas.com renewable energy/green newswire) Investorideas.com and its green investor portals report the company profile for mPhase Technologies, Inc (OTCBB: XDSL), a Smart Battery…..

Green News: U.S. Electric Utilities Must Embrace Clean Energy, Energy Efficiency to Compete in 21st Century
BOSTON – July 9, 2010 (Investorideas.com renewable energy/green newswire) – The most successful utilities in the 21st Century will be very different from those of the 20th Century. …..

A Solar-Powered Renaissance for Allentown, PA
Allentown, the city that songwriter Billy Joel used as a symbol of 1980′s Rust Belt decline, is showing more signs of an economic revival powered by clean, renewable energy and new energy storage so…..

New Funds raised for Newry Gasification Plant
Kedco is pleased to announce that it has raised €3.2 million (£2.6 million) from the issue of 3,588,583 zero-coupon, secured loan notes (the “Loan Notes”) (the “Placing”).CEO Donal Buckley …..

Solar-Powered Plane Completes 1st 24-Hour Flight
We’ve written about the Solar Impulse airplane here on Cleantechnica before. It is a completely solar-powered plane built in Switzerland. Not long after taking its first flight (in December, 2009) the…..

UC Berkeley Study Touts Economic Benefits of a Feed-In Tariff
07/09/2010 – University of California, Berkeley announced recently the results of a study examining the economic benefits of a comprehensive Feed-In Tariff (FIT)… …..

Obama at Smith Electric Vehicles: Jobs, Jobs, Jobs (and No Energy Bill)
(none) …..

eMeter Announces $12.5 Million Financing Round
07/09/2010 – eMeter Corporation, a provider of Smart Grid management software, recently announced the close of a $12… …..

Renewable Energy Overcomes Barriers to Deployment in Turkey
…..

CPUC Approves SCE & SDG&E Renewable Contracts
The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) this week approved renewable energy contracts for Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas and Electric Company (SDG&E). …..

Mercom Reports on Q2 Funding and M&A Activity
Mercom Capital Group released M&A and funding activity for solar, smart grid and wind sectors for the second quarter of 2010. …..

Grid Connection & Costs Barriers to Hungarian Wind
The time taken to connect wind farms to the grid, and the high costs of doing so, are the main barriers to wind energy development in Hungary, it was revealed today in Budapest at a workshop organized…..

Oil and Gas Coproduction Expands Geothermal Power Possibilities
The U.S. has been harnessing geothermal energy since 1960 and if recently announced research projects and startups are successful, even more geothermal power might soon be available. Federal funding …..

ONE WEEK REMAINS to submit applications for IREC’s 2010 Innovation Awards
Each year, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council recognizes individuals and organizations that have implemented innovative projects during the past year that promote and accelerate the adoption of …..

The Renewable Energy Control Wars: Clash of Titans
On June 25, we joined 500 executives at Stanford University for the 2010 Silicon Valley Energy Summit. The CEO of a large California utility company, Chris Johns of Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), w…..

SolarCraft Completes Solar Installation for Sonoma Valley Museum of Art
Novato and Sonoma-based SolarCraft announced today that they completed installation and commissioned a 25.9 kW solar electric system for the Sonoma Valley Museum of Art in Sonoma, CA. The SolarCraft…..

Ontario Power Authority Proposes Cut to FIT
Last October the Ontario Power Authority (OPA) launched its microFIT Program and since that time, more than 16,000 applications have been submitted, with a large majority being for ground-mounted sola…..

Yingli Completes 400-MW Production Expansion
Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Limited announced that its latest 400-megawatt (MW) capacity expansion has been completed and is producing panels. …..

SMUD Signs 60-MW FIT Contract with Recurrent
The Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) has signed multiple 20-year power purchase agreements with Recurrent Energy for 60 megawatts (MW) of solar power to be developed in the southern portio…..

Catch the Wind Signs Deal With BP Wind Energy
Catch the Wind Ltd. has sold two Vindicator laser wind sensor (LWS) units to BP Wind Energy. Upon the successful installation and testing of the units, BP Wind Energy has agreed to purchase sizeable …..

Direct Grid Secures US $4.7M in Financing
Direct Grid Technologies LLC, which manufactures solar micro?inverters announced that it has successfully secured US $4.7 million in private equity financing. …..

The Tough Realities of Renewable Energy Businesses
It’s no secret that many renewable energy businesses are facing tough economic times, and toil hard to make even a slim profit. In response, Craig Shields, editor of 2GreenEnergy.com has recently pub…..

PACE: Boon for Solar Developers or Boondoggle for Lenders?
Hailed by some as a way to reduce the financial burden homeowners face when going solar, Property-Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) financing programs allow property owners to borrow money to pay for rene…..

Obama will urge boosting clean energy tax credit
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – President Barack Obama will urge the U.S. Congress on Friday to extend a manufacturing tax credit by $5 billion to foster private investment in clean energy, a White House offici…..

U.S. mulls response after court refuses drilling stay
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The Obama administration scrambled on Friday to respond to a court’s refusal to reinstate a ban on deepwater drilling imposed after BP Plc’s massive oil spill, while insisting t…..

Yingli Green unit inks credit deal for up to $5.3 billion
(Reuters) – Chinese solar energy company Yingli Green Energy Holding Company Ltd said its unit has agreed with China Development Bank (CDB) for credit facilities up to RMB 36 billion ($5.31 billion) f…..

Italy set to cut solar incentives: industry sources
MILAN (Reuters) – Italy’s new, long-awaited solar incentive plan includes gradual cuts in feed-in tariffs of up to 30 percent next year and 6 percent in both 2012 and 2013, two industry sources told R…..

EU sets 2013 industry CO2 cap at 1.927 bln tonnes
LONDON (Reuters) – Greenhouse gas emissions from heavy industry currently regulated under the European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme will be capped at 1,926,876,368 tonnes of carbon dioxide in 2013…..

German power supply cuts can be offset by solar
LONDON (Reuters) – Germany is being hit by an extreme heat wave, fuelling concerns of power supply cuts by plants that rely on river water for cooling, but the country’s vast solar capacity should be …..

ICE details charges, costs from Climate Exchange
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Futures market operator IntercontinentalExchange Inc said it will absorb costs and charges of up to $23 million from its purchase of Britain-based exchange operator Climate Exchan…..

Turbine development costs hamper UK wind: Crown Estates
LONDON (Reuters) – The cost of building Britain’s offshore wind farms remains high due to rising supply chain development costs and is threatening to derail carbon reduction targets, the body in charg…..

Aircraft completes first solar-powered night flight
PAYERNE, Switzerland (Reuters) – A giant glider-like aircraft has completed the first night flight propelled only by solar energy, organizers said on Thursday. …..

Northland breaks ground on Quebec wind farm
OTTAWA (Reuters) – Northland Power Income Fund said on Thursday it has started site preparation for a C$176 million ($169 million) wind farm it is developing in the Gaspesie region of Quebec. …..

Obama urges boosting clean energy tax credit
LAS VEGAS (Reuters) – President Barack Obama urged the U.S. Congress on Friday to pass a $5 billion expansion of tax credits for clean energy manufacturing that he said would generate tens of thousand…..

Tesla formalizes Toyota deal, to deliver 2 cars
SAN FRANCISCO/NAGOYA, Japan (Reuters) – Electric carmaker Tesla Motors Inc said on Friday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp to deliver two electric vehi…..

BP set to install bigger cap on leaking Gulf well
MALIBU, Calif./NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) – BP was set on Friday to install a bigger cap that could contain almost all the oil leaking from its blownout Gulf of Mexico well, a top U.S. official said. …..

U.S. farmers can’t meet booming corn demands
WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Exporters, livestock feeders and ethanol makers are going through the U.S. corn stockpile faster than farmers can grow the crops, the government said on Friday. …..

ECX CEO to leave emissions exchange within 3 months
LONDON (Reuters) – The CEO of the London-based European Climate Exchange (ECX), acquired by futures exchange operators IntercontinentalExchange Inc, will leave the company within three months, he told…..

UK hydrogen cars are coming – if you can fill up
LONDON (Reuters) – Britain’s hydrogen fuel cell car fleet may hit top gear within five years, but only if there is enough investment in filling stations, the UK Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Association (UK…..

Fire Department Pleased With Second…..
Weirton Fire Chief Dave Lashhorn is tired of his squad being called “deficient” after FEMA in April found problems with its ability to respond to a nuclear crisis. …..

EDF nuclear deal gives Somerset workers hope in face of public sector cuts
Bridgwater seeks ‘crumbs’ from EDF Energy’s Hinkley Point power station project as Government halts school rebuilding contracts. …..

GE Hitachi studies European nuclear market
Fairfield-based General Electric Co. and Hitachi Ltd. are considering re-entering the U.K. nuclear market, as well as four other European countries, after gaining regulatory approval for their ESBWR r…..

NRC chairman to meet with Vermont Yankee critics
The chairman of the federal Nuclear Regulatory Commission is traveling to Vermont next week to meet with groups critical of the Vermont Yankee nuclear power plant. …..

My Turn: Oil regulators’ performance raises concern about NRC
Here are two lessons to be learned from the catastrophe now unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico. …..

Screening Problems Halt Ga. Nuke Plant Work
Construction on a proposed nuclear power plant in eastern Georgia has been halted after a contractor failed to ask workers in writing about past drug or alcohol abuse. …..

New Brunswick ponders construction of second nuclear power plant in province
New Brunswick is eyeing the possibility of building a second nuclear reactor under an agreement signed with French nuclear giant Areva, the provincial government announced Thursday. …..

We need nuclear power to break fossil fuel dependence
What kind of twisted ad campaigns equate alternative energy as liberal and hydrocarbons conservative? To survive when the ecology is suffering and oil sheikhs fund terrorism, we’d best start conservin…..

Washington lawmakers want nuclear waste repository
Sen. Patty Murray and Congressman Doc Hastings are among 91 lawmakers who have asked the Energy Department to stop dismantling a nuclear waste repository at Yucca Mountain, Nev. …..

Labor missed chance on nuclear dump: CLP
The Federal Government wants a nuclear waste dump at Muckaty Station in the NT. Map: Darwin 0800 The Northern Territory Opposition says the Henderson Government missed a golden opportunity during the …..

PSEG Nuclear’s Salem Unit 1 trips off line after transformer fails
The Salem 1 nuclear reactor automatically tripped off-line today after one of the plant’s three main transformers failed, according to a spokesman for the plant’s operator. …..

Canada’s rocky road with nuclear energy
Business in the energy industry is fast paced and ever-changing. BNET Energy provides daily news coverage for managers and executives in the energy sector, with coverage on the major utilities, energy…..

Project On Preparing High-Quality Specialists Of Nuclear Energy Appr
Date : Sat, 10 Jul 2010 10:09:04 +0500 PROJECT ON PREPARING HIGH-QUALITY SPECIALISTS OF NUCLEAR ENERGY APPROVED ARMENPRESS JULY 8, 2010 YEREVAN RA Government approved today the project on preparing of…..

Energy Digital Magazines July Issue reveals nuclear energy as a clean …
Energy Digital’s July Issue discusses nuclear energy, as a clean energy source, the 5 new advancements in AUV technology, liquefied natural gas, and geothermal energy. …..

Shuler: Nuclear waste is not headed to Asheville area
There is no plan to dump nuclear waste in Western North Carolina, the region’s congressman said Thursday. …..

Commission: Monticello nuclear plant met safety objectives
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission has scheduled an open house Tuesday to discuss the agency’s assessment of safety performance last year at the Monticello nuclear power plant. …..

17-Year-Old Chad Ramey Introduces Us to Amateur Nuclear Fusion Subculture
When we read about Mark Suppes, the Brooklyn amateur physicist who built a nuclear reactor in a warehouse lab, we got curious: Is building a nuclear fusion device in your spare time a thing that peopl…..