San Juan Water District (SJWD) is now powered by solar energy. The solar panels will now supply up to 90 percent of the electricity consumed by the water treatment plant, administration buildings and booster pump station. The district estimates that the solar panels will save them $12 million in energy costs over the 25-year life of the system. SunPower designed and …
Beer Brewed With Wind Power
Yards Brewing Co. is now brewing its beer with wind power. The company is one of Pennsylvania’s largest breweries and to fulfill its mission of “going green” the company is participating in Washington Gas Energy Services’ (WGES) 100% CleanSteps WindPower to Yards program. One reason the company chose wind power to provide renewable energy is because they said it produces …
DOE Awards $2.85M to GeoTek Energy
The Department of Energy is funding several geothermal projects in the United States including a project by GeoTek Energy to design its Gravity Head Energy System (GHES). The company received $450,000 with the potential for an additional $2.4 million to validate the design and for further development of the technology. Geothermal energy uses heat from the earth to produce steam …
Kenya to Construct Largest Geothermal Plant in Africa
In my latest book review, Energy, Convenient Solutions, author Howard Johnson predicts that geothermal energy will play the biggest role in our energy future. Maybe because I’m now paying more attention to geothermal energy, it seems that some pretty significant geothermal projects have been announced recently. For example, Kenya has unveiled its plans to build the largest geothermal power plant …
Dominican Republic To Build 2 Wind Farms
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has approved two loans totaling $78.3 million to help build two wind farms in the Dominican Republic. Once completed, the renewable energy projects will combined provide 80.6 megawatts to the grid. The wind farms are being developed by private companies, and demonstrate the growing confidence in the Dominican energy sector. The Corporación Dominicana de Empresas …
DOE Unveils SUNPATH to Support Solar Growth
In February of this year, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) unveiled its SunShot Initiative designed to help reduce the costs associated with solar power by at least 75 percent by the end of the decade. This week, during the InterSolar North America conference, Minh Le, a principal scientist with the DOE, introduced SUNPATH – Scaling Up Nascent PV at …
New Report Details Global Hydropower Markets
Global opportunities for hydropower are reviewed and analyzed in a new report, “The Hydropower Market 2011-2012,” by Visiongain. According to the report, the global hydropower market, as defined by spending on new hydropower projects as well as spending on upgrades and expansions, to be worth $56.61 billion in 2011. Today, hydropower currently contributes nearly one-sixth of all worldwide electricity, but …
Siemens Secures Contract for Idaho Solar Project
Yesterday, I spent the day checking out what was happening in the global solar industry at the InterSolar North America conference held in San Francisco, California. With more than 20,000 attendees and nearly 800 exhibitors, there is proof that the solar industry is gaining traction. One company making news is Siemens Industry, Inc. who announced they received a multi-million dollar …
Petaluma, CA Home to New Solar System
Labcon North America, a company that specializes in manufacturing earth friendly laboratory products, announced today the completion of a $3.3 million, 800 kilowatt (kW) rooftop solar panel system. Over 2,500 solar panels were installed on the company’s 125,000 square foot building, taking up nearly half the roof. Now complete, the solar energy generated should provide nearly 30 percent of Lebcon’s …
Spain’s First Wave Power Plant Goes Online
Spain’s first wave power plant has gone into production in the Basque seaport of Mutriku, located between Bilbao and San Sebastian. The Mutriku wave power plant, consisting of 16 units, will generate an estimated 300 kilowatts in power, enough electricity to supply 250 homes. Utility Ente Vasco de la Energia (EVE) inaugurated the wave power plant today in a special …