World:
¶ Clean energy investment capital is moving to China. China brought in 25% of the worldwide investments in solar, 37% of those in wind and 47% of other types of renewable energy, from small hydropower to geothermal. [Forbes]
¶ Crowdfunding offers all of us a new way to protect our shared environment and engage in the expansion of renewable and sustainable energy sources worldwide. Lenders can invest amounts of money as small as $25 to help support clean energy loans to individuals and small groups throughout the world. [Your Industry News]
¶ EDF, Europe’s biggest nuclear operator, faces “uncertainty” about how long it can operate its French reactors, according to the country’s regulator. Original 30-year licenses have been extended to 40-years, but there is some question about the safety of going longer. [Businessweek]
US:
¶ The U.S. Department of Agriculture has announced plans to increase energy efficiency on farms and help farmers update their technology with a proposal for streamlined applications for renewable energy funding. [Medill Reports: Chicago]
¶ The Colorado Senate passed this week a bill that aims to increase renewable energy mandates on rural electricity cooperatives from 10 to 25 percent by 2020. [Craig Daily Press]
¶ When winds are at their strongest in California, wind turbines provide the state with nearly twice as much electricity as nuclear reactors. California’s wind power capacity grew to 5,544 MW last year, making it second only to Texas, which has more than 12,000 MW of wind capacity installed. [Grist Magazine]
¶ The market for ethanol renewable identification numbers (RINs) has turned volatile this spring. Prices that had been 2¢ or 3¢ went to more than $1 briefly in March before slowly settling down to the 60-70¢ range. [Ethanol Producer Magazine]
¶ Worldwide investment in clean energy in the first quarter of 2013 was $40.6 billion, down 22% on a year earlier, due to a downturn in large wind and solar project financings. This was partly the result of policy uncertainty in key markets, and partly because of sharp declines in technology costs, among other things. [Renewable Energy Focus]
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