World:
¶ According to the Worldwatch Institute, support policies for renewable energy technologies have increased dramatically over the last decade. The number has grown from 48 countries having policies in place in mid-2005 to 127 as of early 2013. [EcoSeed]
¶ German Environment Minister Peter Altmaier expects German solar panel installations to nearly halve this year, showing that efforts to curb subsidies and get solar expansion under control have yielded results. [Reuters UK]
¶ Hitting a target of 22 GW of installed solar capacity in the UK by 2020 will impact less than 0.29% of the nation’s agricultural land, according to research by PV operator Lightsource Renewable Energy. [reNews]
¶ Siemens, the world’s number three maker of wind turbines, expects the global market to be more than quadrupled by 2030, lifted by strong growth in Asia. They see globally installed wind power capacity increasing from 273 GW in 2012 to 1,107 GW in 2030. [CITY A.M.]
¶ First Solar has sold three solar projects in Ontario totalling 50 MW to an investment partnership led by GE Energy Financial Services. Output from the PV plants will be sold to Ontario Power Authority with 20-year power purchase agreements. [reNews]
¶ An officer of the King Abdullah city for Atomic and Renewable Energy says Saudi Arabia could become a leader in renewable energy by building 16 nuclear reactors by 2030 at an estimated cost of $100 billion and with a combined capacity of 22 GW. [Hindu Business Line]
¶ The Japanese government will lead “emergency measures” to tackle radioactive water spills at the wrecked Fukushima No. 1 nuclear plant, wresting control of the disaster recovery from the plant’s heavily criticized operator, Tokyo Electric Power Co. [The Japan Times]
US:
¶ Senators Chuck Grassley (R-IA) and Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) are asking the Department of Justice and the Federal Trade Commission to investigate possible anticompetitive practices by oil companies that limit consumers’ access to “homegrown renewable fuels.” [National Hog Farmer]
¶ The biofuels industry is pushing back against ad campaigns the oil-and-gas industry has been running in Ohio for years, launching a campaign against what it calls an attempt to “stop the growth of clean, green renewable fuels to protect their own bottom lines.” [Youngstown Vindicator]
¶ There is a proposal in the works to store and recycle nuclear waste in Mississippi. The Mississippi Energy Institute gave a presentation to the Senate Economic Development Committee Monday for an above-ground interim storage facility. [WDAM-TV]
¶ A radiation monitor at the Vermont Yankee nuclear plant showed faulty readings last week, a continuation of a problem that has plagued the plant several times this summer. [Vermont Public Radio]
¶ Friends of the Coast/New England Coalition reached a settlement agreement with the owners of the Seabrook nuclear plant regarding the remaining active contention against the plant’s operating license renewal. This may clear the way for a license extension. [Exeter News-Letter]
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