Archive for November 28th, 2013

November 28 Energy News

November 28, 2013

Opinion:

¶   “The Cost Of Nuclear Is Still Unknown, But The Cost Of Solar Is Known” The cost of nuclear projects are hard to understand exactly, partly because it takes a long time to build a nuclear power plant. The comparison with solar costs is revealing. [CleanTechnica]

World:

¶   Renewable energy investment company Low Carbon has announced that it will collaborate with Macquarie Capital on a solar farm portfolio of up to 300 MW. The first phase will include three solar farms in Cornwall and Wales totaling 25.7 MW. [Solar Power Portal]

¶   Jordan Wind Project Company has signed a financing agreement to begin construction of the Middle East’s first utility-scale wind-power project. The Tafila Wind Farm will have a power capacity by 117 MW. [Zawya]

¶   Germany is increasing its renewable energy targets under a grand coalition agreement by the country’s two major political parties, but is also toying with the idea of introducing the concept of  “virtual base-load”. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The UK got a record share of electricity from renewable sources in April to June this year, the government’s latest statistics show. A record 15.5% of electricity was generated from renewable sources between April and June. [Carbon Brief]

¶   The World Bank and United Nations on Wednesday appealed for billions of dollars to provide electricity for the poorest nations but said there would be no investment in nuclear power. The focus is hydro, geothermal, solar, wind, and efficiency. [Tuoitrenews]

US:

¶   The Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority announced it would participate in a regional effort to reduce non-hardware or “soft” costs for PV systems in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. [Energy Business Review]

¶   South Carolina utility SCG&E, which has been criticized in the past for a lack of interest in renewable power, has plans to develop five solar farms in the state. It will start with a 2 MW farm near the Lake Murray dam. [The State]

¶   The leading plaintiffs in a lawsuit that put all US nuclear plant licensing decisions on hold a year ago have been hinting that the legal battle over the NRC’s waste confidence rule is far from finished because the new proposals are critically flawed. [National Journal]

¶   A court ruling found in favor of a proposed nuclear plant in Utah. The judge said the plant was allowed to use the Green River, and that there is reason to believe that the project will not be detrimental to the public welfare. [fox13now.com]