Opinion:
¶ “No, cheap oil will not kill solar power” Solar energy investors seem to fear that cheap oil will erase demand for alternative energy. But it won’t, say industry analysts. Oil dominates energy demand in transportation fuels, but solar power customers are primarily of two types: public electric utilities and large corporations, neither of which use oil to generate electricity. [CNBC]
Science and Technology:
¶ Comments on EVs from Renault-Nissan’s Chairman & CEO Carlos Ghosn indicated that Nissan will “very soon take the issue of range off of the table.” Jeff Cobb of Hybrid Cars says: “The company is otherwise still being vague, not ready to show what it has, but Ghosn suggested a near-ready battery to enable affordable electric cars good for as many 250 miles…” [CleanTechnica]
¶ The Jellyfish Barge, if you have not heard word about it, is one potential worldwide food and water solution, which deserves high praise. It is a holistic platform improving water and food security of coastal communities. It is a module for crop cultivation that doesn’t rely on soil, fresh water, and chemical energy consumption, according to Pnat. [CleanTechnica]
¶ A team at Rice University made a new graphene microsupercapacitor (same thing as a supercapacitor but smaller) using a process they call LIG, for laser induced graphene. They created their graphene battery on a base of plastic film. That took some doing, as it turned out that not all plastic film is equal when it comes to graphene batteries. [CleanTechnica]
World:
¶ The launch of a new coalition spearheaded by the United Nations Environment Program and focused on boosting renewable energy usage around the world was announced today as Member States head into the final three-day stretch of a major UN climate conference in Lima, Peru aimed at tackling the imminent threat of climate change. [AllAfrica.com]
¶ The region of Latin America and the Caribbean is already a global low-carbon leader in terms of power generation from hydrological and biomass resources. Declining costs, maturing technologies, and vast untapped potentials including geothermal, solar PVs, and wind offer an additional unprecedented opportunity in the region. [solarserver.com]
¶ The UK Government has approved the 1.2 GW Hornsea Project One, 64 miles off the coast of Yorkshire. Hornsea Project One will generate enough energy for over 800,000 homes.The project is expected to feature between 150 and 332 offshore wind turbines based on the size of the units selected. [CleanTechnology News, Industry Analysis, Market Research Reports – Clean Technology Business Review]
US:
¶ The U.S. is producing the most oil in 31 years, economic growth is picking up and crude prices are plunging. Nevertheless, American use of petroleum is waning. Greater efficiency is part of the cause. Another part is greater use of renewable resources. Another part is increased urbanization, particularly among younger people. [Bloomberg]
¶ Vermont will not meet its renewable energy goals unless policy changes are made, according to a report by the Shumlin administration.The Total Energy Study, prepared by the Department of Public Service, makes it clear that new policies are needed if the state wants to meet its goal of 90% renewable energy consumption by 2050. [vtdigger.org]
¶ The US Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory has announced it will work with GE and the Electric Power Research Institute on a new $8 million microgrid program. The program, which has been funded by the Energy Department, will focus on the development of seven microgrid projects. [pv magazine]
¶ As more solar and wind electric generating capacity is added in California, CAISO, the electric grid operator for most of the state, is facing an increasingly different net load shape. Net load, the total electric demand in the system minus wind and solar generation, represents the demand that CAISO must meet with other, dispatchable sources. [CleanTechnica]
¶ Three new utility-scale solar power arrays are a step closer to construction just north of the Las Vegas Valley under a new federal initiative aimed at fast-tracking renewable energy development on public land. Federal authorities have fast-tracked the three projects, which could receive final approval by spring 2015 and begin delivering power by 2016. [RenewablesBiz]
¶ The US DOE has issued the Advanced Nuclear Energy Projects loan guarantee solicitation of $12.5 billion to support innovative nuclear energy projects. The DOE’s Loan Programs Office also includes the $8 billion Advanced Fossil Energy Projects Solicitation, the $4 billion Renewable Energy and Efficient Energy Projects Solicitation, and the $16 billion Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing loan program. [PennEnergy]
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