Opinion:
¶ “U.S. falling behind on renewable energy” – Solar and wind facilities are growing exponentially in the US, but we are far behind China and European countries. China’s wind power is about one-third larger and increasing much faster than the US. China’s solar PV power is more than 20 times that of the US. [Roanoke Times]
¶ “Green is the best defense” – The US military has always been driven by innovation, developing technology often in tandem with the private sector to solve wartime military problems. Today, the same Armed Forces that invented the internet and GPS has turned its attention to energy technology. [Seacoastonline.com]
World:
¶ Residents from a UK village at the heart of the battle over fracking are in a new effort. The Repower Balcombe renewable energy co-operative would put solar PVs on two village schools but need to raise £49,000 through sales of shares to local people in less than a month, before Government incentives expire. [The Argus]
¶ The Union Minister of State for Power and Coal, Mr Piyush Goyal, said that the Power Grid Corporation of India will invest $4,816 million to improve transmission infrastructure from northern states to southern states. Other investments would provide $160 million in rural infrastructure and $58 million for nine towns. [SteelGuru]
¶ Launching Ireland’s largest ever wind farm this week, on isolated bogland at Mountlucas in Kildare, the head of Bord na Mona’s energy generation division said he expected returns “in the high teens”. He expects double-digit returns over the course of its lifetime, and it should pay for itself in 7 or 8 years. [Irish Independent]
¶ The Swiss-engineered airplane Solar Impulse 2 will begin its solar-powered flight around the world early on Monday morning, weather permitting. The plane was scheduled to launch earlier this month, but was delayed due to weather conditions. The flight should take around five months to complete. [The Verge]
¶ A wind-powered car might be science fantasy, but residents of Orkney have discovered the nearest thing. With their wealth of renewable energy, the islanders have become the keenest users of electric vehicles in Scotland outside the capital. The tiny community of just over 20,000 already has 50 EVs. [Scotsman]
¶ More than 5,000 protesters gathered outside Parliament in London calling on the Government to take tougher action on climate change. Crowds of environmental activists cheered as a host of speakers including Vivienne Westwood and Caroline Lucas attacked the Government and accused it of not taking action. [Belfast Telegraph]
¶ Key players from the Philippine government and the private sector are drawing up a blueprint to make Mindanao a greener region. During a recent meeting of the Mindanao Power Monitoring Committee, officials underscored the importance of advocating renewable energy as a source of electricity for the island-region. [Philippine Star]
¶ China’s wind farms have a combined capacity that exceeds the capacity of America’s nuclear plants, as the growing nation expands its power generation to fuel its new mega-cities. The capacity of the wind farms in China comes to 115,000 MW. America’s nuclear reactors have a total combined capacity of 98,400 MW. [Digital Journal]
US:
¶ Community solar gardens first took off in Colorado a few years ago, and the model, also known as community or shared solar, has spread to Minnesota, California, Massachusetts and several other states. Capacity is expected to grow sharply this year, with interest among both residential and corporate customers. [Fairfield Daily Republic]
¶ The prospective GOP presidential candidates at today’s Iowa Ag Summit were pressed to express their opinions on everything from federal policies that have boosted ethanol production to expanded trade with Cuba. Each candidate answered a series of questions from the event host, an Iowa agribusiness man. [Radio Iowa]
¶ This week saw announcements of significant cost savings for SolarCity, a major advanced energy investment from Citigroup, and a move into Mexico for Pattern Energy. So, costs are down, investment is up, and Advanced Energy Economy members are taking their influence worldwide. [Energy Collective]
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