Science and Technology:
¶ An Innovate UK-funded industry group is working on a new generation of transparent solar panel technology that matches the costs and performance of standard high-performance glazing while delivering clean, renewable energy to the buildings in which they are installed. [Power Technology]
Polysolar glass PVs.
Opinion:
¶ “US EIA Responds To CleanTechnica Letter/Criticism On Energy Forecasts” • Over 2 years ago, CleanTechnica readers wrote an open letter to the US Energy Information Administration regarding its incredibly far-off-mark energy forecasts. After two years, the EIA has responded. [CleanTechnica]
The EIA projected twelve years without solar installations starting
in 2017. Historically, EIA projections have always been wrong.
World:
¶ Shell, Europe’s largest oil company, established a new division to invest in renewable and low-carbon power. The move came days after experts at Chatham House warned international oil companies they must transform their business or face a “short, brutal” end within 10 years. [The Guardian]
¶ Wind farms in the UK produced more power than coal for a whole month for the first time in April, industry body RenewableUK pointed out. According to National Grid statistics, wind generated 2,290 GWh of electricity in April, while coal provided only 1,755 GWh. [SeeNews Renewables]
Wind farm in UK. Author: Mycatkins. License: Creative Commons. Attribution 2.0 Generic
¶ Nissan has revealed a new home energy storage product created from recycled batteries sourced from the company’s electric vehicle offerings. The move means that Nissan has now joined Tesla and Daimler in the offering of home energy storage systems in addition to electric vehicles. [CleanTechnica]
¶ Chinese companies Goldwind and CECEP Wind Power Corporation have started building the 175-MW White Rock wind farm in New South Wales. The $400-million project will be operational in the second half of 2017. Initially it will feature 70 Goldwind 2.5-MW turbines. [reNews]
Goldwind wind farm in China. Placed in the public domain by
its author, Pzavislak at English Wikipedia. Wikimedia Commons.
¶ Norway’s sovereign wealth fund, the world’s largest, plans legal action against VW over the firm’s emissions scandal. The fund’s lawyers said VW’s conduct gives rise to legal claims under German law. Volkswagen has admitted it installed secret software to cheat on emissions tests. [BBC]
¶ It has only been a week since South Australia’s last coal-fired generator closed, but already a new pattern is emerging that points the path away from “baseload” built around coal, gas or nuclear, to a new energy system built around wind and solar and other renewables. [RenewEconomy]
US:
¶ The US has signed an agreement with Denmark to strengthen cooperation on offshore wind energy. The memorandum of understanding recognizes both countries common interests in developing the technology as a clean and sustainable energy source, the US Bureau of Ocean Energy said. [reNews]
Photo by Lina Bertling.
¶ Alliant Energy is partnering on a project in Walworth County, Wisconsin, with Korean solar energy firm Hanwha Q Cells USA. The rows of solar collecting panels, 7,740 in all, are geared to tilt in electronically controlled motion to track the sun across the sky. They will have 2.3 MW of capacity. [Gazettextra]
¶ Wind-turbine service technicians, who must work at extreme heights in all sorts of weather, occupy a job category projected to expand more than any other through 2024, outpacing health care and technology, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. [Northwest Arkansas News]
Climbing the ladder in a mast.
Bloomberg News photo / Matthew Staver
¶ In the US, CO2 emissions from electricity generation totaled 1,925 million metric tons in 2015, the lowest since 1993 and 21% below their 2005 level. This was partly due to shifts in the electric generation mix, with natural gas and renewables displacing coal-fired power. [Your Renewable News]
¶ Renewables yes, nuclear no, that’s the message New York environmentalists want the state’s Public Service Commission to hear. In the public comment period on a proposed Clean Energy Standard, the environmentalists urge the state to close the state’s nuclear plants. [Public News Service]
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