Opinion:
¶ “How the jaw-dropping fall in solar prices will change energy markets” • Every time solar prices have been bid lower, they have been met with howls of derision by less cost-competitive rivals. The multiple bids for solar power below $30/MWh on a 350-MW tender in Abu Dhabi suggest the projects are financially viable. [RenewEconomy]
Abengoa solar plant in Chile (Photo from Ministerio
Bienes Nacionales, CC BY SA, Wikimedia Commons)
World:
¶ According to Navigant Research’s Wind Turbine Order Tracker 3Q16, published this week, Vestas received 3.5 GW of wind turbine orders during the first six months of 2016, leading all other vendors in terms of orders received. In total, during the first half of the year, global wind turbine orders came to nearly 13.5 GW. [CleanTechnica]
¶ Talking to an Indian media outlet, Suzlon Energy’s Chief Technology Officer said that his company will soon become the first in India to set up projects in which solar, wind, and storage capacities will be integrated. Suzlon Energy will take first steps towards research and development in this regard next year, he said. [CleanTechnica]
Suzlon turbine in Minnesota.
¶ SaskPower works in partnership with the First Nations Power Authority on a third of the large solar power projects it plans to roll out over the next five years. This could have significant economic benefits for the province. SaskPower said it plans to add 60 MW of solar PV generation to the province’s electrical grid by 2021. [Saskatoon StarPhoenix]
¶ During the Berlin InnoTrans trade show, France’ Alstom unveiled the Coradia iLint, the world’s first hydrogen-powered passenger train, and it is bound to make its home in Germany. The train essentially emissions-free, and the only sounds it makes come from air resistance and the wheels making contact with the track. [German Pulse]
Alstom iLint (Alstom image)
¶ China’s Premier Li Keqiang will fly to Havana on Saturday to talk about boosting economic cooperation in areas ranging from finance to telecommunications and energy. Today, Cuba produces just 4% of its energy from renewable sources. The government is committed to increase that to 24% by 2030, with help from China. [CCTV-America]
US:
¶ With the cost of harnessing the power of the sun finally becoming competitive with other energy sources, solar panels are popping up on roofs all over the Chippewa Valley in western Wisconsin, but perhaps the most noticeable developments are the huge, utility-operated solar gardens sprouting around the region. [Leader-Telegram]
Lambs graze among solar panels (Staff photo by Marisa Wojcik)
¶ Amazon Wind Farm Texas will be made up of more than 100 wind turbines, generating a maximum capacity of 253 MW, or 1,000,000 MWh of wind energy each year, enough energy to power almost 90,000 US homes. The new wind farm is the company’s largest wind project to date. It is scheduled to be completed in late 2017. [CleanTechnica]
¶ According to a recent announcement from Enel Green Power North America, a leading owner and operator of renewable energy projects in North America, the company is nearing 1 GW of installed wind energy capacity in Oklahoma. The company’s relationship with the state began only four years ago with the Rocky Ridge wind farm. [CleanTechnica]
Enel’s Rocky Ridge wind farm in Oklahoma
¶ Hawaiian Electric Co has flipped the switch on its first large-scale battery storage system on Oahu at its Campbell Industrial Park power plant. The 1-MW system is a joint demonstration project by the Hawaii Natural Energy Institute at the University of Hawaii and the state’s largest utility. [Pacific Business News (Honolulu)]
¶ In a scathing report, the state auditor said California’s energy regulator appears to be improperly influenced by utilities in its decision-making, and ignores state rules when handing out contracts. One of several issues was negotiations in the 2013 shutdown of the Son Onofre nuclear power plant in San Diego County. [Courthouse News Service]
geoharvey 
September 25, 2016 at 4:55 pm
Reblogged this on nuclear-news.