Science and Technology:
¶ A new type of battery has the ability to revolutionize all the smart devices that rely on storage electricity. Harvard professors at the Engineering Faculty created a flow battery that stores the energy in primary molecules dissolved in water with a neutral pH. The new battery has a long life, losing 1% of its capacity after 1,000 charge cycles. [Stоck Nеws USА]
Flow battery in laboratory
World:
¶ According to media reports, the state government of Andhra Pradesh is considering setting up a floating solar project of 100 MW of capacity. The project could come up at Penna Ahobilam Balancing Reservoir which has a live capacity of 305 million cubic meters. The dam also has an installed capacity of 20 MW. [CleanTechnica]
¶ Enel Green Power will shortly commence construction of the largest solar power installation in South America, at 292 MW. Located in Piauí in the Brazilian state of Nova Olinda, the solar panel farm will cover 1,700 acres and will generate more than 600 GWh of electricity a year, enough to power 300,000 area homes. [CleanTechnica]
Enel solar farm in Brazil (Ciclovio image)
¶ Encouraged by Chinese and EU commitments to low carbon energy, European utilities will not reduce their renewable energy investments if US President Donald Trump lowers US climate goals, electricity lobby Eurelectric said. Trump said during the campaign he would pull the US out of the Paris agreement of 2015. [ETEnergyworld.com]
¶ The EU will need to shut all of its coal power plants in the next 15 years if it is to meet the Paris agreement’s long-term climate goals, according to a report by Climate Analytics. A stress test for coal in Europe under the Paris Agreement shows that emissions from coal in the EU’s electricity sector will need to be ended by 2031. [The Actuary]
Coal plants will have to close. (©Shutterstock)
¶ Oriental Renewable Solutions has formed a 50:50 equity partnership with GreenWish Partners to co-develop a 50-MW solar PV project in Jigawa State, Nigeria. The Jigawa solar project will have an output of around 96 GWh per year. It will create 300 jobs during construction and 25 permanent jobs during operations. [PV-Tech]
¶ The Global Wind Energy Council released its annual market statistics: the 2016 market decline somewhat from 2015. It was more than 54 GW, bringing total global installed capacity to almost 487 GW. The market was led by China, the US, Germany, and India, and it had surprisingly strong showings from France, Turkey and the Netherlands. [EU Reporter]
Wind farms continue to grow.
¶ Indian solar tariffs hit a new low of ₹2.97 per unit (4.44¢/kWh) at the completion of bidding for three 250 MW units of Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa Solar Power Plant, continuing a steady downward trend in prices. Though low tariffs are good news for consumers, experts believe that their record low levels may spell trouble for the industry. [The Hindu]
¶ Ireland is facing a bill of up to €75 million each year after official predictions that it will fall short of its EU renewable-energy targets. The country is one of only four currently in the European bloc that is expected to miss its legally binding 2020 goals, according to European Commission forecasts released this week. [thejournal.ie]
Dark times on a wind farm
¶ A remotely controlled robot sent in to inspect and clean at a damaged reactor at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant had to be pulled early when its onboard camera went dark, the result of excess radiation. The abbreviated mission suggests that radiation levels inside the reactor are even higher than was reported last week. [Gizmodo Australia]
US:
¶ Former President Jimmy Carter leased 10 acres of his land to Atlanta-based SolAmerica to develop a 1.3-MW solar farm in Plains, Georgia. The project is projected to produce more than
55 million kWh of energy in the next 25 years. The project will provide more than half of the power needs for the 683 residents of Plains. [EcoWatch]
The 1.3-MW solar farm in Plains (SolAmerica image)
¶ The EPA’s website has begun to transform under Trump’s leadership. Researchers found that Federal climate plans, tribal assistance programs, and references to international cooperation have been stricken. A mention of carbon pollution as a cause of climate change has also been removed and adaptation has been emphasized. [CleanTechnica]
¶ A New Mexico State Senator wants electric companies in New Mexico to go for low cost power sources, and he wants the state to use more renewable energy. He introduced a bill that would require publicly owned electric utilities to choose the least-costly alternative when proposing purchases of new energy sources. [New Mexico Political Report]
A solar array at Nellis Air Force Base (Photo: Wikicommons)
¶ Oklahoma added almost 1,200 MW of wind capacity in the last three months of 2016, as it passed California to take third place among the states for wind capacity. The American Wind Energy Association released its latest market report amid a policy discussion in Oklahoma over state incentives and taxes relating to wind power. [Public Radio Tulsa]
¶ Amazon Web Services has committed to getting 100% of the energy used for its cloud data centers from renewable energy sources. Amazon said it is on track to exceed its 2016 goal of 40% renewable energy use. AWS said it plans to be powered by 50% renewable energy by the end of 2017. [Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle)]
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