geoharvey

Science and Technology:

¶   Researchers in Spain, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia have developed a system to produce hydrogen from water and sunlight in a way that is clean, renewable and more cost-effective than other methods. [Nanotechnology News]

¶   A unique solar panel design made with a new ceramic material points the way to cheaper sustainable power with less manufacturing time. It also reaches an old goal of discovering a PV material that can use energy from visible and infrared light, not just ultraviolet light. [Science Daily]

¶   An algorithmic approach to grid analysis, developed by UC Santa Barbara professor Igor Mezic along with Yoshihiko Susuki from Kyoto University, can predict future massive instabilities in the power grid and make power outages a thing of the past. [Science Daily]

World:

¶   Oman holds out huge solar and wind energy potential. Several huge renewable energy projects are in the pipeline. The Public Authority for Electricity and Water is also planning to use renewable energy resources to provide potable water supplies in some remote areas. [Omanet.com]

¶   New data from Greenpeace show that while the coal industry has been busy hyping up a coal “renaissance,” coal consumption in the EU peaked one and half years ago, and in just the first half of 2013 it was down 8% compared to a year ago. So much for the renaissance. [Energy Collective]

US:

¶   A market mechanism called renewable energy credits, or RECs, makes it possible for producers to sell green power across the country to consumers who cannot or do not want to put panels on their roofs. [The Desert Sun]

¶   The average American family spends about $10,000 a year for transportation, according to Author Elly Blue’s new book Bikenomics. By biking, walking, and riding public transportation, a great deal of money could be saved by consumers. [CleanTechnica]

¶   According to a new survey from the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) and Consumers Union, 42% of current American drivers can use EVs with little change to driving habits or costly home charging infrastructure. [CleanTechnica]

¶   The shale revolution will not meet conventional expectations. More than 3,500 wells have been drilled in the Haynesville play, which in 2012 was the top-producing shale gas play in the U.S., yet production is falling owing to the 47% yearly field decline rate. [Resilience]

¶   Dupont senior vice president James C. Collins Jr. testified before the Senate’s Committee on Environment and Public Works, saying that changing the renewable fuel standard (RFS) would hurt his company because it had invested hundreds of millions based the RFS. [Philly.com]

¶   Two reports just issued on the Columbia Generating Station are very different. One says continuing to operate the nuclear power plant is needlessly costing utilities more than $1 billion; the other says it will save them more than $1 billion. [Bellingham Herald]

Science and Technology:

¶   According to Nobel prize winner Carlo Rubbia, the sort of risk analyses that is used for nuclear power are simply insufficient. The analyses are based on probabilities. But Fukushima showed that these calculations simply don’t work in the real world. [Ars Technica]

¶   Nobel laureate Dr. George Olah and Surya Prakash, director of the University of Southern California’s Loker Hydrocarbon Research Institute, hope to use solar power to create methanol efficiently from carbon dioxide and hydrogen, making it the alternative fuel of the future. [Green Car Reports]

World:

¶   More than 3300 MW of wind and solar installations and biomass stations that go online in Ontario between December 2013 and May 2015 will be used to offset the loss of about 2,150 MW in generation capacity from the shutdown of coal-fired generators. [Canadian Manufacturing]

¶   Echoing the beliefs of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, a government panel has advised the central government, “Japan should embrace nuclear power as an ‘important and fundamental’ energy source.” [The Japan Daily Press]

US:

¶   Solar panels were installed on more American residential rooftops in the third quarter of 2013 than any other quarter in history, pushing US installed solar capacity over the 10-gigawatt (GW) milestone and potentially ahead of Germany for the first time. [Energy Collective]

¶   Wind energy is on the rise in Ohio and is providing huge environmental benefits for the state. That’s according to Wind Energy for a Cleaner America, a new report released by Environment Ohio. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   Some conservative leaders in the Kansas Legislature say they will try again during the next session to stop the state from any further efforts to require utilities to provide more wind power. [Kansas City Star]

¶   After failing in last year’s legislative sessions in 30 states, ALEC is taking new aim at state renewable energy programs. One state where the attack is particularly strong is North Carolina. The organization has drawn charges of illegal lobbying by a nonprofit. [Facing South]

¶   GE Energy Financial Services has completed an equity investment in EDF Renewable Energy’s Catalina Solar plant, one of the world’s largest photovoltaic plants, located in the Mojave Desert, southwest of the Tehachapi Mountains in Rosamond, California. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   The US DOE has issued an $8 billion solicitation in loan guarantees for fossil energy projects intended to help reduce greenhouse gas emissions. It is meant to fund advanced fossil energy programs for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. [ExecutiveGov]

Science and Technology:

¶   Giant offshore wind farms could do more than provide electricity for major cities. They could suck the life and the power out of hurricanes barreling toward those cities, too, according to Stanford University research. [EarthTechling]

¶   Weather predictions may be inexact, but they can help make wind energy more powerful. IBM researchers are testing an approach using sensors, advanced imaging technologies and sophisticated analytics to make forecasts of wind conditions far more accurate, ahead of time. [Business Green]

World:

¶   China is looking to switch the emphasis of its booming domestic solar market towards the “distributed” market – essentially rooftop and small, local, plants – rather than large, utility-scale solar farms. [CleanTechnica]

¶   The past few weeks have brought new wind generation records in Ireland, the United Kingdom, and Germany, with the last resulting from winter storm Xaver, which blasted northern Europe late last week. [RenewEconomy]

¶   European energy ministers have blocked an attempt by the UK government to allow biofuels to count double towards the 2020 renewable energy target. The UK ranked 25 out of 27 of the EU member states in their progress towards meeting their individual targets. [Windpower Monthly]

¶   NIB and UPM-Kymmene Corp. have signed a €50 million loan agreement to construct the world’s first industrial biorefinery producing wood-based renewable diesel in Lappeenranta, Finland. [4-traders]

¶   A full-scale investigation is being launched into whether Britain’s deal with French nuclear giant EDF, backed with money from Chinese nuclear generators, to build new stations at Hinkley Point in the west of England, is illegal state aid. [eco-business.com]

US:

¶   Wind energy is on the rise in Illinois and is providing huge environmental benefits for the state. Illinois’ wind energy is already avoiding more than 4.6 million metric tons of climate-altering carbon pollution – the equivalent of taking 971,000 cars off the road. [Saukvalley]

¶   With critical federal tax incentives set to expire on December 31, Environment New York, the National Wildlife Federation, and over 230 other organizations and elected officials urged the Obama administration to take action to facilitate the development of offshore wind power.[Long Island Exchange]

¶   The word is in from a year-long process to discuss Michigan’s energy future that included policy makers, a broad coalition of stakeholders, and thousands of state residents: Michigan should continue its commitment to renewable energy. [The Equation: Blog of the Union of Concerned Scientists]

¶   A bipartisan group of senators including Dianne Feinstein and Tom Coburn have introduced legislation to eliminate the corn ethanol mandate in the EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard, citing impacts on the cost of food and animal feed. [Farm Futures]

¶   The US DOE will give a small company in Corvallis, Ore., up to $226 million to advance the design of tiny nuclear reactors that would be installed under water, making meltdown far less likely and enabling nuclear power for small grids. [New York Times]

World:

¶   The John Lewis Partnership is the latest UK retailer to commit to reducing carbon emissions by switching to renewable energy. More than 380 stores will be supplied with 100% renewable electricity by energy supplier SmartestEnergy. [Responding to Climate Change]

¶   The Australian Energy Market Operator has released its 2013 National Transmission Network Development Plan report, predicting a coal supply surplus and undermining claims of a renewables transmission cost blowout. [Business Spectator]

¶   So far, 10,752 Indian villages have been electrified using various renewable energy systems. Over 29 GW of renewable capacity has been installed in India, including nearly 20 GW of windpower, almost 4 GW each of small hydro and bio energy, and 2 GW of solar. [Myiris.com]

¶   No fewer than 98,000 Nigerian women die annually from smokes inhaled during cooking with firewood, an official of the Federal Ministry of Environment, Bahijjahtu Abubakar, has said. [AllAfrica.com]

¶   International environmental group Greenpeace is urging Filipinos to make the world’s biggest fossil fuel companies answerable for adverse climate change impacts causing extreme weather conditions such as super typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan). [InterAksyon]

¶   South Korea will start a winter campaign on Monday to curb peak power demand as a quarter of its nuclear units are offline, including one shut as planned on Thursday for maintenance. [Reuters AlertNet]

US:

¶   Almost 30,000 Coloradans signed a petition that was delivered to Xcel Energy executives asking the company to withdraw its proposal to reduce the current credit rate for solar power generated by homeowners’ rooftop systems from 10.5 cents per kWh to 4.6 cents per kWh. [Huffington Post]

¶   While the EPA has been putting limits on renewable fuel for passenger vehicles, the US Navy is moving full steam ahead to use renewable fuel in their ships and planes, in a program is called Farm-to-Fleet, a cooperative effort with the USDA. [Hoosier Ag Today]

¶   Vermont regulators have ordered the Washington Electric Co-operative to suspend its net metering program, saying the small utility is violating state law. The issue is a 5 kW limit imposed by the co-op because it had reached a 4% limit for required net-metering. [WAMC]

¶   After initial studies using pilot equipment, the US Army is planning on moving West Point to 100% self-sufficiency in power generation. The technologies to be used include several types of solar power, heat pumps, and others. [EarthTechling]

¶   Ratepayers in the Northwest could save at least $1.7 billion over the next 17 years if the Columbia Generating Station nuclear power plant on the Hanford Nuclear Reservation in Washington State is closed, according to a new report by McCullough Research. [The Lund Report]

World:

¶   Suzlon subsidiary Repower has signed contracts to deliver 103 wind turbines with a total capacity of over 266 MW to 24 community projects in the Schleswig-Holstein region of Germany. [reNews]

¶   Evermore Renewable Energy has begun work on a 15.8 MWe biomass renewable power plant being built on a Londonderry Port and Harbour Commissioners site. The £81 million CHP plant will generate enough electricity to power 25,000 homes and businesses. [Energy Business Review]

¶   Allowing farmers to use renewable energy technology on their land will help the nation meet its future food and energy needs, experts suggest. By generating on-farm electricity, farmers would be able to cut their costs of producing food. [BBC News]

¶   The Chinese government said it was facing the difficult task of keeping its economy thriving while respecting the environment. With the IEA warning of an unstable future, the world’s climate outlook may hinge on the development of major Asian economies. [OilPrice.com]

¶   In a welcome piece of good news for the Australian renewable energy industry, efforts to close the $10 billion Clean Energy Finance Corporation have been thwarted in the Senate, and the innovative green investment bank is set to continue at least until next July. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development has announced that it will be introducing a new strategy to help countries switch from coal as a source of energy to cleaner, renewable technologies. [Blue & Green Tomorrow]

US:

¶   Sapphire Energy, one of the world leaders in algae-based Green Crude oil production, and Phillips 66, an integrated energy manufacturing and logistics company,  announced a strategic joint development agreement for algae crude oil commercialization. [Your Industry News]

¶   The Ross Solar Group has completed New York City’s largest rooftop solar installation for Jetro Cash and Carry in the Bronx. The 1.56-megawatt system is also the first to integrate a supervisory control and data acquisition. [Your Renewable News]

¶   Texas’ Competitive Renewable Energy Zone transmission build-out, representing nearly $7 billion in investment, is on track to completion. The final lines are expected to be energized by month’s end, eventually carrying 18.5 GW from wind farms to cities in eastern Texas. [North American Windpower]

¶   Over the next two decades, natural gas and renewable energy, particularly wind and solar, will provide all new power generation for the primary electricity grid in Texas , a new study predicts. [Austin American-Statesman]

¶   Duke’s Energy’s will have the Crystal River nuclear plant “placed in a safe, stable condition for 60 years until decommissioning work is completed in 2074,” according to a plan submitted to federal authorities for tearing down the troubled facility. [Orlando Sentinel]

Opinion:

¶   “Renewable Energy, an Aging Electricity Grid, and the Solutions that Matter” The grid is old. With or without renewables, we must spend money updating it. One way or the other, we need to make major upgrades to the way we generate, transport, and store electricity. [The Equation: Blog of the Union of Concerned Scientists]

¶   “How Much Are Solar and Wind Really Contributing?” In the end it’s generation that counts. Here are some good-looking charts that show the progress of solar and wind capacity and generation in the United States. [EarthTechling]

World:

¶   As eastern China suffered record high levels of air pollution, Chinese fossil fuel shares slid whilst environmental protection stocks received a boost. The smog has been blamed on coal-burning, factories, car exhausts and weather patterns. [Blue & Green Tomorrow]

¶   India wants to boost its nuclear power-generation to cut dependence on imported fossil fuels, but there’s one problem: global companies don’t want to sell India the equipment it needs to run nuclear power-plants under existing rules. [Wall Street Journal]

¶   Britain has proposed a way to lower the European Union’s 2020 target for renewable energy by counting the contribution from biofuels twice, once in an overall renewable energy target, and once in a transport fuel target. [The Guardian]

¶   This week the UK Government announced a 5% cut in subsidies for onshore wind developments, heralded by many as a damaging blow to the industry. The changes are likely to shift the pattern of demand rather than lead to its demise, according to one expert. [Your Renewable News]

¶   South Korea is looking to scale back plans to rely on nuclear power, but growing energy demand and the shutdown of aging reactors mean it will still likely need to build new nuclear-fired plants in the next two decades. [Reuters UK]

US:

¶   With coal plant retirement news from Maryland and Pennsylvania last week, one-third of all coal-fired power plants in the country are now scheduled for retirement, bringing the total up to 158 of the nation’s 523 coal-fired power plants. [Fierce Energy]

¶   Analysts expect a phenomenal growth for renewable solar power over the next two decades, after huge gains in the past two years: 60% growth in 2012 and 30% on top of that this year. [Times LIVE]

¶   Farmers Electric Cooperative of southeastern Iowa will soon be leading the nation in solar power. A new solar array will bring the to over 1,500 Watts of solar per customer on their system, nearly double the #2 utility. It’s also the most reliable utility in Iowa. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The Union of Concerned Scientists released new findings on viability of US coal generators, showing nearly 59 GW of coal power capacity are not cost competitive when compared with natural gas, and more than 71 GW are uneconomic when compared with wind power. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The price of new power purchase agreements for wind farms and new solar projects in the US continue to defy all expectations, making some energy experts wonder why anyone would contemplate a new fossil-fuel plant. [RenewEconomy]

¶   New England’s governors have signed an agreement committing their six states to an energy initiative they say is designed to bring affordable, cleaner and more reliable power to homes and businesses across the northeast. [Solar Industry]

¶   A study this month by Synapse Energy Economics Inc., finds that 900 MW of renewable energy on the Navajo Nation to replace one-third of the coal-fired Navajo Generating Station will provide as many jobs as are lost at the plant and the mine that fuels it. [Arizona Capitol Times]

Science and Technology:

¶   In contrast to the whizz bang high-tech stuff, constructed wetlands are just that: engineered swamps where naturally occurring microorganisms digest the organic material in municipal wastewater, pulling out harmful substances as well as cutting down on the nutrient load. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Ocean acidification is a big problem for many marine life forms, particularly shellfish and animals that depend on these creatures. That means it’s a big problem for us. The ocean, after all, is a vital food source for over 1 billion people depend on it every day for their protein. [Energy Collective]

World:

¶   Dong Energy, which claims to be the world’s biggest wind farm developer, says it is very upbeat on new investment in the North Sea. This comes days after the UK Government announced a better than expected subsidy regime for large offshore wind farms. [Greenwise Business]

¶   Plans to give UK communities a greater say over wind turbine proposals are deeply flawed and will make smaller renewable energy schemes prohibitively expensive, according to Bristol-based consultancy Sanderson Weatherall, which advises  on renewable energy schemes. [North Somerset Business Leader]

¶   The Indonesian-Swedish Initiative for Sustainable Energy Solutions will be working to assist the Indonesian government in developing its renewable energy policy, including reducing the damage to tropical forests caused by excessive development of oil palm plantations. [Jakarta Post]

¶   Britain’s coal-fired power producer Drax opened its coal-to-biomass conversion plant as part of a £700 million project to clean up emissions from the country’s biggest coal power station. The plant will have three of the six generating units converted to burn biomass in place of coal. [Interactive Investor]

¶   General Electric, the biggest maker of wind turbines in the US, says it will be making an investment of over $5 billion in building a 3,000 MW wind power plant in Turkey. The wind farm will more than double Turkey’s installed wind capacity. [Green Prophet]

¶   French group Areva has signed a cooperation deal with China General Nuclear Power Corporation to work on offshore wind projects in both China and Europe. The effort will look for other opportunities including solar power, biomass, and storage technology. [Recharge]

¶   Outdoor radiation levels reached their highest at Japan’s Fukushima nuclear power plant, warned the operator company. Local media said radiation found in an area near a steel pipe that connects reactor buildings could kill an exposed person in 20 minutes. [Tasnim News Agency]

US:

¶   At least 29 major companies operating in the US factored a price on carbon into their long-term business planning. And in 2010, the Obama Administration released the government’s estimates for that same price, to be used as a factor in rulemaking decisions by federal agencies. [CleanTechnica]

¶   U.S. Rep. Annie Kuster, D-NH, is co-sponsoring legislation to create a national Renewable Electricity Standard. Kuster wants to require utility companies to produce at least 25% of their power from renewable energy sources like wind, solar and biomass by 2025. [Seacoastonline.com]

Opinion:

¶   “What we owe our kids on climate” Science has brought us incredible gifts: life-saving vaccines and clean water, air travel and instant communication. We have our ancestors to thank. But will our descendants thank us? [CNN]

¶   “1 Huge Sign That Fossil Fuels Are in Trouble” How do you know when a fringe financial idea has become mainstream? When Bloomberg starts including it on its terminals and some of the biggest companies in the world start pricing it into their models. [DailyFinance]

World:

¶   Chinese state news has announced that the country’s on-grid solar power capacity will reach 10 GW by the end of 2013, a 200% increase from a year ago, based on figures forecast by the National Energy Administration. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Australia has passed through another significant solar milestone, reaching 3 GW of solar PV this month, as Queensland nudged the 1 GW mark and states such as South Australia reached household penetration rates of 25 per cent. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The Energy and Resources Institute, a global independent research organisation with its headquarters in Delhi, India, has inaugurated a biomass-based village electrification and cold storage project in the Indian district of Sitapur. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   Electric power rates in the Philippines are among the highest in Asia, and the country remains dependent on imported coal, which makes it vulnerable to the volatility of international fuel markets. Renewable energy is a solution to these problems and others. [Business Mirror]

¶   Renewable energy from solar and wind turbine is not only an excellent power alternative for the future but it can also revolutionize electricity generation in Malaysian state of Sabah, says Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Datuk Dr Ewon Ebin. [Bernama]

¶   Inspectors from the Japanese Nuclear Regulation Authority have started an on-site survey to determine whether crush zones beneath the Mihama nuclear plant are active faults. If so, operator Kansai Electric Power Co. will be forced to decommission the plant’s reactors. [The Japan News]

US:

¶   The average price for a new car in November 2013 (in the US) was $32,769, according to Kelley Blue Book. After the federal tax rebate of $7,500 (yes, it makes complete sense to include this), almost every plug-in electric car on the market is actually cheaper than that. [CleanTechnica]

¶   The Public Service Company of New Mexico has completed a solar project near La Luz. Located down the road from an elementary school, the project, which will supply sufficient power for about 2450 homes, is one of several in New Mexico that can be objects of education. [Alamogordo Daily News]

¶   Enel Green Power’s Cove Fort geothermal power plant has begun operations. The 25 MW binary cycle plant is expected to produce about 160 gigawatt-hours of energy per year, which will go to the Salt River Project – a public utility serving parts of central Arizona. [EarthTechling]

World:

¶   The Canadian federal government, in partnership with the First Nations Power Authority of Saskatchewan, is taking steps to develop renewable energy projects in Saskatchewan. The government is providing funding for small-scale demonstration projects. [Regina Leader-Post]

¶   Egypt is moving to increase the use of solar energy for street lighting in order to reduce the country’s rising electricity consumption, officials told Al-Shorfa. The Ministry of Electricity is promoting solar energy in all provinces, starting with Cairo. [Al-Shorfa]

¶   China and France will jointly explore the international nuclear power market, while pushing ahead with existing nuclear projects. This was announced by Premier Li Keqiang and visiting French Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault at a news briefing. [Chinadaily USA]

US:

¶   Mitsubishi is reportedly going to decrease the price of its i-MiEV electric vehicle by $6,130 from its 2012 price of $29,900 (before incentives). It will be introduced as the 2014 i-MiEV, selling for $22,995 before the $7,500 federal EV tax credit ($15,495 after that). [CleanTechnica]

¶   The Appellate Division of New York’s Supreme Court has thrown out a lawsuit brought by fossil fuel industry interests. The suit was designed to kneecap a 9-state power plant pollution-cutting program called the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative. [Natural Resources Defense Council]

¶   More than two dozen of the nation’s biggest corporations, including the five major oil companies, are planning their future growth on the expectation that the government will force them to pay a price for carbon pollution as a way to control global warming. [New York Times]

¶   With a change in policy, wind farms and other projects that obtain a permit and do everything possible to avoid killing the birds will be legal protection from prosecution for killing bald and golden eagles for up to 30 years. [Huffington Post]

¶   Burbank Water and Power, a municipal utility, aims to obtain 66% of electricity from renewable sources by 2025. To meet the state goal, BWP is building a single integrated system to manage forecasting, generation, voltage and switching to optimize available resources. [Greentech Media]

¶   Vermont-based municipal utility Burlington Electric Department (BED) has reached an agreement with renewable energy company First Wind to buy power from the planned 54 MW Hancock Wind project near Ellsworth, Maine. [Renew Grid]

¶   Over 140 stakeholders testified at a hearing Thursday on the Environmental Protection Agency proposal to lower the biofuels targets under the Renewable Fuel Standard in 2014,  in a hearing that went on for twelve hours. [AgWired]

¶   Seeking more support for coal-burning power plants, the American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity has issued a statement claiming natural gas and renewables threaten the grid saying they are not as reliable as coal, too costly, and lack capacity to deliver as needed. [Smart Grid News]

Opinion:

¶   “When Lockheed Martin Goes Green, It’s Game Over For Fossil Fuels” Lockheed recently teamed up with the green energy innovator Concord Blue Energy to take that company’s waste-to-energy technology global, and that is just a start. [CleanTechnica]

¶   “Green Elephants: The Famous Conservatives Vocally Supporting Clean Energy” Conservatives have reasons to be green. Just to start, a one million dollar investment in solar or wind creates nearly 10 jobs, compared to less than 4 in oil and gas. And there is more. [Huffington Post]

World:

¶   A new partnership between DONG Energy and Schneider Electrics aims at increasing renewable penetration, balancing grids and reducing carbon emissions. The goal is grid stability and reliability using renewables managed by a virtual power plant system. [HispanicBusiness.com]

¶   Capital Power has started commercial operation at the 105 MW Port Dover & Nanticoke wind farm in southwestern Ontario. The project was completed on time and under its C$340 million budget, with final costs expected to be approximately C$315 million. [reNews]

¶   New figures show China is adding clean, renewable electricity generation faster than it is expanding capacity of more polluting sources. But change can’t happen fast enough for residents in eastern China, who are now choking on soupy air. [Wall Street Journal]

¶   Nuclear energy will continue to be a key power source for Japan, according to the basic energy plan the central government intends to compile by the end of December. The plan will likely call for a reduction in the overall ratio for power generated by nuclear energy. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   President Obama has set all US government agencies a 20% renewable energy generation target by 2020. Agencies must draw not less than 10% of their electricity from renewables by 2015, 15% in 2016 and 2017, 17.5% in 2018 and 2019 and not less than 20% by 2020. [PV-Tech]

¶   Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced $30 million in funding available under the NY-Sun Competitive Photovoltaic Program to further stimulate large-scale solar and biogas projects in the Hudson Valley and New York City. [HispanicBusiness.com]

¶   Texas is the nation’s largest wind power producer. The money earned in Texas from the wind production tax credit exceeded the amount paid by more than $394 million in 2012, according to a study by the Institute for Energy Research. [San Antonio Express]

¶   Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) took to Washington’s streets on Thursday to push for the reform of a government biofuel program. The EPA’s Renewable Fuel Standard increases the price of corn, Welch says, which has impacts on food and energy prices across the country. [The Hill]

¶   Rhode Island regulators have granted a key approval for Deepwater Wind’s onshore cable works for the 30 MW Block Island offshore wind pilot project, allowing the developer to make landfall at Scarborough State Beach, in return for $1.7 million in compensation. [reNews]

¶   For over 12 hours Thursday, the EPA held a public hearing that offered a platform for interested parties to present data, views and arguments on the proposal to lower the mandated volume obligations under the Renewable Fuels Standards for 2014. [Feedstuffs]

¶   UniStar Nuclear Energy is completely withdrawing its application to build a third nuclear power plant at Nine Mile Point on Lake Ontario. The company told the NRC that the reason was because Nine Mile Point 3 was not selected for federal loan guarantees. [The Republic]

Opinion:

¶   If the marginal cost of solar and wind energy is close enough to zero (because there is no fuel cost), then the energy price in a 100 per cent wind and solar market is going to be zero – at least in the current market structure. But who would invest? [RenewEconomy]

World:

¶   A group of academics whose views on green energy underpinned a central plank of the Better Together campaign has published a shock U-turn report arguing that independence now offers the best way to meet Scotland’s renewables targets. [Herald Scotland]

¶   The Scottish National Party has condemned the UK government for failing to recognize the different needs of Scotland’s islands when introducing an energy strike price further to today’s announcements of the support prices for electricity generation. [SNP]

¶   The National Trust for Ireland, will go to the High Court in London for a two-day hearing to challenge the legality of the UK’s decision to grant permission to build and operate a new, two-reactor nuclear power station at Hinkley Point, Somerset, 150 miles from the Irish coast. [Agriland]

US:

¶   SunEdison, one of the world’s largest solar energy providers, last week introduced an innovative renewable energy project in partnership New York City. Mayor Bloomberg and SunEdison officials unveiled the partnership to build the City’s largest solar energy project. [EIN News]

¶   Last week, a committee in Massachusetts moved closer to banning hydraulic fracturing (or fracking) in the Bay State. This is a day after Texas, the epicenter of fracking in the United States, suffered a 3.6 magnitude earthquake. [ThinkProgress]

¶   California’s cap and trade market will expand in 2014 after a successful first year of operations that quelled fears of a European Union-style carbon allowance glut while powering a clean energy economic boom. [CleanTechnica]

¶   After suffering a power outage at last year’s game, the NFL looked for new ways to provide power for the 2014 Super Bowl. Energy company PSEG announced they partner with the NFL Environmental Program in order to provide renewable energy for Super Bowl XLVIII. [GetSolar.com]

¶   A proposed renewable energy project for the Hawaiian island of Molokai combines solar and stored hydroelectric power with the goal of 100% renewable energy for the island and lowered electric rates for local customers. [Molokai Dispatch]

¶   An alliance of corporations and conservative activists is mobilising to penalize homeowners who install their own solar panels – casting them as “freeriders” – in a sweeping new offensive against renewable energy, the Guardian has learned. [Raw Story]

¶   The Pilgrim Nuclear Power Station was shut down early Tuesday morning after a problem with a valve, officials said. The valve was leaking steam used to drive the main turbine, Nuclear Regulatory Commission spokesman Neil Sheehan said. [Boston Globe]

¶   The Omaha Public Power District says it’s ready to bring the Fort Calhoun Nuclear Station back online. In a filing posted to the US NRC’s website, OPPD outlined the steps it has taken to fix a laundry list of problems at the plant, which has not produced power for two years. [Omaha World-Herald]

Finance:

¶   The financial world’s concerns with the ‘carbon bubble’ just became about as concrete as they can get. Bloomberg LP unveiled a new tool that helps investment managers quantify the risks climate change can pose to their portfolios. [Business Spectator]

Technology:

¶   Renewable energy sources such as wind-powered generators can be more reliable and efficient by better controlling the process of putting electricity on the grid, according to a United States patent based on research by an associate professor at The University of Alabama. [Science Daily]

World:

¶   A six-mile-long U-shaped seawall costing £756 million is planned for Swansea Bay in South Wales to supply tidal generating power. The firm behind it says the scheme could generate 420,000 MWh of energy per year – enough to supply 121,000 homes. [BBC News]

¶   Including nuclear power, China installed 36 gigawatts of clean energy capacity in the 10 months through October 31. Hydropower increased by 22.3 GW, windpower increased by 7.9 GW, solar rose 3.6 GW, and nuclear expanded 2.2 GW. [Bloomberg]

¶   UK government funding of renewable energy is expected to dramatically shift in favour of offshore wind farms. Energy Secretary Ed Davey is to announce a dramatic growth in financial support for offshore projects later this week. [North Devon Journal]

¶   During a December 3 press conference, the Philippine Department of Energy announced it just approved various renewable energy developers to generate 633.5 megawatts (MW) of electricity which will make its way to the country’s power mix sometime in 2014. [Rappler]

¶   On-site power generation in the UK’s business sector grew by 53% in 2012, almost all from renewable sources, a new report from electricity supplier Smartest Energy shows. Over 1.9 GW was added from 458 windpower projects, while added 322 MW from 528 projects. [Cogeneration & On-Site Power Production Magazine]

¶   A huge banner hanging in the evacuated town of Futaba, Fukushima still reads “Nuclear energy is the energy of a bright future.” Yuji Onuma who created this slogan while in elementary school, now sees a bright future in a life built around solar power. [Asahi Shimbun]

¶   Ontario will defer construction of two new nuclear power reactors; back away from plans to refurbish operating units at Darlington and Bruce Power’s Bruce A site; and may order the shutdown of OPG’s six-unit Pickering plant prior to the units’ scheduled 2020 closing date. [PennEnergy]

US:

¶   The Howard Hughes Corporation’s Ward Village located in Kaka‘ako between downtown Honolulu and Waikiki has been awarded LEED Neighborhood Development (LEED-ND) Platinum certification, making it America’s largest LEED-ND platinum certified project. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Some companies could economically convert their operations to wood boilers for heat and power, according to a team of forestry researchers. Wood makes the most sense for larger operations in areas with large timber resources and a friendly regulatory environment. [AZoCleantech]

¶   Anaergia Inc. and the Water Pollution Control Authority of Bridgeport, Connecticut will work together to generate 1 GWh of electricity per year from organic waste including wastewater sludge and food scraps using advanced anaerobic digestion technology. [PR Newswire]

Opinion:

¶   “City-owned Texas utility already serves 40% renewable energy” Is having local control of a utility the key to ramping up renewable energy? Communities can be inspired by examples like Denton, TX, whose utility already gets 40% of its power from renewable energy. [RenewEconomy]

Science and Technology:

¶   Climate change is destroying coffee farms, putting farmers out of business. The cool mountains where coffee grows are getting warmer, and in places like Costa Rica, farms lower down on the mountain are producing less and less coffee. [Energy Collective]

¶   Hitachi Ltd. unveiled an energy-storage system that the company said will support wind and solar power and allow users to sell electricity into deregulated markets such as California. Testing the product in North America will begin in the first three months of 2014. [eco-business.com]

World:

¶   Japanese opponents of nuclear restarts are putting their faith in power saving and renewables. Eventually solar power could conservatively supply more than 10,000 MW of electricity in Japan, equivalent to the output of 10 nuclear reactors. [Financial Times]

¶   Dublin-based renewable energy group, Gaelectric, announced that it has been funded €90 million to develop and expand its wind and energy storage business in Ireland, the United States and the UK. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   The potential for many thousands of battery systems to act as a grid stabilizer has been highlighted at a renewable energy storage conference in Berlin. The distributed storage solution has been called cost-effective, as it mobilizes investment from private households. [Greentech Media]

¶   New nuclear would not play a role in an independent Scotland, according to a white paper published by the Scottish government in November. The government is opposed to building new nuclear power stations in Scotland and will phase out existing stations. [Nuclear Engineering]

¶   The government’s deal to underwrite the £16 billion Hinkley Point nuclear power station plan faces delay and possible rejection after the European commission said it was ready to launch an in-depth inquiry into the agreement. [The Guardian]

US:

¶   Two new reports from the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory say financing, permitting, installation labor, and other “soft costs” make up 64% of the total price of residential solar power systems. [Denver Business Journal]

¶   PPL Generation has completed a 125 MW powerhouse at a hydroelectric plant in south-central Pennsylvania, increasing the plant’s capacity from about 108 MW to more than 230 MW. It also improves fish passage over the century-old dam along the Susquehanna River. [reNews]

¶   Geostellar, a startup backed by power producer NRG Energy Inc, is seeking to become the Expedia or Orbitz of the solar industry — a one-stop shop where consumers can go from comparing leasing and buying solar panels to ultimately signing up to install a system. [Huffington Post]

¶   California public power and water company Imperial Irrigation District proposed to expand its Southern California transmission system to boost the amount of renewable energy it can export to the rest of the state and to the U.S. Southwest. [Reuters]

Science and Technology:

¶   A new three-year research project will see aquaculture, agriculture and biogas sectors working together to develop renewable energy. The project will investigate sustainability by managing by-products more effectively. [TheFishSite.com]

World:

¶   Eight European companies in renewable energy issued a statement calling for a legally binding target of more than 30% of the energy mix to be renewables by 2030. The eight represent 176,000 jobs and more than €250 billion in annual revenue. [EP Magazine]

¶   A commercial research project, Kombikraftwerk 2, shows that a Germany-wide power grid could be stably operated even if it were fed only with electricity from intelligently controlled renewable sources. [Novinite.com]

¶   PKA is to provide a €120m in funding to help bring the 600 MW Gemini offshore wind farm to financial close. The pension group will put up the majority of a €200m subordinated loan with Northland Power. [reNews]

¶   Shipments of PV cells and modules within Japan jumped to roughly 2.07 GW in the three months to the end of September, from just 626.9 MW a year earlier, as demand continued to soar under the nation’s generous feed-in tariff for renewable energy. [Recharge]

¶   The UK’s government should look to reduce their £12 billion of subsidies handed to the fossil fuel industry, rather than cut green levies that support low-carbon policies, according to MPs on the influential Environmental Audit Committee. [Business Green]

¶   The European Commission is close to concluding that Britain’s nuclear program at Hinkley Point breaches EU state aid rules and may have to be revised, a move that could lead to long delays and even cause the complex deal to unravel. [Telegraph.co.uk]

US:

¶   Tax breaks for wind-power producers are set to expire in a little more than a month, threatening hundreds of manufacturing and energy jobs in Iowa alone if nothing is done. Iowa, already gets 25% of its power from wind, but could be at 50% by 2017. [Quad City Times]

¶   A Seabrook Station company spokesperson announced Sunday that nuclear power plant owner NextEra Energy has reached an agreement in contract negotiations with Utility Workers Union of America Local 555, ending a lockout threat. [Foster’s Daily Democrat]

Opinion:

¶   “Imagining post-nuclear Japan” The old motto of the nuclear village — “safe, cheap and reliable” — now seems like a bad joke. As former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi said in an interview, “There is nothing more costly than nuclear power.” [The Japan Times]

World:

¶   The UK ground-mount solar PV pipeline now exceeds 4 GW, having grown significantly over the past 12 months. Over 480 ground-mount projects above 250 kW in size are making their way through the pipeline. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Jordan Wind Project Company has signed the financing agreement to begin construction of the Middle East’s first utility-scale wind-power project. The 117 MW Tafila Wind Farm will increase Jordan’s power capacity by 3%. [Oman Daily Observer]

¶   Solar PVs are on the rise. Currently, the whole world has installed 130 GW of PVs, a huge increase over the 1.4 GW in the year 2000. But it’s Europe that has really embraced PVs, since they account for 80 GW of that power. [Hydrogen Fuel News]

¶   The International Energy Agency now sees wind power supplying as much as 18% of global demand by 2050, much more than the 12% by 2050 share forecast in its previous edition of the “Technology Roadmap: Wind Energy,” published in 2009. [POWER magazine]

¶   Russia’s Rosatom and the South African Ministry of Energy initialed an agreement on strategic partnership and cooperation in the field of nuclear power engineering and industry. The agreement calls for eight new nuclear units. [Energy Bangla]

US:

¶   The US DOE is providing $7 million for nine tribal clean energy projects to help American Indian and Alaska Native tribes save their communities money, enhance their energy security, and create new business opportunities. [SmartMeters]

¶   One of the world’s most advanced wind energy testing facilities has opened South Carolina as part of Clemson University’s Restoration Institute. The facility is designed to test and validate new turbines, particularly for offshore wind. [SmartMeters]

¶   Duke Energy Carolinas has filed a new experimental renewable energy program with the NC Utilities Commission. The Green Source Rider would give energy-intensive customers the option of getting their some or all of their energy from renewables. [SmartMeters]

¶   An Asheville, North Carolina solar farm company is breaking all records in their state with twelve projects scheduled in 2014 that total over 800 MW of added solar pv power to the grid. [DigitalJournal.com]

Science and Technology:

¶   Continued global warming after CO2 emissions stoppage, a new study by Princeton University researchers, says the carbon dioxide already present in the Earth’s atmosphere will cause continued global warming for decades after emissions stop. [Energy Collective]

Finance and Economics:

¶  “Heating Cost Comparison: Oil vs Gas vs Electric Prices” Graphs provide comparisons of costs in the US and the UK. [Energy Collective]

World:

¶   The Wilderness Society, and Australian environmental non-profit organization, will shift its focus from protecting wildlife to campaigning against fossil fuel mining, saying fossil fuels are the greatest driver of climate change. [Sky News Australia]

¶   Wind generated a record 6004 MW in the UK on November 29, National Grid has confirmed. The average was notched between 2.30pm and 3pm and accounted for 13.5% of total electricity demand at the time. [reNews]

¶   A recent GE announcement noted that E.ON Climate & Renewables’ will “PowerUP” 469 of its GE 1.5-77 wind turbines with “Brilliant” technology. The goal is to boost wind turbine output by up to 5%, producing about 20% more profit per wind turbine. [CleanTechnica]

¶   In the UK, Labour has unveiled details on how it proposes to reform UK electricity markets it says are “not functioning properly”. The Green Paper sets out 10 key actions, including abolishing Ofgem for a new energy watchdog. [reNews]

¶   The Northern Ontario towns of Ignace, Hornepayne, and Schreiber, together with Creighton, Saskatchewan, are moving on to the next round in a government process to find a long-term home to store Canada’s nuclear fuel waste. [Northern Ontario Business]

US:

¶   BrightSource Energy, a US company specializing in solar thermal electricity generation, is about to inaugurate the largest solar power plant ever built. The new plant of Ivanpah will use 170,000 mirrors to concentrate sunlight on three towers. [Environmental Expert]

¶   Connecticut is pushing aggressively to expand solar energy to homes across the state. In the past 22 months, 2,160 residential solar systems contracts have been approved. [New Haven Register]

¶   Biodiesel producer and marketer Renewable Energy Group announced it has entered into an agreement with Dutch Hill Terminals, a heating oil terminal in New Jersey, to market biodiesel and biodiesel blended heating oil at its Clifton, New Jersey location. [Biofuels International]

Opinion:

¶   “Why COP19 Fell Woefully Short of the Urgent Action We Need” UN climate talks saw the unprecedented walk-out by 800 civil society groups and trade unions. NGOs blamed the lobbying from fossil fuel companies for impeding progress at the talks. [Huffington Post UK]

Renewable Gourmet:

¶   RenewableUK, Energyshare and campaigning celebrity chef Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall are hosting a roundtable discussion during a dinner featuring ingredients from farms and suppliers powered by wind energy. [reNews]

World:

¶   LEGO Group has this week published a new set of environmental goals as it seeks to reduce the carbon footprint of its supply chain and move towards sourcing 100 per cent of its power from renewable sources. [Business Green]

¶   Infinis Energy PLC, the renewable energy company that listed on the London Stock Exchange just nine days ago, reported higher operating profits and revenues for the first half of its fiscal year, driven by the construction or acquisition of new wind farms. [London South East]

¶   Central America has launched a range of small clean energy projects to address climate change, high oil prices, and power for remote regions. Now, almost 65% of the electric power supplied to public utilities in the region is from renewable energy sources. [Reuters AlertNet]

¶   Renewable energy helped some UK farmers stay afloat after their incomes were hit by bad weather and poor yields. The National Farmers’ Union credits green energy for a vital stream of income at a crucial time, with wind offering the highest rate of return. [Plymouth Herald]

¶   More than one-fifth of Ireland’s daily electricity needs are now met from wind energy, new figures show. National grid operator EirGrid says Ireland was on track to meet a target by 2020 that 40% of its power comes from renewable resources. [Irish Independent]

¶   An Irish renewable energy company hopes to secure permission to test a tidal energy device in Canada. DP Energy said it hoped to secure permission to use a testing site in the Bay of Fundy in Nova Scotia, and will submit an application in the coming weeks. [Irish Independent]

¶   The solar energy market in Northern Ireland appears to be taking off – the number of installations this year is three times what it was in 2012 according to figures from Ofgem. The popularity is driven by rising energy prices and falling costs for solar. [BBC News]

¶   Typhoons that hit Japan each year are helping spread radioactive material from the Fukushima nuclear disaster into the country’s waterways. Contaminated soil is washed into streams and rivers by wind and rain, spreading radiation. [The Borneo Post]

US:

¶    A grassroots Colorado coalition of government leaders, business and environmental organizations want to increase the production of solar power tenfold in the next 15 years, but face challenges, as Xcel Energy wants to pay lower prices for the power. [Summit County Citizens Voice]

¶    Entergy representatives and state officials will meet on Monday in Gov. Peter Shumlin’s office to negotiate a number of issues related to the shutdown of Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant. [Valley News]

Opinion:

¶   “The Cost Of Nuclear Is Still Unknown, But The Cost Of Solar Is Known” The cost of nuclear projects are hard to understand exactly, partly because it takes a long time to build a nuclear power plant. The comparison with solar costs is revealing. [CleanTechnica]

World:

¶   Renewable energy investment company Low Carbon has announced that it will collaborate with Macquarie Capital on a solar farm portfolio of up to 300 MW. The first phase will include three solar farms in Cornwall and Wales totaling 25.7 MW. [Solar Power Portal]

¶   Jordan Wind Project Company has signed a financing agreement to begin construction of the Middle East’s first utility-scale wind-power project. The Tafila Wind Farm will have a power capacity by 117 MW. [Zawya]

¶   Germany is increasing its renewable energy targets under a grand coalition agreement by the country’s two major political parties, but is also toying with the idea of introducing the concept of  “virtual base-load”. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The UK got a record share of electricity from renewable sources in April to June this year, the government’s latest statistics show. A record 15.5% of electricity was generated from renewable sources between April and June. [Carbon Brief]

¶   The World Bank and United Nations on Wednesday appealed for billions of dollars to provide electricity for the poorest nations but said there would be no investment in nuclear power. The focus is hydro, geothermal, solar, wind, and efficiency. [Tuoitrenews]

US:

¶   The Clean Energy Finance and Investment Authority announced it would participate in a regional effort to reduce non-hardware or “soft” costs for PV systems in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, and Vermont. [Energy Business Review]

¶   South Carolina utility SCG&E, which has been criticized in the past for a lack of interest in renewable power, has plans to develop five solar farms in the state. It will start with a 2 MW farm near the Lake Murray dam. [The State]

¶   The leading plaintiffs in a lawsuit that put all US nuclear plant licensing decisions on hold a year ago have been hinting that the legal battle over the NRC’s waste confidence rule is far from finished because the new proposals are critically flawed. [National Journal]

¶   A court ruling found in favor of a proposed nuclear plant in Utah. The judge said the plant was allowed to use the Green River, and that there is reason to believe that the project will not be detrimental to the public welfare. [fox13now.com]

Science and Technology:

¶   Every source of electricity we have kills some number of birds. And while solar panels may fare better than anything else, it’s actually clear (and uplifting) that wind turbines fare better than nuclear or fossil-fueled power plants on this front. [CleanTechnica]

¶   BASF has produced its first commercial volumes of 1,4-butanediol (BDO) from renewable raw material, and is offering this product to customers for testing and commercial use. [4-traders]

World:

¶   With growing incentives and larger end-user awareness, the small-wind power market is expected to increase significantly, from $609 million in 2012 to $3 billion by 2020, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 22%, according to GlobalData. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   United Arab Emirates’ $15 billion pilot project at Masdar has started producing results. Masdar pilot project, in the outskirts of the country’s capital of Abudhabi, is generating 100 MW of electrical power using solar PVs. [Business Recorder]

¶   Royal Dutch Shell includes a high price for carbon dioxide when evaluating new projects. The $40 a metric ton price that Shell uses would — if widely adopted — reshape domestic and international energy consumption and investment trends. [Energy Collective]

¶   The deputy First Minister of Northern Ireland, Martin McGuinness, MLA, opened a £125 million wind farm, Slieve Kirk Wind Park, near Limavady. The wind farm is expected to produce 200 GWh per year, enough to power over 65,000 homes. [Londonderry Today]

¶   An independent Scotland would seek to sell wind power and other green electricity south of the border as “the most cost-effective means for the rest of the UK to meet its renewable ambitions,” according to a Scottish White Paper on independence. [reNews]

¶   The president of Taiwan says safety at the Fourth Nuclear Power Plant was enhanced by a system that can destroy the plant to prevent radiation leak. The system would come into operation if a disaster were about to happen. [Taipei Times]

¶   Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif launched the construction of the country’s biggest nuclear power project. The 2200 MW Karachi Coastal Power Project is to be built with Chinese technical assistance on the Arabian Sea coast. [Jagran Josh]

US:

¶   Renewable Energy Vermont, a trade group for the solar industry and other renewable technologies, has asked Governor Peter Shumlin to support the state’s net metering program. To avoid standstill, new goals are needed as old goals are met. [Clean Energy Authority]

¶   The University of Vermont and the state’s largest utility, Green Mountain Power, will work together to develop energy efficiency programs and seek ways to protect the environment under an agreement announced Tuesday. [Barre Montpelier Times Argus]

¶   The US Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has made changes to the nation’s Small Generator Interconnection Procedures, which the Interstate Renewable Energy Council says should allow a more efficient interconnection process. [solarserver.com]

¶   The first year of the 113th Congress (2013-2014) draws to a close with no passage of climate-specific legislation, but signs that some in Congress understand the importance of addressing this issue. Here’s a by-the-numbers look. [Energy Collective]

¶   If Seabrook nuclear power plant union workers and plant owner NextEra Energy don’t come to a contract agreement by midnight on Monday, the 226 union workers will be locked out, according to the owners, NextEra Energy (Florida Power & Light). [Foster’s Daily Democrat]

Opinion:

¶   “The Answer to Climate Change Is Renewable Energy, Not Nuclear Power” While it’s too late to put the nuclear genie back in the bottle, let’s stop pretending that human political systems or organizational processes can manage the risks of this technology.  [Huffington Post]

¶   “As We Consume More Fossil Fuels, Air Quality Actually Improves” For the record, this is sort of thing supporters of fossil fuels want us to believe. Using flawed logic, progress we make in fighting pollution is cynically implicitly credited to the polluters. [Forbes]

Science and Technology:

¶   Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences has published a research paper concluding that the US EPA has severely underestimated the extent of methane emissions, particularly from the oil and gas industry. [Newswise]

World:

¶   The Tasmanian Government has released a climate change strategy aimed at 100% renewable power. The Climate Smart Tasmania plan includes energy reduction targets across government, land use, infrastructure, transport and waste systems. [Yahoo!7 News] (Several news articles say the date for completion of this project is 2020, but looking quickly at the government proposal, it appears that 2020 is an interim date, with the final date being 2050.)

¶   A recent study from Bihar says electrical access in rural India is determined by proximity to the Central power grid, meaning remote villages in rural India would remain without power. They must turn to microgrids for electricity. [Hindu Business Line]

¶   Weeks after warning that the government was treating environmental subsidies as a “political football”, the German-owned RWE npower is pulling out of the £4 billion Atlantic Array project in the Bristol Channel because the economics do not stack up. [The Guardian]

¶   The Fukushima nuclear crisis is creating business opportunities in parts of the world. For example, Britain has 120 tons of plutonium, partly due to the nuclear crisis, and now sees the opportunity to make money in storing unused plutonium. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   The pipeline of solar PV projects has grown 7% over the past 12 months and now stands at 2,400 solar installations that would generate 43,000 MW, according to a report released today by market research firm NPD Solarbuzz. [Quartz]

¶   Bills pending in the Vermont state House and Senate would have Vermont’s public employee pension funds sell off their investments in any company which has as a principal business the extraction, production, or manufacture of fossil fuels. [Rutland Herald]

¶   Lincoln Renewable Energy, a developer of U.S. solar and wind projects, today announced the commencement of construction of its 300 MW Hereford 2 wind power project located in Castro County, Texas. [ElectricNet]

¶   New York’s largest solar array so far will sit on 47 acres of Freshkills Park, a landfill-turned-green space on Staten Island. It will be built and run by SunEdison and have 10 MW capacity, power approximately 2,000 homes. [Curbed NY]

¶   Two new wind farms went on the map of Texas Monday. Lincoln Renewable Energy will have a 300 MW project in Castro County, and Miami Wind I, a 288 MW project is planned for the northeast Texas Panhandle. [Amarillo.com]

¶   The monthly energy infrastructure report from FERC, tracking utility-scale projects, shows that through October, 190 solar units totaling 2,528 MW in installed capacity had been added in 2013, more than double the 1,257 MW for the same period in 2012. [EarthTechling]

¶   Ecotech Institute has released its Clean Jobs Index, which shows more than one million job postings in the clean energy sector from July 1, 2013 through September 30, 2013. These numbers reveal a 54% increase and the rapid growth of the sector. [Fierce Energy]

Science and Technology:

¶   Nordex is boosting its Generation Delta wind turbine platform with the addition of the low-wind N131/3000. The 3 MW unit is designed for IEC-3 locations and can derive up to 28.6% more yield, for high efficiency combined with low sound power levels. [reNews]

¶   Improvement in battery technology and new laws make it possible for Germans to get government support for the installation of stationary battery storage with new PV installations. [Solar Novus Today]

World:

¶   The UK is ending international financing for coal projects except in exceptional circumstances. This follows similar actions by the US, Nordic Countries, the World Bank, and the European Investment Bank. [CleanTechnica]

¶   Lack of certainty in renewable energy policy is holding institutional investors back, according to an Ernst & Young survey. Of the 75 major pension and insurance funds surveyed, 61% have no current renewable energy infrastructure investment. [FTSE Global Markets]

¶   Vestas has launched “Wind for Prosperity” to help bring affordable electricity to energy-poor, wind-rich rural communities by combining factory-refurbished wind turbines with advanced diesel power generation for remote mini-grids. [reNews]

¶   The UK’s first floating wind farm is set to be located off the Scottish coast, in Buchan Deep, approximately 20-30 km off Peterhead, Aberdeenshire. The project comprises five, 6 MW floating turbines operating in waters over 100 meters deep. [Your Renewable News]

¶   A report by Green Energy Markets shows Australians installed more than 1 GW of solar panels last year, with 13% of homes now having them, but during the past year, installations have dropped 22% as a result of winding down of rebates and incentives. [Energy Matters]

¶   Wind power output in Ireland reached record levels, according to the Irish Wind Energy Association. The new record of 1,564 MW, enough to power over one million Irish homes, was recorded on November 20. [Today’s Energy Solutions]

¶   Spanish car manufacturer SEAT has taken the lead in solar power generation, installing the biggest solar panel array in the automotive industry, with a staggering 53,000 panels now fitted at its Martorell manufacturing plant. [TheGreenCarWebsite.co.uk]

¶   A team of experts formed by the International Atomic Energy Agency began Monday reviewing the ongoing efforts to scrap the crippled reactors at Tokyo Electric Power Co.’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. [GlobalPost]

US:

¶   The DOEs National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released its 128-page 2012 Renewable Energy Data Book, providing data on renewable energy. Renewable energy now supplies 12.4 % of US demand, and 23% worldwide (4,892 TWh). [Energy Matters]

¶   Nebraska is rated third among the states for its wind-energy potential. And yet a year ago, it ranked only 26th for its actual wind-energy production. Several people familiar with wind energy in Nebraska say this is because of one anti-wind, anti-solar person. [Midwest Energy News]

¶   SolarCity, guided by Elon Musk has just become the first of its kind to offer bonds backed by rooftop solar panels. This innovation will allow solar manufacturers and distributors to become energy companies, selling solar power as a service. [Triple Pundit]

Opinion:

¶   “The (Untapped) Carbon Conundrum” Pension fund executives say oil and coal companies in their portfolios need to go back to the drawing board on how climate change threatens their business plans. [Huffington Post]

¶   “Reality check on renewable energy could unblock climate talks” The potential solutions to rising greenhouse gases appear insurmountable to negotiators: Yet the solutions are staring them in the face. [RenewEconomy]

Science and Technology:

¶   Today, the vast majority of plastics are still made using non-renewable fossil fuels, especially petroleum. With concerns for the environment and climate change, some researchers have begun to look for alternatives. [The Nation]

World:

¶   In India, social entrepreneurs have turned the crippling power grid problems into an opportunity to offer electricity at low cost and by using local resources to light the lives of rural masses groping in darkness. [Chandigarh Tribune]

¶   The non-hydro renewable energy capacity is poised to grow 30 fold in Middle East-North Africa region by 2020, thanks to the over 100 renewable energy projects. [Trade Arabia]

¶   The Asian Development Bank will provide a loan of $110 million for a 100 MW solar power plant in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The plant will be the largest of its kind in Central Asia. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   Secretary of State John Kerry and leaders from five other world powers early Sunday reached a nuclear deal with Iran, following intense negotiations that took place over several days in Geneva. [NBCNews.com]

¶   The deputy chief of the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran announced that Iran is planning construction of the two nuclear power stations. The announcement came during negotiations on Iranian capabilities. [Fars News Agency]

US:

¶   New Mexico energy regulators altered the state’s renewable energy law this week, infuriating renewable energy advocates who say the move will stunt the state’s growing solar industry. [ThinkProgress]

¶   Nobel Prize-winning physicist and former head of the US DOE says Canada and the US should cooperate on hydroelectric and wind energy and boost transmission infrastructure between the two countries. [GlobalPost]

Opinion:

¶   “Avoidable Problem of the Wrong Answer for Climate Change” A recent article claiming that nuclear power is necessary to avoid climate change is a sad example of the faulty conclusions being reached by people consider themselves environmentalists. [Dissident Voice]

World:

¶   A new survey shows Australians love having their household own solar power, but the government has a bill to abolish the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, which has already passed in the house, going to the country’s senate. [PV-Tech]

¶   A survey of British farmers, conducted in association with energy company E.ON, showed that 67% of respondents planned to make operations more efficient in the coming 12 months, with 48% saying rising energy costs were a key priority. [FarmersWeekly]

¶   Construction of three wind power plants with a total capacity of 135.3 megawatts in Azerbaijan will be completed in 2015, according to the State Agency for Alternative and Renewable Energy Sources. [Eurasia Review]

¶   International banks provide 75% of their energy project support for  fossil fuel projects in 12 high emitting developing nations. Rich countries spend seven times more supporting coal, oil and gas than they do helping poorer nations fight climate change. [The Progress Report]

¶   TEPCO and three Mitsubishi group companies plan to construct two cutting-edge coal power plants in Fukushima. The new facilities are expected to open as early as 2020, and should be about 20% more efficient than conventional coal-fired plants. [Channel News Asia]

¶   TEPCO has transported 22 fuel assemblies from the Unit 4 of the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant in Japan to the nearby common pool building at the power plant for safe storage. [Energy Business Review]

US:

¶   Duke Energy has agreed to pay $1 million over the deaths of more than a dozen protected eagles and other birds at its wind farms. The 14 eagles are not of an endangered species, but are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. [The Hill]

¶   Duke Energy, together with SCE&G, joined Clemson University in South Carolina on November 21 to dedicate what is claimed to be the world’s most-advanced energy systems testing and research center. [Renewable Energy Focus]

¶   Dominion dedicated the Somers Solar Center – capable of producing enough electricity to power more than 1,500 homes – marking a major milestone in the development of renewable energy in Connecticut. [Sacramento Bee]

¶   When Facebook settled on Altoona, Iowa as the location for their fourth data center, one of the deciding factors was the opportunity to help develop a new wind project in the state. [Environmental Defense Fund]

Science and Technology:

¶   New research says there were errors in earlier measurements of global temperatures that indicated global warming had slowed, because data from Africa was omitted. It says global warming has continued in a way consistent with earlier computer models. [Energy Collective]

¶   Researchers from Ben-Gurion University of the Negev have developed a process to convert carbon dioxide and hydrogen, two of the most common elements on earth, into a renewable alternative for crude oil. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

World:

¶   The potential for many thousands of battery systems to act as a grid stabilizer has been highlighted at a renewable energy storage conference underway this week in Berlin. The solution is cost-effective and be optimized for battery life. [RenewEconomy]

¶   The UK’s National Grid said Thursday it expects to spend around £1 billion ($1.6 billion) on new connections and system reinforcements to the power network to connect up EDF Energy’s planned 3 GW new nuclear power plant at Hinkley Point in Somerset. [Platts]

US:

¶   In January 2014, leftover pasta and other unfinished food from the dining commons will be put to use as the newly established UC Davis Renewable Energy Anaerobic Digester converts organic waste into campus electricity. [The Aggie]

¶   New York State is falling behind on its goal of converting 30% of the state’s electric grid to renewable energy sources by 2015, according to a new report. The state currently generates about 22% of its energy from alternative energy sources. [Capital New York]

¶   Construction of Du Pont’s cellulosic biorefineries is underway in Nevada, Iowa. The biorefinery will use agricultural waste from neighboring farms as a feedstock and annually supply 30 million gallons of cellulosic renewable fuel. [Zacks.com]

¶   According to a report released by the PennEnvironment Research and Policy Center, wind energy is providing more than 2.2 million MWh in Pennsylvania, and that number is expected to rise 97% in the next five years, reducing pollution and water use. [90.5 WESA]

¶   Tisbury, Massachusetts, on Martha’s Vineyard, is seeing its large first solar array built. The 1.2 MW project is expected to save the town more than $78,000 over the first year, and an estimated cumulative total of $2.3 million over 20 years. [Martha’s Vineyard Times]

¶   One of the largest solar projects in Vermont is up and running. The 15-acre solar farm near the Harbor View housing development will generate enough electricity annually to power more than 400 homes. [St. Albans Messenger]

¶   According to the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 25% of a building’s energy performance is directly related to occupant behavior. This means software can improve efficiency by allowing occupants to become engaged in new ways. [Buildings]

¶   Trinity Solar has completed a 12.3 MW residential solar installation at United Communities LLC, the private manager of the military multifamily community at Joint Base McGuire-Dix-Lakehurst, N.J., that serves over 2,100 military families. [Solar Industry]

¶   The TVA will retire more than 3 GW at eight coal units in Alabama and Kentucky to address “challenging trends” that point to lower power demand, a slow economy, uncertainty in commodity pricing, and tougher air pollution rules. [POWER magazine]

¶   Nuclear Regulatory Commission staffers are rejecting the concerns of lawmakers, state officials and watchdog groups who say nuclear waste tightly packed in spent-fuel pools at U.S. power plants is vulnerable to terrorist attacks. [National Journal]

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Opinion:

¶   “Green Energy Is Grassroots Energy In Germany” One of the most misunderstood aspects of Germany’s energy transition is the assumption that this is top-down mandate to adopt green energy. Nothing could be further from the truth. [CleanTechnica]

Science and Technology:

¶   Researchers have made the first battery electrode that heals itself, opening a new and potentially commercially viable path for making the next generation of lithium-ion batteries for electric cars, cell phones and other devices. [Science Daily]

¶   NEC Corporation has developed the world’s first technology that enables direct remote control of a large number of consumer’s stationary batteries, thereby enabling coordinated control of the charge and discharge of individual units. [DigitalJournal.com]

World:

¶   First Solar Inc. announced that it will invest approximately $100 MM in Japan to develop solar power plants. Japan is expected to become one of the key solar markets due to its significant energy demand. [CIOL]

¶   Days after the Abbott government confirmed it would slash funding from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency, ARENA has revealed it will be providing financial backing for a strategy to build up Australia’s community renewable energy sector. [RenewEconomy]

¶   One of the largest wind farms in Australia’s state of Victoria has started producing electrical power. The Mt Mercer wind farm, 30 km south of Ballarat, features 64 turbines with a capacity of 131 megawatts. [Weekly Times Now]

¶   What lies ahead at Fukushima Daiichi is a decades-long journey filled with uncertainty. Nobody knows exactly how much fuel melted, or where exactly the fuel went — how deep or in what form it is, somewhere at the bottom of reactor Units 1, 2 and 3. [ABC News]

¶   Environmental concerns and the still haunting images of the Fukushima disaster continue to divide the world on whether nuclear energy should grow or go away. Hungary, however, is opting for nuclear. [Budapest Business Journal]

US:

¶   A carbon tax of $25 per ton of emissions would cut the deficit by $1 trillion over a decade, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Of 103 cost-cutting ways detailed, the carbon tax was far and away the biggest deficit reducer of any option listed. [CleanTechnica]

¶   After much debate and speculation, Colorado regulators proposed new air quality rules for the state’s booming oil and gas industry on Monday, including the nation’s first statewide standards for methane emissions from drilling. [Huffington Post]

¶   General Motors and Detroit Renewable Energy (DRE) today announced a renewable energy project to turn solid municipal waste from Metro Detroit into process steam that will be used to heat and cool portions of GM’s Detroit-Hamtramck assembly plant. [Your Renewable News]

¶   The Department of Interior has approved the 900-mile Gateway West Transmission Line project, to stretch from southern Wyoming to southern Idaho and will carry 1,500 gigawatts of energy, mostly generated by wind farms. [International Business Times]

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Opinion:

¶   “The UK Needs to Take a More Serious Look at Importing Renewable Electricity” Imports of renewables may have a significant role to play in diversifying supply and limiting the total costs of providing low-carbon power.  [Energy Collective]

Science and Technology:

¶   West-facing rooftop solar panels produced 49% more electricity during peak demand compared to south-facing panels, according to a new study from Pecan Street Research Institute. The research is the first of its kind to evaluate orientation of PV panels. [Energy Collective]

World:

¶   Premier Solar has partnered with Chicago-based New Generation Power to set up solar farms in Andhra Pradesh. The Indo-American consortium has a project underway for 70 MW capacity. It hopes to finalize another 245 MW soon, and foresees 1,000 MW. [DealCurry]

¶   Dong Energy has committed to build out the 330 MW Gode Wind 1 and 252 Gode Wind 2 offshore wind farms in the North Sea 45 km off the German coast. The €2.2 billion project will feature a total 97 Siemens turbines of 6 MW each. [reNews]

¶   A private company is proposing to build a renewable energy station in Perth that would add power to the south-west energy grid using recycled waste. Gas produced from waste material will be burnt to produce electricity for the grid. [ABC Online]

¶   Political squabbling about the UK energy sector is leaving renewables investors, particularly those involved in offshore wind, in “a state of heightened uncertainty”, according to Ernst and Young’s Renewable Energy Country Attractiveness Indices. [reNews]

¶   Poland, host of the climate change negotiations, is going to extreme lengths to protect its coal-fired electricity industry, even going so far as erecting a form of electronic barrier to keep renewable energy from neighboring Germany out of its grid. [RenewEconomy]

¶   South Korea’s nuclear regulator has cleared the way for one of six closed reactors to restart after checks on welding. It also said it had approved replacement cables for three more shut in a safety scandal, but it was unclear when these would restart. [Reuters]

¶   Tokyo Electric Power Co. has started removing nuclear fuel from a damaged reactor building at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant for the first time, marking a new stage in the decades-long decommissioning process. [Asahi Shimbun]

US:

¶   Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.), has introduced the American Renewable Energy and Efficiency Act. It would require electric utilities to get at least 25% of their electricity from renewable sources by 2025, starting at 6% in 2015 and rising gradually. [Grist]

¶   Renewable Energy Group® formally opened the latest in a series of major enhancements to its biodiesel operations Friday with a ribbon cutting at the new barge loading facility at the company’s Seneca, Illinois biorefinery. [Your Renewable News]

Opinion:

¶   “Renewable Energy Can Pave The Path To Peace – Analysis” One way or another, society has to pay the price of conflict over energy, more often than not perpetuating an endless cycle of poverty. Procuring energy does not need to be so brutal. [Eurasia Review]

World:

¶   The newly projected 350% growth of Japan’s solar market from 2012 to 2013 dwarfs estimates made earlier this year. The latest forecast is almost a full gigawatt higher than the 5.3 gigawatts expected by analysts earlier this year. [EnergyCollective]

¶   Swedish furniture giant IKEA announced Thursday it has purchased a 46-megawatt wind farm currently under construction in Pincher Creek, Alberta, about 200 km south of Calgary — the company’s first wind farm outside of Europe. [Calgary Sun]

¶   On Nov. 12, Neste Oil committed itself  to a Dutch initiative aimed at the deployment of sustainable biofuel in the aviation sector. Neste Oil’s role in the initiative is to explore the production opportunities for aviation biofuel and scaling up production. [Biomass Magazine]

¶   DuPont has begun construction of a 4.4 MW solar power plant in Cernay in northern France. Once completed, the facility will be the largest installation on company’s grounds to date. The solar farm is planned to cover about 15 acres, and will feature 17,952 PV panels. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   ClearSky Advisors (Toronto) says that South Korea’s shift away from its emphasis on nuclear power in the wake of a scandal over safety certificates could be positive for the continued development of renewable energy over the long run. [solarserver.com]

¶   Japan took a major step back Friday from earlier pledges to slash its greenhouse gas emissions, saying a shutdown of its nuclear power plants in the wake of the Fukushima disaster had made its previous target unattainable. [New York Times]

US:

¶   California is set to nearly double its wind and solar power generation over the next seven years as utility companies try to meet the state’s requirement to source 33% of energy from renewables by 2020, reliability regulators said. [Business Spectator]

¶   Legislation is moving through both houses to tweak the tax code to let clean energy developers form master limited partnerships, publicly traded companies not subject to corporate taxes. Fossil fuel companies have used MLPs to raise hundreds of billions. [Kitsap Sun]

¶   Iowa has 3,200 wind turbines producing 5,100 megawatts of wind energy, or 25% of the state’s electric needs. It also is home to 13 manufacturers producing wind turbine parts. Tom Wind, an expert on windpower in Iowa, says there is growth ahead. [Quad City Times]

¶   Obama administration officials, under pressure from advanced-biofuel producers and farm-state lawmakers, have told industry representatives that they’re considering raising the quota for their product next year above what was contained in an August draft plan. [Bloomberg]

¶   A rift has developed among New England states over who should pay for transmission lines needed to carry electricity from renewable energy projects. The issue is whether ratepayers across the region should foot the bill for power lines needed for southern NE. [MPBN News]

289

Opinion:

¶   “The elephant in the room” There’s an African saying, “How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.” Here in Vermont, achieving 90% renewable energy by 2050 can be done one house, one business, and one institution at a time. [Commons]

¶   “The six U.S. nuclear power plants most likely to shut down” A report by investment research firm Morningstar in its latest Utilities Observer publication warns about the sector’s risks. The nuclear power industry is melting down financially. [Grist]

Science and Technology:

¶   Eos Energy Storage says it has a breakthrough energy storage systems that could make a huge impact on the energy market. The 1-MW/6-MWh Aurora energy storage system can reportedly achieve 10,000 cycles and costs $160/kWh for a DC system. [CleanTechnica]

World:

¶   Two separate coalitions of green businesses and energy companies representing more than €250 billion of annual revenue and 176,000 jobs have thrown their weight behind the push for a new renewables target for 2030. [Business Green]

¶   Electricity from the Kalkbult solar PV power station flowed into the national grid on Tuesday, making it South Africa’s first solar plant to come online – three months ahead of schedule. The 75 MW plant will generate power for 33,000 households. [South Africa.info]

¶   A remote-controlled robot has succeeded in pinpointing two holes in the containment vessel of the damaged Unit 1 reactor at Fukushima Daiichi. The robot’s camera captured images of water leaking into the building housing the reactor. [RTT News]

¶   The head of the World Energy Council has warned that without governments providing financial support to nuclear power projects, the sector’s share of the power generation market will remain stationary. [PennEnergy]

US:

¶   Facebook says it will begin operating its new data center in Altoona in early 2015 powered entirely by renewable energy that will come from a new wind project in Wellsburg, Iowa. [DesMoinesRegister.com]

¶   By 2015, Nebraska will have the potential to generate more than 1,200 megawatts of electricity from wind farms. Nebraska currently has 459 megawatts of installed wind power capacity but will add 750 megawatts this year and in 2014. [Lincoln Journal Star]

¶   Google and global private equity firm KKR are to make a joint $400m investment into six solar plants – five in California and one in Arizona – with a combined capacity of 106 MW of electricity. [NewNet]

¶   A new report, “The Values of Geothermal Energy: A Discussion of the Benefits Geothermal Power Provides to the Future US Power System,” has been released by the Geothermal Energy Association and the Geothermal Resources Council. [Renewable Energy Magazine]

¶   A report by the Union of Concerned Scientists says that the NRC is ignoring its own safety regulations at Diablo Canyon. They say the plant is located dangerously close to recently discovered fault lines, which could potentially put people living nearby at risk. [KCOY.com]

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