Tag Archives: Utilities

Wind power capacity grew 20% globally in 2012, figures show

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A relative slowdown in new wind turbine construction in China was offset by increases in the US, Germany, India and the UK

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

“While China paused for breath, both the US and European markets had exceptionally strong years,” said Steve Sawyer, secretary general of the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC), which produced the statistics. “Asia still led global markets, but with North America a close second, and Europe not far behind.”

The UK now ranks sixth in the world for installed wind power, with 8.5GW. In Europe, only Germany (31GW) and Spain (23GW) have more. China leads the world with 77GW installed and the US is second with 60GW. […]

The record year for installation in the US was driven by a rush to beat an anticipated end to tax credits: 8GW of the total 13GW were installed in the last quarter of 2012. However, the tax credit has since been extended, meaning a dramatic slowdown in the US in 2013 is less likely. […]

See on www.guardian.co.uk

Historic Energy Decisions in U.S. and Canada | The Energy Collective

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Renewable energy in the U.S. and Canada will rise while the consumption of fossil fuels lessens.Wishful thinking by some people to the contrary, fossil fuels are here to stay for at least the next 30-40 years. In North America this timeframe will be an era of transition as the proportion of renewable energy in the U.S. and Canada will rise while the consumption of fossil fuels lessens.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

The increase in U.S. oil production is the result of advances in non-traditional drilling technologies, including oil hydrofracking […].  For its natural gas production, the U.S. is in the throes of a hydrofracking frenzy, producing natural gas in unprecedented amounts. […]

The U.S. trend toward energy self sufficiency represents a precarious situation for Canada’s economic wellbeing since 95 percent of Canada’s energy exports (including hydroelectric power) today go to the U.S.  […]

See on theenergycollective.com

Renewable energy debt issuers abound | FP Street | News | Financial Post

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If the fixed income analysts at BMO Capital Markets have got it right, investors can expect another crop of issues by companies whose business is renewable energy, a move, they suggest will generate ‘a gust of income for your portfolio’…

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

In his view, the level of issuance in 2012 “will easily be surpassed this year,” he wrote in a 24-page report.

Laing makes that argument on the basis that across the land, there are more than 8,500 megawatts in projects at various stages of development “stemming from previous calls for green power.”

Most of those projects are based in B.C., Ontario and Quebec. According to his report, Canada’s wind energy capacity stood at 6,000MW at the end of 2012, up from 140MW in 2000.

See on business.financialpost.com

Emissions: First-time reports from industry reveal massive methane emissions — 02/06/2013 — www.eenews.net

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U.S. EPA’s addition of oil, gas and coal methane emissions to its online greenhouse gas tracking tool revealed an 82.6-million-metric-ton increase in carbon dioxide equivalents over numbers from the previous year, when those figures were not…

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

Coal power still dominates emissions

Last year, EPA completed standards requiring hydraulically fractured gas wells to use technology that will cut toxic emissions and smog-forming pollution by 2015.

As a co-benefit, the upgrades will also reduce methane by up to 1.7 million tons, said EPA. However, environmental groups have said that the methane issue must be addressed separately from other pollutants (ClimateWire, April 19, 2012).

Coal-fired power plants are the largest source of carbon emissions, outpacing the second-largest source — petroleum and natural gas systems — by a factor of almost 10-to-1. Power plants accounted for two-thirds of total greenhouse gas emissions.

See on www.eenews.net

North American Windpower: The Biggest Wind Energy Deals Of 2012

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Bringing wind power news and analysis to industry professionals, North American Windpower covers utility-scale projects, renewable energy policy, turbine technology, and the market for new products and services.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

…

In addition, there were 16 debt deals amounting to nearly $12.5 billion in 2012, compared to $11 billion in 15 deals in 2011, Mercom notes, adding that most of the larger debt deals were in China. The top debt deal was the $5.5 billion in credit received by Chinese turbine maker Xinjiang Goldwind Science Technology.

Mercom also tracked approximately $14 billion in 71 announced large-scale project funding deals in 2012. Of that amount, $4.2 billion in 22 deals came in the fourth quarter. In comparison, large-scale project funding announcements in 2011 came to approximately $11 billion in 52 deals.

Top project funding investors in 2012 included Union Bank, with seven deals; EBRD and KfW IPEX-Bank, with six deals; and JP Morgan and Rabobank, with five deals apiece.

See on www.nawindpower.com

Wind energy topped 30% of Danish power consumption at end 2012

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Wind power provided enough electricity for over 30% of Denmark’s electricity consumption by the end of 2012. And it has 50% in its sights.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

..Wind still accounts for just 3-4% of electricity production in the US, and the target is to hit 20% by 2030. So, with that context, I think you can see that Denmark’s figure is very impressive.

The Danish Wind Industry Association’s article on the news adds: “Anholt Offshore Wind Farm will be completed at the end of 2013 and by the time the park’s 400 MW will provide 4% of the Danish electricity consumption. In addition, the planning process has started for Horns Rev III of 400 MW, Krieger’s Flak of 600 MW and the near-shore turbines which will have a combined capacity of 500 MW, of which 50 MW will be test turbines.” [sic]

See on reneweconomy.com.au

Wind energy in Spain sets record – Business – CBC News

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Wind farms in Spain have broken an energy record in January, generating more electricity than any other source.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

The Spanish Wind Energy Association said wind energy accounted for 25 per cent of all electrical production in January, more than both coal and nuclear power.

See on www.cbc.ca

WIND ENERGY TOP SOURCE FOR NEW GENERATION IN 2012; AMERICAN WIND POWER INSTALLED NEW RECORD OF 13,124 MW …

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The U.S. wind energy industry had its strongest year ever in 2012 […] installing a record 13,124 megawatts (MW) of electric generating capacity, leveraging $25 billion in private investment,and achieving over 60,000 MW of cumulative wind capacity.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

In this historic year of achievement, wind energy for the first time became the number one source of new U.S. electric generating capacity, providing some 42 percent of all new generating capacity; the final tally will be released in April in AWEA’s annual report. In fact, 2012 was a strong year for all renewables, as together they accounted for over 55 percent of all new U.S. generating capacity.

“The fact that wind power grew by another 28 percent in 2012 alone and poured $25 billion of private investment into the U.S. last year demonstrates wind’s ability to scale up, and continue to serve as a leading source of energy in America,” Gramlich said.

The global wind energy industry will gather in Chicago, Ill., this May 5-8, 2013, for the world’s largest annual wind power event, WINDPOWER 2013. Thousands of workers and leaders from all sectors will attend to show their wares, attend conference sessions, and seek further solutions for success.

See on www.power-eng.com

[…] Advanced Energy Management Patent Portfolio Developed by Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

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SEATTLE, WA–(Marketwire – Jan 29, 2013) – Calico Energy Services (www.calicoenergy.com) and the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL, www.pnnl.gov) today announced that Calico has licensed a portfolio of advanced energy management Intellectual Property (IP) developed by PNNL.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

PNNL’s development of the technology was funded by DOE’s Office of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The innovative Patent Portfolio is based on a single, integrated smart grid model that utilizes an economic signal to automatically balance supply and demand at the lowest possible cost.

“PNNL’s Patent Portfolio is a breakthrough that allows an electric power system to virtually balance itself,” said Jesse Berst […]

See on www.marketwire.com

DOE Report Shows Smart Grid Program Funds Mismanaged — Occupational Health & Safety

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The DOE inspector general said in a report that funds from $700 million smart-grid technology program have been mismanaged.

Duane Tilden‘s insight:

There are 32 projects made possible from the 2009 grant, 11 of which were reported on by Friedman.

“Our review of 11 projects, awarded $279 million in Recovery Act funding and $10 million in non-Recovery Act funding, identified weaknesses in reimbursement requests, cost-share contributions, and coordination efforts with another Department program,” Friedman said in the report to Secretary of Energy Steven Chu.

Some additional issues found by Friedman included overpayments and failures in the procedures for vetting recipient cost-share contributions

See on ohsonline.com