Solar Power the Time is NOW

With utilities adopting standards to increase the amount of solargenerated electricity in coming years, the US could bolster its presence in the global solar-power market. The quickening growth pace could present attractive opportunities for investors, according to some professionals.                                                                                                                                  
At the end of 2009, the US ranked fourth in total solar capacity, with 2.09 gigawatts installed, behind Germany with 9.79Gw, Spain with 4.01Gw, and Japan with 2.68Gw, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. With the US installed capacity growing at a faster pace than that of the international market, the country may be on track to become a more dominant market by 2014, according to Larry Sherwood, an analyst at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council. 

Solar demand in the US is expected to grow 75% in 2011, compared with 2010. About 1.5Gw to 2.0Gw of capacity—1 .36Gw in California alone—is scheduled to be installed next year. 

One factor could snarl that time line: the expiration of federal incentives, specifically the Treasury Dept.’s cash grant program, which currently covers 30% of a project’s costs, as long as construction has begun by the end of 2010. SEIA and other groups are pushing to have the qualifying construction start date extended by two years, to the end of 2012.

One of the only options for a home owner has to protection thereselves against rising costs is either not us power or generate your own power. The future is very clear as to the direction of energy; the only question is what are you going to do with this knowledge? More knowledge comes more responsibility, so you must act now or you will PAY later. 

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Solar Transportation

On September 1, the world’s first solar cell-equipped public bus will hit the streets of Okayama City in Southern Japan. The Sanyo-designed bus is a hybrid diesel-electric vehicle whose rooftop solar cells generate 798 watts, powering the interior LED lights. In the absence of sun, solar power stored in a battery will keep the lights on for nine hours. The hybrid Toyota Prius offers a model with rooftop solar panels that run interior systems. The all-electric Blue Car does, too. But Sanyo’s Solarve bus i s the first use of this technology in mass transit. Next stop: an all-solar vehicle in mass production?

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London is pushing Residential Solar and saving homeowners money

London, England, United Kingdom (AHN) - British Gas is encouraging its residential customers to install solar panels on their roofs. The utility firm said 12 million homeowners who would shift to the renewable form of energy by tapping the sun’s rays could save up to $1,500 (1,000 pounds) yearly.

The savings come from payments that the government will pay homeowners with solar panels for the renewable power the panels generate. The payments are called feed-in-tariffs which would be paid for every unit of electricity generated. The current Fits is 41.3 pence for every kilowatt hours, regardless if the homeowner used the power the solar panels produced or not. Fits payments are guaranteed by the government for 25 years, paid through utility firms. The rate will be adjusted with inflation.

Homeowners could opt to have a free solar panel installed on their homes by British Gas, but the Fits payments would go to the utility firm. The offer is good for only the first 1,500 British Gas customers who apply. Residential solar installation save money the only question is yes or no.

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Solar generated electricity - So what does the future hold for Solar

With utilities adopting standards to increase the amount of solar-generated electricity in coming years, the U.S. could bolster its presence in the global solar-power market. The quickening growth pace could present attractive opportunities for investors, according to some professionals.

At the end of 2009, the U.S. ranked fourth in total solar capacity, with 2.09 gigawatts installed, behind Germany with 9.79Gw, Spain with 4.01Gw, and Japan with 2.68Gw, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. With U.S. installed capacity growing at a faster pace than that of the international market, the country may be on track to become a more dominant market by 2014, according to Larry Sherwood, an analyst at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council [IREC).

Some 23Gw of solar capacity are under development in the U.S., enough to provide electricity for 4.4 million households, according to the Solar Energy Industries Assn. [SEIA). Solar demand in the U.S. is expected to grow 75 percent in 2011, compared with 2010. About 1.5Gw to 2.0Gw of capacity -- 1.36Gw in California alone -- is scheduled to be installed next year.

One factor could snarl that time line: the expiration of federal incentives, specifically the Treasury Dept.'s cash grant program, which currently covers 30 percent of a project's costs, as long as construction has begun by the end of 2010. SEIA and other groups are pushing to have the qualifying construction start date extended by two years, to the end of 2012. Members of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee didn't return calls asking when they would vote on extending the program. Kaufman Brothers said in an Aug. 17 research note that the firm didn't expect a major decision on solar incentives until after the fall U.S. elections.

So the question is what does ALL THIS MEAN? If Utility companies are having to adopt renewable resources and alternative energy to produce electricity what will this mean for the American Family? The changes in utility mix brings higher costs to produce electricity which means higher base rates. The cost associated with meeting the government guidelines must be paid for by someone, that someone is you, Mrs. Jones and Mr. Nelson, as they same all things roll down high except for profits they role only up hill. More government mandates only means higher costs.

So what can you do to combat this inevitable event? What can Mrs. Jones do to protect her already tight budget while trying to provide for her family? What can Mr. Jones do whom just took a 40% decrease in his salary in order to maintain his job following the American dream? Well you can do one of two things, continue doing what you have always done and give more away while taking less or you can leverage all that you currently have in resources and utilize your real estate (Your roof real estate) and generate a return and protect yourself against the inevitable, increased utility bills.

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Solar generated electricity - So what does the future hold for Americans?

With utilities adopting standards to increase the amount of solar-generated electricity in coming years, the U.S. could bolster its presence in the global solar-power market. The quickening growth pace could present attractive opportunities for investors, according to some professionals.

At the end of 2009, the U.S. ranked fourth in total solar capacity, with 2.09 gigawatts installed, behind Germany with 9.79Gw, Spain with 4.01Gw, and Japan with 2.68Gw, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance. With U.S. installed capacity growing at a faster pace than that of the international market, the country may be on track to become a more dominant market by 2014, according to Larry Sherwood, an analyst at the Interstate Renewable Energy Council [IREC).

Some 23Gw of solar capacity are under development in the U.S., enough to provide electricity for 4.4 million households, according to the Solar Energy Industries Assn. [SEIA). Solar demand in the U.S. is expected to grow 75 percent in 2011, compared with 2010. About 1.5Gw to 2.0Gw of capacity -- 1.36Gw in California alone -- is scheduled to be installed next year.

One factor could snarl that time line: the expiration of federal incentives, specifically the Treasury Dept.'s cash grant program, which currently covers 30 percent of a project's costs, as long as construction has begun by the end of 2010. SEIA and other groups are pushing to have the qualifying construction start date extended by two years, to the end of 2012. Members of the U.S. Senate Finance Committee didn't return calls asking when they would vote on extending the program. Kaufman Brothers said in an Aug. 17 research note that the firm didn't expect a major decision on solar incentives until after the fall U.S. elections.

So the question is what does ALL THIS MEAN? If Utility companies are having to adopt renewable resources and alternative energy to produce electricity what will this mean for the American Family? The changes in utility mix brings higher costs to produce electricity which means higher base rates. The cost associated with meeting the government guidelines must be paid for by someone, that someone is you, Mrs. Jones and Mr. Nelson, as they same all things roll down high except for profits they role only up hill. More government mandates only means higher costs.

So what can you do to combat this inevitable event? What can Mrs. Jones do to protect her already tight budget while trying to provide for her family? What can Mr. Jones do whom just took a 40% decrease in his salary in order to maintain his job following the American dream? Well you can do one of two things, continue doing what you have always done and give more away while taking less or you can leverage all that you currently have in resources and utilize your real estate (Your roof real estate) and generate a return and protect yourself against the inevitable, increased utility bills.

Ga. Power to double the solar power it buys

The chairman of the Public Service Commission says that a Georgia utility could soon boost the amount of solar power it offers to customers.

Lauren "Bubba" McDonald says Thursday that Georgia Power Co. will propose a new solar tariff it would use to purchase an additional 2.5 megawatts of electricity generated by solar power from independent producers.

If the proposal is adopted by the commission, Georgia would have 6.4 megawatts of solar capacity. He said "it is an advancement of this industry of which we, as a state, can be proud."

Sales of solar power offered by the utility have already doubled in the last 12 months, he said. Its Green Power Program charges customers $3.50 extra for each 100-kilowatt-hour block of solar electricity they buy per month.

Georgia Power limits how much it buys from customers to resell in the Green program to ensure that it doesn’t promise more than it can deliver. In June, it raised that limit by 400 kilowatts, and Thursday’s announcement will add another 2.5 megawatts for a total of 5.4 megawatts that it will buy for resale.

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Georgia Power to purchase more solar power

Georgia Power is doubling the amount of solar energy it will buy from independent producers, the chairman of the state Public Service Commission announced Thursday.

Speaking to a conference of solar entrepreneurs, Chairman Lauren McDonald said the utility will buy another 2.5 megawatts of sun-made energy capacity from homes and businesses with solar panels, bringing its total purchases to just over 5 megawatts.

One megawatt has the capacity to power 250 homes or one Super Target. The company will pay 17 cents per kilowatt hour for the first 1.5 megawatts and take bids for the rest.

The announcement was a welcome bone to an industry that had tried and failed to get more business this spring.

The Georgia Solar Energy Association took part in a commission deliberation in hopes of getting Georgia Power to both buy 2.5 more megawatts of solar power and collect the cost through ordinary rates, instead of through a premium-priced green power program.

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Outlook for Wind energy

Wind power capacity additions in 2009 were buoyed, in part, by projects that were initially slated to be completed in 2008 but that carried over into 2009 when the PTC was extended, somewhat masking the underlying challenges facing the sector.

With federal incentives now extended through 2012, there is less motivation to complete projects in 2010 (though many projects will likely start construction in 2010 in order to qualify for the 30% Treasury cash grant).

As a result, though the Recovery Act has helped to alleviate financing challenges, expectations of a slower year in 2010 remain. Despite the relativly motorate average levels of wind speeds throughout florida, Florida is still able to tap into this renewable energy along with many other solutions to protect yourself.

A variety of forecasts suggest that wind power installations in 2010 may fall within the range of 5,500 MW to 8,000 MW, a drop of 20-45% compared to the nearly 10,000 M W installed in 2009.

This contraction is reflected in results for the first half of 2010, in which just 1,240 MW of wind power were installed – i.e., 57% less than the amount installed in the first half of 2008, and 71% below the pace set in the first half of 2009.

After a slower year in 2010, these predictions show market resurgence in 2011 and 2012, with annual installations ranging from 8,100 to 15,000 MW depending on the forecast and year.

From 2010 through 2012, these forecasts predict cumulative wind power additions of 24 to 33 GW; this amount of new wind power capacity would provide roughly 30-40% of EIA’s projected growth in total U.S. electricity demand over the 2010-2012 timeframe. 

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Utility commission approved increase

The North Carolina Utilities Commission has approved Duke Energy’s proposal to add 27 cents to each residential customer’s bill starting Sept. 1 to pay for Duke’s renewable-energy portfolio.

Commercial customers will get $1.32 added to their monthly bills, and industrial customers will see $13.21 added to theirs.

Duke (NYSE: DUK) provides electricity to much of the western Triangle, including Durham and Chapel Hill.

The new charge pays the costs for Duke to comply with the renewable-energy portfolio standard set by the North Carolina General Assembly in 2007. By 2021, each investor-owned utility in the state is to produce 12.5 percent of the energy it sells from renewable sources.

Read more: N.C. approves Duke Energy renewables charge - Triangle Business Journal

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Renewable Power Set to Surpass Fossil Fuels

Posted by Joanna Schroeder – July 31st, 2010

This month several reports have been released on the global growth of renewable energy. According to two new reports released by the United Nations Environment Programme and the Renewable Energy Policy Network for the 21st Century (REN21), for two consecutive years, the United States and Europe added more power from renewable sources such as wind and solar than from conventional sources such as coal, gas and nuclear.

As reported in the Renewables 2010 Global Status Report, renewables accounted by 60 percent of new installed capacity in Europe and accounted for 50 percent of new installed capacity in the U.S in 2009. Experts are predicting that within the next two years, the world as a whole will follow-suit and add more capacity to the electrical grid from renewable than non-renewable sources.

However, this week, the U.S. Energy Information Administration released its International Energy Outlook 2010 which anticipates energy growth from 2007 to 2035. The report anticipates that fossil fuels are expected to continue to supply much of the used worldwide and predicts that electricity generation will grow by an average of 3.0 percent per year and the renewable share of the world electricity generation will increase from 18 percent in 2007 to 23 percent in 2035. Generation from natural gas and nuclear power increase 2.1 and 2.0 percent per year, respectively while coal-fired power is expected to increase an average of 2.3 percent. This would make coal the second-fastest growing source for electricity generation worldwide.

The result of continued growth of fossil-fuel based energy, according to the International Energy Outlook 2010 is that world-energy related CO2 emissions are expected to rise from 29.7 billion metric tons in 2007 to 33.8 billion metric tons in 2020 hitting a high of 42.4 billion metric tons on 2035. This is an estimated CO2 emission projection increase of 43 percent over the next 28 years.

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NASCAR and Solar ????

In what is a premiere for NASCAR, the Pocono Raceway announced this week it will open one of the largest round-mount photovoltaic solar energy system in the US. Destined to supply the raceway with its required energy, the solar powerplant has a 3 megawatt capacit y and is so large it is visible from outer space. The track thus becomes the first one to be fully powered by renewable energy.

The utility cover 25-acre and comprises 40,000 photovoltaic modules. It will produce an estimated 72 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy by the year 2030. According to the calculations of enXco, the ones which developed it, the solar powerplant will cut carbon dioxide levels by 3,100 metric tons each year and produces enough energy to power 1,000 homes in addition to the Pocono Raceway. This project demonstrates real sustainability and proves that any business that truly wants to go green can do it.

This is an important milestone for Pocono Raceway and our sport," Brandon Igdalsky, president of Pocono Raceway said. "This project demonstrates real sustainability and proves that any business that truly wants to go green can do it."

The facility is just one of the steps undertaken by NASCAR in recent years to cut its emission and energy consumption levels. These efforts will soon include the NASCAR vehicles.

The dedication ceremony for the facility will take place today at the Long Pond Road across from Gate 3 of the raceway, where the panels are located.

"NASCAR is committed to becoming a leader in environmental responsibility by reducing our impact and serving as a testing ground for innovative new approaches for sustainability," Brian France NASCAR CEO said in a statement.

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