Solar power from giant mirrors flows into California's grid

www.forbes.com
24 Sep 2013

BrightSource Energy's massive solar farm in a remote corner of California delivered its first flow of power to the grid, an important step for demonstrating that the project is on the final path to become a fully operating power plant, the company said Tuesday.

BrightSource Energy achieved what is called the "first sync" with the project, Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, where for the first time the steam was sent to one of its three turbines for generating electricity and synching to the grid. Ivanpah is the first commercial power plant project in the United States for BrightSource Energy, which owns a stake in the project along with NRG Energy NRG Energy +0.77% and Google GOOG-1.42%.

The project also is one of the massive solar power projects being built in California to enable the state to meet its goal of using an increasing amount of renewable electricity. The state's mandate requires 33% of its utilities power supplies to come from renewable sources such as solar, wind, geothermal and biomass by 2020.

The project has a 392 MW capacity but is set to deliver 377 MWs to the Pacific Gas and Electric and Southern California Edison, It's sized to deliver enough power to about 140,000 homes per year.

Ivanpah is made up of three power generation stations. The "first sync" milestone took place at Unit 1, and the same step will be done at Unit 2 and Unit 3 soon. Unit 2 and Unit 3 are scheduled to start delivering electricity to the grid by the end of the year.

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Goldman Sachs to invest $486 million in Japan renewable energy

www.businessweek.com
20 May 2013

Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) plans to invest as much as 50 billion yen ($487 million) in renewable energy projects in Japan in the next five years, tapping demand for electricity produced from solar and wind-power generators.

The Wall Street firm also plans to take as much as 250 billion yen of bank loans and project-financing over the same period to move ahead with projects that would cost a total of 300 billion yen, Hiroko Matsumoto, a Tokyo-based spokeswoman for Goldman, said by telephone. The Nikkei newspaper reported the plan earlier today.

Japan began offering incentives in July through feed-in tariffs to encourage renewables after the Fukushima nuclear-plant crisis stemming from the March 11, 2011 earthquake and tsunami. Japan has been forced to slash its reliance on atomic power generation since Fukushima.

"We believe that we can leverage our global expertise in investing in renewable energy in places such as the U.S, and India, to help expand Japan's renewable power capabilities", Ankur Sahu, co-head of the merchant banking division in the Asia-Pacific, said by e-mail.

Goldman Sachs formed the Japan Renewable Energy Co, unit in August to plan, design and operate power plants run on sun, wind, fuel-cells and biomass fuels, it said on its website.

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Duke Energy to use less coal, more renewables

nawindpower.com
22 Apr 2013

In its newly released 2012 Sustainability Report, Duke Energy has highlighted plans to rely less on coal-fired generation and more on renewable energy.

As part of Duke Energy's $9 billion generation fleet modernization program, the company will retire more than 3.4 GW of older coal-fired units by year-end. That number will grow to 6.3 GW of coal capacity retired over the next few years.

In addition, the company has set a goal of owning or purchasing 6 GW of wind, solar and biomass energy by 2020. The report also reveals that wind power constituted 3,410 MWh, or 1.4%, of the electricity Duke generated in 2012, as well as 1,627 MW, or 6.2%, of the company's generation capacity last year.

"Greater transformation lies ahead for our company and our industry", said Jim Rogers, Duke Energy chairman and CEO, in his letter to stakeholders. "Current drivers of change include the shale gas revolution, emerging technologies and anemic growth in energy usage. Also, our nation must address global climate change in a more comprehensive way".

ADB to loan $85 million for three solar power plants in Thailand

www.bloomberg.com
15 Apr 2013

The Asian Development Bank will lend $85 million to Solarco, a unit of Thailand's second-biggest private power producer, for three solar plants. The 57 MWs of projects will be developed at three main sites in Nakhonpathom and Suphanburi provinces in central Thailand, ADB said in an April 12 statement on its website.

A $52 million loan has been approved for Solarco, a unit of Electricity Generating (EGCO2 Public Co. An additional $33 million will be given to Solarco through the ADB Clean Technology Fund. Electricity Generating plans to raise its installed capacity of renewable energy to more than 300 MWs by 2015 from 9.9 MWs of biomass and 64 MWs of solar capacity currently, according to the statement.

Renewables can provide power 24/7

www.abc.net.au
5 Apr 2013

German researchers have found a way to overcome one of the problems with renewable energy-the fact that it is not always available-by linking different options in a unified system.

CRITICS OF RENEWABLES have always claimed that sun and wind are only intermittent producers of electricity and need fossil fuel plants as back-up to make them viable. But German engineers have proved this is not so. By combining the output of a number of solar, wind and biogas plants the grid can be provided with stable energy 24 hours a day without fear of blackouts, according to the Fraunhofer Institute for Wind Energy and Energy System Technology (IWES) in Kassel.

For Germany, which has turned its back on nuclear power and is investing heavily in all forms of renewables to reduce its CO₂ emissions, this is an important breakthrough. The country has a demanding industrial sector that needs a large and stable electricity supply, and some doubted that this could be achieved in the long term without retaining nuclear or large fossil fuel plants.

Solving the problem is becoming urgent. The latest figures show that on some days of the year the electricity being generated from sun, wind, biomass, water and geothermal production already accounts for more than half of the load required in the country. The research is funded by the German Federal Ministry of the Environment and is aimed at showing that the entire electricity grid could be run on renewable energy.

Dr Kurt Rohrig, deputy director of IWES, said: "Each source of energy-be it wind, sun or biogas-has its strengths and weaknesses. If we manage to skillfully combine the different characteristics of the regenerative energies, we can ensure the power supply for Germany". The idea is that many small power plant operators can feed their electricity into the grid but act as a single power plant using computers to control the level of power.

Sharing the load
Scientists linked together 25 plants with a nominal power output of 120 MWs. Surplus power could be used for charging electric vehicles and for pumped storage (pumping water uphill into a reservoir to produce hydroelectric later). When many small producers work together, then regional differences when the wind blows or the sun is intermittent are balanced out in the grid and can be boosted by controllable biogas facilities.

If there is too much surplus energy then the power can also be used to create and store thermal energy to be used later. Kasper Knorr, the project manager for the scheme, which is known as the Combined Power Plant2 research project, says the idea is to ensure that the consumer is supplied reliably with 230 volts at a frequency of 50 Hertz.

The current system of supplying the grid with electricity is geared to a few large producers. In the new system, with dozens of small producers, there will need to be extra facilities at intervals on the system to stabilise voltage. Part of the project is designed to find out how many of these the country will need.

Japan Adds 1,178 megawatts of mostly solar energy in nine months

www.bloomberg.com
15 Mar 2013

Japan added 1,178 MWs of mostly solar clean-energy capacity in the nine months to the end of December as the country curbs its reliance on nuclear power. Japan added 1,119 MWs of solar to the 4,800 MWs already installed, according to data released by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry on March 13. Wind rose 34 MWs and biomass 22 MWs, according to the government figures.

The country began an incentive program for clean energy in July to boost use of renewables after the 2011 Fukushima atomic disaster. The ministry approved applications for above-market rates for clean energy worth 5,236 MWs until the end of December, including 3,857 MWs of non-residential solar. The northern island of Hokkaido accounts for 26% of approved applications by capacity for solar plants 1 MW or larger, the most among Japan's 47 prefectures, the data showed.

Graph of the Day – How fossil fuels lose out to wind and solar

reneweconomy.com.au
20 Feb 2013

The story that has really captured the imagination of our readers this year has been on the Bloomberg New Energy Finance analysis that demonstrated that wind power was already cheaper than new coal and gas plants in Australia, and solar PV was not all that behind.

Because of that interest, we've decided that today's Graph of the Day should be another set from the BNEF report, because they demonstrate so vividly how the technology costs of wind, solar PV, solar thermal, biomass and even geothermal fall below rising coal and gas plant costs over the coming decades.

Remember when looking at this graph of the day that Australia needs no new baseload power plants for another 10 years-that's according to the Australian Energy Market Operator and the utilities themselves. So this shows that the new plants we are getting built now-wind farms, thanks to the renewable energy target-are the cheapest option.

By the time 2020 comes around, solar PV will have well and truly joined wind on the southern side of the cost curve (and will no doubt be competing for space in the RET), and solar thermal-with its ability for storage and dispatchable energy, will be competing vigorously with gas.

Looking at these, it really is hard to disagree with BNEF's CEO Michael Liebrich, who said that "clean energy is a game changer which promises to turn the economics of power systems on its head". And it's also hard to stomach the constant carping from "the other side" about the expense of renewables.

We've published one graph that includes 2012, 2020 and 2030 forecasts, because the contrast is so visible. But due to the formatting, it may be easier to view the graphs individually, so we have also reproduced them below if the numbers and the letters are too small to see in the first.

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Aura Systems joins forces with Cyclone Power to develop renewable power generation

www.power-eng.com
26 Aug 2012

Aura Systems, Inc, and Cyclone Power Technologies, Inc, announced that the two companies have formed a technology development alliance to combine the all-fuel Cyclone Engine with the AuraGen induction motor and control unit.

According to a release, the partners anticipate that the integrated renewable power generation system will be able to provide a turn-key distributed solution for customers looking to produce grid-tied or stand-alone electricity from renewable and waste resources.

Cyclone's steam engines are capable of converting recovered exhaust heat from industrial furnaces, biomass gasifiers and other waste sources into mechanical power. The AuraGen technology fits "extremely well" with Cyclone's engines, especially in applications where fluctuations in heat create variations in engine RPM. AuraGen units produce consistent rated power, at a range of engine speeds, as well as generating AC and DC power simultaneously in a variety of voltages.

Christopher Nelson, President of Cyclone, said, "Securing the partners needed to provide turn-key renewable power generator systems to our customers, both current and prospective, is an important part of our growth strategy. Aura has the generator technology, engineering team, production capabilities and resources to provide the electrical solution from start to finish. We are very pleased to be working with Aura and look forward to a long and successful working relationship".

Melvin Gagerman, Chairman and CEO of Aura, said, "We recognize the uniqueness of Cyclone's engine technology and the talents of its engineering team. This is an attractive partnership for Aura that we think provides an excellent market extension for our AuraGen product line".

Growing demand for Renewable energy

www.frasercoastchronicle.com.au
27 Aug 2012

THE new 2012 Australian Energy Update report shows strong growth in the use of renewable energy, according to the Bureau of Resources and Energy Economics (BREE). "Renewable energy (excluding biomass) recorded the strongest consumption growth in 2010 11 at 21%, followed by natural gas and oil consumption which both increased by 7%" said BREE Executive Director and Chief Economist Professor Quentin Grafton.

"The strongest final energy consumption growth was observed in the mining and transport sectors. "Total energy consumption, including transformation activity, increased by 3% in 2010 11 to 6100 petajoules, supported by stronger economic growth". Total final energy consumption in Australia grew by 2% to 3839 petajoules in 2010 11. Total electricity generation remained, more or less unchanged at about 253 000 GWs in 2010 11 with declines in coal-fired generation offset by increased generation from natural gas and renewable energy sources (including solar, wind and hydroelectric).

"A 3% fall in energy production in 2010-11 to 16,640 petajoules, reflected lower production of coal, crude oil and uranium oxide primarily due to weather-related events" according to Professor Grafton. "Energy statistics and their analysis are critical to industry, government and the community to make better decisions about our energy future,
2012 Australian Energy Update

U.S. Army opens bids to buy $7 billion in renewable energy

www.forbes.com
8 Aug 2012

The US Army is looking for a few good renewable energy projects. Some $7 billion worth. On Tuesday the Army began accepting bids for green energy installations that will be deployed on military bases and facilities across the US The Army will sign contracts to buy the electricity generated by solar, wind, geothermal and biomass projects for up to 30 years. "It is the intent of the government only to purchase the energy that is produced and not to acquire any generation assets", the Army stated in the solicitation. "The contractor shall develop, finance, design, build, operate, own and maintain the energy plant".

In other words, instead of paying the local utility for its electricity, a base would pay a solar power company like SolarCity or Sungevity. That creates business for renewable energy companies as well as economies of scale that in the long run can lower the cost of green power. The program is part of a Department of Defense initiative to meet at least 25% of energy demand on its bases from renewable sources by 2025. The military is also aiming its bases to become "net zero" consumers of electricity-generating more power than they use by installing solar and other renewable energy systems.

The Army said projects that generate fewer than 4 MWs would be set aside for small businesses. It will also consider giving preference to small businesses for installations that generate between 4 MWs and 12 MWs of electricity but would accept unrestricted bids for projects greater than 12 MWs. Ground-mounted and rooftop solar systems have been built on a number of military bases in recent years and Silicon Valley startup SolarCity is installing photovoltaic panels on 120,000 units of privately managed military housing across the country as part of its SolarStrong initiative. The Army's move follows Monday's announcement that the Department of Defense will open 16 million acres of land in the West for renewable energy development.

Scorching summer dries up hydro power

www.power-eng.com
5 Aug 2012

The hot, dry summer means there's not much hydroelectric in your hydroelectric bill this summer. In Ontario, consumers use "hydroelectric" as shorthand for electricity. But technically, hydroelectricity means power generated by water. With not much rain and lots of evaporation this summer, rivers and lakes are at low levels, so there's less water to whirl the turbines at hydroelectric generating stations.

How much less? The amount of hydroelectric power produced in Ontario dropped 20% this July compared with July a year ago, according to the Independent Electricity System Operator. In fact, Ontario got more power from natural gas-fired generators in July than it did from its hydroelectric stations. Gas-powered generation jumped 33% from a year earlier. That meant hydroelectric contributed 17% of Ontario's power supply in July, while gas-fired units churned out 20%.


Hydropower also took up some of the slack as hydroelectric production dropped, increasing by 7% year over year. The total amount of power generated in the province was a fraction of a% higher this year than last. Ontario Power Generation generates most of the province's hydroelectric power. Early in the year, there was plenty of wet weather in the northwest, said OPG spokesman Ted Gruetzner, but it was a different story elsewhere.

"Through the central, northeast and eastern parts of the province, we didn't get much snow, and we haven't had much rain, so the reservoirs are down", he said in an interview. The biggest drops in production were at OPG's smaller hydroelectric stations; total production was down a more modest 10% at the big hydroelectric stations at Niagara Falls and Cornwall.

The other power source with a dramatic production drop was coal, which was down 42% from the year before. The province continues to shut down coal-fired units as it aims to cease coal generation by the end of 2014; in July, it produced 5% of the province's power, down from close to 9% a year ago. Combined output from renewable power sources such as wind, solar and biomass was little changed.

Not enough wind power

www.standard.net.au
24 Jul 2012

WIND energy potential is vastly underutilised in Victoria, according to the Climate Change Commission, which has called for more emphasis on renewables in the face of environmental challenges. The commission's 12th report released yesterday said the state's installed wind power capacity, including installations in south-west Victoria, was only a fraction of the total resources that could be harnessed.

"As a comparison, Denmark and Victoria have similar onshore wind speeds yet in 2010 Denmark had about seven times the installed onshore wind capacity of Victoria", the report said. "Wind turbines can provide a useful second income source for Victorian landowners. "The wind farm would also provide farmers with payments of up to $250,000 annually". The report lists solar and biomass as other viable energy sources.

Chief climate commissioner Professor Tim Flannery said Victoria should be making a sharp shift to renewable energy. "Victoria has got fabulous wind resources, the envy of places like Europe, and fantastic solar resources too", Professor Flannery said. "So the renewable energy capacity for the state is massive and it's barely being tapped at the moment". A graphic in the report shows the south-west coastal region as having one of the state's highest average yearly wind speeds of seven metres per second and faster at 65 metres above ground. There are 19 south-west wind farms either operating, being constructed or planned.

The report predicts climate-related extreme events to increase in frequency and intensity, with conditions for large and intense bushfires likely to become more common in the future. "The number of "very high" and "extreme" fire danger days could increase significantly during the next few decades", it says. "Global sea level rise is tracking near the highest levels. This means a potential one-metre rise during this century is a serious risk threatening Victoria's iconic beaches and thousands of residential and commercial buildings.

"The next chapter of the climate story is how Victoria and Australia can find solutions that minimise the risks of climate change while providing extra benefits for our health, community, economy and environment. "Harnessing clean energy, taking advantage of new economic opportunities and building sustainable communities can all provide new opportunities for Victorians". The report says much of south-east Australia has become drier in the past 40 years, with Victoria experiencing a 10-20% reduction in autumn and winter rain in the past 20 years.

$257 billion invested in renewable energy in 2011

news.brisbanetimes.com.au
12 Jun 2012

Global investment in renewable energy reached a record of $257 billion last year, with solar attracting more than half the total spending, according to a UN report released Monday. Investment in solar power surged to $147 billion in 2011, a year-on-year increase of 52% thanks to strong demand for rooftop photovoltaic installations in Germany, Italy, China and Britain.

Large-scale solar thermal installations in Spain and the United States also contributed to growth during a fiercely competitive year for the solar industry. Several large American and German manufacturers fell victim to price pressure from Chinese rivals that helped to halve the cost of photovoltaic modules in 2011. The report's authors said the demise of companies such as Solyndra, Evergreen Solar, SpectraWatt, Solar Millenium and Solon AG was a sign that the solar industry is maturing. "In 1903, the United States had over 500 car companies, most of which quickly fell by the wayside even as the automobile sector grew into an industrial juggernaut", the report said. "Today, the renewable energy sector is experiencing similar growing pains as the sector consolidates".

China was responsible for almost a fifth of the total investment volume, spending $52 billion on renewable energy last year. The United States was close behind with investments of $51 billion, as developers sought to benefit from government incentive programs before they expired. Germany, Italy and India rounded out the top five. Wind power investment slipped 12% to $84 billion due to uncertainty about energy policy in Europe and fewer new installations in China, according to the report.

Overall investment in renewable energy grew 17%, a slowdown from the 37% increase seen in 2010. Still, the head of the UN Environment Program claimed the latest figures were an indication that renewable energy is drawing level with fossil fuels in some markets. "These trends are real, they are substantive and they are transformative", Achim Steiner told reporters in a conference call.

The UN is hoping that countries will use an environmental summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, next week to commit to further investments in renewable energy, which covered just 16.7% of global energy consumption in 2010. Of this share, modern technologies such as solar and wind accounted for just 8.2%, less than the 8.5% contributed by biomass.

By comparison, more than 80% of electricity consumed worldwide still comes from fossil fuels that are blamed for a rise in carbon in the atmosphere. The UN report claims that solar panels installed in Germany, Italy, Spain, Denmark and Australia can now compete with the retail cost of electricity in those countries, even as government feed-in subsidies are lowered. It noted that developing countries were also exploring the use of renewable energy other than hydroelectric, which has long been a popular source in poor countries.

Nations in East Africa are seeking to take advantage of the abundant geothermal capacity in the Rift Valley region. Kenya aims to meet half of its electricity needs with geothermal power by 2018. Djibouti, Eritrea, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda are also exploring geothermal use.

Renewable energy costs falling: agency

phys.org
6 Jun 2012

Power from renewable energy sources is getting cheaper every year, according to a study released Wednesday, challenging long-standing myths that clean energy technology is too expensive to adopt. According to the study by the Abu Dhabi-based International Renewable Energy Agency, the costs associated with extracting power from solar panels has fallen as much as 60% in just the past few years. The price of generating power from other renewables, including wind, hydroelectric power, concentrating solar power and biomass, was also falling. "One of the (myths) out there perpetuated by industry lobby groups is that renewable energy is too expensive", said Adnan Amin, IRENA's director general.

The numbers tell a different story however as "costs are falling exponentially... and will continue (to do so) in the future", said Amin arguing that electricity generation "is now cost competitive with many traditional fossil fuel technologies". According to Dolf Gielen, director of IRENA's innovation and technology centre, investment in renewables is no longer a niche but rather represents the "bulk of investments in global power generation", accounting for half of the total annual capacity additions worldwide. "The markets are growing very fast... and further cost reductions are very likely", he said adding that in 2011, investments in the supply side of renewable energy sources reached about $260 billion.

A second IRENA study released Wednesday estimates renewables will create a minimum of four million jobs just in the electricity sector in rural areas of the developing world. Today, there are five million jobs world-wide in the renewable energy sector and more than 1.3 billion people, mainly in Africa and Asia, who do not have access to electricity, according to IRENA. "There is considerable employment potential", said Amin. Founded in 2009, IRENA is an intergovernmental organisation established to promote the widespread use of renewable energy sources. It has more than 155 member states and is headquartered in Abu Dhabi.

Analysis: UK bets on biomass in move away from coal

www.reuters.com
25 May 2012

(Reuters)-Britain is placing Europe's biggest bet on biomass as an alternative to polluting oil and coal and expensive gas, but reliance on imports could challenge the plan's low-carbon credentials and Britain's energy security. Burning wood, sunflower husks or animal feces offers steady so-called "baseload" power, giving biomass an advantage over intermittent renewable rivals solar and wind. It also offers an alternative to Europe's gas-fired power plants, where profits have been eroded by rising natural gas prices.

One way biomass is finding a way into the UK's energy mix is through the conversion of coal-burning power plants, which saves up to 75% of the cost of building a new station. "Biomass is perfect for baseload generation capacity because it's always available, it's not like wind power or solar", said Hannes Lechner, head of bioenergy at consultancy Poyry. Britain's biomass plans are Europe's biggest, with 3 GWs in planning representing 20% of Europe's growth through 2035, according to IHR Emerging Energy Research. It is part of the UK's aim to get 15% of its energy from green sources by 2020.

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Origin's opportunistic RET resistance

www.climatespectator.com.au
3 May 2012

Origin Energy made big news in the Australian renewables sector yesterday by signing onto the biggest renewable energy power purchase agreement ever contracted in this country-the 270MW Snowtown II wind farm in SA. It represented an almost perfect rebuttal to criticisms by others in the renewable energy sector that the company was playing games to undermine the Renewable Energy Target by holding off on entering into PPAs to create the impression the target could not be met.

But on the same day, Origin Energy CEO Grant King undid this favourable publicity by delivering a presentation where he suggested the level of the RET be reduced by more than a fifth-from 45,000 GWs to 35,000 GWs in 2020. In the chart reproduced below, King argued that because electricity demand growth has dropped dramatically, we need far less renewable energy than initially projected to achieve the 20% by 2020 renewables target.

The implications for the large-scale renewables sector from following King's line of argument would be devastating. The current target for large scale renewables (LRET) such as wind and biomass is 41,000GWh by 2020, which he suggests should be lowered to 27,000GWh. Based on current legislation, Green Energy Markets estimates that we need to connect 1000MW of large scale renewables to the grid in 2014 (equivalent to about 4 Snowtown II's) and then 1500MW for each subsequent year to 2020. This adds up to a total of 10,000 MWs.

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UK launches North Sea renewable energy hub

www.reuters.com
25 Apr 2012

• Major utilities, manufacturers sign up to partnership
• E.ON awards offshore cable contract to Balfour Beatty
• Two UK biomass plants reach milestones

LONDON, April 26 (Reuters)-More than twenty companies have signed a partnership agreement to turn the North Sea into a major renewable energy hub focusing on offshore wind power, Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron is to announce on Thursday. Major utilities, such as Britain's Scottish Power and Norway's Statoil, manufacturers from Siemens to Gamesa Corp and supply chain companies are supporting the initiative, provisionally named Norstec.

"Our commitment and investment in renewable energy has helped to make renewable energy possible. Now we have a different challenge. We need to make it financially sustainable", Cameron will tell ministers from 23 countries who are attending a two-day clean energy summit in London. Further details about the operations of the network will be releaved at an offshore wind conference in London in June. Britain has an ambitious target of installing 18 GWs of offshore wind power capacity by 2020, compared with around 2 GW in operation in British waters at the moment.

German utility E.ON is also on Thursday expected to award a 736 million pound cable installation contract to British construction firm Balfour Beatty to connect its Humber Gateway offshore wind farm to the electricity grid. The 230 MW wind farm will be located 8 km off the coast of East Yorkshire and its 73 turbines will produce the equivalent of electricity used in 150,000 homes.

Two UK biomass power plants also reached major milestones on Thursday, with Helius Energy close to securing a finance deal to fund its 300 million pound Avonmouth plant and a construction start at the ECO₂ 38 MW biomass plant in Sleaford. British Energy and Climate Change Minister Greg Barker said earlier this week Britain would also sign clean energy cooperation agreements with Brazil, Germany, South Korea and the U.S, as part of the international summit. On Monday, Britain announced a partnership with the U.S, to support the development of floating wind turbines which can tap stronger wind forces.

Japan recommends preferential price rates for renewable energy

www.bloomberg.com
25 Apr 2012

Japan will require power utilities to pay above market rates for electricity generated from renewable energy sources such as solar and wind, based on recommendations announced today by a government panel. The preferential rate, known as a feed-in tariff, for solar power was recommended at 42 yen (52 U.S,¢) a kW for 20 years, compared with the current rate of 13.65 yen a kW for industry and commercial users, according to the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry.

Wind-generated power was recommended at 23.10 yen a kW for plants with the capacity of 20 kWs or more and 57.75 yen for smaller ones, both for 20 years. For geothermal, the panel recommended 27.30 yen a kW for plants with the capacity of 15,000 kWs or more and 42 yen for smaller plants, both for 15 years. Japan currently gets about 9% of its electricity from renewable energy.

Pending approval by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the feed-in tariffs will be introduced in July to spur investment in solar, wind geothermal, biomass and hydroelectric power generation as Japan plans a shift away from atomic power after the Fukushima disaster. In August, Japan's parliament approved legislation for the feed-in tariffs to help diversify its energy mix following the devastating accident at the Fukushima Dai-Ichi nuclear plant in March 2011. Atomic power provided about 30% of the country's electricity before the Fukushima crisis.

Nuclear Free
Japan is set to be nuclear free for the first time in more than four decades next month as the last of its 50 operating reactors is scheduled to be shut for maintenance. All the reactors are being kept offline pending safety tests and government approval for restarts. The price recommendation for solar is in line with that earlier proposed by the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association. The Japan Wind Power Association had suggested a wind tariff of up to 25 yen over 20 years for bigger producers. The Japan Geothermal Developers' Council had recommended 25.8 yen a kW for 15 years for bigger suppliers.

App shows green power flows to German consumers

www.reuters.com
25 Apr 2012

(Reuters) - Power users with "green" leanings in Germany now can put into practice what they preach by switching on electrical devices at times of high renewable energy production. A new app offered by German utility Vattenfall Europe provides short-term information about the share of power derived from renewables such as wind or solar within the overall power mix. Stromwetter (power weather), the smartphone app which was developed by the firm, displays in green colour any share of renewable power exceeding 10%, or 8 GW of usage out of the maximum power load on the transmission grids of roughly 80,000 MW, Vattenfall said on Wednesday.

"If you prefer to use power from wind and solar power sources, then that is the time period on which to focus your consumption," said Helmar Rendez, managing director of Vattenfall Distribution. "By using the app, power customers can voluntarily support the strategy shift towards renewables, independently of where they are buying their power and at what tariff it is priced," he added. Wind power accounted for 38% of renewable power output last year and solar power for 16%, with biomass accounting for 30% and hydroelectric power the rest.

Stromwetter will derive the data from Leipzig power exchange EEX, which collects and relays aggregated production figures from German and Austrian power companies in 15-minute intervals. Germany has embarked on a shift toward renewables and away from nuclear power in the wake of Japan's Fukushima disaster in March 2011. It derived 20% of power from renewables last year. It wants 35% by 2020 and 80% by the middle of the century.

Majority in UK accept wind turbines on landscape-poll

www.reuters.com
19 Apr 2012

• Two thirds of respondents favour wind power
• Majority says look of wind turbines acceptable
• Vocal minority still an obstacle for expansion

(Reuters)-A majority of British people accept the look of wind turbines on the landscape and around two thirds favour wind power as an energy source, a sample of over 1,000 adults surveyed across the United Kingdom showed. Onshore wind is the least costly source of low-carbon energy, but a minority opposed to the look of turbines has slowed its development and raises costs for the UK to achieve its climate targets, a spokesman for RenewableUK said.

"Opposition to wind farms is the reserve of a relatively very small, but a very noisy and vociferous minority that is causing more difficulties at a local level", said Adam Bell of the wind and marine power lobby group, which had commissioned market research group Ipsos MORI to conduct the survey. "What this poll shows is that there is a silent majority in favour of wind power and a silent majority that (accepts) the look of wind turbines", he said, noting a number of onshore wind farm projects have been facing difficulties in getting approval.

In the online survey, respondents aged 16 64 were asked to rate the level of acceptability of the look of wind farms on the landscape on a 10 point scale ranging from completely unacceptable (1) to completely acceptable (10). Fifty-seven% of the 1,009 respondents gave a score between seven and 10, while one in six gave scores between one and four. Two in 10 were neutral, while 4% did not know. The survey results were similar to a renewable energy survey carried out late last year by online research firm YouGov, suggesting opposition to wind is often localised to particular projects and does not reflect wider public opinion.

The UK has one of the most ambitious climate targets in the world, with a 2050 goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80% from 1990 levels. It has set legally binding targets for four five-year periods to 2027, known as carbon budgets. Britain also has a 2020 target to deliver 15% of the country's energy consumption from renewable sources, such as wind, solar, marine and biomass. Data from the UK's Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency (DECC) suggests installed onshore wind capacity could grow to 13 GWs by the end of the decade from just over 4 GW in operation today.

But the government may have to turn to other, more expensive renewable sources if the vocal minority opposed to the erection of more onshore turbines succeeds in blocking development. "The less onshore wind you deploy, the more expensive technologies you will have to deploy instead which just increases the cost of going green", Bell said. The cost of electricity generated from onshore wind ranges between ₤75-₤127 ($120 $200) per MW, according to DECC, citing 2010 data. By comparison, the cost of solar ranges between ₤202-₤380 pounds/ MW, offshore wind ₤149-₤191/ MW and dedicated biomass ₤127-₤165 pounds/ MW.