www.smh.com.au
April 26, 2010
Pensioners will have their payments cut if they sell excess electricity from their solar electricity systems, the federal government has confirmed. Former policeman Rod Campbell, 63, collects a carer's pension while looking after his wife, and spent $11,000 to install solar panels on his home in the NSW town of Port Macquarie. He said he discovered the government's rules would lead his pension to be cut. ''The government preaches that it wants you to cut your carbon footprint and as soon as you do it they punish you for it,'' Mr Campbell told News Ltd papers.
Mr Campbell said the issue was confirmed in a letter from the office of Families Minister Jenny Macklin, which said the social security test applied to any money from an electricity company ''either as a direct payment or as a credit or rebate on a person's electricity bill''. ''We could suffer a loss of pension for trying to do a good thing,'' Mr Campbell said.
A spokeswoman for Ms Macklin said: ''If a pensioner sells power back to the grid and receives cash payments or a rebate on their power bill that is counted as income for social security purposes.'' Family First Senator Steve Fielding said the situation was "penny pinching by a stingy government'' at a time when pensioners faced rising electricity prices. ''People have done the right thing and signed up to help the environment like the PM wanted them to and now they're being penalised for it. It's just disgusting,'' he said.
Thursday, 29 April 2010
DuPont and Oerlikon Launch New Photovoltaic Encapsulant
www.nanowerk.com
April 25, 2010
(Nanowerk News) In the drive for more cost-effective solar energy, Dupont and Oerlikon Solar have collaborated on a new, ultra-thin white reflective solar photovoltaic encapsulant sheet that is part of the Dupont(TM) PV5200 Series. The new Dupont(TM) PV5223 white reflective polyvinyl butyral (PVB) encapsulant enables easier manufacturing of next-generation thin film photovoltaic modules that not only capture sunlight coming in, but also reflect more sunlight back through the module - - delivering more power. Encapsulants are among the most important materials to solar module manufacturers for high-volume module sealing and integration. Choosing or creating the right material not only speeds module production, but can significantly improve long-term power output and module durability.
"In the rapidly evolving and growing solar power market, equipment and materials leaders often innovate faster and more effectively by increasing collaboration," said Steve Cluff, global business director - Dupont Photovoltaic Encapsulants. "Dupont's market-driven science is supporting the solar industry's race for lower cost per watt. Dupont values the partnership with Oerlikon Solar, as we both view encapsulant technology playing an increasingly multi-functional role in next-generation photovoltaic modules." "The PV5200 Series enables more power from our modules, lower material use, a smaller environmental footprint and easier lamination. It all adds up to a bright outlook for our module manufacturing customers," said Ivan Sinicco, senior manager, Module Development - Oerlikon Solar.
April 25, 2010
(Nanowerk News) In the drive for more cost-effective solar energy, Dupont and Oerlikon Solar have collaborated on a new, ultra-thin white reflective solar photovoltaic encapsulant sheet that is part of the Dupont(TM) PV5200 Series. The new Dupont(TM) PV5223 white reflective polyvinyl butyral (PVB) encapsulant enables easier manufacturing of next-generation thin film photovoltaic modules that not only capture sunlight coming in, but also reflect more sunlight back through the module - - delivering more power. Encapsulants are among the most important materials to solar module manufacturers for high-volume module sealing and integration. Choosing or creating the right material not only speeds module production, but can significantly improve long-term power output and module durability."In the rapidly evolving and growing solar power market, equipment and materials leaders often innovate faster and more effectively by increasing collaboration," said Steve Cluff, global business director - Dupont Photovoltaic Encapsulants. "Dupont's market-driven science is supporting the solar industry's race for lower cost per watt. Dupont values the partnership with Oerlikon Solar, as we both view encapsulant technology playing an increasingly multi-functional role in next-generation photovoltaic modules." "The PV5200 Series enables more power from our modules, lower material use, a smaller environmental footprint and easier lamination. It all adds up to a bright outlook for our module manufacturing customers," said Ivan Sinicco, senior manager, Module Development - Oerlikon Solar.
Eden feels the heat over wood-fired power plant
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday 26/4/2010 Page: 5
Eden, on the state's south coast, is set to be the first Australian town to be powered by a woodfired electricity plant, despite concerns that burning trees could generate more greenhouse gas emissions than burning coal. The woodchip company behind the plant, which is being considered by the NSW government, describes it as a renewable energy project that will make practical use of offcuts and sawdust from its existing mill. But it faces fierce opposition from sections of the local community which believe the plan will entrench logging in native forests and promote demand for woodchips.
Although the plant's developer, South East Fibre Exports, plans to phase in plantation wood, the majority of the 51,000 tonnes of fuel will still come from logging in native forests. When the role of the living trees as carbon sinks is factored in, emissions from the plant soar to up to four times that of a coal plant, campaigners argue. "There is a huge amount of lies and misinformation floating around about the emissions." said a South East Fibre Exports spokesman, Vince Phillips. "If the government wants figures on all emissions, we will supply them."
Mr Phillips said the proposal had been beset by "manic hatred" from the environment movement, including the creation of a prominent fake website twisting the company's line. "They've just got a mindset that says there shouldn't be logging in native forests at all, but were confident the government will see through that." Yet the power station plans suffered a serious blow last year when electricity retailers decided not to recognise it as an accredited supplier of renewable power.
"Setting aside the issue of carbon emissions, the more we log the forests, the more it affects the hydrology of our region, the less rainfall we have, which leads to fewer trees." said Prue Acton, a spokeswoman for South East Region Conservation Alliance, one of several groups campaigning against the plant. The NSW Greens MP John Kaye said the power station was simply a way to sustain the south coast logging industry, which sometimes operates at a loss.
"Even after allowing for the forests to regrow to capture some of this CO2, the power station has a carbon footprint that is four times the size of a coal powered generator," he said. "When the entire fuel cycle is considered, this is a carbon dirty proposal. The applicant has neatly sidestepped the real greenhouse implications of burning forestry materials." The campaigners delivered 2000 letters from residents opposing the plan to the NSW Premier, Kristina Keneally, last week.
Monday 26/4/2010 Page: 5
Eden, on the state's south coast, is set to be the first Australian town to be powered by a woodfired electricity plant, despite concerns that burning trees could generate more greenhouse gas emissions than burning coal. The woodchip company behind the plant, which is being considered by the NSW government, describes it as a renewable energy project that will make practical use of offcuts and sawdust from its existing mill. But it faces fierce opposition from sections of the local community which believe the plan will entrench logging in native forests and promote demand for woodchips.
Although the plant's developer, South East Fibre Exports, plans to phase in plantation wood, the majority of the 51,000 tonnes of fuel will still come from logging in native forests. When the role of the living trees as carbon sinks is factored in, emissions from the plant soar to up to four times that of a coal plant, campaigners argue. "There is a huge amount of lies and misinformation floating around about the emissions." said a South East Fibre Exports spokesman, Vince Phillips. "If the government wants figures on all emissions, we will supply them."
Mr Phillips said the proposal had been beset by "manic hatred" from the environment movement, including the creation of a prominent fake website twisting the company's line. "They've just got a mindset that says there shouldn't be logging in native forests at all, but were confident the government will see through that." Yet the power station plans suffered a serious blow last year when electricity retailers decided not to recognise it as an accredited supplier of renewable power.
"Setting aside the issue of carbon emissions, the more we log the forests, the more it affects the hydrology of our region, the less rainfall we have, which leads to fewer trees." said Prue Acton, a spokeswoman for South East Region Conservation Alliance, one of several groups campaigning against the plant. The NSW Greens MP John Kaye said the power station was simply a way to sustain the south coast logging industry, which sometimes operates at a loss.
"Even after allowing for the forests to regrow to capture some of this CO2, the power station has a carbon footprint that is four times the size of a coal powered generator," he said. "When the entire fuel cycle is considered, this is a carbon dirty proposal. The applicant has neatly sidestepped the real greenhouse implications of burning forestry materials." The campaigners delivered 2000 letters from residents opposing the plan to the NSW Premier, Kristina Keneally, last week.
Solar Projects To See The Light Of Day
Australian
Monday 26/4/2010 Page: 23
IT could be a big fortnight for the Australian solar industry. The shortlist for the first two projects in the $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program is expected to be announced soon, and so will the much awaited but long-delayed winners of the solar component of the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program. The announcements will be a major boost to the solar industry, which has enjoyed something of a mini-boom in small-scale rooftop installations, but has made no progress on larger, utility-scale installations and those in between.
The federal government is expected to announce half a dozen candidates to build Australia's first large-scale photovoltaic project and its first large-scale solar thermal project. There have been some 52 applications, attracting most of the world's leading solar energy developers, equipment suppliers, engineering groups and financiers. The winners are expected to be announced later this year, although there is some concern this timetable may be derailed by the election.
The REDP grant allocations had been expected last year and were feared lost in a bureaucratic reshuffling of funds but, according to a spokesman for Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, they will be announced "in the very near future". These grants, possibly as much as $130 million, will focus on funding demonstration projects for emerging solar technologies. The local industry is rich in natural resources and R&D but has been forced to watch as European countries and China forge ahead with strong government incentive schemes.
Australia is expected to install around 50MW of solar PV this year, mostly the result of sate-based incentive schemes. But according to a survey by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, it trails behind less well solar-endowed countries by a wide margin. Its survey found 7300MW of solar PV was installed worldwide in 2009, with nearly half of this coming from Germany, followed by Italy at 580MW, Japan and the US with nearly 500MW each, the Czech Republic with 397MW and Belgium with 233MW. A further 11,000 may be installed this year.
And solar thermal, which differs from solar PV because it uses the sun's heat to create steam and drive conventional generators, is also making solid progress. Areva, the French nuclear giant which recently completed the purchase of Australian) founded solar thermal group Ausra, is in talks in India with a view to building several 50MW solar thermal plants as part of that country's stated goal to build 1000MW of solar thermal capacity by 2013 and another 3000MW by 2017.
Germany's Solar Millennium, one of the applicants for the Solar Flagships, reportedly said last week it was on track to complete a 150MW solar thermal plant in Egypt this year, which will be boosted by gas turbines and is being touted as a template for a series of solar farms and other renewable energy installations that will form part of the proposed $700bn Desertec Foundation project that will supply up to 25% of Europe's energy needs.
Monday 26/4/2010 Page: 23
IT could be a big fortnight for the Australian solar industry. The shortlist for the first two projects in the $1.5 billion Solar Flagships program is expected to be announced soon, and so will the much awaited but long-delayed winners of the solar component of the Renewable Energy Demonstration Program. The announcements will be a major boost to the solar industry, which has enjoyed something of a mini-boom in small-scale rooftop installations, but has made no progress on larger, utility-scale installations and those in between.
The federal government is expected to announce half a dozen candidates to build Australia's first large-scale photovoltaic project and its first large-scale solar thermal project. There have been some 52 applications, attracting most of the world's leading solar energy developers, equipment suppliers, engineering groups and financiers. The winners are expected to be announced later this year, although there is some concern this timetable may be derailed by the election.
The REDP grant allocations had been expected last year and were feared lost in a bureaucratic reshuffling of funds but, according to a spokesman for Energy Minister Martin Ferguson, they will be announced "in the very near future". These grants, possibly as much as $130 million, will focus on funding demonstration projects for emerging solar technologies. The local industry is rich in natural resources and R&D but has been forced to watch as European countries and China forge ahead with strong government incentive schemes.
Australia is expected to install around 50MW of solar PV this year, mostly the result of sate-based incentive schemes. But according to a survey by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, it trails behind less well solar-endowed countries by a wide margin. Its survey found 7300MW of solar PV was installed worldwide in 2009, with nearly half of this coming from Germany, followed by Italy at 580MW, Japan and the US with nearly 500MW each, the Czech Republic with 397MW and Belgium with 233MW. A further 11,000 may be installed this year.
And solar thermal, which differs from solar PV because it uses the sun's heat to create steam and drive conventional generators, is also making solid progress. Areva, the French nuclear giant which recently completed the purchase of Australian) founded solar thermal group Ausra, is in talks in India with a view to building several 50MW solar thermal plants as part of that country's stated goal to build 1000MW of solar thermal capacity by 2013 and another 3000MW by 2017.
Germany's Solar Millennium, one of the applicants for the Solar Flagships, reportedly said last week it was on track to complete a 150MW solar thermal plant in Egypt this year, which will be boosted by gas turbines and is being touted as a template for a series of solar farms and other renewable energy installations that will form part of the proposed $700bn Desertec Foundation project that will supply up to 25% of Europe's energy needs.
Thousands protest against nuclear power plants
www.businessweek.com
April 24, 2010
Thousands of protesters across Germany have formed a human chain to demonstrate against the government's policy on nuclear power plants. The environmental group BUND said in a statement Saturday that some 120,000 protesters formed a 120 kilometre-long (74-mile-long) human chain through Hamburg and along the Elbe river in northern Germany rejecting government plans to extend the operation time of nuclear power plants. BUND spokesman Thorben Becker said that the demonstrations are a signal to the government that "it is high time to shut down the country's nuclear plants." Protests also took place at a nuclear power plant in Biblis in central Germany and at the nuclear waste storage facility in Ahaus in the west of the country.
April 24, 2010
Thousands of protesters across Germany have formed a human chain to demonstrate against the government's policy on nuclear power plants. The environmental group BUND said in a statement Saturday that some 120,000 protesters formed a 120 kilometre-long (74-mile-long) human chain through Hamburg and along the Elbe river in northern Germany rejecting government plans to extend the operation time of nuclear power plants. BUND spokesman Thorben Becker said that the demonstrations are a signal to the government that "it is high time to shut down the country's nuclear plants." Protests also took place at a nuclear power plant in Biblis in central Germany and at the nuclear waste storage facility in Ahaus in the west of the country.
U.K. Offshore Wind Power Reaches 1 Gigawatt on E.ON, Dong Farms
www.businessweek.com
April 23, 2010
April 23 (Bloomberg) - - U.K, offshore wind power now has 1GW of generating capacity after projects by E.ON AG and DONG Energy A/S began producing electricity, the industry group RenewableUK said. The "landmark" figure - - enough to power 653,000 homes - - was reached this week when E.ON's Robin Rigg and DONG Energy's Gunfleet Sands wind parks started operating, the group said today in an e-mailed statement. "In the first quarter of this year alone, $500 million pounds ($768 million) of private investment has been invested directly into offshore wind in the U.K.," RenewableUK Chief Executive Officer Maria McCaffery said in the statement.
The U.K, in 2008 overtook Denmark to become the leading nation in terms of installed offshore wind power. Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government, facing an election on May 6, is betting on the technology to cut emissions of CO2 and meet European Union renewable energy targets. Brown's ruling Labour Party and the two main opposition groups, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, have all pledged measures to boost offshore wind production should they win the general election.
General Electric Co, last month said it would build a new plant in Britain to make offshore wind turbines, and Clipper Windpower Plc in February began building a factory to make offshore turbine blames. Siemens AG is also studying whether to build a new wind-power equipment facility in the U.K. Farms with a further 4GWs of capacity have planning permission or are being built, RenewableUK said. In January, the government awarded licenses for 32,200 MWs of projects to companies including Centrica Plc, RWE AG and Statoil ASA.
April 23, 2010
April 23 (Bloomberg) - - U.K, offshore wind power now has 1GW of generating capacity after projects by E.ON AG and DONG Energy A/S began producing electricity, the industry group RenewableUK said. The "landmark" figure - - enough to power 653,000 homes - - was reached this week when E.ON's Robin Rigg and DONG Energy's Gunfleet Sands wind parks started operating, the group said today in an e-mailed statement. "In the first quarter of this year alone, $500 million pounds ($768 million) of private investment has been invested directly into offshore wind in the U.K.," RenewableUK Chief Executive Officer Maria McCaffery said in the statement.
The U.K, in 2008 overtook Denmark to become the leading nation in terms of installed offshore wind power. Prime Minister Gordon Brown's government, facing an election on May 6, is betting on the technology to cut emissions of CO2 and meet European Union renewable energy targets. Brown's ruling Labour Party and the two main opposition groups, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats, have all pledged measures to boost offshore wind production should they win the general election.
General Electric Co, last month said it would build a new plant in Britain to make offshore wind turbines, and Clipper Windpower Plc in February began building a factory to make offshore turbine blames. Siemens AG is also studying whether to build a new wind-power equipment facility in the U.K. Farms with a further 4GWs of capacity have planning permission or are being built, RenewableUK said. In January, the government awarded licenses for 32,200 MWs of projects to companies including Centrica Plc, RWE AG and Statoil ASA.
eHydrogen Solutions expands its real-time hydrogen and energy production design scope with Stirling Engine technology
www.marketwatch.com/
April 22, 2010
eHydrogen Solutions, Inc. (eHS) announced today the expansion of its Combined Heat & Power (CHP) development projects for residential, commercial and industrial use. The CHP systems design scope now includes the optional addition of a Stirling Engine for efficient electrical energy production or refrigeration capability.
Through the integration of the very high energy content of hydrogen with the high efficiency of Stirling Engine technologies as the power generation module of its CHP systems, eHS significantly increases the efficiencies, production capabilities and power output, with virtually no CO2 or other emissions.
Unlike internal combustion engines where combustion takes place inside the cylinder at low efficiencies, Stirling Engines are external combustion engines operating at high efficiencies. The utilisation of eHS' proprietary On Demand Hydrogen Production (ODHP) technologies as the heat source of a Stirling Engine powered CHP system, increases the overall effectiveness of the CHP system and broaden the developmental scope of the project. The systems will produce both electrical and thermal energy, making this appliance suitable for both the domestic and SME markets.
Stirling Engine technologies are noted for their high efficiency, quiet operation, and the ease with which it can use almost any heat source. This compatibility with alternative and renewable energy sources has become increasingly significant as the price of conventional fuels rises, and also in light of concerns such as peak oil and climate change. This has important implications, since hydrogen can be economically produced on-site and does not need to be transported. The Company recently announced it had increased its focus and resources to the critical Technology Development & Demonstration phase of the Innovative Cycle, which includes Prototype, Demonstration and Market Analysis.
The Company's recent acquisition of key On Demand Hydrogen Production (ODHP) technologies (such as: Photoelectrolysis and artificial Photosynthesis, water and reactive metal alloys) enabled the company to expand its operations to the critical Technology Development & Demonstration phase of the Innovative Cycle, which includes Prototype, Demonstration and Market Analysis. The Company has assembled experienced cross-functional teams to guide each innovation acquisition, technological adaptation and system integration through the required steps to successful commercialisation.
The operational and strategic expansion will be accompanied by new marketing and corporate branding initiatives supported by an upgraded website reflecting the Company's core holdings and technologies. Shareholders can expect frequent updates on the company's expansion and new operations. The Company believes its acquisition and growth-oriented business plan will provide stockholders with consistent equity growth and access to the multi-billion dollar alternative energy industry through its licensing and distribution of hydrogen-powered energy systems and solutions.
The Company continues to develop and license a variety of technologies and power systems founded on its core ODHP holdings and will make further announcements on the progress of each of these new initiatives as the various technologies are integrated into its development and partnership programs.
April 22, 2010
eHydrogen Solutions, Inc. (eHS) announced today the expansion of its Combined Heat & Power (CHP) development projects for residential, commercial and industrial use. The CHP systems design scope now includes the optional addition of a Stirling Engine for efficient electrical energy production or refrigeration capability.
Through the integration of the very high energy content of hydrogen with the high efficiency of Stirling Engine technologies as the power generation module of its CHP systems, eHS significantly increases the efficiencies, production capabilities and power output, with virtually no CO2 or other emissions.
Unlike internal combustion engines where combustion takes place inside the cylinder at low efficiencies, Stirling Engines are external combustion engines operating at high efficiencies. The utilisation of eHS' proprietary On Demand Hydrogen Production (ODHP) technologies as the heat source of a Stirling Engine powered CHP system, increases the overall effectiveness of the CHP system and broaden the developmental scope of the project. The systems will produce both electrical and thermal energy, making this appliance suitable for both the domestic and SME markets.
Stirling Engine technologies are noted for their high efficiency, quiet operation, and the ease with which it can use almost any heat source. This compatibility with alternative and renewable energy sources has become increasingly significant as the price of conventional fuels rises, and also in light of concerns such as peak oil and climate change. This has important implications, since hydrogen can be economically produced on-site and does not need to be transported. The Company recently announced it had increased its focus and resources to the critical Technology Development & Demonstration phase of the Innovative Cycle, which includes Prototype, Demonstration and Market Analysis.
The Company's recent acquisition of key On Demand Hydrogen Production (ODHP) technologies (such as: Photoelectrolysis and artificial Photosynthesis, water and reactive metal alloys) enabled the company to expand its operations to the critical Technology Development & Demonstration phase of the Innovative Cycle, which includes Prototype, Demonstration and Market Analysis. The Company has assembled experienced cross-functional teams to guide each innovation acquisition, technological adaptation and system integration through the required steps to successful commercialisation.
The operational and strategic expansion will be accompanied by new marketing and corporate branding initiatives supported by an upgraded website reflecting the Company's core holdings and technologies. Shareholders can expect frequent updates on the company's expansion and new operations. The Company believes its acquisition and growth-oriented business plan will provide stockholders with consistent equity growth and access to the multi-billion dollar alternative energy industry through its licensing and distribution of hydrogen-powered energy systems and solutions.
The Company continues to develop and license a variety of technologies and power systems founded on its core ODHP holdings and will make further announcements on the progress of each of these new initiatives as the various technologies are integrated into its development and partnership programs.
Wednesday, 28 April 2010
Australia Will Allow Exports of Uranium to Russia
www.businessweek.com/
April 22, 2010
April 23 (Bloomberg) - - Australia, the world's third-largest uranium producer behind Kazakhstan and Canada, will ratify a nuclear agreement allowing exports to Russia for energy purposes, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said. "This will enable Australian uranium to be exported to the Russian Federation for civil, peaceful nuclear purposes," Smith said, according to an e-mailed transcript of a news conference yesterday in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The agreement will strengthen cooperation on safeguards to protect exports as Australia and Russia "both stand firmly against terrorism and violent extremism," Smith said.
Australia, which does not generate any nuclear power, has the world's biggest known uranium reserves, according to estimates from the World Nuclear Association. While exports to Russia will go ahead, Australia doesn't allow uranium to be sent to India for energy use because the Asian country hasn't signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Russia hopes ratification of "agreements on the peaceful use of nuclear energy" will be completed "soon," Lavrov said. Australia and Russia signed up to President Barack Obama's plan to secure all vulnerable nuclear material in four years outlined at a two-day summit in Washington earlier this month that involved 47 countries. "Together with other colleagues we will work in such a way that the conference on non-proliferation in May will be concluded with important results," Lavrov said, referring to the NPT Review Conference in New York from May 3-28.
Deep Reserves
As much as 10 % of Australia's uranium is found in the state of Western Australia and is valued at about A$40 billion ($37 billion), according to a government estimate. BHP Billiton Ltd.'s Olympic Dam mine in South Australia contains the world's biggest uranium deposit.
Energy Resources of Australia Ltd., a uranium producer controlled by Rio Tinto Group, provides about a 10th of the world's mined uranium. It operates the Ranger Uranium Mine in the Northern Territory and sells uranium to utilities in Asia, Europe and North America. It began shipments to China in 2008. The Premier of Western Australia Colin Barnett lifted a ban on new mining of uranium, which is processed into nuclear fuel, when his Liberal party won office in September 2008.
April 22, 2010
April 23 (Bloomberg) - - Australia, the world's third-largest uranium producer behind Kazakhstan and Canada, will ratify a nuclear agreement allowing exports to Russia for energy purposes, Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said. "This will enable Australian uranium to be exported to the Russian Federation for civil, peaceful nuclear purposes," Smith said, according to an e-mailed transcript of a news conference yesterday in Moscow with Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The agreement will strengthen cooperation on safeguards to protect exports as Australia and Russia "both stand firmly against terrorism and violent extremism," Smith said.
Australia, which does not generate any nuclear power, has the world's biggest known uranium reserves, according to estimates from the World Nuclear Association. While exports to Russia will go ahead, Australia doesn't allow uranium to be sent to India for energy use because the Asian country hasn't signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Russia hopes ratification of "agreements on the peaceful use of nuclear energy" will be completed "soon," Lavrov said. Australia and Russia signed up to President Barack Obama's plan to secure all vulnerable nuclear material in four years outlined at a two-day summit in Washington earlier this month that involved 47 countries. "Together with other colleagues we will work in such a way that the conference on non-proliferation in May will be concluded with important results," Lavrov said, referring to the NPT Review Conference in New York from May 3-28.
Deep Reserves
As much as 10 % of Australia's uranium is found in the state of Western Australia and is valued at about A$40 billion ($37 billion), according to a government estimate. BHP Billiton Ltd.'s Olympic Dam mine in South Australia contains the world's biggest uranium deposit.
Energy Resources of Australia Ltd., a uranium producer controlled by Rio Tinto Group, provides about a 10th of the world's mined uranium. It operates the Ranger Uranium Mine in the Northern Territory and sells uranium to utilities in Asia, Europe and North America. It began shipments to China in 2008. The Premier of Western Australia Colin Barnett lifted a ban on new mining of uranium, which is processed into nuclear fuel, when his Liberal party won office in September 2008.
World’s Largest Land Wind Project Planned in Romania
domesticfuel.com
April 19th, 2010
While the debate goes on whether to move forward on the Cape Wind energy project in this country, the Europeans seem poised to leave those efforts in the wind-swept dust. BusinessWeek.com reports Spain-based Iberdrola SA will build the world's largest onshore wind-energy project in Romania, a $2-billion project that will produce 1,500 MWs of capacity … five times bigger than Europe's largest wind complex and three times bigger than the Massachusetts offshore wind project:
Iberdrola, which became the world's biggest wind-farm owner by using government incentives and charging above-market electricity rates for clean energy, now operates in 10 markets including the US and U.K. The Romanian mega-park, near its operations in neighbouring Hungary, may extend the Spanish company's lead over second-ranked wind producer FPL Group Inc, of Florida.
Romania generates much of its electricity by burning oil and gas, which can be easily scaled back during a windy day to allow for surges of power from windmills, said Will Young, a wind energy analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance in London. "That makes Romania an attractive market," Young said today in an interview. "Romania has relatively high power prices and flexible energy generation that allows power producers to feed in electricity easily." Iberdrola plans to build 50 wind farms in Romania, able to light up almost one million homes.
April 19th, 2010
While the debate goes on whether to move forward on the Cape Wind energy project in this country, the Europeans seem poised to leave those efforts in the wind-swept dust. BusinessWeek.com reports Spain-based Iberdrola SA will build the world's largest onshore wind-energy project in Romania, a $2-billion project that will produce 1,500 MWs of capacity … five times bigger than Europe's largest wind complex and three times bigger than the Massachusetts offshore wind project:
Iberdrola, which became the world's biggest wind-farm owner by using government incentives and charging above-market electricity rates for clean energy, now operates in 10 markets including the US and U.K. The Romanian mega-park, near its operations in neighbouring Hungary, may extend the Spanish company's lead over second-ranked wind producer FPL Group Inc, of Florida.
Romania generates much of its electricity by burning oil and gas, which can be easily scaled back during a windy day to allow for surges of power from windmills, said Will Young, a wind energy analyst at Bloomberg New Energy Finance in London. "That makes Romania an attractive market," Young said today in an interview. "Romania has relatively high power prices and flexible energy generation that allows power producers to feed in electricity easily." Iberdrola plans to build 50 wind farms in Romania, able to light up almost one million homes.
Newest Pew Report Strong on Clean Energy Investment, Jobs
www.energyboom.com
April 19, 2010
The newest clean energy report from the Pew Research Center Research Center shows China taking the lead over the United States for overall clean energy finance and investment in 2009, although the U.S, still led, by almost a full percentage point, in renewable energy capacity. Called Who's Winning the Clean Energy Race? [pdf], the report focuses largely on green energy funding across the entire G20 spectrum. The G20 is a consortium of developed or developing nations which include 20 individual countries plus the European Union, or EU, and whose economies comprise 80% of world trade and 85% of the world's gross national product (GNP).
Because of the funding focus, information on renewable energy jobs is slim, and the report – while highlighting the fact that the clean energy economy is one of the "great global economic opportunities of the 21st century" – emphasizes only that stronger U.S, policy is needed to prevent the nation slipping even further behind the world in this particular market segment. In fact, the June 2009 Pew Research Center Report was more specific to jobs, noting that – from 1998 to 2007 – jobs in the renewable energy sector grew 2.5 times faster than elsewhere.
This resulted in the creation of 770,000 jobs, which the newer report says are "poised for even greater growth", given the restored enthusiasm of consumers recovering from a recession and venture capitalists like Lord Drayson and Hermes Private Equity emerging from their recessionary strongholds to evaluate emerging, cleantech IPOs.
The 770,000 clean tech jobs stand favourably alongside 1.3 million energy jobs (utilities, coal mining, and oil and gas extraction), and compete strongly with 989,000 telecommunications jobs, according to a 2009 Clean Edge report (which draws its material from a number of sources, including the 2009 Pew Research Center report). This report also demonstrated the strength of the solar photovoltaic energy industry, where 200,000 direct and indirect global jobs compete with 400,000 global wind power jobs.
In spite of the number of wind-related jobs, however, solar PV stands at the top of a list of five clean tech industry categories (solar, biofuels, conservation, smart grid and wind), while wind now occupies a bottom slot. Furthermore, says the Clean Edge report - Clean Energy Trends 2010, by 2019 the global solar PV and wind power sectors will push job creation to 3.3 million. According to David Prend, director of the National Venture Capital Association: "Clean tech is where [information technology] was 30 years ago and biotech was 20 years ago…"
In 2010, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (the group that compiled the statistics for the newest Pew Research Center Research Center report), US$200 billion worldwide will be invested in clean energy, climate and environmental programs, and associated jobs. This is supported, if more modestly, by figures from Sustainablebusiness.com which shows investment in 1Q 2010 at US$1.9 billion, up almost 30% from the previous quarter and 83% higher than a year ago. In addition to venture capital and private investment, governments around the world earmarked $184 billion for clean energy in 2008-2009, most of it in the U.S, and China.
Unfortunately, only 9% ever reached the clean tech industries themselves, or about $8 billion in the U.S., and this translated into a dismal clean tech jobs report for 2009 that had even industry experts asking how so much money had failed to produce jobs – a situation not much improved by President Barack Obama's Jan. 2010 announcement of US$2.3 billion more to create clean tech manufacturing jobs.
The jobs will certainly be needed. A March report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, or LBNL, estimates clean tech jobs growth from now to 2020 could reach as high as 1.3 million. The problem, notes LBNL (an energy research arm of the U.S, government), is that these jobs may not emerge, or may not provide individuals adequately trained for clean tech sectors, most notably smart grid upgrades.
According to the White House Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) third quarterly report on ARRA economic impacts, 1Q 2010 jobs rose by between 2.2 and 2.8 million, with the tax relief and income support provisions accounting for half of that amount. Thus one could extrapolate, in the very worst case, that ARRA stimulus funding for solar, wind, biomass and other clean tech energy sources accounted for about a million clean tech jobs. Clearly, naysayers and skeptical traditional energy industry executives aside, clean tech is the sector college students should be investigating.
Some of the hottest jobs in this sector, according to Clean Tech, include: solar energy systems designer; "green" (LEED-certified) building energy auditor; mechanical engineer; civil engineer; IT power system control craftsman; control system engineer; electrical systems inspector; and energy management solutions logistics analyst.
The hottest cities? San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Newark, Boston, Baltimore, Denver, Seattle and Portland. But should your car break down in Detroit or Wichita, you will likely be the most qualified clean energy individual for a hundred miles, and that might be nice, too.
April 19, 2010
The newest clean energy report from the Pew Research Center Research Center shows China taking the lead over the United States for overall clean energy finance and investment in 2009, although the U.S, still led, by almost a full percentage point, in renewable energy capacity. Called Who's Winning the Clean Energy Race? [pdf], the report focuses largely on green energy funding across the entire G20 spectrum. The G20 is a consortium of developed or developing nations which include 20 individual countries plus the European Union, or EU, and whose economies comprise 80% of world trade and 85% of the world's gross national product (GNP).
Because of the funding focus, information on renewable energy jobs is slim, and the report – while highlighting the fact that the clean energy economy is one of the "great global economic opportunities of the 21st century" – emphasizes only that stronger U.S, policy is needed to prevent the nation slipping even further behind the world in this particular market segment. In fact, the June 2009 Pew Research Center Report was more specific to jobs, noting that – from 1998 to 2007 – jobs in the renewable energy sector grew 2.5 times faster than elsewhere.
This resulted in the creation of 770,000 jobs, which the newer report says are "poised for even greater growth", given the restored enthusiasm of consumers recovering from a recession and venture capitalists like Lord Drayson and Hermes Private Equity emerging from their recessionary strongholds to evaluate emerging, cleantech IPOs.
The 770,000 clean tech jobs stand favourably alongside 1.3 million energy jobs (utilities, coal mining, and oil and gas extraction), and compete strongly with 989,000 telecommunications jobs, according to a 2009 Clean Edge report (which draws its material from a number of sources, including the 2009 Pew Research Center report). This report also demonstrated the strength of the solar photovoltaic energy industry, where 200,000 direct and indirect global jobs compete with 400,000 global wind power jobs.
In spite of the number of wind-related jobs, however, solar PV stands at the top of a list of five clean tech industry categories (solar, biofuels, conservation, smart grid and wind), while wind now occupies a bottom slot. Furthermore, says the Clean Edge report - Clean Energy Trends 2010, by 2019 the global solar PV and wind power sectors will push job creation to 3.3 million. According to David Prend, director of the National Venture Capital Association: "Clean tech is where [information technology] was 30 years ago and biotech was 20 years ago…"
In 2010, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance (the group that compiled the statistics for the newest Pew Research Center Research Center report), US$200 billion worldwide will be invested in clean energy, climate and environmental programs, and associated jobs. This is supported, if more modestly, by figures from Sustainablebusiness.com which shows investment in 1Q 2010 at US$1.9 billion, up almost 30% from the previous quarter and 83% higher than a year ago. In addition to venture capital and private investment, governments around the world earmarked $184 billion for clean energy in 2008-2009, most of it in the U.S, and China.
Unfortunately, only 9% ever reached the clean tech industries themselves, or about $8 billion in the U.S., and this translated into a dismal clean tech jobs report for 2009 that had even industry experts asking how so much money had failed to produce jobs – a situation not much improved by President Barack Obama's Jan. 2010 announcement of US$2.3 billion more to create clean tech manufacturing jobs.
The jobs will certainly be needed. A March report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratories, or LBNL, estimates clean tech jobs growth from now to 2020 could reach as high as 1.3 million. The problem, notes LBNL (an energy research arm of the U.S, government), is that these jobs may not emerge, or may not provide individuals adequately trained for clean tech sectors, most notably smart grid upgrades.
According to the White House Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) third quarterly report on ARRA economic impacts, 1Q 2010 jobs rose by between 2.2 and 2.8 million, with the tax relief and income support provisions accounting for half of that amount. Thus one could extrapolate, in the very worst case, that ARRA stimulus funding for solar, wind, biomass and other clean tech energy sources accounted for about a million clean tech jobs. Clearly, naysayers and skeptical traditional energy industry executives aside, clean tech is the sector college students should be investigating.
Some of the hottest jobs in this sector, according to Clean Tech, include: solar energy systems designer; "green" (LEED-certified) building energy auditor; mechanical engineer; civil engineer; IT power system control craftsman; control system engineer; electrical systems inspector; and energy management solutions logistics analyst.
The hottest cities? San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Newark, Boston, Baltimore, Denver, Seattle and Portland. But should your car break down in Detroit or Wichita, you will likely be the most qualified clean energy individual for a hundred miles, and that might be nice, too.
Insulation sector shake-up
Summaries - Australian Financial Review
Friday 23/4/2010 Page: 11
The Federal Government is looking to introduce greater regulation of the home insulation industry in a move to restore consumer confidence, after a review of its retro-fitting program showed long-standing problems in the industry and an inadequate regulatory framework. Energy Efficiency Minister Greg Combet announced on Thursday that the government had shelved its pledge to restart the home insulation program (HIP) after the author of the report, Allan Hawke, indicated he held "grave concerns about the wisdom" of proceeding with it.
Dr Hawke's review revealed it was difficult to predict the high level of unscrupulous behaviour that took place and that Environment Minister Peter Garrett had responded in a timely manner when issues arose. Dr Hawke has recommended a new and nationally consistent regime for the industry based on a South Australian licensing system. Fletcher Building announced on Thursday it would close a production line at its Dandenong plant with the loss of 68 jobs, adding to the 52 jobs lost at its Sydney plant earlier this year. The February decision to stop the program has resulted in job losses and stockpiling of products by installers. Mr Combet said about 200,000 homes will be inspected, based on a risk profile of those most likely to need work, while 8% of homes were found to be noncompliant.
Friday 23/4/2010 Page: 11
The Federal Government is looking to introduce greater regulation of the home insulation industry in a move to restore consumer confidence, after a review of its retro-fitting program showed long-standing problems in the industry and an inadequate regulatory framework. Energy Efficiency Minister Greg Combet announced on Thursday that the government had shelved its pledge to restart the home insulation program (HIP) after the author of the report, Allan Hawke, indicated he held "grave concerns about the wisdom" of proceeding with it.
Dr Hawke's review revealed it was difficult to predict the high level of unscrupulous behaviour that took place and that Environment Minister Peter Garrett had responded in a timely manner when issues arose. Dr Hawke has recommended a new and nationally consistent regime for the industry based on a South Australian licensing system. Fletcher Building announced on Thursday it would close a production line at its Dandenong plant with the loss of 68 jobs, adding to the 52 jobs lost at its Sydney plant earlier this year. The February decision to stop the program has resulted in job losses and stockpiling of products by installers. Mr Combet said about 200,000 homes will be inspected, based on a risk profile of those most likely to need work, while 8% of homes were found to be noncompliant.
Tuesday, 27 April 2010
Time to bust some myths about renewable energy
Crikey.com.au
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 1
Opinion: Dr Mark Diesendorf, Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies
The myths and assumed wisdom around renewable energy and its capabilities have been refuted, time and time again, by renewable energy scientists and engineers, but despite this, incorrect and misleading assertions are repeated, as if repetition of a falsehood somehow makes it true.
And who are the people peddling these inaccuracies? They come mainly from the coal and nuclear industries, electricity generators, other big greenhouse polluters such as the aluminium industry, and the supporters of these industries. And with the exception of some nuclear power proponents, renewable energy deniers are generally also climate change deniers.
If they cannot refute a particular observation by rational argument, they try to cast doubt on the result by introducing irrelevant material. They look for molehills in renewable energy systems and blow them up to mountains. They are masters of the 10% truths: taking a few facts and then spinning them into stories that convey the opposite impression from the logical implications of those facts. They insinuate arguments rather than state them clearly and unambiguously. Then, when questioned incisively about their insinuations, they back off and shift ground.
To follow is an attempt to test some of the claims trotted out by renewable energy deniers while demonstrating their tactics:
Similarly, a tiny percentage of US land area could generated all its electricity. Although Europe doesn't have sufficient land to provide all its projected energy demand from local renewable energy (see Sustainable Energy without the Hot Air), there is now a proposal, backed by major corporations, to feed solar and wind power from North Africa to Europe by underwater transmission lines.
Globally, there is ample renewable energy available for demands projected to 2050 (Sorensen & Meibom, International Journal of Global Energy Issues 13 (1/2/3) 2000, DOI: 10.1504/IJGEI.2000.000869; Jacobson & Delucchi, Scientific American 301 (5): 58-65, November 2009). However, like fossil fuels and uranium, renewable energy is not distributed equitably across the earth and so trade will be necessary, by transmission line, pipeline and ship.
The prices of more expensive forms of renewable electricity, solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar thermal, are declining steadily as their markets expand, and are likely to become competitive with nuclear (whose capital cost has been escalating rapidly) by 2020. It should also be borne in mind that renewable energy and energy efficiency are being implemented together and the economic savings from energy efficiency can pay for a large part of the additional costs of renewable energy, as shown by McKinsey & Co. In contrast, nuclear power and coal with CCS are being promoted on the basis that they will need no reductions in demand growth.
A detailed refutation has been published by group of 14 Danish energy experts writing on behalf of CEESA (Coherent Energy and Environmental System Analysis). These authors show that: Only about 1% of Danish wind power is exported and so wind power does indeed provide about 20% of Danish electricity consumption. From a market perspective, it is generally electricity from power stations with the highest operating cost that is exported, rather than wind, which has the lowest operating cost. No taxes are recycled to support established wind turbines.The price of Danish residential electricity, excluding taxes and VAT, is only the 10th highest of the 27 EU countries. The high total price of Danish residential electricity is actually the result of high taxes and VAT which are not used to support existing wind power.
The price of Danish industrial electricity, excluding taxes and VAT, is actually the 7th lowest of the 27 EU countries. On average Danish electricity consumers pay an additional 0.54 €C/kWh for feed-in tariffs for CO2-free electricity. On the other hand, with its very low operating costs, wind power reduces electricity prices in the Nord Pool market by 0.27 €c/kWh on average. Therefore, the net price impact of wind power is the (0.54 - 0.27) €c/kWh = 0.27 €c/kWh, which is negligible, considering that wind supplies 20% of Danish electricity.
A further exchange of arguments, available for download from the CEESA website, does not change the above refutation of the CEPOS report. Since Danish wind power has been a great success, it is not surprising that it is a focus for renewable energy deniers.
The above four incorrect and misleading claims show how renewable energy deniers try to undermine the only zero-emission energy supply technologies that can make substantial reductions in CO2 emissions before 2025. Many of these technologies are either commercially available or semicommercial now. They can be rolled out very quickly, because they are manufactured in small modules in factories.
Globally wind power has been growing at about 25% per year for the past 20 years; in China it has been growing at 100% per year for each of the past five years; in Denmark, the official energy plan will expand wind power from 20% to 50% of Danish electricity by 2025. Such high rates of growth are impossible for coal with CCS and nuclear power stations, which are gigantic construction projects.
*Dr Mark Diesendorf is Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies at University of New South Wales. He is author of 'Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy' and 'Climate Action: A campaign manual for greenhouse solutions'.
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 1
Opinion: Dr Mark Diesendorf, Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies
The myths and assumed wisdom around renewable energy and its capabilities have been refuted, time and time again, by renewable energy scientists and engineers, but despite this, incorrect and misleading assertions are repeated, as if repetition of a falsehood somehow makes it true.
And who are the people peddling these inaccuracies? They come mainly from the coal and nuclear industries, electricity generators, other big greenhouse polluters such as the aluminium industry, and the supporters of these industries. And with the exception of some nuclear power proponents, renewable energy deniers are generally also climate change deniers.
If they cannot refute a particular observation by rational argument, they try to cast doubt on the result by introducing irrelevant material. They look for molehills in renewable energy systems and blow them up to mountains. They are masters of the 10% truths: taking a few facts and then spinning them into stories that convey the opposite impression from the logical implications of those facts. They insinuate arguments rather than state them clearly and unambiguously. Then, when questioned incisively about their insinuations, they back off and shift ground.
To follow is an attempt to test some of the claims trotted out by renewable energy deniers while demonstrating their tactics:
- Claim 1. Renewable energy cannot provide base-load (24-hour) power.
- Claim 2: Renewable energy cannot provide sufficient power to run an industrial society.
Similarly, a tiny percentage of US land area could generated all its electricity. Although Europe doesn't have sufficient land to provide all its projected energy demand from local renewable energy (see Sustainable Energy without the Hot Air), there is now a proposal, backed by major corporations, to feed solar and wind power from North Africa to Europe by underwater transmission lines.
Globally, there is ample renewable energy available for demands projected to 2050 (Sorensen & Meibom, International Journal of Global Energy Issues 13 (1/2/3) 2000, DOI: 10.1504/IJGEI.2000.000869; Jacobson & Delucchi, Scientific American 301 (5): 58-65, November 2009). However, like fossil fuels and uranium, renewable energy is not distributed equitably across the earth and so trade will be necessary, by transmission line, pipeline and ship.
- Claim 3: Renewable energy will be too expensive to provide most of our energy.
The prices of more expensive forms of renewable electricity, solar photovoltaics and concentrated solar thermal, are declining steadily as their markets expand, and are likely to become competitive with nuclear (whose capital cost has been escalating rapidly) by 2020. It should also be borne in mind that renewable energy and energy efficiency are being implemented together and the economic savings from energy efficiency can pay for a large part of the additional costs of renewable energy, as shown by McKinsey & Co. In contrast, nuclear power and coal with CCS are being promoted on the basis that they will need no reductions in demand growth.
- Claim 4: Denmark's success in generating 20% of its electricity generation from wind power is actually a failure.
A detailed refutation has been published by group of 14 Danish energy experts writing on behalf of CEESA (Coherent Energy and Environmental System Analysis). These authors show that: Only about 1% of Danish wind power is exported and so wind power does indeed provide about 20% of Danish electricity consumption. From a market perspective, it is generally electricity from power stations with the highest operating cost that is exported, rather than wind, which has the lowest operating cost. No taxes are recycled to support established wind turbines.The price of Danish residential electricity, excluding taxes and VAT, is only the 10th highest of the 27 EU countries. The high total price of Danish residential electricity is actually the result of high taxes and VAT which are not used to support existing wind power.
The price of Danish industrial electricity, excluding taxes and VAT, is actually the 7th lowest of the 27 EU countries. On average Danish electricity consumers pay an additional 0.54 €C/kWh for feed-in tariffs for CO2-free electricity. On the other hand, with its very low operating costs, wind power reduces electricity prices in the Nord Pool market by 0.27 €c/kWh on average. Therefore, the net price impact of wind power is the (0.54 - 0.27) €c/kWh = 0.27 €c/kWh, which is negligible, considering that wind supplies 20% of Danish electricity.
A further exchange of arguments, available for download from the CEESA website, does not change the above refutation of the CEPOS report. Since Danish wind power has been a great success, it is not surprising that it is a focus for renewable energy deniers.
The above four incorrect and misleading claims show how renewable energy deniers try to undermine the only zero-emission energy supply technologies that can make substantial reductions in CO2 emissions before 2025. Many of these technologies are either commercially available or semicommercial now. They can be rolled out very quickly, because they are manufactured in small modules in factories.
Globally wind power has been growing at about 25% per year for the past 20 years; in China it has been growing at 100% per year for each of the past five years; in Denmark, the official energy plan will expand wind power from 20% to 50% of Danish electricity by 2025. Such high rates of growth are impossible for coal with CCS and nuclear power stations, which are gigantic construction projects.
*Dr Mark Diesendorf is Deputy Director of the Institute of Environmental Studies at University of New South Wales. He is author of 'Greenhouse Solutions with Sustainable Energy' and 'Climate Action: A campaign manual for greenhouse solutions'.
Brazil rushes ahead with giant dam
Canberra Times
Thursday 2214/2010 Page: 13
Brazil has speedily awarded the tender for a controversial hydroelectric dam projected to be the world's third-largest, despite fierce opposition from environmentalists. The Government pushed ahead with the bidding process to begin construction of the giant Belo Monte dam after beating back a last-minute suspension order with a rushed appeal. The tender was awarded to Norte Energia yesterday, a consortium led by a subsidiary of state electricity company Electrobras, after a series of court injunctions that had blocked and unblocked the auction process.
Indigenous groups and environmental activists had earlier staged demonstrations decrying the dam as ecologically irresponsible and a threat to the livelihood of 12,000 families, most of them Brazilian Indians living on the banks of the Xingu River that would feed the facility. "We, the indigenous, demand justice and respect," read one placard brandished by protesters in front of the National Electric Energy Agency in Brasilia, where the tender process was held.
About 500 activists with Greenpeace dumped three tonnes of manure in front of the building. A Greenpeace spokesman said, "There are other possible energy sources, such as wind power, biomass or solar. Opponents of the construction said they would not be defeated by the awarding of the tender. Greenpeace has said the construction would also divert some 100km of the Xlngu River in an area that is home to between 20,000 and 30,000 families.
The dam has become spectacularly controversial with even Avatar director James Cameron and star Sigourney Weaver wading in recently to give their backing to opponents and drawing parallels with the natives-versus-exploiters storyline of their blockbuster Hollywood movie. The regional Justice ministry in the state of Para tried to stall tenders for the $US10 billion-plus ($A10.7 billion) Belo Monte project in a ruling, calling the dam "an affront to environmental laws".
The Government, though, appears determined to push through with the dam, calling it essential to its plan to boost energy production in Brazil nearly threefold over the next two decades. For construction costs of: $A12 billion, Belo Monte is expected to be able to produce 11,000 MWs, which could supply 20 million homes with power.
Thursday 2214/2010 Page: 13
Brazil has speedily awarded the tender for a controversial hydroelectric dam projected to be the world's third-largest, despite fierce opposition from environmentalists. The Government pushed ahead with the bidding process to begin construction of the giant Belo Monte dam after beating back a last-minute suspension order with a rushed appeal. The tender was awarded to Norte Energia yesterday, a consortium led by a subsidiary of state electricity company Electrobras, after a series of court injunctions that had blocked and unblocked the auction process.
Indigenous groups and environmental activists had earlier staged demonstrations decrying the dam as ecologically irresponsible and a threat to the livelihood of 12,000 families, most of them Brazilian Indians living on the banks of the Xingu River that would feed the facility. "We, the indigenous, demand justice and respect," read one placard brandished by protesters in front of the National Electric Energy Agency in Brasilia, where the tender process was held.
About 500 activists with Greenpeace dumped three tonnes of manure in front of the building. A Greenpeace spokesman said, "There are other possible energy sources, such as wind power, biomass or solar. Opponents of the construction said they would not be defeated by the awarding of the tender. Greenpeace has said the construction would also divert some 100km of the Xlngu River in an area that is home to between 20,000 and 30,000 families.
The dam has become spectacularly controversial with even Avatar director James Cameron and star Sigourney Weaver wading in recently to give their backing to opponents and drawing parallels with the natives-versus-exploiters storyline of their blockbuster Hollywood movie. The regional Justice ministry in the state of Para tried to stall tenders for the $US10 billion-plus ($A10.7 billion) Belo Monte project in a ruling, calling the dam "an affront to environmental laws".
The Government, though, appears determined to push through with the dam, calling it essential to its plan to boost energy production in Brazil nearly threefold over the next two decades. For construction costs of: $A12 billion, Belo Monte is expected to be able to produce 11,000 MWs, which could supply 20 million homes with power.
$20bn emissions compo a waste
Age
Thursday 2214/2010 Page: 9
MORE than $20 billion would be wasted on unwarranted compensation to polluting sectors under the Rudd government's proposed emissions trading scheme, a damning analysis has found.
The analysis by think tank the Grattan Institute - the first to examine the financial reports of major businesses in line for compensation - found only the steel and cement sectors could make a case for taxpayer help. Others that compete overseas, including alumina refining, LNG production and coal mining would be marginally less profitable, but not forced to close.
Aluminium smelting is in another category - it would become unprofitable, but the analysis found the government should let it move offshore. Many overseas aluminium plants run on comparatively environmentally friendly fuel and emit less greenhouse gas than an Australian smelter. Help would go directly to the communities and workers that would feel the brunt of the closure such as Portland in Victoria, and not companies such as Alcoa.
Despite opposition resistance to the emissions scheme in Canberra, the analysis assumes a carbon price is inevitable, reflecting international trends. Grattan Institute chief executive John Daley said fears about big job losses and cost increases were not supported by evidence and led to irrational policy. Mr Daley said emissions trading would have a smaller impact on lives than predicted. It involved less structural adjustment than the end of tariff protection and would increase the cost of living less than the GST.
The trade-exposed sectors examined bring in 8% of the gross domestic product and are responsible for about 30% of emissions. They employ 70,000 people. The analysis found most of these jobs would be viable under a carbon price without compensation. By comparison, 55,000 jobs were lost in the vehicle sector between 1973 and 1995 and 64,000 in textiles, clothing and footwear manufacturing in the two decades to 2005.
The analysis noted that 176,000 jobs 'had been lost in the power sector due to privatisation and competition reforms. About 9000 people are employed in electricity generation - the only part of the sector that would be affected by the scheme. The institute found the free permits cost the taxpayer $65,000 per employee working in trade-exposed sectors. In aluminium smelting, it is $160,000 an employee.
Mr Daley said free permits were an exemption from a tax paid by the rest of the community, he preferred a carbon border tax for imports in the few sectors under threat to bring their carbon price into line with the national figure. The analysis said giving free carbon permits would delay reform. Given as proposed, no polluting, internationally trading facility would close. It assumes a target of cutting emissions 5% below 2000 levels by 2020. A more ambitious target in the government's 5-to-25% range would require more countries to take on a carbon price, making the impact on trade-exposed sectors less of a concern.
Thursday 2214/2010 Page: 9
MORE than $20 billion would be wasted on unwarranted compensation to polluting sectors under the Rudd government's proposed emissions trading scheme, a damning analysis has found.
The analysis by think tank the Grattan Institute - the first to examine the financial reports of major businesses in line for compensation - found only the steel and cement sectors could make a case for taxpayer help. Others that compete overseas, including alumina refining, LNG production and coal mining would be marginally less profitable, but not forced to close.
Aluminium smelting is in another category - it would become unprofitable, but the analysis found the government should let it move offshore. Many overseas aluminium plants run on comparatively environmentally friendly fuel and emit less greenhouse gas than an Australian smelter. Help would go directly to the communities and workers that would feel the brunt of the closure such as Portland in Victoria, and not companies such as Alcoa.
Despite opposition resistance to the emissions scheme in Canberra, the analysis assumes a carbon price is inevitable, reflecting international trends. Grattan Institute chief executive John Daley said fears about big job losses and cost increases were not supported by evidence and led to irrational policy. Mr Daley said emissions trading would have a smaller impact on lives than predicted. It involved less structural adjustment than the end of tariff protection and would increase the cost of living less than the GST.
The trade-exposed sectors examined bring in 8% of the gross domestic product and are responsible for about 30% of emissions. They employ 70,000 people. The analysis found most of these jobs would be viable under a carbon price without compensation. By comparison, 55,000 jobs were lost in the vehicle sector between 1973 and 1995 and 64,000 in textiles, clothing and footwear manufacturing in the two decades to 2005.
The analysis noted that 176,000 jobs 'had been lost in the power sector due to privatisation and competition reforms. About 9000 people are employed in electricity generation - the only part of the sector that would be affected by the scheme. The institute found the free permits cost the taxpayer $65,000 per employee working in trade-exposed sectors. In aluminium smelting, it is $160,000 an employee.
Mr Daley said free permits were an exemption from a tax paid by the rest of the community, he preferred a carbon border tax for imports in the few sectors under threat to bring their carbon price into line with the national figure. The analysis said giving free carbon permits would delay reform. Given as proposed, no polluting, internationally trading facility would close. It assumes a target of cutting emissions 5% below 2000 levels by 2020. A more ambitious target in the government's 5-to-25% range would require more countries to take on a carbon price, making the impact on trade-exposed sectors less of a concern.
Friday, 23 April 2010
Solahart reassures NSW homeowners
Daily Telegraph
Saturday 17/4/2010 Page: 12
Solahart has moved to reassure NSW homeowners that the Federal Government's $1000 solar hot-water rebate for the replacement of an electric hot-water system is still available under the new Renewable Energy Bonus Scheme despite the home insulation program being put on hold. Solahart's national manager Stephen Cranch says Solahart is pleased the Federal Government is continuing its commitment to assist homeowners.
"Right now, NSW homeowners can still get $1300 back through federal and state government schemes when replacing an electric storage water heater with an environmentally friendly solar water heater," he says "These rebates are on top of the renewable energy certificates, which are currently worth over 51000 for a typical Solahart 300-litre system"
Demonstrating the growing demand for residential land from Penrith residents and builders, the first 33 lots at Delfin Lend Lease's new Jordan Springs community have been sold "off the plan" in less than two weeks. Another 18 lots have been sold to builders taking part in the community's first display village. Jordan Springs at Penrith is a 230ha community that will feature up to 2450 homes for 6500 residents upon completion The community will also include a village centre with specialty shops, an education precinct, sports fields, community resource hub with library and two lakes.
The new 5500 million master-planned community is located 5km from Penriths city centre on The Northern Rd. The strong interest in Jordan Springs stems from rising demand for land in the region and from familiarity with the work Delfin had done at the nearby Ropes Crossing community.
Saturday 17/4/2010 Page: 12
Solahart has moved to reassure NSW homeowners that the Federal Government's $1000 solar hot-water rebate for the replacement of an electric hot-water system is still available under the new Renewable Energy Bonus Scheme despite the home insulation program being put on hold. Solahart's national manager Stephen Cranch says Solahart is pleased the Federal Government is continuing its commitment to assist homeowners.
"Right now, NSW homeowners can still get $1300 back through federal and state government schemes when replacing an electric storage water heater with an environmentally friendly solar water heater," he says "These rebates are on top of the renewable energy certificates, which are currently worth over 51000 for a typical Solahart 300-litre system"
Demonstrating the growing demand for residential land from Penrith residents and builders, the first 33 lots at Delfin Lend Lease's new Jordan Springs community have been sold "off the plan" in less than two weeks. Another 18 lots have been sold to builders taking part in the community's first display village. Jordan Springs at Penrith is a 230ha community that will feature up to 2450 homes for 6500 residents upon completion The community will also include a village centre with specialty shops, an education precinct, sports fields, community resource hub with library and two lakes.
The new 5500 million master-planned community is located 5km from Penriths city centre on The Northern Rd. The strong interest in Jordan Springs stems from rising demand for land in the region and from familiarity with the work Delfin had done at the nearby Ropes Crossing community.
Climate change programs lack credibility: Audit
Sydney Morning Herald
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 6
THE federal government could provide "no documentation" on how it assessed the $4.45 billion "clean energy initiative" announced in last year's budget, according to an audit report detailing a litany of failures in both Howard and Rudd government greenhouse programs. "There was no documentation held by the department relating to advice on the costs and benefits of the proposal and the management of risks associated with implementing the program," the audit found. In another report the Audit Office reveals that federal and state governments have revised down by 15% the amount of greenhouse gas abatement their policies will achieve by 2012.
A spokesman for the Resources Minister, Martin Ferguson, whose department administers the clean energy initiative, said, "The department developed its policy advice using a large body of pre-existing documentation on carbon capture and storage"the technology for which more than half the clean energy money is earmarked.
The harsh assessment of Australia's climate change programs comes as a meeting of ministers from the world's major green house gas emitters failed to agree how global climate talks should proceed after the failure of last year's UN meeting in Copenhagen, and down played the chances of reaching a deal at this year's talks in Mexico.
The Climate Change Minister, Penny Wong, said she believed the Copenhagen accord - the political agreement thrashed out in the Danish capital last December - was "the best international consensus to date and the key to getting international action' on climate change". 'We need to do a lot more than throw a few grants around.'
But the Major Economies Forum meeting she has been attending in Washington was downbeat and the US climate envoy, Todd Stern, said afterwards that agreement in Mexico in December might not be possible. The audit report was also scathing about the greenhouse gas abatement program set up under the Howard government and continued in the early years of the Rudd government: a competitive grants program similar to Tony Abbott's planned "direct action" Climate change scheme. A previous audit had criticised the firs! two rounds of the scheme, but yesterday's report found the third round was not any better.
The three projects funded were "technically ineligible" because they did not meet the criteria, only one produced any greenhouse abatement at all, and even that project only reduced emissions by a third of the amount it had promised. The Greens senator Christine Milne said the report "should give Tony Abbott and [the opposition climate spokesman] Greg Hunt pause for thought". "Clearly the approach they have taken is not an effective or efficient way of delivering emissions cuts. We know we need to do a lot more than throw a few grants around if we are to stimulate the huge growth in green technologies we need," she said.
The report also criticised the original rebate scheme for solar roof panels, saying it achieved greenhouse gas abatement at a cost of about $447 each tonne of carbon, compared with the estimated costs ill the early years of an emissions trading scheme of about $20 or $30 a tonne. It also found that the impact of federal and state government rneasures had caused their greenhouse gas abatement impact to be revised down by 15% over the past two years.
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 6
THE federal government could provide "no documentation" on how it assessed the $4.45 billion "clean energy initiative" announced in last year's budget, according to an audit report detailing a litany of failures in both Howard and Rudd government greenhouse programs. "There was no documentation held by the department relating to advice on the costs and benefits of the proposal and the management of risks associated with implementing the program," the audit found. In another report the Audit Office reveals that federal and state governments have revised down by 15% the amount of greenhouse gas abatement their policies will achieve by 2012.
A spokesman for the Resources Minister, Martin Ferguson, whose department administers the clean energy initiative, said, "The department developed its policy advice using a large body of pre-existing documentation on carbon capture and storage"the technology for which more than half the clean energy money is earmarked.
The harsh assessment of Australia's climate change programs comes as a meeting of ministers from the world's major green house gas emitters failed to agree how global climate talks should proceed after the failure of last year's UN meeting in Copenhagen, and down played the chances of reaching a deal at this year's talks in Mexico.
The Climate Change Minister, Penny Wong, said she believed the Copenhagen accord - the political agreement thrashed out in the Danish capital last December - was "the best international consensus to date and the key to getting international action' on climate change". 'We need to do a lot more than throw a few grants around.'
But the Major Economies Forum meeting she has been attending in Washington was downbeat and the US climate envoy, Todd Stern, said afterwards that agreement in Mexico in December might not be possible. The audit report was also scathing about the greenhouse gas abatement program set up under the Howard government and continued in the early years of the Rudd government: a competitive grants program similar to Tony Abbott's planned "direct action" Climate change scheme. A previous audit had criticised the firs! two rounds of the scheme, but yesterday's report found the third round was not any better.
The three projects funded were "technically ineligible" because they did not meet the criteria, only one produced any greenhouse abatement at all, and even that project only reduced emissions by a third of the amount it had promised. The Greens senator Christine Milne said the report "should give Tony Abbott and [the opposition climate spokesman] Greg Hunt pause for thought". "Clearly the approach they have taken is not an effective or efficient way of delivering emissions cuts. We know we need to do a lot more than throw a few grants around if we are to stimulate the huge growth in green technologies we need," she said.
The report also criticised the original rebate scheme for solar roof panels, saying it achieved greenhouse gas abatement at a cost of about $447 each tonne of carbon, compared with the estimated costs ill the early years of an emissions trading scheme of about $20 or $30 a tonne. It also found that the impact of federal and state government rneasures had caused their greenhouse gas abatement impact to be revised down by 15% over the past two years.
Lib climate schemes 'costly, inefficient'
Age
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 2
KEY Howard-era climate change schemes worth more than $1.5 billion have failed to deliver promised cuts in greenhouse gas emissions and have proved massively expensive. In one notable case, a scheme similar to the "direct action" climate policy of Opposition Leader Tony Abbott achieved only 30% of the expected cut. An Auditor-General's examination of five climate schemes based on grants and rebates found some performed poorly and most lacked clear goals. The programs continued under the Rudd government, but funding rounds have finished.
The report renewed calls for an emissions trading scheme as a cheaper and more effective way to reduce CO2 than government handouts. It found emissions cuts from a solar panel rebate scheme backed by both major parties cost up to 20 times more than reductions from an emissions scheme: $447 for every tonne of CO2 compared with an expected $20-$30. Oversubscription to the program - initially worth $4000, later increased to $8000 - blew out the budget from $286 million to an estimated $1.053 billion. It was cancelled abruptly in June 2009, after prompting substantial growth in the uptake of renewable energy.
The $400 million "greenhouse gas abatement program", introduced in 1999 to fund projects that either cut or offset emissions, reduced CO2 emissions by just 15.5 million tonnes before being abolished. Its target was a cut of 51.5 million tonnes. The assessment process for the program was found to be inadequate. No project approved in its final round met the selection criteria of large-scale cuts at low cost. Greens climate change spokeswoman Christine Milne said the criticism of the greenhouse gas abatement program showed the flaws in the opposition's current policy. "Clearly the approach they have taken is not an effective or efficient way of delivering emissions cuts," she said.
An opposition spokeswoman said its policy was closer in design to a scheme used in New South Wales than the Howard era policy and included a much broader range of measures, including boosting the amount of carbon stored in soil and cleaning up power stations. The Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency said several of the programs had concluded, but it would consider the report's recommendations in relation to others.
Wednesday 21/4/2010 Page: 2
KEY Howard-era climate change schemes worth more than $1.5 billion have failed to deliver promised cuts in greenhouse gas emissions and have proved massively expensive. In one notable case, a scheme similar to the "direct action" climate policy of Opposition Leader Tony Abbott achieved only 30% of the expected cut. An Auditor-General's examination of five climate schemes based on grants and rebates found some performed poorly and most lacked clear goals. The programs continued under the Rudd government, but funding rounds have finished.
The report renewed calls for an emissions trading scheme as a cheaper and more effective way to reduce CO2 than government handouts. It found emissions cuts from a solar panel rebate scheme backed by both major parties cost up to 20 times more than reductions from an emissions scheme: $447 for every tonne of CO2 compared with an expected $20-$30. Oversubscription to the program - initially worth $4000, later increased to $8000 - blew out the budget from $286 million to an estimated $1.053 billion. It was cancelled abruptly in June 2009, after prompting substantial growth in the uptake of renewable energy.
The $400 million "greenhouse gas abatement program", introduced in 1999 to fund projects that either cut or offset emissions, reduced CO2 emissions by just 15.5 million tonnes before being abolished. Its target was a cut of 51.5 million tonnes. The assessment process for the program was found to be inadequate. No project approved in its final round met the selection criteria of large-scale cuts at low cost. Greens climate change spokeswoman Christine Milne said the criticism of the greenhouse gas abatement program showed the flaws in the opposition's current policy. "Clearly the approach they have taken is not an effective or efficient way of delivering emissions cuts," she said.
An opposition spokeswoman said its policy was closer in design to a scheme used in New South Wales than the Howard era policy and included a much broader range of measures, including boosting the amount of carbon stored in soil and cleaning up power stations. The Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency said several of the programs had concluded, but it would consider the report's recommendations in relation to others.
Thursday, 22 April 2010
ANZ centre goes green on top, giving it smarter power, heating and cooling
Australian
Tuesday 20/4/2010 Page: 33
ANZ Bank has invested nearly $9 million in smarter power generation technologies at its new Melbourne office, where a single plant now provides electricity, heating and cooling. The 320m² plant, on the roof of ANZ Centre in Docklands, is part of the bank's $35m investment into making the office as environmentally friendly as possible.
ANZ head of workplace development Agnieszka Aitken said the trigeneration plant and related green technologies developed by Bovis Lend Lease fulfilled a plan first set out in late 2006. natural gas turbines generate electricity and heat is produced as a byproduct. The waste heat goes through an absorption chiller, which converts it into "free" cooling. ANZ says the trigen system has four reciprocating engines that run on natural gas and produce about 36% of peak electricity demand for the base building.
This removes the need to fully tap into Victoria's electricity grid. Other energy efficiency and recycling efforts at ANZ include roof mounted solar cells and wind turbines for renewable energy, and a system where employees need to swipe their staff card to collect printouts, saving energy and paper, Ms Aitken said. Last month, National Australia Bank said it expected to cut its annual power bill by almost $1 million by installing a trigen plant at its main data centre in Melbourne.
Tuesday 20/4/2010 Page: 33
ANZ Bank has invested nearly $9 million in smarter power generation technologies at its new Melbourne office, where a single plant now provides electricity, heating and cooling. The 320m² plant, on the roof of ANZ Centre in Docklands, is part of the bank's $35m investment into making the office as environmentally friendly as possible.
ANZ head of workplace development Agnieszka Aitken said the trigeneration plant and related green technologies developed by Bovis Lend Lease fulfilled a plan first set out in late 2006. natural gas turbines generate electricity and heat is produced as a byproduct. The waste heat goes through an absorption chiller, which converts it into "free" cooling. ANZ says the trigen system has four reciprocating engines that run on natural gas and produce about 36% of peak electricity demand for the base building.
This removes the need to fully tap into Victoria's electricity grid. Other energy efficiency and recycling efforts at ANZ include roof mounted solar cells and wind turbines for renewable energy, and a system where employees need to swipe their staff card to collect printouts, saving energy and paper, Ms Aitken said. Last month, National Australia Bank said it expected to cut its annual power bill by almost $1 million by installing a trigen plant at its main data centre in Melbourne.
New Projects Slow To Get Started
Australian
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 26
AUSTRALIA'S environmental markets may well have surged in recent months, but this is yet to translate into m any of the new projects they are designed to finance. The price of renewable energy certificates has jumped to a recent high of $48, and closed last week around $46, nearly 60% above the lows reached last year as RECs from solar hot water heaters flooded the market. The price has recovered after the federal government flagged changes to the renewable energy target (RET), fixing the price of RECs for small-scale installations, but keeping them separate from the main market for utility-scale projects.
But developers are still unwilling to commit themselves to projects until the final legislation is seen and passed, and analysts are now concerned that the legislation may be held up by a packed budget session, the healthcare package, possible Henry tax review legislation, and the election. The upshot might be that the government has precious little to show for its efforts in renewable technology by the time the next election comes around.
Almost all the developments announced in the past two years have been driven by state-based desalination plants. Deutsche Bank noted last week that only two the 206 MW Collgar wind farm and the 27MW Racecourse Mill bagasse co-generation plant had reached financial close this year thanks to the RET.
Wind farm developers, particularly those independent of the major electricity retailers, will rely on high REC prices to generate a suitable return for capital invested, particularly in the absence of a carbon price. However, it was interesting to see industry fund REST and UBS Asset Management buy Collgar before it was even built. The investment is the first in the renewable sector for either firm.
There is still a big surplus of RECs but the price is being supported by the fact that in the long term, there may not be enough developments built to meet demand, a situation that would force energy retailers to pay a non-deductable penalty price of $ 65, effectively putting a relatively high floor price on the certificates. Analysts say there is also a perception that having intervened once to rescue a flailing REC price, the government would be prepared to do so again.
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 26
AUSTRALIA'S environmental markets may well have surged in recent months, but this is yet to translate into m any of the new projects they are designed to finance. The price of renewable energy certificates has jumped to a recent high of $48, and closed last week around $46, nearly 60% above the lows reached last year as RECs from solar hot water heaters flooded the market. The price has recovered after the federal government flagged changes to the renewable energy target (RET), fixing the price of RECs for small-scale installations, but keeping them separate from the main market for utility-scale projects.
But developers are still unwilling to commit themselves to projects until the final legislation is seen and passed, and analysts are now concerned that the legislation may be held up by a packed budget session, the healthcare package, possible Henry tax review legislation, and the election. The upshot might be that the government has precious little to show for its efforts in renewable technology by the time the next election comes around.
Almost all the developments announced in the past two years have been driven by state-based desalination plants. Deutsche Bank noted last week that only two the 206 MW Collgar wind farm and the 27MW Racecourse Mill bagasse co-generation plant had reached financial close this year thanks to the RET.
Wind farm developers, particularly those independent of the major electricity retailers, will rely on high REC prices to generate a suitable return for capital invested, particularly in the absence of a carbon price. However, it was interesting to see industry fund REST and UBS Asset Management buy Collgar before it was even built. The investment is the first in the renewable sector for either firm.
There is still a big surplus of RECs but the price is being supported by the fact that in the long term, there may not be enough developments built to meet demand, a situation that would force energy retailers to pay a non-deductable penalty price of $ 65, effectively putting a relatively high floor price on the certificates. Analysts say there is also a perception that having intervened once to rescue a flailing REC price, the government would be prepared to do so again.
Integral, AEMO may face litigation over Jackgreen
Age
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 3
Integral Energy and the Australian Energy Market Operator could face legal action over their role in the collapse of renewable energy company Jackgreen Energy. Jackgreen Energy, which was Australia's largest, specialist renewable retailer, toppled into voluntary administration in December after it failed to pay a $500,000 bill to the New South Wales government-owned Integral Energy. At the time the company said it was squeezed out of business by its bigger rival, which took most of its customers soon after the corporate paramedics were appointed.
Now its administrator, PKF, is mulling possible actions against state-owned power companies and AEMO, which suspended Jackgreen Energys power retail licence soon after administrators took charge. In a report to creditors of Jackgreen Energy International, a wholly owned subsidiary of the listed company, PKF recommended creditors put the company into liquidation at a meeting this week. This could pave the way for potential action against Integral, which is estimated to have gained 15,000 of Jackgreen Energys customers.
According to industry rules of thumb, acquiring Jackgreen Energy's customers would have been worth $10 million to $17 million to the government-owned retailer, which is for sale this year. The report estimated that trade creditors, which include Origin Energy and AGL Energy, will receive between 0.54¢ and 3.6¢ in the dollar. Most of its 100 staff have been sacked, and shares in the group are effectively worthless. In the concentrated industry of power retailing, Jackgreen Energy's collapse highlights the difficulties of small players trying to salvage value once they are in financial stress.
Administrators were required to move all Jackgreen Energy's customers to a rival because of restrictions to ensure power supply was unthreatened. This destroyed nearly all the value in the business. Administrator Atle Crowe-Maxwell said: "In my opinion there's a conflict between the Corporations Act and National Electricity Market Management Company rules, which don't allow for a company similar to Jackgreen Energy to appoint an administrator for the purpose of restructuring the company or maximising the chances of staying in existence." Separately, administrators said the listed parent company, Jackgreen Energy Limited, might have traded while insolvent from May last year until December.
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 3
Integral Energy and the Australian Energy Market Operator could face legal action over their role in the collapse of renewable energy company Jackgreen Energy. Jackgreen Energy, which was Australia's largest, specialist renewable retailer, toppled into voluntary administration in December after it failed to pay a $500,000 bill to the New South Wales government-owned Integral Energy. At the time the company said it was squeezed out of business by its bigger rival, which took most of its customers soon after the corporate paramedics were appointed.
Now its administrator, PKF, is mulling possible actions against state-owned power companies and AEMO, which suspended Jackgreen Energys power retail licence soon after administrators took charge. In a report to creditors of Jackgreen Energy International, a wholly owned subsidiary of the listed company, PKF recommended creditors put the company into liquidation at a meeting this week. This could pave the way for potential action against Integral, which is estimated to have gained 15,000 of Jackgreen Energys customers.
According to industry rules of thumb, acquiring Jackgreen Energy's customers would have been worth $10 million to $17 million to the government-owned retailer, which is for sale this year. The report estimated that trade creditors, which include Origin Energy and AGL Energy, will receive between 0.54¢ and 3.6¢ in the dollar. Most of its 100 staff have been sacked, and shares in the group are effectively worthless. In the concentrated industry of power retailing, Jackgreen Energy's collapse highlights the difficulties of small players trying to salvage value once they are in financial stress.
Administrators were required to move all Jackgreen Energy's customers to a rival because of restrictions to ensure power supply was unthreatened. This destroyed nearly all the value in the business. Administrator Atle Crowe-Maxwell said: "In my opinion there's a conflict between the Corporations Act and National Electricity Market Management Company rules, which don't allow for a company similar to Jackgreen Energy to appoint an administrator for the purpose of restructuring the company or maximising the chances of staying in existence." Separately, administrators said the listed parent company, Jackgreen Energy Limited, might have traded while insolvent from May last year until December.
Six-star housing standard
Adelaide Advertiser
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 5
ALL new homes in South Australia must have a six-star energy efficiency rating from September 1, to improve environmental sustainability. A minimum five-star energy rating for all new homes built in SA has been in force since 2006. Energy efficiency can be improved through better house design, such as taking advantage of natural light and shade, and insulating walls and ceilings. Urban Development and Planning Minister Paul Holloway said the new requirement would help residents reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and cut running costs for home owners. He said a six-star rating was relatively easy to achieve at minimal cost.
Monday 19/4/2010 Page: 5
ALL new homes in South Australia must have a six-star energy efficiency rating from September 1, to improve environmental sustainability. A minimum five-star energy rating for all new homes built in SA has been in force since 2006. Energy efficiency can be improved through better house design, such as taking advantage of natural light and shade, and insulating walls and ceilings. Urban Development and Planning Minister Paul Holloway said the new requirement would help residents reduce their greenhouse gas emissions and cut running costs for home owners. He said a six-star rating was relatively easy to achieve at minimal cost.
Tuesday, 20 April 2010
Ingenero sells sunshine to the Sunny Coast
Courier Mail
Friday 16/4/2010 Page: 46
A QUEENSLAND solar company is providing clean energy alternatives across Australia. Brisbane-based Ingenero has helped more than 300 Queensland schools generate their own electricity and has installed solar power to 1000 roofs on the Sunshine Coast. The company has recently installed solar power systems on the roofs of Woolworths petrol stations that feed energy into the ACT power grid. Chief executive officer Steve McRae is one of the founders of Ingenero and says that while Australia has great resources of solar energy, the marketplace is still underdeveloped.
"Even though solar has been around for a long time, people have not always considered it to be important," Mr McRae says. "However, that sentiment is changing and will continue to change due to the increasing prices of black electricity and environmental impact surrounding all that." He says government rebates have helped encourage residential customers to switch to solar. "Ingenero entered the marketplace over two years ago, originally in the commercial and industrial space, but a little over 12 months ago we broadened into the residential marketplace, which now makes up the majority of our customers."
Mr McRae says the market for residential and commercial solar energy systems is strong. "Certainly the Government reducing support for solar hot water had slowed the market down," he says. "However, the good news is that the Queensland Government has announced a state government rebate of $600 in addition to the Federal Government's $1000, which has taken the market up to what it was previously."
The recent overhaul of the Federal Government's Building and Education Revolution program has also had no impact as Ingenero is installing solar systems to existing schools, not new structures. Mr McRae credits the company's success to a strong management team and capital to invest in the business. "We were able to build a solar systems integration laboratory at Boonah, where we could bring products in from overseas and test them in an Australian environment," he says.
This testing laboratory is also available to students as part of a research agreement with the University of Queensland. Mr McRae warns people wanting to switch to solar to do their research to get the best deal. "There's currently a lot of noise in the solar industry so people considering solar should make sure that they compare the facts and the technology with an economic point of view," he says. "There's a certain level of education that needs to happen in the marketplace in general so people feel comfortable with the technology and., the economics surrounding it."
So why switch to solar? Apart from doing your bit for the environment, it can earn you money, as households are plugged into the energy grid. In Queensland, if your household produces excess energy (measured in kW hours) to what it uses, you can see a credit on your electricity bill. Finance plans with some solar energy suppliers ensure you earn money from day one without paying upfront charges for installations. Rebates are available and the Federal Government says it plans to improve subsidies to householders for solar power systems and solar hot water from January 1 next year.
Friday 16/4/2010 Page: 46
A QUEENSLAND solar company is providing clean energy alternatives across Australia. Brisbane-based Ingenero has helped more than 300 Queensland schools generate their own electricity and has installed solar power to 1000 roofs on the Sunshine Coast. The company has recently installed solar power systems on the roofs of Woolworths petrol stations that feed energy into the ACT power grid. Chief executive officer Steve McRae is one of the founders of Ingenero and says that while Australia has great resources of solar energy, the marketplace is still underdeveloped.
"Even though solar has been around for a long time, people have not always considered it to be important," Mr McRae says. "However, that sentiment is changing and will continue to change due to the increasing prices of black electricity and environmental impact surrounding all that." He says government rebates have helped encourage residential customers to switch to solar. "Ingenero entered the marketplace over two years ago, originally in the commercial and industrial space, but a little over 12 months ago we broadened into the residential marketplace, which now makes up the majority of our customers."
Mr McRae says the market for residential and commercial solar energy systems is strong. "Certainly the Government reducing support for solar hot water had slowed the market down," he says. "However, the good news is that the Queensland Government has announced a state government rebate of $600 in addition to the Federal Government's $1000, which has taken the market up to what it was previously."
The recent overhaul of the Federal Government's Building and Education Revolution program has also had no impact as Ingenero is installing solar systems to existing schools, not new structures. Mr McRae credits the company's success to a strong management team and capital to invest in the business. "We were able to build a solar systems integration laboratory at Boonah, where we could bring products in from overseas and test them in an Australian environment," he says.
This testing laboratory is also available to students as part of a research agreement with the University of Queensland. Mr McRae warns people wanting to switch to solar to do their research to get the best deal. "There's currently a lot of noise in the solar industry so people considering solar should make sure that they compare the facts and the technology with an economic point of view," he says. "There's a certain level of education that needs to happen in the marketplace in general so people feel comfortable with the technology and., the economics surrounding it."
So why switch to solar? Apart from doing your bit for the environment, it can earn you money, as households are plugged into the energy grid. In Queensland, if your household produces excess energy (measured in kW hours) to what it uses, you can see a credit on your electricity bill. Finance plans with some solar energy suppliers ensure you earn money from day one without paying upfront charges for installations. Rebates are available and the Federal Government says it plans to improve subsidies to householders for solar power systems and solar hot water from January 1 next year.
Solar parity by 2015
Courier Mail
Friday 16/4/2010 Page: 46
A SOLAR power plant developer investigating sites in Queensland says solar electricity generation costs could be similar to coal-fired power costs within five years. NSW-based Silex Systems recently completed its purchase of the assets and technology of Melbourne-based Solar Systems Group. SSG collapsed last year, taking with it plans to use Australian technology to build one of the world's largest and most efficient solar power stations - a 100-MW plant near Mildura in Victoria.
Silex Systems chief executive Michael Goldsworthy said yesterday that the company aimed to start building the Mildura plant next year and had separately lodged an application for federal funding for a solar plant of up to 180MW as part of the $1.5 billion Solar Flagships Program. "We've looked at sites in Queensland, NSW and Victoria and, hopefully, we'll make the candidate short-list and then get into the detail of site selection," Dr Goldsworthy said.
"No one could ignore the potential of a big solar installation in Queensland. It's the Sunshine State." Many governments are moving to slash planet-warming greenhouse gases from their electricity sector but need to provide policy support to help emerging, clean technologies compete against cheaper coal fired power until costs narrow. But Dr Goldsworthy said solar production costs were falling rapidly, largely as silicon wafer costs fell and efficiencies rose.
"Short-term government incentive is extremely important to allow the industry to gain the economies of scale and reduce costs down to grid parity," he said. "But the way it's tracking at the moment, you could reach grid parity in the cost between solar and baseload coal in the next few years, certainly within five years." A relative lack of government incentives for solar power in Australia had meant technology developers had struggled, while European, US and Asian solar companies had flourished under strong government policy settings.
Friday 16/4/2010 Page: 46
A SOLAR power plant developer investigating sites in Queensland says solar electricity generation costs could be similar to coal-fired power costs within five years. NSW-based Silex Systems recently completed its purchase of the assets and technology of Melbourne-based Solar Systems Group. SSG collapsed last year, taking with it plans to use Australian technology to build one of the world's largest and most efficient solar power stations - a 100-MW plant near Mildura in Victoria.Silex Systems chief executive Michael Goldsworthy said yesterday that the company aimed to start building the Mildura plant next year and had separately lodged an application for federal funding for a solar plant of up to 180MW as part of the $1.5 billion Solar Flagships Program. "We've looked at sites in Queensland, NSW and Victoria and, hopefully, we'll make the candidate short-list and then get into the detail of site selection," Dr Goldsworthy said.
"No one could ignore the potential of a big solar installation in Queensland. It's the Sunshine State." Many governments are moving to slash planet-warming greenhouse gases from their electricity sector but need to provide policy support to help emerging, clean technologies compete against cheaper coal fired power until costs narrow. But Dr Goldsworthy said solar production costs were falling rapidly, largely as silicon wafer costs fell and efficiencies rose.
"Short-term government incentive is extremely important to allow the industry to gain the economies of scale and reduce costs down to grid parity," he said. "But the way it's tracking at the moment, you could reach grid parity in the cost between solar and baseload coal in the next few years, certainly within five years." A relative lack of government incentives for solar power in Australia had meant technology developers had struggled, while European, US and Asian solar companies had flourished under strong government policy settings.
Solar panel factory sees the sun again
Sydney Morning Herald
Wednesday 14/4/2010 Page: 8
THE biggest solar-panel factory in the southern hemisphere is to open in Sydney this morning - after it was rescued by a nuclear energy research company. The Olympic Park plant will produce up to 10,000 rooftop solar panel systems a year, with the potential to make many more, filling more than 10% of Australia's demand for solar panels. SilexSolar, a subsidiary of the Australian uranium enrichment group Silex Systems, bought the plant cheaply from BP Solar last year after the latter decided to obtain its solar panels from China.
The revival is a boost for the Australian industry, which has been plagued by a lack of investment compared with China, the US, Spain and Germany. But the purchase leaves households interested in buying solar panels with a dilemma: by buying Australian-made panels, they are indirectly investing in nuclear energy as well. "Solar and nuclear energy are a great fit," the chief executive of Silex Systems, Michael Goldsworthy, said. "Looking down the barrel of climate change and global warming, we need to develop alternative electricity sources."
The plant will employ about 100 people by the end of the year. This is still short of the 200 skilled staff who worked at the plant when it was owned by BP Solar. But SilexSolar plans to make panels that convert a higher proportion of sunlight to stored energy. "We're looking at producing about 15 MWs of panels per year but we can expand that to 50 MWs," Dr Goldsworthy said.
The demand for rooftop panels has surged since 2006 when national solar rebates came into force, supplemented by state subsidies, including the solar tariff introduced this year in NSW. SilexSolar's acquisition of BP Solar's assets followed the takeover of Australian solar energy pioneer Ausra by the world's largest nuclear power company, Areva. The Premier, Kristina Keneally, said the development made Sydney the nation's solar power hub. The Australian PV Association said the revival of the factory was welcome addition to the Australian industry.
Wednesday 14/4/2010 Page: 8
THE biggest solar-panel factory in the southern hemisphere is to open in Sydney this morning - after it was rescued by a nuclear energy research company. The Olympic Park plant will produce up to 10,000 rooftop solar panel systems a year, with the potential to make many more, filling more than 10% of Australia's demand for solar panels. SilexSolar, a subsidiary of the Australian uranium enrichment group Silex Systems, bought the plant cheaply from BP Solar last year after the latter decided to obtain its solar panels from China.
The revival is a boost for the Australian industry, which has been plagued by a lack of investment compared with China, the US, Spain and Germany. But the purchase leaves households interested in buying solar panels with a dilemma: by buying Australian-made panels, they are indirectly investing in nuclear energy as well. "Solar and nuclear energy are a great fit," the chief executive of Silex Systems, Michael Goldsworthy, said. "Looking down the barrel of climate change and global warming, we need to develop alternative electricity sources."
The plant will employ about 100 people by the end of the year. This is still short of the 200 skilled staff who worked at the plant when it was owned by BP Solar. But SilexSolar plans to make panels that convert a higher proportion of sunlight to stored energy. "We're looking at producing about 15 MWs of panels per year but we can expand that to 50 MWs," Dr Goldsworthy said.
The demand for rooftop panels has surged since 2006 when national solar rebates came into force, supplemented by state subsidies, including the solar tariff introduced this year in NSW. SilexSolar's acquisition of BP Solar's assets followed the takeover of Australian solar energy pioneer Ausra by the world's largest nuclear power company, Areva. The Premier, Kristina Keneally, said the development made Sydney the nation's solar power hub. The Australian PV Association said the revival of the factory was welcome addition to the Australian industry.
Monday, 19 April 2010
Geodynamics delays Cooper Basin decision
Adelaide Advertiser
Wednesday 14/4/2010 Page: 34
GeoDynamics will make a final investment decision on a proposed $300 million, 25 MW geothermal demonstration plant in the Cooper Basin by early 2013 - two years later than previously stated. The delay is related to a production well breach incident in April last year, which caused the postponement of commissioning of its 1MW pilot plant at Innamincka.
The decision to invest will mean that GeoDynamics "is confident the geothermal resource is proven, the technical aspects of production are well defined, and the significant investment of approximately $300 million required to construct a commercial-sized power plant will be money well spent," the company said yesterday. "It (the delay) is essentially a result of not only the incident, but the learnings we have taken from it as well," GeoDynamics managing director Gerry Grove-White said. "I feel confident about the program. We now have a clear understanding of issues we are finding the answers to.., and we have a strategic advantage to other geothermal players," he said.
The firm, with joint venture partner Origin Energy, yesterday outlined a new forward work program with updated timelines for commissioning of the pilot plant and decision on the demonstration plant. The firm plans to harness heat in granites underground to produce steam to drive turbines and has completed a proof of concept stage. The 25 MW plant has already won $90 million in funding under the Federal Government's Renewable Energy Demonstration Program, and is a step towards GeoDynamics' rollout of plants to generate 500MW by 2020. The 1MW plant is on track to demonstrate the first power produced from an enhanced geothermal system in Australia by 2012.
Before this happens however, two new wells - Habanero 4 and Habanero 5 - will be drilled to power the plant. A second drill rig, Rig 200, has been purchased by the company to drill the new wells and will be commissioned before the end of the year. An underground heat exchanger will also be created at Jalokia 1, located 9kms from Habanero, to prove underground reservoirs can be created across the company's tenement areas. "The successful completion of this work program will provide us with two potential sites to build the commercial demonstration plant, each site having demonstrated flow testing from multi-level heat exchangers within the granite," Mr Grove-White said.
Wednesday 14/4/2010 Page: 34
GeoDynamics will make a final investment decision on a proposed $300 million, 25 MW geothermal demonstration plant in the Cooper Basin by early 2013 - two years later than previously stated. The delay is related to a production well breach incident in April last year, which caused the postponement of commissioning of its 1MW pilot plant at Innamincka.
The decision to invest will mean that GeoDynamics "is confident the geothermal resource is proven, the technical aspects of production are well defined, and the significant investment of approximately $300 million required to construct a commercial-sized power plant will be money well spent," the company said yesterday. "It (the delay) is essentially a result of not only the incident, but the learnings we have taken from it as well," GeoDynamics managing director Gerry Grove-White said. "I feel confident about the program. We now have a clear understanding of issues we are finding the answers to.., and we have a strategic advantage to other geothermal players," he said.
The firm, with joint venture partner Origin Energy, yesterday outlined a new forward work program with updated timelines for commissioning of the pilot plant and decision on the demonstration plant. The firm plans to harness heat in granites underground to produce steam to drive turbines and has completed a proof of concept stage. The 25 MW plant has already won $90 million in funding under the Federal Government's Renewable Energy Demonstration Program, and is a step towards GeoDynamics' rollout of plants to generate 500MW by 2020. The 1MW plant is on track to demonstrate the first power produced from an enhanced geothermal system in Australia by 2012.
Before this happens however, two new wells - Habanero 4 and Habanero 5 - will be drilled to power the plant. A second drill rig, Rig 200, has been purchased by the company to drill the new wells and will be commissioned before the end of the year. An underground heat exchanger will also be created at Jalokia 1, located 9kms from Habanero, to prove underground reservoirs can be created across the company's tenement areas. "The successful completion of this work program will provide us with two potential sites to build the commercial demonstration plant, each site having demonstrated flow testing from multi-level heat exchangers within the granite," Mr Grove-White said.
Farmers turn green over mine
Sunday Mail Brisbane
Sunday 11/4/2010 Page: 35
FARMERS at war with a proposed open-cut coal mine will fight it by offering their land for wind and solar farms. In what they hope will be a model for other mining-affected communities, the people of Felton, 30km southwest of Toowoomba, have hired a consultant to investigate their green energy potential. The community will use the report to lobby the State Government to reject Ambre Energy's coal mine in favour of renewables. Friends of Felton spokesman Rob McCreath said farmers would welcome wind turbines and solar farms on their land.
"Faced with the prospect of a massive dirty open-cut mine we'd much rather have wind and solar," he said. Green energy consultant Trevor Berrill estimated 48 turbines could share Felton Valley's ridges with grazing cattle, and another 10sq km of land could host large solar thermal infrastructure, together producing enough green energy to power 160,000 homes. Mr Berrill said this community model could be extended throughout Queensland and negate the need to dig new coal mines. He said green energy was economical to produce if the carbon costs of coal energy were taken into proper account.
Sunday 11/4/2010 Page: 35
FARMERS at war with a proposed open-cut coal mine will fight it by offering their land for wind and solar farms. In what they hope will be a model for other mining-affected communities, the people of Felton, 30km southwest of Toowoomba, have hired a consultant to investigate their green energy potential. The community will use the report to lobby the State Government to reject Ambre Energy's coal mine in favour of renewables. Friends of Felton spokesman Rob McCreath said farmers would welcome wind turbines and solar farms on their land.
"Faced with the prospect of a massive dirty open-cut mine we'd much rather have wind and solar," he said. Green energy consultant Trevor Berrill estimated 48 turbines could share Felton Valley's ridges with grazing cattle, and another 10sq km of land could host large solar thermal infrastructure, together producing enough green energy to power 160,000 homes. Mr Berrill said this community model could be extended throughout Queensland and negate the need to dig new coal mines. He said green energy was economical to produce if the carbon costs of coal energy were taken into proper account.
Offshore wind farms should be linked, researchers say
Summaries - Australian Financial Review
Tuesday 13/4/2010 Page: 5
American academics have put forward a plan to link new wind farms on the United States' East Coast, as electricity authorities grapple with the issue of obtaining useful power from wind energy. University of Delaware researchers suggest making wind energy more viable by linking the wind farms. A professor at the university's College of Earth, Ocean and the Environment in Newark, Delaware, Willet Kempton, says linking wind farms would reduce power fluctuations when the wind stops in one area.
The World Wind Energy Association says the US had the most MWs of wind power capacity in 2009 at 35,139, while the US has no offshore wind farms. To reach an Energy Department target of obtaining 20% of US power from wind by 2003, the US will need about 300 GWs, with 54 GWs from offshore turbines, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Tuesday 13/4/2010 Page: 5
American academics have put forward a plan to link new wind farms on the United States' East Coast, as electricity authorities grapple with the issue of obtaining useful power from wind energy. University of Delaware researchers suggest making wind energy more viable by linking the wind farms. A professor at the university's College of Earth, Ocean and the Environment in Newark, Delaware, Willet Kempton, says linking wind farms would reduce power fluctuations when the wind stops in one area.
The World Wind Energy Association says the US had the most MWs of wind power capacity in 2009 at 35,139, while the US has no offshore wind farms. To reach an Energy Department target of obtaining 20% of US power from wind by 2003, the US will need about 300 GWs, with 54 GWs from offshore turbines, according to the American Wind Energy Association.
Dialogue becomes a possibility with smart networks
Summaries - Australian Financial ReviewI
Tuesday 13/4/2010 Page: 4
The traditional approach to reading an electricity meter was to have an employee of a distribution network read meters at homes. However, smart meters can automatically acquire such information and identify issues before the consumer even notices. General Electric digital energy vice-president Bob Gilligan, who last month attended the National Smart Grids Forum in Sydney, says that smart grids allow users to sell their own electricity, which can be generated by wind or photovoltaic grids. Portuguese state-owned holding company Energias de Portugal is implementing a pilot grid project.
According to a case study by Logica, 50,000 energy boxes will be installed by the end of March. The head of the roll-out, Jose Antunes, is aware that Portugal has set a renewable energy target of 31% by 2020. Energy Networks Association chief executive Andrew Blyth says that Australia, which has set an RET of 20% by 2020, is neither behind nor ahead of other countries regarding to the so-called "digitisation of energy."
Smart network groups hope that Australia's national broadband network will reach some sort of synergy with their services. The head of global consulting services in Asia, Australia and Japan for Software AG, Steve Keys, says that smart networks can provide updates once in every 30 minutes. The Government last year called for tenders for a $100 million initiative called Smart Grid, Smart City.
Tuesday 13/4/2010 Page: 4
The traditional approach to reading an electricity meter was to have an employee of a distribution network read meters at homes. However, smart meters can automatically acquire such information and identify issues before the consumer even notices. General Electric digital energy vice-president Bob Gilligan, who last month attended the National Smart Grids Forum in Sydney, says that smart grids allow users to sell their own electricity, which can be generated by wind or photovoltaic grids. Portuguese state-owned holding company Energias de Portugal is implementing a pilot grid project.
According to a case study by Logica, 50,000 energy boxes will be installed by the end of March. The head of the roll-out, Jose Antunes, is aware that Portugal has set a renewable energy target of 31% by 2020. Energy Networks Association chief executive Andrew Blyth says that Australia, which has set an RET of 20% by 2020, is neither behind nor ahead of other countries regarding to the so-called "digitisation of energy."
Smart network groups hope that Australia's national broadband network will reach some sort of synergy with their services. The head of global consulting services in Asia, Australia and Japan for Software AG, Steve Keys, says that smart networks can provide updates once in every 30 minutes. The Government last year called for tenders for a $100 million initiative called Smart Grid, Smart City.
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