www.power-eng.com
26 Oct 2012
New Zealand's TrustPower and Siemens Australia have announced the start of construction at the $439m Snowtown II wind farm with the turning of the first sod. The project is a 90 turbine expansion of the existing Snowtown wind farm located on the Barunga and Hummocks ranges west of Snowtown in the Mid North of South Australia. It is capable of generating a further 270MW of renewable power the region and is expected to be completed and fully operational by 2014. Electricity company TrustPower, which built Snowtown I in 2008, appointed Siemens as its turn-key supplier for Snowtown II in July 2012.
With the construction of theSnowtown II wind farm, Snowtown as a region would boast a combined renewable energy generation total of up to 370MW. TrustPower chief executive Vince Hawksworth said: "Snowtown is a perfect location for renewable wind generation. From the time we first considered the Snowtown site we have been delighted with the willingness of landowners, the community and local authorities to work with TrustPower to make this investment in the state of South Australia possible".
Siemens is responsible for installing gearless drive turbines on the site, including the procurement, supply and engineering of substations, switchgear and transformers. Siemens Australia CEO and managing director Jeff Connolly said the wind farm takes renewable energy generation in the country to "the next level".
"The rotor blades are superior-cast in one-piece they are structurally and aerodynamically best suited for strong wind conditions", Connolly added. "This combined with the world's most efficient gearless direct-drive wind technology, will deliver a wind farm amongst the most technically-advanced and most economically efficient in Australia".
Thursday, 8 November 2012
Tuesday, 6 November 2012
Climate Change Authority hits bullseye on Renewable Energy Target review
Clean Energy Council
26 Oct 2012
Australia's clean energy industry has congratulated the Climate Change Authority for recognising the importance of policy stability in recommending that the national 20% Renewable Energy Target be essentially retained in its current form. Clean Energy Council Deputy Chief Executive Kane Thornton said it was clear from the discussion paper and the modelling report released today that the Climate Change Authority had understood the key issues confronting the industry.
Retaining a fixed target as drafted in the legislation is the best outcome for companies and investors who are looking at renewable energy projects between now and the end of the decade", he said. Mr Thornton said he was pleased with the authority's recommendation to leave the small-scale scheme unchanged to provide maximum stability to small-scale renewable energy businesses, as well as supporting householders who are increasingly turning to these technologies to protect themselves from rising power bills.
"We agree with the analysis by the Climate Change Authority that all this comes at a low cost to consumers", he said. "Every review of this policy has shown that the Renewable Energy Target is the most efficient, low-cost and effective way to deliver what Australians consistently say they want-more clean energy. But every review has also stifled investment and created uncertainty due to the prospect of serious policy changes".
Mr Thornton said a report released by the Clean Energy Council this week by SKM MMA found that Australia's economy stood to gain an additional $18.7 billion in investment under the policy if it is retained in its current form. "Much of this investment would flow into regional areas of the country where many of these projects are located. The reality is that the Renewable Energy Target is a chance to lock in the substantial benefits of major clean energy projects for local economies-particularly those areas that have been missed by the mining boom.
"The Clean Energy Council supports the Climate Change Authority's consideration of a range of options to provide greater flexibility and choice in the future operation and administration of the scheme. "Each of these-particularly the recommendation for additional accreditation bodies-require further analysis and assessment to ensure they enhance the overall integrity of the scheme".
26 Oct 2012
Australia's clean energy industry has congratulated the Climate Change Authority for recognising the importance of policy stability in recommending that the national 20% Renewable Energy Target be essentially retained in its current form. Clean Energy Council Deputy Chief Executive Kane Thornton said it was clear from the discussion paper and the modelling report released today that the Climate Change Authority had understood the key issues confronting the industry.Retaining a fixed target as drafted in the legislation is the best outcome for companies and investors who are looking at renewable energy projects between now and the end of the decade", he said. Mr Thornton said he was pleased with the authority's recommendation to leave the small-scale scheme unchanged to provide maximum stability to small-scale renewable energy businesses, as well as supporting householders who are increasingly turning to these technologies to protect themselves from rising power bills.
"We agree with the analysis by the Climate Change Authority that all this comes at a low cost to consumers", he said. "Every review of this policy has shown that the Renewable Energy Target is the most efficient, low-cost and effective way to deliver what Australians consistently say they want-more clean energy. But every review has also stifled investment and created uncertainty due to the prospect of serious policy changes".
Mr Thornton said a report released by the Clean Energy Council this week by SKM MMA found that Australia's economy stood to gain an additional $18.7 billion in investment under the policy if it is retained in its current form. "Much of this investment would flow into regional areas of the country where many of these projects are located. The reality is that the Renewable Energy Target is a chance to lock in the substantial benefits of major clean energy projects for local economies-particularly those areas that have been missed by the mining boom.
"The Clean Energy Council supports the Climate Change Authority's consideration of a range of options to provide greater flexibility and choice in the future operation and administration of the scheme. "Each of these-particularly the recommendation for additional accreditation bodies-require further analysis and assessment to ensure they enhance the overall integrity of the scheme".
Renewable energy on target for billions in investment: independent analysis
Clean Energy Council
25 Oct 2012
An independent report from leading strategic consultancy SKM MMA shows that Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target has delivered $18.5 billion in investment, with the potential for $18.7 billion more if the policy is retained in its current form. The Benefits of the Renewable Energy Target to Australia's Energy Markets and Economy, released by the Clean Energy Council today, shows the policy has delivered a reduction in fossil fuelled power generation since its introduction in 2001.
The Climate Change Authority is currently conducting a review of the Renewable Energy Target, which is due for completion by the end of the year. But it has come under pressure from some energy companies who have called for it to be scaled back rather than giving Australians what they consistently say they want: more clean energy.
Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said that since being introduced by the Howard Government in 2001 and increased by the Rudd Government in 2009, the policy had reduced Australia's carbon emissions and helped to suppress wholesale electricity prices. "The report shows that, if left unchanged, the Renewable Energy Target will result in 12% less coal-fired generation and 13% less gas-fired generation between now and 2030, with no reliability or security of supply issues identified", Mr Green said.
Mr Green said that in the face of news last week that Australia's gas prices may rise sharply on the back of international exports, the SKM MMA report further demonstrates the fact that clean energy can help to protect the country against price shocks from fossil fuels.
"Retaining the current Renewable Energy Target will also mean we can meet the bulk of our target for reducing carbon emissions with renewable energy projects right here in Australia, supporting local jobs in regional areas", Mr Green said. "The policy is part of a transition towards a cleaner and smarter energy system that encourages energy efficiency and renewables. But all this is under threat if governments succumb to pressure to tinker with or drop the Renewable Energy Target. "We are confident the review will recognise the effectiveness of the current policy and the need for stability to provide investors with the confidence they need to commit funds to improving Australia's economic security", he said.
The report can be downloaded from the Clean Energy Council website at www.cleanenergycouncil.org.au.
25 Oct 2012
An independent report from leading strategic consultancy SKM MMA shows that Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target has delivered $18.5 billion in investment, with the potential for $18.7 billion more if the policy is retained in its current form. The Benefits of the Renewable Energy Target to Australia's Energy Markets and Economy, released by the Clean Energy Council today, shows the policy has delivered a reduction in fossil fuelled power generation since its introduction in 2001.The Climate Change Authority is currently conducting a review of the Renewable Energy Target, which is due for completion by the end of the year. But it has come under pressure from some energy companies who have called for it to be scaled back rather than giving Australians what they consistently say they want: more clean energy.
Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said that since being introduced by the Howard Government in 2001 and increased by the Rudd Government in 2009, the policy had reduced Australia's carbon emissions and helped to suppress wholesale electricity prices. "The report shows that, if left unchanged, the Renewable Energy Target will result in 12% less coal-fired generation and 13% less gas-fired generation between now and 2030, with no reliability or security of supply issues identified", Mr Green said.
Mr Green said that in the face of news last week that Australia's gas prices may rise sharply on the back of international exports, the SKM MMA report further demonstrates the fact that clean energy can help to protect the country against price shocks from fossil fuels.
"Retaining the current Renewable Energy Target will also mean we can meet the bulk of our target for reducing carbon emissions with renewable energy projects right here in Australia, supporting local jobs in regional areas", Mr Green said. "The policy is part of a transition towards a cleaner and smarter energy system that encourages energy efficiency and renewables. But all this is under threat if governments succumb to pressure to tinker with or drop the Renewable Energy Target. "We are confident the review will recognise the effectiveness of the current policy and the need for stability to provide investors with the confidence they need to commit funds to improving Australia's economic security", he said.
The report can be downloaded from the Clean Energy Council website at www.cleanenergycouncil.org.au.
Renewables: Australia's a land of plenty
sl.farmonline.com.au
26 Oct 2012
When feisty UN climate change chief Christiana Figueres swept into Sydney this week, she mocked suggestions Australia is alone in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. "Nothing could be further from reality", Ms Figueres told the Lowy Institute. Rather than excoriate the government for holding out on signing up for the second round of the Kyoto Protocol to set emission targets, the diminutive diplomat instead stressed how the country was "blessed" with renewable energy resources the envy of much of the world.
While many nations were keen to tap such resources in order to improve health and lower carbon emissions, the real appeal, she said, was economic: "None of them is trying to save the planet. They're doing it because it's in their national interest and that's the most important motivator". But for national interest to be rightly understood--and acted upon--it helps if the population is aware of what's possible.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), the body charged with running the nation's energy supply, has modelled the feasibility of switching to 100% renewable electricity generation by 2030 and 2050. This week, AEMO buried its findings in its monthly Energy Update.
The national electricity market is now about 200 TWs (or 200 million MWs), a total the AEMO modelling found within reach, and then some: "The study shows there is potential to produce around 500 times that [total] if all possible sources of renewable energy available across eastern and south eastern Australia were tapped into".
The huge multiple was derived even with conservative assumptions, such as excluding any land with a greater than 1% slope from consideration for solar power, national parks and local planning rules which have tightened restrictions on wind farms in states such as Victoria. Much of South Australia and Queensland were also omitted from the study's range.
AEMO declined to comment on the report's findings, directing queries instead to the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. The department "is really running the show on this one", was its response. A spokesman for Minister Greg Combet declined to give a direct response to the AEMO study other than to say: "The Labor Government has long recognised the significant and under-utilised renewable energy potential which Australia possesses".
Read More…
26 Oct 2012
When feisty UN climate change chief Christiana Figueres swept into Sydney this week, she mocked suggestions Australia is alone in cutting greenhouse gas emissions. "Nothing could be further from reality", Ms Figueres told the Lowy Institute. Rather than excoriate the government for holding out on signing up for the second round of the Kyoto Protocol to set emission targets, the diminutive diplomat instead stressed how the country was "blessed" with renewable energy resources the envy of much of the world.
While many nations were keen to tap such resources in order to improve health and lower carbon emissions, the real appeal, she said, was economic: "None of them is trying to save the planet. They're doing it because it's in their national interest and that's the most important motivator". But for national interest to be rightly understood--and acted upon--it helps if the population is aware of what's possible.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), the body charged with running the nation's energy supply, has modelled the feasibility of switching to 100% renewable electricity generation by 2030 and 2050. This week, AEMO buried its findings in its monthly Energy Update.
The national electricity market is now about 200 TWs (or 200 million MWs), a total the AEMO modelling found within reach, and then some: "The study shows there is potential to produce around 500 times that [total] if all possible sources of renewable energy available across eastern and south eastern Australia were tapped into".
The huge multiple was derived even with conservative assumptions, such as excluding any land with a greater than 1% slope from consideration for solar power, national parks and local planning rules which have tightened restrictions on wind farms in states such as Victoria. Much of South Australia and Queensland were also omitted from the study's range.
AEMO declined to comment on the report's findings, directing queries instead to the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency. The department "is really running the show on this one", was its response. A spokesman for Minister Greg Combet declined to give a direct response to the AEMO study other than to say: "The Labor Government has long recognised the significant and under-utilised renewable energy potential which Australia possesses".
Read More…
Radioactive levels staying high off Fukushima Daiichi in Japan
edition.cnn.com
26 Oct 2012
(CNN)--Radiation levels in fish caught near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remain high long after the 2011 meltdowns there, suggesting contamination from the site might still be seeping into Pacific waters, a U.S, researcher reported Thursday.
The "vast majority" of fish caught off Japan show no sign of radioactive contamination at levels dangerous to humans, even at the tighter limits Japan imposed after the Fukushima Daiichi accident, Ken Buesseler, a marine radiochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, wrote in this week's edition of the journal Science. But close to the plant, an ongoing high level of the reactor byproducts cesium-134 and cesium-137 "implies that cesium is still being released to the food chain", he wrote.
Nuclear plant operator admits downplaying risk
The sources are likely to be from radioactive particles released by the plant that settled into sediment on the sea floor or from groundwater seeping into the ocean from the plant, as operators continue to pour tons of water a day into the reactors to keep them cool. Researchers can't say definitely which is the more likely source, "but we know both are happening", Buesseler told CNN.
"We can't say whether it's today's cooling water or from last April, but we continue to see cesium in the ocean, directly at the plant, is elevated", he said. But he added that those levels are "not dangerously high--I don't think we need to be alarmist about this".
The plant is no longer venting radioactive steam into the atmosphere, as it was at the height of the disaster. And the plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, has set up a system to absorb cesium from reactor coolant water. But not all that water is being recovered, Buesseler said. Buesseler was one of the organizers of an international research expedition three months after the disaster. He studied Japanese government reports of cesium contamination in about 8,500 fish caught at different locations off northeastern Japan for his latest findings.
The tsunami that hit Fukushima Daiichi after Japan's historic March 2011 earthquake knocked out power and coolant systems at the plant, resulting in meltdowns in three reactors. The result was the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl, as the crippled reactors spewed enormous amounts of radioactive particles into the environment.
Most of the fallout from the plant was blown out to sea, where it was diluted in the vast Pacific. But while no deaths have been directly attributed to the accident, tens of thousands of people remain displaced from contaminated towns surrounding the plant.
Radiation readings in the contaminated fish varied widely, with bottom-dwellers typically showing the highest results, Buesseler said. That suggests that contamination has settled over the seabed, where it will persist for decades--cesium-137 takes 30 years to lose half its radioactivity, while cesium-134 has a radioactive half-life of only two years.
Read More…
26 Oct 2012
(CNN)--Radiation levels in fish caught near the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant remain high long after the 2011 meltdowns there, suggesting contamination from the site might still be seeping into Pacific waters, a U.S, researcher reported Thursday.The "vast majority" of fish caught off Japan show no sign of radioactive contamination at levels dangerous to humans, even at the tighter limits Japan imposed after the Fukushima Daiichi accident, Ken Buesseler, a marine radiochemist at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in Massachusetts, wrote in this week's edition of the journal Science. But close to the plant, an ongoing high level of the reactor byproducts cesium-134 and cesium-137 "implies that cesium is still being released to the food chain", he wrote.
Nuclear plant operator admits downplaying risk
The sources are likely to be from radioactive particles released by the plant that settled into sediment on the sea floor or from groundwater seeping into the ocean from the plant, as operators continue to pour tons of water a day into the reactors to keep them cool. Researchers can't say definitely which is the more likely source, "but we know both are happening", Buesseler told CNN.
"We can't say whether it's today's cooling water or from last April, but we continue to see cesium in the ocean, directly at the plant, is elevated", he said. But he added that those levels are "not dangerously high--I don't think we need to be alarmist about this".
The plant is no longer venting radioactive steam into the atmosphere, as it was at the height of the disaster. And the plant's operator, the Tokyo Electric Power Company, has set up a system to absorb cesium from reactor coolant water. But not all that water is being recovered, Buesseler said. Buesseler was one of the organizers of an international research expedition three months after the disaster. He studied Japanese government reports of cesium contamination in about 8,500 fish caught at different locations off northeastern Japan for his latest findings.
The tsunami that hit Fukushima Daiichi after Japan's historic March 2011 earthquake knocked out power and coolant systems at the plant, resulting in meltdowns in three reactors. The result was the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl, as the crippled reactors spewed enormous amounts of radioactive particles into the environment.
Most of the fallout from the plant was blown out to sea, where it was diluted in the vast Pacific. But while no deaths have been directly attributed to the accident, tens of thousands of people remain displaced from contaminated towns surrounding the plant.
Radiation readings in the contaminated fish varied widely, with bottom-dwellers typically showing the highest results, Buesseler said. That suggests that contamination has settled over the seabed, where it will persist for decades--cesium-137 takes 30 years to lose half its radioactivity, while cesium-134 has a radioactive half-life of only two years.
Read More…
Friday, 2 November 2012
Stanford's battery-life research steps into economy class
phys.org
25 Oct 2012
(Phys.org)--Looking for better battery designs and solutions is a priority pursuit for many scientists, and the Batteries for Advanced Transportation Technologies (BATT) Program is always on the lookout for worthy contributions. Supported by the US Department of Energy and managed by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, BATT is a leader in U.S, research in battery solutions for electric vehicles. They have not missed the fact that Prof. Yi Cui, Associate Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University, has been leading a team that is coming up with new answers for energy storage.
"Several fundamental studies still need to be conducted to develop viable Si electrodes for batteries", BATT has written in the past. "Yi Cui's group at Stanford University is working on understanding the properties of various Si nanostructures and is designing new ones based on particles and wires that target improving Si cyclability".
BATT has recognized an important issue addressed by Cui, the conductivity of Si electrodes. "The electrical conductivity of Si is a major factor in determining the power and energy capabilities of an electrode that does not contain inactive materials such as conductive additives and binder. Future work in the Cui group will focus on designing new Si structures and pre-lithiation methods that are amenable to scale up so that large quantities of this anode material can be made at a low cost. Fundamental questions such as the best morphology for electrode packing, the type of surface coating for improving cyclability, and the optimal state of charge for these electrodes still need to be answered".
This month, Prof. Yi Cui and his Stanford team offer more answers in a newly published paper appearing in the journal Nature Communications. To compensate for fluctuating renewables in wind and solar systems, new approaches to storage are needed and Cui's team present a battery technology that works when the sun or wind falls short, in the form of sharp drop-offs of wind and solar systems. The battery electrodes can run for a thousand charge cycles without degrading, an advancement when typically the electrodes degrade with time.
Read More…
25 Oct 2012
(Phys.org)--Looking for better battery designs and solutions is a priority pursuit for many scientists, and the Batteries for Advanced Transportation Technologies (BATT) Program is always on the lookout for worthy contributions. Supported by the US Department of Energy and managed by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, BATT is a leader in U.S, research in battery solutions for electric vehicles. They have not missed the fact that Prof. Yi Cui, Associate Professor, Department of Materials Science and Engineering at Stanford University, has been leading a team that is coming up with new answers for energy storage.
"Several fundamental studies still need to be conducted to develop viable Si electrodes for batteries", BATT has written in the past. "Yi Cui's group at Stanford University is working on understanding the properties of various Si nanostructures and is designing new ones based on particles and wires that target improving Si cyclability".
BATT has recognized an important issue addressed by Cui, the conductivity of Si electrodes. "The electrical conductivity of Si is a major factor in determining the power and energy capabilities of an electrode that does not contain inactive materials such as conductive additives and binder. Future work in the Cui group will focus on designing new Si structures and pre-lithiation methods that are amenable to scale up so that large quantities of this anode material can be made at a low cost. Fundamental questions such as the best morphology for electrode packing, the type of surface coating for improving cyclability, and the optimal state of charge for these electrodes still need to be answered".
This month, Prof. Yi Cui and his Stanford team offer more answers in a newly published paper appearing in the journal Nature Communications. To compensate for fluctuating renewables in wind and solar systems, new approaches to storage are needed and Cui's team present a battery technology that works when the sun or wind falls short, in the form of sharp drop-offs of wind and solar systems. The battery electrodes can run for a thousand charge cycles without degrading, an advancement when typically the electrodes degrade with time.
Read More…
NRG Energy, SunPower Energize First 22 Megawatts of 250-Megawatt California Valley Solar Ranch; Huge solar project creates hundreds of jobs and starts generating clean, renewable electricity
www.power-eng.com
25 Oct 2012
NRG Energy, Inc, and SunPower Corp, will celebrate today the first 22 MWs (MW) of the 250 MW California Valley Solar Ranch (CVSR) being delivered to the electrical grid. NRG Energy and SunPower announced the first 22 MWs online at California Valley Solar Ranch in San Luis Obispo County, 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles. (Photo: Business Wire)
CVSR is one of the largest central station photovoltaic solar plants in the world. It has created approximately 350 jobs since construction started in September 2011, and is expected to inject $315 million into the local economy over its two-year construction period. NRG Energy completed the acquisition of CVSR on September 30, 2011.
Once completed, CVSR will power a yearly average of 100,000 homes with clean, renewable solar power, while protecting and conserving more than 12,000 acres of land in and around the Carrizo Plain in southeastern San Luis Obispo County, about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Electricity from CVSR is being sold to PGE through 25 year power purchase agreements.
"The private sector's role is to demonstrate successful performance that speeds commercialization of technology-on time and on budget-and that's what we're doing at CVSR and all of NRG Energy's major solar projects", said Tom Doyle, president of NRG Energy Solar and NRG Energy's West Region. "Equally important, through large scale deployment, the private sector is accelerating cost reductions through supply chain improvements, lower balance of system costs and progress through experience that can't be achieved at the lab bench or in the factory".
Read More…
25 Oct 2012
NRG Energy, Inc, and SunPower Corp, will celebrate today the first 22 MWs (MW) of the 250 MW California Valley Solar Ranch (CVSR) being delivered to the electrical grid. NRG Energy and SunPower announced the first 22 MWs online at California Valley Solar Ranch in San Luis Obispo County, 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles. (Photo: Business Wire)
CVSR is one of the largest central station photovoltaic solar plants in the world. It has created approximately 350 jobs since construction started in September 2011, and is expected to inject $315 million into the local economy over its two-year construction period. NRG Energy completed the acquisition of CVSR on September 30, 2011.
Once completed, CVSR will power a yearly average of 100,000 homes with clean, renewable solar power, while protecting and conserving more than 12,000 acres of land in and around the Carrizo Plain in southeastern San Luis Obispo County, about 100 miles northwest of Los Angeles. Electricity from CVSR is being sold to PGE through 25 year power purchase agreements.
"The private sector's role is to demonstrate successful performance that speeds commercialization of technology-on time and on budget-and that's what we're doing at CVSR and all of NRG Energy's major solar projects", said Tom Doyle, president of NRG Energy Solar and NRG Energy's West Region. "Equally important, through large scale deployment, the private sector is accelerating cost reductions through supply chain improvements, lower balance of system costs and progress through experience that can't be achieved at the lab bench or in the factory".
Read More…
South Australia’s wind farm rules strike the right balance
Clean Energy Council
18 Oct 2012
Changes to South Australia's policy on wind farms announced today strike the right balance between making sure the community's concerns are heard and supporting this important industry, according to the Clean Energy Council. Clean Energy Council Policy Director Russell Marsh said South Australia had been a renewable energy pioneer, with the state's wind farms delivering just under a quarter of its power over the last year at a very low cost to consumers.
"These latest amendments to the planning framework, announced today by Planning Minister John Rau, follow a year-long trial and are ultimately a good news story for jobs, investment and cleaner sources of energy in South Australia", Mr Marsh said. "South Australia should be proud that it has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 27% over the last five years, while generating approximately $1.8 billion worth of investment for local communities and 840 new jobs, thanks to wind power.
"This announcement shows that the government recognises the value of wind power to South Australia's economy, but that development needs to be sustainable for the communities involved-an idea we strongly support", he said.
South Australia has set a target of sourcing 33% of its power from renewable energy by 2020. Wind farms are currently among the lowest cost forms of renewable energy that can be rolled out on a large scale and are expected to play a major role in meeting this target. The wind farm rules will set a minimum setback distance of 1km between houses and turbines and a 2km distance from townships. Third party appeals can be triggered when turbines are within 2km of houses.
Mr Marsh said wind power added less than 2% to the cost of power bills and in the last financial year had produced more power than coal in the state for the first time. "Locking in the rules for wind farms will help investors, who need to know that the policy parameters will remain consistent. "All this wind is putting South Australia well ahead of the curve on Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target, and helping to provide farmers and local businesses in regional areas with extra income".
18 Oct 2012
Changes to South Australia's policy on wind farms announced today strike the right balance between making sure the community's concerns are heard and supporting this important industry, according to the Clean Energy Council. Clean Energy Council Policy Director Russell Marsh said South Australia had been a renewable energy pioneer, with the state's wind farms delivering just under a quarter of its power over the last year at a very low cost to consumers."These latest amendments to the planning framework, announced today by Planning Minister John Rau, follow a year-long trial and are ultimately a good news story for jobs, investment and cleaner sources of energy in South Australia", Mr Marsh said. "South Australia should be proud that it has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by more than 27% over the last five years, while generating approximately $1.8 billion worth of investment for local communities and 840 new jobs, thanks to wind power.
"This announcement shows that the government recognises the value of wind power to South Australia's economy, but that development needs to be sustainable for the communities involved-an idea we strongly support", he said.
South Australia has set a target of sourcing 33% of its power from renewable energy by 2020. Wind farms are currently among the lowest cost forms of renewable energy that can be rolled out on a large scale and are expected to play a major role in meeting this target. The wind farm rules will set a minimum setback distance of 1km between houses and turbines and a 2km distance from townships. Third party appeals can be triggered when turbines are within 2km of houses.
Mr Marsh said wind power added less than 2% to the cost of power bills and in the last financial year had produced more power than coal in the state for the first time. "Locking in the rules for wind farms will help investors, who need to know that the policy parameters will remain consistent. "All this wind is putting South Australia well ahead of the curve on Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target, and helping to provide farmers and local businesses in regional areas with extra income".
CEC Media Release: Productivity Commission report’s consumer focus applauded
Clean Energy Council
18 Oct 2012
A new Productivity Commission draft report is heading in the right direction with its recommendations on making the electricity market more consumer-oriented, the clean energy industry body said today.
"The Electricity Network Regulation Frameworks report reiterated the fact that the spiralling costs of electricity networks-the 'poles and wires'-have driven the huge increases in electricity prices over recent years", Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said.
"The report rightly highlights that some 25% of retail power bills goes towards meeting just 40 hours of peak energy demand per year-which usually correspond to those times on really hot days when everyone gets home and turns on their air-conditioners. "We welcome the Productivity Commission's view that the best way to manage peak demand is to put more control in the hands of the consumer.
"We agree with the report's recommendations that reforms are now urgently needed including the effective introduction of smart meters, appropriate time-based pricing for critical peak periods, and the phased removal of retail price regulation alongside suitable consumer safeguards".
Such reforms would enable consumers to take charge of their own power bills by making informed decisions on when and how they used power, and to be rewarded for avoiding peak times. "As the report states, such reforms should reduce network costs and enable consumers who use low amounts of power during peak times to avoid paying for those who use a lot", Mr Green said.
"The more control we can give consumers in deciding when and how to use energy and from what sources-including their own, such as domestic solar-the quicker Australia's transition to a cleaner and more efficient energy system, which is good news for everyone".
18 Oct 2012
A new Productivity Commission draft report is heading in the right direction with its recommendations on making the electricity market more consumer-oriented, the clean energy industry body said today."The Electricity Network Regulation Frameworks report reiterated the fact that the spiralling costs of electricity networks-the 'poles and wires'-have driven the huge increases in electricity prices over recent years", Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said.
"The report rightly highlights that some 25% of retail power bills goes towards meeting just 40 hours of peak energy demand per year-which usually correspond to those times on really hot days when everyone gets home and turns on their air-conditioners. "We welcome the Productivity Commission's view that the best way to manage peak demand is to put more control in the hands of the consumer.
"We agree with the report's recommendations that reforms are now urgently needed including the effective introduction of smart meters, appropriate time-based pricing for critical peak periods, and the phased removal of retail price regulation alongside suitable consumer safeguards".
Such reforms would enable consumers to take charge of their own power bills by making informed decisions on when and how they used power, and to be rewarded for avoiding peak times. "As the report states, such reforms should reduce network costs and enable consumers who use low amounts of power during peak times to avoid paying for those who use a lot", Mr Green said.
"The more control we can give consumers in deciding when and how to use energy and from what sources-including their own, such as domestic solar-the quicker Australia's transition to a cleaner and more efficient energy system, which is good news for everyone".
Productivity Commission report’s consumer focus applauded
Clean Energy Council
18 Oct 2012
A new Productivity Commission draft report is heading in the right direction with its recommendations on making the electricity market more consumer-oriented, the clean energy industry body said today.
"The Electricity Network Regulation Frameworks report reiterated the fact that the spiralling costs of electricity networks-the 'poles and wires'-have driven the huge increases in electricity prices over recent years", Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said.
"The report rightly highlights that some 25% of retail power bills goes towards meeting just 40 hours of peak energy demand per year-which usually correspond to those times on really hot days when everyone gets home and turns on their air-conditioners. "We welcome the Productivity Commission's view that the best way to manage peak demand is to put more control in the hands of the consumer.
"We agree with the report's recommendations that reforms are now urgently needed including the effective introduction of smart meters, appropriate time-based pricing for critical peak periods, and the phased removal of retail price regulation alongside suitable consumer safeguards".
Such reforms would enable consumers to take charge of their own power bills by making informed decisions on when and how they used power, and to be rewarded for avoiding peak times. "As the report states, such reforms should reduce network costs and enable consumers who use low amounts of power during peak times to avoid paying for those who use a lot", Mr Green said.
"The more control we can give consumers in deciding when and how to use energy and from what sources-including their own, such as domestic solar-the quicker Australia's transition to a cleaner and more efficient energy system, which is good news for everyone".
18 Oct 2012
A new Productivity Commission draft report is heading in the right direction with its recommendations on making the electricity market more consumer-oriented, the clean energy industry body said today."The Electricity Network Regulation Frameworks report reiterated the fact that the spiralling costs of electricity networks-the 'poles and wires'-have driven the huge increases in electricity prices over recent years", Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said.
"The report rightly highlights that some 25% of retail power bills goes towards meeting just 40 hours of peak energy demand per year-which usually correspond to those times on really hot days when everyone gets home and turns on their air-conditioners. "We welcome the Productivity Commission's view that the best way to manage peak demand is to put more control in the hands of the consumer.
"We agree with the report's recommendations that reforms are now urgently needed including the effective introduction of smart meters, appropriate time-based pricing for critical peak periods, and the phased removal of retail price regulation alongside suitable consumer safeguards".
Such reforms would enable consumers to take charge of their own power bills by making informed decisions on when and how they used power, and to be rewarded for avoiding peak times. "As the report states, such reforms should reduce network costs and enable consumers who use low amounts of power during peak times to avoid paying for those who use a lot", Mr Green said.
"The more control we can give consumers in deciding when and how to use energy and from what sources-including their own, such as domestic solar-the quicker Australia's transition to a cleaner and more efficient energy system, which is good news for everyone".
Saturday, 27 October 2012
Yallourn Power Station downsize shows Renewable Energy Target is working
Clean Energy Council
17 Oct 2012
The peak body for Australia's clean energy industry said today's announcement that part of the coal-fired Yallourn W power station would be mothballed showed that cleaner sources of power were gradually replacing the country's highest-polluting power generation. Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said if Australia was serious about transitioning to a clean energy future, then such shifts in the way electricity was generated were to be expected.
"Six weeks ago renewable energy was wrongly criticised in some quarters for not reducing emissions, and now Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target has been criticised for being too effective", Mr Green said. "The fact is, the Renewable Energy Target is doing exactly what it is supposed to: aiding Australia's transition to a cleaner energy system and hunting out the least-cost ways of doing this.
"Not only that, while providing the country with clean energy such as solar, wind, bioenergy and hydroelectric, it has also delivered billions of dollars in investment and thousands of jobs, along with increased protection against the volatile costs of fossil fuels. And it has the potential to deliver much more if kept in place and not tinkered with".
However, the policy is currently under review by the Climate Change Authority, which is under pressure from some energy companies who want it scaled back in order to maintain their dominance of the market.
"People are using less fossil fuelled electricity because of the increased contribution of large-scale clean energy such as wind, rising power prices, mild weather and better energy efficiency at home as well as through technologies like solar power. Contrary to the predictions of some doomsayers, the lights are still on and our energy sources are still secure. "It's not surprising the impact of all this is being felt by some of the big fossil fuelled power generators.
"But it is too early to say whether any forecast reduction in demand for energy will be a long-term trend or whether it will increase again if we all turn the air conditioning on over a few hot summers, or the exchange rate changes and manufacturing picks up", he said.
17 Oct 2012
The peak body for Australia's clean energy industry said today's announcement that part of the coal-fired Yallourn W power station would be mothballed showed that cleaner sources of power were gradually replacing the country's highest-polluting power generation. Clean Energy Council Chief Executive David Green said if Australia was serious about transitioning to a clean energy future, then such shifts in the way electricity was generated were to be expected."Six weeks ago renewable energy was wrongly criticised in some quarters for not reducing emissions, and now Australia's 20% Renewable Energy Target has been criticised for being too effective", Mr Green said. "The fact is, the Renewable Energy Target is doing exactly what it is supposed to: aiding Australia's transition to a cleaner energy system and hunting out the least-cost ways of doing this.
"Not only that, while providing the country with clean energy such as solar, wind, bioenergy and hydroelectric, it has also delivered billions of dollars in investment and thousands of jobs, along with increased protection against the volatile costs of fossil fuels. And it has the potential to deliver much more if kept in place and not tinkered with".
However, the policy is currently under review by the Climate Change Authority, which is under pressure from some energy companies who want it scaled back in order to maintain their dominance of the market.
"People are using less fossil fuelled electricity because of the increased contribution of large-scale clean energy such as wind, rising power prices, mild weather and better energy efficiency at home as well as through technologies like solar power. Contrary to the predictions of some doomsayers, the lights are still on and our energy sources are still secure. "It's not surprising the impact of all this is being felt by some of the big fossil fuelled power generators.
"But it is too early to say whether any forecast reduction in demand for energy will be a long-term trend or whether it will increase again if we all turn the air conditioning on over a few hot summers, or the exchange rate changes and manufacturing picks up", he said.
CSIRO in funding bid to predict solar power flow
www.smh.com.au
24 Oct 2012
We may be a nation of sun-worshippers but when it comes to forecasting where the sun shines longest, Australia's energy authorities are stuck in the dark ages.
The CSIRO is hoping to fill that information void with a lot more riding on it than the best place to get that tan. Energy energy suppliers-current and future-need the data to predict how much solar electricity is likely to flow through the nation's power grids.
For potential developers of large-scale solar power plants, radiation records are needed to bolster investment certainty as they try to secure finance from bankers or government agencies. The real urgency for hard numbers, though, is coming from the rapid take-up of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, with the total now approaching 900,000 across the country.
"It's essentially an unknown quantity what those cities full of roof-top PV are producing and we'd like to be able to forecast it", said Peter Coppin, the senior renewable energy researcher leading CSIRO's bid. The Australian Solar Institute, due to be rolled in to the larger Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) at the end of the year, has earmarked funds for solar resource forecasting techniques.
The ASI funding will be announced within weeks with CSIRO and its partners' bid seen likely to succeed. The institute co-sponsored a talk yesterday by Dr Coppin at the Sydney offices of law firm Baker and McKenzie.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), a member of the bid consortium along with the Bureau of Meteorology, installed an advanced forecasting system for wind four years ago to help it manage a big increase in wind farms.
Read More…
24 Oct 2012
We may be a nation of sun-worshippers but when it comes to forecasting where the sun shines longest, Australia's energy authorities are stuck in the dark ages.
The CSIRO is hoping to fill that information void with a lot more riding on it than the best place to get that tan. Energy energy suppliers-current and future-need the data to predict how much solar electricity is likely to flow through the nation's power grids.
For potential developers of large-scale solar power plants, radiation records are needed to bolster investment certainty as they try to secure finance from bankers or government agencies. The real urgency for hard numbers, though, is coming from the rapid take-up of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels, with the total now approaching 900,000 across the country.
"It's essentially an unknown quantity what those cities full of roof-top PV are producing and we'd like to be able to forecast it", said Peter Coppin, the senior renewable energy researcher leading CSIRO's bid. The Australian Solar Institute, due to be rolled in to the larger Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) at the end of the year, has earmarked funds for solar resource forecasting techniques.
The ASI funding will be announced within weeks with CSIRO and its partners' bid seen likely to succeed. The institute co-sponsored a talk yesterday by Dr Coppin at the Sydney offices of law firm Baker and McKenzie.
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), a member of the bid consortium along with the Bureau of Meteorology, installed an advanced forecasting system for wind four years ago to help it manage a big increase in wind farms.
Read More…
$3 billion overcharge on power bills: ACCC
www.smh.com.au
24 Oct 2012
Electricity users are being overcharged by as much as $3 billion due to the poor way the industry has been run, with power companies able to "cherry pick" the way the government regulates their spending plans. And much of this burden has been borne by NSW consumers, with at least $2 billion of this due to allowing higher than necessary allowances for their borrowings.
In a strongly worded speech to an energy gathering, to be given today, the chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Mr Rod Sims, blames much of the rise in electricity prices-which have doubled in some parts of NSW over past few years-on unnecessary spending on "poles and wires" which has made up as much as half of the spending over the past five years.
But the poor way the Federal government has controlled the spending has resulted in the industry regulator, the Australian Energy Regulator, having "little ability,.. to deal with excessive forecasts". This has allowed the power companies able to "cherry pick" decisions, adding as much as $3 billion to electricity bills, Mr Sims said.
The burden was heaviest on NSW consumers, since electricity companies were allowed to inflate their costs by "nearly $2 billion" he said, by claiming that they faced higher interest rates than was the case. "Further 'lead' in the saddle bag has been provided by the decisions in Queensland and NSW to make networks meet higher reliability standards", Mr Sims said, which was spending the government regulator could not block.
"The increased cost of electricity has also harmed the competitiveness of Australian businesses and indeed the entire Australian economy". "Electricity prices have risen by more than they should have. While there have been legitimate drivers for some increases, prices have also increased for a number of unnecessary and inappropriate reasons. Mr Sims called for the industry regulator, the AER, to be retained as an arm of the ACCC, rather than split off, as some groups have sought.
24 Oct 2012
Electricity users are being overcharged by as much as $3 billion due to the poor way the industry has been run, with power companies able to "cherry pick" the way the government regulates their spending plans. And much of this burden has been borne by NSW consumers, with at least $2 billion of this due to allowing higher than necessary allowances for their borrowings.In a strongly worded speech to an energy gathering, to be given today, the chairman of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission, Mr Rod Sims, blames much of the rise in electricity prices-which have doubled in some parts of NSW over past few years-on unnecessary spending on "poles and wires" which has made up as much as half of the spending over the past five years.
But the poor way the Federal government has controlled the spending has resulted in the industry regulator, the Australian Energy Regulator, having "little ability,.. to deal with excessive forecasts". This has allowed the power companies able to "cherry pick" decisions, adding as much as $3 billion to electricity bills, Mr Sims said.
The burden was heaviest on NSW consumers, since electricity companies were allowed to inflate their costs by "nearly $2 billion" he said, by claiming that they faced higher interest rates than was the case. "Further 'lead' in the saddle bag has been provided by the decisions in Queensland and NSW to make networks meet higher reliability standards", Mr Sims said, which was spending the government regulator could not block.
"The increased cost of electricity has also harmed the competitiveness of Australian businesses and indeed the entire Australian economy". "Electricity prices have risen by more than they should have. While there have been legitimate drivers for some increases, prices have also increased for a number of unnecessary and inappropriate reasons. Mr Sims called for the industry regulator, the AER, to be retained as an arm of the ACCC, rather than split off, as some groups have sought.
Power pollution plunges
www.theage.com.au
18 Oct 2012
THE carbon tax has helped to drive a sharp fall in the emissions intensity of Australia's power generation as coal-fired stations are closed, moth-balled or sell less electricity.
As Victoria's Yallourn brown coal-fired power station became the latest to announce a production cut, experts said falling demand for electricity, more renewables such as wind farms and solar, and the carbon price were all pushing Australia's coal-fired stations out of the market, making generation cleaner.
Electricity sold into the east coast market in the three months since the tax was introduced created on average 7.6% less CO₂ for each MW of power, an analysis of figures compiled by the Australian Energy Market Operator shows.
Compared with the same three months last year, the decline in emissions was about 6.3%, after seasonal differences are ironed out. Climate Change Minister Greg Combet talked up the role of the $23 a-tonne carbon price in the shift. ''It is significant that the emissions intensity of the electricity generation system has fallen in the first quarter of the carbon price,'' he said.
Hazelwood power station outside Morwell in Victoria. ''It is also significant that,.. about 3000 MWs of high-polluting electricity generation has closed or phased down. ''The carbon price is a key driver of these changes, although it is not the only factor at work.''
Read More…
18 Oct 2012
THE carbon tax has helped to drive a sharp fall in the emissions intensity of Australia's power generation as coal-fired stations are closed, moth-balled or sell less electricity.
As Victoria's Yallourn brown coal-fired power station became the latest to announce a production cut, experts said falling demand for electricity, more renewables such as wind farms and solar, and the carbon price were all pushing Australia's coal-fired stations out of the market, making generation cleaner.
Electricity sold into the east coast market in the three months since the tax was introduced created on average 7.6% less CO₂ for each MW of power, an analysis of figures compiled by the Australian Energy Market Operator shows.
Compared with the same three months last year, the decline in emissions was about 6.3%, after seasonal differences are ironed out. Climate Change Minister Greg Combet talked up the role of the $23 a-tonne carbon price in the shift. ''It is significant that the emissions intensity of the electricity generation system has fallen in the first quarter of the carbon price,'' he said.
Hazelwood power station outside Morwell in Victoria. ''It is also significant that,.. about 3000 MWs of high-polluting electricity generation has closed or phased down. ''The carbon price is a key driver of these changes, although it is not the only factor at work.''
Read More…
Thursday, 25 October 2012
Don’t cut clean energy while there’s a full head of steam
www.news.com.au
15 Oct 2012
Australia gets about 10% of its electricity from renewable energy and we’re shooting for double that by the end of the decade under our national 20% Renewable Energy Target. Australia currently gets about 10% of its electricity from renewable energy and we're shooting for double that by the end of the decade under our national 20% Renewable Energy Target.
So far this policy has delivered thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of investment, and is capable of much more if the Federal Government can resist tinkering with it. It's a classic case of "if it am't broke, don't fix it". The idea of producing pollution-free power just seems to make sense to people, which is why between 80-90% of people voice their support whenever a poll does the rounds. So far our politicians have acted to give them what they want.
The Renewable Energy Target is designed to deliver 20% of Australia's electricity from sources such as sun, wind, waves, bioenergy and others by the year 2020. Originally introduced by the Howard Government in 2001, the target was expanded by the Rudd Government in 2009 and is starting to hit its stride.
Business often talks about moving goalposts, but changing the way the scheme works now really would be like the AFL or the NRL changing the rules of the game halfway through the premiership season. It would mean that all the pre-season training, all the effort to recruit the best players and all the hours spent on strategy were irrelevant
Right now, major investors are mostly watching cautiously from the sidelines as the Federal Government's Climate Change Authority reviews the Renewable Energy Target. The authority is under pressure from a range of energy companies who are lobbying hard to have the target scaled back, or even dumped altogether, so they can carve out a bigger slice of the pie for either gas or coal.
But the effect of making major changes to the Renewable Energy Target wouldn't be just to lose a few matches-it would be measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars in investment and the thousands of jobs that would be lost. Ultimately it would be like a season where there was no winner-only losers. All over the world, interest in the renewable energy sector is at a record high, with US$257 billion being pumped into it last year across the globe.
Over the past decade, investors in Australia have chipped in around $18.5 billion of their own, with more than $3.5 billion in projects under construction. Large clean-energy projects supply enough clean energy for the equivalent of 2.1 million households. A further 1.5 million homes have solar panels or solar hot water. And there's potentially much more to come.
Vested interests that want to see the target changed or removed have been making a big deal about its costs. But those costs make up only a small percentage of the average power bill-7% versus the 40% contributed by upgrading poles and wires. What's more, the costs of meeting the target are going down as renewable energy falls in price and government incentives to buy solar power are wound back.
At the moment you're looking at less than $2 per week for an average household going towards renewable energy. In 2020 it will be about half that, provided the current Renewable Energy Target remains unchanged. That's a small price for tens of thousands of jobs, billions of dollars of investments and to protect us from the future impact of rising gas prices.
While speculation about the future of the carbon price remains, the Renewable Energy Target has been one of the few investment-grade policies that Australia's electricity generators have been able to rely on. This is largely because it is supported by all sides of politics.
The renewable energy industry has repeatedly outperformed expectations, forecasts and previous targets. If the government can resist the urge to intervene in the Renewable Energy Target, clean energy companies and investors can start to get on with the business of kicking some serious goals for Australia.
Kane Thornton is deputy chief executive of the Clean Energy Council
15 Oct 2012
Australia gets about 10% of its electricity from renewable energy and we’re shooting for double that by the end of the decade under our national 20% Renewable Energy Target. Australia currently gets about 10% of its electricity from renewable energy and we're shooting for double that by the end of the decade under our national 20% Renewable Energy Target.
So far this policy has delivered thousands of jobs and billions of dollars of investment, and is capable of much more if the Federal Government can resist tinkering with it. It's a classic case of "if it am't broke, don't fix it". The idea of producing pollution-free power just seems to make sense to people, which is why between 80-90% of people voice their support whenever a poll does the rounds. So far our politicians have acted to give them what they want.
The Renewable Energy Target is designed to deliver 20% of Australia's electricity from sources such as sun, wind, waves, bioenergy and others by the year 2020. Originally introduced by the Howard Government in 2001, the target was expanded by the Rudd Government in 2009 and is starting to hit its stride.
Business often talks about moving goalposts, but changing the way the scheme works now really would be like the AFL or the NRL changing the rules of the game halfway through the premiership season. It would mean that all the pre-season training, all the effort to recruit the best players and all the hours spent on strategy were irrelevant
Right now, major investors are mostly watching cautiously from the sidelines as the Federal Government's Climate Change Authority reviews the Renewable Energy Target. The authority is under pressure from a range of energy companies who are lobbying hard to have the target scaled back, or even dumped altogether, so they can carve out a bigger slice of the pie for either gas or coal.
But the effect of making major changes to the Renewable Energy Target wouldn't be just to lose a few matches-it would be measured in the hundreds of millions of dollars in investment and the thousands of jobs that would be lost. Ultimately it would be like a season where there was no winner-only losers. All over the world, interest in the renewable energy sector is at a record high, with US$257 billion being pumped into it last year across the globe.
Over the past decade, investors in Australia have chipped in around $18.5 billion of their own, with more than $3.5 billion in projects under construction. Large clean-energy projects supply enough clean energy for the equivalent of 2.1 million households. A further 1.5 million homes have solar panels or solar hot water. And there's potentially much more to come.
Vested interests that want to see the target changed or removed have been making a big deal about its costs. But those costs make up only a small percentage of the average power bill-7% versus the 40% contributed by upgrading poles and wires. What's more, the costs of meeting the target are going down as renewable energy falls in price and government incentives to buy solar power are wound back.
At the moment you're looking at less than $2 per week for an average household going towards renewable energy. In 2020 it will be about half that, provided the current Renewable Energy Target remains unchanged. That's a small price for tens of thousands of jobs, billions of dollars of investments and to protect us from the future impact of rising gas prices.
While speculation about the future of the carbon price remains, the Renewable Energy Target has been one of the few investment-grade policies that Australia's electricity generators have been able to rely on. This is largely because it is supported by all sides of politics.
The renewable energy industry has repeatedly outperformed expectations, forecasts and previous targets. If the government can resist the urge to intervene in the Renewable Energy Target, clean energy companies and investors can start to get on with the business of kicking some serious goals for Australia.
Kane Thornton is deputy chief executive of the Clean Energy Council
Siemens starts testing of 6 MW wind turbine featuring 75 m blades
www.reinforcedplastics.com
12 Oct 2012
Siemens Energy has begun field testing of its new 154 m rotor for its 6 MW offshore wind turbine in Osterild, Denmark. The SWT-6.0 154 turbine is equipped with the world's longest rotor blades-each blade is 75 m in length.
The B75 blade used in the new rotor is characterised by high stability and low weight. Special aerodynamic profiles deliver optimum performance at a wide range of wind speeds. For the manufacturing of the B75 blade, Siemens uses the patented IntegralBlade(R) process, which permits rotor blades to be produced from a single moulding without adhesive joints. An IntegralBlade is up to 20% lighter than blades manufactured with traditional methods, Siemens says.
Each SWT 6.0 154 turbine can produce 25 million kWs of electricity in offshore locations, enough to supply 6000 households. In May 2011, Siemens installed the first prototype of its new 6 MW turbine using a 120 m rotor. It has now been operating successfully for well over a year. The serial version of the 6 MW turbine will use the 154 m rotor. Siemens developed the SWT-6.0 specifically for demanding conditions in offshore locations.
In July 2012, Siemens entered into a Master Agreement with the Danish energy group DONG Energy for the delivery of 300 offshore turbines of this 6 MW turbine. The wind turbines are expected to be used in projects off the coast of the UK.
Siemens will soon install two more SWT-6.0 prototypes in the British offshore wind power plant, Gunfleet Sands. This will be the first time that the Siemens 6 MW wind turbine will be tested offshore. Both machines for this project will be equipped with the 120 m rotor.
12 Oct 2012
Siemens Energy has begun field testing of its new 154 m rotor for its 6 MW offshore wind turbine in Osterild, Denmark. The SWT-6.0 154 turbine is equipped with the world's longest rotor blades-each blade is 75 m in length.
The B75 blade used in the new rotor is characterised by high stability and low weight. Special aerodynamic profiles deliver optimum performance at a wide range of wind speeds. For the manufacturing of the B75 blade, Siemens uses the patented IntegralBlade(R) process, which permits rotor blades to be produced from a single moulding without adhesive joints. An IntegralBlade is up to 20% lighter than blades manufactured with traditional methods, Siemens says.
Each SWT 6.0 154 turbine can produce 25 million kWs of electricity in offshore locations, enough to supply 6000 households. In May 2011, Siemens installed the first prototype of its new 6 MW turbine using a 120 m rotor. It has now been operating successfully for well over a year. The serial version of the 6 MW turbine will use the 154 m rotor. Siemens developed the SWT-6.0 specifically for demanding conditions in offshore locations.
In July 2012, Siemens entered into a Master Agreement with the Danish energy group DONG Energy for the delivery of 300 offshore turbines of this 6 MW turbine. The wind turbines are expected to be used in projects off the coast of the UK.
Siemens will soon install two more SWT-6.0 prototypes in the British offshore wind power plant, Gunfleet Sands. This will be the first time that the Siemens 6 MW wind turbine will be tested offshore. Both machines for this project will be equipped with the 120 m rotor.
New laser technology stirs nuclear bomb proliferation fears
www.reuters.com
11 Oct 2012
VIENNA, Oct 11 (Reuters)-A new way of making nuclear fuel with lasers may help cut costs and ensure energy security but could also make it easier for rogue states to secretly build nuclear weapons if they got hold of the know-how. A debate about the benefits and dangers of using lasers instead of centrifuges to enrich uranium underlines the sensitivities surrounding nuclear activity that can have both civilian and military applications.
Iran, whose underground centrifuge plants and history of hiding nuclear work from UN inspectors have raised Western suspicions of a covert atom bomb programme and prompted Israeli threats to attack Iranian nuclear sites, says it already has laser technology but experts doubt Tehran has mastered it.
Uranium can provide the explosive core of a nuclear warhead if refined to a high fissile concentration, explaining why any country or other actor interested in obtaining nuclear arms might be eager to learn about technical advances in enrichment.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) last month issued a license to a partnership between General Electric Co, and Japan's Hitachi Ltd to build and run a laser enrichment plant for manufacturing reactor fuel. It would be the world's first facility to refine uranium on a commercial scale using lasers, a technique "particularly suited for nuclear proliferation", said Assistant Professor R. Scott Kemp of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
"It appears that they have allowed the license to go forward without a serious review of the proliferation implications", said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, a Washington-based advocacy and research group. An NRC spokesman said a State Department assessment in 1999 concluded essentially that it was in the U.S, interest to bring the Australian technology "here, where it could be properly safeguarded, rather than having other countries develop it".
Citing an NRC letter to U.S, lawmakers two years ago, David McIntyre added that NRC requirements-covering the facility's security and protection of classified information-"effectively protect against the threat of proliferation". Kimball disagreed. "History shows that even the best efforts to safeguard sensitive enrichment technologies can and will eventually fail".
Read More…
11 Oct 2012
- Enrichment firm says laser method key to US "energy security"
- Some nuclear experts worry about proliferation risks
- They say laser enrichment plants smaller, harder to detect
- Iran says it "possesses" laser know-how but won't use it
VIENNA, Oct 11 (Reuters)-A new way of making nuclear fuel with lasers may help cut costs and ensure energy security but could also make it easier for rogue states to secretly build nuclear weapons if they got hold of the know-how. A debate about the benefits and dangers of using lasers instead of centrifuges to enrich uranium underlines the sensitivities surrounding nuclear activity that can have both civilian and military applications.
Iran, whose underground centrifuge plants and history of hiding nuclear work from UN inspectors have raised Western suspicions of a covert atom bomb programme and prompted Israeli threats to attack Iranian nuclear sites, says it already has laser technology but experts doubt Tehran has mastered it.
Uranium can provide the explosive core of a nuclear warhead if refined to a high fissile concentration, explaining why any country or other actor interested in obtaining nuclear arms might be eager to learn about technical advances in enrichment.
The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) last month issued a license to a partnership between General Electric Co, and Japan's Hitachi Ltd to build and run a laser enrichment plant for manufacturing reactor fuel. It would be the world's first facility to refine uranium on a commercial scale using lasers, a technique "particularly suited for nuclear proliferation", said Assistant Professor R. Scott Kemp of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
"It appears that they have allowed the license to go forward without a serious review of the proliferation implications", said Daryl Kimball, executive director of the Arms Control Association, a Washington-based advocacy and research group. An NRC spokesman said a State Department assessment in 1999 concluded essentially that it was in the U.S, interest to bring the Australian technology "here, where it could be properly safeguarded, rather than having other countries develop it".
Citing an NRC letter to U.S, lawmakers two years ago, David McIntyre added that NRC requirements-covering the facility's security and protection of classified information-"effectively protect against the threat of proliferation". Kimball disagreed. "History shows that even the best efforts to safeguard sensitive enrichment technologies can and will eventually fail".
Read More…
Thursday, 18 October 2012
GE starts Australia’s biggest solar farm to power seawater plant
www.bloomberg.com
10 Oct 2012
General Electric Co, and Verve Energy, a state-owned utility based in Perth, started Australia's biggest solar farm to generate electricity for the Southern Seawater Desalination Plant.
The 10 MW Greenough River project in Western Australia uses panels from FirstSolar Inc, and will produce energy equivalent to powering 3,000 homes, according to a joint statement from GE, Verve Energy and FirstSolar. GE and Verve Energy own 50% each of the plant.
The project partners are now evaluating the possibility of expanding the plant's capacity to as much as 40 MWs to meet increasing demand for renewable energy, Verve Energy Chief Executive Officer Jason Waters said in the statement. The solar farm is 50 km (31 miles) southeast of the port town of Geraldton in Western Australia.
10 Oct 2012
General Electric Co, and Verve Energy, a state-owned utility based in Perth, started Australia's biggest solar farm to generate electricity for the Southern Seawater Desalination Plant.
The 10 MW Greenough River project in Western Australia uses panels from FirstSolar Inc, and will produce energy equivalent to powering 3,000 homes, according to a joint statement from GE, Verve Energy and FirstSolar. GE and Verve Energy own 50% each of the plant.
The project partners are now evaluating the possibility of expanding the plant's capacity to as much as 40 MWs to meet increasing demand for renewable energy, Verve Energy Chief Executive Officer Jason Waters said in the statement. The solar farm is 50 km (31 miles) southeast of the port town of Geraldton in Western Australia.
Solar panel take-up warms to a million
m.smh.com.au
10 Oct 2012
More than 10% of Australian homes now have solar panels. Australian roofs now have a solar power generating capacity equivalent to half the Snowy Hydro scheme as consumers react to soaring power prices and sinking prices for photovoltaic (PV) panels.
Some 858,000 homes have solar PV panels with an installed capacity of just under 2 GWs, according to the latest data from the Australian Clean Energy Regulator (ACER). At the current rate of take-up, the millionth home will tap into solar power before the end of June next year, said Professor Ray Wills, chief adviser to the Sustainable Energy Association (SEA), an industry lobby group.
Significantly, the growth in demand for solar has largely weathered the slashing of generous feed-in tariff in 2011 and subsequent dive in orders after the loss of the subsidy--to recover much of its expansion pace. Intense international competition among suppliers, particularly from China, now means households can expect payback periods of as short as four years, with a typical 1500 kW unit selling for $1500 $2000, Professor Wills said. "By 2013 14, solar panels will be so cheap that you'll coat every surface that has exposure to sunlight", he said. "You might even throw a coat on your dog".
Residents in the sprawling outer suburbs of major cities may have a reputation for preferring hulking SUVs and expansive "McMansions", but they are also among the fastest-growing purchasers of solar PVs, said Professor Wills, speaking on the sidelines of the All-Energy conference in Melbourne.
10 Oct 2012
More than 10% of Australian homes now have solar panels. Australian roofs now have a solar power generating capacity equivalent to half the Snowy Hydro scheme as consumers react to soaring power prices and sinking prices for photovoltaic (PV) panels.
Some 858,000 homes have solar PV panels with an installed capacity of just under 2 GWs, according to the latest data from the Australian Clean Energy Regulator (ACER). At the current rate of take-up, the millionth home will tap into solar power before the end of June next year, said Professor Ray Wills, chief adviser to the Sustainable Energy Association (SEA), an industry lobby group.
Significantly, the growth in demand for solar has largely weathered the slashing of generous feed-in tariff in 2011 and subsequent dive in orders after the loss of the subsidy--to recover much of its expansion pace. Intense international competition among suppliers, particularly from China, now means households can expect payback periods of as short as four years, with a typical 1500 kW unit selling for $1500 $2000, Professor Wills said. "By 2013 14, solar panels will be so cheap that you'll coat every surface that has exposure to sunlight", he said. "You might even throw a coat on your dog".
Residents in the sprawling outer suburbs of major cities may have a reputation for preferring hulking SUVs and expansive "McMansions", but they are also among the fastest-growing purchasers of solar PVs, said Professor Wills, speaking on the sidelines of the All-Energy conference in Melbourne.
Energy firm claims battery storage breakthrough
www.smh.com.au
10 Oct 2012
A South Australian energy firm is claiming an international breakthrough in battery technology that will help generators of solar and wind power store their energy more cheaply. Zen Home Energy Systems today unveiled a computer-controlled storage system-with one model about the size of a bar fridge-which almost doubles the effectiveness of batteries. "This technology is a game changer for the renewable energy industry and has the potential to change the way individuals and communities use electricity in the future", Zen Home Energy's chief executive officer, Richard Turner, said.
Mr Turner said as many as 10 Australian utilities are interested in trialling the system and the company has already begun shipping large-scale container-sized units to US clients. He predicts the new products may see Zen Home Energy increase its annual revenue from about $60 million now to $500 million within three to four years.
Residential units with a 20 kW story capacity-enough to power a typical house for 24 hours-will sell for $30,000 each. The hefty price tag should drop to $20,000 as Zen Home Energy scales up production, with an estimated pay-back period of 10 years based on savings consumers can make by avoiding peak power prices. In Victoria, off-peak prices are about 8¢ a kW versus 45¢ for peak times. The real savings, though, may come if power suppliers and users avoid excessive investment in new poles, wires and other equipment.
"The country is forecast to spend about $100 billion over the next ten years on infrastructure on what is an ageing and quite decrepit grid with an ever-increasing requirement for peak energy", Mr Turner said on the sidelines of the All-Energy conference in Melbourne. "A significant amount of those problems can be fixed through shifting the peak time load away from peak by simply storing energy when the grid's demand is low and using it when it's in high demand".
Mr Turner said one scenario would see utilities subsiding the use of storage systems for consumers. "We"ve got trials running with about three utilities in Australia with basically the balance of those (10) utilities all interested in running trials", he said, declining to name those involved. A Californian utility two weeks ago placed its third order of one of the company's large storage systems-capable of supplying six MWs-for $8 million, he said.
"This is going to be the future and it's going to be a significant cost benefit for the government, for the utilities".
Read More…
10 Oct 2012
A South Australian energy firm is claiming an international breakthrough in battery technology that will help generators of solar and wind power store their energy more cheaply. Zen Home Energy Systems today unveiled a computer-controlled storage system-with one model about the size of a bar fridge-which almost doubles the effectiveness of batteries. "This technology is a game changer for the renewable energy industry and has the potential to change the way individuals and communities use electricity in the future", Zen Home Energy's chief executive officer, Richard Turner, said.
Mr Turner said as many as 10 Australian utilities are interested in trialling the system and the company has already begun shipping large-scale container-sized units to US clients. He predicts the new products may see Zen Home Energy increase its annual revenue from about $60 million now to $500 million within three to four years.
Residential units with a 20 kW story capacity-enough to power a typical house for 24 hours-will sell for $30,000 each. The hefty price tag should drop to $20,000 as Zen Home Energy scales up production, with an estimated pay-back period of 10 years based on savings consumers can make by avoiding peak power prices. In Victoria, off-peak prices are about 8¢ a kW versus 45¢ for peak times. The real savings, though, may come if power suppliers and users avoid excessive investment in new poles, wires and other equipment.
"The country is forecast to spend about $100 billion over the next ten years on infrastructure on what is an ageing and quite decrepit grid with an ever-increasing requirement for peak energy", Mr Turner said on the sidelines of the All-Energy conference in Melbourne. "A significant amount of those problems can be fixed through shifting the peak time load away from peak by simply storing energy when the grid's demand is low and using it when it's in high demand".
Mr Turner said one scenario would see utilities subsiding the use of storage systems for consumers. "We"ve got trials running with about three utilities in Australia with basically the balance of those (10) utilities all interested in running trials", he said, declining to name those involved. A Californian utility two weeks ago placed its third order of one of the company's large storage systems-capable of supplying six MWs-for $8 million, he said.
"This is going to be the future and it's going to be a significant cost benefit for the government, for the utilities".
Read More…
Wednesday, 17 October 2012
Villagers vote to go ahead with wind turbine 'taller than Truro Cathedral'
www.thisiscornwall.co.uk
10 Oct 2012
Campaigners squeezed a narrow victory in the first round of their fight to build a 76 metre (249ft) wind turbine in a Cornish village. The Low Carbon Ladock co-operative and Green Trust CIC are the two groups behind the bid to build the community-owned turbine on farm land east of New Mills at Ladock, near Truro. They believe the 500 800kW structure will power around a third of the electricity used each year by homes and businesses in the parish. At least £30,000 per year would also be generated for the local community according to the organisations.
Before planning permission can be submitted to Cornwall Council the co-operative and Green Trust CIC, a community energy company based in Cornwall wanted to test public support. Some 633 questionnaires were sent out to households in Ladock and neighbouring Grampound Road-308 were returned to independent market research company, PFA Research. Of those returnees, 56% were in favour of the turbine, 42% against and 2% declined to answer the question. Overall, 27% of households responded with a yes, 20% with a no, while 52% failed to respond.
Chris Jones chairman of Low Carbon Ladock said he was pleased the required amount of support had been garnered. He said: "The co-operative were quite clear that if we did not achieve a 55% yes vote then we would not even submit the planning application. "It is great to have passed that benchmark, meaning that we can now move forward to the planning process, but we must remember that it is the planning system that will really determine whether the community turbine will go ahead.
"We would have liked more returns as we want the whole community to be engaged, however, what is encouraging is that one in two households in the area participated in the consultation. "We know there are concerns from people who live near the proposed site, but we looked across the parish for a suitable site and are confident the one chosen is the best possible location to have a community turbine of significant scale".
Local resident Richard Conybeare, who lives at Ladock, said he was opposed to the turbine being erected in the village. He said: "While I am all for renewable energy and back a lot of what Low Carbon Ladock co-operative do, I don't believe such a huge structure is suitable in our village. "We're talking about building something that's two feet taller than Truro Cathedral".
10 Oct 2012
Campaigners squeezed a narrow victory in the first round of their fight to build a 76 metre (249ft) wind turbine in a Cornish village. The Low Carbon Ladock co-operative and Green Trust CIC are the two groups behind the bid to build the community-owned turbine on farm land east of New Mills at Ladock, near Truro. They believe the 500 800kW structure will power around a third of the electricity used each year by homes and businesses in the parish. At least £30,000 per year would also be generated for the local community according to the organisations.Before planning permission can be submitted to Cornwall Council the co-operative and Green Trust CIC, a community energy company based in Cornwall wanted to test public support. Some 633 questionnaires were sent out to households in Ladock and neighbouring Grampound Road-308 were returned to independent market research company, PFA Research. Of those returnees, 56% were in favour of the turbine, 42% against and 2% declined to answer the question. Overall, 27% of households responded with a yes, 20% with a no, while 52% failed to respond.
Chris Jones chairman of Low Carbon Ladock said he was pleased the required amount of support had been garnered. He said: "The co-operative were quite clear that if we did not achieve a 55% yes vote then we would not even submit the planning application. "It is great to have passed that benchmark, meaning that we can now move forward to the planning process, but we must remember that it is the planning system that will really determine whether the community turbine will go ahead.
"We would have liked more returns as we want the whole community to be engaged, however, what is encouraging is that one in two households in the area participated in the consultation. "We know there are concerns from people who live near the proposed site, but we looked across the parish for a suitable site and are confident the one chosen is the best possible location to have a community turbine of significant scale".
Local resident Richard Conybeare, who lives at Ladock, said he was opposed to the turbine being erected in the village. He said: "While I am all for renewable energy and back a lot of what Low Carbon Ladock co-operative do, I don't believe such a huge structure is suitable in our village. "We're talking about building something that's two feet taller than Truro Cathedral".
Australia's largest solar farm opens amid renewable target debate
www.reuters.com
10 Oct 2012
(Reuters)-Australia switched on its first utility-scale solar farm on Wednesday, bringing the country a small step closer to achieving ambitious renewable energy use targets that traditional coal and gas power producers are now fighting to soften.
The Greenough River solar farm, just outside the small town of Walkaway in Western Australia state, is a joint-venture between Western Australian state-owned Verve Energy and U.S, conglomerate General Electric Co. It is expected to generate 10 MWs, enough to power 3,000 homes.
"The Greenough River solar farm demonstrates that renewable technologies can contribute to meeting Australia's future energy needs on a sustainable, cost-competitive basis", Jason Waters, chief executive of Verve Energy said on Wednesday. Australia has committed to getting 20% of its power from renewables by 2020 but big coal and gas-based utilities are arguing for generation targets to be cut.
The plant is General Electric Co's first investment in Australian renewable energy, and plans are already underway to eventually expand it to 40 MWs. The electricity generated by the plant will be purchased by Western Australia Water Corporation to power a nearby desalination plant.
Australia is one of the world's most ideal places for solar projects. It has the highest average solar radiation per m² of any continent in the world, according to government, and a population the size of New Delhi spread over an area the size of the contiguous United States. Australia currently gets about 10% of its electricity supply from renewable energy, about two-thirds of which comes from hydroelectric power.
Read More…
10 Oct 2012
(Reuters)-Australia switched on its first utility-scale solar farm on Wednesday, bringing the country a small step closer to achieving ambitious renewable energy use targets that traditional coal and gas power producers are now fighting to soften.
The Greenough River solar farm, just outside the small town of Walkaway in Western Australia state, is a joint-venture between Western Australian state-owned Verve Energy and U.S, conglomerate General Electric Co. It is expected to generate 10 MWs, enough to power 3,000 homes.
"The Greenough River solar farm demonstrates that renewable technologies can contribute to meeting Australia's future energy needs on a sustainable, cost-competitive basis", Jason Waters, chief executive of Verve Energy said on Wednesday. Australia has committed to getting 20% of its power from renewables by 2020 but big coal and gas-based utilities are arguing for generation targets to be cut.
The plant is General Electric Co's first investment in Australian renewable energy, and plans are already underway to eventually expand it to 40 MWs. The electricity generated by the plant will be purchased by Western Australia Water Corporation to power a nearby desalination plant.
Australia is one of the world's most ideal places for solar projects. It has the highest average solar radiation per m² of any continent in the world, according to government, and a population the size of New Delhi spread over an area the size of the contiguous United States. Australia currently gets about 10% of its electricity supply from renewable energy, about two-thirds of which comes from hydroelectric power.
Read More…
SunPower invests in Australian renewable electricity retailer Diamond Energy
www.benzinga.com
9 Oct 2012
SunPower today announced that it has invested in Diamond Energy Pty Ltd, a privately-owned, alternative energy project developer and clean electricity retailer headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Aligning with Diamond Energy will allow SunPower to offer more comprehensive and customizable clean energy solutions for customers in Australia. The unique partnership creates a one-stop shop for consumers, providing high efficiency solar electric systems, grid-source renewable energy, and retail services such as metering, billing, and management of exported electricity to the grid.
SunPower has acquired a minority stake of approximately 42% in Diamond Energy and under terms of the agreement has an option to increase its ownership percentage over time. SunPower will also assume a seat on the company's board of directors.
"SunPower is taking a step closer to its customers by investing in an electricity retailer like Diamond Energy", said Tom Werner, president and CEO of SunPower Corp. "More customers will see solar as a cost-effective way to meet growing energy demands, especially as the price of conventional grid power increases in Australia. Through this partnership, SunPower and Diamond Energy are poised to deliver affordable, renewable electricity services that cover everything from the generator to the household electricity meter. We look forward to this new venture and expect it to serve as a model for SunPower's continuing evolution into a complete energy solutions provider".
Established in 2004, Diamond Energy specializes in developing, delivering and managing renewable generation, cogeneration and interruptible load projects with a breadth of experience spanning solar, bioenergy, wind and wave technologies. The company currently owns two biogas plants, has power purchase agreements with a number of third-party generators and as Australia's "Solar Friendly Retailer" sells clean energy through its retail divisions to its residential and Commercial Green customers. Diamond Energy holds licenses to deliver electricity across the National Electricity Market Management Company (NEM) in Australia.
"This investment by SunPower supports the growth and strengthens Diamond Energy for the upcoming clean energy revolution", said Diamond Energy Managing Director Tony Sennitt. "We generate change here at Diamond, and through this relationship we will be able to bring the world's most efficient and reliable solar technology to a broad range of households and businesses throughout Australia at affordable prices. We look forward, with SunPower's support, to expanding the business into a shining, renewable example of what can be achieved when innovative value is delivered to customers".
9 Oct 2012
SunPower today announced that it has invested in Diamond Energy Pty Ltd, a privately-owned, alternative energy project developer and clean electricity retailer headquartered in Melbourne, Australia. Aligning with Diamond Energy will allow SunPower to offer more comprehensive and customizable clean energy solutions for customers in Australia. The unique partnership creates a one-stop shop for consumers, providing high efficiency solar electric systems, grid-source renewable energy, and retail services such as metering, billing, and management of exported electricity to the grid.
SunPower has acquired a minority stake of approximately 42% in Diamond Energy and under terms of the agreement has an option to increase its ownership percentage over time. SunPower will also assume a seat on the company's board of directors.
"SunPower is taking a step closer to its customers by investing in an electricity retailer like Diamond Energy", said Tom Werner, president and CEO of SunPower Corp. "More customers will see solar as a cost-effective way to meet growing energy demands, especially as the price of conventional grid power increases in Australia. Through this partnership, SunPower and Diamond Energy are poised to deliver affordable, renewable electricity services that cover everything from the generator to the household electricity meter. We look forward to this new venture and expect it to serve as a model for SunPower's continuing evolution into a complete energy solutions provider".
Established in 2004, Diamond Energy specializes in developing, delivering and managing renewable generation, cogeneration and interruptible load projects with a breadth of experience spanning solar, bioenergy, wind and wave technologies. The company currently owns two biogas plants, has power purchase agreements with a number of third-party generators and as Australia's "Solar Friendly Retailer" sells clean energy through its retail divisions to its residential and Commercial Green customers. Diamond Energy holds licenses to deliver electricity across the National Electricity Market Management Company (NEM) in Australia.
"This investment by SunPower supports the growth and strengthens Diamond Energy for the upcoming clean energy revolution", said Diamond Energy Managing Director Tony Sennitt. "We generate change here at Diamond, and through this relationship we will be able to bring the world's most efficient and reliable solar technology to a broad range of households and businesses throughout Australia at affordable prices. We look forward, with SunPower's support, to expanding the business into a shining, renewable example of what can be achieved when innovative value is delivered to customers".
Victorian Wind Alliance to promote industry
www.weeklytimesnow.com.au
9 Oct 2012
A NEW organisation aimed at building support for wind power in Victoria is set to launch tomorrow.
The Victorian Wind Alliance, made up of wind workers, landowners, environmental and community groups and anyone else who supports wind power, hopes to promote the wind power sector in the face of a halt in wind farm developments.
"The premise is that the majority of Victorians and the majority of Australians support the development of renewable energy", Friends of the Earth campaigns co-ordinator Cam Walker said. "Here in Victoria, the government has largely stalled action on renewable energy. "We want to create a community movement that allows the silent majority to express that support".
It was revealed in July that planning laws introduced by the Victorian Government in August last year had resulted in no new applications to build wind farms in the state. The guidelines prohibit wind farm developers building turbines within 2km of a home without the owner's written consent. A number of "no-go zones" were also declared in Victoria.
This was despite more than 75% of regional and city dwellers pledging their support for wind farms in a Clean Energy Council survey in June. Around 1200 people were quizzed across Victoria, NSW and South Australia. The Victorian Wind Alliance will release a wind power 'pledge' tomorrow and launch a website where people can register their support. Mr Walker said "several hundred people" had already expressed interest in joining the alliance.
The Friends of the Earth member said harnessing the wind to provide clean energy would have many benefits for Victoria, environmentally and financially. "When wind farms are built in Victoria, they are worth around $16 million for landowners (per year)", Mr Walker said. "When all wind farms are built they generate $4.5 million a year for Victorian local councils. "Hundreds of people are also employed directly when wind farms are built".
9 Oct 2012
A NEW organisation aimed at building support for wind power in Victoria is set to launch tomorrow.The Victorian Wind Alliance, made up of wind workers, landowners, environmental and community groups and anyone else who supports wind power, hopes to promote the wind power sector in the face of a halt in wind farm developments.
"The premise is that the majority of Victorians and the majority of Australians support the development of renewable energy", Friends of the Earth campaigns co-ordinator Cam Walker said. "Here in Victoria, the government has largely stalled action on renewable energy. "We want to create a community movement that allows the silent majority to express that support".
It was revealed in July that planning laws introduced by the Victorian Government in August last year had resulted in no new applications to build wind farms in the state. The guidelines prohibit wind farm developers building turbines within 2km of a home without the owner's written consent. A number of "no-go zones" were also declared in Victoria.
This was despite more than 75% of regional and city dwellers pledging their support for wind farms in a Clean Energy Council survey in June. Around 1200 people were quizzed across Victoria, NSW and South Australia. The Victorian Wind Alliance will release a wind power 'pledge' tomorrow and launch a website where people can register their support. Mr Walker said "several hundred people" had already expressed interest in joining the alliance.
The Friends of the Earth member said harnessing the wind to provide clean energy would have many benefits for Victoria, environmentally and financially. "When wind farms are built in Victoria, they are worth around $16 million for landowners (per year)", Mr Walker said. "When all wind farms are built they generate $4.5 million a year for Victorian local councils. "Hundreds of people are also employed directly when wind farms are built".
Sunday, 14 October 2012
The sickening truth about wind farm syndrome
www.newscientist.com
8 Oct 2012
Hilltop turbines are being blamed for myriad maladies. What is the truth behind these outlandish claims?
NEW technology has long attracted "modern health worries". Microwave ovens, television and computer screens and even early telephony all caused anxiety in their time. More recently, cellphones and towers, Wi-Fi and smart electricity meters have followed suit.
Another is gathering attention; the very modern malaise known as wind turbine syndrome. I set out to collect the conditions attributed to wind farm exposure. Within hours, I'd found 50 often florid assertions about different illnesses. Today my total sits at 198, with a range redolent of Old Testament plagues.
The list includes "deaths, yes, many deaths", none of which have ever come to the attention of a coroner, cancers, congenital malformations, and every manner of psychiatric problem. But mostly, it includes common health problems found in all communities, with wind turbines or not. These include greying hair, energy loss, concentration lapses, weight gain and all the problems of ageing. Sleep problems are mentioned most, but insomnia is incredibly common. Animals get a look in. Chickens won't lay; earthworms vanish; hundreds of cattle and goats die horrible deaths from "stray electricity".
In a 35 year career in public health, I have never encountered anything quite so apocalyptic. I've visited wind farms and compared their gentle swoosh to the noises that all city dwellers live with daily. Quickly, this phenomenon began to tick psychogenic boxes.
There are several reasons to suspect that the unrecognised entity of wind turbine syndrome is psychogenic: a "communicated" disease spread by anti-wind interest groups, sometimes with connections to fossil fuel interests. People can worry themselves sick.
Firstly, there are the temporal problems. Wind farms appeared some 20 years ago in the US. There are now just shy of 200,000 turbines globally. But the first recorded claims that they caused disease came a decade later. Two rural doctors, one in the UK and the other in Australia, made claims repeated widely in newspapers but never published in any journal. Turbines have come to be blamed for chronic conditions like (amazingly) lung and skin cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and stroke. But importantly also acute symptoms, that according to Australia's high priestess of wind turbine syndrome, Sarah Laurie, an unregistered doctor, can commence within 20 minutes of exposure. If true, what happened in the early complaint-free years?
Then there's the issue of clustering. The European wind industry sees the phenomenon as largely anglophone, and even then, only in particular regions and around certain farms. Many sites have run for years without complaint. Others, legendary for their vocal opponents even before start up, are hot beds of disease claims. So if turbines were inherently noxious, why do they cut such a selective path? Why do citizens of community-owned turbines in Germany and Denmark rarely complain? Why are complaints rare in western Australia, but rife in several eastern Australian communities?
Opponents readily concede that only a minority of those exposed report being ill but explain this via the analogy of motion sickness: it only happens to those who are susceptible. How then to explain that whole regions and indeed nations, have no susceptible people? The key factor seems to be the presence or absence of anti-wind activists, generally from outside the area.
It is clear the presence of these anti-wind "vectors" is required. Communities which have for years accepted the farms can erupt when activists arrive, spreading alarm and listing health problems. Prominent among these in Australia are wealthy conservative landowners appalled by the very visible presence of the tall green-energy totems, a constant reminder of bucolic decay and the "upstairs-downstairs" disdain they have for those needing income from their often hilly, poorer quality land.
The fact that money seems to be a magic antidote to these ailments further undermines the claims. Health complaints are as rare as rocking horse excrement among turbine hosts. Complaints are rare from those financially benefitting from communal ownership arrangements. It tends to be neighbours of those hosting turbines who make the link with illness. They see the turbines, dislike them and dwell on their misfortune. The perceived injustice can eat away at some, fomented by organised groups.
Wind companies also report residents approaching them with extensive renovation wish lists. One told me of a request for a house to be moved to a lake shore. In rural Australia, residential buy-outs by mining companies are common. Word spreads about shack owners who got lucky. So when a cashed-up company appears, it is understandable that some may see their ticket out via protracted complaints.
Opponents also claim that confidentiality clauses are used to gag hosts, so they can't speak up about illnesses. I've seen several contracts and, predictably, none involve signing away common law rights to claims of negligence.
Finally, there are the apocryphal tales about many families having to abandon their homes. Mysteriously, address lists are never produced. Abandoning unsaleable properties is a sad part of rural decay, a fact which seems to escape fly-in, fly-out climate change denialists.
Previous modern health worries dissipated when the predicted health mayhem never emerged and the feared exotic agents became thoroughly familiar. Hysteria about cellphone towers had its heyday in the late 1990s, at least in Australia, but is rare today. With 17 reviews of the evidence on harm caused by wind farms consistent in their assessment of insignificant risk, how long can this one last?
Simon Chapman is professor in public health at the Sydney University, Australia
8 Oct 2012
Hilltop turbines are being blamed for myriad maladies. What is the truth behind these outlandish claims?
NEW technology has long attracted "modern health worries". Microwave ovens, television and computer screens and even early telephony all caused anxiety in their time. More recently, cellphones and towers, Wi-Fi and smart electricity meters have followed suit.
Another is gathering attention; the very modern malaise known as wind turbine syndrome. I set out to collect the conditions attributed to wind farm exposure. Within hours, I'd found 50 often florid assertions about different illnesses. Today my total sits at 198, with a range redolent of Old Testament plagues.
The list includes "deaths, yes, many deaths", none of which have ever come to the attention of a coroner, cancers, congenital malformations, and every manner of psychiatric problem. But mostly, it includes common health problems found in all communities, with wind turbines or not. These include greying hair, energy loss, concentration lapses, weight gain and all the problems of ageing. Sleep problems are mentioned most, but insomnia is incredibly common. Animals get a look in. Chickens won't lay; earthworms vanish; hundreds of cattle and goats die horrible deaths from "stray electricity".
In a 35 year career in public health, I have never encountered anything quite so apocalyptic. I've visited wind farms and compared their gentle swoosh to the noises that all city dwellers live with daily. Quickly, this phenomenon began to tick psychogenic boxes.
There are several reasons to suspect that the unrecognised entity of wind turbine syndrome is psychogenic: a "communicated" disease spread by anti-wind interest groups, sometimes with connections to fossil fuel interests. People can worry themselves sick.
Firstly, there are the temporal problems. Wind farms appeared some 20 years ago in the US. There are now just shy of 200,000 turbines globally. But the first recorded claims that they caused disease came a decade later. Two rural doctors, one in the UK and the other in Australia, made claims repeated widely in newspapers but never published in any journal. Turbines have come to be blamed for chronic conditions like (amazingly) lung and skin cancer, diabetes, multiple sclerosis and stroke. But importantly also acute symptoms, that according to Australia's high priestess of wind turbine syndrome, Sarah Laurie, an unregistered doctor, can commence within 20 minutes of exposure. If true, what happened in the early complaint-free years?
Then there's the issue of clustering. The European wind industry sees the phenomenon as largely anglophone, and even then, only in particular regions and around certain farms. Many sites have run for years without complaint. Others, legendary for their vocal opponents even before start up, are hot beds of disease claims. So if turbines were inherently noxious, why do they cut such a selective path? Why do citizens of community-owned turbines in Germany and Denmark rarely complain? Why are complaints rare in western Australia, but rife in several eastern Australian communities?
Opponents readily concede that only a minority of those exposed report being ill but explain this via the analogy of motion sickness: it only happens to those who are susceptible. How then to explain that whole regions and indeed nations, have no susceptible people? The key factor seems to be the presence or absence of anti-wind activists, generally from outside the area.
It is clear the presence of these anti-wind "vectors" is required. Communities which have for years accepted the farms can erupt when activists arrive, spreading alarm and listing health problems. Prominent among these in Australia are wealthy conservative landowners appalled by the very visible presence of the tall green-energy totems, a constant reminder of bucolic decay and the "upstairs-downstairs" disdain they have for those needing income from their often hilly, poorer quality land.
The fact that money seems to be a magic antidote to these ailments further undermines the claims. Health complaints are as rare as rocking horse excrement among turbine hosts. Complaints are rare from those financially benefitting from communal ownership arrangements. It tends to be neighbours of those hosting turbines who make the link with illness. They see the turbines, dislike them and dwell on their misfortune. The perceived injustice can eat away at some, fomented by organised groups.
Wind companies also report residents approaching them with extensive renovation wish lists. One told me of a request for a house to be moved to a lake shore. In rural Australia, residential buy-outs by mining companies are common. Word spreads about shack owners who got lucky. So when a cashed-up company appears, it is understandable that some may see their ticket out via protracted complaints.
Opponents also claim that confidentiality clauses are used to gag hosts, so they can't speak up about illnesses. I've seen several contracts and, predictably, none involve signing away common law rights to claims of negligence.
Finally, there are the apocryphal tales about many families having to abandon their homes. Mysteriously, address lists are never produced. Abandoning unsaleable properties is a sad part of rural decay, a fact which seems to escape fly-in, fly-out climate change denialists.
Previous modern health worries dissipated when the predicted health mayhem never emerged and the feared exotic agents became thoroughly familiar. Hysteria about cellphone towers had its heyday in the late 1990s, at least in Australia, but is rare today. With 17 reviews of the evidence on harm caused by wind farms consistent in their assessment of insignificant risk, how long can this one last?
Simon Chapman is professor in public health at the Sydney University, Australia
Epuron acquires Australia's largest tracking solar power plant from SunPower
www.heraldonline.com
3 Oct 2012
SAN JOSE, Calif., and SYDNEY, Oct. 3, 2012 - SunPower Corp, and Epuron today announced that Epuron has acquired the 1 MW Uterne solar power plant operating in Alice Springs, Australia. Commonwealth Bank, Australia's leading provider of integrated financial services, has provided project financing, making it the country's first major bank to support a solar project of this size.
The project was developed by SunPower with the support of Power and Water Corporation. Under a solar power purchase agreement, Power and Water Corporation will buy generated electricity at a guaranteed rate over a 20 year term. Following the acquisition, SunPower will continue to provide operations and maintenance services in conjunction with Ogden Power, a SunPower accredited solar company based in Alice Springs.
"Epuron's acquisition of Uterne underscores the bankability of SunPower's industry-leading, high efficiency technology, decades of proven experience and more than 2,500 MWs deployed globally", said Howard Wenger, SunPower president, regions. "This solar power plant has exceeded reliability and energy production expectations since it was commissioned in June 2011, and will reliably generate power and return on investment for the life of the system".
"The acquisition of Uterne further demonstrates Epuron's commitment to a growing solar portfolio in the Northern Territory", said Epuron Executive Director Andrew Durran. "The project is a great addition to our 1 MW remote TKLN Solar project, making Epuron one of the largest solar project owners and asset managers in Australia. Epuron is especially pleased to be able to project finance the acquisition through CBA, a first for a project of this size in Australia".
Uterne is comprised of high efficiency SunPower solar panels installed on the SunPower(R) T20 Tracker, which positions panels to follow the sun during the day, increasing daily energy production by up to 30% over conventional fixed-tilt installations. In August 2012, Uterne received an Engineering Excellence Award from the Institution of Engineers Australia.
The development of Uterne was made possible with funding assistance from the Australian Government as part of its Solar Cities program. The solar power plant is a key component of the Alice Solar City program and illustrates the initiative's success in developing more sustainable energy solutions in Australia.
3 Oct 2012
SAN JOSE, Calif., and SYDNEY, Oct. 3, 2012 - SunPower Corp, and Epuron today announced that Epuron has acquired the 1 MW Uterne solar power plant operating in Alice Springs, Australia. Commonwealth Bank, Australia's leading provider of integrated financial services, has provided project financing, making it the country's first major bank to support a solar project of this size.
The project was developed by SunPower with the support of Power and Water Corporation. Under a solar power purchase agreement, Power and Water Corporation will buy generated electricity at a guaranteed rate over a 20 year term. Following the acquisition, SunPower will continue to provide operations and maintenance services in conjunction with Ogden Power, a SunPower accredited solar company based in Alice Springs.
"Epuron's acquisition of Uterne underscores the bankability of SunPower's industry-leading, high efficiency technology, decades of proven experience and more than 2,500 MWs deployed globally", said Howard Wenger, SunPower president, regions. "This solar power plant has exceeded reliability and energy production expectations since it was commissioned in June 2011, and will reliably generate power and return on investment for the life of the system".
"The acquisition of Uterne further demonstrates Epuron's commitment to a growing solar portfolio in the Northern Territory", said Epuron Executive Director Andrew Durran. "The project is a great addition to our 1 MW remote TKLN Solar project, making Epuron one of the largest solar project owners and asset managers in Australia. Epuron is especially pleased to be able to project finance the acquisition through CBA, a first for a project of this size in Australia".
Uterne is comprised of high efficiency SunPower solar panels installed on the SunPower(R) T20 Tracker, which positions panels to follow the sun during the day, increasing daily energy production by up to 30% over conventional fixed-tilt installations. In August 2012, Uterne received an Engineering Excellence Award from the Institution of Engineers Australia.
The development of Uterne was made possible with funding assistance from the Australian Government as part of its Solar Cities program. The solar power plant is a key component of the Alice Solar City program and illustrates the initiative's success in developing more sustainable energy solutions in Australia.
'Hundreds of problems' at EU nuclear plants
www.bbc.co.uk
2 Oct 2012
Hundreds of problems have been found at European nuclear plants that would cost up to 25bn euros (£20bn) to fix, says a leaked draft report. The report, commissioned after Japan's Fukushima nuclear disaster, aimed to see how Europe's nuclear power stations would cope during extreme emergencies. The final report comes out on Thursday. The draft says nearly all the EU's 145 nuclear reactors need improving.
Anti-nuclear groups say the report's warnings do not go far enough. For its part, the regulatory body for European nuclear safety has urged the Commission not to use language that could undermine public confidence, says the BBC's Chris Morris in Brussels.
French failings
The report-the wording of which could change before Thursday's final version is published-points out that in the EU, 47 nuclear power plants with 111 reactors have more than 100,000 inhabitants living within a circle of 30km. "On the basis of the stress test results practically all [nuclear plants] need to undergo safety improvements", says the leaked draft. "Hundreds of technical upgrade measures have already been identified.
"Following the accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, urgent measures to protect nuclear plants were agreed. The stress tests demonstrated that even today, decades later, their implementation is still pending in some member states". Four reactors in two unnamed countries would have less than an hour to restore safety functions if electrical power was lost, it adds. In France, Europe's largest nuclear power producer which relies on 58 nuclear reactors for 80% of its electricity, specific failings were found in all 58 nuclear reactors.
Earlier this month, a blast of escaping steam burned two people at the Fessenheim power station in eastern France-one of the country's oldest nuclear reactors which has long been the target of regular anti-nuclear protests. Fessenheim, close to France's borders with Germany and Switzerland, opened in 1977 and draws water for cooling from the Rhine, but campaigners say its location makes it vulnerable to seismic activity and flooding. Shortcomings were also reported in the UK. Most of the country's power plants lacked an alternative emergency control room to use if the main one became contaminated by high radiation, says the report.
The UK's Department of Energy said there was no evidence UK nuclear facilities were unsafe. "However, the Government is committed to the principle of continuous improvement", a spokesman told the BBC. "We are working closely with the Office for Nuclear Regulation to ensure that operators address any site specific issues using the existing robust UK regulatory regime, which requires operators to take all reasonably practicable steps to reduce risk and seek continuous improvements to safety".
Call for closures
While the stress tests found deficiencies in many of Europe's nuclear reactors, campaigners say they failed to address risks in crucial areas, such as ageing technology, terrorist attacks or human error. "If this exercise was serious, the Commission should be recommending the closure of unsafe or ageing reactors", said Rebecca Harms, co-president of the Greens/European Free Alliance at the European Parliament.
"At the very least, the Commission should be pressing for the security deficiencies identified in the report to be rectified". As of June, all 145 nuclear plants in the EU were to be reassessed using criteria covering both natural and man-made hazards. Some governments have reappraised their nuclear power strategy in the aftermath of last year's Fukushima disaster, with Germany deciding to abandon nuclear power for green technology and cleaner gas-and coal-powered plants by 2022.
Others, like France, have boosted investment in nuclear power since the meltdown. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's cooling systems were knocked out by the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The disaster caused a meltdown at three of the reactors.
2 Oct 2012
Hundreds of problems have been found at European nuclear plants that would cost up to 25bn euros (£20bn) to fix, says a leaked draft report. The report, commissioned after Japan's Fukushima nuclear disaster, aimed to see how Europe's nuclear power stations would cope during extreme emergencies. The final report comes out on Thursday. The draft says nearly all the EU's 145 nuclear reactors need improving.
Anti-nuclear groups say the report's warnings do not go far enough. For its part, the regulatory body for European nuclear safety has urged the Commission not to use language that could undermine public confidence, says the BBC's Chris Morris in Brussels.
French failings
The report-the wording of which could change before Thursday's final version is published-points out that in the EU, 47 nuclear power plants with 111 reactors have more than 100,000 inhabitants living within a circle of 30km. "On the basis of the stress test results practically all [nuclear plants] need to undergo safety improvements", says the leaked draft. "Hundreds of technical upgrade measures have already been identified.
"Following the accidents at Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, urgent measures to protect nuclear plants were agreed. The stress tests demonstrated that even today, decades later, their implementation is still pending in some member states". Four reactors in two unnamed countries would have less than an hour to restore safety functions if electrical power was lost, it adds. In France, Europe's largest nuclear power producer which relies on 58 nuclear reactors for 80% of its electricity, specific failings were found in all 58 nuclear reactors.
Earlier this month, a blast of escaping steam burned two people at the Fessenheim power station in eastern France-one of the country's oldest nuclear reactors which has long been the target of regular anti-nuclear protests. Fessenheim, close to France's borders with Germany and Switzerland, opened in 1977 and draws water for cooling from the Rhine, but campaigners say its location makes it vulnerable to seismic activity and flooding. Shortcomings were also reported in the UK. Most of the country's power plants lacked an alternative emergency control room to use if the main one became contaminated by high radiation, says the report.
The UK's Department of Energy said there was no evidence UK nuclear facilities were unsafe. "However, the Government is committed to the principle of continuous improvement", a spokesman told the BBC. "We are working closely with the Office for Nuclear Regulation to ensure that operators address any site specific issues using the existing robust UK regulatory regime, which requires operators to take all reasonably practicable steps to reduce risk and seek continuous improvements to safety".
Call for closures
While the stress tests found deficiencies in many of Europe's nuclear reactors, campaigners say they failed to address risks in crucial areas, such as ageing technology, terrorist attacks or human error. "If this exercise was serious, the Commission should be recommending the closure of unsafe or ageing reactors", said Rebecca Harms, co-president of the Greens/European Free Alliance at the European Parliament.
"At the very least, the Commission should be pressing for the security deficiencies identified in the report to be rectified". As of June, all 145 nuclear plants in the EU were to be reassessed using criteria covering both natural and man-made hazards. Some governments have reappraised their nuclear power strategy in the aftermath of last year's Fukushima disaster, with Germany deciding to abandon nuclear power for green technology and cleaner gas-and coal-powered plants by 2022.
Others, like France, have boosted investment in nuclear power since the meltdown. The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear plant's cooling systems were knocked out by the 11 March 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan. The disaster caused a meltdown at three of the reactors.
Friday, 12 October 2012
Solahart UK clinches exclusive UK supply deal from Australian solar firm
www.solarpowerportal.co.uk
2 Oct 2012
Yorkshire-based Solahart UK, a renewable energy company, has signed a supply deal with Australian solar firm Solahart. As part of the deal, Solahart UK has become the exclusive UK supplier of Solarhart solar thermal products made in Australia and Europe. Solahart UK, part of the Photon Utilities group, will import Solahart products and have a network of approved installers across the country to fit them.
The company believes that the deal could create local jobs and bring "a new top-quality environmental technology to the UK". Solahart UK is now seeking to recruit an initial 20 distributors and installers. Adrian Taffinder, Managing Director and CEO of Solahart UK, said: "The future's looking incredible exciting. We're increasing our team from 14 to 34, as we need sales, marketing and administrative staff, as well as warehouse staff and experienced solar engineers. "I hope this will be just the start as there is huge potential for further development".
Taffinder believes that, as the cost of traditional energy continues to rise, more businesses and householders look to cut costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He commented: "You don't have to live in Australia to use the sun to generate up to 70 per¢ of your hot water for free all year-round, plus qualify for further incentives under government schemes that help make being environmentally friendly really cost-effective.
"Solahart has big markets in Northern Italy and Germany. It has even been installed at the Mount Everest base camp, which only has four hours of sunlight a day, proving that it doesn't need high temperatures to do a great job". Enterprising Barnsley coach Emily Anderson, of E Anderson Consulting Ltd, helped secure the Solahart deal, as well as £50,000 in funding.
Anderson said: "Like most entrepreneurs, Adrian is a big thinker. We have come in to translate his vision into a detailed, watertight business plan and we'll also be supporting its implementation". Taffinder said: "I've always had a personal interest in renewable energy and the fact that the UK has the fastest growing market for it made the sector the natural choice for me". Solahart pioneered using the sun to heat water over 50 years ago and supplies systems to 80 countries around the world.
2 Oct 2012
Yorkshire-based Solahart UK, a renewable energy company, has signed a supply deal with Australian solar firm Solahart. As part of the deal, Solahart UK has become the exclusive UK supplier of Solarhart solar thermal products made in Australia and Europe. Solahart UK, part of the Photon Utilities group, will import Solahart products and have a network of approved installers across the country to fit them.
The company believes that the deal could create local jobs and bring "a new top-quality environmental technology to the UK". Solahart UK is now seeking to recruit an initial 20 distributors and installers. Adrian Taffinder, Managing Director and CEO of Solahart UK, said: "The future's looking incredible exciting. We're increasing our team from 14 to 34, as we need sales, marketing and administrative staff, as well as warehouse staff and experienced solar engineers. "I hope this will be just the start as there is huge potential for further development".
Taffinder believes that, as the cost of traditional energy continues to rise, more businesses and householders look to cut costs and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. He commented: "You don't have to live in Australia to use the sun to generate up to 70 per¢ of your hot water for free all year-round, plus qualify for further incentives under government schemes that help make being environmentally friendly really cost-effective.
"Solahart has big markets in Northern Italy and Germany. It has even been installed at the Mount Everest base camp, which only has four hours of sunlight a day, proving that it doesn't need high temperatures to do a great job". Enterprising Barnsley coach Emily Anderson, of E Anderson Consulting Ltd, helped secure the Solahart deal, as well as £50,000 in funding.
Anderson said: "Like most entrepreneurs, Adrian is a big thinker. We have come in to translate his vision into a detailed, watertight business plan and we'll also be supporting its implementation". Taffinder said: "I've always had a personal interest in renewable energy and the fact that the UK has the fastest growing market for it made the sector the natural choice for me". Solahart pioneered using the sun to heat water over 50 years ago and supplies systems to 80 countries around the world.
Nuclear reactor halts operation due to malfunction
view.koreaherald.com
2 Oct 2012
A nuclear reactor at South Korea's Gori Nuclear Power Plant stopped operation Tuesday due to what appeared to be a problem in the reactor's control system, plant operators said, adding there was no risk of radiation leakage. The Shingori 1 Reactor was shut down at 8:10 a.m, after a warning signal indicated a malfunction in the control rod, which is used to control the rate of fission of nuclear materials, according to the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. It is the first time that reactor, located 450 km southeast of Seoul, has been shut down due to a malfunction since it began commercial operation on Feb. 28, 2011. An investigation is currently underway to verify the exact cause of the problem, officials from the state-run operator of nuclear power plants said.
2 Oct 2012
A nuclear reactor at South Korea's Gori Nuclear Power Plant stopped operation Tuesday due to what appeared to be a problem in the reactor's control system, plant operators said, adding there was no risk of radiation leakage. The Shingori 1 Reactor was shut down at 8:10 a.m, after a warning signal indicated a malfunction in the control rod, which is used to control the rate of fission of nuclear materials, according to the Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co. It is the first time that reactor, located 450 km southeast of Seoul, has been shut down due to a malfunction since it began commercial operation on Feb. 28, 2011. An investigation is currently underway to verify the exact cause of the problem, officials from the state-run operator of nuclear power plants said.
Academic talks up wind energy potential
www.abc.net.au
2 Oct 2012
An academic says South Australia has the potential to almost triple the electricity produced from wind power. It generated a 26% share last financial year, 2% more than coal. Professor of Environmental Mathematics at the University of South Australia, John Boland, said projected wind farm projects would add a further 2,000 MWs to the SA power grid.
"At the moment we've got something like 1,200 MWs installed so, you know, quite a substantial amount if they go ahead", he said. Professor Boland said a balance was needed to keep communities and wind farm developers satisfied. "Sometimes people in lots of areas they sometimes feel their views, even though they're sort of taken, are totally ignored", he said. "I think it's an important issue to try and figure out how you sort of really engage with the community".
2 Oct 2012
An academic says South Australia has the potential to almost triple the electricity produced from wind power. It generated a 26% share last financial year, 2% more than coal. Professor of Environmental Mathematics at the University of South Australia, John Boland, said projected wind farm projects would add a further 2,000 MWs to the SA power grid.
"At the moment we've got something like 1,200 MWs installed so, you know, quite a substantial amount if they go ahead", he said. Professor Boland said a balance was needed to keep communities and wind farm developers satisfied. "Sometimes people in lots of areas they sometimes feel their views, even though they're sort of taken, are totally ignored", he said. "I think it's an important issue to try and figure out how you sort of really engage with the community".
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