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Falling Oil Prices Don’t Give Clean-Energy Stocks the All-Clear

ENLARGE A solar facility in the California desert. The outlook for alternative energy isn’t necessarily better because of falling oil prices, analysts say. PR Newswire/Associated Press These are dark days for investors in Big Oil. That doesn’t mean clear skies for investors in clean energy. The sharp plunge in oil prices has dragged down the share prices of many global energy giants. But a number of companies that provide alternatives to fossil fuel have taken a similar hit. U.S. oil prices have fallen 15% this month through Wednesday, and the $10.6 billion Vanguard Energy Fund , a mutual fund that holds shares in large oil and gas producers, has fallen 4.9%. In the same period, the New Alternatives Fund, one of the largest mutual funds focused on alternative energy, is down 6.2%. Government policies and social acceptance may support the investment argument for more environmentally friendly energy sources. But […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Virginia mulls offshore wind energy

Virginia government considers research project to explore offshore wind energy potential. UPI/Pat Benic WASHINGTON, Dec. 2 (UPI) — Virginia’s plans for offshore wind installations will be weighed against the environment and socioeconomic impacts, the federal government said. The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management said it was assessing the potential impact of a planned 12 megawatt project backed by the Virginia Department of Mines, Minerals and Energy. Described as a research project, BOEM said the two wind turbine generators planned by Virginia would set the course for a future offshore wind industry in the state. The federal department said its environmental assessment of the proposed project considers whether or not there will be any "environmental and socioeconomic consequences associated with the approval of the offshore wind research activities." Public comments on the assessment will be vetted before the BOEM signs off on the project, the agency said Monday. Opponents of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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OPEC Squeeze on Oil Spares Renewables From Energy Turmoil

While OPEC is helping drive down global prices for crude, it’s having less success squeezing the $250 billion clean power industry. Green energy will receive almost 60 percent of the $5 trillion expected to be invested in new power plants over the next decade, according to the International Energy Agency . That’s because the U.S., China , Japan and the European Union are all pushing for global limits on greenhouse gases and promoting alternatives to fossil fuels. The effort has resulted in local and national incentive policies for renewable power around the world, effectively insulating the industry from market fluctuations such as the almost 40 percent plunge in crude oil since June. So while drillers clamp down on spending, developers are on track to invest more than $250 billion this year on wind, solar, geothermal and other types of renewable power, the first gains in two years, according to […]

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Beijing Considers How to Harness the Wind to Blow Away Pollution

Photo Smog returned to Beijing after emergency measures to clear the air during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit meeting were lifted. Credit Fred Dufour/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images When Beijing experiences bouts of pollution that blacken the skies and burn the lungs, residents often joke that the Chinese capital needs to build giant fans to clear out the toxic air. Mountains to the north and west help trap smog in the city, and a stiff breeze from Mongolia is the surest way to ensure somewhat cleaner air. Beijing officials are now considering ways to help that process. Though giant fans are not on the menu, at least not yet, city planners are looking at ways to create corridors that encourage wind flow through the capital. The plan is inspired by research on urban heat islands, which shows that large buildings that block the wind are one of the causes […]

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Generating Power From Tidal Lagoons

LONDON — Harvesting energy from the tides is hard to do, and the development of a new generation of sea-based power arrays lags far behind more widely used renewable technologies like wind and solar. But the company pushing a new project on the coast of Wales thinks its twist — a 21st-century update of traditional dam-based hydropower — will be much easier to bring to fruition. If it wins government permission to go forward, Tidal Lagoon Power Limited says the approach, known as tidal lagoon generation, could provide as much as 10 percent of Britain’s power from six of its projects within a decade. That is an optimistic assessment. Still, those hoping the seas will become a big contributor to the world’s future energy needs will be watching to see what happens in Swansea Bay, Wales. “If it’s put together and it’s a success, people will look for other […]

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Wind Power Is Cheaper Than Coal, Leaked Report Shows

It’s clear that fossil fuel industries have been pursuing the latter strategy for quite some time now. But as awareness of the true costs of climate change and air pollution grows, this position becomes increasingly precarious. The latest indication that things must change comes in the form of a European Union commissioned report—written about over at Recharge—which finds that onshore wind is the cheapest energy source of all , once externalities such as climate change impacts and health effects are taken into account. With onshore wind costs coming in at about €105 ($133) per MWh, this figure compares favorably to gas (€164/MWh), nuclear (€133) and, most dramatically, coal (€162-233). We should note that onshore wind also beats offshore wind (€186/MWh) and solar (€217) by a considerable margin. However, while the cost of coal and other fossil fuels is likely to go up as supplies get harder to reach and […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Month-long study finds heat released by Rossi E-Cat and isotope changes in fuel suggest low-temp nuclear reaction taking place

« UK putting up nearly $18M to establish initial hydrogen refueling network of up to 15 stations | Main | DOE awarding up to $13.4M for 5 projects for advanced biofuels and bioproducts » Researchers from Uppsala University, KTH and the University of Bologna have reported that during a 32-day test, an “E-Cat” reactor developed by Andrea Rossi ( earlier post ) released an abundance of heat that cannot be explained by chemical reactions alone. They further reported that isotope changes in the analyzed fuel (lithium and nickel) indicate that nuclear reactions might have occurred at low temperatures. Testing by the same group of researchers of the Rossi device in 2013 resulted in computed volumetric and gravimetric energy densities far above those of any known chemical source. ( Earlier post .) Those results prompted this current follow-on study. Subsequent to the 2013 tests, the E-Cat’s technology was transferred to […]

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Energy Storage: Bright Future, But Challenges Ahead

Energy Storage Development and the Future The Energy Storage North America (ESNA) conference  in San Jose, CA last week can be summed up in one word – optimism. The sanguine outlooks on market opportunities and trends were unanimous. Several vendors can’t manufacture their equipment fast enough to meet demand. California is making the market for energy storage. The ninth largest economy in the world recognized energy storage systems as important technologies in electricity value chains with the passage of AB2514. The CPUC decision 13-10-040 set the regulatory expectations about utility-interconnected and behind the meter energy storage. States like California view energy storage as a critical tool to firm up intermittent forms of renewable generation. State policies in the Northeast USA encourage energy storage systems to deliver resiliency for grids and critical infrastructure. Of course, a credible argument could be proffered that Tesla is making a market for energy storage […]

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Researchers enhance yeast thermotolerance and ethanol tolerance; potential for significant impact on industrial biofuel production

The yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae plays a central role in global biofuel production; currently, about 100 billion liters of ethanol are produced annually worldwide by fermentation of mainly sugarcane saccharose and corn starch by the yeast. There are also efforts underway to use the yeast with cellulosic biomass. Boosting the yield and lowering the cost of fermentative production of biofuel would not only result in a significant immediate financial impact to commercial ethanol operations, but also support cost reductions that would be helpful to advance other advanced biofuels using the same or a similar pathway. However, boosting production has been gated by two key conditions: the ability of the yeast to tolerate higher temperatures, and the ability of the yeast to survive high concentrations of ethanol. Now, two new separate studies report progress on each of those fronts; the findings could have a significant impact on industrial biofuel production. Both […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple