Wind, s by 2030 olar could provide 99.9% of ALL POWER

Another aspect of their plan is to use some of that extra renewable capacity, when it's available and when storage capacity is full, to substitute for natural gas for home and business heating.

Fossil-fuel sources wouldn't be abandoned entirely. There would likely be times when neither wind nor solar could provide enough juice, and when storage had been depleted. When that happens, they say, it'd be time to fire up the ol' CO2 spewers and spin their turbines. Doing that, however, would be a last resort, and not the first, as is true in much of the US's power inverter grid today.

While the idea of a large, geographically diverse renewable-energy grid might seem heinously expensive, the paper's authors contend that if current estimates are correct that by 2030 wind and solar capital costs will be about half of what they are today, by that date a renewable system would be as cost effective as a fossil fuel system, and all without government subsidies.

There is one cost sweetener in their calculations, however: their cost estimates for that comparison includes the costs related to the human health effects of fossil fuel–caused air polution.

Those are costs, of course, that are not borne by the electric power industry. Yet.

  

Even better: It could do so at the same cost as fossil fuels

A group of researchers has released a study that claims to shoot down the common perception that clean, renewable energy from wind and solar sources is all well and good, eco-wise, but that it's too uncertain, sporadic, and pricey for widespread use.

"These results break the conventional wisdom that renewable energy is too unreliable and expensive," said professor Willett Kempton of the University of Delaware in a statement. "The key is to get the right combination of electricity sources and storage – which we did by an exhaustive search – and to calculate costs correctly.”

This good news is detailed in a paper available online now and scheduled to be published in the March 2013 issue of the scholarly Journal of Power Sources, straightforwardly entitled "Cost-minimized combinations of wind power, solar panel power and electrochemical storage, powering the grid up to 99.9% of the time".

When Kempton referred to an exhaustive effort, he wasn't merely whistling the proverbial Dixie. The six authors of the paper used computer modeling to study 28 billion – that's with a "B" – combinations of energy sources and storage techniques. Each of those 28 beeeelion combos were tested against four years of actual hourly weather data, along with electricity-demand data from PJM Interconnection, a power grid that serve 13 states from New Jersey to South Carolina to Illinois – about one-fifth of the US grid.

Big enough sample for ya?

As a result of this intensive modeling effort, the researchers say they've discovered that a carefully designed combination of renewable sources – wind and solar – with batteries and fuel-cell electricity-storage systems could by 2030 supply enough power to keep a large electrical grid fired up 99.9 per cent of the time, and do so at a cost comparable to today's not-so-renewable energy grid.

Four years of historical data applied to a mega-sized renewables, storage, and fossil-fuel grid model

Cost was central to the team's work. With this in mind, one of the things that they discovered is that it's cheaper to crank out more juice than needed during hours of average need – as much as three times as much – than it is to store all the extra energy for later use. Those batteries and fuel cells ain't cheap.

One of the key elements in their plan would be to have a widespread geographical distribution of such intermittent sources as wind farms and photovoltaic installations – when it's windy and sunny in one location on the grid tie inverter , it could be calm and overcast in another and all parts of the grid would have enough power.

Cogentrix chosen as a top project solar farm in Colorado

Natural gas is usually used to create steam, but GlassPoint says its  solar panel technology is actually cheaper.

The funding round will help GlassPoint establish a presence in the Middle East, where it just finished construction of a 7-megawatt field trial system in Oman. That project is part of joint venture that includes Shell, French oil company Total and the Oman government.

The region is perfect - there's heavy oil, a shortage of natural gas and abundant sunshine, says GlassPoint.

"We are looking forward to the outcome of the solar trial which, if successful, can help to optimize oil recovery and avoid the use of valuable natural gas in Thermal EOR projects. The promise of the GlassPoint system is that it is expected to lower both the economic cost of producing oil whilst at the same time reducing our footprint,” says Geert van de Wouw, Fund Manager, Shell Technology Ventures.

Shell's investment in GlassPoint is the latest example of a fossil fuels company turning to green technologies to perpetuate the dirty energy status quo.

A number of companies that service the natural gas fracking industry are developing cleaner methods,  from recycling wastewater to using cleaner fracking chemicals. 

Cogentrix Energy LLC has won second place in power inverter Engineering magazine's "Solar Energy Project of the Year Award" for its 30-megawatt solar farm in Colorado's San Luis Valley.

Charlotte, N.C.-based Cogentrix developed and owns the Alamosa Solar Project in Alamosa County. It uses concentrating mirrors to increase the photovoltaic output of the solar panels.

It was designed by Denver-based engineering firm Stantec Inc.

The magazine awarded first place to the 70-megawatt Solarpark Meuro Project in Brandenburg, Germany.

Congentrix formerly was a subsidiary of Goldman Sachs Group Inc. but was bought by the Carlyle Group in September.

The U.S. Department of Energy announced in September that it was providing a $90.6 million loan guarantee to Cogentrix to help pay for the San Luis Valley facility.

In an interesting twist, Royal Dutch Shell is investing in solar technology to "more cleanly" recover fossil fuels.

GlassPoint Solar, a California-based company that's developing solar-enhanced oil recovery technology, is getting a $26 million infusion to help oil companies extract oil from depleted fields.

Shell's venture capital arm, RockPort Capital, Nth Power and Chrysalix participated in the Series B funding round.

GlassPoint uses high-pressure steam generated by concentrated solar energy to recover oil that's usually too thick to pump to the surface using conventional methods.

The steam is injected into the ground and used to heat the oil, changing the consistency from molasses to closer to water, grid tie inverter  which makes it easier to pump out.

Southampton green light solar farm gets

The Board of Selectmen approved a partnership with DCS that has no obligation to the town or the residents, but offers solar panels at a reduced rate of approximately 10 percent.

Hayden said he does not know how much the panels will cost, but said the panels do cost several thousand dollars.

In 2010, panels were placed on public safety building, the Community and Senior Center complex, the library, and the parks and recreation building. Due to funding, there are no plans to install more solar panel panels. But Hayden says the town will continue to search for opportunities.

“We do not have anything currently in the works,” said Hayden. “The deal with DCS right now is mostly a residential program.”

The 2010 program for East Granby was a partial grant and partial federal government program, in which panels were installed free of charge for use by the town. They can later be purchased at a cost of $1 per panel. The town will receive thousands in solar panel equipment for just $4, Hayden said.

While residents may not get the discount the town is receiving, energy savings by the town will help reduce costs by requiring less taxpayer money, said Hayden. Continued...

Solarcentury is racing to complete a 6.3MW solar farm near Southampton, after receiving planning permission for the project from the local council.

The company confirmed late last week that it has received consent from Eastleigh Borough Council to install 25,632 photovoltaic panels at Chalcroft Farm, West End.

Once complete the solar farm is expected to provide enough electricity for 1,800 homes.

A spokeswoman for SolarCentury told BusinessGreen it is hoping to finish construction over the next three months to ensure it receives the current two Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) per MWh subsidy currently offered to solar farms.

The government is currently considering proposals to slash the level of support for solar projects larger than 5MW in capacity to 1.5 ROCs from April 2013.

However, grid tie inverter no decision has been confirmed as yet and solar companies are increasingly concerned the delay is now seriously impacting investment plans for next year.

A spokeswoman for the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) told BusinessGreen on Friday that the decision would be announced shortly, but no date has been confirmed.

Frans van den Heuvel, chief executive of Solarcentury, said the project was a milestone for the company because it is the first solar farm it has developed as well as built.

"SolarCentury has designed and built 10 solar parks in the UK to date and this is the first where we have acted as developer," he said. "We currently have 68MW in our development pipeline."

EAST GRANBY — After a unanimous approval by the East Granby Board of Selectmen Nov. 28, DCS Energy will offer discount pricing early next year to town residents who want to buy solar panels offering potential energy savings up to 20 percent on their homes.

DCS Energy has had a working relationship with the town since 2010, when East Granby participated in a grant program that placed solar panels on four of the town’s buildings.

First Selectman James Hayden said the town has seen a savings in energy of about 15-20 percent.

“A lot of it depends on how the sun cooperates,” power inverter said Hayden. “But we have seen some pretty good savings from these panels.”

Plug 22 jobs Power cuts

However, Conway said that those quality-control issues did not directly result in the layoffs. He added that no customers have been lost.

"I wouldn't say it's a direct result of any one factor," Conway said. "We've discussed the quality issue (with analysts, shareholders and customers). Those issues have been addressed. There's not a direct correlation. Overall, it's been a challenging year."

Over the first nine months of 2012, Plug power inverter has increased revenues significantly, pulling in $20 million during that period versus $15 million during the same nine-month period a year ago. However, the cost of bringing in that revenue increased more than $9 million this year over last, resulting in an operating loss of $27 million, compared to $24 million for the first nine months of 2011.

A big reason for that increased cost is that the company is shipping more fuel cells than ever. Another reason, however, was millions of dollars in warranty claims from "component quality issues," the company said in its most recent quarterly filing with the SEC.

COLONIE — Plug Power, the Latham fuel cell manufacturer, let 22 full-time employees go last week as part of a restructuring plan that will save the company as much as $4 million annually in operating expenses.

The company revealed the cost-cutting move in a brief filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Over the next few months, the company will be paying out roughly $600,000 in severance and related expenses.

The job cuts were done with as little impact as possible on the company's manufacturing operations, which are done on-site at its headquarters on Albany Shaker Road near the airport, said Gerard Conway Jr., Plug Power's general counsel. Both salaried and hourly workers were affected.

For instance, grid tie inverter one of the jobs that was eliminated was investor relations, which does not have a direct impact on manufacturing. Plug Power makes hydrogen-powered fuel cells that power lift trucks used in warehouses and distribution centers run by companies like FedEx, Wegmans and Proctor & Gamble. Conway says that since only a "handful" of large investors own a majority of the company's shares, the company can get by for now without someone dedicated full time to that outreach effort.

Plug Power also runs on "lean" manufacturing principles and uses part-time workers for its manufacturing and assembly so that it can increase or decrease its staffing in that area week-to-week based on its order flow. As of the company's last annual report, Plug Power reported that it used 45 part-time employees out of a total workforce of 195. Conway says that those part-time workers supplement a "core" group of full-time manufacturing employees.

Conway said the decision to let go of nearly two dozen employees was done in an attempt to "do what we're doing more efficiently." The cuts will save the company between $3 million and $4 million annually, the company said in the SEC filing.

Over the past two quarters, Plug Power CEO Andy Marsh has revealed problems with suppliers sending the company parts that were not made to the correct specifications. In one case, solar panel the issues led to a fire at one customer's site. Those issues have hurt the company's ability to fill orders on time.

ANY overlooking exposed stretches bleary-eyed Londoner

I say two bear markets because after peaking in early 2008 above 308, grid tie inverter the Guggenheim Solar ETF (ticker: TAN) lost more than 80% of its value to its early 2009 low. After more than two years of volatile but flat trading, it broke down again in mid-2011 and lost another 80% from there to last month's low at 12.60 (it traded at 16.80 Monday afternoon).

Other than registering oversold technical conditions in November, the initial rally off the low seemed ordinary at first. Even grueling bear markets have occasional bouts of rising prices as bulls and bears rethink their positions.

But this time, several indicators are different. For example, money seems to be flowing into the sector according to a measure called on-balance volume, which keeps a running tally of volume on up-days minus volume on down-days (see Chart 1). The theory is that days with rising prices suggest demand, and the higher the volume the stronger the demand. Therefore, a rising on-balance volume indicator suggests a cumulative demand for the ETF and a positive underlying condition.

The deals are with Tallbear Seville LLC to purchase 20 megawatts from a facility under construction northwest of Brawley, and with 8minutenergy Renewables to buy the same amount of power inverter from the Calipatria Solar Farm.

Both projects are expected to come online in 2015 and deliver power to SDG&E over the Sunrise Powerlink, a major energy transmission line connecting San Diego with the Imperial Valley.

"The Calipatria Solar Farm will deliver clean energy to over 9,000 households in SDG&E's service area and create more than 50 direct and 100 indirect jobs in the Imperial Valley," said Martin Hermann, CEO of 8minutenergy Renewables.

"We would like to thank SDG&E for their continued commitment to the Imperial Valley, where the unemployment rate is among the highest in the nation," he said.

SDG&E reported that 20.8 percent of its sales last year were for renewable energy. In the last two years, the utility has signed contracts to add 1,879 megawatts of power from renewable sources.

 The District or Circle underground lines in the small hours of Sunday must have pinched themselves. For the first time in more than 100 years, a steam train was carrying passengers on the tube.

By Mike Wille

Story Published: Dec 17, 2012 at 4:54 PM PST

Story Updated: Dec 17, 2012 at 5:19 PM PST

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - San Diego Gas & Electric announced Monday that it has signed two 20-year contracts to receive solar panel energy from Imperial County.

After shedding more than 96% of its value and suffering not one but two bear markets over the past four years, the solar-energy sector appears to be set up for something unusual—rising prices. While the sector is still far from a bullish juggernaut, investors should pay heed to several sharp changes for the better in technical indicators.

ANY overlooking exposed stretches bleary-eyed Londoner

I say two bear markets because after peaking in early 2008 above 308, grid tie inverter the Guggenheim Solar ETF (ticker: TAN) lost more than 80% of its value to its early 2009 low. After more than two years of volatile but flat trading, it broke down again in mid-2011 and lost another 80% from there to last month's low at 12.60 (it traded at 16.80 Monday afternoon).

Other than registering oversold technical conditions in November, the initial rally off the low seemed ordinary at first. Even grueling bear markets have occasional bouts of rising prices as bulls and bears rethink their positions.

But this time, several indicators are different. For example, money seems to be flowing into the sector according to a measure called on-balance volume, which keeps a running tally of volume on up-days minus volume on down-days (see Chart 1). The theory is that days with rising prices suggest demand, and the higher the volume the stronger the demand. Therefore, a rising on-balance volume indicator suggests a cumulative demand for the ETF and a positive underlying condition.

The deals are with Tallbear Seville LLC to purchase 20 megawatts from a facility under construction northwest of Brawley, and with 8minutenergy Renewables to buy the same amount of power inverter from the Calipatria Solar Farm.

Both projects are expected to come online in 2015 and deliver power to SDG&E over the Sunrise Powerlink, a major energy transmission line connecting San Diego with the Imperial Valley.

"The Calipatria Solar Farm will deliver clean energy to over 9,000 households in SDG&E's service area and create more than 50 direct and 100 indirect jobs in the Imperial Valley," said Martin Hermann, CEO of 8minutenergy Renewables.

"We would like to thank SDG&E for their continued commitment to the Imperial Valley, where the unemployment rate is among the highest in the nation," he said.

SDG&E reported that 20.8 percent of its sales last year were for renewable energy. In the last two years, the utility has signed contracts to add 1,879 megawatts of power from renewable sources.

 The District or Circle underground lines in the small hours of Sunday must have pinched themselves. For the first time in more than 100 years, a steam train was carrying passengers on the tube.

By Mike Wille

Story Published: Dec 17, 2012 at 4:54 PM PST

Story Updated: Dec 17, 2012 at 5:19 PM PST

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - San Diego Gas & Electric announced Monday that it has signed two 20-year contracts to receive solar panel energy from Imperial County.

After shedding more than 96% of its value and suffering not one but two bear markets over the past four years, the solar-energy sector appears to be set up for something unusual—rising prices. While the sector is still far from a bullish juggernaut, investors should pay heed to several sharp changes for the better in technical indicators.

QuarterFinancial Results Electrovaya Announces Fourth and Fiscal Year 2012

In September, 2012 we announced that we had agreed to acquire a majority interest in Miljøbil Grenland AS (MBG). MBG is based in Porsgrunn, Norway and is a battery integrator with over $30 million invested in developing battery systems for automotive, maritime and similar applications. MBG is an excellent fit for Electrovaya as MBG does not manufacture lithium ion cells or battery management systems (BMS), but integrates externally manufactured cells and BMS into systems and battery packs. Electrovaya on the other hand manufactures both the fundamental lithium ion polymer cells as well as the intelligent battery management systems and previously had no European base of operations. Prior to Electrovaya's acquisition, MBG's revenue was focussed on its single OEM shareholder, while now its revenue focus will be throughout Europe.

Also in September, 2012 we announced the launch of our next generation SuperPolymer® cell and battery technology; "MN-HP Series." The Energy version of this technology, MN-eHP exceeds 200Wh/kg, which we believe is one of the highest energy densities for a commercial Lithium Ion cell in a large prismatic design. Electrovaya's MN-HP series cells use commercially proven electrode materials such as graphite anodes and lithium metal mixed oxide cathodes to give excellent cycle life and good safety. Electrovaya's MN-eHP cells typically have 50-70% higher energy density than typical phosphate cells, over 120% higher energy density than lithium titanate cells and about 600% higher energy density than the ubiquitous lead acid batteries. Higher energy density cells require fewer materials for a given energy capacity and therefore can be produced at lower costs. Higher Energy Density cells also contain proportionately lower amounts of flammable electrolytes, which substantially improve safety considerations. Typical MN-eHP cells are available in 30Ah to 40Ah format (110 - 150Wh) and housed in a flat polymer pouch. The cells are produced by Electrovaya's proprietary non-toxic production process which does not use massive quantities of toxic n-methyl pyrrolidone (NMP), unlike most other commercial lithium ion battery manufacturers. Toxic NMP is suspected of causing birth defects and does not obviously complement the supply chain for Green electric vehicles or Alternate Energy Storage programs.

In November, 2012 we announced the launch of our lithium-ion energy storage system for home usage. The battery stores power inverter  from the grid or from solar panels and stores it for later household use. For consumers subject to time-of-use charges, the EnergyBlock can be used to store off-peak power to be used later during peak times, lowering the amount of peak-rate costs for the user. In some regions, utilities occasionally provide negative pricing to dump excess power when demand is very low, so users may actually be paid to store energy. The EnergyBlock can also store energy directly from solar panels, power in remote locations and emergency power. Systems are available in sizes from 3kWh - 20 kWh. The ideal size for most households is 7kWh, which provides several hours of power for the typical consumer.

Also in November, 2012, accompanying Prime Minister Harper's Trade Mission to India, we announced that we had signed two MOUs in the fast growing areas of Energy Storage in the Telecom sector with Environ Energy (Bhaskar Solar), part of a $4 billion Indian conglomerate, as well as a further expansion in the electric two wheeler sector with Hero Eco for markets in Europe, North America and India.

The MOU with Hero Eco Ltd. would further the synergies of both Electrovaya's and Hero Eco's recent acquisitions. Electrovaya would work with Hero Eco to implement Lithium Ion powered electric bikes for Hero's markets in Asia, Europe and North America. The MOU with Bhaskar Solar intends to harness Electrovaya's Lithium Ion Battery technology in making renewables-based telecom towers possible. Electrovaya would work jointly with Bhaskar Solar to implement renewable energy management solutions across Bhaskar's proposed 15,000 telecom tower applications.

Fiscal 2012 Fourth Quarter Revenue up 32% to $3.4 Million

Quarterly Non-IFRS Operating Profit increased to $189,000 from an earlier loss of $309,000, a turnaround of $498,000.

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Dec. 13, 2012) - Electrovaya Inc. (TSX:EFL) today announced financial results for the fourth quarter and fiscal year 2012, ended September 30, 2012. All figures are in US dollars.

Financial Highlights

Fourth quarter fiscal 2012 revenue increased by 32% to $3.4 million compared to $2.6 million in the fourth quarter of the previous fiscal year.

Fiscal 2012 revenue totaled $9.9 million, compared to $10.3 million, a 4% decrease over the previous fiscal year.

Quarterly Gross margin was $2.8 million, up $2.3 million or 388% compared to $583,000 in the same quarter in the prior year.

Non-IFRS Profit from Operations for the Quarter was $189,000 compared to a Non-IFRS Loss of $309,000 for the same quarter in the prior year, a turnaround of $498,000.

Cash and cash equivalents were $5.0 million as at September 30, 2012 compared to $5.3 million as at September 30, 2011 and $3.7 million as at June 30, 2012.

Business Highlights:

"During fiscal 2012, we expanded into Europe by acquiring Miljobil and continued to address the clean transportation industry and the large scale energy storage markets. The industry has seen significant consolidation during the year and is recognizing the importance of our non-NMP clean manufacturing process not only as a vital technology for producing Lithium-Ion batteries, but also as an important requirement in lowering both Capital and Operating costs to ensure sustainability," commented Paul Hart, CFO of Electrovaya. "We are very pleased to report our strong revenue growth and our non-IFRS profit during the fourth quarter."

"We continue to focus on advancing our unique, advanced NMP-free technology to create efficiencies in commercial automotive, utility scale energy storage and consumer electronics applications. Our manufacturing process continues to be improved to achieve greater quality control, increased capacity and faster delivery to our customers. This is considered to be especially important as our sales pipeline grows."

Our key activities during 2012 were as follows:

In March, 2012 we announced a new product line, leveraging our utility and automotive products. Electrovaya has made its first product delivery of a 25kWh, 400V Lithium Ion SuperPolymer® Battery Energy Storage System (PowerBlock 25-400V) to a large Japanese Utility through Nippon Kouatsu Electric Co. Ltd. ("NKE"). The PB25-400V system will be providing energy storage for a program to investigate distributed Energy Storage for  solar panel Applications. The PowerBlock line of products is designed to cater to a rapidly growing mid-size residential and industrial energy storage market. The PowerBlock line integrates a complete energy storage system with cells, battery management system and power electronics.

In May, 2012 we showcased our superior  grid tie inverter -scale Energy Storage Systems based on our proprietary, high energy density Lithium Ion SuperPolymer® battery at the annual Electricity Storage Association (ESA) conference in Washington DC. We highlighted our MWh-scale design solution with specific focus on its launch customers for whom industry-leading storage is provided in a small footprint. For example, a 1.5 MWh storage system can be incorporated into a 28' long container. The smaller product size assures higher reliability with fewer components and additional safety. Inherently versatile, the modular design structure of Electrovaya's Energy Storage System allows the scaling to storage capacity from kWh to MWh applications. Specifically, 28', 40' and 53' containerized units have been designed for several launch customers. The modular design allows for customizable storage capacities and system configurations. Superior safety and performance control are enhanced with multiple redundant system design features including an intelligent Battery Management System. The utility-scale product line leverages Electrovaya's expertise as a Tier 1 supplier to automotive OEMs with the demands of high performance, tight packaging constraints, reliability and cost.

In July, 2012 we announced the introduction of the PowerPad 600. With an enormous 600 Watt hour energy storage capacity, the PowerPad 600 is an ideal replacement for existing lead acid and low energy density Lithium Ion batteries used in Hospitals, Construction sites, Warehouses, Telecommunications, Retail, Standby Power and wherever mobile power is required. The PowerPad 600 extends the PowerPad family of products and is in addition to the existing PowerPad 130.