Eight companies, universities and nonprofits have been challenged—and awarded grants—to make it easier for nearly 150 million Americans to go solar. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced $12 million in grants today to the organizations as part of the second round of the Rooftop Solar Challenge. The recipients are: Broward County in Florida, California Center for Sustainable […]
By J. Matthew Roney Offshore wind power installations are on track to hit a seventh consecutive annual record in 2013. Developers added 1,080 megawatts (MW) of generating capacity in the first half of the year, expanding the world total by 20 percent in just six months. Fifteen countries host some 6,500 MW of offshore wind capacity. Before […]
Offshore wind farms are coming to the U.S., the Department of Energy (DOE) announced this month, but nobody is sure just when. Eleven offshore wind projects have reached “an advanced stage of development,” according to the 2013 U.S. Offshore Wind Market and Economic Analysis, published earlier this month by Navigant Consulting. The farms would collectively generate 3,824 megawatts […]
By Paul Brown Photo credit: Shutterstock One of the most oft-repeated arguments of the anti-wind lobby is that turbines produce electricity only intermittently, when there is enough wind to turn them. This, the wind critics argue, means that so much gas has to be burnt to provide a reliable back-up supply of electricity that wind […]
Wanting to build on an already growing industry, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) invested $60 million this week in solar energy research and development. The awards were announced at the ongoing, three-day Solar Power International 2013 event in Chicago as a small portion of President Obama’s plan to reduce carbon pollution while supporting clean energy innovation. The […]
With more than $750 billion of holdings in its sovereign wealth fund, Norway is on the brink of potentially making renewable energy investments around the world. Erna Solberg, who will be named Norway’s second female prime minister, has already heard proposals from her government to use sovereign wealth fund money to invest in sustainable companies […]
A $2 billion solar farm in southern Arizona is ready to power nearly 70,000 households. Spanish company Abengoa announced this week that its massive Solana solar farm passed a series of commercial operation tests and is ready to go live. Solana is located in Gila Bend, which is about 70 miles southwest of Phoenix. The farm […]
Brandon Baker The Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) believes the nation could save $61 billion in energy costs by 2050, creating 50,250 jobs along the way. The Solar Energy Industries Association released a comprehensive new report this month outlining ways to create 50,250 new American jobs and save more than $61 billion in future energy […]
Yale Environment 360 By Dave Levitan In June, after years of offshore wind power projects being thwarted in the U.S., the first offshore wind turbine began spinning off the U.S. coast. The turbine was not a multi-megawatt, 400-foot behemoth off of Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Jersey, or Texas—all places where projects had long been proposed. […]