Energy

The growth of Renewable Energy could usher in a future where our energy is produced at the same place where it is consumed – and power is literally returned to the people.

But well-intentioned government subsidies in the USA and the UK are threatening to turn the wind industry businesses into subsidy junkies, churning out energy for the good of the large utilities instead of benefiting the end users or the environment.

All over America and Britain, regional grid operator are ordering wind farms to reduce output or stop running — a process called curtailment. Letting them all operate at certain times could overload the grid and jeopardize reliable service.

What is worse – the grid operators are PAYING the wind farms each time they are ordered to reduce their output,
Britain’s National Grid has paid out over $50 MILLION in the past year according to industry analysts at the Renewable Energy Foundation (REF).
The problem could get worse in the future, according to the grid operators, if many more wind projects go on line, as planned.
Wind companies knew about these constraints when they built the plants. But utility rules meant to encourage renewable energy let them install feeder lines that meet only minimum standards.
Upgrading transmission lines will take money, and that will come from ratepayers. It’s too soon to say how much the upgrades would cost.
But the investors in wind farms still make money, even if the power isn’t sold on the grid, because of how these projects are financed and the rates companies have negotiated for their energy.…

TOKYO (Nikkei)–Softbank Corp. (9984) will team up with a U.S. fuel cell developer to provide the off-grid power source to corporate clients in Japan, company sources said Wednesday.

A 50-50 joint venture set up by Softbank and Bloom Energy Corp. will launch the business as early as this fall, targeting firms, hospitals and public facilities looking to diversify power supplies as part of their disaster preparedness plans.…

CARSON CITY — NV Energy is divesting from coal and investing in natural gas and renewable energy. The announcement spurred fear of price raises. Nevadans already pay nearly the highest power rates in the Mountain West region. The $104.10 average monthly bill comes in second only to Arizona, where residents pay an average of $118.62 per month. So what’s driving energy costs in this state?

Nevada ranks 41st in the nation in energy usage but has the 18th highest energy rate in the nation. Now it is introducing Smart meters. Nevada is supposedly one of those states with a smart meter ‘opt out’ policy. On the ground, however, the reality is a little different.

Mona Orkoulas lives in the mountains outside Las Vegas, Nevada, where she works in real estate. Like many Americans she has been impacted by the downturn in the economy and is struggling to make ends meet. She has always paid her bills on time, and makes protecting her health a priority.…

Welcome to the Age of the Microgrid – islands of power and self-sufficiency.

What is a microgrid? In simple terms, it is a local network of diverse power sources, featuring a mixture of renewable energy, fossil fuels and batteries that can operate as a unified system for a relatively small network of consumers. they mitt be the only power in a community, but more likely they are running in parallel with the Grid, bestowing resilience on its owners, who might be selling their surplus to the Grid and buying from the Grid during times of greater demand.

If the wider utility grid goes down, these microgrids can create a little island of power, making sure the most vital operations for a business, utility or community stay powered up during major storms or other power outages.…

President Obama is in Africa – promising countries billions of dollars to help the continent’s economies grow. But the way that the tax dollars will be spent is highly questionable.

The main motive in providing the aid is the growth of Chinese activity on the African continent. China is buying up arable land to feed its own people, and building roads, running farms, and building entire cities as a by-product. As it spends more, China’s influence grows in the region.

So now the USA is playing catchup, and Obama’s speeches suggest US aid will focus in on the continent’s energy shortage. This is not entirely a good thing.…