GOOD STORIES THERE WASN’T TIME TO GET TO THIS WEEK

A NewEnergyNews Friday feature.


GOOD IDEAS FOR CHANGE IS COMING
Eight Eenergy Suggestions for Obama, from SunEdison’s Founder
Kate Galbraith, December 12, 2008 (NY Times)

“…Jigar Shah, the founder of SunEdison…shared a number of interesting suggestions for transforming the nation’s energy profile…(1) Spend $10 billion over the next few years to green the federal government. Put solar panels on rooftops, and introduce other types of alternative energy…(2) Make federal utilities take the lead on pushing renewable energy…(3) Provide more federal assistance to make municipal buildings energy efficient…(4) Establish California’s energy-efficient building code, called Title 24, as a federal standard…(5) Require any organization owning more than 50 vehicles to buy fuel-efficient new cars…(6) Weatherize more buildings, by hugely increasing financing for the low-income Weatherization Assistance Program…(7) Push so-called smart-grid technology…(8) Encourage American companies to export their clean energy technology…”


SIERRA CLUB TO PRESIDENT-ELECT OBAMA
Ask Obama to Adopt the Clean Slate Energy Agenda
December 2008 (Sierra Club)

“…There are four decisions you can make on Day One of your administration, independently of Congress, that will have an immediate impact on cutting global warming pollution and spurring a clean energy economy...Please use your Presidential power to:

“1. End the rush to build new coal plants by directing the EPA to require all new power plants to limit their global warming emissions.

“2. Direct the EPA to approve plans by 15 states to require clean cars.

“3. Direct the EPA to end mountaintop removal mining by stopping coal companies from dumping rock and waste into valleys and streams.

“4. Restore America's international leadership in the fight to end global warming by publicly committing the US to cut its CO2 emissions at least 35% by 2020…"

Click here to send this letter.


PEEKING AT THE PEAK
Global oil supply will peak in 2020, says energy agency
Terry Macalister and George Monbiot, 15 December 2008 (UK Guardian)

"Global oil production will peak much earlier than expected amid a collapse in petroleum investment due to the credit crunch, one of the world's foremost experts has revealed...Fatih Birol, chief economist to the International Energy Agency, told the Guardian that conventional crude output could plateau in 2020, a development that was "not good news" for a world still heavily dependent on petroleum…The prediction came as oil companies from Saudi Arabia to Canada cut their capital expenditure on new projects in response to a fall in oil prices, moves that will further reduce supply in future…"


TIDAL POWER DEVICE PUTTING OUT FULL POWER
SeaGen Tidal Energy System Reaches Full Power - 1.2MW
December 18, 2008 (Marine Current Turbines)

"SeaGen, the world’s first commercial scale tidal stream turbine, designed and developed by British tidal energy company, Marine Current Turbines, has for the first time generated at its maximum capacity of 1.2MW. This is the highest power so far produced by a tidal stream system anywhere in the world and exceeds the previous highest output of 300kW produced in 2004 by Marine Current Turbines’ earlier SeaFlow system, off the north Devon coast…SeaGen works in principle much like an “underwater windmill”, with the rotors driven by the power of the tidal currents rather than the wind…"


EMISSIONS MARKETS INVESTMENT VEHICLE
New ETF Tracks The Global Carbon Market
December 16, 2008 (ETF Guide via Yahoo Finance)

“…The idea of carbon emission credits seems to have gathered more steam in Europe than the United States. Nevertheless, there are two U.S. listed exchange-traded products that track this new market…XShares Advisors just launched the new AirShares EU Carbon Allowance Fund [ASO]. This new ETF directly competes with the iShares Global Carbon ETN [GRN]… ASO and GRN track the price of carbon emission credits. As carbon emissions are limited, 'dirty' companies need to buy additional credits if their emissions exceed their allowance. 'Clean' companies on the other hand, can sell unused carbon emission credits for cash…ASO is a commodity pool that seeks to provide investors with exposure to the performance of a basket of exchange-traded futures contracts for European Union Allowances (EUAs)…GRN is part of Barclays iPath line-up of products and as such an exchange- traded note. ETNs are unsecured debt notes…ETNs have lost a lot of credibility due to this year's financial crisis…"