MORE NEWS, 1-13 (3 MORE WIND FARMS, 500+ MEGAWATTS; COAL—STICK A PIN IN, SEE IF IT’S DONE; BIG $ TO SOLYNDRA SOLAR BREAKTHROUGH; NEW ENERGY TV)

3 MORE WIND FARMS, 500+ MEGAWATTS
Meridian Way Wind Farm, Pioneer Prairie Wind Farm and Rattlesnake Road Wind Farm Fully Operational
January 8, 2009 (PR Newswire)

“Horizon Wind Energy, owned by EDP Renovaveis, the fourth largest wind energy producer in the world, fully commissioned over 500 megawatts (MW) in December of 2008. The 201 MW Meridian Way Wind Farm, located in north central Kansas in Cloud County, the 102.9 megawatt (MW) Rattlesnake Road Wind Farm located near the city of Arlington in Gilliam County, Oregon, and the first phase (201.3 MW) of the Pioneer Prairie Wind Farm, located in Iowa along the Minnesota state line in Howard and Mitchell counties, are now fully operational..."

click to enlarge

“...Kansas ranks number 12 in wind power in the United States with less than 400 MWs installed, but will climb in rank this year to nearly 1000 MW of total installed capacity…In 2007 Kansas signed the Midwestern Regional Greenhouse Gas Reduction Accord, committing to a region-wide 10% renewable energy standard by 2015. In January 2007, Governor Sebelius said that Kansas' energy goal should be to obtain 10% of the energy consumed in the state from wind by the year 2010 and 20% by 2020.

“Iowa has long been a leader in renewable energy…In 2001, Iowa established a voluntary goal of 1,000MW of wind generating capacity by 2010. As of third quarter 2008, the American Wind Energy Association ranked Iowa number three in wind power in the United States with over 1300 MWs of existing projects installed, and is ranked tenth in terms of potential capacity.

“…As of third quarter 2008, the American Wind Energy Association ranked Oregon number seven in wind power in the United States with more than 900 megawatts installed and a potential capacity of several thousand megawatts. Oregon enacted an aggressive RPS in June 2007 requiring large utilities to ensure the following percentages of electricity sold to retail customers in-state be derived from renewable energy sources: 5% by 2011; 15% by 2015; 20% by 2020; 25% by 2025.


COAL—STICK A PIN IN, SEE IF IT’S DONE
Green America Heralds Dynegy's Decision to Pull the Plug On Five Coal-Fired Power Plants as Important Anti-Coal Victory; Step Seen as "Outstanding Clean Energy Start to New Year," Marks Further Decline of Dirty Power in U.S.; Facing Intense Opposition, Energy Company Drops Five of Six Planned
January 6, 2009 (CSR Wire via Coop America)

"The decision by U.S. power company Dynegy (NYSE:DYN) to pull out of planned power plant projects means that "coal-fired power is one big step closer to being mothballed once and for all," according to Green America…

"…Dynegy canceled its joint development agreement with LS Power to build a new fleet of coal plants. Although LS Power retains the right to develop the projects on their own, Dynegy is far larger than LS Power, and without Dynegy's support LS Power will have a much harder time raising funds and securing long-term purchase agreements which enable new power plants to move forward. Green America was a leader in putting pressure on Dynegy to pull the plug…

"In May 2008, Green America climate action campaign coordinator Yochi Zakai warned investors attending Dynegy's annual shareholder meeting about the massive cost of carbon regulation to the company and also raised concerns about the toll of its coal plants on surrounding communities and its impact on climate change. Heeding that message, Dynegy's stock rose… as investors acknowledged the risk that new coal plants represented.

"…LS Power may continue development on the Arkansas coal plant, and Dynegy currently plans to move ahead with plans to build a new plant in Texas. Green America and other groups vow to continue fighting these new coal plants…The environmental community had labeled Dynegy "the next King Coal" in response to their plans…Last spring thousands of Green America members spoke up to urge Dynegy to cancel the plants. Working with individual and institutional investors, Green America raised concerns about Dynegy's climate risk consistently over the past year…"


BIG $ TO SOLYNDRA SOLAR BREAKTHROUGH
Solyndra raises nearly $220M; Solar power technology company Solyndra raises second largest cleantech deal of 2008
31 December 2008 (Reuters via Private Equity Week)

“Solyndra has raised $219.2 million in a Series E financing from 23 investors, according to a regulatory filing, making it the second largest U.S. cleantech financing in 2008…"

A Solyndra rooftop installation. (click to enlarge)

“The Fremont, Calif.-based company makes copper indium gallium selenide (CIGS) solar power installations. Its latest financing round is smaller than the $300 million raised by CIGS manufacturer Nanosolar, but larger than the $200 million financings reported for Miasolé and SoloPower earlier this year.

“The financing includes $96.6 million in “working capital” and $122.2 million for the “conversion of convertible promissory notes into Series E preferred stock,” according to the filing. Financiers in the deal included Argonaut Ventures, U.S. Venture Partners, CMEA Ventures and Redpoint Ventures…”


NEW ENERGY TV
CES showcasing slimmer, energy-saving TVs
(Franklin Paul, Gabriel Madway, Anupreeta Das, Sinead Carew, Tiffany Wu), January 8, 2009 (Reuters via Yahoo Tech)

"…Sony, Samsung, LG, Panasonic, Toshiba and others trotted out high-definition TV screens on Wednesday designed to pull videos, photos and other content off the Web and into the living room…

"Many stressed the eco-friendly, power-saving abilities of their latest TVs -- a key selling point at a time when households are tightening their belts. Unlike in past years, not one company tried to outshine the competition with the physically biggest screen.

"The new TVs can siphon content off Internet sites…and allow messaging of friends on social networks…Yahoo unveiled a big push to marry the Internet and television -- something no company has successfully pulled off thus far -- through deals with the main Asian TV makers…Since the dawn of the Internet age, companies have been promising "convergence" of online and TV universes -- but failed to connect with consumers…

"The new TVs, which use Intel's CE1000 chip, will offer up an array of Widgets -- small Internet applications -- that run alongside TV content, but not over it.

"Gone were the 150-inch TV behemoths that once lorded over the show floor and attracted hoards of curious.

"Instead, executives sang a different tune, preaching smaller and sleeker is better, as Samsung did with its one-inch thick TVs that use light-emitting-diodes (LEDs) rather than cold cathode fluorescent lamps as their primary light source…Sony estimated that such screens use 40 percent less power than traditional LCDs."