MORE NEWS, 1-30 (MORE JOBS IN WIND NOW THAN IN COAL; EV DEALERSHIPS COMING; BIG STIMULUS $$$ TO COAL; FIND WIND FAST)

MORE JOBS IN WIND NOW THAN IN COAL
Wind jobs outstrip the coal industry
Todd Woody, January 28, 2009 (Fortune via CNNMoney)

"…The wind industry now employs more people than coal mining in the United States.
Wind industry jobs jumped to 85,000 in 2008, a 70% increase from the previous year…In contrast, the coal industry employs about 81,000 workers…coal employment has remained steady in recent years though it’s down by nearly 50% since 1986…Wind industry employment includes 13,000 manufacturing jobs concentrated in regions of the country hard hit by the deindustrialization of the past two decades.

"The big spike in wind jobs was a result of a record-setting 50% increase in installed wind capacity, with 8,358 megawatts coming online in 2008… a third of the nation’s total 25,170 megawatts of wind power generation. Wind farms generating more than 4,000 megawatts of electricity were completed in the last three months of 2008 alone."

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"Another sign that wind power is no longer a niche green energy play: Wind accounted for 42% of all new electricity generation installed last year in the U.S. Power, literally, is shifting from the east to west, to the wind belt of the Midwest, west Texas and the West Coast. Texas continues to lead the country, with 7,116 megawatts of wind capacity but Iowa in 2008 overtook California for the No. 2 spot, with 2,790 megawatts of wind generation. Other new wind powers include Oregon, Minnesota, Colorado and Washington state.

"But last year’s record is unlikely to be repeated in 2009…The Obama administration’s $825 billion stimulus package includes a three-year extension of a key production tax credit that has spurred the wind industry’s expansion. But given the dearth of investors with tax liabilities willing to invest in wind projects in exchange for the credits, the stimulus is unlikely to be stimulating to the industry unless the tax credit is made refundable to developers…

"The U.S. wind industry is dominated by European wind developers and turbine makers - General Electric (GE) and Clipper are the only two domestic turbine manufacturers - and those companies’ fortunes rise and fall with the global economy. As the U.S. market has boomed, European companies have been moving production close to their customers - the percentage of domestically manufactured wind turbine components rose from 30% to 50% between 2005 and 2008…"


EV DEALERSHIPS COMING
Findlay Automotive Signs Letter of Intent to Establish Xtreme Green Products Electric Vehicle Dealerships throughout the Southwest; Findlay Automotive Group will become the Exclusive Xtreme Green Products Eco-Vehicle Dealer in Las Vegas, Nevada, Northern Arizona and St. George, Utah
January 22, 2009 (XtremeGreen)

"Xtreme Green Products, Inc. (XGP), an eco-vehicle company specializing in the development of electric and environmentally friendly land and personal watercraft, has announced today that it has received a signed letter of intent from Findlay Automotive Group to establish Xtreme Green Products dealerships throughout Arizona, Utah and Nevada…"

Electric motorcycle, coming to a showroom soon. (click to enlarge)

"Xtreme Green Products is currently marketing its X Rider electric motorcycle and its line of Xtreme Green electric motor scooters. The X Rider can travel at speeds up to 65mph with a range of 95 miles on a single charge. The Xtreme Green electric motor scooter line includes two models, both of which can travel at speeds up to 50mph. The EM40 scooter has a range of 50 miles and the more powerful EM60 scooter has a range of 75 miles. The agreement with Findlay Automotive Group provides exclusive marketing and distribution rights for both the X Rider motorcycle and the motor scooters in Las Vegas, Nevada, Northern Arizona, and St. George, Utah…"


BIG STIMULUS $$$ TO COAL
Coal wins big in Senate stimulus package
Ken Ward Jr., January 28, 2009 (The Charleston Gazette)

"Coal supporters have managed to tuck more than $4.6 billion in money for the industry into a Senate version of the economic stimulus package…with several coal projects pushed by Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va…The Senate funding is nearly double the $2.6 billion included in a current House version of the legislation, meant to help boost the sagging economy across the country.

"Details… outlined in a Byrd news release…$2 billion for "near-zero emissions" power plants designed to capture and sequester carbon dioxide…$1 billion for the Department of Energy's Clean Coal Power Initiative…$1.6 billion for carbon capture at industrial plants…"

From Center for American Progress (click to enlarge)

"Sen. Jay Rockefeller, D-W.Va., has also been working behind the scenes to get as much money as possible into the stimulus package for what supporters call "clean coal" programs.

"Last year, Rockefeller managed to get $2.8 billion for the coal industry into the massive Wall Street bailout…aimed at encouraging power producers to limit greenhouse gas emissions…[and] to promote turning coal into liquid fuel, a move that could double greenhouse gas emissions from vehicle fuels.

"During his campaign, President Barack Obama promised to invest $150 billion over 10 years on a variety of energy programs, and to launch public/private partnerships to build five commercial-scale coal-fired power plants that capture carbon dioxide emissions…environmental groups are concerned that Congress will not put tight enough restrictions on "clean coal" projects - requirements that they actually limit their greenhouse gas emissions and do so now, rather than much later. Also, some citizen groups, especially those opposing mountaintop removal in Appalachia, argue there is no such thing as 'clean coal'…"


FIND WIND FAST
FirstLook® Prospecting Tool covers the world; Most accurate, consistent, comprehensive global wind dataset just a click away at 3TIER Web site
January 29, 2009 (3TIER)

"3TIER…announced the expansion of its FirstLook® Prospecting Tool, now providing free access to average wind speed ranges anywhere in the world, through a dynamic 5 km resolution map. Using the most accurate, consistent and comprehensive dataset ever created, FirstLook provides a fast, Web-based assessment tool to globally prospect for viable wind energy generation locations…

"As renewable energy developers identify promising wind resources, they can augment FirstLook’s initial wind assessment by purchasing more detailed reports that provide a more in-depth estimate of wind resources at specific locations.

"Available in just minutes, a FirstLook Wind Assessment Report includes…Average annual wind speed for the area around your site (50 km by 50 km or 31 miles by 31 miles)…Average monthly wind speed and standard of error for each month of the year…The distribution of hourly wind speeds throughout the year…A wind rose for all hourly wind speeds during the year…The average hourly wind speed and standard of error for each hour of the day…Wind roses for each month of the year…Daily wind speed patterns for each month of the year…"

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"FirstLook Assessment Reports are currently available for the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Reports for additional regions will be made available throughout the year…

"To produce the 5 km wind map and the underlying dataset, 3TIER implemented an innovative physical-statistical modeling approach…3TIER’s system integrates statistical methods with the power of physical-based models, which simulate the interaction between the atmosphere and the earth’s surface, to create a more robust and accurate wind climatology…the myriad processes responsible for wind – from jet level dynamics to surface level processes and everything in between – are accounted for…to create realistic wind fields throughout the world…

"3TIER ran its model through a 10-year simulation across the world’s landmass at a 5 km resolution. The results then were calibrated and validated with observational data to create the final dataset and, ultimately, the world wind map…

"3TIER also is mapping the world’s solar resources…In addition to FirstLook, 3TIER provides a full suite of assessment and forecasting products for wind, hydro and solar energy projects…"