MORE WORLD, 1-25 (BIOFUELS BOOM IS INDONESIA’S BANE; MEXICAN WIND; BIG GAS FIND FOR ISRAEL; GREECE REFINES SOLAR POLICY)

BIOFUELS BOOM IS INDONESIA’S BANE
The cost of the biofuel boom on Indonesia's forests; The clearing of Indonesia's rainforest for palm oil plantations is having profound effects – threatening endangered species, upending the lives of indigenous people, and releasing massive amounts of carbon dioxide
Tom Knudson, January 21, 2009 (Yale Environment 360 via UK Guardian)

"…The storybook forest of [Sumatran Matt Aman’s] youth, the great green riot of reeds and vines, the cathedral-like thickets of fruit and hardwood trees — all of it is gone. In its place, for mile after monotonous mile, is a rolling carpet of palm trees..the oil palm — that like corn and soybeans is rapidly becoming one of the world's major sources of biofuel…

"…mounting evidence indicates that producing biofuels — particularly those derived from food crops such as corn and oil palm — may be doing considerably more harm to the planet than good, actually increasing greenhouse gas emissions and driving up food prices worldwide.

"Some of the most devastating costs of the biofuel revolution are on display in Indonesia, where massive clearing of tropical forests for oil palm plantations has caused staggering environmental damage and tremendous loss of biodiversity. Only the Amazon and Africa's Congo basin harbor more tropical forests than Indonesia, but the reality today is that all three regions are seeing their rain forests disappear at an alarming rate. And in the Amazon and Indonesia, growing world demand for food and biofuel is now driving much of the damage."

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"A flurry of scientific field work and environmental reports have linked the spread of oil palm plantations in Indonesia to the decimation of rain forests, increased conflict between logging and oil palm interests and rural and indigenous people, and massive CO2 emissions through logging, burning, and the draining of carbon-rich peat lands…

"According to Indonesia's own figures, 9.4 million acres of forest have been planted with oil palm since 1996, an area larger than New Hampshire and Connecticut combined. That works out to 2,000 acres a day, or about one football field a minute. Indonesia is the Kuwait of palm oil. Only Malaysia, which has less at stake biologically, produces more…

"…Perhaps the right kind of biofuels can help slow carbon emissions. But scientists say that by rushing into biofuel production in recent years, we failed to look ahead. What would make the best biofuel? Switchgrass? Soybeans? Sunflower seeds? Algae? That's open to debate, but one thing is certain: Raw materials for biofuels should not be grown on plantations hacked out of tropical forests that are home to the richest concentrations of plant, insect, bird, and animal species on the planet."


MEXICAN WIND
Mexico turns toward alternative energy
Mark Stevenson, January 22, 2009 (AP)

"Mexico inaugurated one of the world's largest wind farm projects…Mexico is trying to exploit its rich wind and solar potential after relying almost exclusively on petroleum for decades. With oil production down by 9.2 percent in 2008, Mexico now is turning to foreign companies, mainly Spanish, to tap its renewable riches…

"The new, $550 million project is in a region so breezy that the main town is named La Ventosa, or "Windy." It's on the narrow isthmus between the Gulf of Mexico and the Pacific Ocean, where winds blow at 15 mph to 22 mph (25 to 36 kph), a near-ideal rate for turbines…"

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"Spanish energy company Acciona Energia says the 6,180-acre (2,500-hectare) farm should generate 250 megawatts of electricity with 167 turbines, 25 of which are already operating. The rest should be on line by the end of the year, making the project the largest of its kind in Latin America…[construction of the project created 850 jobs]…It will produce enough energy to power a city of 500,000 people…

"The project is also a joint venture with Cemex Inc. and will provide 25 percent of the Mexican cement giant's energy needs…Mexico hopes to boost the nation's wind energy capacity, mainly at La Ventosa…Wind energy now accounts for less than 2 percent of electricity production…the government is planning a series of wind projects that by 2012 should generate 2,500 megawatts of electricity…"


BIG GAS FIND FOR ISRAEL
Israeli Gas Find Tips Energy Balance; The discovery of a major natural gas field off the coast of Israel could help make the country an energy exporter
Neal Sandler, January 19, 2009 (BusinessWeek)

"A popular quip in Israel's energy industry has it that when Moses left Egypt, he took a wrong turn on his way to the Promised Land: The Biblical figure should have veered right to Saudi Arabia…Now it appears Moses might have had a better nose for energy than previously thought…just hours after a cease-fire began in the Gaza Strip, Israel announced the discovery of a major natural gas field off its northern Mediterranean coast...The news sent the Tel Aviv stock market sharply higher…

"…The find, located 90 kilometers due west of the port of Haifa, is the first large field discovered in the eastern Mediterranean and is significant even by global standards…The partners in the project—Noble, Delek Drilling, Avner Exploration, Isramco (ISRL), and Dorgas—will have to invest around $1 billion to develop the field, and gas could begin flowing within three to four years…[They] are hoping that Tamar-1 is only the tip of the iceberg…"

There are already challenges over ownership of the field. (click to enlarge)

"…the timing of the gas discovery couldn't have been better for Israel. The country is in the midst of switching its older oil-based power plants to cleaner natural gas, which is far more environmentally friendly. More than a dozen new gas-powered plants are in the works. But in the past year there has been growing concern that Israel would face a supply crunch within a few years…

"A much smaller field off Israel's southern Mediterranean coast…is expected to run dry in 2012. In May, Israel began importing gas from Egypt, but technical problems with the marine pipeline have led to constant disruptions. Making matters worse, there has been growing opposition in Egypt to the sale of gas to Israel at prices agreed to…

"…Unfortunately for the Israeli economy, the financial impact of the gas find won't likely trickle down for at least several years…The discovery is expected to sharply reduce Israel's expensive dependence on imported fuel…But in the short term, Israel's good fortune will do little to counter a deepening recession…"


GREECE REFINES SOLAR POLICY
Greece Amends Photovoltaic Law
January 20, 2009 (SustainableBusiness.com)

"A new law introduced in Greece…[amended] legislation originally approved in 2006 to regulate and incentivize the photovoltaic industry…

"Although the country has tremendous solar potential, it has been criticized recently by some in the industry…for bureaucratic hurdles that may be holding back development of the renewable resource.

"The new PV law abolishes the unofficial cap of 0.8 (gigawatts) GW…It also sets a deadline for issuing permits. By the end of 2009, all applications that have been submitted--more than 3 GWp--must be dealt with and approved or rejected."

Greece wants to do better. (click for Global Green's full report on Greece)

"The new law also separates a program for rooftop PV with different feed-in-tariffs (FIT) guaranteed for 20 years. Details of this program will be announced later this year.

"The law also sets new feed-in-tariffs, guaranteed for 20 years. FITs will be adjusted annually for inflation, though they will remain unchanged for the next two years.

"There will be a regression of FITs as of August 2010. However, one can sign a grid connection agreement thus locking the FIT before this deadline, and then get another 18 months to finalize installation. In practice, this means that FITs remain unchanged till early 2012.

"The new tariffs will start at EUR 400 per megawatt-hour (MWh) in February for 100 kilowatt peak systems and EUR 450 per MWh for systems less and equal to 100 kilowatt peak on the mainland."