MORE NEWS, 3-6 (“CLEAN” COAL, A RESEARCH PROJECT; AUSTIN TO BUILD BIGGEST U.S. SOLAR POWER PLANT; N. DAKOTA WILL MAKE WIND; WAVE POWER BOOSTERS)

“CLEAN” COAL, A RESEARCH PROJECT
DOE taking 'fresh look' at FutureGen, energy chief says
Ben Geman, March 5, 2009 (NY Times)

"The Energy Department may proceed with a "modified" plan to build a prototype coal-burning power plant that would capture and store carbon dioxide as part of new efforts to expand international collaboration on carbon-management technologies, Energy Secretary Steven Chu said…

"His comments are the strongest indication yet that DOE might reverse a Bush administration decision to pull the plug on FutureGen, a federal-industry project that was to be built in Illinois and has faced significant cost overruns…"

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"Chu said he has been working with foreign ministers and energy ministers to ensure greater international collaboration on what projects proceed to ensure that a range of carbon-management technologies are pursued."

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"A greater collaboration on deciding what projects to fund and how to "parcel out turf" would allow a FutureGen project to pursue a smaller range of missions…[I]f another nation plans to pursue one particular project, it would not have to be part of FutureGen…This could help reduce project costs that otherwise could have been more than $2 billion…

"Several nations are planning carbon capture and storage demonstration projects, including 10 to 12 planned in the European Union, but greater multinational planning is needed…"


AUSTIN TO BUILD BIGGEST U.S. SOLAR POWER PLANT
City council gives Austin Energy the go-ahead for major solar project
Christopher Calnan, March 5, 2009 (Austin Business Journal)

“The Austin City Council…gave the go-ahead for Gemini Solar Development Co. to build the 300-acre solar array that would generate 30-megawatts annually…federal investment tax credits or similar rebates Gemini Solar receives from the project [must] be passed through to the city and Austin Energy to reduce any related fuel cost charges passed on to the utility’s customers.

“The council also [requested]…a council-appointed task force….[to] formulate a renewable energy plan and provide input before a project is selected by Austin Energy…[and] incorporate conservation, the current financial climate, updated demand forecasts, changing technology, and state/federal stimulus programs."

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“The approval came after…the Solar Electric Manufacturers in Texas, or SEMI Texas…requested Gemini Solar to restructure its deal so U.S. companies can participate in the project, which is estimated to be worth $180 million. The coalition proposed a series of three 10-megawatt projects to give local panel makers time to get their plants operating in time to supply the project…Instead, Gemini plans to get the project’s 220,000 solar panels from a Chinese manufacturer Suntech Power Holdings.

“…The restructuring… would give [Texas] start-up companies an early boost and effectively seed fund a local solar industry…Austin Energy officials declined to comment… except to say the source of the panels isn’t a major concern compared with getting the best price…Gemini Solar [is] planning to complete the project with financial backing by [Spanish-owned] MMA Renewable Ventures…Carole Keeton Strayhorn, an Austin mayoral candidate, urged the council not to contract with Gemini Solar."

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“Although Austin is being positioned to become a hub of cleantech innovation…no Texas companies are ready to produce solar panels…Eight to 10 solar companies are considering Austin as a location for future manufacturing plants because they can use the local worker pool from the semiconductor industry…Austin-based HelioVolt Corp. …is the only local solar panel maker…but it isn’t scheduled to reach full-scale production until 2010…Several U.S. companies…are capable of producing enough panels to supply the project…

“Austin Energy would pay $250 million, $10 million a year for 25 years, for the electricity the solar array would generate…Once it’s operating, Gemini Solar would be eligible for $60 million — about one-third the project’s cost — through the federal investment tax credit program…"


N. DAKOTA WILL MAKE WIND
N.D. hires consultant to recruit wind business
Dale Wetzel, March 5, 2009 (AP via Jamestown Sun)

"A British consultancy has been hired to prospect for European companies willing to build wind turbines or supply parts for them in North Dakota…The seven-month, $28,000 contract with Deyton Bell Ltd., of Cambridge, England, is intended to develop business leads for North Dakota officials to follow up…

"Chris Parkhouse, Deyton Bell’s managing director, will be the state’s principal contact. Parkhouse visited North Dakota last December for briefings on the state’s wind energy industry and its general business selling points…"

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"North Dakota already has manufacturers that supply the industry. DMI Industries, of West Fargo, builds towers for wind turbines, while LM Glasfiber, a Danish company, operates a Grand Forks factory that makes turbine blades. DMI Industries is part of Otter Tail Corp. of Fergus Falls, Minn…it is a logical step for the state to recruit makers of the turbines themselves.

"As wind energy development grows in the United States, it makes more sense to make components here than to manufacture them in Europe and ship them to America…North Dakota also has manufacturers capable of making wind-turbine parts if the industry were to expand here…

"Acconia SA of Madrid, Spain, already operates wind power projects in the upper Great Plains. Its largest single wind farm, which is capable of generating 180 megawatts of power, is located in Dickey and McIntosh counties in south-central North Dakota, and McPherson County in South Dakota…Acconia also owns an 11.8-megawatt wind project near Velva, in north-central North Dakota…"


WAVE POWER BOOSTERS
Wave Power: Oceans of Potential, But Is It Viable?
Alisa Opar, March 4, 2009 (Audubon Magazine)

"…Mayor Gavin Newsom announced that [San Francisco] submitted a “preliminary permit application” to the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission to develop a wave power project. If approved, the San Francisco scheme will join a handful of other pilot projects in, and heading toward, U.S. waters.

"…Newsom wrote that wave power there has the potential to generate up to 100 megawatts, and create some 100 jobs. He didn’t specify which type of device San Francisco would deploy off its coast to harness energy from waves, but he did mention the wide variety of possibilities… ‘There are over 50 different types of wave devices currently under development, ranging from “pitching” devices (Pelamis), “overtopping” devices (Wave Dragon), oscillating water columns (OceanLinx) and “heaving” devices (Aquabuoy). Some of these devices are based on “biomimicry” principles, which imitate natural designs and processes (bioWave, WaveRoller). Others can even provide both wave power and desalination (CETO). Wave technology is still new, but the possibilities of clean, green energy produced by the ocean is very real, if we invest in the technology…’"

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"As Naomi Luick points out…recent technical advances and an influx of funds make the technology look promising…‘The state of Oregon has invested…more than $4 million in wave energy research…[T]he U.S. Department of Energy announced funding for a Northwest National Marine Renewable Energy Center in Oregon. The site will include a wave tank and other indoor testing facilities, among other resources. To be managed by OSU, the University of Washington, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, the center will receive approximately $13 million for up to 5 years…

"'[T]wo major utility-funded projects got the green light earlier this year. The California Public Utilities Commission approved $2 million in funding in January for Pacific Gas and Electric to develop a project off the coast of northern California. In Washington state, the Snohomish Public Utility District received funding for a project in Admiralty Inlet. And all eyes have been trained on the first full-scale wave farm to open, Aguadoura, 5 kilometers offshore of Portugal, which has been operating since last September. The plant currently produces up to 2.25 megawatts of electricity, but the farm is expected to be a 20-megawatt operation.’

"But there are still environmental concerns, including impacts on marine ecology, as well as regulatory obstacles, and the possibility of hurting fishing communities…Newsom joined other mayors, industrial leaders, academics, and environmentalists in signing on to the Ocean Renewable Energy white paper… by the Environmental Defense Fund…given to Obama’s transition team. The paper calls for…putting small-scale projects in the water…Despite the obstacles, if the various stakeholders are willing to work together, as the white paper suggests, perhaps the oceans will provide a safe, viable source of renewable energy."