MORE NEWS, 4-6 (WORLD PUSHES U.S. ON CLIMATE CHANGE; RULES DUE ON U.S. OFFSHORE WIND & WAVES; MIGHTY MITSUBISHI BETS NEW ENERGY)

WORLD PUSHES U.S. ON CLIMATE CHANGE
US to be 'pragmatic on climate'
Roger Harrabin, 3 April 2009 (BBC News)

"…Speaking at UN talks in Bonn, [America's lead negotiator on climate change] Jonathan Pershing said the US [must balance science with what is politically and technologically achievable and] must not offer more than it could deliver by 2020…Poor countries said the latest science showed rich states should cut emissions by 40% on 1990 levels by 2020…President Barack Obama's plan merely to stabilise greenhouse gases at 1990 levels by 2020 is much less ambitious.

"Mr Pershing, the US delegation head, previously spent many years promoting clean energy for the International Energy Agency and at the Washington think-tank WRI - World Resources Institute…[Pershing is] very worried the Earth might already be committed to dangerous climate change…But he said the US should not make promises for 2020 that it could not keep…"

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[Pershing:]: "It is not the point in time in 2020 that matters - it is a long-term trajectory against which the science measures cumulative emissions…The president has also announced his intent to pursue an 80% reduction by 2050…It is clear that the less we do in the near-term, the more we have to do in the long-term. But if we set a target that is un-meetable technically, or we can't pass it politically, then we're in the same position we are in now… where the world looks to us and we are out of the regime…We want to be in (the regime), we want to be pragmatic, we want to look at the science. There is a small window of where they overlap. We hope to find it."

"This is a radical change of tone and content from the Bush administration which envisaged that emissions would continue to grow to 2025…[Much still depends] on the level of domestic political resistance in Congress and the amount of progress on technology policies…

"Mr Pershing did promise that the US would help poor countries to fund clean technology…[but] hinted the sums would be much less than many developing countries demanded…Negotiators from China, India and Papua (representing vulnerable states) all told BBC News that the US and other rich nations needed to cut emissions much harder and offer concrete funding…"

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[Surya Sethi, climate change negotiator, India:] "Progress is extremely slow. Rich nations seem to think that developing countries can help the world out of the climate problem. But the poorest 50% have just 11% of emissions…It is crystal clear that the answer is for the United States and other rich nations to change their lifestyles and their methods of production and consumption. We do not see any real evidence that they have grasped that issue properly yet."

"…The current talks in the German city are not expected to produce a substantial step forward…So much work remains that the UN is planning two extra preparatory meetings before Copenhagen…Mr Pershing expressed cautious optimism that the framework for a legally binding deal might emerge by December, although he said some details might take longer to be settled. There was an energy behind the issue in the United States that he had never previously witnessed, he said."


RULES DUE ON U.S. OFFSHORE WIND & WAVES
Final offshore wind rules in months: U.S. Interior
Ayesha Rascoe (w/David Gregorio), April 2, 2009 (Reuters)

"U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar… expects his department to finalize rules for offshore renewable energy in a few months…

"The department is considering whether to give final approval to offshore wind energy project Cape Wind off the coast of Massachusetts, which aims to provide power for 400,000 homes but has drawn powerful opponents including Sen. Ted Kennedy and other residents of coastline communities."

New edition soon, New Energy soon thereafter. (click to enlarge)

"The project would consist of 130 wind turbines over 24 square miles in Nantucket Sound, within view of popular Cape Cod resorts.

"The Interior Department oversees offshore wind and solar projects under an agreement reached last month with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission.

"Under Salazar, the department has worked to speed development of clean energy production on federal lands."


MIGHTY MITSUBISHI BETS NEW ENERGY
Mitsubishi’s green power gamble; Japan’s largest industrial group Mitsubishi wants to become a leading global player in renewable energy
Rajesh Chhabara, April 3, 2009 (Climate Change Corp)

"Mitsubishi group is a complex conglomerate of over 500 companies engaged in a wide range of industries…In the energy segment, Mitsubishi is considered one of the global leaders in nuclear energy systems and conventional power plants. The group has a significant presence in the renewable energy market that includes manufacturing wind turbines and solar panels. Bio-fuel plants, water turbine plants and geothermal plants are other areas where the group has a growing presence...

…[T]hree related developments in the recent years have influenced Mitsubishi’s green strategy…[First] was basically a threat to its conventional fossil fuel power plant business on account of growing global warming concerns…[Second] was a combination of opportunities presented by the promotion of renewable energy by European governments and a growing clean energy demand in the US…[Third] was Mitsubishi’s home country Japan taking a leadership role in the fight against global warming…"

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"Though Mitsubishi companies are engaged in a range of green energy businesses…the group is banking on solar energy for future growth…Photovoltaic power, Mitsubishi’s main strength, has a huge potential in Europe…[T]he company recently made headlines when it said that it has achieved the world’s highest energy conversion efficiency rate of 18.6% for multi-crystal silicon cell technologies. The company already boasts the highest energy conversion rate of 97.5% for its Photovoltaic Inverters…

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., which has over $33 billion in annual revenue, manufactures thin-film photovoltaic modules, geothermal power plants, wind turbine generators and water turbine plants…MHI set up Bulgaria’s first wind farm in a joint venture with the Bulgarian engineering firm Ion Limited…So far, the company has been selling 1-3 MW models, mostly focusing on the US market. Massive orders from the US wind power generation developers prompted the company to triple the annual wind turbine production capacity from 400 MW in 2007 to 1200 MW in 2008 and plans to increase it to 2000 MW by 2010…"

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"The third company Mitsubishi Corporation, with over $43 billion in annual revenue, is Japan’s largest trading company and has been instrumental in marketing renewable energy products…The company’s strategy includes acquisitions and joint ventures mainly in Europe though expansion plans include the US, the Middle East and South-east Asia. The company also plans investing in manufacturing of poly-silicon and silicon wafers, the main raw materials for photovoltaic cells, to ensure a steady supply…

"But Mitsubishi has its baggage of controversies which may affect its image as a champion of clean energy and sustainability. Germany-based Oekom Research, a leading rating agency for sustainable investments, gave a ‘not-prime’ C- rating to Mitsubishi last year for lack of transparency regarding the integration of environmental considerations into products and services…Mitsubishi has the technological prowess and financial muscles to become a significant leader in the renewable energy market in Europe where it has its eyes set. But it may have to work harder to come clean on its own sustainability performance."