MORE NEWS, 5-20 (NY GOV WANTS 100 MEGAWATTS OF SUN; BATTERIES BIG ENOUGH TO HOLD THE WIND; SEC/DOE PROMISES TO PURSUE ‘CLEAN’ COAL)

NY GOV WANTS 100 MEGAWATTS OF SUN
NY wants to install 100 MW of solar power
Scott DiSavino, May 15, 2009 (Reuters)

"New York wants to install up to 100 megawatts of solar photovoltaic power at public and private facilities to help meet the state's aggressive renewable mandate, the governor said…[T]he state-owned power generating company, the New York Power Authority (NYPA), will seek parties interested in entering into public-private partnerships with the state to install the solar arrays.

"The solar power generated by the arrays would power about 15,000 homes…Proposals are due by July 7. The state said any proposals it selects would likely start in 2010."

NY state does not have great solar assets but they are far better than Germany's and Germany - thanks to its FiT - leads the world in installed solar capacity. (click to enlarge)

"The solar power would help the state meet the governor's 45-by-15 program…[and obtain] 45 percent of its electricity through energy efficiency and renewable power [by 2015]. The state has estimated the 45-by-15 program would create about 50,000 new jobs…"

By building a solar industry, NY state builds this supply chain. (click to enlarge)

"The state did not estimate how much it would cost to build 100 MW of solar power…A kilowatt costs an estimated $6,000…It could cost about $600 million to build 100 MW of solar photovoltaic power…Wind power, meanwhile, costs about $1,900 per kilowatt to build onshore and $3,800 per kilowatt offshore, while combined cycle natural gas-fired generation costs about $1,000 per kilowatt and coal-fired generation costs about $2,000 per kilowatt.

"Unlike natural gas and coal-fired generation, wind and solar power are only available about a third of the time…But fossil fuels, like natural gas and coal, produce carbon dioxide, which is regulated in New York and will likely soon be regulated by the federal government because of its links to global warming."


BATTERIES BIG ENOUGH TO HOLD THE WIND
EaglePicher plans batteries to store wind-farm energy
Andy Ostmeyer, May 13, 2009 (Joplin Globe)

"EaglePicher Technologies wants to store the…energy generated [by] thousands of turbines that utilities are building across Kansas and other Great Plains states…[W]ind energy — while renewable, clean and free — can also be unpredictable, and that has been the bane of utilities being pushed by voters, legislators and regulators to add more green power.

"EaglePicher Technologies wants to develop commercial batteries big enough to store the Kansas wind, and release it to the grid at times when demand is high but the breeze isn’t blowing. The batteries also would allow storage of energy at night, for example, when the wind might be blowing but demand is low…"

The basic idea. (click to enlarge)

"The power coming from wind farms right now, if it could be charted, would look like a roller coaster…If the wind were recharging large batteries, and those batteries were interfaced with the grid, the steep peaks and valleys of that roller-coaster chart moderate some and the result is a more reliable feed to the grid…But the kinds of batteries it would take to store that wind energy would be enormous…

"…EaglePicher may be able to make as many as three of these huge batteries per year for utilities such as the Empire District Electric Co., which already has two 20-year contracts for wind power from two Kansas wind farms…[T]hose two contracts mean Empire has the potential to get up to 15 percent of its electrical energy from wind, which would allow it to meet renewable energy standards that voters mandated…"

This 6 megawatt storage is at work in Japan. With supportive federal policy, the U.S. could see such technology and projects. (click to enlarge)

"…NGK Industries, of Japan, already has produced a battery for Xcel Energy’s wind farms…[I]ts 1 megawatt battery is a pilot project that was installed earlier this year. It is too soon to know how it is working, but when charged, it is expected to provide enough electricity for 500 homes for seven hours…

"EP would use a different battery chemistry than some of its competitors…It is looking at a lithium-ion combination that has applications in everything from space to implantable medical batteries…[D]eveloping these large commercial battery systems will require large amounts of money, with some of that coming from the U.S. Department of Energy, some from the state of Missouri, and some from the company…[EP] is seeking a partnership with an unnamed utility and is prepared to create as many as 600 [production, research, engineering, technical, management and oversight] jobs in the Joplin area developing the new batteries…"


SEC/DOE PROMISES TO PURSUE ‘CLEAN’ COAL
US energy chief vows to pursue 'clean coal'
May 19, 2009 (AFP)

"US Energy Secretary Steven Chu pledged…the administration would pursue "clean coal" technology, even as it focuses research on alternatives such as wind and solar.

"The US coal industry and lawmakers from coal-mining states have mounted an aggressive campaign to promote investment in cleaner coal as President Barack Obama's administration takes tougher action on the environment…But many environmentalists say that clean coal methods -- such as capturing and storing carbon emissions -- are unproven and drain resources from finding real ways to combat global warming."

Coal might someday get cleaner but its a long time off...(click to enlarge)

"Chu, asked during testimony at the Senate Appropriations Committee whether the administration was committed to researching clean coal, replied: "Yes."

"Presenting the 2010 budget requests, Chu acknowledged the administration's views had changed after Congress made clean coal a priority in its 787 billion-dollar stimulus package…"

...And it's going to cost a lot. So why not spend now on wind and sun and never need coal, clean or otherwise? (click to enlarge)

"Chu, a Nobel Prize-winning physicist, said before taking office that his "worst nightmare" was for the world to continue using coal at its current pace -- comments seized upon by global warming skeptics.

"Chu renewed Obama's promise to step up research in key areas such as solar power, which would enjoy an 82 percent funding boost under the budget…"