MORE NEWS, 9-24: WIND WANTS NEW ENERGY STANDARD; CLIMATE GETS DAY IN COURT; TOMORROW'S SUN ON YESTERDAY'S WASTE; PLUG-IN START-UP FISKER GETS $500 MIL

WIND WANTS NEW ENERGY STANDARD
Wind-Turbine Makers Press for Green Mandates
Russell Gold, September 22, 2009 (Wall Street Journal)

"Wind-turbine makers say growth in their industry could dramatically slow unless the federal government requires more electricity come from renewable energy…New federal stimulus grants helped restart a stalled wind-power industry, but Vic Abate, a General Electric Co. vice president in charge of its wind-turbine business, said orders for wind turbines to be built in 2012 and thereafter have been 'extremely light.'

"…[W]ind-power installation by 2012 could fall back to one-third of last year's construction levels without additional government support…The biggest impact will be felt by the wind-turbine makers. Last year, GE made 43% of the turbines in the U.S. market. Competitors including Denmark's Vestas Wind Systems A/S, Germany's Siemens AG and India's Suzlon Energy Ltd. each held about 10% of the market…Vestas, the second-largest turbine manufacturer in the U.S., recently reported its order backlog in North and South America was down 66.6% from a year earlier…[A] strong renewable-energy standard is needed to spur renewable-energy growth."

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"…[T]he U.S. wind industry has made passage of a national renewable-electricity standard -- a requirement for electric power from sources such as wind, solar and geothermal -- a top priority…[The industry’s] pitch to lawmakers is jobs…[W]ind power added 35,000 jobs in the past year.

"Numerous states already have passed renewable-electricity requirements, including California, where the governor last week signed an order requiring 33% of electricity come from renewable sources by 2020…But the wind industry insists that a national policy is needed to spur utilities to sign long-term deals for renewable energy. Without these long-term deals, wind farms can't get financing. And without wind-farm development, the thousands of jobs manufacturing high-tech blades, towers and other turbine parts could be in jeopardy."

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"Critics aren't convinced…[T]he Institute for Energy Research, a free-market energy think tank, said the government shouldn't be promoting renewable energy through mandates…But wind energy has been a success story for the U.S., which generates more electricity from wind than any other country. In 2008, about 8.5 gigawatts of wind power, capable of powering more than two million homes, were installed in the U.S.

"The federal government has been responsive to the needs of the wind industry…[C]ash grants to wind-farm developers…[are] helping restart wind projects stalled by the financial crisis. But the industry is not seeing many new orders for wind farms to be built in 2012 and 2013. Typically, turbine orders are placed two to three years ahead of construction…The climate bill passed by the House of Representatives in June -- and now under consideration in the Senate -- calls for 20% of electricity to come from renewable sources by 2020. A [Senate bill]… requires a weaker standard: 15% of electricity from renewable sources by 2021…[T]he lower standard would stall wind growth for five years…[but the] lower standard may be too high for some utilities…"


CLIMATE GETS DAY IN COURT
States Can Sue Utilities Over Emissions
Matthew L. Wald, September 21, 2009 (NY Times)

"A two-judge panel of a federal appeals court has ruled that big power companies can be sued by states and land trusts for emitting carbon dioxide. The decision…overturns a 2005 District Court decision that the question was political, not judicial.

"A panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, in New York, ruled that eight states — California, Connecticut, Iowa, New Jersey, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Wisconsin — as well as New York City and three land trusts could proceed with a suit against American Electric Power, Southern Corporation, the Tennessee Valley Authority, Xcel Energy and Cinergy Corporation, all large coal-burning utilities."

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"The case, brought in 2004, said the defendants were creating a “public nuisance” and sought reductions in emissions that scientists say are changing the climate. The states cited studies from the United Nations and the National Academy of Sciences that predicted damage and said in fact that their environments had already been damaged. The land trusts said that an increase in sea level would inundate their properties, among other problems…The power companies said that the federal courts had never recognized an argument in common law that greenhouse gas emissions contribute to global warming, and that if action were to be taken, Congress would have to do it.

"The lower court agreed…that if they found in favor of the states and the land trusts, the courts would have to figure out how to cap emissions, set reduction goals and a schedule for achieving them, and take other steps that would seem to require legislation…The appeal was…decided by Joseph M. McLaughlin, who was appointed to the court in 1990 by the first President George Bush, and Peter W. Hall, nominated in 2003 by the second President Bush."

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"Matt Pawa, the lead lawyer for the Open Space Institute and the Audubon Society of New Hampshire, both plaintiffs, said…[courts serve to protect citizens from harm]…At the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental group that was not a plaintiff, David Doniger, a senior lawyer, said the best way to fight global warming was to have Congress act…[and the court’s decision allows Congress and the EPA to do their jobs but holds power companies accountable if they don’t]…At American Electric Power, Pat D. Hemlepp, a spokesman, said the company’s lawyers had not decided whether to appeal…[but still believe legislation would be the best approach…]

"Many participants in the global warming debate appear to prefer a decision by the Congress, because it could balance competing interests, between and among regions and industries, to cut emissions of global warming gases…But [the court’s] decision means that all three branches of the federal government could have a role. In addition to the possibility that Congress will act, the Supreme Court held in April 2007, that global warming gases were a pollutant under the Clean Air Act, and thus could be regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency."


TOMORROW'S SUN ON YESTERDAY'S WASTE
Solar power plant on landfill could benefit thousands
Scott Wong, September 20, 2009 (The Arizona Republic)

"…Tessera Solar, which has offices in Scottsdale, has proposed a privately funded project using its solar-thermal dish technology known as SunCatcher [at Phoenix's only active landfill]…Its technology uses the sun's rays to heat up hydrogen, which in turn powers an engine and creates electricity.

"Tessera has already partnered with the Salt River Project on Maricopa Solar LLC, a 1.5-megawatt project in Peoria that will have 60 dishes running by January…The Phoenix project, to be located off Arizona 85 in Buckeye, calls for 7,000 SunCatcher dishes, each 38 feet wide by 40 feet tall…The project would generate 175 megawatts, enough to power about 27,000 Valley homes…"

Tessara's remarkable, futuristic Stirling Energy System solar power plant. An array of them will be positioned on a Phoenix landfill. (click to enlarge)

"Seeking to boost the Valley's solar economy and cut its greenhouse-gas emissions, Phoenix said earlier this year that it planned to lease land it owns in Buckeye for a solar-power plant…The plant would sit on a vacant 1,200-acre parcel reserved for future landfill use and could operate for up to 30 years.

"City officials estimate about $1 billion in private investment would be required to build the plant…A review panel, composed of Phoenix staffers, a Buckeye official, and business community representatives, evaluated proposals submitted…"

Schematic of the Tessara/Stirling solar device. Its minimal water requirements may have given it an edge in the competition. (click to enlarge)

"A City Council subcommittee will…[either] recommend full council approval to begin negotiating with Tessera, or to negotiate simultaneously with Tessera and second-ranked Johnson Controls Inc…[which] proposed a plant powered by highly efficient photovoltaic or solar panels…Both firms said they planned to incorporate landfill gas into their project, taking advantage of the nearby city dump and the gas pipeline that passes through the property…

"The full council is set to vote on the proposal in October, with contract negotiations with the winning bidder expected to run through early 2010…While the bidder would own the plant, Phoenix is seeking an agreement to share revenue from energy production…The partnership could allow the city to be a part owner of the plant or the renewable-energy credits that will be sold to a utility provider like SRP or APS."


PLUG-IN START-UP FISKER GETS $500 MIL
Plug-in hybrid maker Fisker Automotive gets $529 million from Obama administration; The loan will go toward development and production of its Karma plug-in hybrid sedan and development of Project Nina, its next-generation plug-in.
Ken Bensinger, September 22, 2009 (LA Times)

"In its latest bid to help finance the car of tomorrow, the Obama administration said it would [make a $528.7-million low-interest loan] to…Fisker Automotive Inc. to develop a pair of plug-in hybrids…[Part of] a $25-billion Department of Energy program to fund development of alternative vehicles…[the loans] will help create or save 5,000 jobs at Fisker and its suppliers…

"…[The] department lent [has] $8 billion to a variety of other automakers and suppliers under the same program…The loans to Fisker are sure to spur the rivalry between it and Tesla Motors Inc., maker of a $109,000 all-electric sports coupe called the Roadster. Tesla…was awarded $465 million…to build its second all-electric car, a sub-$50,000 sedan…"

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"Fisker plans to use $169.3 million of its loan to finish development and production of its $87,900 plug-in hybrid sedan, the Karma. That car will not be built in the U.S. Instead, Fisker is contracting Valmet Automotive Inc., a Finland-based company, to assemble the Karma. Still, the Energy Department estimates that 65% of the vehicle's parts will come from U.S. suppliers.

"Fisker will use the majority of the loan funds to develop its next-generation vehicle, called Project Nina…a plug-in that would be built in the U.S. and cost $47,400. The automaker hopes to sell 75,000 to 100,000 of the cars per year, starting in 2012. Fisker has not yet announced a location for its U.S. production facility, although it does have an engineering office in Pontiac, Mich…A release date for the Karma, originally set to come out late this year, has been pushed back twice: first to next spring and now, according to Fisker, next summer…"

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"…Tesla began delivering its Roadsters early last year, and more than 500 have sold to date…[With] a range of about 220 miles on a single charge…The Roadster is assembled in England, under contract by automaker Lotus. Tesla plans to build a battery factory in the Bay Area as well as an auto assembly plant in the Los Angeles area, where production of the Model S would begin in late 2011, but no final sites have been announced yet.

"Although a variety of new technologies are being considered for future generations of cars, no clear winner has emerged. While vehicles such as the Roadster run on battery power alone, Fisker's plug-in hybrids have both electric motors and gasoline engines on board and use them in concert. Because plug-ins have far larger batteries than hybrids such as the Toyota Prius and can be charged using an electrical outlet, they have the potential to be considerably more fuel-efficient…[O]ther automakers, including General Motors Co., are developing similar plug-in technology, but none have come to market yet in the U.S."