QUICK NEWS, 2-25: ALASKA TOWN LOVES ITS WIND; GIANT TEST FOR CPV IN NM; IPHONE APP FOR EV CHARGING; IOWA TURNS TO ADVANCED ALGAE ETHANOL

ALASKA TOWN LOVES ITS WIND
Small wind farm pays big
Jill Burke, February 23, 2010 (Alaska Dispatch)

"…[T]he village of Unalakleet, seated on Alaska's northwest coast, celebrated the town's newest energy force -- turbine number six. The awakening of the high-tech wind catcher completes the installation of the town's new wind farm, which has already saved the village tens of thousands of dollars…

"Since November, Unalakleet has cut utility costs by nearly $55,000 and generated enough electricity to power 86 homes for an entire year…[W]ind energy has significantly reduced carbon dioxide emissions [by the equivalent of more than 580,000 miles of driving, or about 111 one-way trips between Anchorage and Key West, Florida] that would otherwise have been pumped into the atmosphere through more traditional, diesel-only power generation…"

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"The project's success is due in part to a financial award from the State of Alaska's Renewable Energy Fund. The Alaska Energy Authority, which oversees the $250 million fund designed to lower energy costs for Alaskans, directed $4 million to the Unalakleet wind project. Other regional partners also chipped in, and the result is a six-turbine wind farm, owned by the Unalakleet Valley Electric Cooperative and targeted to reduce the community's energy costs by nearly one third. The Unalakleet project is one of nearly a dozen wind power projects in place statewide.

"STG Inc. designed and built the farm…Building wind systems in Alaska brings unique challenges. While the impact to the state's remote communities can be huge in terms of cost, the communities actually demand a very small fraction of what turbines are capable of supplying…[and] power grids across the state tend to be small and isolated, which requires a delicate balancing act to ensure systems are stable…[and] integrate both [wind and diesel power] for maximum efficiency, cost savings, and stability…[O]ne way to prevent overload on the wind turbines is to create a way to "dump" any excess energy. In the case of Unalakleet, the wind farm directs extra electricity to water boilers, creating "waste heat" to warm the school gym and some school offices."

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"Alaska's arctic environment also poses unique challenges for the equipment. Alloys and metals used to build the turbines are designed to withstand the state's harsh, cold climate, the blades are painted black to help absorb heat from the sun -- thus deterring ice buildup -- and the equipment is also treated with a special coating to block bugs, including Alaska's infamous mosquitoes…

"… Once [Unalakleet’s overhauled] power plant is in place, the wind farm can be more fully utilized…The wind farm was projected to pay for itself after 10 years of use, but if fuel costs rise in the years ahead, the payoff could come much sooner…Meanwhile, STG has more projects online, and says it's looking forward to harnessing even more of the state's raw wind power…"


GIANT TEST FOR CPV IN NM
Concentrix Solar Enters the US Market With Megawatt CPV Deployment at a Chevron Facility; Latest Soitec Acquisition Enables Innovative Commercial Solution for Utility-Scale CPV Project
February 24, 2010 (PR Newswire)

"Concentrix Solar, a leading supplier of Concentrator Photovoltaic (CPV) systems and a new division of the Soitec Group (Euronext Paris), the world's leading supplier of engineered substrates…has signed a contract with Chevron Technology Ventures for the deployment of a one megawatt (MW) CPV power plant to be installed at a Chevron Mining facility in Questa, New Mexico…and is paving the way to utility-scale CPV projects.

"Chevron…will install a one megawatt CPV solar power plant using Concentrix Solar's FLATCON(R) technology. This will be the largest CPV installation in the U.S. and one of the largest CPV power plants in the world. The power produced will be sold through a power purchase agreement to the Kit Carson Electric Cooperative…"

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"…Concentrix Solar already installed a demo system on the University of California San Diego campus. This demonstration tracker, installed in July 2009, confirmed system efficiencies (AC) of 25 percent under full field operating conditions."

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"Concentrix Solar operates a fully-automated manufacturing line in Freiburg, Germany, which produces high quality, durable CPV modules. The facility has a current capacity of 25 megawatts; further expansion is planned.

"A FLATCON(R) CPV tracking system has a nominal power output of 6 kilowatts. One megawatt consists of approximately 175 systems, which can be placed in an area of 7 acres…"


IPHONE APP FOR EV CHARGING
Coulomb Technologies Announces iPhone App for ChargePoint Networked Charging Stations
24 February 2010 (Business Wire via EarthTimes)

"Coulomb Technologies, the leader in electric vehicle charging station infrastructure…announced that the ChargePoint® iPhone App is now available in the iTunes App Store. The ChargePoint iPhone App gives electric vehicle owners the ability to not only easily locate ChargePoint® Networked Charging Stations for electric vehicles anywhere in North America, but see in real time if a charging station is currently available, in use, or out of service. Using the iPhone or iPod Touch, drivers can use the app to start and stop charging sessions, be notified when their vehicle is fully charged, and get directions to stations…"

Click thru to buy the App

"Using the ChargePoint iPhone App, EV drivers can now…Find charging stations near any specified address…Get turn-by-turn directions to charging stations…See the real-time availability status of charging stations: Available, In Use, or Out of Service…Start and Stop charging sessions directly from an iPhone…Get directions from current location to where the vehicle is charging…Get status on current or most recent charging session (energy, greenhouse gas savings, time)…Receive real-time notifications of current charging session…"

Click thru to buy the App and find a charging station

"Some features require a ChargePoint® Network driver account with an activated ChargePass™ card…[C]reate an account, and purchase or activate a ChargePass card [here]…Coulomb Technologies is a leader in electric vehicle charging station infrastructure with networked charging stations installed worldwide…"


IOWA TURNS TO ADVANCED ALGAE ETHANOL
New Clear Lake company promotes algae as biofuel
John Skipper, February 24, 2010 (Globe Gazette)

"…[Bud Jermeland, president of Energae LP], said the primary focuses of his [Clear Lake, Iowa] company are waste-based ethanol and the use of algae in the making of ethanol for the nutraceutical and pharmaceutical markets…

"The company recently purchased a 49 percent share of the Permeate Refining LLC ethanol plant in Hopkinton (Iowa)…That provides Energae with an instant revenue stream to help finance other projects."

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"The ethanol is waste-based, not corn-based…so the product is not subject to the price swings of the highly-volatile commodity markets…Energae is producing algae in South Carolina that will be used as a low-cost extract for alternative fuels…

"…[The] company is committed to the fact that algae is the best long-term solution for cost-efficient biofuels and biodiesel in particular…He said another possibility for algae use is to grow pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals…"

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"Jon Alexandres of Tallahassee, Fla., a former Mason City businessman, did research on the algae project and helped raise $4 million to build a complete-algae producing system in South Carolina…Jerry Krause, longtime Clear Lake businessman…is the investor relations officer for Energae…Krause said the company has 260 investors and has room for more. Minimum investment is $5,000."

[Bud Jermeland, president, Energae LP:] “We are committed to the fact that algae is the best long-term solution for biofuels - biodiesel in particular…The possibilities for algae continue to evolve…When gas and diesel prices were at $4 a gallon, alternative fuel projects generated more interests and incentives…We continue to search for the least cost, most efficient oil extraction methods. That alone is the key to a successful green fuel project involving algae.”