QUICK NEWS, 3-15: REPORT DISSING CA’S AB 32 DISMISSED; THE BEST SOLAR POWER PLANT; LOCALS AGAINST VITAL LA WIRES; APX NOW TRADING EFFICIENCY CREDITS

REPORT DISSING CA’S AB 32 DISMISSED
Union of Concerned Scientists: LAO Study on AB 32 "Baseless Attack"
Steve Maviglio, March 10, 2010 (The California Majority Report)

"A March 4 letter from legislative analyst Mac Taylor to California State Sen. Dave Cogdill (R-Modesto) attempts to cast doubt on the economic benefits of the state's landmark global warming bill, AB 32. According to Jasmin Ansar, a climate economist with the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS), Taylor fails to cite any research to support his claims that the state's economy would suffer under AB 32.

"The public release of Taylor's letter coincides with a statewide effort to gather signatures for a ballot initiative asking voters to nullify AB 32 unless state unemployment drops to 5.5 percent. Two Texas-based oil companies, Valero and Tesoro, are funding that effort. Current unemployment in California exceeds 12 percent…"

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"…Taylor claims that [AB 32’s near term net jobs impact is likely to be negative]…This statement is purely speculative. It is not backed up by any research. Taylor…[then criticizes] a preliminary economic analysis of the California Air Resources Board's initial plan for implementing AB 32…[and] concludes…[that] AB 32 .will result in…near term…California job losses…with no reference to any analysis that would support it.

"Taylor's baseless claims are contradicted by a number of independent economic analyses that find significant job growth potential at the state and national level for many climate change policies…Historically, energy efficiency, which AB 32 would expand, has been an economic winner for California…[R]esearchers at University of California, Berkeley found that California's energy efficiency policies generated nearly 1.5 million new jobs from 1977 to 2007, while eliminating fewer than 25,000…"

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"…[R]esearch group Next 10 found that California…clean energy jobs represent one of the bright spots in California's economy…[and] concluded that if AB 32 were put on hold, the state would lose $80 billion in gross state product and half a million jobs by 2020. Conversely, implementing a 33 percent renewable electricity standard and a 1 percent annual improvement in energy efficiency would increase gross state product by $20 billion and generate 112,000 jobs…[A] Center for Resource Solutions review of several macroeconomic analyses concluded that climate solutions are affordable and that pollution reductions called for by AB 32 are consistent with economic growth.

"Failing to act on climate change would be far more expensive than adequately addressing it…[California] has $4 trillion in real estate assets, of which $2.5 trillion are at risk from extreme weather events, sea level rise, and wildfires. Climate change [could] come with a projected annual price tag of $300 million to $3.9 billion…A recent UCS-commissioned case study by the Brattle Group found an insignificant increase in energy costs for small businesses under AB 32."


THE BEST SOLAR POWER PLANT
Towers versus troughs
Rajessh Chhabara, 4 Decemeber 2009 (CSP Today)

"The moment for solar power tower technology has arrived…[I]s trough technology about to be sidelined? …Parabolic troughs, currently the most proven technology, concentrate sunlight onto thin tubes carrying thermal oil. The heat from the hot oil is transferred to the water in a heat exchanger to produce steam, which then is used to drive turbines to generate power…

"…[P]ower tower technology[uses] a large number of heliostats or mirrors [to] concentrate sunlight onto a boiler atop a tower. The heat is used to produce very hot steam from water, which rotates the turbines to generate power…Towers have the potential to be much more efficient than troughs, because they have far higher concentration ratios (300 to 800 suns vs. 80 or so for troughs)…While troughs produce heat at around 400 degree Celsius, towers can produce up to 550 degree Celsius…[allowing the use of more efficient turbines…And towers also have the potential for more efficient storage using molten salt as their fluid]…"

eSolar's breakthrough power tower technology. (click to enlarge)

"A further advantage of tower technology is its flexibility when it comes to siting. Whereas an even or leveled land area is needed for parabolic troughs, heliostats do not need to be sited on an even surface. Tower technology can even be deployed in a moderately hilly area…[T]echnological innovations have [also] advanced solar thermal power technology…[T]he software industry has made it possible to accurately track and control hundreds of thousands mirrors…

"…[T]he main barrier to [power tower] promotion comes from the fact that only a handful of tower plants are currently operational…More commercial tower plants need to come online before the technology can be considered ‘proven’…In addition to existing solar tower projects, including Abengoa Solar’s 11MW PS10, and 20MW PS20 solar towers in Sevilla, Spain, and the 10MW Solar One tower, (later expanded and renamed as Solar Two) in California…there are a number of ambitious projects in the pipeline…[from BrightSource Energy in California, Torresol Energy in Spain and eSolar in California]…[eSolar] unveiled the company’s first [5MW] tower plant…[in 2009 and has announced projects in California, New Mexico and China of more than 3,000MW]…"

Schematic of the parabolic trough technology. (click to enlarge)

"Some observers, however, say that banks are still cautious in financing tower plants…[E]ach tower technology provider will need to build a few plants with special financing, for example with government loan guarantees, before the technology will be routinely bankable…The upcoming tower projects by Bright Source, Torresol and [eSolar] will be watched closely and their success will likely trigger investment into tower plant project development around the world.

"Will towers replace parabolic troughs in future? Observers say both technologies will co-exist as both have their own unique advantages. While towers offer higher efficiencies leading to reduction in costs, parabolic troughs come with their own set of strengths [such as modularity that allows easier capacity expansion and]… the incremental development of very large-scale plants. When it comes to scale, however, tower technology has yet to prove itself."


LOCALS AGAINST VITAL LA WIRES
Bill aims to fight Chino Hills electrical tower construction
Neil Nisperos, March 13, 2010 (Inland Valley Daily Bulletin)

"With Southern California Edison moving to bring green wind energy from Central California to the Southland, city officials and a local lawmaker have devised a multi-pronged attack to slow the plan.

"The $1.8 billion Tehachapi project will bring wind-generated electricity from Kern County to the Los Angeles Basin - part of a state mandate to use more sustainable energy. The route would bring a portion of Edison's electric line through Chino…City residents have voiced concern that the 200-foot towers could fall on or near homes during an earthquake or very windy weather…More than 1,000 homes in Chino would be within 500 feet of the line…"

The wind riches in Tehachapi are so great that Edison is building a substation just to gather and deliver them. (Pic by NewEnergyNews. Click to enlarge)

"Assemblyman Curt Hagman, R-Chino Hills, has introduced a bill in Sacramento that would [prevent the project]…Mayor Bill Kruger said the bill may have been introduced too late to prevent the towers from being constructed in [Chino]…The city has also filed a lawsuit hoping to curtail the proposal. The suit argues that easements in the city are too narrow for the 200-foot towers. Officials are awaiting a court hearing date.

"The power line towers would replace inactive Edison power lines that are half the height. Edison officials have started relocating cell phone towers away from the easement…The state Public Utilities Commission in December sided with Edison's proposed route as more viable than the city's proposed alternate route, which would have cut through the Chino Hills State Park…"

The lines thru Chino are to deliver electricity from Tehachapi, California's most economic and environmentally accessible New Energy-rich region. (Chart from the California's RETI. Click to enlarge)

"The project aims to improve the environment and reduce dependence on foreign sources of energy…Construction is expected to start this year and last until 2013…

"The city has appealed the commission's decision. City officials doubt their appeal would be successful…Residents have also expressed concern about an aesthetic degradation of city views, reduction in home values, noise as well as the possibility of adverse health impacts from electromagnetic fields produced by the line…"


NOW TRADING EFFICIENCY CREDITS
APX’s North American Renewables Registry™ Infrastructure Extended to Energy Efficiency Markets; Energy Efficiency Certificates Now Being Registered with APX
March 9, 2010 (APX)

"APX, Inc….has now extended its registry services to include both renewable energy and energy efficiency certificates for voluntary markets. The first voluntary Energy Efficiency Certificates (EECs) registered in the APX North American Renewables Registry™ were registered by IBM Corporation.

"…IBM recently completed the initial phase of a virtualization and server consolidation project to reduce energy use in its data center in Ontario, Canada. These actions resulted in registered energy efficiency savings of over 1000 megawatt hours annually. This is expected to increase to an estimated 2700 megawatt hours per year as the project continues in 2010. When complete, this IBM data center location will consume approximately 80 percent less energy to deliver the current workload that supports IBM operations in Canada…"

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"The EECs were issued to IBM based on an independent audit and verification of permanent reductions conducted by Neuwing Energy Ventures, following the same standards as those used in regulated markets. Each EEC in the North American Renewables Registry is a unique and traceable commodity that represents a megawatt hour of energy saved."

[Brian Storms, Chairman/CEO, APX, Inc.:] “The potential for energy efficiency savings in our economy is enormous and includes some of our lowest cost solutions to combat climate change and improve sustainability…The extension of our market infrastructure to support emerging markets in Energy Efficiency Certificates is an important step in helping corporations monetize these savings and speed the development of EEC markets. We are privileged to support IBM in this important work.”