QUICK NEWS, 5-6: HUGE WIND PROJECT FOR BAJA; ENERGY STORAGE POSSIBILITIES; OIL CO INVESTS IN ALGAE; WHAT GOOGLE WANTS

HUGE WIND PROJECT FOR BAJA
Sempra To Build $5.5B Wind Farm in Baja California
May 5, 2010 (Sustainable Business)

"Sempra Energy… plans to construct a massive $5.5 billion wind farm in Baja California (Mexico). The wind farm, which could cover a total surface area of 294 hectares on completion, will comprise a thousand wind turbines.

"The wind farm will have a total capacity of between 1,000 megawatts (MW) and 1,200 (MW), in four areas in Mexico’s Baja California. Jacume, La Rumorosa, Cordillera Molina and Sierra de Juárez, which are located in the municipalities of Mexicali, Tecate and Ensenada, have been chosen for the first stages of the project."

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"The first stage, located north of the village of La Rumorosa, will consist of 52 wind turbines and will cost $300 million to build. In total, Sempra Energy will invest up to $5.5 billion on the entire project…No timeline was given for the project's start or completion.

"Sempra is also set to harvest wind energy in Hawaii. In October 2009, Sempra Generation, a subsidiary of Sempra Energy, acquired Auwahi Wind Energy LLC, a company developing a 22-MW wind energy and battery storage project in Maui (Hawaii), from Shell WindEnergy Inc., a subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell…"

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"The proposed Auwahi Wind Energy project could begin construction in 2011 and commence commercial operations in 2012 on the Ulupalakua Ranch in the remote southeastern region of Maui.

"Sempra Energy also plans to develop up to 500 MW of solar power on 4,000 acres of land near Phoenix, Arizona."


ENERGY STORAGE POSSIBILITIES
Energy Storage Systems for Ancillary Services; Frequency Regulation, Spinning Reserve, Voltage Control, and Other Fast Response Energy Storage Applications: Technology Analysis and Forecasts
May 4, 2010 (Pike Research)

"Stationary energy storage will have a large role to play in the electricity grid of the future. Demand is being driven by several key trends, including the proliferation of intermittent renewable energy sources such as wind and solar, the onset of the smart grid concept and a shift to plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles. Energy storage systems (ESS) are being developed by technology providers in a wide range of solutions, from batteries, flywheels and mechanical storage. One key emerging area within the ESS market is the Ancillary Services sector…"

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"ESS systems providing ancillary services offer sustained energy requirements of typically less than one hour, and often minutes or seconds, and a response time that is often near-instantaneous. The technologies best suited to provide ancillary services are lithium ion (Li-ion) batteries and flywheels, although Pike Research anticipates that a range of technologies and configurations will compete…"

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"…[The] Pike Research report provides an in-depth analysis of the global market opportunity for ESS-based ancillary services. It includes a detailed assessment of various energy storage technologies, their strengths and weaknesses, performance capabilities, and economics. The report also examines the commercialization path for ancillary services, including market drivers and barriers, policy and regulatory factors, and investment dynamics. It includes profiles of key market players along with detailed market forecasts, segmented by technology and world region, through 2019."


OIL CO INVESTS IN ALGAE
Valero inks joint development pact with algae firm
Steve Gelsi, May 5, 2010 (MarketWatch)

"Valero Energy Corp. has inked a joint development pact with Algenol Biofuels Inc. for an undisclosed sum…

"Valero Energy Corp. made a 'relatively small investment' in…Algenol Biofuels…[T]he deal calls for sharing of technology and infrastructure for the production and distribution of transportation fuels and chemicals…"

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"Valero also holds an undisclosed stake in Solix, another algae company… Valero makes investments for future products as part of its research and development effort.

"The move comes as Valero recorded a first-quarter profit of $57 million from production of corn-based biofuel, after the Texas-based refining giant moved into the ethanol business last year."

Valero wants to put algae farms near refineries for the same purpose. (click to enlarge)

"Valero bought seven ethanol plants out of bankruptcy court from VeraSun for $477 million; followed by a second batch of three plants for $270 million, both in 2009.
Now Valero ranks as one of the largest ethanol producers in the U.S., rivaling private Poet LLC and Archer Daniels Midland with about 1.1 billion gallons a year in production.

"Algenol CEO Paul Woods said the two companies will work on putting algae farms next to refineries to absorb carbon dioxide to make ethanol and chemicals…"


WHAT GOOGLE WANTS
Google’s Energy Foray: What’s Up?
Sindya N. Bhanoo, May 5, 2010 (NY Times)

"…Google is explicit about its mission ‘to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful.’

"Now it is laying out plans to become a leader in capturing, owning, tracking and trading energy. Recently the company announced a $38.8 million investment in two wind farm projects in North Dakota…The project is being led by NextEra, one of the nation’s largest owners of wind farms…Google also won federal approval in February to buy and sell electricity on American electricity markets. And the company offers tools for measuring the electricity consumption of home appliances…"

The Google tool for collecting energy information. (click to enlarge)

"…[Google says] ventures like the wind farms, beyond speeding the deployment of clean energy technology, could provide ‘attractive returns’ and ‘more capital for developers to build additional projects.’"

What's she up to? (click to enlarge)

"Connect the dots, and Google is up to something, said Tim Stephure, an analyst at IHS Emerging Energy Research, a market research firm…

"But how these energy investments will fit into the company’s broader mission to use data is hard to say [but]…It’s possible that greater access to data on consumer energy usage could prove as valuable as the keywords in Gmail or in Google search are in matching advertisers."