QUICK NEWS, 8-10: NUCLEAR WORLD ON FIRE; CHINA & U.S. STEEL TO BUILD WIND; BIG F-I-T REPORT; R.I.P. – PEAK OIL GURU MATT SIMMONS

NUCLEAR WORLD ON FIRE
Death rate doubles in Moscow as heatwave continues
9 August 2010 (BBC News)

"Moscow's health chief has confirmed the mortality rate has doubled as a heatwave and wildfire smog continue to grip the Russian capital.There were twice the usual number of bodies in the city's morgues…

"In a separate incident, a state of emergency has been declared around a nuclear reprocessing plant in the Urals…Forest fires are threatening the plant in Ozersk…"

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"Smoke related death figures were not being reported immediately for other parts of central Russia, which have had similar droughts and wildfires for more than a month…[d]eath rates in Moscow [rose] between 30% and 50% in July, compared with the same period last year [from ~370 to ~700]…The concentration of carbon monoxide in Moscow was still more than double acceptable safety norms…as smog from peat and forest wildfires continued to blanket the city…Temperatures of more than 35C (95F) are forecast for the city…

"…[D]octors, speaking off the record, have talked of morgues filling with victims of heat stroke and smoke ailments…[O]ne Moscow doctor [reportedly wrote] on his anonymous blog - since deleted - of the stench from bodies piling up in the basement of his clinic where the fridges were full…Another doctor at a major hospital, speaking on condition of anonymity…[was quoted] that staff had been instructed by senior management not to link patients' illnesses to the heatwave…"

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"The head of the state weather service…[said] the heatwave of 2010 was the worst in 1,000 years of recorded Russian history…Moscow airports were working normally on Monday after last week's disruptions due to smog…Those who remain in the city of 10.5 million were being urged to wear face masks if they venture outdoors, and hang wet towels indoors to attract dust and cool the airflow…

"As of Monday morning, 557 wildfires continued to burn in Russia, 25 of them peat fires…While 239 fires were extinguished on Sunday, 247 new ones were discovered."


CHINA & U.S. STEEL TO BUILD WIND
Wind Farm Deal Assures Bigger U.S. Role
Mathew L. Wald, August 8, 2010 (NY Times)

"The United Steelworkers and two Chinese companies…[have] signed an agreement assuring that major components of machines for a $1.5 billion wind farm in Texas would be made in the United States…The deal potentially defuses a conflict over American stimulus dollars being used to subsidize foreign companies.

"…[T]he union said that the steel for the wind towers, enclosures for working parts atop the towers and reinforcing bars for the bases would be sourced in the United States. So will the blades, which are not made of steel but are often made by steelworkers…The agreement was brokered with the Shenyang Power Group [SPG]…and a subsidiary…A-Power Energy Generation Systems, which…with the American investment firm U.S. Renewable Energy Group [will] build the wind farm in West Texas."

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"United Steelworkers officials did not say what fraction of the machines’ value would be from domestic manufactured parts. The Chinese companies will also work to develop a domestic American supply chain for wind machine manufacture beyond the Texas project…[Word that] federal stimulus grants and loan guarantees for clean energy projects…might flow to the project led to calls from members of Congress for the Obama administration to deny federal aid…[because] the turbines would be manufactured in Shenyang, China, rather than in the United States…[The agreement] seems likely to allay some of those objections…

"The two Chinese companies anticipate buying 50,000 tons of steel from unionized American mills for the 615-megawatt Texas project…Leo W. Gerard, president of the United Steelworkers, said his union had been prepared to initiate antidumping actions against Chinese manufacturers on imported steel for wind machines, as the union has in the past for tires, paper and steel for other uses…The Chinese companies had initially estimated that the project would create 2,000 steelworker jobs in China, Mr. Gerard said, but about only 1,000 jobs in the United States…"

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"The announcement reflects the expanding globalization of the wind machine industry, with parts made in scattered countries. Robert E. Gramlich, policy director at the American Wind Energy Association, said that the “big heavy stuff” like the towers and the blades, were generally the most likely to be locally sourced and that smaller, higher-value components were more likely to be imported…[T]he gear box, a high-value component, was always to be manufactured by General Electric [for the Texas project]…

"To some extent the flow seems to run in both directions. In May, the American Superconductor Corporation of Devens, Mass., said it had received a multiyear order worth $445 million from Sinovel Wind Group Company of China, with shipments to begin in early 2011. The company is already shipping components under an earlier contract…Mr. Gramlich’s group has been lobbying for greater federal support for American companies that could build wind machine components. The Commerce Department has identified wind technology as a major potential export industry…"


BIG F-I-T REPORT
NREL Issues Massive Feed-in Tariff Design Guide for US
Paul Gipe, August 9, 2010 (Wind-Works)

"…[A Policymaker's Guide to Feed-in Tariff Policy Design] is certainly the longest report any US government agency has ever published on feed-in tariffs, the policy known for the dramatic growth of renewable energy in Europe during the past decade. The report's internal governmental and external peer review alone took more than a year.

"While an extensive analysis of feed-in tariff policies around the globe, the report [from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy] focuses on how these polices can be used in the US. Importantly, the report offers American policy makers a guide to the best practices worldwide and what are the advantages and disadvantages of each design element."

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"The report provides a comprehensive overview of policy options and highlights…Long-term policy stability…Payments based on the cost of generation…Differentiating tariffs by technology, size, location, and resource intensity…Guaranteed access to the grid…Eligibility to all end users and project developers, including some utilities, and a 'Must take' provisions for the electricity generated…[and delves] into the origin of several key provisions in landmark feed-in tariff programs, such as Germany's Renewable Energy Sources Act.

"One design feature often overlooked in North America is differentiating tariffs by resource intensity…The NREL report contains probably one of the most extensive discourses on resource differentiation currently found in English…[It] also emphasizes the positive investment environment that aggressive feed-in tariffs provide…"

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"The NREL report also destroys many of the myths surrounding feed-in tariffs. One myth, for example, is that FIT policies discourage competition. On the contrary, says NREL, the scramble for market share under feed-in tariff polices in Germany, France, and Spain has driven increased private sector research and development, spurring innovation and technological cost reductions…

"…Feed-in tariffs, says NREL, have resulted in the deployment of 15,000 MW of solar PV, and 55,000 MW of wind power from 2000 to 2009 in the European Union…For comparison, there were some 25,000 MW of wind in the US at the end of 2009 and only 1,250 MW of solar PV…According to NREL, feed-in tariffs are responsible for 75% of all solar PV and 45% of all wind development worldwide."


R.I.P. – PEAK OIL GURU MATT SIMMONS
Matt Simmons Dead – Oil Man Who Predicted the End of Oil
Jack Hidary, August 9, 2010 (Huffington Post)

"Matt Simmons passed away [August 9] from a heart attack at the age of 67. Matt was the founder of Simmons and Company -- one of the leading energy investment banks in the world. Based in Houston, he was a well-respected member of the oil and gas community having brokered hundreds of key transactions in the sector.

"His book Twilight in the Desert detailed his research into the planet's actual remaining oil reserves…[and he concluded] we are soon to reach the peak of oil production. He encouraged policy makers to move away from oil dependence."

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"Last month he officially launched the Ocean Energy Institute which will focus on maximizing energy from the ocean including offshore wind and wave energy."

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"Matt was a man not afraid to speak his mind, even when it did not gel with the view of… his traditional [oil & gas industry] clients. He was the first to point to the lack of transparency of Saudi and other oil reserves in the hands of national oil companies.

"Recently, Matt was outspoken on the BP oil disaster. He pointed to the strong possibility of several leaks, not just the one BP showed in the videos. He predicted BP may eventually have to declare bankruptcy from the spill aftereffects."