QUICK NEWS, 9-22: SENATE DEM-REPUB RENEWABLE STANDARD (RES)!; TEXAS WIND FOR ATLANTA; SUN CONCENTRATORS CONSOLIDATING; A TALE OF TWO ELECTRIC CARS

SENATE DEM-REPUB RENEWABLE STANDARD (RES)!
A Bipartisan Bill on Renewable Energy
John Collins Rudolph, September 21, 2010 (NY Times)

"In a rare show of bipartisanship, a group of Democratic and Republican senators introduced legislation…that would require utilities nationwide to generate at least 15 percent of their electricity from renewable sources like wind, solar and biomass by 2021…[It] was introduced by Jeff Bingaman, Democrat of New Mexico, and Sam Brownback, Republican of Kansas…

"The bill counts two other Republicans as co-sponsors: Susan Collins of Maine and John Ensign of Nevada…[but] may need several more Republicans on board to clear the 60- vote hurdle to end debate in the Senate…as some Southeastern and Midwestern Democrats may be likely to oppose the measure."



"Senator Mary Landrieu, Democrat of Louisiana, said in an interview with the news service Energy and Environment Daily that she could not support a renewable electricity standard unless the Obama administration’s moratorium on deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, set to expire on Nov. 30, was lifted…A standalone renewable electricity standard would not have her support, she said…

"The Democrats Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas, Ben Nelson of Nebraska and Evan Bayh of Indiana are also considered potential ‘no’ votes on the measure. Ms. Lincoln and Mr. Nelson have expressed doubts about such standards in the past, and Mr. Bayh voted against a renewable electricity standard in a 2009 committee vote."

Finding bipartisan Senate support should be easier with this kind of bipartisan voter support. But will voters support the weaker measure? (click to enlarge)

"A nearly identical electricity mandate was drafted by Mr. Bingaman and passed by the Senate Energy and Environment Committee in 2009 but faced opposition from renewable energy groups and Democrats inclined toward a more ambitious target. But with cap-and-trade legislation all but dead in the Senate, and the prospect looming that no clean energy or climate legislation at all will be passed this year, some of those who previously opposed the measure have hopped on board."

[Marchant Wentworth, spokesperson, Union of Concerned Scientists (former opponents of a 15% RES):] “The R.E.S. passed by the Senate Energy Committee in 2009 is not as strong as it should be, but it would establish a first-ever national framework for increasing the use of renewable electricity…That is a crucial step toward a lower-carbon economy, and we must take it now.”


TEXAS WIND FOR ATLANTA
Pattern Energy plans Texas wind-power export path
Eileen O’Grady, September 20, 2010 (Reuters)

"West Texas wind power could reach Atlanta if Pattern Energy Group is successful at building a 400-mile transmission line to create an export path for electricity from the nation's No. 1 wind state…[but] 9,300 megawatts of capacity…is trapped in Texas due to the state's grid configuration.

"Pattern's proposed Southern Cross transmission line would maintain Texas' grid independence while opening a route by 2016 for wind power to be sold into the U.S. Southeast, a region that lacks large-scale wind and solar potential…Texas is spending $5 billion to expand its grid to allow Texas wind output to double to 18,000 MW by 2013…"

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"In Texas and across the nation, new wind-farm development slowed dramatically this year due to tight financial markets, lack of a strong national mandate to cut greenhouse gas emissions and a drop in wholesale power prices linked to cheaper natural gas…Pattern Transmission Director David Parquet said the Southern Cross project could keep Texas wind development on track to 18,000 MW despite current market obstacles…

"At a price tag of more than $1 billion, the Southern Cross line would be a high-voltage, direct-current line stretching from east Texas to northeastern Mississippi, where up to three 500-kilovolt alternating-current lines could deliver power to utilities serving 10 states in the South…Pattern officials have discussed the project with the Tennessee Valley Authority, Southern Co and Entergy Corp…"

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"While Texas has exceeded its renewable power target, Southeastern states have yet to set targets to boost use of renewable power to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from fossil-fueled power plants…Some utilities, however, expect federal mandates in the future. TVA, for example, built the first wind farm in the Southeast and seeks to buy 2,000 MW of wind generation over the next few years. Its 1,300 MW of wind power under contract so far will come from Illinois, Kansas, Iowa and the Dakotas…

"While Parquet said he expects a federal renewable portfolio standard, or RPS, down the road, he said the Southern Cross project can succeed without one…The project will not go forward unless FERC rules that it does not raise jurisdictional issues for Texas…"


SUN CONCENTRATORS CONSOLIDATING
CSP industry heads for consolidation
Jason Deign, 17 September 2010 (CSP Today)

"…In an industry that has seen more than its fair share of mergers and acquisitions in the last couple of years, [solar power plant developer] SkyFuel’s position as an independent player is becoming something of a rarity…

"…A good example of the vertically integrated corporations…[taking over independents] is Siemens, Europe’s largest engineering conglomerate, which other than producing steam turbines had little to do with the CSP market until last year…Then, in March 2009, it bought 29% of the Italian solar company Archimede Solar Energy, followed by the acquisition of Solel Solar Systems for US$418 million in October…"

Building this stuff is expensive. (click to enlarge)

"…Other recent examples of large corporations entering the CSP market include Chevron and Alstom partnering with BrightSource, MAN Ferrostaal joint venturing with Solar Millennium, and Areva’s February 2010 acquisition of Ausra for a reported $200 million…"

Whose logo will end up on this technology and when? (click to enlarge)

[Jenny Chase, a solar energy analyst with Bloomberg New Energy Finance:] “There is a realisation that solar thermal will need pretty heavy engineering and heavy commitments from banks…That will require support from massive engineering firms that can offer performance guarantees. Big companies like Areva are playing to these strengths and have also got big investment horizons…You are probably not going to make great profits out of CSP in the next two years unless you get a plant in Spain.”

[Rick LeBlanc, President/CEO, SkyFuel:] “In the wind industry, which is very mature, what happened is indicative of what will happen in utility-scale solar…“As the industry matured, three companies owned the market: GE, Siemens and Vestas. The reason is its large capital expenditure; it requires big balance sheets. A 120MW project for us is a $200 million order, and that is not technology venture capital, it’s production.”


A TALE OF TWO ELECTRIC CARS
Sparks fly as Volt and Leaf pick up speed
Bernard Simon, September 20, 2010 (Financial Times)

"Patrick Wang and Ken Muir are both electric car enthusiasts. But when it comes to buying one, Mr Wang, manager at a search-engine marketing agency in San Francisco… has decided on General Motors’ Chevrolet Volt… Mr Muir, a quality engineer in nearby San Jose… has gone for a Nissan Leaf…[in] what is shaping up as a fierce and closely watched battle between the first two electric cars aimed at the mass market…

"The Leaf, due to go on sale in December in the US and Japan, will be powered entirely by a battery. Nissan claims that it will have a range of 100 miles before it needs recharging…The Volt, more accurately described as an extended-range plug-in hybrid, will run on battery power alone for 40 miles. After that, a small petrol engine will provide power to the generator, giving it a total range of about 340 miles…Existing hybrids, such as the Toyota Prius, use a battery and an internal-combustion engine in tandem…"

(from the Financial Times - click to enlarge)

"The Volt is designed to address what the industry has termed “range anxiety”, widely seen as one of the biggest hurdles facing widespread acceptance of electric cars, especially given the initial scarcity of battery recharging stations. The vast majority of early buyers are expected to recharge their cars overnight at home…[Wang also] was initially concerned about buying a car from a Detroit-based company with a less-than-stellar image for quality and reliability [but has concluded the technology is sound]…

"Mr Muir says that he and his wife like both the Leaf and Volt technologies [but went for the zero-emission Leaf]…The couple estimate they have made only seven road trips of more than 100 miles over the past three years…[and, unlike Wang,] own a second car…"

A change is coming (click to enlarge)

"The Volt carries a price tag of $41,000, well above the Leaf’s $32,780 recommended price. GM hopes to deflect attention from the price gap by promoting a lease option of $350 a month over 36 months…[Both vehicles] qualify for government subsidies – in the US, a $7,500 federal tax credit. Some US states have also pitched in to encourage electric-car purchases. California will offer a rebate of up to $5,000 per vehicle. Tennessee – where Nissan has its North American head office – announced earlier this month that it would provide a $2,500 rebate on the first 1,000 electric vehicles bought in the state.

"GM has not been shy about bashing the competition…Nissan rejects the criticism and says the two vehicles are like apples and oranges…The two carmakers can quibble all they like but ultimately the customer will decide as the vehicles start selling from dealer forecourts in 2011."