QUICK NEWS, December 15: WIRES FOR SOLAR POWER TOWER GET GO; NEW JERSEY OCEAN WIND MOVES AHEAD; ABB BUYS INTO CPV FOR $20MIL

WIRES FOR SOLAR POWER TOWER GET GO
Secretary Salazar Approves Transmission for Solar Thermal 'Power Tower' Project in Southern California; 150 MW Facility Will Generate Up To 450 jobs, $48 Million in Tax Revenue
December 8, 2011 (Bureau of Land Management)

"…[After extensive environmental review and mitigation of impacts, the U.S. Department of the Interior] approved a transmission line, access road and substation on public lands that will connect a 150-megawatt solar energy project to the power grid in California. The proposed project, Rice Solar Energy Project, will be built on private land in Riverside County and, when constructed, the facility is expected to power 68,000 homes, create up to 450 jobs, and generate more than $48 million in state and local tax revenue over the first 10 years of operation…"

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"Proposed by Rice Solar, LLC, a subsidiary of SolarReserve LLC, the thermal ‘power tower’ facility will be located on 1,410 acres of previously disturbed private land near Blythe. The above-ground 230 kilovolt transmission line that crosses eight miles of land administered by Bureau of Land Management (BLM) will connect with the Western Area Power Administration's Parker-Blythe #2 transmission line. The project’s innovative molten salt storage system can capture solar energy and deliver power to the grid even after the sun goes down…"


NEW JERSEY OCEAN WIND MOVES AHEAD
Fishermen's Energy taking first steps to developing offshore wind farm
Katie Eder, December 7, 2011 (NJBiz)

"…[R]enewable offshore wind energy could power a substantial part of the New Jersey coastline by 2013. The latest energy master plan, finalized by the Chris Christie administration…supports the potential for offshore wind development, but the Board of Public Utilities requires a year’s worth of actual wind measurements before it can approve the installation of turbine equipment at a specific site — and Atlantic City offshore wind energy developer Fishermen’s Energy is aiming to get that data stat.

"Last month, a group of Fishermen’s engineers from Lockheed Martin installed a wind measurement device — typically used to detect wind hazards for military defense, meteorological research and airports…With the readings from the equipment, known as the WindTracer, Fishermen’s hopes to get BPU approval to develop the country’s first offshore wind farm 2.8 miles off the coast of Atlantic City."

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"…Rich Dunk, alternative energy applications director for Rutgers University, said the WindTracer is potentially ‘the most cost-effective monitoring technology for offshore wind resource assessments, (and) will enhance the accuracy and reliability of offshore weather forecasts…While Fishermen’s has installed and maintained a series of meteorological towers onshore at a cost of more than $6 million, the WindTracer’s price is considerably cheaper, at less than $2 million. The equipment’s accuracy in measuring wind speed and direction is also sizable, taking 300-foot samples within a 20-mile range every few minutes.

"…Christie supports offshore wind power because it has the potential to create long-term economic benefits for New Jersey…[H]e signed the Offshore Wind Economic Development Act, which calls for 1,100 megawatts of wind energy installed by the end of 2012. With its WindTracer equipment and meteorological towers, Fishermen’s has begun to develop a demonstration offshore wind farm that will produce 25 megawatts of energy…[Next is funding] to cultivate full-scale wind energy — and make New Jersey the leader in offshore wind power within two years."


ABB BUYS INTO CPV FOR $20MIL
ABB invests in utility-scale concentrating photovoltaic solar power company; Strategic stake in US-based GreenVolts strengthens ABB’s focus on renewables
December 14, 2011 (ABB)

"ABB, the global power and automation technology group… has agreed to invest approximately $20 million as part of a $35 million financial round, for a substantial minority stake in California-based GreenVolts, a leading provider of turnkey concentrating photovoltaic (CPV) systems.

"Through the investment ABB gains access to GreenVolts’ proprietary technology and can now offer turnkey solutions for concentrating photovoltaic power plants in addition to its current capabilities in solar thermal and conventional photovoltaic power plants."

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"GreenVolts’ CPV system is more efficient than traditional photovoltaic and thin-film modules. By optimizing and integrating field-proven, high-performance components such as proprietary optics and tracking technology into a complete system, GreenVolts delivers energy yields that can be 30 to 40 percent higher than traditional panel-based systems…

"GreenVolts solar systems are designed to meet the operational requirements of a wide range of applications for utilities and industries as well as commercial, agricultural, and public sector customers. The technology complements ABB’s recent acquisition of a stake in Novatec Solar, a leading provider of Linear Fresnel concentrating solar power technology…"