QUICK NEWS, July 23: TOPS AND FLOPS OF ENERGY EFFICIENT NATIONS; U.S. BATTERY MAKER SUPPLIES CHINA GRID; 1,800 MW OFFSHORE WIND FROM SIEMENS TO UK

TOPS AND FLOPS OF ENERGY EFFICIENT NATIONS ACEEE: United Kingdom Tops in Energy Efficiency, U.S. Lags in 9th Place; First International Energy Efficiency Scorecard of 12 Major Economies Also Finds Germany, Italy, and Japan Ranking Highly; U.S. Behind Most Countries, Including China, France, and Australia.

July 12, 2012 (American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy)

“The United Kingdom comes in first in a new energy efficiency ranking of the world's major economies, followed closely by Germany, Italy, and Japan according to the first-ever International Energy Efficiency Scorecard…[from] the nonprofit American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE)….[T]he U.S….[was ranked] in 9th place out of 12 economies…[that] represent over 78 percent of global gross domestic product; 63 percent of global energy consumption; and 62 percent of the global carbon-dioxide equivalent emissions.

“…[T]he nations were ranked by ACEEE as follows: (1) the United Kingdom; (2) Germany; (3) Italy; (4) Japan; (5) France; (6) the European Union, Australia, and China (3-way tie); (9) the U.S.; (10) Brazil; (11) Canada; and (12) Russia…ACEEE divided the 27 metrics across four groupings…cross-cutting aspects of energy use at the national level, as well as…[in] buildings, industry, and transportation…”

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“The ACEEE ranking system looks at both…[policy and performance and] raises a critical question: How can the United States compete in a global economy if it continues to waste money and energy that other industrialized nations save and can reinvest? The new report outlines a number of recommendations for the United States such as:

“A national energy savings target…Efficiency in manufacturing…Financial incentives…to spur private investment in energy efficiency…Investment in research and development…Efficient power plants…Output-based emissions standards…Efficient power distribution…Building codes [standards]…Appliance standards…[P] olicies that allow combined heat and power (CHP) to obtain reasonable electricity buyback…Vehicle miles traveled [pricing]…Public transit…Fuel economy for passenger vehicles…[and] heavy-duty vehicles…”

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U.S. BATTERY MAKER SUPPLIES CHINA GRID A123 Systems to Supply Energy Storage System to Ray Power for Frequency Regulation in China; System Designed to Showcase Lithium Ion Battery Energy Storage as a Fast, Accurate and Clean Resource for Facilitating the Increased Integration of Renewable Energy Generation onto China's Power Grid

July 20, 2012 (A123 Systems)

“A123 Systems (Nasdaq:AONE), a developer and manufacturer of advanced Nanophosphate® lithium iron phosphate batteries and systems…will supply a 2MW grid energy storage system to Ray Power Systems Co. Ltd., a Chinese company focused on developing the [potentially big Chinese] frequency regulation market…[The company believes this initial effort will lead to many others]…”

[Eldon Mou, CEO of Ray Power:] "The project in China will be designed to validate the technical capabilities and benefits of energy storage as a fast-ramping, accurate and clean resource for providing frequency regulation service…Limited overall system ramping capability has created renewable integration issues as well as potential risk of grid instability because of the high penetration of renewable generation, particularly in northern China. A123 Systems has demonstrated the viability and reliability of its product…[W]e expect this project to showcase energy storage as a valuable resource for meeting China's growing frequency regulation demand."

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1,800 MW OFFSHORE WIND FROM SIEMENS TO UK Siemens to supply 300 offshore wind turbines to DONG Energy; Projects in the United Kingdom to receive 300 of Siemens 6MW direct drive wind turbines

2012 July 19 (Siemens)

“Siemens and DONG Energy continue[d] their successful cooperation in offshore wind…[with an] agreement for the supply of a total of 300 wind turbines with a capacity of 1,800 megawatts (MW)…[The] new SWT-6.0-154 direct drive wind turbine…will be installed in wind power plants off the British coast between 2014 and 2017…

“DONG Energy already announced that it will install two of the new 6 MW wind turbines later this year for testing at Gunfleet Sands offshore wind farm. The 6 MW wind turbines are designed for large-scale projects, including the Round 3 projects in the UK. The target for 2020 in the UK is 18 gigawatts of offshore wind energy, which equates to around 18 percent of the UK's electricity demand.”

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“The energy production of Siemens' 6 MW wind turbine is sufficient to supply about 6,000 European households with electricity. The rotor has a diameter of 154 meters [has blades of 75 meters] and has a swept area of more than 18,600 square meters, which is equivalent to the area of approximately two-and-a-half soccer fields (FIFA norm)…[T SWT-6.0-154 was] designed specifically for offshore use…and [has] 50 percent less components including fewer rotating parts [assuring greater reliability and lower costly maintenance]…

“Siemens and DONG Energy…built the world's first offshore wind power plant…[in 1991] in Denmark…[There are now 13 [offshore] projects with 930 wind turbines…[T]he two companies are working on the Lincs, London Array and West of Duddon Sands offshore wind power plants in the United Kingdom, the Anholt project in Denmark, as well as the Borkum Riffgrund 1 wind farm in Germany. These projects alone have a capacity of approximately 2 gigawatts…”

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