QUICK NEWS, Oct. 1: MONEY MOVING TO OCEAN WIND; GEOTHERMAL ADVANCES; PEROVSKITE COULD BE SOLAR’S NEW SILICON

MONEY MOVING TO OCEAN WIND Investors warming up to German offshore wind plants

Christoph Seitz (w/ Keith Weir), Sept. 25, 2014 (Reuters)

“Germany's offshore wind parks, once seen as only for brave investors because of high costs and operational risks, are attracting fresh money after laws were passed to ensure ambitious renewables targets are met…British investment firm Laidlaw Capital bought its second German offshore wind park project two weeks ago, following a landmark German offshore wind acquisition by Canadian energy group Northland Power…[For the country's ‘Energiewende’, which moves Germany towards alternative energy sources after a decision to phase out nuclear power by 2022…Germany needs at least 20 billion euros ($26 billion) to achieve its aim of expanding offshore wind capacity to more than 10 times its present capacity by 2020…

“As part of the country's new renewable law, investors can now look forward to guaranteed feed-in tariffs of 19.4 euro cents per kilowatt hour (kWh) over a period of eight years for offshore, better returns than for solar and onshore wind power…Simultaneously, network connections for about 7.7 GW of offshore capacity are to be built by the end of the decade, removing uncertainty over whether there will be sufficient lines to connect parks to the onshore power grid…Costs stand at about 145 euros per megawatt hour (MWh), compared with 81 euros/MWh for onshore wind and 138 euros/MWh for solar…This is expected to drop to 95 euros/MWh by 2025…less than the 100 euro/MWh seen for solar…” click here for more

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GEOTHERMAL ADVANCES Geothermal resources used to produce renewable electricity in western states

Fred Mayes, Sept. 26 2014 (U.S. Energy Information Administration)

“Geothermal energy…[provided] 0.4% of total U.S. generation in 2013…mostly in California but increasingly in other western states…[Virtually emissions free, dispatchable, baseload] electricity is generated from conventional geothermal resources by tapping underground reservoirs of [steam or] hot water [to generate electricity]…This process requires plants to be able to access high-temperature fluids from deep, naturally permeable rock formations…

“…[E]nhanced geothermal systems (EGS) are engineered reservoirs created to produce energy from otherwise noneconomic geothermal resources. EGS plants fracture impermeable rock formations to access hot fluids…The high-pressure hydraulic fracturing inherent in many EGS projects has in the past caused seismic events…similar to induced seismicity caused by shale gas production…Such events are rare…[T]he U.S. Department of Energy has developed a protocol to deal with seismicity issues. EGS plants are currently being developed in several countries, and the first commercial-scale plant in the United States, the Desert Peak East pilot project in Nevada, began operating in 2013…There are currently 64 operating conventional geothermal power plants in the United States, accounting for nearly 2,700 megawatts (MW) of total capacity at the end of 2013…EIA projects that geothermal electricity generation could more than quadruple between 2012 and 2040…to over 67,000 GWh…” click here for more

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PEROVSKITE COULD BE SOLAR’S NEW SILICON New solar panels from old car batteries

Sept. 18, 2014 (CNN)

“Old car batteries are being converted into long-lasting solar panels by researchers at MIT. The new applications are riding the current wave of popularity with perovskite-based solar cells…Original designs for perovskite technologies use lead as part of their overall design. But this use of lead means toxic residues are leftover from its extraction…Angela Belcher and her team at MIT used recycled lead from car batteries as an alternative source of lead and as the perovskite materials are just micrometres thick, the amount of lead needed is minimal. Lead from a single car battery could produce enough solar panels to provide power for 30 households…According to the Battery council international, more than 98% of all battery lead is currently recycled, mainly into new batteries. As cars change and demand declines for new batteries, increasing demand for perovskite panels could provide a new primary outlet and further enhance the green stamp on the technology.” click here for more

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