Six water treatment plants on the south coast have installed solar panels in a move that could save operator Portsmouth Water 4,000 a year in electricity costs.
Each site has fitted 50kW of solar panels across its reservoir roofs and adjacent land to produce electricity that will by used on-site to pump and treat water.
The scale of investment has not been revealed. However, installers Solarcentury estimated the panels will generate 42,500 units of electricity a year, resulting in payments through the feed-in tariff scheme as well as a reduction in Portsmouth Water's energy bills.
Nick Roadnight, Portsmouth Water's managing director, said the company is keen to reduce its exposure to rising electricity prices.
"It is important that, as a user of energy, we look at all the potential options to reduce the amount of energy we have to take from the national grid, and at the same time look to reduce our carbon footprint without placing any risk on our ability to supply water to our customers," he said.
"The installation of solar panels on our sites achieves all of these objectives and, with around a 25-year life span, it helps the company have a more sustainable approach to energy use."
Along with Homesun, Friends of the Earth and several other firms, Solarcentury has been at the centre of a long-running legal case challenging the government's plans to cut feed-in tariff incentives for solar installations with just six weeks' notice.
The company saw a number of large contracts cancelled as a result of the proposed changes, but a spokeswoman for the company said the Portsmouth Water deal may offer a template that will allow future projects to proceed, despite the expected cuts to incentives.
She told BusinessGreen there is the possibility of more similar deals in the pipeline, but declined to provide further details.
A spokesman for Portsmouth Water added that installing further panels depended on the outcome of the government's appeal against the High Court ruling on Friday.
2012年1月11日星期三
2011年11月27日星期日
The man behind Solyndra's rise and fall: Chris Gronet
When President Barack Obama visited Solyndra in May 2010, then-CEO Chris Gronet gave him a personal tour in what was the high point of the young startup's meteoric rise.
But behind the scenes, Solyndra was mired in trouble. Gronet, a veteran Silicon Valley technologist who founded the company, had quietly been stripped of many of his executive duties, and Solyndra's board of directors was searching for his replacement.
Little more than a year after Obama's visit, Solyndra filed for bankruptcy, throwing more than 1,000 employees out of work and igniting a fierce debate about the role of government in supporting clean-energy companies.
Two Solyndra executives were called to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee -- both invoked their Fifth Amendment right to not incriminate themselves -- but Gronet so far has escaped the spotlight. But documents released by congressional investigators and interviews with former Solyndra employees indicate that he, more than any other individual, is responsible for the company's sudden rise and spectacular fall.
Gronet founded Solyndra in 2005 and personally pushed for its $535 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy, which was used to build a new 300,000-square-foot manufacturing facility along Interstate 880. He fired off demanding emails to Energy Department staff members when his company's application hit snags or delays. He attended a White House meeting hosted by Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, pressed for Chu to visit Solyndra and even suggested talking points for him.
But as Solyndra was racing to build its new factory, demand for its cylindrical solar panels was softening amid fierce competition and a global recession.
Former Solyndra employees say Gronet -- often described as driven and aggressively ambitious -- poured his heart, soul and professional reputation into the company but fell dangerously in love with a solar technology that was expensive to make and had limited commercial appeal.
"Chris is basically a decent guy, but he's like many high achievers in Silicon Valley," said one former employee who worked closely with Gronet and spoke on condition that he not be identified. "There was irrational exuberance about the cylindrical design. One of the most dangerous things business people can do is fall in love with their product. There was a lot of delusional thinking that this product was better than everybody else's."
Gronet, who lives in Portola Valley and has kept a low profile since Solyndra's collapse, did not respond to several interview requests. His attorney, Miles Ehrlich, declined to comment for this report because of the ongoing investigations into Solyndra's loan guarantee by House Republicans, who are searching for signs of political favoritism, and the Justice Department, for possible accounting fraud. Gronet apparently is working on a new venture in cleantech.
Gronet has not been charged with any crime, and he has not been asked to testify before Congress. However, emails released as part of the congressional investigation show the intense and hands-on role he played in pushing for Solyndra's loan guarantee under two administrations.
But behind the scenes, Solyndra was mired in trouble. Gronet, a veteran Silicon Valley technologist who founded the company, had quietly been stripped of many of his executive duties, and Solyndra's board of directors was searching for his replacement.
Little more than a year after Obama's visit, Solyndra filed for bankruptcy, throwing more than 1,000 employees out of work and igniting a fierce debate about the role of government in supporting clean-energy companies.
Two Solyndra executives were called to testify before the House Energy and Commerce Committee -- both invoked their Fifth Amendment right to not incriminate themselves -- but Gronet so far has escaped the spotlight. But documents released by congressional investigators and interviews with former Solyndra employees indicate that he, more than any other individual, is responsible for the company's sudden rise and spectacular fall.
Gronet founded Solyndra in 2005 and personally pushed for its $535 million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy, which was used to build a new 300,000-square-foot manufacturing facility along Interstate 880. He fired off demanding emails to Energy Department staff members when his company's application hit snags or delays. He attended a White House meeting hosted by Energy Secretary Steven Chu and Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, pressed for Chu to visit Solyndra and even suggested talking points for him.
But as Solyndra was racing to build its new factory, demand for its cylindrical solar panels was softening amid fierce competition and a global recession.
Former Solyndra employees say Gronet -- often described as driven and aggressively ambitious -- poured his heart, soul and professional reputation into the company but fell dangerously in love with a solar technology that was expensive to make and had limited commercial appeal.
"Chris is basically a decent guy, but he's like many high achievers in Silicon Valley," said one former employee who worked closely with Gronet and spoke on condition that he not be identified. "There was irrational exuberance about the cylindrical design. One of the most dangerous things business people can do is fall in love with their product. There was a lot of delusional thinking that this product was better than everybody else's."
Gronet, who lives in Portola Valley and has kept a low profile since Solyndra's collapse, did not respond to several interview requests. His attorney, Miles Ehrlich, declined to comment for this report because of the ongoing investigations into Solyndra's loan guarantee by House Republicans, who are searching for signs of political favoritism, and the Justice Department, for possible accounting fraud. Gronet apparently is working on a new venture in cleantech.
Gronet has not been charged with any crime, and he has not been asked to testify before Congress. However, emails released as part of the congressional investigation show the intense and hands-on role he played in pushing for Solyndra's loan guarantee under two administrations.
2011年11月9日星期三
Solar panel cash row heats up
TEMPERS are running hot after the Government said it could slash in half the amount it pays households for solar power.
Solar panels – or photovoltaic (PV) panels – have popped up on roofs in Worcestershire with increasing regulatory, with people cashing in on the feed-in tariffs (FITs) the Government pays to people for generating excess electricity for the grid.
But admitting it had chronically underestimated take-up for solar, the Department of Energy and Climate Change has now launched a speedy consultation to halve the tariff from Tuesday, December 13.
This effectively means anyone not having panels fitted and registered for the FIT scheme within the next three weeks will miss out on the current tariff and get the reduced rate.
Cropthorne and Charlton Village Hall committee is unimpressed as it is trying to get grant money to pay for panels.
“There’s no way we’ll get a grant by December so we’ll have to re-cost our plan,” said Jacqui King, committee member and parish councillor. “This is not encouraging anyone to do such projects.”
While the FIT scheme is not paid directly by Government – it comes from a levy on electric bills – money is running out faster than predicted. With the tariff’s current rate of up to 43.3p per KWh (kilowatts hour), panels pay for themselves after between eight and 10 years on average.
But the rate will drop to 21p after Monday, December 12. Lynn Denham, who invested in solar panels for her home in Oaklands, off Newtown Road, Worcester, said that will mean not as many people will be able to afford solar panels.
The wife of Labour city councillor Paul Denham also said the changes had effectively killed off any hope of developing a community energy company in the city.
Jason Bishop, who runs Solar Valley Energy at Wichenford, near Worcester, said a tariff cut was expected in March but the halving would cost jobs and stall growth.
“It’s cost me £16,000 to set up so you can see why I am peeved,” he said.
“We have a three-man installations team and sales manager but I have had to let my sales manager go.
“We still have business because I have a building firm but the solar side just will not grow.
“It is just totally out of the blue; it’s ill thought out and reckless.”
The 45-year-old has written to West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin calling for her support and signed an online petition.
Mrs Baldwin said panels “should still make a worthwhile investment” for both new customers and installers. “With a lower subsidy, more people can benefit, as the money goes further,” she said, promising to pass on constituents’ concerns about the proposed change.
Solar panels – or photovoltaic (PV) panels – have popped up on roofs in Worcestershire with increasing regulatory, with people cashing in on the feed-in tariffs (FITs) the Government pays to people for generating excess electricity for the grid.
But admitting it had chronically underestimated take-up for solar, the Department of Energy and Climate Change has now launched a speedy consultation to halve the tariff from Tuesday, December 13.
This effectively means anyone not having panels fitted and registered for the FIT scheme within the next three weeks will miss out on the current tariff and get the reduced rate.
Cropthorne and Charlton Village Hall committee is unimpressed as it is trying to get grant money to pay for panels.
“There’s no way we’ll get a grant by December so we’ll have to re-cost our plan,” said Jacqui King, committee member and parish councillor. “This is not encouraging anyone to do such projects.”
While the FIT scheme is not paid directly by Government – it comes from a levy on electric bills – money is running out faster than predicted. With the tariff’s current rate of up to 43.3p per KWh (kilowatts hour), panels pay for themselves after between eight and 10 years on average.
But the rate will drop to 21p after Monday, December 12. Lynn Denham, who invested in solar panels for her home in Oaklands, off Newtown Road, Worcester, said that will mean not as many people will be able to afford solar panels.
The wife of Labour city councillor Paul Denham also said the changes had effectively killed off any hope of developing a community energy company in the city.
Jason Bishop, who runs Solar Valley Energy at Wichenford, near Worcester, said a tariff cut was expected in March but the halving would cost jobs and stall growth.
“It’s cost me £16,000 to set up so you can see why I am peeved,” he said.
“We have a three-man installations team and sales manager but I have had to let my sales manager go.
“We still have business because I have a building firm but the solar side just will not grow.
“It is just totally out of the blue; it’s ill thought out and reckless.”
The 45-year-old has written to West Worcestershire MP Harriett Baldwin calling for her support and signed an online petition.
Mrs Baldwin said panels “should still make a worthwhile investment” for both new customers and installers. “With a lower subsidy, more people can benefit, as the money goes further,” she said, promising to pass on constituents’ concerns about the proposed change.
2011年11月3日星期四
World's top solar power plan switches on
The first phase of the world's most ambitious solar power project is to get under way in Morocco in early 2012 and is likely to extend to Algeria and Tunisia.
The Desertec Industrial Initiative, the German-led consortium behind the $549 billion carbon-free project, announced in Cairo Wednesday that "all systems are go in Morocco."
The plan is to use vast arrays of solar panels across the Sahara Desert to harness the rays of the sun, which shines there virtually all year round, to produce steam to drive turbines that will generate electricity for the region through an envisioned supergrid that would supply 15-20 percent of Europe's requirements.
Because North Africa's sunlight is much more intense than that in Europe, solar photovoltaic panels used by the Desertec project could generate up to three times the electricity that similar projects in northern Europe produce.
Arnulf Jaeger-Walden of the European Commission's Institute for Energy, has said it requires only 0.3 percent of the sunlight falling on the Sahara and other Middle Eastern deserts to provide all of Europe's energy needs.
At DII's Cairo conference, Chief Executive Officer Paul Van Son disclosed that the first phase of the project gets under way next year with the construction of a $2.8 billion, 2.5-square-mile solar farm, using parabolic mirrors that will feed a 500-megawatt power plant.
It's expected this will be located near the Moroccan desert city of Ouarzazate. This phase will take two to four years to complete, with electricity production starting no later than 2016.
Van Son described Desertec as a "win-win" deal for both Europe and the Middle East.
He said discussions were under way with Tunisia on building a solar farm there, with Algeria the next "obvious" country because of its proximity to Europe.
Algeria is already a key supplier of natural gas to energy-hungry Europe, which is striving to lessen its dependence on Russian gas supplies.
Eventually, Van Son observed, Libya, Egypt, Syria and faraway Saudi Arabia would join the Desertec power grid through a network of high-voltage lines that will be built across the Middle East from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean.
Egyptian Minister of Electricity and Energy Hassan Younes said Cairo was eager to join the project and already has a 150MW hybrid gas-solar power plant that opened this year 60 miles south of the Egyptian capital.
The DII was launched in 2009 by a 20-member German-led consortium headed by Deutsche Bank, Siemens, the Munich Re insurance giant and energy heavyweight E.on.
The project envisages building solar thermal power plants across 34,740 square miles of the Sahara, a small fraction of its total area of around 3.47 million square miles, in Morocco and its neighbors.
These would generate much of the electricity for North Africa and the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia at the eastern edge of the Arab world, by 2050.
The concept has caught on across Europe, particularly in Germany which plans to phase out nuclear power completely by 2022, in part as a consequence of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in March.
"Desertec opened up an opportunity for us," Jochen Homann of Germany's Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology, said in Cairo.
"We want to enter the age of renewables with sustainable sources of electricity supplying 80 percent of our power generation by 2050 …
"Germany's government will continue to support Desertec. It's an inspiring vision which is good for foreign, climate and economic policies," he said.
In January 2010, nine European countries drew up plans to link clean energy projects around the North Sea.
The nine -- Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and Britain -- are working on building a high-voltage direct current network within the next decade.
"This network, made up of thousands of kilometers of highly efficient undersea cables that could cost $41.3 billion, would solve one of the biggest criticisms faced by renewable power -- that unpredictable weather means it is unreliable," Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported.
Connected to Norway's many hydroelectric power stations, it could act as a giant 30 gigawatt battery for Europe's clean energy, storing electricity when demand is low and be a major step toward a continent-wide supergrid that could link into the vast potential of solar power farms in North Africa."
The Desertec Industrial Initiative, the German-led consortium behind the $549 billion carbon-free project, announced in Cairo Wednesday that "all systems are go in Morocco."
The plan is to use vast arrays of solar panels across the Sahara Desert to harness the rays of the sun, which shines there virtually all year round, to produce steam to drive turbines that will generate electricity for the region through an envisioned supergrid that would supply 15-20 percent of Europe's requirements.
Because North Africa's sunlight is much more intense than that in Europe, solar photovoltaic panels used by the Desertec project could generate up to three times the electricity that similar projects in northern Europe produce.
Arnulf Jaeger-Walden of the European Commission's Institute for Energy, has said it requires only 0.3 percent of the sunlight falling on the Sahara and other Middle Eastern deserts to provide all of Europe's energy needs.
At DII's Cairo conference, Chief Executive Officer Paul Van Son disclosed that the first phase of the project gets under way next year with the construction of a $2.8 billion, 2.5-square-mile solar farm, using parabolic mirrors that will feed a 500-megawatt power plant.
It's expected this will be located near the Moroccan desert city of Ouarzazate. This phase will take two to four years to complete, with electricity production starting no later than 2016.
Van Son described Desertec as a "win-win" deal for both Europe and the Middle East.
He said discussions were under way with Tunisia on building a solar farm there, with Algeria the next "obvious" country because of its proximity to Europe.
Algeria is already a key supplier of natural gas to energy-hungry Europe, which is striving to lessen its dependence on Russian gas supplies.
Eventually, Van Son observed, Libya, Egypt, Syria and faraway Saudi Arabia would join the Desertec power grid through a network of high-voltage lines that will be built across the Middle East from the Atlantic Ocean to the Indian Ocean.
Egyptian Minister of Electricity and Energy Hassan Younes said Cairo was eager to join the project and already has a 150MW hybrid gas-solar power plant that opened this year 60 miles south of the Egyptian capital.
The DII was launched in 2009 by a 20-member German-led consortium headed by Deutsche Bank, Siemens, the Munich Re insurance giant and energy heavyweight E.on.
The project envisages building solar thermal power plants across 34,740 square miles of the Sahara, a small fraction of its total area of around 3.47 million square miles, in Morocco and its neighbors.
These would generate much of the electricity for North Africa and the Middle East, including Saudi Arabia at the eastern edge of the Arab world, by 2050.
The concept has caught on across Europe, particularly in Germany which plans to phase out nuclear power completely by 2022, in part as a consequence of the Fukushima nuclear disaster in Japan in March.
"Desertec opened up an opportunity for us," Jochen Homann of Germany's Federal Ministry for Economics and Technology, said in Cairo.
"We want to enter the age of renewables with sustainable sources of electricity supplying 80 percent of our power generation by 2050 …
"Germany's government will continue to support Desertec. It's an inspiring vision which is good for foreign, climate and economic policies," he said.
In January 2010, nine European countries drew up plans to link clean energy projects around the North Sea.
The nine -- Germany, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Ireland and Britain -- are working on building a high-voltage direct current network within the next decade.
"This network, made up of thousands of kilometers of highly efficient undersea cables that could cost $41.3 billion, would solve one of the biggest criticisms faced by renewable power -- that unpredictable weather means it is unreliable," Britain's The Guardian newspaper reported.
Connected to Norway's many hydroelectric power stations, it could act as a giant 30 gigawatt battery for Europe's clean energy, storing electricity when demand is low and be a major step toward a continent-wide supergrid that could link into the vast potential of solar power farms in North Africa."
2011年9月8日星期四
Solar Industry “Darwinism” Weeding Out Weaker Companies
The FBI raided Solyndra’s office, although it would not comment on the reason. The company shut without giving notice to its employees and contractors, which many large companies are legally required to do.
However, Lewis Milford of the Clean Energy Group argued critics are inconsistent in highlighting Solyndra’s failure, since there are many examples of failure in government projects—and that a high rate of failure is inevitable in innovative fields. Overall, the Loan Guarantee Program has performed well, and Solyndra’s failure is not a reason to abandon it, Forbes argued.
Solyndra is only one of many
Germany has long been a
All this activity “is Darwinism at work in business,” said an executive of manufacturer Abound
Nonetheless, large
With
Also, a new projection from the International Energy Agency said in 50 years’ time,
Iran joined the list of nuclear countries by connecting its first nuclear power plant to the grid last week, according to the country’s official media.
Also, the International Atomic Energy Agency reported Iran began running upgraded centrifuges. Iran also offered to allow inspectors “full supervision” of its nuclear activities for the next five years, in exchange for lifting sanctions.
Iran has reportedly tested weapons systems, which some experts said cast doubt on Iran’s claim that its nuclear program is limited to producing electricity. But arms expert Mark Fitzpatrick of the International Institute for Strategic Studies said that without proof, it is too soon to jump to the conclusion Iran is pursuing nuclear weapons. Nonetheless, in discussions at the United Nations, several countries kept pressure on Iran to suspend uranium enrichment until a monitoring deal is worked out.
2011年5月18日星期三
Seattle Seahawks home to add Solyndra solar panels
The Seattle Seahawks stadium, Qwest Field Event Center, is adding solar panels to its roof.
The solar arrays from Fremont, Calif.-based Solyndra are racks of thin-film CIGS (copper, indium, gallium, and selenide) solar cells shaped like tubes. The racks will cover approximately 2.5 acres, about 80 percent, of Qwest Field, Solyndra announced yesterday.
Solyndra is known for its tube-shape solar cells that capture direct, diffuse, and reflected sunlight throughout the day without the need for a rotating mechanism, the method often used to maximize the efficiency of flat solar panels.
The arrays for Qwest Field will come from Solyndra's state-of-the-art solar manufacturing plant in California, which was built in part with a $535 million federal loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. The plant is a showcase for U.S. green-tech manufacturing: It employs over 1,000 people operating robotics manufacturing tools as a way to curb production costs and compete against inexpensive solar panels from China while keeping jobs in the U.S.
In this case, the arrays will also take advantage of the light reflected from the Seattle stadium's white "cool roof," which was originally installed to reduce the amount of heat absorbed by the building. Because Solyndra's panels can capture reflected light, the white roof reflection should increase the system's electricity production, according to Solyndra.
The solar system is being installed by McKinstry, an energy solutions company that has also designed and installed Qwest Field's low-flow water fixtures and high-efficiency lighting systems.
When complete at the end of the summer, the solar installation is expected to generate enough electricity annually to power the equivalent of 95 homes, and result in a 21 percent reduction in the stadium's utility costs. As a way to promote and educate people about solar technology, fans will also be able to track the electricity production and use at computer kiosks on the stadium grounds, according to Solyndra.
The Seattle Seahawks team is owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who recently created the Green Sports Alliance in conjunction with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Green Sports Alliance, which has the endorsement of six pro sports leagues as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, has made it its mission to persuade sports stadiums around the U.S. to upgrade their environmental efforts.
The solar arrays from Fremont, Calif.-based Solyndra are racks of thin-film CIGS (copper, indium, gallium, and selenide) solar cells shaped like tubes. The racks will cover approximately 2.5 acres, about 80 percent, of Qwest Field, Solyndra announced yesterday.
Solyndra is known for its tube-shape solar cells that capture direct, diffuse, and reflected sunlight throughout the day without the need for a rotating mechanism, the method often used to maximize the efficiency of flat solar panels.
The arrays for Qwest Field will come from Solyndra's state-of-the-art solar manufacturing plant in California, which was built in part with a $535 million federal loan guarantee from the Department of Energy. The plant is a showcase for U.S. green-tech manufacturing: It employs over 1,000 people operating robotics manufacturing tools as a way to curb production costs and compete against inexpensive solar panels from China while keeping jobs in the U.S.
In this case, the arrays will also take advantage of the light reflected from the Seattle stadium's white "cool roof," which was originally installed to reduce the amount of heat absorbed by the building. Because Solyndra's panels can capture reflected light, the white roof reflection should increase the system's electricity production, according to Solyndra.
The solar system is being installed by McKinstry, an energy solutions company that has also designed and installed Qwest Field's low-flow water fixtures and high-efficiency lighting systems.
When complete at the end of the summer, the solar installation is expected to generate enough electricity annually to power the equivalent of 95 homes, and result in a 21 percent reduction in the stadium's utility costs. As a way to promote and educate people about solar technology, fans will also be able to track the electricity production and use at computer kiosks on the stadium grounds, according to Solyndra.
The Seattle Seahawks team is owned by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who recently created the Green Sports Alliance in conjunction with the Natural Resources Defense Council. The Green Sports Alliance, which has the endorsement of six pro sports leagues as well as the Environmental Protection Agency, has made it its mission to persuade sports stadiums around the U.S. to upgrade their environmental efforts.
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