US Coal Plant Closures Likely To Eliminate 30 Million Tons Of Annual Coal Demand

01.05.2017

The United States is closing 46 coal-fired generating units at 25 electricity plants across 16 states over the next few years, transitioning to natural gas or intentionally closing them, and a new report shows that this will likely result in eliminating about 30 million tons of annual coal demand by the end of 2018.

The Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA) published its new research brief last week, working step-by-step through the implications inherent in the expected coal-fired generating closures over 2017 and 2018 (the full list can be seen at the bottom). The brief concludes that the expected closures will eliminate about 28.2 million tons of annual coal demand by the end of 2018, worth nearly $1.1 billion (2016 prices).

The plant closures currently expected over the next few years are across 16 states — Colorado, Florida, Kentucky, Illinois, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. Coal producers in the Powder River Basin of Wyoming and Montana, and those in the Illinois Basin are expected to be the hardest hit — with two thirds of the expected annual demand losses predicted to stem from those two coal regions.

“Nearly 46 percent of the coal no longer required at these units, or 10.6 million tons, came from the Powder River Basin, and further 23.6 percent came from the Illinois Basin, making these the two hardest-hit regions,” said Seth Feaster, IEEFA data analyst and author of the report. Nearly 70% of coal that was purchased in 2016 was delivered to plants that will be closing.

“While some plants may have flexibility in which mine they purchase from, significant regional shifts in coal sourcing are unlikely, both because of economic reasons such as shipping costs and limits on changing the physical properties of the coal each plant uses,” the report explained. “This means that the coal shipments cited here are likely to represent permanent losses in demand for each mining region.”

The IEEFA also believe that coal mining operations in the Four Corners region of the Southwest US — Colorado, Utah, Arizona, and New Mexico — will take a sharp hit from plant closures. Additionally, those with operations in Appalachia and the Uinta Basin of Utah will continue to be affected, having already suffered loss of demand.

As for individual coal producers, Peabody Energy and Cloud Peak Energy are both expected to suffer the most. IEEFA predicts that by the end of 2018, Peabody Energy will lose nearly 4.9 million tons of coal sales to nine different plants — the most of any company. Cloud Peak Energy will suffer losses of 4.1 million tons to five plants.

By the end of 2018, the plant closures detailed in this report will amount to a net capacity (by 2016 figures) of 16 gigawatts (GW), or approximately 5.7% of the total coal-fired US electricity generation capacity. These closures represent what the IEEFA believes is a long-term trend that will only likely continue. “Indeed, the transformative shift in electricity generation across the U.S. is likely to continue as intense cost competition from renewables and natural gas continues a trend toward more coal-fired plant closures and has even led to some nuclear plant retirements over the past few years.”

Source: cleantechnica.com

Starbucks Commits To “Green Direct” Tariff In Home State Of Washington

30.04.2017

The world’s most iconic coffee shop has committed to a new long-term renewable electricity tariff, the “Green Direct” tariff, in its home state of Washington in an effort to ensure all its local facilities are powered 100% by renewable energy.

Starbucks is one of several iconic brands which have subscribed to the new Green Direct project — essentially a long-term service agreement which aims to eventually produce enough renewable energy to power nearly 30,000 Washington homes. According to the largest investor-owned utility in the state of Washington, Puget Sound Energy, “Green Direct will make a difference by constructing a new renewable generating facility while our partners benefit from cost competitive prices and continued access to energy efficiency programs.” Experts believe that this first subscriber-style green tariff could serve as a model for other utilities across the country, giving companies and institutions the option to subscribe to the tariff in an effort to produce long-term renewable energy growth.

“Green Direct exemplifies the power of partnership,” said Kimberly Harris, president & CEO of Puget Sound Energy. “Working with the UTC and with customers like King County, we’ve been able to structure an industry-leading renewable energy program for our largest electric customers. We’re so excited to see this come together and for what it means to our customers and the region.”

Alongside Starbucks, other big-name subscribers to the tariff include REI and Target, as well as local governments and institutions.

“By partnering with Puget Sound Energy on their innovative Green Direct program, we’re able to power seven of our local Target stores with 100 percent clean energy,” said John Leisen, vice president of property management at Target. “This initiative is just one example of Target’s ongoing commitment to sustainability and promoting renewable energy solutions in the community we serve.”

Starbucks itself is aiming to ensure approximately 116 of its Washington State stores are all powered with green energy from Puget Sound Energy.

“As part of Starbucks ongoing Global Responsibility efforts, we’re proud to support the advancement of renewable energy sources in regionally relevant ways,” said Rebecca Zimmer, Starbucks director of Environmental Impact. “We’re proud of our commitment to bring greener power to our stores, and now through our relationship with Puget Sound Energy, our partners (employees) in the Puget Sound can see this come to life, right in their community.”

Source: cleantechnica.com

80% of Heat Records Worldwide Linked to Climate Change

29.04.2017

Klimatske promene — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

Record-breaking extreme weather events all over the globe, including increased temperatures and rainfall, can be linked to climate change, according to new research.

Most scientific research examines the links between climate change and specific weather events, but a first-of-its-kind study published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences used a new framework to take a comprehensive look at climate measurements worldwide.

The study found that over 80 percent of heat records worldwide were linked to climate change, while climate change influenced 57 percent of driest-year records and 41 percent of five-day precipitation records.

“Our results suggest that the world isn’t quite at the point where every record hot event has a detectable human fingerprint, but we are getting close,” lead author Noah Diffenbaugh told USA Today.

Source: ecowatch.com

Australia’s Solar Capacity Reaches 6 Gigawatts, Is Expected To Double By 2020

28.04.2017

Australia’s total solar power capacity has reached 6GW and is expected to double over the next few years as Australian households continue to invest in rooftop panels to reduce electricity bills, and the large-scale solar sector takes off after years of promise.

The latest industry analysis on installed capacity – released by the Australian Photovoltaic Institute – shows that rooftop solar capacity has now reached 5.6GW and large-scale solar capacity is now at 496MW, and growing fast.

The leading state in rooftop solar remains Queensland, with 1.72GW of rooftop solar – that makes it, as we reported here, bigger than the state’s largest coal generator. NSW and Victoria also have more than 1GW of rooftop solar capacity, with South Australia having the highest penetration (32 per cent) among residential dwellings.

As of April 2017, there was a total of 1.67 million PV installations in Australia, covering 21 per cent of suitable rooftops, which is the highest penetration of rooftop solar in the world. In total, these solar installations collectively generate 8,400 gigawatt hours of electricity each year, which meets approximately 3.3 per cent of Australian demand.

The data suggests that the rate of installation of rooftop solar is also accelerating. After establishing a record March quarter, the rate of installations for the year to date is up significantly in all the major states.

Interestingly, the biggest growth is coming from Western Australia, which has installed 43MW so far this year, outstripping Victoria, as locals prepare for the likely imminent removal of the state-based subsidy that has hidden the true cost of electricity from consumers.

The subsidy accounts for around one-third of the cost of power, and the new Labor government has flagged its removal to help it address the state’s soaring budget deficit. That is likely to make rooftop solar even more attractive – which explains the 71 per cent jump in installations so far this year.

The Sunwiz data – sourced from the Clean Energy Regulator – also highlights the solar hotspots in Australia, including the towns and suburbs where households without rooftop solar are in the minority.

For example, two-thirds of all households in Baldivis in Western Australia and Elimbah in Queensland now have rooftop solar. (See our story here on sister site One Step Off The Grid).

“With batteries now readily available on the market, many people are taking this opportunity to install both solar and batteries – or to upgrade the size of their existing solar systems,” says Sunwiz analyst Warwick Johnston. “The price of solar has dropped low enough, and power prices are rising high enough, for this to make economic sense for many commercial operators, too.”

APVI chair Dr Renate Egan said Australian homeowners, commercial businesses and large-scale solar farms had all contributed to an extra 1GW of solar being added to the grid over the past year.

“Solar power now makes up 11 percent of our country’s total electricity generation capacity with more solar added to the system in 2016 than any other fuel type,” Egan said in a statement.

By 2020, the total is expected to double again, with Sunwiz forecasting at least 800MW of rooftop solar to be installed this year and following years, and Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasting more than 3,000MW of large scale solar to meet the legislated renewable energy target as solar matches wind power on costs (see graph above).

By 2040, the amount of solar capacity could have risen 10-fold from its current levels. BNEF, as this graph to the right illustrates, is predicting 33GW of rooftop solar and 27GW of large-scale solar as solar power becomes the primary source of electricity generation in Australia.

It could increase even further, if plans to create “solar export fuels”, using renewables such as solar and wind to create hydrogen and then “green ammonia” to supply Asian economies such as South Korea and Japan, hungry for clean fuels to replace imported coal and LNG.

In any case, by 2040 the nature of the grid will have changed dramatically, and will have become more “distributed” – as predicted by the new head of the Australian Energy Market Operator Audrey Zibelman.

The key features will be localised and flexible generation. Batteries – and BNEF predicts there will be at least 15GW of them – will provide a large amount of flexibility, but so too will other forms of flexible generation, including demand response.

Coal capacity might have reduced to just 5GW by that time, with gas also taking a role in delivering flexible generation, although this will largely depend on the future cost of batteries, with some already suggesting that the combined cost of large-scale solar and battery storage is already beating gas, and could be “well under” $100/MWh – and current wholesale electricity prices – within a few years.

Developers of large-scale solar projects already report fierce competition for power purchase agreements, with bidding under $70/MWh in some cases and heading towards $60/MWh.

Those developers that have the equity behind them, and access to low-cost finance, are choosing to go the “merchant” route, where they can tap into high wholesale electricity prices and – for a few years more at least – high prices for large scale renewable energy certificates.

Consumers – both household and business – are facing the opposite problem, landed with not just the increased costs of wholesale power, but the high price of transport (networks) and retail margins. Hence their huge interest in rooftop solar and storage.

Source: cleantechnica.com

100% Clean Energy Bill Launched by Senators to Phase Out Fossil Fuels by 2050

28.04.2017

Solarni paneli — Photo-ilustration: Pixabay

Ahead of the People’s Climate March, Senators Jeff Merkley, Bernie Sanders and Ed Markey stood beside movement leaders to introduce legislation that will completely phase out fossil fuel use by 2050. The “100 by ’50 Act” outlines a bold plan to support workers and to prioritize low-income communities while replacing oil, coal and gas with clean energy sources like wind and solar.

“100 is an important number,” said 350.org co-founder Bill McKibben. “Instead of making changes around the margins, this bill would finally commit America to the wholesale energy transformation that technology has made possible and affordable, and that an eroding climate makes utterly essential. This bill won’t pass Congress immediately—the fossil fuel industry will see to that—but it will change the debate in fundamental ways.”

The “100 by ’50 Act” would put a halt to new fossil fuel infrastructure projects like Keystone XL and the Dakota Access pipeline, and fracked gas pipelines facing opposition from tribes and landowners. Instead of new fossil fuel infrastructure, the bill invests hundreds of billions of dollars per year in clean energy—enough to create four million jobs. These large-scale clean energy investments prioritize black, brown and low-income communities on the frontlines of the climate crisis.

“While fossil fuel billionaires supporting Trump’s administration put profits before people, we now have a legislative roadmap to phase out this dirty industry once and for all,” said 350.org Executive Director May Boeve. “This bill deploys clean energy in communities that need it most and keeps fossil fuels in the ground. From Standing Rock to the Peoples Climate March, movement leaders have been calling for these solutions for years. This bill is proof that organizing works, and it’s the beginning of an important conversation.”

The issues covered by the bill reflect the demands of the climate movement, from Standing Rock to the fossil fuel divestment campaign, to the fight to keep fossil fuels in the ground. The content stands in bright contrast to Trump’s vision of a more polluted America where fossil fuel billionaires profit at the public’s expense. While this precedent setting bill is unlikely to pass during the Trump administration, similar bills are being considered at the state and local level in California, Massachusetts, New York and elsewhere across the country.

At a press conference held by Senators Merkley and Sanders, speakers included representatives from climate and environmental justice groups, progressive organizations and more. A crowd of supporters carried banners and signs reading “100% Clean Energy For All,” and, “Keep Fossil Fuels In The Ground.” The event was part of an ongoing week of action leading up to the People’s Climate March on April 29, when thousands of people are converging in DC and around the country to march for jobs, justice and the climate.

Source: ecowatch.com

South Australia Sets New Record Wind Output Of 1,540 Megawatts On Anzac Day

28.04.2017

Wind - Power — Foto - ilustracija: Pixabay

South Australia set a new record for wind output on Tuesday, the Anzac Day public holiday, reaching 1,540MW just before midnight – a significant lift on its previous record of 1,400MW set just two weeks earlier.

The Australian Energy Market Operator says it was forced to intervene to ensure that at least two gas-fired generators remained on line – and it imposed controlled pricing over the period to ensure that occurred.

AEMO has been required to have at least two large gas generators working at all times under new rules imposed by the South Australia state government last year following the state-wide blackout in September and other rolling stoppages since then.

It is interesting to note that the surge in wind energy in the late evening came just as the state’s electric hot water systems are switched on under their controlled load arrangements. This represents around 190MW of demand, and was timed to switch on then to give the coal generators something to do at night-time. They, of course, are now closed.

Source: cleantechnica.com

Air Pollution Can Cut Solar Panel Efficiency By Up To 25%

28.04.2017

Izgradnja solarne elektrane — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

A new study has disturbing news for India’s solar power industry. It claims that dust and particulate matter (often a by-product of diesel engines) can reduce solar panel efficiency by 17% to 25%. Half this reduction comes from dust and particles deposited on the surface of solar panels which form a physical barrier to the passage of sunlight.

That’s according to Duke University professor Mike Bergin, who led the study. The rest of the reduction comes from ambient haze from atmospheric pollution, a condition known as solar dimming. “This study thus shows that improving air quality can lead to a big improvement in solar energy yield,” says Bergin. “Cleaning panels is not enough.” Many solar power plants today include systems that periodically wash the solar panels to remove dust, dirt, pollen, and bird droppings.

Dust can have a significant effect on solar panel output. A 2016 study in Baghdad, for example, found an 18.74% decline in efficiency for solar modules left uncleaned for a month. Another 2014 paper from Colorado, found that up to 4.1% of light transmission was lost due to dust buildup.

But losses from air pollution have received less attention. In one 2013 study, researchers investigated the power output of ten PV systems in Singapore during a haze episode caused by forest fires in Indonesia. That study found that lower air quality caused system output to decline by up to 25% over a 10 week period. On one day in particular, output was reduced by a staggering 50% according to Andre Nobre, lead author and head of operations at Cleantech Solar in Singapore. The study did not look at particulate deposits because frequent rain keeps solar panels clean in Singapore, he noted. “For a city like New Delhi, you have the added effect [of] soiling on the panels from the fact that it is a much drier and dirtier city.”

The Bergin study is the first to quantify the combined impact of ambient particles and deposited matter. He and his colleagues analyzed deposits on solar panels at the IIT campus in Gandhinagar and tracked energy yield before and after cleaning. Power generation increased 50% after each cleaning, the study found.

Air pollution is now a factor in solar power plant business decisions, says Nobre, whose company has solar projects across Asia including India. “Developers like ourselves will be extra cautious when signing power purchase agreements with clients with facilities located in highly polluted zones,” Nobre said. “Our returns are impacted by air pollution, which in turn end up increasing electricity tariffs we are able to offer. As the fleet of PV systems is drastically growing in India, there could be millions of dollars in revenue being lost,” he says.

Source: cleantechnica.com

Apple to Power Oregon Data Center with Wind Energy

27.04.2017

Apple recently disclosed a deal to purchase 200 MW of wind power from the Montague Wind Farm for its Prineville, Oregon data center. The news was announced in the company’s annual environmental responsibility report, and it is being dubbed as the “first Apple-created wind project.”

Construction on the first phase of the Montague Wind Power Project is scheduled to begin in September, with energy generating late next year. The 404-MW wind farm is owned by Montague Wind Power Facility, a wholly owned subsidiary of Avangrid Renewables LLC, and it will be capable of producing 560 million kWh annually.

According to the Oregon Department of Energy, the Montague Wind Facility will be located in Gilliam County, Oregon, in the high desert east of the Cascade Mountains nearby several other wind projects.

In a separate announcement, Apple maintains it has plans to buy power from a 56-MW project called Solar Star Oregon II, under construction a few miles from the Prineville complex. Two micro-hydro projects, generating 12 million kWh of energy per year, are also powering the data center.

Source: windpowerengineering.com

Deep-Sea Mining Could Help Develop Mass Solar Energy but Only at a Cost to the Environment

27.04.2017

Scientists have just discovered massive amounts of a rare metal called tellurium, a key element in cutting-edge solar technology. As a solar expert who specialises in exactly this, I should be delighted. But here’s the catch: the deposit is found at the bottom of the sea in an undisturbed part of the ocean.

People often have an idealised view of solar as the perfect clean-energy source. Direct conversion of sunlight to electricity, no emissions, no oil spills or contamination – perfect. This, however, overlooks the messy reality of how solar panels are produced.

While the energy produced is indeed clean, some of the materials required to generate that power are toxic or rare. In cadmium-telluride-based solar cells, for example, the cadmium is toxic and the telluride is hard to find.

Cadmium telluride is one of the second generation “thin-film” solar cell technologies. It’s far better at absorbing light than silicon, the bedrock of solar-power tech, so its absorbing layer doesn’t need to be as thick. A spread of cadmium telluride just one thousandth of a millimetre thick will absorb around 90 per cent of the light it receives. It’s cheap and quick to set up compared to silicon and uses less material.

As a result it’s the first thin-film technology to effectively make the leap from the research laboratory to mass production. Cadmium telluride solar modules now account for around 5 per cent of global installations and, depending on how you do the sums, can produce lower-cost power than silicon solar.

But cadmium telluride’s Achilles heel is the tellurium itself, one of the rarest metals in the earth’s crust. Serious questions must be asked about whether technology based on such a rare metal is worth pursuing on a massive scale.

There is a longstanding divide in opinion about this. The abundance of data for tellurium suggests a real issue but the counter-argument is that no-one has been actively looking for new reserves of the material. After all, platinum and gold are similarly rare but demand for catalytic converters – which platinum is chiefly used for – means in practice we are able to find plenty.

The discovery of a massive new tellurium deposit in an underwater mountain in the Atlantic ocean certainly supports the “it will turn up eventually” theory. And this is a particularly rich ore, according to the British scientists involved in the MarineE-Tech project – a collaboration between UK universities, the National Oceanography Centre and their counterparts in Brazil. While most tellurium is extracted as a by-product of copper mining and so is relatively low yield, samples taken from the seabed contain concentrations 50,000 times higher than on land.

Extracting from the sea would be formidably hard and very risky for the environment. The top of the mountain where the tellurium has been discovered is still a kilometre below the waves, and the nearest land is hundreds of miles away.

Mining is never a good thing for the environment. It can uproot communities, decimate forests and leave huge scars on the landscape. It often leads to groundwater contamination, despite whatever safeguards are put in place.

Given the technical challenges and the pristine ecosystems involved, it’s easy to imagine the devastation that deep-sea mining could cause. No wonder it has yet to be implemented anywhere yet, despite plans off the coast of Papua New Guinea and elsewhere. Indeed, there’s no suggestion that tellurium mining is liable to occur at this latest site any time soon.

But the mere presence of such resources, or the wind turbines or electric car batteries that rely on scarce materials or risky industrial processes, raises an interesting question. These are useful low-carbon technologies, but do they also have a requirement to be environmentally ethical?

There is often the perception that everyone working in renewable energy is a lovely tree-hugging, sandal-wearing leftie but this isn’t the case. After all, this is now a huge industry, one that is aiming to eventually supplant fossil fuels, and there are valid concerns over whether such expansion will be accompanied by a softening of regulations.

We know that solar power is ultimately a good thing but do the ends always justify the means? Or to put it more starkly: could we tolerate mass production of solar panels if it necessitated mining and drilling on a similar scale to the fossil fuels industry, along with the associated pitfalls?

To my mind the answer is undoubtedly yes, we have little choice. After all, mass solar would still wipe out our carbon emissions, helping curb global warming and the associated apocalypse.

What’s reassuring is that even as solar becomes a truly mature industry, it has started from a more noble and environmentally sound place. Cadmium telluride modules for example include a cost to cover recycling, while scarce resources such as tellurium can be recovered from panels at the end of their 20-year or more lifespan (compare this with fossil fuels, where the materials that produce the power are irreparably lost in a bright flame and a cloud of carbon).

The impact of mining for solar panels will likely be minimal in comparison to the oil or coal industries but it will not be zero. As renewable technology becomes more crucial, we perhaps need to start calibrating our expectations to account for this.

At some point mining operations in search of solar or wind materials will cause damage or else some industrial production process will go awry and cause contamination. This may be the Faustian pact we have to accept, as the established alternatives are far worse. Unfortunately nothing is perfect.

Source: independent.co.uk

Mayors Take Bold Step Toward 100% Clean Energy

27.04.2017

Mayors from across the nation joined with the Sierra Club’s Ready for 100 campaign Wednesday to announce a new effort to engage and recruit mayors to endorse a goal of transitioning to 100 percent renewable energy.

Ahead of the U.S. Conference of Mayors annual meeting in Miami Beach in June, the launch of Mayors for 100% Clean Energy aims to demonstrate bold local leadership and showcase the depth and breadth of support from city leaders for a transition to 100 percent renewable energy.

The new initiative is co-chaired by Mayor Philip Levine of Miami Beach, Mayor Jackie Biskupski of Salt Lake City, Mayor Kevin Faulconer of San Diego and Mayor Stephen K. Benjamin of Columbia, South Carolina. Benjamin is also a vice president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors.

“We have already taken steps to expand renewable energy and we will continue to improve our infrastructure and innovate clean energy solutions for a stronger Miami Beach,” said Mayor Levine. “Climate change may be the challenge of our generation, but it is also the opportunity of a lifetime. The transition to clean and renewable energy will both help Miami Beach confront climate change and strengthen our local economy.”

Mayor Biskupski noted that cities contribute about 75 percent of human greenhouse gas emissions, and said Salt Lake City is warming at a rate twice as fast as the global average.

“We can’t ignore climate change because climate change is not ignoring us,” she said. “Among many other risks, we face water shortages, decreased snowpack and threats to our $1 billion ski industry. Cities must adapt to cope with these threats, and that’s also why we must take action to mitigate them.”

Noting that San Diego has become a leading city for solar energy capacity, Mayor Faulconer said that business and environmental groups are cooperating to achieve a mutually beneficial goal of 100 percent renewable energy.

“Clean energy isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s the smart thing to do,” he emphasized. “We’re going green not only because it supports clean air and water, but because it supports our 21st century economy.”

Mayoral leadership has been a powerful driver of city-wide action on climate change and clean energy in municipalities across the country. The Mayors National Climate Action Agenda (Climate Mayors) founded by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, former Houston Mayor Annise Parker and former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, recently released an electric vehicle request for information to demonstrate demand to automakers for nearly 115,00 vehicles that could be electrified in 30 cities.

Now the co-chairs of Mayors for 100% Clean Energy, a number of whom are Climate Mayors, are further demonstrating their commitment to lead nationally on the shared challenge of reducing climate pollution and contributing to Climate Mayors’ framework of local leadership and action.

“Mayors can lead our nation toward a healthier, stronger and more prosperous country by championing a vision of 100 percent clean, renewable energy in their communities,” said Sierra Club Executive Director Michael Brune. “Cities don’t need to wait for Washington, DC to act in order to move the ball forward on clean energy.”

Twenty-six cities across the U.S. have now committed to transition to 100 percent clean and renewable energy. This growing list of cities most recently includes South Lake Tahoe, California, which last week unanimously voted to transition entirely to renewable energy by 2032. Other big cities including Los Angeles and Denver are studying pathways to 100 percent clean energy. Earlier this month, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a commitment to transition Chicago municipal buildings and operations to 100 percent clean and renewable energy by 2025.

India To Auction 4,000 Megawatts Of Wind Energy Capacity This Year

27.04.2017

Following the massive success of its first-ever wind energy tender, the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy in India is planning to launch another tender this year four times the size.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India has announced that it will auction 4,000 megawatts of wind energy capacity this financial year, i.e. by March 2018. The agency will offer this capacity to prospective project developers in multiple tranches. SECI is also expected to launch wind energy tenders of 5,000-6,000 megawatts every year until 2022.

India plans to have an installed wind energy capacity of 60 gigawatts by March 2022, and these auctions are will be aligned to achieve this goal. India’s current installed wind energy capacity stands at just over 32 gigawatts.

India added a record 5,400 megawatts of wind energy capacity during the financial year 2016-17 (April 2016 to March 2017). This is 35% more than the envisaged target of 4,000 megawatts set at the start of the financial year. Between April 2016 and February 2017, a total of 2,374 megawatts of wind energy capacity was added. In March 2017 alone, the capacity addition jumped to 3,026 megawatts.

The Chairman of the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association (IWTMA) recently stated that a record 6,000 megawatts of wind energy capacity is expected to be added in the financial year 2017-18 which, will be 11% higher than the 5,400 megawatt capacity added in 2016-17 — also a record.

The first-ever wind energy auction in India yielded the lowest-ever tariffs of Rs 3.46/kWh (5.2¢/kWh). Four companies — Mytrah Energy, Green Infra (owned by Sembcorp), Inox Wind, and Ostro Energy — were awarded 250 megawatts of capacity each, while Adani Green Energy secured the rights to develop 50 megawatts of capacity.

Source: cleantechnica.com

Saudi Arabia To Offer More Than 1 Gigawatt Of Solar & Wind In Second Tender Round

26.04.2017

Obnovljivi izvori — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay (seagul)

Saudi Arabia is set to offer more than 1 gigawatt of contracts to buy renewable electricity by the fourth quarter of this year, according to an official speaking this week. The plans are part of the country’s recently-announced intention to grow its renewable energy sources and spur development of wind and solar.

Speaking at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance conference in New York on Monday, Saudi Arabia’s Turki al-Shehri, head of renewable energy project development at the Ministry of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources, announced that the country will auction power purchase agreements (PPAs) worth 620 megawatts (MW) for solar PV and 400 MW for wind farms in its second round of tenders by the end of this year.

Earlier this month Saudi Arabia’s Energy Minister, Khalid al-Falih, revealed that his country was aiming to produce 10% of its power from renewable energy sources by 2030 — amounting to around 30 wind and solar projects worth 9.5 gigawatts (GW). “The energy mix to produce electricity will change, today the kingdom uses large quantities of oil liquids, including crude, fuel oil and diesel,” al-Falih said. “So the percentage of renewable energy by 2023 (will be) 10 percent of total installed capacity in the kingdom.”

Speaking on Monday, Turki al-Shehri further explained the next step in the country’s plans. “It is truly unprecedented for the kingdom,” he said. “The kingdom has set a truly wonderful vision. The tenders that were recently issued, this is only the beginning of our accomplishment. We are open for business.”

Saudi Arabia earlier this month also revealed that it had cleared 27 companies to bid for a 300 MW solar power plant, and 24 firms to bid for a 400 MW wind farm.

Source: cleantechnica.com

Houston, You Now Have Solar Power

26.04.2017

photovoltaic-solar — Photo-illustration: Pixabay

On Friday, Houston announced it will be purchasing 10.5% of its energy from the SolaireHolman utility-scale power plant located eight hours away in Alpine, Texas. The plant is one of the largest solar installations in Texas and was constructed by Solairedirect North America, a subsidiary of French energy giant ENGIE. The city will purchase the power under a 20-year power-purchase agreement.

“As the energy capital of the world, it is important that Houston lead by example and show that investing in solar and renewable energy is a critical tool cities must use to prepare for the future,” said Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner. “As the nation’s largest municipal purchaser of green power, we are living proof that large, industrial cities like Houston can have a robust economy but also help fight climate change.”

Houston is just the latest Texas city to derive a significant amount of its power from solar energy, following cities like Georgetown, San Antonio and Austin. The former hardscrabble oil town’s announcement comes barely a week after El Paso sold out subscriptions to its month-old community solar program in less than a month.

Texas has long been a leader in renewable energy. Under former governor Rick Perry (now Secretary of Energy in the Trump Administration), the wind industry thrived with help from the state and federal government. Solar is now receiving similar support, and the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA) has predicted the city will add 5.7 GW of solar power in the next five years.

If that much solar is added, it would catapult the state into the No. 2 position in the Top 10 Solar States as ranked by SEIA. It currently ranks No. 9. Houston has ranked No. 1 in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) Top 30 Local Government list of the largest green power users, consuming nearly 1 billion kilowatt-hours (kWh) of green power annually. That number represents more than 89% of its total energy needs.

One of Texas’ largest solar installations, the SolaireHolman project includes 203,840 solar panels on 360 acres, providing electricity for Houston locations like the Hermann Park Zoo, the Bob Lanier Public Works Building, wastewater treatment plants, and several Bush Intercontinental Airport terminals.

Source: pv-magazine-usa.com

Charlottesville Wins Award for Solar Energy Efforts

26.04.2017

The city of Charlottesville just received a big award for being solar-power friendly and it’s the first city to get the recognition in the state.

The city now has a designation as “SolSmart Bronze.”

The award is an achievement that recognizes Charlottesville for adopting practices and programs to help the community go solar. Charlottesville is one of the first 50 communities in the U.S. to get the recognition.

“By becoming more solar friendly as a community, it can basically hedge our risks against increased energy costs in the future, it helps us doing environmental stewardship efforts and it also starts to put power generation into the hands of our local property owners,” Susan Elliott of the City of Charlottesville, said.

The SolSmart program is supported by the U.S. Department of Energy. The award has three different levels, bronze, silver and gold.

Source: nbc29.com

DUBRAVKA NEGRE: We Have Invested about 150 Million Euros in Serbia so far

26.04.2017

According to all indicators, 2015 was a record year for the EIB investments in climate projects with a total amount exceeding 20 billion euros. In all documents or interactive portals of the European Union institutions, the phrase that climate change is the greatest challenge for humanity is inevitable. Everybody recognizes the concern, the consequences are far-reaching and timeless, the responsibility of the current generation of politicians and decision-makers is exceptional. One can also come across the term that 2015 was the millennium year because a global campaign was launched that must yield results. There is no alternative.

This time we talked to Ms. Dubravka Negre, who has recently become the Head of the EIB Regional Representation for the Western Balkans. This is an institution that participates in the most direct way possible in the fight against climate change and also funds specific projects. The EIB is an investment institution established in 1958 and founded by members of the European Union. As such it closely works with all the institutions of the European Union – the European Parliament, the European Comission and the European Council. The headquarters is located in Luxembourg, the bank has about 2,900 employees and apart from the projects within the EU, it cooperates with nearly 150 countries that are not members of the EU. Those countries receive around 10 percent of the total EIB fund.

EP: An interesting conference was held in Morocco on 8 September, 2016, just two months before the conference COP 22. The EIB was the organizer and if our readers want to know more, they can go to: http://www.eib.org/infocentre/events/all/medconference-2016.htm. Can you tell us something about the participants, the results and the objectives of the conference?

Dubravka Negre: The Conference in Rabat was dedicated to climate issues in the Mediterranean region and was organized in partnership with the Government of Morocco and the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM). Climate action promotes economic growth, prosperity as well as job creation. Therefore, as the largest international funder of climate activities the EIB mobilized there resources, skills and experts to give financial support for concrete projects in Morocco, but also in many other countries. The Conference provided an opportunity to investigate serious consequences of climate change in the Mediterranean region – particulary erosion and drought that have serios impact on production in agriculture, food safety that has to be provided in concentrated urban areas on the coast. Apart from that, we were also able to learn more about adapting to climate change, the mitigation, particularly in the area of financial requirements during the Conference and also to discuss specific methods for financing projects in the field of climate change in the Mediterranean region.

EP: After the Conference COP 21 and the Paris Agreement all the parties in the public sector were involved in projects in order to ensure the reduction of the level of CO2 coming from industrial and public sectors. What is the strategy of the EIB? In what way do you support these efforts and what products does the EIB have dealing with this subject? How does the EIB cooperate with commercial banks and institutions?

Dubravka Negre: The EIB supports the transition to an economy that is friendly to the environment, has a low level of CO2 and takes account of the climate. As the bank of the European Union we understand the need to promote the objectives in the field of environmental protection in developed countries, but also in those that are still developing, with the aim to support sustainable development across the globe. As one of the largest investors in the world when it comes to climate change, we define at least 25 percent of the portfolio on the low carbonic and climatically favourable activities. Our investments support sustainable projects in more than 160 countries, supporting also private financing for climate activities. In that way we encourage others to be involved in our long-term investments. In 2015 we had the biggest investments ever when it comes to investing in climate change. It is about 27 percent of total lending, or to be more precise 20,7 billion euros.

We take into account the climatic conditions when assessing new projects and during the monitoring of existing investments. We call this integration!

In the period of preparation, we observe the following:

– When we evaluate the economic aspects for the project which leads to significant changes in the emission of greenhouse gases (GHG), we incorporate the economic costs of carbon dioxide emissions.

– The estimation of greenhouse gas emission in the projects that we invest in, is made on the basis of specific methodologies for the sector.

– For all fossil fuel generation projects we apply a special Emission Performance Standard in order to do the screening of investments whose carbon dioxide emissions exceed the threshold.

– For projects, sectors and regions particularly vulnerable to the climate change impacts, we require the following – that the promoter considers climate risks and includes adaptation measures in the project design and operation. The potential of the project to generate carbon credits is estimated. Technical assistance can be given to promoters and thus help them take advantage of this potential.

The EIB gladly accepted a global agreement on climate change that took place in Paris. The bank, that already provides the biggest financial support for climate projects, will now play a key role in mobilizing additional resources, mainly in private sector. In the next 5 years the EIB expects to lend about 100 billion euros for the projects dedicated to climate change worldwide.

We cooperate with the others as well in order to help further investments in climate projects and projects on environmental protection. Our traditional products for financing are medium-term and long-term projects with fixed or variable interest rate in euros or other currencies. We finance large projects with direct loans for projects, but we also support smaller projects indirectly. We finance them through credit lines from local banks or in combination with other agents. We complement our traditional lending with other products such as investment funds.

EP: Renewable energy sources are a part of the strategy against climate change. Can you tell us what type of activities you have on the market? Who can apply for your loans and who can attend your conferences?

Dubravka Negre: The promotion of sustainable, competitive and secure sources of energy is the key of the policy of the European Union and for the EIB is an important sector for funding. The EIB applies strict criteria for energy credits established on the basis of a comprehensive review. Thus, we ensure that our lending in the energy sector mimics EU policies when it comes to energy and climate policies. We focus on energy efficiency, renewable energy sources, energy networks, as well as research and innovation. Likewise, we support the development and expansion of the projects in the field of renewable energy sources in order to make energy suppliers more sustainable, competitive and secure.

By investing in renewable energy sources we support the EU policy on climate change. We will help in achieving the goal according to which 20 percent of the energy used should be from renewable energy sources by 2020. Not only that we finance secure renewable technologies, such as wind farms, hydroelectric power plants, projects in the field of geothermal energy and biomass, but we also strongly encourage the development of such projects. We demand that the best possible technology available is used in the projects we fund.

Loans are the main product for the projects in the energy field. We also offer structured finance options. Our clients are states, local governments, private investors, small and medium enterprises, commercial banks and corporations. We fund large projects alone and for the small ones we form a partnership with market intermediaries.

EP: Tell us more about Serbia and the region in terms of climate change and projects? How much have you invested in the area so far? What are your plans for the next year and for the following few years?

Dubravka Negre: So far in Serbia, the EIB has invested about 80 million euros through GGF (Green for Growth Fund), whose goal is to support small projects in the field of RES such as hydropower plants and wind farms of less than 30 MW. We support projects related to solar energy, biogas, biomass, geothermal energy and all this through financial intermediaries.

In addition to GGF, in the energy sector in Serbia, we have invested a total of about 150 million euros in the last few years. In the Western Balkans, we have supported in the past few years the rehabilitation of several hydroelectric power plants in Bosnia, with the loan of 90 million euros. Now we also participate in the construction of a new hydro power plant of 20 MW. We also provide technical assistance through the Western Balkan Investment Framework for the preparation of irrigation projects in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, but also for two wind farms in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

We are interested to continue to be involved in projects on climate change in Serbia, including the RES. In addition to projects in the field of energy efficiency and renewable energy sources, as well as the fight against elevated levels of carbon dioxide, the EIB aims to contribute to the reconstruction of existing transmission and distribution networks.

Interview by: Vesna Vukajlović

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