Today's Top Stories
1. Research: Global cleantech back sliding
2. Utilities ranking customer satisfaction higher in 2013
3. ISO to rely on oil and coal if strapped for natural gas
4. NRDC proposes emissions standards for existing generation
5. Solar PV prices falling Also Noted: Spotlight On... Post Rock wind farm commissioned funded by GE
An energy policy preview? and much more... Renewable energy 2012: A year of transition
Renewable energy enjoyed substantial progress in 2012, but the market in general is still struggling to balance the potential benefits of green power with the challenges of managing renewable energy regulation, integration and cost. Feature
Managing huge data with smart meters
There are many business drivers pushing utility companies to improve efficiency -- from coping with the changes in raw energy costs to government targets for reducing emissions. New technologies are arriving to address these new goals and targets, and it is one of those areas where the total is, potentially, much greater than the sum of its parts. Feature Smart grid driving energy storage, distributed generation, microgrids
Research commissioned by IEEE and conducted by Zpryme details how energy storage, distributed generation and microgrid technologies will evolve globally over the next five years due to rapid smart grid deployment. Feature 
Constellation shares lessons, trends and predictions
Constellation has been on the cutting edge a lot this year - from their innovative partnership with big box retailer Best Buy to the energy-efficiency programs they offer their customers. In this interview with FierceEnergy Editor Barbara Vergetis Lundin, Constellation's Gary Fromer, senior vice president of load response and Michael Smith, vice president of solar and efficiency sales, discuss some of the lessons and trends of 2012 and share their predictions for 2013. On the Hot Seat
News From Across the Energy Industry:
1. USC simulates smart grid city
2. Research: Smart meters got undue attention in smart grid
3. Advanced battery technologies get boost from DOE
| This week's sponsor is University TechWatch. |  | University Clean Tech Directory and Database
More than 400 technologies and startups - mined, vetted and indexed from 200+ U.S. universities - plus continuous database updates
Use discount code "FIERCE2012" for $100 off
See www.universitycleantech.com |
Today's Top News 1. Research: Global cleantech back sliding
Cleantech consulting firm Kachan & Co. has released research that it says will call into question some of cleantech's traditional leading indicators of health, predicts risks will develop within the solar and wind sectors. Among the company's predictions: The decline of cleantech venture capital: Gobal cleantech venture capital investment in 2013 will decline even further than it did in 2012. The previous highs before the financial crisis of 2007-2008 are long gone, according to the firm. Drivers include the departure of many venture investors because of disappointing returns, poor policy support worldwide, and a lag time in the pullback of equity and debt investment. But there could be a bright side. "Fewer VC cooks in the kitchen may impede innovation, but deep pocketed corporate capital should help clean technologies that are already de-risked reach meaningful levels of scale," said Dallas Kachan, managing partner, Kachan & Co. The emergence of long-term risk for solar and wind: Margin erosion, allegations of corruption, and international trade impropriety are just a few of the challenges plaguing the wind and solar industries. Kachan believes that in 2013 poor progress in grid-scale power storage technology will also put downward pressure on solar and wind growth figures. "Prices per kilowatt hour are falling, but the cost of flow batteries, molten salt, compressed air, pumped hydro, moving mass or other storage technology needs to be factored in to make intermittent clean energies reliable and available 24/7," said Kachan. "When also considering continued progress in cleaner baseload power from new, emerging nuclear technologies, natural gas and cleaner coal power, the growth rates for solar and wind appear at risk." The increasing respect for clean coal technology: 2013 will be the year a new set of technologies will emerge aimed at capturing particulate and CO2 emissions from coal fired power plants and help the sector begin to shed its negative positioning, according to Kachan. The barriers to capturing coal emissions have been cost and power plant output penalties, but encouraging new technologies are being identified. For more:
- see this article Related Article:
Climate Group calls for cleantech, renewable energy "revolution" Read more about: Kachan & Co.
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| This week's sponsor is Zpryme. |  | Zpryme's Smart Grid Insights and FierceSmartGrid are conducting a survey to assess the current sentiment and outlook for the Smart Grid industry on a monthly basis. We would like to invite utility, energy, and Smart Grid executives to participate in this month's survey. Click here to take the survey.
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2. Utilities ranking customer satisfaction higher in 2013
3. ISO to rely on oil and coal if strapped for natural gas
The New England ISO should have sufficient resources to meet consumer demand for electricity during the 2012-2013 winter season. However, the region's reliance on natural gas as a fuel to produce electricity could create operational challenges if natural gas supplies become tight this winter. If this occurs, ISO New England will rely on oil- and coal-fired generation to lessen any operational risks to the region's power system. "ISO New England has raised concerns about the region's reliance on natural gas as part of our broader Strategic Planning Initiative efforts," said Vamsi Chadalavada, executive vice president and chief operating officer, ISO New England. "The ISO will continue to turn to coal- and oil-fired generation when necessary to ensure that the power needed to meet consumer demand and maintain grid reliability is available this winter." New England's reliance on natural gas to produce electricity has increased significantly in the past several years, in part because natural gas has become far less expensive. Today, nearly 45 percent of the region's generating capacity is natural gas fired, accounting for more than half of the region's power. And while oil- and coal-fired generators are seldom called on to provide electricity because of their higher fuel costs, they make up nearly 30 percent of the region's generating capacity. ISO has recently filed proposed changes with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that would allow power system operators to communicate specific real-time generating information with natural gas pipeline operators for ensuring power system reliability. For more:
- see this article Related Articles:
ISO New England talks summer power outlook
ISO NE annual regional system plan a snapshot in time Read more about: Vamsi Chadalavada
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4. NRDC proposes emissions standards for existing generation
The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) today announced a proposal it claims will cut carbon emissions at U.S. power plants by 26 percent and stimulate more than $90 billion dollars in renewable energy and efficiency investments by 2020. NRDC is optimistic that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency will implement the proposal through its authority under Section 111(d) of the Clean Air Act. The proposal builds upon the EPA's Mercury Air Toxics Standards (MATS) by expanding emissions requirements to existing power plants and could lead to as much as 90GW of coal generation retirement. The proposal includes flexible compliance options and graduated reduction targets, which will be calculated by states based on their existing energy mix and perceived ability to reduce emissions. "The report overturns conventional wisdom that relying on the Clean Air Act has to be expensive and won't make much difference," said Dan Lashof, Director of NRDC's Climate and Clean Air Program, in a Tuesday announcement. Emissions goals will vary by state based on the state's existing energy mix and perceived ability to phase out harmful emissions. An ICF analysis showed that the plan would cut carbon emissions by more than 500 million tons in 2020, Lashof said. NRDC projects annualized compliance costs of $4 billion a year for utilities, but Lashof noted that he doesn't expect wholesale electric prices to rise if the plan is adopted. The model is also designed to maintain reserve margins and includes built-in demand response provisions to ensure grid reliability. The proposal comes on the heels of several damaging storms, including Superstorm Sandy, which many attribute to global warming and increased greenhouse gas emissions. "The dangers of these changed weather patterns is truly terrifying when you see it first hand," said NRDC Executive Director Peter Lehner. "We know where the pollution is, now we have to go after it." For more:
-download the report Related Articles:
ACCCE bashes EPA
Utilities looking for cost-effective technology for MATS compliance
Court upholds EPA greenhouse gas policies
Read more about: carbon emissions, Natural Resources Defense Council
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5. Solar PV prices falling
The installed price of solar photovoltaic (PV) power systems in the U.S. fell substantially in 2011 and through the first half of 2012, according to research from the U.S. Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. The market for solar PV systems in the United States has grown rapidly over the past decade, as national, state and local governments offered various incentives to expand the solar market and accelerate cost reductions. Based on data and other major international PV markets, PV prices in the United States may be driven lower through large-scale deployment programs, the authors suggest. There is significant variability in PV system pricing, some of which is associated with differences in installed prices by region, and by system size and installation type. Comparing across U.S. states, for example, the median installed price of PV systems less than 10 kW in size that were completed in 2011 and ranged from $4.90/W to $7.60/W, depending on the state. It also shows that PV installed prices exhibit significant economies of scale. Among systems installed in 2011, the median price for systems smaller than 2 kW was $7.70/W, while the median price for large commercial systems greater than 1,000 kW in size was $4.50/W. Utility-scale systems installed in 2011 registered even lower prices, with most systems larger than 10,000 kW ranging from $2.80/W to $3.50/W. For more:
- see this article
- see the report
- see this report Related Articles:
DOE expands research to lower solar costs
ORNL researching tech to lower solar costs Read more about: Solar Photovoltaics
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Also Noted SPOTLIGHT ON... Post Rock wind farm commissioned funded by GE GE Energy Financial Services, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Union Bank, N.A., have invested nearly $247 million in Wind Capital Group's recently commissioned 201 MW Post Rock wind farm. Post Rock is capable of powering more than 70,000 average homes and displacing 815,000 tons per year of greenhouse gas emissions, according to US Environmental Protection Agency methodology. Article Quick news from around the Web >Is the global gas push stalling? Article
>Obama's pipeline decision could offer a preview of U.S. energy policy. Article
>Michigan State University is investigating ways to capture waste energy from car exhaust and industry processes. Article
>Gas-rich Qatar to invest $20 billion in solar energy plant. Article > White paper: Smart Planning for Smart Grid AMI Mesh Networks Mesh networks must be properly designed to operate within the constraints of mesh routing protocols and capacity limits This white paper shows how planning/analysis techniques can deliver reliable and scalable networks and outlines best RF design practices to optimize for performance and cost. Download today! > White paper: Cyber Security and the Energy Sector Utilities face many security challenges today. AT&T and Sierra Wireless are working together to provide strong and proven security technologies enabling utilities with a secure and flexible two-way communications infrastructure to connect and communicate in real time. Download now. > Survey: Take the Smart Grid Index Survey Zpryme's Smart Grid Insights and FierceSmartGrid are conducting a survey to assess the current sentiment and outlook for the Smart Grid industry on a monthly basis. We would like to invite utility, energy, and Smart Grid executives to participate in this month's survey. Click here to take the survey. | |
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