Home: Renewable Energy News: Friday 17 April, 2009

Renewable Energy News

FRIDAY 17 APRIL, 2009 |

$1.2M For Adelaide Solar City Projects

Adelaide solar city
Minister for the Environment Peter Garrett has announced over $1.2 million from the Australian Government to go towards installation of solar panels at various locations around Adelaide.

A 50 kilowatt BP Solar PV panel based system will be installed at the Detroit Diesel building, generating about 70,000 kilowatt hours of renewable energy each year -the equivalent of 20 per cent of the building’s total power needs. An observation deck and a dedicated project website will be incorporated to help educate the community and industry about the benefits and technical aspects of using renewable energy.

Plans for a 50 kilowatt system are also underway for Adelaide City Council’s Rundle Lantern, which will generate more than enough power needed for the public art display.

A 50 kilowatt solar farm will be installed at Adelaide Central Market without detracting from the important historic fabric of the building.

The Adelaide Solar City project has already seen a four kilowatt solar photovoltaic system installed in the City of Tea Tree Gully at the Golden Grove Recreation Centre. A 50 kilowatt grid connect solar power system consisting of 320 solar panels commissioned at the Adelaide Central Bus Station in February 2008 has already generated more than 94,000 kilowatt hours of electricity – far more than anticipated.

Also announced today by Minister Garrett's office today was the opening of a solar thermal testing centre in Adelaide to support the research and development of solar hot water, solar heating systems and other solar technologies. The Australian Government has contributed $410,000 to the centre.

Solar Powered Beer

Solar power and beer
Americans are well known for their affection for Budweiser beer and now the tipple is just a little bit greener thanks to solar power; giving somewhat a new meaning to their product "Bud Light".

The Anheuser-Busch Fairfield brewery, announced today that over 6 acres of solar panels are generating the equivalent of around 3 percent of the brewery's electricity needs.

The 1.2 MW ground mount solar farm is located on Anheuser-Busch property near California Highway 80. The system will also generate Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) that other entities can purchase to offset their greenhouse gas emissions. The brewery is also considering the installation of a wind turbine and additional solar panels to generate more renewable energy.

Renewable energy use at Anheuser-Busch's U.S. breweries is expected to exceed 15 percent by the end of 2009, meaning that around one in seven beers made by the company in the United States will be brewed courtesy of renewable energy. Anheuser-Busch is the leading American brewer holding over 49 percent share of U.S. beer sales.

The company's efforts to reduce their beer-making carbon footprint aren't confined to solar power. Recent energy efficiency initiatives have seen the brewery decrease fuel use by 38 percent, water use by 32 percent and electricity use by 14 percent over the last 5 years.

The brewery also constructed a Bio-Energy Recovery System that generates more than 15 percent of the brewery's fuel needs by turning nutrients in brewing wastewater into biogas.

The brewery currently recycles more than 99 percent of the solid waste it generates; such as scrap aluminium and metal, glass, cardboard, wood, brewing grain, wood chips, stretch wrap and labels, electronic equipment and batteries. In 2008, the Fairfield brewery recycled over 90,000 tonnes of materials.