Wednesday 31 March, 2010

 

• Power The Internet With Renewable Energy: Greenpeace
  A new report from Greenpeace entitled 'Make IT: Green Cloud Computing and its Contribution to Climate Change' highlights the impact of an increasingly online world in terms of carbon emissions and how renewable energy must play a greater role.

Tuesday 30 March, 2010

 

• Wind Power Blew Past 150,000 Megawatts in 09
  The global wind energy industry set new records last year as cumulative installed wind power capacity grew to 158,000 megawatts.


• Australian Solar Hot Water Rebates - Major Processing Delays
  The Australian Government has reported considerable delays in the processing of solar hot water rebate payments; stating it may take up to "several weeks" longer than the usual eight-week payment time frame, based on the date of acknowledged receipt of application.

Monday 29 March, 2010

 

• Colorado sets 30% renewable energy target
  Colorado's Governor Bill Ritter last week signed into law legislation that will see the state having one the highest proportions of renewable energy in its power mix.- 30 percent by 2020.

Sunday 28 March, 2010

 

• Brightsource Energy Shoots For Australian Solar Flagships Project
  US based BrightSource Energy is reported to have its sights set on building a large-scale solar thermal plant in Australia; partly funded by the Australian Government's Solar Flagships program.


• Australia Ranks 14th For G-20 Clean Energy Investment
  According to data released last week by the Pew Environment Group, clean energy investment globally has experienced growth of 230 percent since 2005, but Australia is lagging behind other G-20 nations.

Friday 26 March, 2010

 

• Energy Matters At Hobart 2010 Sustainable Building & Lifestyle Expo
  Tasmania's Sustainable Building & Lifestyle Expo is being held at the Derwent Entertainment Centre in Hobart, Tasmania this weekend and Energy Matters will be an exhibitor at the event.


• Earth Hour 2010 This Saturday 8.30pm
  On Saturday March 27, 2010; Australians are being asked to turn off their lights for one hour from 8.30pm during the annual Earth Hour event to make a statement against climate change.


• Renewable Energy Target Discussion Paper Released
  A government issued discussion paper on enhancing Australia's Renewable Energy Target was released earlier today. The Government is inviting public comment on the discussion paper, which details plans to split the existing scheme into two parts - the Small-scale Renewable Energy Scheme (SRES) and the Large-scale Renewable Energy Target (LRET)

Thursday 25 March, 2010

 

• Renewable Energy Storage - CSIRO's UltraBattery
  The CSIRO is continuing development on a hybrid energy storage device that combines a supercapacitor with a lead acid battery in one unit cell, called the UltraBattery.


• Clean Energy Council National Conference - Adelaide May 3 - 5 2010
  This year's Clean Energy Council National Conference is predicted to be the biggest event of its type in Australia's history and is expected to attract over 700 delegates.

Wednesday 24 March, 2010

 

• Two New Solar Farms For Western Australia
  Western Australia's Energy Minister Peter Collier announced on Tuesday two new solar farms to be constructed in regional WA.


• Victoria's Smart Meter Rollout Temporarily Suspended
  Victorian Energy and Resources Minister Peter Batchelor recently announced the temporary suspension of a rollout of smart meters throughout the state, effective as of Monday afternoon.

Tuesday 23 March, 2010

 

• Victoria's Electricity Greenhouse Gas Emissions Continue To Rise
  A study prepared by Green Energy Markets Pty Ltd for Environment Victoria has found Victoria’s greenhouse emissions from electricity have increased by 10% over the 10 years to 2009 - a total of 6 million tonnes.


• Woolworths Pumping Petrol With Solar Power
  Woolworths has announced a 30kW solar power system has been installed at one of its Belconnen service stations in the ACT and was switched on today.

Monday 22 March, 2010

 

• Australia's Electricity Price Rise Delays Coming Home To Roost
  On the weekend, Minister for Resources and Energy, Martin Ferguson, told a meeting of energy supply CEOs in Brisbane that Australia now needs to invest at least $100 billion in electricity infrastructure over the next decade just to meet growing demand and replace ageing infrastructure.

Sunday 21 March, 2010

 

• Alcoa Getting Into The Concentrating Solar Power Game
  Alcoa announced last week testing of its advanced solar technology with the goal of making Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) competitive in the United States by lowering its cost to generate energy.

Thursday 18 March, 2010

 

• SHCP Solar Rebate Related Installation Bottleneck Looms
  A recent meeting of the PV Directorate revealed there are still 42,000 solar power installations to be executed under the old Solar Homes and Communities Program rebate (SHCP) and at current installation rates, some may not be completed by the Government's July deadline.

Wednesday 17 March, 2010

 

• Suntech Supplying Panels To Taiwan's Largest Solar Farm
  Suntech Power Holdings Co., Ltd. has announced it will supply over 16,000 280 watt solar panels for a new 4.7MW solar farm in Taiwan

Tuesday 16 March, 2010

 

• Sanyo HIT Solar Panels Power Electric Bike Parking Lots
  Sanyo has announced completion of two Sanyo HIT solar panel powered parking lots for electric bicycles and provision of 100 of its Eneloop hybrid bikes in Setagaya, Tokyo Japan.


• Free Home Sustainability Assessments - Still Worth Having Done?
  Major recent changes to the Australian Green Loans program that stripped away the possibility for interest free financing for solar power systems has left some householders asking whether a home sustainability assessment is still relevant. According to accredited assessor James Gregory, an assessment is still worth getting done.

Monday 15 March, 2010

 

• Solar Electricity And Hot Water Hybrid Panel
  Solar panels generate a great deal of waste heat, so why not use that heat to perform another task solar energy has been used for decades to do - heat water.


• USD$500 Billion Being Spent on Fossil Fuel Subsidies
  While the amount of money being spent in relation to solar power and other renewable energy subsidies is sometimes criticised, a recent study on energy subsidies found that the world could be spending USD$500 billion annually to subsidise fossil fuels - the majority from subsidised end-user prices.

Sunday 14 March, 2010

 

• Tasmania's Greens Tout Gross Solar Feed In Tariff
  Late in February we reported that even with a looming election in Tasmania, none of the parties appeared to have addressed the lack of a suitable feed-in tariff for solar power in the state as an election issue. That situation changed last week with Tasmania's Greens announcing their "Electrifying Tasmania" pledge.

Friday 12 March, 2010

 

• SunPower Inks 200 MW Solar Panel Deal
  SunPower announced yesterday it had secured a contract to provide its solar panel technology for generating up to 200 megawatts, or 80 percent, of the solar power capacity needed for Southern California Edison's (SCE) major solar photovoltaic installation program.

Thursday 11 March, 2010

 

• Crocodile Dundee's 'Nugget' Gets A Life And Goes Solar
  Australian actor Gerry Skilton, who played Nugget in all three Crocodile Dundee movies, is currently filming a new TV series called "Nugget's Get A Life" - with a little help from solar power and Energy Matters.


• Kyocera To Begin Making Solar Panels In USA
  Where Suntech led, Kyocera is now following. The company recently announced plans to begin manufacturing solar panels in California to serve the local U.S. market's booming demand for modules.

Wednesday 10 March, 2010

 

• Australian Solar Rebate Instability Continues
  Government rebates and incentives certainly help make acquiring a system much cheaper and speed up return on investment; but solar rebates and incentives in Australia have been somewhat a moving target over the last 10 months, causing confusion for consumers and industry alike.


• The Windbelt Windcell Panel Power Generator
  When we think of wind power, we often conjure up images of windmill type turbines or vertical wind turbines called VAWTs. Soon we may see a new type of device on the market, the Windbelt by Humdinger Wind Energy.

Tuesday 09 March, 2010

 

• Solar Cell Made From Pea Plant
  Science has endeavouring to help unlock the secrets of how plants so efficiently turn the sun into energy in order to mimic that process. Once the code is cracked, one application is the production of cheap and more efficient solar cells.


• Australian Energy Resource Assessment - Renewable Generation 'Modest'
  The first Australian Energy Resource Assessment, described as a national prospectus for energy resources, has been released. While 7% of Australia's electricity is now generated by renewable means, the majority of that figure is hydro-power. Wind energy is making inroads, but solar power only accounts for around 0.1 per cent of Australia’s primary energy consumption

Monday 08 March, 2010

 

• Early Start To Australia's Small Scale Renewable Energy Scheme?
  The Rudd Government says it will set a minimum value of $40 on Renewable Energy Certificates from January 1 next year. The Opposition wants to bring that forward to July this year. National solar power provider Energy Matters isn't willing to wait even that long. The company has announced it will pay the $40 per REC to purchasers of systems acquired through Energy Matters, effective immediately. 


• Coal's Legacy : Mercury Contamination
  Australia has a set a target of just 20 percent renewable energy generation by 2020; so even after that date, coal will still feature heavily in our energy mix. The use of coal and its role in greenhouse gas emissions is well known, but an issue often overlooked is the subject of mercury.

Friday 05 March, 2010

 

• Coal Tax To Help Fund Renewable Energy In India
  Issues relating to renewable energy and coal featured heavily in India Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee’s Union Budget speech late last month.

Thursday 04 March, 2010

 

• Electricity Retailers Undermining Australia's Solar Power Future?
  Through feedback from clients, national solar power solutions provider Energy Matters has been made aware some Australian electricity retailers appear to be making it extremely difficult for people to fully benefit from solar feed in tariff programs. 


• Solar Power Assisted Bus Hits California Roads
  California-based Sunpods Inc. has announced the first solar power-assist system for buses, designed to help transportation companies strict anti-pollution standards set by the State of California.

Wednesday 03 March, 2010

 

• Greens Lash Out At NSW Coal Power Push
  The NSW government is believed to be on the verge of granting approval for the development two giant coal or gas fired power stations, drawing criticism from renewable energy supporters in the state and the Australian Greens.


• ETU Report Backs National Solar Gross Feed In Tariff
  A report by Access Economics Pty Limited for Electrical Trades Union, Victoria (ETU) has shown that a national gross feed in tariff for solar power in Australia would have far better outcomes for the same money that has been spent over the last 18 months by the Federal Government on the now defunct Solar Homes And Communities Plan.

Tuesday 02 March, 2010

 

• Caltech Creates Solar Cell Using Silicon Wire Arrays
  Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) have created a new type of flexible solar cell using arrays of long, thin silicon wires embedded in a polymer substrate; requiring a fiftieth of the silicon used by conventional silicon solar cells.


• Prepare To Lose Off-Peak Electricity - And Solar Power Isn't To Blame
  Several media reports in the last week have stated that by making the switch to solar power, some householders are losing their off-peak electricity benefits. Solar power isn't to blame and the loss of traditional off-peak rates is inevitable for all Australian households.

Monday 01 March, 2010

 

• Green Loans For The Rest Of Us
  While the Australian Federal Government's Green Loans program is headed for the scrap heap, Australian financial institutions are recognising there is an increasing demand for solar power systems and creating low interest green loan products for the purposes of purchasing solar power systems.


• Solar Powered Marines? Ooh-rah!*
  The US Marines are going GREENS. No, that's not a typo. The Ground Renewable Expeditionary Energy System (GREENS) uses stackable solar panel arrays and deep cycle batteries to provide electricity for essential functions in the field.

News archive for 2012

 

• February
  


• January
  

News archive for 2011

 

• December
  


• November
  


• October
  


• September
  


• August
  


• July
  


• June
  


• May
  


• April
  


• March
  


• February
  


• January
  

News archive for 2010

 

• December
  


• November
  


• October
  


• September
  


• August
  


• July
  


• June
  


• May
  


• April
  


• March
  


• February
  


• January
  

News archive for 2009

 

• December
  


• November
  


• October
  


• September
  


• August
  


• July
  


• June
  


• May
  


• April
  


• March
  


• February
  


• January
  

News archive for 2008

 

• December
  


• November
  


• October
  


• September
  


• August
  


• July
  


• June
  


• May
  


• April
  


• March
  


• February