Poland is on the brink of launching its first offshore wind lease as the sector proves popular in attracting investor interest.

According to a report in Reuters, applications have already been submitted by 47 would-be developers looking to set up projects off the Baltic coast.

Anna Wypych-Namiotko, deputy minister of transport, construction and maritime economy, reportedly said, ‘The interest of the power sector is understandable on the one hand, but also a bit surprising on the other. I might issue the first permit in a month.’

Poland’s government has worked hard to make the offshore wind sector attractive to investors, and has extended permits to 30 years.

Investors have begun to target Poland’s wind sector in earnest, and earlier this month the Polish Enterprise Fund VI, a private equity fund managed by Central and Eastern Europe-focused private equity firm Enterprise Investors, launched an investment vehicle to handle the construction of wind farms in Poland.

In addition, French energy major GDF Suez has begun to source opportunities in the sector and is developing a 51MW facility in Poland.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Finance provided to the offshore wind sector from the European Energy Programme for Recovery (EEPR) has aided European competitiveness in the technology, but may have not stimulated planned short-term economic benefits, according to a study by the European Wind Energy Association (EWEA).

The fund was created in response to the financial crisis of 2008, with the goal of financing measures that would rapidly address the economic crisis and energy policy objectives.

It emphasised the promotion of mature projects capable of making efficient and effective use of financial assistance by the end of 2010, as well as catalysing investment from other sources.

The inclusion of the relatively immature offshore wind technology was therefore controversial due to the immaturity of the technology and the length of time it took to develop turbines. To date the EEPR has invested €179m into offshore wind developments, from an available €565m.

The intention of the finance was to support projects that would move the technology forward. There was a particular focus on Germany where environmental conditions meant near-offshore sites were less readily available and there was a need to rapidly develop deep water solutions.

The EEPR said the funding created or protected around 4,000 jobs and contributed to the rollout of large-scale offshore in Germany. However, only one EEPR project has so far produced electricity with another starting to lay foundations in August 2011.

The EWEA study asked stakeholders involved how the objectives of the EEPR were relevant to economic recovery and energy policy.

The majority of those interviewed said the inclusion of offshore wind in the EEPR did not make sense in the current economic conditions of the time. They felt the technology would stimulate economic growth, but not as quickly as anticipated in part as a result of delays to grid integration projects.

Respondents were marginally more likely to say the programme had greater relevance for energy policy than the economic objectives of financial stimulus.

This view is backed by the fact that many of the projects were unlikely to result in a quick capital release and job creation, but were included for their potential to demonstrate technologies that would help to achieve energy objectives.

One survey respondent said, ‘The project is designed to improve the chances of new multi-megawatt offshore wind turbines reaching the ‘commercially proven’ stage, increasing choice for developers, which will lead to more competition and lower costs of generation. It is likely that there will be a wider economic stimulus through turbine manufacturers being more likely to set up new facilities associated with the project.’

On the other hand, those surveyed did argue the EEPR funding had relevance to reducing the cost of offshore wind. This was because the finance that allowed the start-up of certain projects prompted suppliers to manufacture turbines on a fully-fledged production line, rather than in ad hoc quantities.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

There is a huge market opportunity in utilising industrial waste for energy storage and production, according to one UK start-up looking to enter into this space.

The potential use of energy storage in grid infrastructure is a developing, if far off, market for companies working with storage technology.

But UK start-up AFC Energy is looking at a more immediate possibility. It wants to tap into the industrial sector with its hydrogen battery solution.

The company currently has a demonstration unit functioning at a chemical and paint factory in Germany, and is gearing up for commercialisation.

CEO Ian Williamson spoke to NewNet to explain how the technology functions and the market opportunity it creates.

Williamson said, ‘We need a pure hydrogen stream to allow us to operate the fuel cell and that hydrogen can be made up in a number of different ways. We are primarily looking at using off-gas hydrogen. The chemical industry has a number of streams that are not utilised as effectively as they could and we are looking to find some of those streams to produce power.

‘We can also use a process called steam methane reforming, which is a standard industrial process that takes natural gas or biogas and breaks it apart using catalysts and heat. That allows you to produce pure hydrogen, which can be fed into the front end of the fuel cells.’

The idea is AFC will place a unit into an industrial facility that will continuously be fed by waste hydrogen streams. It allows the user to cut down significantly on its energy requirement, reduce waste and have back-up generation if the main power source fails.

Another sector the company is interested in is waste management, as gasification processes can be developed that produce hydrogen to feed the fuel cell.

Grid applications are also of interest but at this stage the company is focusing on markets it can tap into in the near term.

Williamson said, ‘We are looking at industrial applications because that is what exists today, if we wait around for energy storage systems to be required [in grids] we will probably be waiting for five or ten years until there is a proper market. Having said that, we are watching that space very closely. It’s not one we pay too much attention because we want to focus on competing technologies that already exist, but we see that as very much an up-and-coming driver.’

The immediate focus for AFC is finding new industrial partners with which to incorporate their technology as a pilot test. The idea then will be to move production to a third party that can produce the technology on mass, something that Williamson anticipates will begin in around one year’s time.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Germany’s energy market will see dramatic changes during the next few years with its nuclear energy capacity halved and renewable energy accounting for 36 per cent of electricity generated by 2020.

Frost & Sullivan‘s energy group forecasts that overall electricity generation will decline from 625TWh in 2010 to 590 TWh in 2020, due to energy efficiency measures and increased imports. It said that going forward, the latter will be needed to fill part of the gap left by the nuclear plant closures. However, installed capacity is set to rise from 153GW to 179GW in 2020. This is mainly because of the growth in wind and solar, supported by back-up power such as gas turbines.

Frost & Sullivan Energy Consultant Jonathan Robinson said, ‘Germany is already a leading European renewables market, but it will go beyond its EU obligations with significant further investment in the next eight years. However, the growth in renewables poses serious challenges and will require substantial investment in upgrading the existing power transmission infrastructure.’

Within the renewable energy space, solar and wind are set to play a big part in future. Solar photovoltaic capacity is forecast to treble while wind will grow by average of 2GW per year.

Energy efficiency will play an important role in the reduction of demand driven by the Energy Efficiency Act, which sets target to reduce energy consumption by nine per cent in 2020, in comparison to consumption in the 2001 to 2005 period.

‘Energy efficiency will be a big topic in 2012, as the EU moves towards forcing Member States to take action. The voluntary approach adopted in 2007 has largely failed, with minimal energy efficiency gains in most Member States. As usual in these matters, Germany is already leading the way, but it is likely that more will need to be done,’ adds Robinson.

However, from now until 2020, according to Frost & Sullivan, coal will remain the leading fuel (accounting for 37 per cent of generation) but Germany will experience a decline in lignite-fired output as older power stations are decommissioned. We will also see an increase in the share of gas through an accelerated development programme – though greater shares anticipated post-2020.

‘Germany has of course always been a key market for power generation equipment, but there is now the need for across the board investment in generation, transmission and distribution. This creates interesting opportunities for equipment manufacturers and project developers,’ Robinson said.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Chinese photovoltaic (PV) manufacturer Yingli Green Energy said preliminary indications suggest a 30 per cent decrease in quarterly PV module shipments for the end of fiscal 2011.

The company is also now anticipating a three per cent gross margin for the fourth quarter of 2011, compared to previous guidance of ten per cent. It is expecting to ship modules with a capacity of between 1,580MW and 1,630MW for fiscal 2011, in line with previous forecasts.

In addition, impairment costs on the assets of subsidiary Fine Silicon are expected to run to $361m, as well as an impairment of goodwill estimated at $43m.

Yingli said the asset impairment is the result of less than expected revenues from Fine Silicon due to a sharp decline in global unit prices.

The company is expecting to make a provision of $135m on its inventory purchase commitment under long-term polysilicon supply contracts, as a result of falling prices.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

New York-listed agribusiness group Bunge has acquired UK-based green asset manager Climate Change Capital (CCC).

Daniel Rudolph, managing director, Bunge Financial Services Group, said, ‘Bunge’s Financial Services Group has been active in carbon markets since their inception, both as a buyer of carbon credits and an adviser to other market participants.

‘The transaction builds on this long-term presence, combining two established players in sustainability markets and advisory services to create an organisation with deep expertise and global reach. We also see strategic and operational synergies resulting from the combined business, including an enhanced ability to expand service offerings.’

James Cameron, vice chairman, CCC, added, ‘Bunge’s Financial Services Group is well-placed to support the best interests of existing investors and provide a stable platform to develop new investment opportunities. As the world’s population grows, putting pressure on scarce resources, there is a tremendous opportunity for companies like CCC and Bunge to work to transform the way societies cultivate, manufacture, distribute, consume and develop.’

Back in December 2011, CCC told NewNet that it was on the hunt for a long-term partner to help raise new capital.

In September, the firm lost its CEO Shaun Mays who left after just two years in the post.

The firm manages private equity-style funds in the areas of cleantech, carbon finance and green property. A spokesperson for CCC said no further details could be given at this time.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A $75m fund has been launched to finance green building projects along the East Coast of the US.

Citi Community Capital, the housing arm of investment bank Citi, and real estate developer Rose Investments have together launched the Rose Green Cities Fund to acquire and renovate existing multi-family properties with green technologies.

The fund will target acquisitions of projects in high-demand, mass-transit locations, with a focus on Connecticut, New Jersey and the Washington DC metro area.

It will also evaluate select investments in the development of green, affordable housing.

‘Jonathan Rose Companies has a track record as a successful investor and developer of affordable housing and we are delighted to partner with them,’ said Andrew Ditton, co-head and managing director of Citi Community Capital.

‘Environmental sustainability and reinvestment in the communities where we work and live are both pivotal components to our firm’s commitment to responsible finance and we will continue to invest in high-quality, innovative projects that benefit our local communities and uphold our core principles.’

The commitment by Citi Community Capital represents the latest in a series of transactions, and over the past two years it has committed nearly $9.4bn in community development activities including the creation and rehabilitation of 57,000 units of housing.

The Rose Green Cities Fund will also leverage the expertise of Jonathan Rose Companies, which is experienced in developing green, urban housing.

‘We are thrilled to partner with Citi, a global institution with a commitment to back innovative, community-based investment strategies,’ said Jonathan Rose, founder of Jonathan Rose Companies.

Rose said it can make energy savings of 20 per cent to 30 per cent in its housing stock through solutions such as increased insulation, improved windows and smarter energy controls.

In mid-2011, Citi was involved in the launch of another fund in partnership with US solar photovoltaic developer SunPower to finance residential green energy installations.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Canadian Solar has updated its fourth quarter guidance and now expects module shipments in the range of 430MW to 440MW, significantly up from the original forecast of 340MW to 360MW.

This compares to shipments of 287MW and 355MW in the second and third quarters, respectively. For the full fiscal 2011 year, the company now predicts shipments in the range of 1,316MW to 1,326MW, up from prior guidance of between 1,200MW and 1,300MW.

Shawn Qu, chairman and CEO of Canadian Solar, said, ‘Canadian Solar continues to successfully execute on our business strategy. We are increasing shipments to customers in key markets worldwide, while at the same time aggressively reducing our manufacturing costs. In the market place we are winning by stressing our global brand, product quality, high performance, reliability and customer service.

‘We are seeing continued gains in both solar module shipments to installers and in shipments related to our expanding project business. As an illustration of our business momentum, we recently signed agreement for Canadian Solar to develop and sell nine fully-operational and commissioned utility-scale solar projects in the province of Ontario, which are expected to contribute to the company’s revenue and profitability between late 2012 and mid-2013.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The UK’s National Grid alongside Advanced Plasma Power (APP) and Progressive Energy have launched a project to transform waste into a substitute natural gas (SNG).

It will be based at the APP’s gasplasma facility in Swindon and will be used to demonstrate the technical feasibility and commercial viability of the technology.

The plant will take the waste-derived synthesis gas from the existing gasplasma process and convert it to the specification required for the gas network.

Marcus Stewart, future distribution networks manager at National Grid, said, ‘This project is a great opportunity to look at the potential of Bio-SNG from both a technical and commercial perspective. The project underlines our commitment to seeking economic and innovative ways to decarbonise energy, while making the best use of the existing network.’

Rolf Stein, CEO of APP, added, ‘The development and implementation of a process to derive Bio-SNG from waste using our unique gasplasma process has significant global implications for sustainable waste management and low carbon energy solutions. We look forward to demonstrating the process on our plant in Swindon.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US energy efficiency and renewables specialist Ameresco has partnered with the Philadelphia Water Department (PWD) to develop a wastewater biogas-to-energy facility.

The Northeast Water Pollution Control Plant (NEWPCP) biogas project will produce 5.6MW of electricity, as well as thermal heat to be used on site. It will be fuelled by biogas derived mainly from the NEWPCP digesters.

Construction of the facility is expected to cost $47.5m and reduce PWD energy costs by $12m over the course of the 16-year contract. It qualifies for a supporting public grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

Ameresco will manage engineering, procurement, construction and maintenance of the project throughout the life of the contract.

Howard Neukrug, Water Commissioner, said, ‘This project is an example of PWD’s commitment to develop waste recovery programmes at all of our facilities as part of our pledge to be a sustainable and cost-conscious utility.

‘Recovering the hidden fuel in our wastewater treatment processes helps to diversify our energy portfolio, while improving the environment through innovative, green technology. The north-east cogeneration facility demonstrates PWD’s national leadership in transforming the traditional wastewater plant into the resource recovery facility of the future.’

Michael Bakas, senior vice president at Ameresco, added, ‘The Philadelphia Water Department is a progressive organisation that recognises the value and importance of environmental stewardship while cutting costs and improving infrastructure. As a part of this contract, Ameresco developed an economic opportunity plan that will bring green jobs to the local community. Ameresco is looking forward to making this project a reality for the Philadelphia Water Department and the residents of Philadelphia.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

German solar company Solarlite has completed installation of a solar thermal and biomass demonstration plant at the University of Phitsanulok’s School of Renewable Energy Technology (SERT) in Thailand.

The TRESERT project is designed to show how a parabolic trough and biomass plant can produce electricity, heat and refrigeration. It consists of trough collectors for steam generation, turbines for energy production and an absorption cooling machine for air conditioning.

In addition, a back-up biomass boiler was integrated into the system to keep the operating temperature stable.

It was developed with funding from the Germany’s Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety.

Joachim Krüger, CEO and founder of Solarlite, said, ‘Projects like TRESERT are the right approach to finding a long-term solution to energy problems in the rural areas of Thailand. Working with the SERT was absolutely terrific and provided the infrastructure and contacts we needed to successfully market the TRESERT project.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Tamar Energy has today launched as a UK waste-to-energy company with a £65m-strong backing from high-profile investors, highlighting the growing interest in the sector.

Tamar Energy brings together UK and international blue chip partners and investors led by RIT Capital and Fajr Capital but also including the Duchy of Cornwall, Lord Rothschild’s Family Interests, Sustainable Technology Investments, Low Carbon, the management team of Tamar Energy and other private investors.

The company will now go on to develop a UK network of anaerobic digestion (AD) plants, developing a generating capacity of 100MW over the next five years. To kick-off the company’s growth strategy, Tamar Energy has acquired Adgen Energy, which has an advanced pipeline of projects and an established management team.

A spokesperson for the company described the £65m investment received to date as ‘phase one’ and said its project pipeline work is already underway. He said Tamar Energy has already secured planning permission for ten sites and has a further 20 identified. It has a stated aim of developing 40 plants and as such, it is still working on opportunities for the remaining ten.

In addition to its high-profile backers, the company has also secured food retail giant Sainsbury’s as a strategic partner. Sainsbury’s is already the UK’s biggest retail user of AD and is likely to cement this lead further with the new alliance.

Justin King, CEO J Sainsbury, said, ‘Sainsbury’s is the UK’s leading retail user of AD so we are delighted to be an investor and strategic partner of Tamar Energy. We will be working closely with our suppliers to ensure they have access to the new plants to help them reduce the environmental impact of their operations, a key strand of our 20 by 20 Sustainability Plan. With the support of our suppliers we are very confident that this new venture will be a success, helping build Tamar Energy into the UK’s leading green energy company.’

Lead investor Fajr Capital is backed by a prominent set of shareholders including the Abu Dhabi Investment Council, the government of Brunei Darussalam, Khazanah Nasional of Malaysia and the Al Subeaei Group.

The company will be led by Alan Lovell, previous head of wind developer Infinis, which under his leadership grew to produce ten per cent of the UK’s renewable energy with a EBITDA of £75m.

Despite high growth potential, the UK’s AD sector has just one per cent of the number of plants already established in Germany. A statement said Tamar Energy and its shareholders will aim to lead the development of this industry in the UK, simultaneously dealing with handling of waste and green energy generation.

Lord Rothschild, chairman of RIT said, ‘The development of renewable generating capacity is central to the UK government’s energy strategy. We are delighted to have assembled such a strong group of partners, investors and management, to build and develop this important industry in the UK.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The photovoltaic (PV) arm of a major India-based conglomerate is reportedly looking to restructure its debt.

Moser Baer Photo Voltaic, which manufactures solar PV cells and modules, will look to reform its bet relationships with banks, alongside similar action being taken by its parent company, local news service the Hindu Business Line reports.

Towards the close of 2011, Moser Baer revealed that it was to pump an estimated $1bn into the renewable energy space over the next though months through its principal green power arm, Moser Baer Clean Energy.

The company was not available to confirm the restructuring reports, but a spokesperson previously told NewNet that an initial public offering for its renewables division was likely in 2012.

Moser Baer Photo Voltaic is just on segment of the group’s diversified operating business. The unit was launched in 2005, and has a current production capacity of 170MW for crystalline cells and 150MW for modules.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US energy storage specialist Aquion Energy has selected a site in Pennsylvania for its first full-scale manufacturing plant.

Aquion has leased space in a large existing facility in Westmoreland County from the Regional Industrial Development Corporation of Southwestern Pennsylvania.

Construction on the factory infrastructure will commence immediately, with initial manufacturing of Aquion’s sodium-ion batteries scheduled to commence in 2013.

The company expects to create 400 high-tech jobs at the site by the end of 2015.

Tom Corbett, Governor of Pennsylvania, said, ‘What started out as a concept at Carnegie Mellon is now growing into a large scale manufacturing operation that will create hundreds of new jobs in the region. My administration is committed to making Pennsylvania an economic leader by investing in the growth of companies like Aquion that are on the cutting edge of technology development and creating the next generation of jobs.’

Scott Pearson, CEO of Aquion, added, ‘After considering all of our options, including aggressive offers from a number of other US states, we concluded that southwestern Pennsylvania is the best location for Aquion to establish its first high-volume manufacturing operation. This project would not have been possible without the strong support of Governor Corbett and the Governor’s Action Team.

‘We are very excited to be able to significantly increase our presence in Pennsylvania and we applaud the efforts of the state, regional and local economic development agencies that worked closely with Aquion to make this expansion possible.’

In September last year, Aquion secured venture funding worth $30m.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A privately-owned energy storage company has revealed it is looking to raise £1.6m in growth funding to commercialise its liquid air engine technology.

UK-based the Dearman Engine Company is seeking the capital to further develop its engine and to carry out the first commercial deployment of what it claims to be a zero-emissions technology.

The company has recently secured independent approval through a study carried out by consultancy Ricardo, which concluded that it has commercial advantages over competing systems and that a demonstration engine can be built within two years using mature technology.

The report said, ‘There are numerous practical applications for the technology in the future market place. The low cost and simplicity would benefit the penetration of this technology. The technology is likely to compete with hydrogen fuel cell and battery electric systems in zero emission applications. In the longer term, the technology could also be suitable for small vehicles operating in urban environments.’

Dearman’s technology works through the controlled boiling of cryogenic liquids, and its website said that it has key advantages in the re-fuelling time, energy density, capital cost and lifetime of the technology.

The company was formed in February 2011 as a spin-out from Highview Power Storage, led by Peter Dearman. The company is based around his second major invention, with his first based on a mechanical emergency resuscitation and ventilation valve system.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A US utility operating in the Midwest has brought on an investment bank to assist in the sale of its renewable energy unit.

Alliant Energy has engaged UBS to assist with the disposal of its subsidiary RMT, an established renewable energy engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor.

NewNet first reported about the sale of the business earlier this month when Alliant Energy said its earnings were negatively impacted by losses made through its wind and solar division.

Losses occurred due to erosions of margins on wind projects, and solar subcontractor performance, its results showed.

A new statement made by Alliant said RMT has an experienced construction crew, backed by in-house engineering and development support professionals who have provided EPC work for more than 5GW of renewable energy projects across 26 states.

RMT was founded in 1977 and began working in the renewable energy field in the mid-1990s. It has not been revealed how much Alliant hopes to garner through the sale but has said that closing a deal is a ‘priority’.

Most recently, RMT completed an 8.5MW ground-based solar array in New Jersey. Despite its business being principally focused on the wind and solar sectors, it also has experience in developing both geothermal and biomass plants.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US biofuel manufacturer Solayme made a fourth quarter net GAAP loss of $15.6m, which compares to a $2.9 profit in the same period in 2010.

Total revenue for 2011 was $39m, a slight improvement on the $38m recorded in 2010. GAAP net loss for the year was $54m, up from the previous year’s loss of $16.4m.

Solazyme, which is listed on Nasdaq, recorded revenue worth $14.9 for the fourth quarter of 2011, a significant decrease from $23.2m achieved in the same period the previous year.

The company attributed some of the difference to the fact it received a $15m licence payment from Roquette in the last three months of 2010, compared to $5m in the most recent quarter.

Tyler Painter, CFO at Solazyme, said, ‘Our primary focus throughout 2012 will be on ramping our commercial capacity. With approximately $244m in cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities at year end, we believe we are well positioned to execute our plans and remain on track to achieve our commercialization targets.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Danish wind energy company Vestas has been contracted to supply turbines with a combined capacity of 56MW to Tozzi TRE for a facility being built in Apulia, Italy.

The deal also includes a performance monitoring system, as well as a 12-year service and maintenance agreement. In addition, Vestas will install the equipment at the Castellaneta plant.

Delivery of the units will commence in the second quarter with commercial operation expected before the end of the year.

Juan Araluce, Vestas Mediterranean president and global chief sales officer, said, ‘The 2MW platform is the industry’s most proven turbine ‘family’ with more than 9,300 installations worldwide. This means high reliability, low operational downtime and high performance. We are glad to provide our expertise to Tozzi TRE and to start up a new business relationship in Italy, based on the companies’ shared values and missions.’

Rainer Karan, managing director of Vestas Italia, added, ‘It is a pleasure for us to announce the first order received from Tozzi TRE and we look forward to a fruitful cooperation in the future. There is still a great potential for further development across Italy, which can bring green renewable energy, as well as employment and economic benefits to local communities.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US cleantech company Danotec Motion Technologies has won a blanket purchase order for the supply of electric hydraulic steering system units from Electric Vehicles International (EVI).

The systems will be used in a fleet of delivery trucks being supplied to the United Parcel Service for deployment in California later this year.

Ricky Hanna, president and CEO of EVI, said, ‘At EVI, our goal is to deliver the cleanest, most efficient and reliable vehicle to our customers’ fleets. The UPS delivery truck programme’s test phase confirmed the performance of Danotek’s systems. We anticipate this being the first of many potential opportunities for the application of Danotek’s permanent magnet power steering pump technology to EVI’s electric vehicle programmes.’

Greg Bac, senior programme manager at Danotec, added, ‘EVI is building great momentum in the marketplace with the excellent performance of their vehicles. We are thrilled to be their supplier of choice for one of the world’s largest deployments of commercial all-electric vehicles. This purchase order is the result of a lot of hard work and dedication by the two companies’ teams during prototype evaluation.’

Earlier this year, EVI contracted UQM Technologies to supply propulsion systems that will also be used in the UPS order.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

German electronics giant Siemens has been contracted to supply a stream turbine generator to be used in a waste-to-energy plant in Plymouth, South West England.

The combined heat and power (CHP) facility is being developed by Imtech Deutschland, a German provider of technical building services equipment.

Construction of the plant will start later this year and is expected to be completed by 2014. It will have a 25MW capacity, as well as being designed to cover the heat demand of Pymouth’s naval base. It will be owned by German company MVV Umwelt.

Markus Tacke, CEO of the industrial power unit at Siemens Energy, said, ‘The SST-400 is one of our most versatile industrial steam turbines. With an installed capacity of up to 25MW, the flexible steam turbine has proven itself to be a cost-effective and environmentally friendly solution in a wide variety of applications.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Drax, the operator of the UK’s largest biomass facility, has scrapped plans to build a pure bio unit and instead will switch its strategy to co-firing, but will only do so if there is enough government support.

The company’s financial results revealed that it will spend more than £500m in its biomass push, with £50m spent this year to increase its capacity to 20 per cent from 12.5 per cent.

But its future strategy depends on how much government support the sector receives.

In August, Drax received approval to move forward on its two biomass plants but at the time a representative stressed to NewNet that this was just ‘one building block’ and that if the government did not guarantee a certain level of support, it would not move forward with the investment.

Drax CEO Dorothy Thompson has been vocal in her demand for a higher level of guaranteed government support towards biomass in order to make the company’s future commercially viable.

In 2011, the UK government laid out plans to increase the level of support for combining biomass with coal but said it would reduce financial aid to standalone biomass plants, the Financial Times reports.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Institutional investors with a combined value of $10tn have called on the CEOs of 415 of the world’s largest public companies to implement measures to reduce their carbon emissions.

Banco Santander, BBVA and APG have joined about 90 other pension funds, asset managers, insurers and banks as part of the Carbon Disclosure Project’s (CDP) Carbon Action initiative.

CDP has now sent letters to 415 CEOs urging for better management of greenhouse gas emissions, as well as a call for information on their climate change strategies and water use.

Paul Simpson, CEO of CDP, said, ‘Institutional investors increasingly recognise that companies in their portfolios can reduce emissions while generating efficiencies. Minimising exposure to emissions regulation in Australia, the EU and other markets will also protect their investments for the long-term. Companies that capitalise on financial savings as a result of carbon reductions are well placed to improve their competitive position in the marketplace.’

CDP has also received a ‘significant’ number of new signatories in Australia, which passed its Clean Energy Act in November last year. In addition, banking and financial services group Rabobank, investment management companies AXA IM and Aviva Investors, are among 31 organisations that joined last year and have continued their commitment to the initiative.

Emilio Botín, chairman of new signatory Banco Santander, said, ‘Banco Santander has a strong commitment with the environment and climate change. The bank is making significant progress by measuring and reducing its main consumption inputs and carbon dioxide emissions as well as by integrating social and environmental criteria into the credit analysis processes.’

In late 2011, Simpson told NewNet that despite improvements in carbon reporting there is still has a way to go to, with policy development proving slow from a global standpoint.

‘There are far too few examples of governments and companies in terms of setting carbon targets that show the appropriate ambition,’ he said. ‘Uncertainty is not good for investors or companies.’

Together, the institutional investors have made company-specific requests that include making year-on-year emissions reductions, investment in emission reduction activities and demonstration management of reducing their emissions.

Claudia Kruse, head of sustainability and corporate governance at APG said, ‘Companies stand to benefit from improving operational energy efficiency as well as from capturing the market opportunity for energy efficiency-related products and services. The potential upside to their short-term performance and long-term competitiveness can be material. Hence, investors need greater visibility of how management drives improvements and seizes strategic opportunities.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US efficient lighting specialist Sunovia has named Patricia Merringer as the chairman of its board of directors.

Merringer will lead the company’s efforts in adding new board members, implementing governance best practices and positioning the business for anticipated growth in the LED market.

Erich Hofer, interim CEO of Sunovia, said, ‘[Merringer’s] expertise in corporate governance will be extremely important to the company in the near term. The market demand for LED lighting is increasing dramatically. With our patented Aimed Optics products, we are well-positioned to capitalise on that explosive growth. We will need a strong and diverse team of talent to manage this growth, and [Merringer’s] experience in corporate finance, governance and team-building will be extremely valuable.’

Meringer added, ‘I am pleased to accept this appointment, and appreciate the trust that the board has placed in me. We have an exciting and challenging job ahead of us, and I look forward to continuing to work with our team and our partners to increase manufacturing capacities, expand distribution channels and build value in our company.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Danish wind energy company Vestas has been contracted to supply turbines with a combined capacity of 150MW to an undisclosed US client.

The contract includes delivery and installation, as well as a monitoring system and five-year service and maintenance agreement.

Turbines are expected to start arriving on US shores in the second half of this year. The size and specification has also not yet been revealed yet.

The large order will be a boost for Vestas, which recently announced 2011 revenue that was short of expectations and the resignation of the company’s chief financial officer.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Photovoltaic (PV) project developer Europe Solar Utility (ESU) has completed the sale of 3.7MW of PV assets to Thames Water.

The three facilities are located on land near London, which is already owned by Thames Water.

Construction of the plants was financed by ESU with the first stage of construction completed before 1 August last year, making the projects eligible for the old feed-in tariff (FIT) rate of 30.7 pence per kilowatt hour.

Patrick Charignon, CEO of ESU, said, ‘The successful sale of our Thames Water project validates our strategy of financing and implementing industrial scale pre-construction solar PV plants and selling the operational assets on to long-term financial and industrial investors. We have shown that we can efficiently put capital to work during the construction phase to bring the projects of this type to completion quickly and even to the very tight deadlines imposed by the UK’s changing regulatory environment.

‘Future projects of this scale have been put in doubt by the UK government’s proposed cut to the FIT rate. However, utilities may still gain the benefits of solar PV through installations built around power purchase agreements of the type used in this project that offer long-term price certainty in environment of rising energy prices.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US cleantech developer Renewable Energy Solutions Americas (RES Americas) has completed installation of the 227.5MW Crossroads wind farm in Dewey County, Oklahoma.

The array consists of 95, 2.3MW turbines and three 3MW direct-drive turbines supplied by Siemens.

Chris Hills, vice president of construction for RES Americas, said, ‘RES Americas is pleased to be a part of Oklahoma’s ‘Wind Power Revolution’. Oklahoma has proven to be a leader in wind energy generation. We look forward to bringing more clean, renewable energy to the citizens of Oklahoma, and to working on future projects in the state.’

Jesse Langston, vice president of retail energy for Oklahoma Gas & Electric (OG&E), added, ‘With the completion of Crossroads, OG&E can meet approximately ten per cent of our customers’ energy needs with wind generation. We appreciate the support RES Americas provided to help us achieve this milestone.

The development of onshore wind facilities is increasing in Oklahoma and the states surrounding it. To capitalise on this growing market Siemens recently opened a distribution centre in the region.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A UK-based renewables consultancy and Scottish university are looking to develop a system that will reduce the cost and expand the lifetime of offshore wind farms.

The high cost of offshore wind is being addressed by an initiative undertaken between SgurrEnergy and the University of Strathclyde. These organisations are looking to create a solution that can accurately measure the performance of turbines, with a view to intercepting possible issues and resolving them rapidly.

Ian Irvine is technical director at Sgurr, told NewNet that the organisations were working on delivering a number of benefits.

Irvine said, ‘We will be creating a condition monitoring system that will be used to monitor the operation of wind turbines and the main thrust of this is for offshore wind, where the turbines will be of the order of 6MW or 7MW. The intention is to try and do things a bit smarter, whereby being able to look at the structure of the wind and how turbines respond to the wind that is coming through the rotor.

‘We are looking to develop suitable sensors and follow that through with the ability to pick up on data and make a system that is able to give a much greater degree of precision as to what might go wrong with the components of a wind turbine.’

The sensors will alert those running the facility to potential concerns, allowing a decision to be made on whether to switch off a turbine, or run it at reduced capacity until technical support can right the problem.

Initially, Sgurr will develop the technology by working with onshore turbines, with the idea to then scale it up for the larger offshore models.

It is also in the process of building another service that will look at all equipment in the offshore chain, with a view produce a management system to get the most power out of an offshore system.

Irvine said, ‘There is a second and complimentary process is where we are looking at the whole wind farm asset. Examining an offshore wind farm from energy production, through to the transmission of electricity, through the network to the point you are transmitting to the mainland.

‘Looking at all the logistics around that and trying to understand what the optimal way might be to manage spare parts inventory, or how to get people to and from the offshore wind farm. This is about trying to maximise the operational hours at a site and increase the production from an offshore wind farm.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US innovator GreatPoint Energy has formed a $1.25bn partnership with industrial conglomerate China Wanxiang Holdings to convert coal into natural gas in China.

The companies will build a large-scale plant that will take coal mined from the Gobi desert, convert it to gas and transport it to the country’s growing urban areas, it was reported in the Washington Post.

Once fully operational in 2015, the facility could have the ability to produce 0.5 per cent of the China’s projected energy needs.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Building a track record long enough to get insurers to cover renewable energy projects is proving difficult in newer technology areas, a group of experts told NewNet.

While having adequate insurance for major infrastructure projects such as in the offshore wind sector is crucial in getting backing from banks, developers are still finding it hard to show their technologies can be trouble-free for the amount of operational hours insurers require.

Steven Munday, leader of the renewable power and cleantech practice at insurance broker Marsh, said the situation is resulting in frustration across the renewable energy sector.

‘We see that there are still barriers to development of technology and insurability issues. On a conventional power basis, the technology has to be proven for 8,000 operating hours but this is creating problems in renewables.’

He added, ‘We are seeing 3,000 hours as an adequate provable base for the insurance industry and for banks. But, although underwriters have the capacity, they won’t release it until they have the 8,000 hours track record.’

He said Marsh was working with underwriters to get them closer to the manufacturing base of the standard 3,000 mark, and to help create better understanding of the risks involved for both parties.

For insurers, however, renewable energy often falls outside their normal definitions and as such is treated as a special case.

‘Insurers like to have a statistical base and it is much harder if they don’t have this. On the marine energy side, the industry is still in its infancy but the UK, in particular, has the chance to stand at the forefront of developments. This can only happen, however, if the insurance sector is fully onboard as the sector develops.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Driven by strong cleantech investment, corporate venture put most money into the energy sector over recent years with $974m was invested in 95 deals, new figures show.

Over the last three years, US corporate venture capital firms have steadily increased investment activity, participating in 15 per cent of all venture capital investment deals in 2011.

This participation rate compares to 2010 when corporate VCs were involved in 13.6 per cent of all venture capital deals and 12.7 per cent of all deals in 2009, according to the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) based on data by Thomson Reuters.

In 2011, CVCs invested $2.3bn into 551 deals compared to $2bn into 481 deals in 2010, a 15 per cent increase in dollars and deals for the year.

The report also showed that corporates participated in more than 22 per cent of the cleantech deals and provided nearly 15 per cent of financing in the sector since the beginning of 2010.

‘Corporations bring a unique and specialised perspective to venture investing and are increasingly becoming more active in supporting the growth of emerging technologies. In turn, the venture capital industry has embraced the corporate venture capital firms’ depth of resources – including R&D, access to broad marketing channels and operating experience – as invaluable contributions to the success of the start-up economy,’ said Mark Heesen, president, NVCA.

Similar to 2011 trends in traditional venture capital investment, these firms were most active in the software sector in 2011 where they invested $883m in 284 deals. Biotechnology ranked second in terms of the number of deals where 172 rounds comprising $694m were completed.

‘It’s not surprising to see corporate venture capitalists becoming even more active in the biotech sector,’ said Tracy Lefteroff, global managing partner of the venture capital practice at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Canadian province has committed an unprecedented amount to the bioenergy sector to ensure the take-up of innovative biomass-to-fuel projects.

According to a report in the Calgary Herald, the government of Alberta has revealed it will release up to C$444m ($445.85m) over the next three years to develop bioenergy alternatives such as manure and wood chips.

Alberta Energy spokeswoman Christine King said the funding will encourage bioenergy production in the province and represents commitments to both the environment and reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

According to government guidelines under the Bioenergy Producer Credit Programme, first established in 2006, the financing applies to bioenergy production out to 31 March 2016.

The scheme is split into a number of different programmes and is open to developers of both first and second generation renewable fuels as well as producers of gas products or heat, wood and biomass pellets.

Alberta’s renewable energy efforts are heavily focused in the bioenergy space. In recent months alone, Canadian waste-to-biofuel company Enerkem secured a C$15m ($14.6m) equity investment into its Alberta subsidiary from Waste Management and EB Investments.

The money will be used for a new plant that will convert landfill-bound waste produced by the city of Edmonton into renewable fuels and chemicals.

In addition, alternative fuels company KiOR has secured a $75m four-year term loan from a lending group comprised of an affiliate of Vinod Khosla and two Canadian businesses owned by pension fund clients of the Alberta Investment Management Corporation.

Alberta’s Renewable Fuels Standard requires an average of two per cent renewable diesel in diesel fuel and fiver per cent renewable alcohol in gasoline sold in Alberta.

Renewable fuels used to meet the RFS must demonstrate at least 25 per cent fewer greenhouse gas emissions than the equivalent petroleum fuel.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Legislation has been put in place to encourage alternative fuels, but the potentially significant biolubricant opportunity has been slower to progress. But the right regulatory oversight could create a booming new industry, according to one expert.

Richard Day heads up the lubricants and fuels division of Aeternum Capital, a company focused on regenerating brownfield sites, with a facility in North West England set for both biodiesel and biolubricant production.

He spoke to NewNet to explain the company’s strategy for taking advantage of the growing bio industry. He said programmes such as the UK’s Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) have created a huge opportunity for producers of alternative fuels.

Day said, ‘It can be sold to a great many people – anyone who buys diesel. There are regulations in place now in many countries that stipulate there has to be a certain amount of biodiesel going into routinely sold diesel fuel. There are a vast amount of prospective customers at the moment both UK and abroad, nothing is out of scope. We could be selling to the oil companies that put fuel on forecourts, it could be to transport operators, or it could be to businesses that use off-highway applications.’

But rules to stimulate the bio-lubricants market have been slower to take off. At present, the regulatory debate is focused on applications where there is potential for the lubricant to be lost and enter the ground or water supply.

But it could cover much more and impose minimum standards in the same way the RTFO does for diesel. The target market for biolubricants are potentially vast and for companies like Aeternum the per unit value is higher than with biodiesel.

Day said, ‘Until people are regulated and obliged to use biolubricants they will opt for cheaper mineral-based alternatives. There is a global movement to support this, but it is quite slow progress at the moment. We would like to see the regulators push this technology through legislation and we are trying help define this market.’

From the business side, Aeternum is looking to develop a supply chain that is assimilated into its business activities. The company’s processing technology can run on more or less any feedstock, but it has identified rapeseed as the most effective option.

It is currently in talks with farmers throughout the UK and Europe to develop this supply network. Rather than buying on the wholesale market, Aeternum sees it as far more economic to build up relationships with producers and develop long-term discounts.

Day said, ‘We are developing a number of supply options, but basically we are developing an integrated supply chain or a feedstock programme involving European farmers. The margins in this industry are quite tight and we are therefore looking to optimise our procurement by incorporating a supply chain into our business.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Highstar Capital has agreed to sell Hydro Star, the sole shareholder of one of the largest private regulated water and wastewater companies in the US, Utilities Inc, to Corix Utilities.

Highstar made the investment via its Capital Fund II vehicle, which reached £800m of capital commitments when it closed in 2005.

The company serves more than 290,000 customers across 15 states, employs 435 people and has five regional offices in the US.

Highstar founder and managing partner Christopher H Lee said, ‘We believe that Utilities is a best-in-class water utility with a strong management team and a dedicated and highly professional group of employees.

‘Under our ownership, Utilities has been customer focused and committed to providing safe and reliable service.

‘We are pleased that Corix is also a leader in the North American water sector and shares these values.’

New York-based Highstar Capital was founded in 1998 and currently manages more than $5bn of investments on behalf of its managed funds and co-investment vehicles across a portfolio of energy, transportation, environmental services and waste management.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

One of Europe’s largest engineering companies has confirmed to NewNet that it has a multi-billion funding pot with which to make acquisitions over the coming few years.

Swiss group ABB has $8bn to spend, the spokesperson confirmed, but would not reveal details on how much may be put towards the business’s ambition in the renewables sector.

ABB has cemented its position over the past few years in the green power sector, taking a lead in offshore wind, transmission, hydro, marine and solar power sectors.

Over the past few months alone, the company has acquired or made significant strategic investments in a number of low carbon-focused entities.

Earlier this year, it took control of low voltage specialist Thomas & Betts for $3.9bn, aimed at creating a broad low voltage product portfolio, and in December 2011 agreed to invest $20m to California-based concentrating photovoltaic specialist GreenVolts.

Through the investment, ABB gains access to GreenVolts’ proprietary technology and can now offer turnkey solutions for CPV plants to its portfolio. Within the solar space, it is already active in conventional PV and solar thermal.

It has also formed a strategic alliance with marine power specialist Aquamarine Power, in a major OEM-innovator tie-up likely to be repeated as the industry matures.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

German wind energy business REpower has been contracted by French company Maïa Eolis to supply turbines with a capacity of up to 250MW for onshore wind projects in France.

The modules are to be delivered over the next three years to 2015. Turbines supplied in this deal will have ratings of 2MW, 3.2MW and 3.4MW.

The deal strengthens a strategic alliance signed by the two companies in 2004. Maïa Eolis is a subsidiary of the Maïa Group and GDF Suez, which holds a 49 per cent stake.

Andreas Nauen, CEO of REpower, said, ‘We are delighted that Maïa Eolis has confirmed REpower as strategic provider for wind turbines in the coming years. This agreement is the breakthrough of the REpower 3.XM series in France, after the successful ramp-up in other European markets so far. Moreover, our 3.XM series ideally suits the conditions on the French wind market.’

Christian Broy, managing director of Maïa Eolis, added, ‘This agreement represents the logical continuation of our technology partnership and will allow Maïa Eolis to remain among the best wind energy producers in France.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Global electronics giant Apple is planning to construct a solar energy array at its $1bn data centre in Maiden, North Carolina.

According to the Apple Insider webpage, Catawba County has issued permits that allow the company to begin preparation for construction of the facility.

At this stage the company only has an erosion control permit and is expected to release details on its proposal when it applies for building authorisation.

The approved area covers 171 acres of vacant land that Apple recently acquired.

In April 2011, Greenpeace criticised Apple for the use of fossil fuels and having the lowest clean energy index among tech giants including Facebook, IBM, Microsoft and Amazon.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A European private equity firm has partnered with a German wind farm maker to develop and then sell on offshore wind farms.

The alliance, between Ventizz and Hochtief Solutions, will help advance the German government’s target of 10GW of installed capacity in the German offshore wind power market by 2020.

The two partners each hold a 50 per stake in Hochtief Offshore Development Solutions, a new joint venture that aims to capitalise on the high-growth market for offshore wind energy.

The new company plans to buy and develop wind farm concessions and sell them on before construction begins.

The new joint venture will focus on readying the subsequent construction of the wind farms in a way that reduces the risk of cost overruns and delays, which will benefit the companies that later go on to construct and operate the wind parks at the sites concerned.

On completion of project development, wind park concessions will be sold to the future operators such as energy suppliers and public utilities, financial investors and, in increasing numbers, large industrial companies.

Clients stand to benefit from the offshore management expertise provided and are able to build the wind farms following their development more efficiently and reliably, Ventizz said in a statement, as the lack of needed management capacity is still a substantial obstacle to growth in the offshore wind power market.

‘We are delighted to have found in Hochtief a partner who is an experienced offshore player and who wants to help shape this growing market together with us. This creates a clear win-win situation for both companies,’ said Willi Mannheims, a partner and member of the executive board at Ventizz.

Recently Ventizz also invested in Rioglass Solar, which produces parabolic mirrors for the concentrated solar power industry, alongside Switzerland-based private equity investment manager Partners Group.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Latin American bank has received $100m to support the rollout of clenatech projects.

Brazilian bank the Banco Itau is set to receive up to $100m from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) to support environmentally-friendly projects in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay.

Capital from the loan will be used to finance developments related to renewable energy, energy efficiency, cleaner production in manufacturing and processing, as well as projects that generate carbon credits.

The funding may be complemented by a syndicated B loan worth up to an additional $100m.

Carolina Camargo, head of international financial institutions at Banco Itau, said, ‘We are pleased to partner with the IDB for this unique transaction. Leveraging the IDB’s local market expertise and reputation in Latin America coupled with our group origination and execution capabilities provide the perfect vehicle to finance environmentally-friendly projects and have a demonstration effect.’

Karina Azzinnari, the IDB project team leader, added, ‘This project can show that banking in the region can go beyond traditional risk assessment models and include processes that allow investors to maximise their impact.’

Earlier this month, the IBD announced it is expecting to approve loans worth $1.9bn for energy, transportation and rural development projects in Central America and the Dominican Republic throughout 2012.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Californian asset management company has been given access to a funding pot of up to $10m allowing it to make acquisitions in the cleantech sector.

Green Asset International, which is based in Berkeley, has signed a term sheet agreement for $10m of equity line funding with Equity Partners Fund. This could also be extended sten-fold going forward to increase the funding to up to $100m.

Green Asset said the mechanism will allow it to draw down funding over a three-year period once the company is listed, and in the meantime will enable it to target acquisitions of ‘best of breed’ green and social media companies that already are successful. It said these investments will be made with a focus of consolidating the respective industries.

A statement from Green Asset said, ‘The funding agreement is designed to aid the objective of finding already established companies in expanding fields and backing those companies to acquire other good companies in their sector and consolidate them. The company believes there are many good companies that are successful yet capital constrained.’

Equity Partners provides access to equity capital, with funding commitments on many exchanges including Frankfurt, Johannesburg and Sydney.

Bruce Nelson, a spokesperson for the firm, said, ‘Unlike hedge funds which have significant regulatory burdens exposing their investors to higher risks, Equity Partners is able to act quickly, is more flexible when it comes to structuring an investment and has less regulatory burdens.

‘Equity Partners has no outside investors and is considered a private fund run by its principals, similar to a merchant bank that invests its own capital and as such it is seeking capital appreciation through the identification and funding of liquid growth companies.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Swedish cleantech developer ClimaCheck has signed a distribution agreement with Canada’s Renteknik Group for the sale of its energy optimisation solution.

The ClimaCheck equipment is designed to offer fixed and portable systems for measurement and performance analysis, temporary inspections, early warning monitoring and energy data reporting.

Darren Cooper, president of Renteknik Group, said, ‘The cooperation with ClimaCheck is entirely consistent with our own business. Renteknik is committed to solving energy-related problems facing populations globally and have a lot of experience with cutting edge technologies. We see great potential for the ClimaCheck Performance Analyser in the North American market.’

Klas Berglof, founder and CEO of ClimaCheck, added, ‘With the cooperation of our Canadian Partner Renteknik Group, we open up a whole new market for our unique analysis tools. The cooperation with Renteknik Group increases our ability to market ClimaCheck Performance Analyser further and we look with great confidence to the future.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Swedish energy company Vattenfall has opened a hydrogen refuelling station for fuel cell buses and cars in Hamburg, Germany.

Vattenfall invested €5.1m into the construction of the facility, with the German government equalling that sum. Oil giant Shell is a partner for this development.

Around half of the daily capacity of hydrogen will be produced on site by two electrolysers that are powered by renewable sources.

The facility is the largest of its kind in Europe and is aimed at advancing the use of hydrogen as a viable alternative to fossil fuel-powered transportation.

Vattenfall is also cooperating on a number of other endeavours designed to push sustainable mobility and alternative transport. These include electric stations in Berlin, work with manufacturer BMW on battery systems, as well as development with Volvo on hybrid vehicles.

Earlier this month, Vattenfal reported a 15 per cent fall in profit during 2011.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A number of government agencies and research bodies have joined forces to bring critical water solutions to meet Israel’s growing resource needs, writes Israel NewTech’s Merav Ankori.

Israel Newtech, the Israel Export Institute and The Samuel Neaman Institute in cooperation with The Israeli Water Authority and the Grand Water Research Institute at the Technion have joined forces to map out Israel’s future water technology needs. This collaborative project has now progressed to the dialogue stage involving major water industry representatives. The objective: to bring much needed water solutions to new industries with high water use – such as mining and the medical sector – and open new markets for water technology companies.

Israel has long led the way – long before the rise of ‘hi-tech’ – in the field of water technology. The current climate crisis has now brought the issue of water needs to centre stage globally as well.

Fields such as smart water management, water production in areas which are becoming more arid, and water crisis management (water contamination and water safety issues) – have created a huge market with plenty of business potential. This new multi-million dollar industry means that many businesses are keen to play their part.

The Israel Export Institute and The Samuel Neaman Institute are dedicated to ensuring that Israel maintains its leadership status in the quickly changing water arena. In order to further this they have decided to evaluate types of industries that do not have optimal water solutions, and could therefore potentially greatly benefit from solutions tailored to their needs. Understanding how to funnel existing solutions and create new technological solutions in relatively new fields – in terms of water technology, are key to remaining number one in the water niche.

Each chapter of the research deals with an industry perceived to be water-intensive and in need of innovative water solutions. In a recent seminar held to discuss the findings, project organisers launched a dialogue with representatives from the local water industry, in order to produce practical research that would instigate some kind of collaboration between local water solution providers, and those who require solutions, such as municipal and federal entities, and infrastructure companies.

Leading the research are Dr. Gilad Fortuna and Shiri Freund Koren from the Neaman Institute. During the seminar they outlined the characteristics of the mining and oil & gas industries – both water-intensive sectors – whose exceptional need for water represents a serious growth barrier for them. There are quite a few findings, and more information about them can be found on the Neaman Institute’s website.

During the seminar, representatives from the local water industry raised a number of questions, such as whether monitoring and tracking solutions are part of the mine’s routine activities, or whether they are required as part of the solution. One representative said, ‘Today, I’m well aware of who my end-customer is, but I still don’t know who to sell to – who my direct client is.’ Dr. Perry Lev-On, an energy specialist who serves as research consultant, addressed this issue. ‘Infrastructure is a very conservative sector, which is why you want to work through a local integrator or contractor.’

Fortuna reiterated the fact that as part of the project, companies will be provided with relevant solutions,which also include assistance in creating ties with relevant entities in different countries.

This is how the dialogue began, which Oded Distel, Director of the Investment Promotion Center of the Israeli Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor and of Israel NewTech, described as, ‘super critical in the continuous efforts to achieve progress in the water industry, and cement Israel’s position as global leader in this field’.

This article was first published by Israel NewTech. This is a pioneering national programme is led by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor, and is supported by a number of additional Israeli government agencies.

Japanese technology company Meidensha has completed installation of a 10MW photovoltaic (PV) plant in the Yamanashi Prefecture, west of Tokyo in Japan.

PV modules were supplied by Solar Frontier and the facility is jointly owned and operated by the Yamanashi Prefecture and the Tokyo Electric Power Company.

It started supplying power to the grid on 27 January and is one of the largest solar arrays in Japan. The plant was built as part of a regional plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Last September, Solar Frontier completed the first project that utilises its panels, which it developed in Germany with Belectric.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Channel Island’s tidal energy developer Alderney Renewable Energy (ARE) has signed agreements for two projects that will create one of the most significant marine energy sites in Europe.

The first is with French industrial group DCNS for the installation of tidal arrays in Alderney’s waters.

The other is between ARE, its partner Transmission Capital and French grid operator RTE, to work on the development of an electricity interconnector cable between France, Alderney and the UK.

The interconnector would allow the export of up to 4GW of tidal power from Alderney to the UK mainland and France.

Both agreements are supported by the governments of the UK and France.

French Industry Minister Eric Besson and the UK Energy Secretary Edward Davey signed a declaration, stating, ‘We are determined to promote the potential of marine energies. We welcome the plan for a tidal turbine farm off Alderney-Aurigny in the Channel Islands. The commercial agreements signed today between Alderney Renewable Energy (ARE) / DCNS and ARE / Transmission Capital / Réseau de Transport d’Electricité are major steps towards the realisation of a significant new renewable energy project which could rank among the largest tidal stream energy deployments worldwide.

‘We believe this project could encourage the emergence of industrial cooperation between France and the UK, while opening up new international prospects. We acknowledge the importance of developing new electricity interconnectors between our two countries in order to strengthen further the linking of our grids, improve the security of our energy supplies and facilitate the integration of intermittent energy sources.’

Paul Clark, CEO of ARE, added, ‘We are committed to developing tidal power in Alderney’s waters. We have already secured grid access for future power flows to the UK and France and today’s announcement marks significant progress towards creating one of the largest renewable energy projects in European coastal waters. We are delighted that the governments of Alderney, the United Kingdom and France are supporting this project.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Dutch transmission company TenneT has unveiled a structure to steer Germany’s transition to a low carbon economy with 35 per cent of energy coming from renewables by 2020.

This follows a letter issued by the company in November 2011 that called for a halt in new offshore wind farm construction, stating that it and its partners had reached the resource limits for underwater transmission building.

For offshore wind the company is advocating a long-term and binding framework. It argued offshore connecting cables should be constructed on the basis of a ten-year grid development plan.

It said early planning and the standardisation of power connections is crucial to high planning dependability, as well as being the only way to synchronise offshore projects with development of the onshore grid.

TenneT said there must be rapid implementation of legislation to address the current legal situation regarding liability in case of non-availability of connection, or where delays in delivery is disputed.

The company advocates assigning priority to the establishment of property insurance coverage for non-availability of offshore connection due to delayed production or the interruption of operations. Essentially this would mean the liability of the grid operator should be limited to an amount that can be serviced by the insurance market.

TenneT also suggested the creation of a new German direct-current grid operator to design new offshore connection cables and to plan, finance, build and operate the future German high-voltage, direct current grid.

It said it would be prepared to share the company’s knowledge and experience of this technology with the new organisation.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

A UK-based biodiesel manufacturer is on the look-out for European producers of rapeseed to use as a feedstock in a facility located in North West England.

Aeternum Capital is a UK investor in infrastructure and energy facilities. It has a plant in Bromborough, near Liverpool, set up for the production of both biodiesel and biolubricants.

Its technology can potentially run on any bio-based feedstock, but it has identified rapeseed as its preferred choice and is looking to integrate a supply chain as part of its business operations.

The company is specifically targeting European producers, with a view to creating a long-term supply arrangement that will provide a consistent revenue stream to interested farmers.

Richard Day, managing director of lubricants and fuels at Aeternum, said, ‘We are developing a number of supply options, but basically we are talking about developing a supply chain or a feedstock programme that is integrated with European farmers.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The Wall Street Green Summit is the longest running and most comprehensive environmental market event in the industry. Launched in 2002 by Peter Fusaro, The Wall Street Green Summit covers cutting edge content, industry developments and features the practitioners and the leaders of tomorrow.

A provider of biomass heat and power solutions has completed a round of fundraising with investment from The North West Fund for Energy and Environmental (NWF4EE) and the Environmental Infrastructure Development Company (EIDC).

Imperative Energy, which was founded in 2007 in Co Kildare, Ireland, is a supplier of bioenergy solutions (heat, steam and power) to the industrial, commercial and public sectors across the UK and Ireland. The business will move the headquarters of its operations to an existing site at Sandbach, Cheshire, following the investment.

NWF4EE will take a minority stake in Imperative Energy in order to support its ongoing growth and development. EIDC, invested alongside the NWF4EE and will play a key role in supporting the team in the delivery and financing of projects, the company said.

Imperative Energy said it is targeting significant growth on the back of the Renewable Heat Incentive and the Renewable Obligation Act. It expects to deploy over £200m in building biomass heat and CHP plants throughout the region over the coming few years. This expansion will see it recruit up to 30 new staff in the coming years and it has immediately announced the opening of three new vacancies in its sales and servicing departments.

Joe O’Carroll, managing director at Imperative Energy, said, ‘With rising fuel costs and demand for clean technology, Imperative Energy is perfectly placed to take advantage of the opportunities that a growing alternative energy market presents, and we are delighted to be doing this out of the North West. Having such knowledgeable investors on board is key to growing a renewable energy business in the continuing difficult banking environment. EIDC’s track record in project finance, coupled with CT Investment Partners’ obvious sector experience and broad network will be a key differentiator for Imperative Energy.’

The NWF4EE is managed by UK private equity firm CT Investment Partners and is part of the £185m North West Fund, which is provided jointly by the European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Regional Development Fund (ERDF).

Adam Workman, partner at CT Investment Partners and fund manager of NWF4EE, said, ‘Despite the difficult economic conditions and delays to the implementation of the Renewable Heat Initiative, Imperative has grown into a top quality provider of bioenergy solutions and one that can really capitalise on the growing market for alternative energy solutions.

‘By investing alongside the existing and incoming management teams, we have real confidence in what the business can achieve and look forward to supporting them in fulfilling their ambitions. The move to the North West is a real coup for the clean technology sector and is tribute to its growing prominence as a key economic driver in the region.’

As part of the deal, Ed Simpson, an investment director at CT Investment Partners and Peter Bachmann, a partner at EIDC, will join Imperative Energy’s board.

Established in 2006, CTIP also advises the Carbon Trust on its clean energy venture capital investment activities and on the suitability of companies for admission to the Carbon Trust Entrepreneurs Fast Track, which aims to ‘turbo charge’ investment in early stage cleantech companies.

The North West Fund is a £185m evergreen investment fund established to provide debt and equity funding to small and medium sized enterprises based in, or relocating to, the North West of England. The fund aims to address an identified gap in the lending, venture capital and private equity markets. It one of the largest public sector funds of its kind in Europe and the largest in the UK.

The North West Fund is financed by the European Regional Development Fund and the European Investment Bank (EIB) under the European Commission’s Joint European Resources for Micro to Medium Enterprises Initiative – otherwise known as the JEREMIE programme.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

There is a huge variety in the way US state authorities evaluate the benefits of energy efficiency initiatives, outlining the difficulties in evaluating a particular projects effectiveness.

The new report, from the American Council for and Energy Efficient Economy (ACEEE), has significant importance for countries like the UK looking to monetise energy efficiency technologies.

There are 44 states, as well as the District of Columbia, which evaluate efficiency measures, and while there is a wide variety in evaluative processes, there still remain key flaws with some methodologies.

When evaluating cost effectiveness, most states at least consider several or all of the five tests identified in the California Standard Practice Manual. These are the total resource cost (TRC), utility programme/administrator (Utility/PACT), participant, societal cost and ratepayer impact measures (RIM).

The primary test for decision making is the TRC with 71 per cent of states using this measure, six states (15 per cent) relying on societal assessments and five utilising utility/PACT analysis. Only one state considers RIM to be its primary cost-effectiveness test.

Despite the prevalence of TRC, the ACEEE highlighted one shortfall, the fact that while all participant costs for an are included, most or all customer benefits, outside utility fuel savings, are not.

This has a negative impact on programmes that require large customer investments into retrofits that are motivated by non-energy benefits. The ACEEE therefore suggested the utility/PACT measurement or societal cost test may be more effective for these types of projects.

The study indicated a great diversity in the states’ handling of the evaluation of ratepayer-funded energy efficiency programmes. More than one third (37 per cent) feature utility administration, 36 per cent administration by regulatory commission or a combination of the commission and utilities, with 27 per cent featuring administration by an alternative government agent or third-party entity.

The majority of states (79 per cent) use an independent consultant or contractor to conduct the actual evaluations, while 21 per cent use utility or government agency staff.

The legal evaluation also varies widely with 45 per cent of states having a legislative mandate, 45 per cent relying on regulatory commission orders and ten per cent reporting no formal state policy.

It suggested that despite the wide variety of testing processes, states appeared to be generally successful in addressing the evaluation function of different administrative approaches.

It argued there was no requirement for a standardised system, although it is usually helpful to have some form of statutory authority in place for regulators to require programme evaluations and define the parameters of those activities.

Most states left the details of evaluation rules and procedures to regulators rather than through the use of legislation. The ACEEE endorses this approach citing the advantage of a concentrated focus and greater experience with regard to utility matters, as well as greater procedural flexibility to make adjustments over time.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

An impact venture capital firm that invests in companies serving low-income consumers, is expanding into West Africa, with new investments in companies supporting land rights and agriculture in low-income communities across Ghana.

The Acumen Fund West Africa, based in Accra, Ghana, will support entrepreneurs who create businesses that provide affordable housing, healthcare, clean energy and water, and agricultural goods and services to the poor across South Asia and East Africa.

Since 2001, Acumen Fund has invested more than $70m in businesses that provide access to water, health, energy, housing and agricultural services to customers in South Asia and East Africa. The firm currently has offices in Kenya, India and Pakistan.

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Turkey’s power sector will witness considerable growth in coming years according to the Turkey Power Sector Outlook 2016 report from KuicK research.

The Turkish power sector is a highly evolved and efficient sector as it is supported by an extremely favourable and facilitative government policy and regulatory regime, as such making it an attractive proposition for both corporates and investors. In particular, the regulatory framework is structured to attract the private sector and boasts a ‘competitive, stable and a transparent market structure’.

The Turkish government’s fast privatisation programme has led to a gradually and steady rise in the share of private sector in the electricity market in the region. The total installed capacity for power generation surpassed 50GW in 2011 and future plans for further rise in this capacity, aided by the enthusiasm of the private domestic and foreign companies are in full swing.

The report said it expects Turkey to emerge as hub for power sector companies to enter Europe and MENA (Middle East and North Africa) region. In addition, the strategic location and the government focus on power sector reforms will attract power sector companies to establish or expand their operations in Turkey and to use it as a gateway to penetrate other markets in Europe and the MENA region.

Earlier this month, it was reported that Turkish export business Zorlu Holding was planning plans to make $1bn investments in a diversified set of investments during 2012, with plans to commit capital to the wind and geothermal sectors.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US industry body the

The new agriculture jobs generated by these and related programs is a testament to their importance. The jobs growth potential for ag-based energy is astounding, but we must stay the course for an all of the above agricultural energy policy.

As a called witness, Ag Energy Coalition and NFU member Steve Flick said that farm-based energy and the programmes that support it like BCAP are essential to rural America’s future economic livelihood.

‘The Farm Bill’s bi-partisan energy title has been a tremendous economic driver for communities throughout rural America, funding renewable energy and energy efficiency projects in every state of the Union and providing the means for continued development of advanced biofuels, biopower and bioproducts, expanded wind and solar power production, improved energy efficiency, and other important endeavors,’ he said.

Lloyd Ritter, Coalition co-director, added, ‘The new agriculture jobs generated by these and related programs is a testament to their importance. The jobs growth potential for ag-based energy is astounding, but we must stay the course for an all of the above agricultural energy policy.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

AIM-listed cleantech developer Wasabi Energy has completed installation of the first Kalina Cycle EcoGen unit at a Japanese hot spring.

The units were designed and installed in conjunction with the Geothermal Energy Research & Development (GERD) organisation, as part of a project sponsored by Japan’s Ministry of Environment.

The EcoGen system was developed specifically to operate in low temperature environments such as are found in Japanese hot springs. The companies involved claim this is the first operation of a binary power generation solution in Japan that uses energy from a geothermal source below 100 degrees centigrade.

John Byrne, executive chairman of Wasabi Energy, said, ‘The Japanese government’s strategy to utilise abundant thermal energy from its hot springs to generate renewable power is very exciting. Wasabi Energy has been working on the development of these Kalina Cycle EcoGen units for a number of years in collaboration with our colleagues at GERD. The miniaturisation of Kalina Cycle technology for the EcoGen units was made possible as a result of our engineering team making a number of important innovations, particularly in relation to the incorporation of next-generation micro-turbine technology.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The Bank of London and the Middle East (BLME) has signed a £14m leasing deal with submarine cable installer Global Marine Systems.

Under terms of the deal, BLMW will support Global Marine in the purchase and refit of an offshore power cable installation barge.

When completed, the vessel will be suited to a wide variety of cable installation requirements, anticipating an increase in demand following the growth of the offshore wind energy industry.

Jervis Rhodes, head of corporate banking at BLME, said, ‘Energy is a key sector for BLME’s 2012 growth strategy and working with a market leader such as Global Marine Systems marks a solid start to the year. Funding such an asset that will advance the renewable energy sector in the UK, also allows us to contribute indirectly to the UK’s attempts to diversify its sources of energy.’

Gabe Ruhan, Group CEO at Global Marine, added, ‘The growth of offshore transmission throughout Europe is creating a high demand for cable installation vessels and barges. As a leader in offshore power cable installation, adding tonnage to our fleet such as Cable Enterprise, specifically designed to meet the demanding requirements of the market, will expand our ability to deliver projects for our energy customers with attention to detail and quality.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The UK could become a leading exporter of wave and tidal power equipment and expertise if the government adopts a more visionary approach to developing marine renewables, according to a new report by the Energy and Climate Change Select Committee.

Technologies that can harness the power of the sea to generate electricity are still in their infancy. But with the largest wave and tidal resources in Europe, up to 20 per cent of the UK’ electricity could eventually come from this reliable and predictable low-carbon source.

However, there are also a number of potential obstacles that could hinder the development of a marine renewables industry in the UK. Investor confidence, policy certainty, public-private risk sharing, improved grid connections and a workforce with the necessary engineering skills are all crucial if the UK hopes to retain its lead in this industry.

Developing a thriving wave and tidal industry could also bring economic benefits to the UK. Companies could export equipment and components for marine devices to other markets, and also provide specialist skills and expertise, such as offshore surveying, Tim Yeo MP, chair of the Committee, said.

‘Britannia really could rule the waves when it comes to marine renewable energy. We are extremely well placed to lead the world in wave and tidal technologies, which could potentially bring significant benefits in manufacturing and jobs, as well an abundant supply of reliable low-carbon electricity.

‘A more visionary approach from the Department of Energy and Climate Change could help to boost confidence and drive the pace of development.’

The UK is currently the world leader in the development of wave and tidal energy technologies. Of the eight full-scale prototype devices installed worldwide, seven are in the UK. This success is the result of a number of factors; an abundant natural resource, a long history of academic research, world-class testing facilities and a strong skills base in other maritime industries.

The report warns, however, that an overly cautious approach to developing this sector may allow other less risk-averse countries to steal the UK’s lead. It points out that although the UK was at one point a leader in terms of research and testing of wind turbines, it failed to establish a domestic manufacturing industry and missed out on many economic benefits. Denmark, in contrast, supported its wind power industry through the early adoption of feed-in tariffs and is now home to the world’s largest supplier of wind turbines.

Yeo said, ‘In the eighties the UK squandered the lead it had in wind power development and now Denmark has a large share of the worldwide market in turbine manufacturing.

‘It should be a priority for the government to ensure that the UK remains at the cutting edge of developments in this technology and does not allow our lead to slip.’

The UK needs a strong political vision to boost confidence and drive the pace of development in order to reap the rewards of a successful wave and tidal power industry, he added.

One suggestion to help achieve this aim was to put in place ambitious deployment target for marine renewables. Splitting the costs between the private and public sectors may help to reduce risks for investors, as could addressing practical barriers (such as lack of grid connections), according to the Committee.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

London-based investment management firm Osmosis Investment Management has received a commitment from Oxford University Endowment Management (OUEM).

Osmosis has also launched its Model of Resource Efficiency (MoRE) strategy to value publicly listed companies.

Ben Dear, a partner at Osmosis, said, ‘We are delighted to have portfolio investment from a £1bn global investor like OUEM. It is a significant endorsement of the MoRE investment philosophy and of our business generally.’

He added, ‘Resource efficiency is a topic of increasing scrutiny. Our MoRE strategies provide a way for investors of all types to gain exposure to the most resource efficient companies in the world.’

Osmosis’ first strategy was released in 2009. In 2011, in partnership with Legal & General, it became the basis of the L&G Global Environmental Enterprises Fund, a UK registered unit trust.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US clean transport company Smith Electric Vehicles has received a $25m investment from Chinese automobile component manufacturer the Wanxiang Group.

In addition, the companies expect to make a $75m investment into a joint venture that will develop, manufacture and commercialise all-electric school buses and commercial vehicles for the Chinese market.

The vehicles will come under the Smith brand and will combine its proprietary platform vehicle design with Wanxiang’s component technology.

Bryan Hansel, CEO and chairman of Smith, said, ‘Wanxiang’s high quality precision manufacturing capabilities and purchasing relationships bring significant value to our business in our current stage of development. Wanxiang is one of China’s most respected companies and we look forward to a long, mutually beneficial relationship that advances the global commercial electric vehicle industry.’

Pingyi Li, executive director of Wanxiang EV, added, ‘Smith’s market leadership in the US and Europe bring valuable experience and technology to address the significant opportunity for all-electric commercial vehicles in China. Working together, we see tremendous opportunity to serve this growing market and to leverage volume and cost synergies back into Smith’s global business. We are pleased to have them as our partner.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

New York-listed solar company Suntech Power enjoyed a stronger than expected end to 2011, despite some cautious early guidance.

The company exceeded shipment guidance for the fourth quarter of 2011, according to its preliminary financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended 31 December 2011.

Suntech previously expected shipments to decline by approximately 20 per cent from the third quarter of 2011, but said it anticipates shipments to decline by approximately ten per cent from the third quarter of 2011. Revenues in the fourth quarter of 2011 are expected to be in the range of $610m to $630m. Gross margin is expected to be in the middle of the previously guided range of nine to 11 per cent, the company said.

It also said it expects shipments for the full year 2011 to be approximately 2.09GW, above previous guidance of 2GW. Revenues for the full year 2011 are expected to be in the range of $3.13bn to $3.15bn.

The company cited ‘stringent working capital management’, as the reason behind its reduced accounts receivable and inventory by a total of approximately $450m. This was partially offset by an approximate $85m decrease in accounts payable.

However, this result exceeds Suntech’s stated goal to reduce accounts receivable and inventory by a total of $200m in the fourth quarter of 2012. Net debt declined by approximately $200m in the fourth quarter of 2011. Cash and restricted cash increased from $567.7m as of 30 September 2011 to over $700m as of 31 December 2011.

Dr. Zhengrong Shi, Suntech’s chairman and CEO, said, ‘Our sales and operations teams both performed well in the fourth quarter, enabling us to achieve key goals and improvements across our business. We exceeded shipment guidance and improved our cash position through ongoing management of accounts receivable and inventory. We also completed the impairment assessment for the third quarter of 2011. The charges that we incurred were all non-cash and will not impact our operations moving forward. We will continue to implement the initiatives necessary to maintain our position as the leading supplier of solar panels.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A merger between clean energy-focused US utilities Exelon and Constellation Energy has been approved by the Maryland Public Service Commission (PSC).

The PSC order creates new conditions but retains most of the terms of settlement reached in December by the companies, the state of Maryland, the Maryland Energy Administration, the city of Baltimore and Baltimore building and Construction Trade Councils.

Christopher Crane, president and chief operating officer of Exelon, said, ‘We are pleased that the Maryland PSC has approved our merger with Constellation, and we accept the additional conditions that the commission has imposed.’

Mayo Shattuck III, chairman, president and CEO of Constellation, added, ‘We are pleased to have Maryland PSC approval for the merger to proceed. This merger will greatly benefit the state of Maryland, city of Baltimore and BGE customers.’

The energy suppliers originally announced their intention to merge last November.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US cold chain logistics company CryoPort has closed a private placement with various investors for $5m.

The company obtained agreements to purchase 9,119,100 shares of common stock at $0.55 per share, for which investors will receive a warrant to purchase one share of common stock at $0.69 per share.

CryoPort said it intends to use the proceeds of the private placement for ‘working capital purposes’.

Back in September 2011, CryoPort signed an agreement with MediRent to open a European Operations Center in Leiden, The Netherlands.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US company Novetas Solutions, which has developed a sandblasting abrasive made from 100 per cent recycled glass, has secured a $200,000 investment from Ben Franklin Technology Partners.

The money will be used to expand production with Novetas expected to hire new staff. The funding was provided through the Small Business Administration (SBA) as part of the first Intermediary Loan Program (ILP) in the state of Pennsylvania.

Paul Mellon, president of Novetas, said, ‘Novetas has already put the much needed ILP Funds to good use by hiring additional staff and building our inventory of New Age Blast Media to meet the needs of the abrasive blast industry. We hope to be well positioned to serve abrasive blast employers nationwide. Our green-based, crushed glass abrasive is safe for workers and the environment, so it’s a winning combination for the use of taxpayer dollars to help create jobs.

RoseAnn Rosenthal, president and CEO of Ben Franklin Technology Partners, added, ‘This new source of capital from the SBA is very welcome by us and our companies, at a time when risk capital for technology entrepreneurs is scarce.’

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

GE and UK not-for-profit group the Carbon Trust have partnered to accelerate European cleantech growth.

The Carbon Trust will work with GE to identify and evaluate early stage companies, then incubate and invest in those with the most potential.

This partnership is part of the $200m GE ecomagination Challenge, an open innovation initiative with venture capital partners that launched in 2010. To date, GE and partners have committed $134m for investment and commercial partnerships.

According to GE research, the majority of UK companies surveyed saw innovation as fundamental to the future health of the UK – both economically and socially – but that sufficient triggers are not in place to stimulate and encourage it.

GE UK chief executive Mark Elborne said, “ We are increasingly focused on identifying new businesses, technologies and human talent in this area. GE sees the business benefit but also the potential these new technologies offer in delivering overall economic growth and improved resource efficiency.”

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

GE and UK not-for-profit group the Carbon Trust have launched a new pan-European partnership to accelerate European cleantech growth.

The initial 18 month phase of the partnership includes a $5m business incubation fund targeted at new low carbon technologies in the area of infrastructure applications. The Carbon Trust will work with GE to identify and evaluate early stage companies, then incubate and invest in those with the most potential.

This partnership is part of the $200m GE ecomagination Challenge, an open innovation initiative with venture capital partners that launched in 2010. To date, GE and partners have committed $134m for investment and commercial partnerships.

According to GE research, the majority of UK companies surveyed saw innovation as fundamental to the future health of the UK – both economically and socially – but that sufficient triggers are not in place to stimulate and encourage it.

UK companies see collaboration as a key to future growth, with 84 per cent of UK businesses believe that developing partnerships and collaboration with a combination of players – including government, big business, SMEs and individuals – is the key to success in innovation. Almost 90 per cent UK businesses also claim that SMEs and individual entrepreneurs can be as innovative as bigger companies, reinforcing the need for seed funding and support for local innovations and ideas.

There is growing evidence that the region is struggling to keep up with other parts of the globe in this critical sector, according to Carbon Trust chief executive Tom Delay.

He said, “Cleantech has the capacity to be a strong growth driver for Europe given its strong research capability and track record in this area. However, there is increasing evidence that other parts of the world are catching up and overtaking the region. This exciting initiative will accelerate the commercialisation of Europe’s more promising cleantech businesses.”

Over the past five years Europe has seen its global clean energy lead eroded compared to other parts of the world. According to a recent Bloomberg New Energy Finance report, in 2007 42 per cent of the world’s clean energy investment took place in Europe compared to just 25 per cent today. During the same period Asia Oceania has almost doubled its share of overall investment.

Analysis of venture capital investment activity in Q4 2011 by the Cleantech Group showed that North America accounted for almost two thirds of total venture capital investments in the cleantech sector in this period, with Europe and Asia Pacific accounting for just 19 per cent and 18 per cent respectively.

GE UK chief executive Mark Elborne said, “ We are increasingly focused on identifying new businesses, technologies and human talent in this area. GE sees the business benefit but also the potential these new technologies offer in delivering overall economic growth and improved resource efficiency.”

Delay added, ““This announcement marks a major development for the Carbon Trust and will help Europe achieve its potential. The region has historically led innovation in this area but we increasingly need to ensure clean technology businesses are commercialised fast and effectively so Europe can keep ahead.

“During a downturn, supporting these businesses becomes doubly important: research studies show that such high growth businesses account for a disproportionate amount of job growth. At the same time, they have a greater need for capital than lower growth businesses and this can be an issue if banks are restrained on lending. Incubation funds such as this one can help,”

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US solar company Matinee Energy has broken ground on a new 50-acre research centre in Benson, Arizona.

The Matinee Energy Campus will focus on engineering and manufacturing cost-cutting, as well as enhancing the performance of solar mounting systems. It has partnered with engineering company Greenstone to work at the new the centre.

Matinee said that with lower costs of solar cells the impetus in now on reducing the price of essential components and improving durability. One of the targets of the research will be extending the life of solar panels to 30 years, while achieving localised cost reductions.

S. Chin Kim, CEO of Matinee, said, “The campus will create jobs and provide a model for other projects on a larger regional or national scale in the future.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Saudi Arabia has allocated SR18bn ($4.8bn) for renewable energy development over the next ten years.

According to the Saudi Gazette, Prince Turki Bin Saud Bin Muhammad Al Saud, deputy chairman of the Research Institute at King Abdulaziz City for Science and Technology (KACST) said the cash will be used for a range of projects, including strategic technology, with SR8bn ($2.1bn) allocated over the next five years, and SR10bn ($2.7bn) for the following five years.

This would also include R&D in renewable energy and clean technologies, the report said.

The Institute is currently overseeing a solar-powered desalination project with an output of 30,000 cubic meters of water.

Saudi Arabia has been identified as an increasingly attractive opportunity by investors, with international businesses seeking to tap into the macro fundamentals driving power demand.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

UK-based marine design consultancy BMT Nigel Gee has been contracted to supply the plan for construction of eight, 20 metre offshore wind farm support vessels for Njord Offshore.

Australian shipbuilder Strategic Marine will build the boats, which signed a partnership agreement with BMT in September last year. The vessels are expected to be delivered later this year.

Ed Dudson, technical director at BMT, said, ‘These 20 metre vessels are the first in a range of offshore windfarm support vessel designs developed by BMT specifically for Strategic Marine. It confirms BMT’s ability to offer cutting edge designs for this fast growing market and demonstrates yet another success for the specialised vessel design team at BMT Nigel Gee.’

Terry O’Connor, chief marketing officer at Strategic Marine, added, ‘By leveraging the combined capabilities of BMT Nigel Gee and Strategic Marine, Njord Offshore have chosen to build a fleet of boats with us, which is a fantastic result. We intend to be the market leader in providing Support Vessels into the offshore wind-farm industry and these contracts are a significant milestone in us achieving our objective.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Water treatment and filtration company Amiad has secured two contracts for projects in Australia.

The contracts, valued at approximately $8m and $1.6m respectively, were awarded through the company’s Amiad Australia subsidiary, with both projects due to be delivered later this year.

The larger of the projects involves the supply and commissioning of Amiad’s automatic filter technology for seawater reverse osmosis membrane protection at the Southern SeaWater Desalination Plant, based in Binningup, south of Perth. The plant provides 50 billion litres of fresh drinking water per year to people in Perth and the South West, and is currently being expanded to double its capacity. When the expansion is completed in late 2012, at least half of the water needed for the Perth metropolitan area will be supplied from climate independent desalination.

The other contract is with integrated energy company Origin Energy, for pre-filtration and membrane protection for Origin’s Australia Pacific LNG project – a joint venture between Origin, ConocoPhillips and Sinopec. The APL project involves the processing of coal seam gas to liquefied natural gas at several sites in southern Queensland.

Nir Lang, CEO of Amiad Australia, said, “We’re delighted to have won these significant projects. We were chosen for our ability to provide best-in-class products quickly, and ensure efficiency and cost gains for our customers. With a network of state-based offices and representatives throughout Australia, we also have a strong familiarity with local conditions that enables us to provide the most appropriate solutions to meet each individual client’s needs.”

Arik Dayan, CEO of Amiad Water Systems, added, “For over 30 years Amiad has been providing its innovative filtration solutions in Australia and New Zealand, and we are pleased to be continuing to service these markets where water security is so critical. Moreover, we have expanded our offering to include membrane protection for desalination and oil & gas capabilities – both of which we have identified as our key growth areas. As such, and combined with the scale of the projects, these awards represent a milestone achievement for Amiad.”

In December, Amiad signed a deal to develop a water filtration project with one of South Korea’s largest steel factories.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) has warned of manufacturing jobs losses should payroll tax legislation currently being considered in Congress not extend the Production Tax Credit (PTC).

Denise Bode, CEO of AWEA, said in a statement, ‘The stakes here could not be clearer. Economic studies have shown that Congressional inaction on the PTC will kill 37,000 American jobs, shutter plants and cancel billions of dollars in private investment. Congress needs to understand that, with PTC uncertainty, layoffs have already begun and further job losses and even plant closings will accelerate with each month we near expiration in December.

‘Support for an extension to wind power’s key federal tax incentive is both broad and growing. In just the past 24 hours, leaders as diverse as Republican Steve King, Governor Mary Fallin and Governor John Kitzhaber joined corporate icons like Nike, Campbell Soup, and Yahoo in calling for a speedy extension to wind power’s critical federal tax incentive. Legislation extending the PTC now has 70 co-sponsors including 18 Republicans and four Republican members of the powerful Ways and Means committee.

‘The broad base of support for wind energy positions us well to get the PTC extended at the next possible opportunity. Despite this week’s outpouring of support, and the earlier endorsements of the US Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, American Farm Bureau, business leaders, environmental groups, and state officials, neither the PTC – nor any other tax extenders or energy provisions of any sort — appear to have been included in the final version of the payroll tax bill.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Stock markets are starting to show cautious signs that the investment community is regaining confidence in the solar sector.

Valuations are not yet close to highs achieved before the financial crisis, or even the mid-2011 peaks many experienced before second half declines, but some of the larger players are seeing listings at the highest level since the start of the year.

US-based SunPower just released figures for 2011 that showed a 2010 profit of $179m turning into a $604m loss last year. Despite the news the company is trading at its highest level since the start of the year.

SunPower began 2012 listed on the Nasdaq at $6.23 and its share valuation is now closer to $9. Although this is still significantly down on July’s $22-plus listing last year, the upward trend is still a positive sign.

Canadian Solar opened the year with a 1.5MW Middle East order, potentially opening up a new market opportunity. Its Nasdaq listing is now $4.14, a significant improvement on the $2.66 valuation it started the year at.

When put into context this is still well short of the double figure trading that Canadian Solar experienced for the first half of 2011, and way below its historic high of $45 achieved in May 2008, but any upward movement will be considered positive.

China’s Suntech recently partnered with US science and engineering company DuPont to work on increasing the supply and availability of photovoltaic (PV) technology.

It is listed on the NYSE and is currently trading at $3.75. Again this is a large percentage increase on the $2.21 valuation it opened the year with, but still falls short on last year’s high, recorded in February, of $10.71.

Fellow Chinese PV business Hanwha Solarone has more than doubled its Nasdaq listing from $0.98 at the beginning of the year to $2.07 now.

One of the largest rallies in terms of dollar value has come from US company First Solar, which is now listed at $42.87 on the Nasdaq, compared to $33.76 at the start of January. Although it is worth noting that last February its share value hit a 2011 high of $168.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Research from South West England’s University of Bath has discovered that using direct current (DC) electricity can improve efficiency and reduce pressures on the grid.

The university installed the UK’s first DC micro-grid at the campus library, which featured a centralised alternative current (AC)/DC convertor, 50 specially adapted computers and monitors, as well as an energy storage solution.

It was commissioned in late 2010 and now those involved are advocating the use of DC as more secure and efficient.

NewNet spoke to Dr Miles Redfern of the university’s department of electronic and electrical engineering to find out about the benefits of the system.

Redfern said, ‘The computers are the same as any other, by supplying at DC we avoid a lot of the electrical interference the AC/DC conversion process puts onto the mains. The big advantage is reducing electrical noise. This means from the university’s point of view we are not a dirty customer, or if we used this universally we wouldn’t be. At the moment we have to pay a lot of money in filters to clean up the harmonics we dump onto the mains.’

As well as reducing distortions on the grid network, the computers are between seven per cent and ten per cent more efficient than AC machines. This is because there is a saving in having one large AC/DC conversion, as opposed to many small ones in individual computers.

This conversion does create an overhead and is a net cost if only a couple of computers are used, but this is rarely the case in a university library.

The simplicity of the technology used should also appeal to companies that want to reduce energy-related costs, but are concerned about the potential interruptions of introducing new technology.

Redfern said, ‘The whole beauty of this project is it is basic engineering – there is nothing which is particularly exotic in there, it’s just a different way of doing things. The big thing of today’s challenge is that a lot of the applications we have are moving to a DC-preferred environment, computers and modern electronic systems are inherently DC.

‘Now being DC, why not supply them with DC? The best low energy light bulbs are DC, so if we want to take advantage of the new technologies, DC is a better way of doing it.’

Also included is energy storage, which has huge implications for the smart grid debate. A traditional lead acid battery was selected because of its affordability and functionality.

The university is also considering adding photovoltaic panels to provide energy, with the storage solution a key component in balancing that renewable power.

Redfern said, ‘We are providing inherent uninterrupted power supply features, not far away is time of day tariffs. Once we have got varying time of day tariffs we can charge the batteries at night when the tariff is low and use the battery storage independent of the mains when the tariff is high. So in fact we can save quite a lot of money.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

MidAmerican Energy-owned Topaz Solar has priced $850m of bonds in an offering to US credit markets.

According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, the investment grade bonds were priced at par at a yield of 5.75 per cent.

MidAmerican completed the acquisition of the Topaz Solar Farm at the end of January from First Solar.

The 550MW photovoltaic plant is being built in San Luis Obispo County, and will have the capacity to generate enough energy to power 160,000 average California homes.

Pacific Gas and Electric Company will purchase power from the Topaz project under a 25-year power purchase agreement.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

A merger between two US utilities will result in a solar tender being launched for 10MW of green power.

NSTAR and Northeast Utilities released a statement today revealing that they have reached agreements with both the Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources (DOER) and the Massachusetts Attorney General allowing the merger to proceed.

Under the new merged company, NSTAR will issue a request for proposals for 10MW of photovoltaic power.

In addition, it will be put in place an electric vehicle pilot programme in Massachusetts, building on work already done by Northeast Utilities.

‘Today’s announcement is the result of a year-long effort by the state agencies and the companies to reach agreements that appropriately balance all of the interests affected by the merger,’ said Tom May, NSTAR chairman, president and CEO.

‘Benefits for Massachusetts customers are both immediate, in the form of a rate credit plus a four-year distribution rate freeze, and longer-term, with NSTAR’s purchase of clean power from Cape Wind, which together with our existing wind contracts will help meet the state’s clean energy targets.’

The move is a critical step for the Cape Wind project, set to be one of the first offshore wind projects in the US.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

A number of deals finalised this week highlight the US West Coast’s dominance in the cleantech space with California still proving the most progressive state.

With ambitious legislation and the wealth of local venture capital firms, the West has always led US activity but this week’s transactions underscored the commitment of the region.

One of the biggest alliances formed this week was between US utility San Diego Gas & Electric and the developers of a 200MW solar project, AES Solar and 8minutenergy.

The 25-year power purchase agreement, which has now received approval from the California Public Utilities Commission, will see energy produced at the Mount Signal Solar project fed into the grid.

In addition, the utility has signed a similar deal with Spanish developer Iberdrola Renewables for 100MW of wind power produced at its Manzana wind farm.

The 189MW facility is current under construction in Rosamond, north of Los Angeles, and Iberdrola has, also this week, formed a PPA with Silicon Valley Power for 50MW of electricity that will be produced at the site.

Martin Mugica, executive vice president of Iberdrola Renewables, said, ‘Iberdrola Renewables is delighted to continue our relationship with SDG&E. This 100MW power purchase agreement from our Manzana project now under construction in Kern County will strongly support SDG&E’s efforts in meeting California renewable portfolio standard requirements.’

In addition, the government of San Bernardino has launched two requests for proposals as it aims to form alliances with both solar power providers and those that can aid in the establishment of a green power financing mechanism as it green its activities.

Meanwhile, an asset valuation and advisory service has been brought in to arrange the sale of a Californian solar wafer fabrication facility.

Sanyo Solar is looking to sell its Carson facility and has contracted asset auction platform HilcoBid to carry out the arrangements, with the companies open to offers through to 18 May.

Among the assets being sold is a broad array of production equipment as well as material handling and plant support devices.

Further south, in the US state of New Mexico, project developer Fluor has been awarded an engineering, procurement construction contract by Joule Unlimited to build a biofuel demonstration facility.

The plant will be used to scale-up a Joule’s pilot process, which uses sunlight to convert proprietary organisms and carbon dioxide into liquid hydrocarbons and ethanol.

Lou Del Tufo, senior vice president of energy and chemicals at Fluor, said, ‘As a leader in the engineering and construction sector, we believe that the Joule demonstration facility affords Fluor an opportunity to showcase our integrated solutions and assist in the commercialisation of this critical technology.

‘We look forward to serving Joule on this project and hope to work with them as they solidify their position as one of the most innovative and forward-thinking technology companies in a rapidly growing global biofuels industry.’

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

A southern African nation has launched an environmental fund to invest in the protection of its ecosystem and the maintenance of its natural resources.

The Environmental Investment Fund will invest in conservation initiatives within Namibia, providing an economic boost to local populations, according to a report in allafrica.com.

It will reportedly be capitalised by the Ministry of Environment and Tourism to the tune of N$300m ($38.83m).

Renewable energy developments are slowing taking place in the country, with international efforts targeting off-grid solutions.

One company active in the country is Germany-headquartered juwi Solar, which has completed a 200kW peak solar system in the north of Namibia.

In a recent speech from Namibian President Pohamba, he said that the government recognised the importance of protecting the environment for both sustainability and economic reasons.

‘There are reasons why Namibia has prioritised environmental sustainability and enshrined that in our constitution, the main rationale being the arid and semi-arid conditions that characterise most of our topography and harsh climatic conditions that prevail in our country.

‘Secondly, Namibia’s economy is largely based on the natural resource sectors such as mining, fisheries, agriculture and nature-based tourism which alone account for approximately 40 per cent of gross domestic product and 85 per cent of exports.’

According to the report, the Environmental Investment Fund will look to secure additional investment from international bodies and then invest in sustainability projects.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

US smart grid platform specialist Ambient has recorded 2011 revenue of $62.3m, up significantly on the $20.4m achieved in 2010.

It made a net income over the year of $4.8m, after recording a 2010 net loss of around $3.2m. The business’ gross margin improved to 43 per cent, compared with 41 per cent in the previous year.

The company invested $12.2m in research and development over the 12 months, up from $6.3m in 2010.

John Joyce, president and CEO of Ambient, said, ‘Ambient experienced tremendous growth and achieved many operational milestones in 2011. At the end of the year, we had over 75,000 communications nodes deployed in the field communicating with over 700,000 end devices. We have also invested significantly in people.

‘These strategic additions to our staff are aimed at further developing and marketing our communications platform. On the foundation of a strong balance sheet, driven by field-proven technology embraced by a marquee utility, and supported by increased investment in key personnel, we believe we are well positioned to execute on a primary objective for 2012 – the diversification of our customer base.’

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

Germany-headquartered electronics giant Siemens has opened a new wind energy distribution centre in Oklahoma, central US.

The company said it established the new facility to better serve the wind resource-rich region. It said the new site would reduce delivery times and offer greater parts availability to project developers in the area.

The service centre will store and distribute main components and spare parts including turbines blades, generators and tools. It has opened with 14 employees and Siemens plans to create 40 jobs at the location over the next five years.

Tim Holt, CEO for renewables service at Siemens, said, ‘Locating our newest wind service facility in Woodward affords us a tremendous opportunity to be close to many of our US customers and provide them with a high level of service that’s both efficient and cost effective. As the wind power industry continues to grow in the US, there is a marked increase in the need for long-term reliable service and maintenance. This facility allows us to effectively address those needs for years to come.’

Mary Fallin, Oklahoma Governor, added, ‘We are excited about the jobs and investment the Siemens Energy wind service distribution centre means for Woodward and northwest Oklahoma. Our state’s abundance of wind resources, a friendly business climate and skilled workforce make this partnership a natural fit and we look forward to working with Siemens Energy to bring even more jobs to the state.’

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

US utility San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) has signed a 25-year power purchase agreement (PPA) for 200MW of electricity from California’s Mount Signal Solar project.

The facility is being developed by a joint venture between AES Solar and 8minutenergy Renewables. The first 100MW of photovoltaic (PV) panels are expected to be operational by mid-2013 with project completion expected at the end of next year.

Earlier this week, SDG&E signed a 100MW PPA with Iberdrola Renewables for power produced at the Manzana wind farm.

Both PPAs are subject to approval from the California Public Utilities Commission.

James Avery, senior vice president of power supply for SDG&E, said, ‘These contracts continue the significant momentum SDG&E has built over the past decade in acquiring valuable green energy resources. In 2011, renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, geothermal, biomass and hydroelectric represented more than 20 per cent of the power provided to our 1.4 million electric customers. We are well on our way toward meeting the state’s goal and attaining 33 per cent of our power from renewable sources in 2020.’

Tom Buttgenbach, president of 8minutenergy, added, ‘This power agreement validates our strategy for developing solar energy in California while creating about 1,000 construction jobs in the Imperial Valley where the unemployment rate has been ranked among the highest in the nation.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US cleantech engine developer Cyclone Power Technologies has completed the acquisition of Advent Power Systems.

Cyclone will assume Advent’s position as prime contractor with the US Army Tank Command, in a project that will see Cyclone’s auxiliary power technology deployed in multiple lines of combat vehicles. The value of the military contract being transferred is $1.4m.

Christopher Nelson, president of Cyclone, said, ‘The closing of the Advent acquisition marks an important milestone for our company and shareholders. With the TACOM contract, we expect to achieve solid revenue over the next year and, hopefully, gain a long-term customer.

‘We believe that while military budgets are being trimmed, eco-friendly technologies that make our military forces more efficient and save the government money — like the Cyclone engine — will continue to receive funding and support. Cyclone will aggressively pursue these rewarding opportunities.’

Phil Myers, CEO of Advent, added, ‘We are pleased to have this acquisition closed. Advent’s existing government relationships coupled with Cyclone’s engine technology provides us many advantages now and going forward. This is an exciting time for both companies. I have great faith in Cyclone’s ability to complete the US Army contract, and ultimately, to commercialise its engine technology for both military and civilian customers.’

The purchase price for the deal, originally announced at the end of last year, was 1.5 million shares of Cyclone common stock.

Earlier this month, Cyclone CEO Christopher Nelson spoke to NewNet to explain the company’s strategy.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The cost of environmental impacts on business operations are doubling every 14 years, according to a report that stresses stakeholders should act now.

Global consultancy and advisory firm KPMG has identified ten sustainability ‘megaforces’ and said their impact on business will accelerate going forward.

The report Expect the Unexpected: Building Business Value in a Changing World found that external environmental costs, which are not often shown on financial statements, of the 11 key industry sectors jumped 50 per cent to $846bn in 2010 from $566bn in 2002. On average, this is a doubling of cost every 14 years.

It finds that if companies had to pay for the full environmental costs of their production, they would lose 41 cents for every $1 in earnings.

Vincent Neate, UK head of climate change and sustainability at KPMG, said, ‘We are living in a resource-constrained world. The rapid growth of developing markets, climate change, and issues of energy and water security are among the forces that will exert tremendous pressure on both business and society.

‘Business must take a leadership role in the development of solutions that will help to create a more sustainable future. Leveraging its ability to enhance processes, create efficiencies, manage risk, and drive innovation, the private sector will contribute to society and long-term economic growth as well as realising a competitive advantage.’

The ten global global sustainability megaforces that KPMG anticipates may impact business over the next two decades include issues such as climate change, water scarcity, population growth and wealth.

It found that climate change was the global megaforce that directly impacts all others. It said that predictions of annual output losses from climate change range between one per cent per year, if strong and early action is taken, to as much as five per cent a year – if policymakers fail to act.

Meanwhile, it sees material resource scarcity to increase as developing countries industrialise rapidly.

The report said, ‘Business is likely to face increasing trade restrictions and intense global competition for a wide range of material resources that become less easily available. Scarcity also creates opportunities to develop substitute materials or to recover materials from waste.’

In addition, urbanisation will also have a major impact. In 2009, for the first time ever, more people lived in cities than in the countryside and by 2030 all developing regions including Asia and Africa are expected to have the majority of their inhabitants living in urban areas

Coupled with this will be the decline in ecosystems. KPMG said to date the main business risk of declining biodiversity has been corporate reputations but as global ecosystems increasingly show signs of breaking down, more companies are realising that their operations are critically dependent on natural resources.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

US-based renewable project evaluation specialist 3Tier has appointed Matthew Hendrickson to the company as senior director of energy assessment.

Hendrickson has managed renewable energy evaluation programmes since 2003, most recently as director of energy assessment at EDP Renewables, where he oversaw the installation of more than 3.9GW of wind turbines.

He has experience in meteorological programme management, resource appraisal, project micro-citing, prospecting, power performance testing, validation research, operational assessments and performance reconciliation.

Pascal Storck, chief operating officer of 3Tier, said, ‘[Hendrickson] is one of the most highly regarded experts in the industry, and he brings a wealth of practical experience that our clients will benefit from immediately. He has a passion for the systematic reduction of uncertainty, which aligns perfectly with 3TIER’s commitment to helping our clients reduce and manage risk.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

US solar company SunPower has recorded a $604m GAAP net loss for 2011, after having made a $179m profit in the previous year.

GAAP revenue for the year had actually improved to $2.3bn, up $100m compared to 2010, but the GAAP gross margin had fallen to 9.9 per cent from the previous year’s 23 per cent.

GAAP revenue generated in the last quarter decreased year-on-year and compared to the previous three months at $563m, down from $705m in the third quarter and $937 in the same period in 2010.

During the year, SunPower produced modules with a capacity of 922MW, a significant increase on the prior 12 months’ total of 584MW.

Tom Werner, president and CEO of SunPower, said, ‘We finished the year with a better than expected fourth quarter, as demand for SunPower’s differentiated technology sold through our diversified downstream channels enabled us to reach annual records in both revenue and shipments. Operationally, we achieved both our panel production cost target and accelerated manufacturing step reduction programme milestones. As the market transitions, the companies with the strongest balance sheets will gain share. Our strategic partnership with Total solidifies SunPower as one of the leading companies in the industry today.’

Dennis Arriola, chief financial officer of SunPower, added, ‘We exited 2011 with more than $683m in available cash and liquidity, and continued to improve our working capital metrics in the fourth quarter. In 2012, our new reporting format will reflect our restructuring into a regional organisation which will help reduce our operating expenses year over year. Looking forward, we have sufficient resources and liquidity to grow production, increase market share and implement our manufacturing step reduction roadmap, while meeting our 2012 financial plan.’

SunPower completed the acquisition of Tenesol at the start of this month.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

French energy storage company Saft has been contracted by Green Charge Networks (GCN) to support a $92m smart grid demonstration project being developed in New York.

The project is being led by energy supplier Consolidated Edison, which initiated the project in 2010 as part of a Department of Energy award.

GCN’s role in the venture includes the installation and operation of a network of smart storage and generation units in the distribution grid that will communicate directly with Consolidated Edison.

Site selections for the technology include convenience stores, car rental locations, hotels and parking garages in the New York City metropolitan area.

Blake Frye, vice president of sales, energy storage for Saft North America, said, ‘We are honoured to work with GCN and play a role in this forward-thinking programme. Smart grid technology is critically important in the modernisation of electricity delivery, and this partnership enables Saft to provide cutting-edge solutions to a major programme in New York City.’

Ron Prosser, chairman and CEO of GCN, added, ‘In projects of this magnitude, having the right partners is crucial. We are looking forward to working with Saft on the creation of the smart storage and generation unit network and continue our important work on the New York electric grid.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has awarded $6.5m to 19 clean energy projects being developed by Native American tribes.

The ventures were competitively selected in partnership with the Tribal Nations representative body.

From the funding, $3.6m will go to 13 projects to access the technical and economic viability of developing renewable energy resources on tribal lands and installing energy management systems for buildings.

Four renewable generation projects will receive $1.7m for pre-construction development activities. Three of the ventures are planned to produce 250MW of clean power with the other a heating system that would reduce a community’s need for diesel fuel by 80 per cent.

A further two projects will utilise $1.3m to deploy waste-to-energy and biomass technologies. Once complete, these facilities will generate 5MW of energy per hour from municipal solid waste and cordwood.

Steven Chu, Energy Secretary, said, ‘As President Obama highlighted in the State of the Union, the Administration is committed to building an American economy that lasts and leverages our nation’s clean energy resources. The awards announced today will help Tribes across the country advance a sustainable energy future for their local communities, spur economic development, and advance innovative clean energy technologies.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Finnish mining company told NewNet it was considering making investments into the renewable energy sector as it carries out a share sale to increase its financial flexibility.

Talvivaara Mining is an international base metals producer, focused on nickel, with its largest deposit in Sotkamo, Finland.

The company is looking to issue $108m new shares – about ten per cent of its current total – which analysts told Reuters is fuelling worries about its debt levels. A company spokesperson, however, told NewNet that may go on to invest in the renewable energy sector.

‘We are potentially looking into that. It is one of the options and it is under evaluation.’

The spokesperson said about the share sale, ‘We wanted to increase our financial flexibility and will potentially spend that on energy investments.’

A statement on the company’s website said that Talvivarra is anticipated to produce metals for a minimum of 60 years but moving into the energy sector would be a major diversification strategy.

According to Reuters, the company pioneered the use of a technique to extract nickel using bacteria and recently said it will achieve a 21 per cent increase in full-year operating profit.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

Chinese photovoltaic (PV) manufacturer Trina Solar has secured a three-year structured loan worth up to $100m from Standard Chartered Bank.

The facility will allow capital to be drawn down in a single or multiple tranches within the first year. Each tranche is for a term of 36 month form the initial drawdown base and may be extended for a further two years.

The loan will support the company’s East Campus project, expected to increase its cell and module production capacity by around 500MW.

Terry Wang, chief financial officer of Trina Solar, said, ‘We are very pleased to have received this financing to drive the commercial realisation of our innovative technology. We recognise Standard Chartered Bank’s consistent and strong support of solar energy’s adoption through its renewable energy financing initiatives, including providing this loan to support the rollout of our new high-efficiency product.’

Eric Lian, managing director and head of wholesale banking origination and client coverage at Standard Chartered Bank China, added, ‘We are very pleased to provide financial support to Trina Solar, a leading integrated manufacturer of solar photovoltaic products. Standard Chartered is a firm supporter of renewable energy. We have integrated environmental and sustainable development criteria into our lending and investment decision making processes, and established deep relationships with many clients in the clean energy sector.’

At the start of this year, Trina Solar helped to open a school in east China to support the company’s recruitment strategy.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Californian-based clean power innovator has brought on a new chief operating officer (COO) tasked with raising capital for the company’s continued growth.

FlexEnergy, which has developed a waste gas destruction and power generating platform, has appointed Jay Mitchell as both president and COO as the business looks to focus on the commercialisation of its technologies.

Mitchell has experience in raising capital from third parties to fund near-term growth and expansion and will use his expertise directly as FlexEnergy aims to bolster its capital based, the company said.

Mitchell previously served as senior vice president and CFO at Texas-based T-3 Energy Services, a publicly traded company and global manufacturer of blowout preventers to the oil and gas industry. Most recently, he raised some $30m for an energy equipment company where he was a founder.

Throughout his career he has raised almost $1bn in capital for both high level corporations and small start-ups.

‘Jay Mitchell brings an abundance of knowledge and experience in the energy industry to our team to support our continued expansion in the marketplace,’ said Joe Perry, FlexEnergy CEO. ‘He has a wealth of experience from co-founder of a start-up equipment business to a C-Level executive of NYSE-listed energy equipment manufacturers. We are tremendously looking forward to working with him.’

FlexEnergy manufactures the Flex Powerstation, a modular system that converts methane sources into electricity with low emissions.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

Canadian clean generation company Mustas Energy has contracted Lockheed Martin to support the construction of a 41.5MW biomass plant.

Lockheed will provide procurement services for materials and equipment, as well as managing the building of the facility that will be located in Alberta, west Canada.

It will utilise aspen tree wood waste as a feedstock and commercial operation is scheduled for the third quarter of 2013.

Ross Maxwell, CEO of Mustus Energy, said, ‘Adding Lockheed Martin to our team will help ensure the success of this and future similar projects. We are impressed with the level of support and expertise that Lockheed Martin brings to the Mustus team.’

Tom Digan, president and general manager of Lockheed Martin Canada, added, ‘The La Crete biomass facility will provide Alberta with a domestic, secure power source, while preserving the environment. Working with Mustus, we will leverage our expertise in project management and complex systems to ensure the successful development of this facility.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A Californian city will has launched two requests for proposals (RFP) as it aims to form alliances with both solar power providers and those that can aid in the establishment of a green power financing mechanism.

The government of San Bernardino said it is seeking a financial partner to assist with the implementation of a PACE Program, which provides financing for green building improvements.

The scheme allows both commercial and residential property owners to install solar, electric and thermal systems, and make other energy efficiency and water conservation improvements to their buildings. Under the programme, it allows property owners to pay for the cost of the improvements, including installation over 20 years.

The second RFP has been issued as the city government aims to identify potential sites for solar power installations. It is looking to construct a project under two phases and would like to establish a relationship with a developer to carry out economic feasibility and financing analysis at each site.

One of the biggest renewable power developments taking place in San Bernardino County is the 250MW Mojave Solar Project, which in September 2011 finalised a $1.2bn loan guarantee from the Department of Energy.

The deadline of both RFPs are scheduled for 7 March.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

European environmental investment firm Ambienta has agreed to invest €13.5m in efficient lighting tower specialist Tower Light.

The capital will come from the Ambienta I fund and will allow it to take an 82 per cent stake in the company. Tower Light CEO Andrea Fontanella will retain most of the residual equity by reinvesting a portion of the proceeds from the sale.

As part of the deal Ambienta partner Muaro Roversi, associate Francesco Lodrini and operating partner Dario Duse will join the Tower Light board.

Andrea Fontanella, CEO of Tower Light, said, ‘The entry of Ambienta in Tower Light represents an important step towards the strengthening of the company’s internationalisation which started in the last years. The market for lighting towers is growing rapidly. Our growth programme calls for the consolidation of the existing markets and penetration into the new emerging markets.’

Mauro Roversi, partner of Ambienta, added, ‘The investment in Tower Light represents another opportunity for Ambienta to sustain an excellent entrepreneurial Italian initiative with a strong international reach and highly innovative products used in an array of applications. Over the next three years, we will work with management to further consolidate the company’s presence in the international markets, contributing our managerial expertise and the industrial network of Ambienta.’

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

Engineering giant Siemens has acquired a majority stake in UK-based Marine Current Turbines as it looks to strengthen its position in the tidal power sector.

Back in November 2011, Siemens increased its stake in the company to 45 per cent and the deal is expected to be complete in the coming weeks.

‘The acquisition of Marine Current Turbines is an important step forward for the solar and hydro division,’ said Ted Scheidegger, CEO of the solar and hydro division of Siemens Energy.

‘We will continue to drive the commercialisation of this promising technology which harvest energy from highly predictable tidal streams. Our target is to secure a leading position in this future business.’

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed but said Andrew Tyler, CEO of Marine Current Turbines said the deal is a positive move for the company.

‘Siemens’ acquisition is hugely welcomed by staff and management at Marine Current Turbines and signals great confidence in Marine Current Turbiness achievements over many years,’ he said.

Marine Current Turbines is focused on commercialising its SeaGen technology, a commercial-scale demonstration project of which is already deployed in Strangford Lough in Northern Ireland. Further projects are at the planning stage, including the 8MW Kyle Rhea project in Scotland and the 10MW Anglesey Skerries project in Wales.

Tyler took the helm at the company in mid-2011 after working as chief operating officer for the UK Ministry of Defence.

The deal comes as the latest step in a growing trend for OEM’s to cement their position in the marine power sector through equity stakes in innovators. Previously, Swiss engineering giant ABB invested in Aquamarine Power as a way to secure a foothold in the market.

Copyright © 2011 NewNet

The US Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Commerce’s National Institute of Standards and Technology will provide up to $1.3m for energy efficiency training programme.

Commercial construction professionals will be able to take advantage of the opportunity to acquire crucial skills in optimising building efficiency, reducing waste and saving money.

The training will support the DOE’s Better Buildings Initiative, which has a target of improving energy efficiency nationwide in commercial and industrial buildings by 20 per cent by 2020.

Steven Chu, Energy Secretary, said, ‘As the President made clear in his State of the Union address, reducing energy waste in business and manufacturing is critical to building an American economy that lasts. A well-trained clean energy workforce will help US businesses to cut energy costs, become more competitive in the global market and reduce pollution.’

John Bryson, Secretary of Commerce, added, ‘Everywhere I go, across the country, CEOs and business leaders tell me that one of their chief concerns is having the highly skilled workers they need to power their companies. They believe, and this Administration believes, that a globally competitive economy requires a globally competitive workforce, and that begins with by funding training programs like these. Simply put, training is the key to helping American workers meet the demands of our rapidly changing 21st Century economy.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Spanish cleantech company Iberdrola Renewables has signed a power purchase agreement (PPA) with San Diego Gas and Electric (SDG&E) for 100MW of electricity produced at its Manzana wind farm

The 189MW facility is current under construction in Rosamond, north of Los Angeles, and Iberdrola also has PPA in place with Silicon Valley Power for 50MW of electricity that will be produced at the site.

Martin Mugica, executive vice president of Iberdrola Renewables, said, ‘Iberdrola Renewables is delighted to continue our relationship with SDG&E. This 100MW power purchase agreement from our Manzana project now under construction in Kern County will strongly support SDG&E’s efforts in meeting California renewable portfolio standard requirements.’

Iberdrola is also in the process of developing a 200MW wind farm in California close to San Diego in the south of the state.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The French government plans to introduce a feed-in tariff for photovoltaic plants, providing a financial net to developers operating in the country.

According to a report in Platts, Ecology Minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet also revealed that plants with more than 600 per cent of equipment produced domestically would receive a premium of at least ten per cent over other rates.

The move comes as President Nicolas Sarkozy visited ailing solar company Photowatt, which is currently in administration but may be bought by French utility EDF.

France is a late-comer in offering feed-in tariffs to the solar sector and is likely to learn from lessons in the Italian, Spanish and UK markets, which have led to a boom-and-bust type scenario.

A report by the French association of solar energy professionals Soler found that up to the end of June 2011, 1,472MW was currently operational.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The Hong Kong-based First Eastern Investment Group has taken a minority holding in UK company Sustainable Development Capital (SDCL), for an undisclosed sum.

First Eastern will make a direct investment into SDCL, as well as establishing a joint venture to expand SDCL’ s business in Asia. The new venture will be based in Hong Kong and will leverage First Eastern’s regional expertise to strengthen SDCL’s service offering and investment business.

Jonathan Maxwell, founding partner and CEO of SDCL, said, ‘SDCL’s core investment thesis based on resource efficiency is more compelling than ever in a world of scarce resources and uncertainty in global markets. Efficiency and productivity gains are both a source of significant competitive advantage and an answer to environmental challenges and resource constraints. The growth markets of Asia offer exciting opportunities for investors.’

Victor Chu, chairman and CEO of First Eastern, added, ‘At a time when the world’s population has reached seven billion people, the issue of sustainable development is pivotal in the minds of policy makers worldwide. SDCL has built an excellent reputation in the field of sustainable development projects. Its focus on energy efficiency addresses an urgent need for capital and expertise in a market that represents potentially the largest and cheapest source of clean energy and greenhouse gas emission reductions.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Westinghouse Solar, a designer and manufacturer of solar power systems, has signed a letter of intent to pursue a business combination with CBD Energy, a diversified energy company based in Sydney, Australia.

The combined entity will allow each business to target a new regional market, and leverage synergies between the pair.

‘Out of our discussions with CBD Energy since they made an investment in December 2011, we have concluded that a merger will produce synergies between the two companies and create a larger, diversified business with competitive advantages in the renewable energy sector,’ said Barry Cinnamon, CEO of Westinghouse Solar.

‘We are very excited about the international growth opportunities that this transaction will create for the combined enterprise and the potential benefits for the shareholders of both CBD and Westinghouse Solar.’

Gerry McGowan, CEO of CBD Energy, said the move came as CBD wanted a point of entry into the US market and he believes the acquisition of Westinghouse Solar is an ideal fit for that purpose.

He said, ‘Moreover, the Westinghouse Solar technology and product suite appear to have immediate applicability to CBD’s Australian residential market that we hope will yield improvements in market share and profitability. The combination of synergies is expected to result in the prospective transaction being accretive to CBD earnings from consummation, and throughout our 2013 fiscal year.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The most costly construction risk in offshore wind development over the past few years has proven to be issues surrounding the deployment of cables, a leading insurance broker told NewNet.

Murray Haynes, a senior renewable project consultant at insurance broker Marsh, said insurers are now revaluating premiums for this part of construction cover having been burnt in recent times.

‘So much of construction risks are now down to cables – these have formed about half of claims,’ he said. ‘Going forward those that have been burnt will be asking developers to contribute higher to losses going forward.’

He said, however, that despite teething issues in both constructing major projects and designing suitable insurance surround these often bespoke developments, insurers such as Munich Re and Swiss Re are still keen to capitalise on the burgeoning sector.

‘Ever though there has been some pain in the industry, people are still able to recognise its potential,’ Haynes said.

He said that while developers were keen to ensure they have adequate cover for the construction risks, loss of revenue – which commonly occurs when a project’s schedule is delayed – is selected more carefully by utilities.

‘Major power providers can usually swallow issues to do with delay in start-ups but, largely due to issues with cables, everyone wants physical risk cover.’

Numerous efforts are underway to build a more adequate undersea cable infrastructure to support the continued roll-out of offshore wind projects.

Today, it was announced that Siemens alongside cable manufacturer Prysmian would build a £1bn sea link between south-west Scotland to the Wirral peninsula in north-west England.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

Corporate behaviour is expected to be a crucial factor in the UK achieving emission reduction targets and rising energy prices are also pushing businesses to pay more attention to this area.

To investigate the level of commitment to energy management by UK companies, Siemens put a series of questions to 600 corporations to see what measures they had put in place to reduce consumption.

The job roles of those surveyed covered senior directors and energy managers, with a range of small (less than 50 employees) to large (more than 10,000) organisations approached.

The vast majority (79 per cent) claim they take energy management seriously, with 70 per cent of organisations citing cost as the primary reason to address the issue. More than 70 per cent said they plan to invest in energy efficiency in the next three years, with 25 per cent saying they would invest up to £5,000 and 22 per cent saying they did not know what they are going to spend.

This response had broad agreement across job titles, with board directors, finance directors, senior managers and energy managers all citing cost reduction as their main motivation for tackling energy management. The other most common responses were meeting legislative requirements at 41 per cent and ensuring a good reputation at 30 per cent.

Of the different sectors questioned, pharmaceutical production and transport valued cost reduction the most highly, with food and automotive manufacturing citing regulation more commonly.

Almost half (46 per cent) admitted they didn’t know their carbon dioxide emissions levels and 22 per cent of energy managers said they do not know what their company spends on energy each year. Just over a quarter (26 per cent) of respondents said they did not know how much their energy bill was as a proportion of turnover, with 22 per cent of energy managers saying they did not know this figure.

Of those that did, just under 30 per cent stated the bill was up to five per cent of annual turnover and 13 per cent stated it was between six and ten per cent. Just 27 per cent of companies that employ more than 10,000 people, likely to be large consumers, knew what proportion of turnover their energy bill represented.

Almost 40 per cent of respondents said they were making ‘good progress, but need to do more’ in terms of tackling energy management. Just under a fifth (18 per cent), said they were in the planning stage of energy management but had yet to implement any new measures.

More than one in five (21 per cent) of companies stated they had not started to take energy management seriously, as did 17 per cent of board directors and 31 per cent of energy managers.

More than seven per cent of companies said they had no plans to introduce energy management measures, saying it would provide no benefit to their business. A further 7.5 per cent said they could not afford to invest in energy management initiatives.

In the last three years, more than a quarter (26.5 per cent) of those surveyed said they had spent between £1 and £5,000 (the lowest option) on energy management, with 21 per cent saying they did not know how much they had spent. Only a small number of organisations (5.3 per cent), said they had spent more than £500,000 in this period.

Of the sectors that did invest, the transport and logistics sector led the way with 36 per cent of companies saying they had invested up to £5,000. Manufacturing businesses invested the highest sums, with examples of both a food and automotive company spending more than £2m in energy management over the three year period.

Three key barriers to implementing efficiency solutions were identified; a need to focus on day-to-day operations, a perceived lack of return on investment and changing employee perceptions. More than 35 per cent of small companies said there were no barriers, with only eight per cent of large organisations saying the same.

To reas the full report click here.

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

One of India’s largest business entities is reportedly looking to sell off its wind power business as part of a plan to raise $750m to fund expansion in other sectors.

Faced with a large debt burden and a need to fund a 4.9MW conventional power plant it is constructing, Lanco will look to sell its ‘non-core’ wind business in order to focus on strategic areas such as fossil fuel power stations and the solar sector.

According to a report in Reuters, it has hired Macquarie to support the fundraise and reduce its $6.44bn net debt.

In an interview with the newswire, Philip Chacko, director of investor relations, said it will look to conclude the sale by the June quarter.

‘There are quite a few interested parties who wanted to partner with us – people, who have a long-term view on the power sector in the country,’ he said.

The announcement, which sent Lanco’s shares up in immediate trading, comes just days after Indian real estate giant DFL revealed its intentions to sell off non-core assets including its wind venture.

DFL is reportedly looking to raise Rs1,000 crore ($203m) from the sale of its wind unit but calls to the company could not confirm this figure.

Lanco was not available for comment on the sale of its wind arm but a statement on the company’s website said, ‘Lanco is focused on commercialising alternate technologies for green and efficient energy generation systems such as solar thermal and solar photovoltaic.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

A bottleneck in German offshore wind grid connections is forcing European utility E.ON to reevaluate its focus in the country, a spokesperson told NewNet.

With offshore wind projects representing a major commitment of investment, delays surrounding getting the energy produced at projects in German territorial waters back to the mainland are putting E.ONs plans for the region in jeopardy.

After Vattenfall, E.ON installed the most offshore wind capacity during 2010, bringing 305MW of capacity online, figures by the Global Wind Energy Council show, and the power provider revealed in December 2011 that it would invest in a further three projects.

But company spokesperson Jonny Stokes told NewNet that despite its overall commitment to the sector, there are specific issues surrounding Germany-based build-out.

‘Looking forward, there are specific issues that are arising in Germany’s offshore sector because there has been a bottleneck in getting these connected to the grid. TenneT do not seem to have the capacity of the funding to get the projects connected as quickly as many people would like.’

A large part of the German grid used to be owned and controlled by E.ON but regulatory changes meant it had to be sold off and TenneT, which is state-owned by The Netherlands government, is now mandated to distribute power in Germany, and much of The Netherlands.

E.ON’s offshore wind plans, however, are now suffering. Stokes told NewNet that a grid connection originally scheduled by TenneT for its Amrumbank West project to take place in October 2013 has been pushed back to March 2015, and how it will progress in the country will depend on the likelihood of getting timely connections in place going forward.

‘There will be an issue in the German offshore sector if we cannot get them connected to the grid. People need to be realistic in the timeframes that they can get these projects off the ground, and up and running. The previous commitments by TenneT are going to be hard to keep.

‘We had a 15 month delay for one project and we have other German projects in development. We will soon be putting in applications as to the grid and what happens with this will impact our final investment decision.’

E.ON’s offshore assets include the Rödsand II project, Scroby Sands in the North Sea, the London Array in the Thames Estuary and Humber Gateway, alongside its Amrumbank West, in German waters.

In a effort to potentially rectify the situation, Tennet struck a deal earlier this month with Mitsubishi in which it agreed to sell a 49 per cent equity stake in two offshore high-voltage cable projects, BorWin1 and BorWin2.

The deal, valued at €240m, is aimed at allowing infrastructure investors to invest in separate clusters of regulated assets.

Stokes said despite these challenges E.ON remains committed to offshore wind, and is investing more than ever in the sector.

‘We are investing €2bn in offshore wind, with a pipeline of 4GW. We are very much committed to offshore wind in general.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet

The University of Strathclyde in Scotland is set to open a new centre to demonstrate wind turbine asset management, as part of Scotland’s efforts to reach its renewable generation targets.

The Centre for Intelligent Asset Management (CIAM) is a partnership between the university and renewable energy consultancy SgurrEnergy, part of the Wood Group. The partnership will work in conjunction with the university’s planned £2.35m Centre for Advanced Condition Monitoring (CACM), being developed with David Brown Monitoring.

CIAM will provide high-level training to PhD students in an effort to address the skill shortage in the UK’s renewable sector. In addition, it will look to develop new techniques to increase the availability of offshore wind and reduce maintenance costs.

Professor Jim McDonald, principal of the University of Strathclyde, said, ‘Today’s announcement reflects Scotland’s position as a global leader in energy research and technology, and is the latest chapter in Glasgow’s renewables success story. We’re delighted to be working in partnership with SgurrEnergy to accelerate innovation and support the UK’s ambitions as a low carbon economy.’

Francis Quail, director of CACM and CIAM, added, ‘The new Centre for Intelligent Asset Management will align the significant power of Wood Group’s offshore engineering experience and the offshore renewables expertise of SgurrEnergy with the UK’s centre of excellence for wind energy research. The potential to create the most advanced tools for offshore wind turbine asset management within this framework represents an exciting and strategic partnership that aims to reduce the cost of energy from offshore wind specifically and all wind generally by reducing maintenance costs and increasing wind turbine availability.’

Copyright © 2012 NewNet