Clean Energy Banks Offer Financial Alternatives to Federal and State Subsidies

Electric Vehicles, Energy Storage, Hydropower, Renewables, Smart Grid, Solar Power, Wind Power

Development of clean energy and energy efficiency solutions are confronted by challenges including federal policy uncertainties jeopardizing grants and tax credits, state budget constraints, and insufficient capital markets. Several states are exploring ways to leverage public resources with innovative banking and financial mechanisms to facilitate large-scale deployment of low-carbon technologies. Overview Many federal energy subsidies…...

DOE Awards $30M to Advance Distributed Generation

Energy Storage, Renewables, Smart Grid, Solar Power, Wind Power

DOE has announced $30M to develop electrochemical technologies for low-cost distributed generation. On November 25, 2013, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced up to $30M in funding to advance distributed power generation technologies under the Advanced Research Projects Agency –Energy’s (APRA-E) Reliable Electricity Based on Electrochemical Systems (REBELS).  The REBELS project will support transformational electrochemical…...

Coalition Calls to End Wind Energy Tax Credits

Renewables, Wind Power

More than 100 organizations signed a petition to Congress to end wind energy production tax credits. On November 4, 2013, a coalition of more than 100 organizations, led by Americans for Prosperity, wrote to Congress expressing opposition to the wind Production Tax Credit (PTC) extension.  The letter asserted that the wind industry has consistently under-performed despite…...

NREL Study Examines Impacts of Wind and Solar on Western Grid

Renewables, Solar Power, Wind Power

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory has released a study examining increased wind and solar energy integration to the Western Interconnection power system. On September 24, 2013, the Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) released Phase 2 of the Western Wind and Solar Integration Study, assessing emissions and costs of fossil-fueled power plant cycling…...

NY Governor Initiates $1B Green Bank to Fund Clean Energy Projects

Biofuels, Electric Vehicles, Energy Storage, Nuclear Power, Renewables, Smart Grid, Solar Power, Wind Power

Governor Cuomo took the first step in the New York Green Bank capitalization process to facilitate private capital flow for clean energy projects. On September 10, 2013, New York State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo formally launched the $1 billion Green Bank initiative, the central part of innovative clean energy proposals announced during his 2013 State…...

Greenhouse Gas Regulations and the Clean Air Act

Emissions, Energy Efficiency, Environmental Markets, Fossil Fuels, Oil, Power & Utilities, Wind Power2 Comments

On September 30, the U.S. Supreme Court will consider a major challenge to the Environmental Protection Agency’s implementation of greenhouse gas regulations under Section 202 of the Clean Air Act, a hearing that could affect President Obama’s timetable for existing power plants and state implementation plans. The EPA will likely face ongoing litigation on most…...

U.S. Navy Providing $30M for Clean Energy Startups

Biofuels, Energy Storage, Renewables, Smart Grid, Solar Power, Wind Power

The Navy has announced $30 million in funding to Hawaii-based “Energy Excelerator” that supports emerging clean energy technologies. On September 9, 2013, the Department of Navy’s Office of Naval Research (ONR) announced $30 million funding to support Energy Excelerator, a Hawaii-based accelerator program for clean energy start-ups.  The funding triples investment over the three-year operation…...

DOI Completes Second Offshore Wind Lease Sale

Renewables, Wind Power

Virginia Electric and Power Co. won DOI’s second offshore wind auction with a $1.6 million bid for 112,799 acres off the Virginia coast. The Department of Interior’s (DOI) second federal offshore wind lease sale, held on September 4, 2013, closed at $1.6 million for 112,799 acres approximately 23.5 nautical miles off the Virginia coast.  Virginia…...

DOE Launches Largest Federal Wind Energy Project

Renewables, Wind Power1 Comment

DOE has commenced construction of the federal government’s largest wind energy project, at the Pantex nuclear weapons stockpile facility in Texas. On August 13, 2013, the Department of Energy (DOE) officially began construction of the 11.5 MW Pantex Renewable Energy Project, the federal government’s largest wind project, at Pantex Plant, the nation’s primary nuclear weapons…...