Alternative energy
On February 7th, 2014, president Obama signed the latest American farm bill, the Agriculture Reform, Food, and Jobs Act of 2014. Title IX of the new farm bill, the Energy Title, will authorize a total of $879M in mandatory spending on energy programs through 2023, according to the congressional budget office (CBO). Programs receiving funding…...
DOE has announced the issuance of a $6.5B loan guarantee for the first nuclear facilities to be built in the U.S. in 30 years. On February 19, 2014, U.S. Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz announced the issuance of approximately $6.5B in loan guarantees for two new nuclear reactors at Georgia’s Alvin W. Vogtle Electric Generating Plant…...
President Obama has directed EPA and DOT to develop fuel efficiency and emissions standards for medium- and heavy duty vehicles beyond model year 2018. On February 18, 2014, President Barack Obama directed the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) to develop the next phase of…...
President Obama’s 2015 Budget proposal will include a $1B Climate Resilience Fund to enhance climate change preparedness and infrastructure resilience. During a meeting with farmers and ranchers in drought-affected California on February 14, 2014, President Barack Obama announced a $1B Climate Resilience Fund to support climate impact actions. The Fund will be included in the…...
The $2.2B Ivanpah Solar Electric System can deliver 392 MW of solar power to California’s electric grid. On February 13, 2014, the Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz inaugurated the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System, the world’s largest solar thermal power tower system. The three-unit power system spans approximately 3,500 acres of public desert land in…...
The NY Green Bank has issued a request for proposal to private sector lenders to facilitate financing for clean energy projects. On February 11, 2014, NY State Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced the start of NY Green Bank’s business operations through a request for proposal (RFP) to industry participants, private-sector capital providers, and investors for…...
The U.S. utility-scale solar PV industry is 60 percent towards the SunShot Initiative’s 2020 goal of making solar energy cost-competitive with traditional energy sources. On February 12, 2014, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that the U.S. utility-scale solar photovoltaic (PV) industry is more than 60 percent of the way to achieve DOE’s SunShot 2020…...
On January 21, Kilowatt Financial announced $100 million debt facility with Citi to support residential energy efficiency upgrades. One day later, Joule Assets announced a $100 million fund to aggregate energy efficiency and demand response projects for private equity investors. Overview Although creative energy efficiency financing has existed for decades, new mechanisms are emerging to…...
USDA’s Climate Hubs will establish regional climate science networks to strengthen agriculture and forestry response to climate risks. On February 5, 2014, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) announced the launch of seven Regional Hubs for Risk Adaptation and Mitigation to Climate Change to strengthen agriculture and forestry response to climate impacts. The measure is…...
EPA has issued notice seeking public input to revise the 1977 nuclear radiation standards to reflect recent scientific information. On February 4, 2014, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking, seeking public comment on potential approaches to revise the 1977 Environmental Radiation Protection Standards for Nuclear Power Operations. The proposed…...
Fueled by technological innovation and favorable state policies, the plug-in electric vehicle market surged in 2013, with year-over-year sales increasing 83%. In its first full year on the market, Tesla Motors reported global Model S sales of 22,300 units for 2013. Most recently, Tesla beat fourth quarter sales estimates of under 6,000 by delivering 6,900…...
NY Governor Cuomo has awarded new funding to advance innovative smart grid technologies to modernize the state electric grid. On February 3, 2014, New York City Governor Andrew M. Cuomo announced $4.3M funding for advanced smart grid projects aimed to increase electric grid resiliency and efficiency. The funding, awarded by the New York State Energy…...