Climate change, renewable energy, green this, eco that … We are constantly flooded with information about the need to shift towards a different, planet-friendly economy in order to preserve the atmospheric condition in which life as we know it can thrive.
And it’s true.
As of the summer of 2010, the landscape for the wind industry has changed dramatically from last year, when the U.S. set a record by installing over 10 GW in a single year and claiming the title of the world’s top wind power producer for the second year in a row.
According to recent statistics provided by
The Brazilian government earlier this month held a wind, hydroelectric and biomass auction that is expected to prompt US$ 5.52 billion in investments in renewable energies in Brazil. The resulting investments are expected to come primarily from private enterprise.
The auction, which contracted power from
Europe is in the midst of a wind energy boom, with the continent now installing more wind power capacity than any other form of energy. In an interview with Yale Environment 360, the European Wind Energy Association’s Christian Kjaer describes his vision of how wind can lead the way in making Europe’s electricity generation 100 percent renewable by
rAccording to Agence France Presse (AFP), the French government will launch next month a tender for contracts of 10 billion euros ($12.6 billion) to build 3,000 MW of offshore wind capacity.
600 wind turbines will be implemented within five to ten sites in Normandy, Brittany and the regions of Pays de la Loire and
Australian officials plan to build a 140-turbine wind farm in Victoria, the nation’s most densely populated state, by 2013, a billion-dollar project that would be the largest in the Southern hemisphere. The wind farm will provide enough electricity for 220,000 homes and is key to the nation’s new target of meeting 20 percent of its energy needs with renewable
Late last month, Toronto-based Atlantic Wind and Solar Inc. announced an encouraging step forward in the transition to a greener economy. The firm is planning to launch a brand new financing program designed to help organizations develop large-scale wind and solar energy projects. The Renewable Energy Finance program will focus on helping companies complete
New Jersey passes law to encourage the development of 1,100 megawatts of new offshore wind energy capacity.
As the proposed Cape Wind offshore wind farm in Massachusetts fends off some last ditch legal challenges to become the first offshore wind farm in the U.S., New Jersey passed a law last week that would
According to Phoenix, Arizona resident Dick Hales, the turbulence created by commercial jets sitting on the runway waiting to take off is a prime source of wind energy, but to date no one has thought of a way to harness it.
Jets sitting on the runway pre-takeoff can create wind speeds of up to 300 miles per hour. In the United States, where about
Given the intermittent nature of wind and solar, it is becoming increasingly clear that these technologies need a side-kick known as energy storage in order to get the full value of these renewable sources. Energy storage allows electricity produced by wind and solar, during off peak demand times, to be better matched when the electricity is needed. A major driver of growth of both the wind and solar industries has been favorable tax credit treatment. Acknowledging this fact, Congress has been working on game changing legislation aimed at the energy storage industry. On July 20, U.S. Senators Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), Ron Wyden (D-OR), and Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) introduced The Storage Technology of Renewable and Green Energy Act of 2010 Act (STORAGE Act 2010 – S. 3617) revision to the Storage Act introduced in 2009.
Four U.S. states generated more than 10 percent of their in-state power production from wind energy in 2009, according to a new report by the U.S. Department of Energy and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. New wind power plants were built in 28 states, led by Texas, which added 2,292 megawatts of new power capacity, according to the annual Wind
The renewable energy sector is providing green jobs to many Canadian lawyers busily working on contractual issues, regulations, and financing that derive from the growing industry. Many solar and wind firms already in the final stages of initial projects are looking to solidify their positions as leaders in the marketplace. John Goetz of business & litigation law firm,
British designers are developing a new type of offshore wind turbine that rotates on its axis, mimicking the spiral of a sycamore seed, and that stretches nearly 900 feet (275 meters) from tip to tip.
The so-called Aerogenerator has two enormous arms that extend from the base of the structure in a V-formation, each
The rapid growth of wind power is offering new challenges for transmission grid operators throughout the world, especially in the U.S. As wind power levels comprise an ever larger portion of utility supply portfolios, rapid changes in the speed and direction of wind resources often cause wind farms to deviate significantly from scheduled deliveries. When this happens,