Tag Archives: solar energy

Committing to a Clean Energy Future

In his State of the Union address, President Obama pledged to make 2014 a year of action. And today, we announced new ways we’re taking action to advance clean energy and create opportunity for hardworking Americans. The Obama Administration has made historic investments in the research, development, and deployment of clean energy. And these investments are paying off; solar power …

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TAPPING LA’S VAST ROOFTOP SOLAR POTENTIAL COULD REAP HUGE BENEFITS FOR CITY’S MOST DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES

Report commissioned by LABC Institute encourages incentives to share benefits of emerging commercial solar market with low-income areas throughout Los Angeles; many local programs already benefiting from the LADWP feed-in tariff   A significantly expanded commercial rooftop solar program in Los Angeles would create thousands of new jobs and spur hundreds of millions of dollars in new investment, with particular …

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Is There A Dark Side To Microgrids?

Marc Lopata says his job is to uncover the dark side of microgrids. And that’s just what the president and principal engineer for Microgrid Solar is doing in a project that combines energy storage and solar energy at Missouri University of Science and Technology (Missouri S&T). The project is located at the “Solar Village,” which consists of multiple houses built by …

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RGS Energy and GRID Alternatives to Install 10 Solar Electric Systems for Low-Income Families Nationwide

RGS Energy, a nationwide leader of turnkey solar energy solutions for residential, commercial, and utility customers, and GRID Alternatives, the nation’s largest non-profit solar installer, have launched a new partnership to help bring solar power to low-income communities across the country. RGS Energy employees will volunteer throughout 2014 to install solar for 10 low-income families in California, Colorado, New Jersey and New York, while …

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Local Solar Panels Dispute

It seems hard to believe that we have come so far in the adoption and acceptance of solar energy in our country both on the commercial power development side and on the home solar power side that a dispute like the one brewing the St Louis area could still be happening. CLARKSON VALLEY • The fuss over the solar panels remains …

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SEIA Applauds White House Efforts to Boost Use of Renewable Energy

Reacting to today’s presidential memorandum requiring the federal government to get 20 percent of its electricity from renewable sources by 2020, SEIA President and CEO Rhone Resch released the following statement: “This is a landmark moment in our nation’s history. Today, climate change is a real and growing threat to America and the rest of the world. It’s indisputable. Sea …

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Solar Market Predictions for 2014

This is an IHS News Flash covering the top predictions for the global photovoltaic (PV) market in 2014, from a new white paper issued by the IHS Solar service at information and analytics provider IHS (NYSE: IHS). “After two years of a punishing downturn, the global solar industry is on the rebound,” said Ash Sharma, senior research director for solar at IHS. …

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Solar Schools Initiative

HALFWAY TO CROWDFUNDING SUCCESS FOR NRDC SOLAR SCHOOLS INITITAVE: LOS ANGELES, PHILADELPHIA AND CHARLOTTE LEAD VOTING FOR PILOT PROGRAM Just 8 Days Left to Show Support: NRDC Campaign Aims to Pave the Way for Solar Power for Every School in the U.S. That Wants It The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) campaign to bring solar power to more of America’s …

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1st auction of solar rights on public lands in Colorado draws no bids

By Mark Jaffe Workers with Bella Energy install solar in Boulder in 2011. (Helen H. Richardson, The Denver Post) The plan to auction rights to federal land across the West for solar power plants got off to a rocky start Thursday when no bidders showed up for the first auction in Colorado. Uncertainties about the solar market and federal rules …

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American Solar Shines at Home Builders Show

Solar energy leader showcases innovation. American Solar Showcases Innovation at Southwest Builders Show “Working with American Solar, we can give consumers the best money-saving options in the business.” Roger Cregg, AV Homes American Solar, Arizona’s leader in residential solar installation and innovation, delighted home builders and business dignitaries during this week’s Southwest Builders Show at the Phoenix Convention Center. Showcasing …

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Low Cost Solar Investing Now Possible

Investors to earn returns from solar panels on a major U.S military base Mosaic, America’s first online marketplace to offer solar investments to the public, presents the first major US military solar project to be funded by the public. This is a historic opportunity for Americans to invest in the nation’s energy independence and troop preparedness. Online today, investors large and small …

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Mosaic offers new way to invest in American energy independence – with as little as $25

Investors to earn returns from solar panels on a major U.S military base Mosaic, America’s first online marketplace to offer solar investments to the public, presents the first major US military solar project to be funded by the public. This is a historic opportunity for Americans to invest in the nation’s energy independence and troop preparedness. Online today, investors large and small …

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Japan’s Zero Nuclear Power Issue Triples PV Market Demand in 2013

Regular inspections have been conducted on the No.4 reactor at the Oi nuclear power plant. However, delay on the inspections has once again led to Japan’s “zero nuclear power” status. Since nuclear power is still the major source of base-load electricity while other units are still applying for re-activation, it’s estimated that it will take at least half a year …

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Solar Power Breakthrough? New Method for Harvesting Energy from Light

Researchers from the University of Pennsylvania have demonstrated a new mechanism for extracting energy from light, a finding that could improve technologies for generating electricity from solar energy and lead to more efficient optoelectronic devices used in communications. Dawn Bonnell, Penn’s vice provost for research and Trustee Professor of Materials Science and Engineering in the School of Engineering and Applied …

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Solar Energy could supply one-third of power in U.S. West

Low-cost solar power could supply more than a third of all energy needs in the Western U.S., if the nation can hit its targets for reducing the cost of solar energy, according to a new study by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley.   The UC Berkeley scientists used a detailed computer model they developed of the West’s electric …

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Growth of Global Solar and Wind Energy Continues to Outpace Other Technologies

New Worldwatch Institute study examines the global market for solar and wind energy production Global use of solar and wind energy continued to grow significantly in 2012. Solar power consumption increased by 58 percent, to 93 terrawatt-hours (TWh), and the use of wind power increased by 18 percent, to 521 TWh. Although hydropower remains the world’s leading renewable energy, solar …

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Carbon Nanotube Solar Cells

solar cells development

FUTURE LOOKS BRIGHT FOR CARBON NANOTUBE SOLAR CELLS In an approach that could challenge silicon as the predominant photovoltaic cell material, University of Wisconsin-Madison materials engineers have developed an inexpensive solar cell that exploits carbon nanotubes to absorb and convert energy from the sun. The advance could lead to solar panels just as efficient, but much less expensive to manufacture, …

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Solar In Japan Now Booming

Japan Set to Become World’s Largest Solar Revenue Market in 2013 as Installations Boom in Q1   Japan’s solar installations surged by a stunning 270 percent (in gigawatts (GW)) in the first quarter of 2013, positioning the country to surpass Germany to become the world’s largest photovoltaics (PV) market in terms of revenue this year.   Although Japan is forecast …

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