April 11, 2011
US DOE Funds Huge Solar Project in CA
DOE Finalizes $1.6 Billion Loan Guarantee for BrightSource Energy Inc.
California Complex Expected to Create Approximately 1,000 Jobs and Avoid Over 640,000 Tons of Carbon Pollution Annually
Washington D.C. — Announced this afternoon via Twitter.com/energy, the U.S. Department of Energy finalized $1.6 billion in loan guarantees to support the Ivanpah Solar Energy Generating System, three related utility-scale concentrated solar power plants. The Recovery Act funded project, sponsored by BrightSource Energy, Inc., will be located on federally-owned land in the Mojave Desert in southeastern California, near the Nevada border, and will be one of the world’s largest concentrated solar power complexes. BrightSource estimates the project will create approximately 1,000 construction jobs and 86 operations and maintenance jobs.
“Today’s announcement is creating over 1,000 jobs in California while laying the foundation for thousands more clean energy jobs across the country in the future,” said Secretary Chu. “Through the loan program we are supporting some of the largest, most innovative clean energy projects in the world, and those investments are helping us to out-compete and out-innovate our global competitors to win the future.”
“With this $1.6 billion loan guarantee, BrightSource Energy will complete construction of a solar energy facility that will create more than 1,000 California jobs and provide clean power to 85,000 homes. This is the Energy Department’s first solar generation loan in California and I hope it will be followed by many more. I believe we must support and nurture the solar industry, and the only way the vast majority of these projects will become reality is through the federal loan guarantee program,” said Senator Dianne Feinstein.
“This loan guarantee will help create clean-energy jobs, increase our energy independence, protect our children from dangerous pollution and strengthen California’s clean energy economy,” Senator Barbara Boxer said. “This innovative solar energy project will provide a much-needed economic boost for San Bernardino County, creating more than 1,000 jobs.”
The three-plant Ivanpah Solar Complex will generate approximately 392 gross megawatts (MW) of electricity using the company’s innovative, proprietary concentrating solar power (CSP) technology. Once operational, the project will produce nearly one million megawatt hours of electricity per year, enough to power over 85,000 homes, and will avoid over 640,000 tons of carbon dioxide annually, equivalent to taking over 120,000 cars off the road.
The project includes solar fields containing over 173,000 dual-mirror heliostats. Brightsource’s proprietary technology controls the mirrors to follow the sun, capturing a greater percentage of solar energy than other solar thermal technologies. Electricity from the project will be sold under long-term power purchase agreements with Pacific Gas & Electric and Southern California Edison Company (SCE). The project will be interconnected to the electricity grid via an upgraded SCE transmission line.
The Department of Energy, through the Loan Programs Office, has issued loan guarantees or offered conditional commitments for loan guarantees totaling over $18 billion to support 20 clean energy projects across 14 states. The program’s nine generation projects will produce nearly 23 million megawatt-hours, enough to power over two million homes. Additional DOE-supported projects include the world’s largest wind farm, two geothermal projects and the nation’s first new nuclear power plant in three decades. For more information, please visit http://www.lpo.energy.gov.
Filed under Press Releases, Solar Power by newenergy
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Utility Sees Transformation of Solar Photovoltaic Power Market
Seven new solar power plants capable of providing electricity for 8,125 average homes are now online for Southern California Edison (SCE) customers, the utility announced today.
The newest solar photovoltaic installations, located in Ontario and Redlands, Calif., have a combined peak generating capacity of 12.5 million watts (AC). The new plants bring to 10 the number of SCE neighborhood solar stations.
Construction of the solar power plants last year created 250 temporary jobs. SCE estimates its entire solar photovoltaic project – 75 to 100 roof- and ground-mount installations – will create up to 1,200 such jobs.
“When Southern California Edison originally announced its goal of building a network of local solar plants, we wanted to help speed up California’s deployment of solar generation while driving down the cost of photovoltaic panels for everyone,” said Mark Nelson, SCE director of generation planning and strategy.
“Current market indicators reveal that solar photovoltaic power is now substantially less expensive for our customers than when we launched this project,” Nelson said.
Details of SCE’s new solar stations
The Ontario installations involved four solar stations on 1.8 million square feet of leased warehouse roofs owned by ProLogis. The 32,950 solar photovoltaic panels SCE has installed in Ontario are capable of generating 5.5 million watts (AC) of power.
“Ontario is proud to partner with Southern California Edison to provide renewable energy resources to our residents and businesses,” said Ontario Mayor Paul S. Leon. “Through this exciting new solar program, we are not only creating jobs for our community, but we are ensuring that sustainability is a key component of our long-term vision.”
“We are excited to continue our work with SCE and bring these additional rooftop installations into production,” said Drew Torbin, ProLogis vice president of renewable energy. “Our partnership makes sense in many ways; by bringing together a large rooftop owner and a utility, we have achieved the speed and scale that was necessary to make a true impact on the rooftop solar industry.”
More on Southern California Edison Throws Switch on Seven New Neighborhood Solar Stations
Filed under Press Releases, Solar Power by newenergy
September 8, 2008
Solar Energy & Photovoltaics
David Tanguay asked:
Solar energy is energy that is harnesses from the Sun. The technologies harness the sun’s incredible energy for practical ends. Solar power plants use a variety of methods to collect sunlight and convert this energy into electricity.
While the use of solar energy has been used for millennia, it’s potential has only been recognized within the past few decades{readmore}, when it played an essential part in the success of early commercial satellites. After the Solar energy collected, it is most often stored as heat in the thermal mass of buildings, however batteries, water tanks, and other storage facilities can be used to store energy in thermal and chemical forms.
Solar energy provides an energy efficient and environmentally friendly power source and it has satisfied the demands of activists for an eco-friendly world. Solar energy has also become an attractive solution to global warming.
More on Solar Energy & Photovoltaics
Filed under Alternative Energy by newenergy
July 9, 2008
Solar Power On The Go
Bryan Wong asked:
In the early days of solar power there were huge installations necessary to make use of this energy source. The solar panels that were needed were larger than the average full grown man. This made the collection of solar power a bit of a challenge. Therefore making use of solar power was not suitable of everyone. It was expensive and a bit of a chore as well.
These huge solar panels still exist in solar power plants, which produce energy for certain parts of the world. But over the years technological advancements have made solar power affordable and portable enough so common people can use it for their everyday lives. Nowadays solar panels have become so small that pocket calculators use these as an alternative power source to the usual single cell batteries.
But the use of portable solar power did not stop with the use of pocket calculators. Numerous inventions have made use of portable solar power and some of these are available all over the world. Let’s take of look at 5 affordable uses of portable solar power.
1) BRUNTON BATTJACK Batteries and Chargers
The charger comes with the SolarPort 4.4, wall transformer and 12V car cord to charge batteries from AC or in a vehicle. The charger can hold 4 AA or AAA rechargeable batteries. The kit has 4 1500 mAh NiMH AA battery cells. The charger will switch to trickle charge when the batteries are fully charged. It also has a discharge option for maintaining NiCad batteries. This will cost $30.
Batteries are NiMH AA dry cells, have a 1500 mAh capacity, can recharge for hundreds of times, and come in a package of 4 AA batteries. These cost $14.
2) SS-PVSMALL Power System
This portable solar power system from Silicon Solar Inc is easy to use and needs no assembly. Included in each system is an inverter/battery carrying case and 8.5 or 17-watt solar panel/charge.
This system can power a laptop computer, portable audio devices, small coloured TV, and most devices that need less than 140 watts AC 110-120v, and 60Hz input. Power time can range from 30 minutes to 56 hours, depending on the equipment being powered up.
The system is also used for indoor/outdoor lighting, and is lightweight. The system also includes inverters, cables, battery box, and sealed gel cell battery. The system comes with a 1-year warranty. The system costs $149.95.
3) UNI-KIT
The Uni-Kit system is a portable, durable, solar powered lighting system that can provide extended lighting hours to its users. This is powerful enough to let even a 12-volt radio or TV operate, and easy to install. The Uni-Kit system also comes with a basic power controller that maximizes battery life of its 12-Volt Deep Cycle SLA Battery by controlling its charging and load use, and protects the system from overcharging and excessive discharging.
Uni-Kit can be used in the garage, tool sheds, remote homes, isolated buildings, surveying sites, construction sites, camp sites, and even during water pumping operations.
Uni-Kit comes with an 11-watt fluorescent lamp that has a 1-year warranty. The 15-watt solar panel has a 20 year warranty. You can add up to 4 lamps to increase the system’s illumination capacity. The default kit weighs 10 pounds and can be purchased for $249.95 from Silicon Solar Inc. If you have additional 4 lamps, all 4 will cost an extra $235.
4) BRUNTON Portable Solar Panels
Brunton has portable CIGS (copper indium gallium diselenide) solar array panels that are thin and lightweight to save weight for backpackers. These panels produce standard 12volts outputs, and come with basic 12V vehicle socket, 4 different jack plugs, and battery clips. Solar array panels come in a 6 and 12 foldable, and 14 roll able series. Prices of these panels range from $129 to $399.
5) EN-R-PAK AC/DC Backup Power Supply
The EN-R-PAK backup power supply 200 series are compact solar power backup supplies that have built-in electronics that store, control, and produce energy from the sun, wind, or flowing water. The system can accept additional solar panels, wind turbines, or water turbines. These power supply systems use renewable stored energy to produce 115 volts and 12 volts DC. A 230-volt unit is also available for international use.
The EN-R-PAK can provide emergency power for a home or office, remote areas, a cabin or cottage, for communications, wherever and whenever you need power! This system has no parts that wear out, is environment friendly, quiet, does not emit harmful fumes, easy to operate, requires no assembly, needs almost no maintenance, and is designed to survive rugged weather conditions. These can also power energy efficient lights, a laptop computer, a small TV, rechargeable power tools, and other electrical equipment.
The EN-R-PAK has a 1-year system warranty, 20-year solar panel warranty, 2-year battery warranty, and is built to conform to UL, NEC, and CSA electrical standards.
EN-R-PAK 50-watt solar panels are liquid-proof and shatter proof. These also come with a blocking diode, 30 feet of cable with a connection plug. Wind turbines are also configured to the EN-R-PAK so changes to the power centre are not needed.
The basic system will cost $1500. Additions to the system will make the cost reach a maximum of $2950.
This sums up the possibilities for portable solar power. As time and knowledge progress other devices and possibilities will be available on the market. The prices mentioned here can give you an idea, but are by no means accurate.
Wave Power Video Channel
In the early days of solar power there were huge installations necessary to make use of this energy source. The solar panels that were needed were larger than the average full grown man. This made the collection of solar power a bit of a challenge. Therefore making use of solar power was not suitable of everyone. It was expensive and a bit of a chore as well.
These huge solar panels still exist in solar power plants, which produce energy for certain parts of the world. But over the years technological advancements have made solar power affordable and portable enough so common people can use it for their everyday lives. Nowadays solar panels have become so small that pocket calculators use these as an alternative power source to the usual single cell batteries.
But the use of portable solar power did not stop with the use of pocket calculators. Numerous inventions have made use of portable solar power and some of these are available all over the world. Let’s take of look at 5 affordable uses of portable solar power.
1) BRUNTON BATTJACK Batteries and Chargers
The charger comes with the SolarPort 4.4, wall transformer and 12V car cord to charge batteries from AC or in a vehicle. The charger can hold 4 AA or AAA rechargeable batteries. The kit has 4 1500 mAh NiMH AA battery cells. The charger will switch to trickle charge when the batteries are fully charged. It also has a discharge option for maintaining NiCad batteries. This will cost $30.
Batteries are NiMH AA dry cells, have a 1500 mAh capacity, can recharge for hundreds of times, and come in a package of 4 AA batteries. These cost $14.
2) SS-PVSMALL Power System
This portable solar power system from Silicon Solar Inc is easy to use and needs no assembly. Included in each system is an inverter/battery carrying case and 8.5 or 17-watt solar panel/charge.
This system can power a laptop computer, portable audio devices, small coloured TV, and most devices that need less than 140 watts AC 110-120v, and 60Hz input. Power time can range from 30 minutes to 56 hours, depending on the equipment being powered up.
The system is also used for indoor/outdoor lighting, and is lightweight. The system also includes inverters, cables, battery box, and sealed gel cell battery. The system comes with a 1-year warranty. The system costs $149.95.
3) UNI-KIT
The Uni-Kit system is a portable, durable, solar powered lighting system that can provide extended lighting hours to its users. This is powerful enough to let even a 12-volt radio or TV operate, and easy to install. The Uni-Kit system also comes with a basic power controller that maximizes battery life of its 12-Volt Deep Cycle SLA Battery by controlling its charging and load use, and protects the system from overcharging and excessive discharging.
Uni-Kit can be used in the garage, tool sheds, remote homes, isolated buildings, surveying sites, construction sites, camp sites, and even during water pumping operations.
Uni-Kit comes with an 11-watt fluorescent lamp that has a 1-year warranty. The 15-watt solar panel has a 20 year warranty. You can add up to 4 lamps to increase the system’s illumination capacity. The default kit weighs 10 pounds and can be purchased for $249.95 from Silicon Solar Inc. If you have additional 4 lamps, all 4 will cost an extra $235.
4) BRUNTON Portable Solar Panels
Brunton has portable CIGS (copper indium gallium diselenide) solar array panels that are thin and lightweight to save weight for backpackers. These panels produce standard 12volts outputs, and come with basic 12V vehicle socket, 4 different jack plugs, and battery clips. Solar array panels come in a 6 and 12 foldable, and 14 roll able series. Prices of these panels range from $129 to $399.
5) EN-R-PAK AC/DC Backup Power Supply
The EN-R-PAK backup power supply 200 series are compact solar power backup supplies that have built-in electronics that store, control, and produce energy from the sun, wind, or flowing water. The system can accept additional solar panels, wind turbines, or water turbines. These power supply systems use renewable stored energy to produce 115 volts and 12 volts DC. A 230-volt unit is also available for international use.
The EN-R-PAK can provide emergency power for a home or office, remote areas, a cabin or cottage, for communications, wherever and whenever you need power! This system has no parts that wear out, is environment friendly, quiet, does not emit harmful fumes, easy to operate, requires no assembly, needs almost no maintenance, and is designed to survive rugged weather conditions. These can also power energy efficient lights, a laptop computer, a small TV, rechargeable power tools, and other electrical equipment.
The EN-R-PAK has a 1-year system warranty, 20-year solar panel warranty, 2-year battery warranty, and is built to conform to UL, NEC, and CSA electrical standards.
EN-R-PAK 50-watt solar panels are liquid-proof and shatter proof. These also come with a blocking diode, 30 feet of cable with a connection plug. Wind turbines are also configured to the EN-R-PAK so changes to the power centre are not needed.
The basic system will cost $1500. Additions to the system will make the cost reach a maximum of $2950.
This sums up the possibilities for portable solar power. As time and knowledge progress other devices and possibilities will be available on the market. The prices mentioned here can give you an idea, but are by no means accurate.
Wave Power Video Channel
Filed under Alternative Energy by newenergy
