Tag Archives: California

Annual Top 10 List Ranks Utilities by Megawatts and Watts-Per-Customer of Installed Solar Electricity Capacity Top10-USC2013The Solar Electric Power Association (SEPA) today named the Top 10 American electric utilities that have added the most new solar power to their systems and the most solar on a watts-per-customer basis in 2012. This annual ranking, which identifies the companies that are integrating …

Xcel, MidAmerican among leaders as more utilities sign up for consumer savings U.S. electric utilities are locking in fixed-price contracts for wind power, now more cost-competitive than ever, illustrating the success of a key federal tax policy in holding down rates for consumers. A total of 66 U.S. utilities bought or owned wind power by the start of this year …

U.S. Solar Market Grows 76% in 2012; Now an Increasingly-Competitive Energy Source for Millions of Americans Today GTM Research and the Solar Energy Industries Association® (SEIA®) today released U.S. Solar Market Insight: Year-in-Review 2012, the definitive analysis of solar power markets in the U.S. With another record-breaking year, solar is the fastest growing energy source in the U.S., powering homes, …

Caltech Researchers Create Highly Absorbing, Flexible  Cells with Silicon Wire Arrays Using arrays of long, thin silicon wires embedded in a polymer substrate, a team of scientists from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) has created a new type of flexible solar cell that enhances the absorption of sunlight and efficiently converts its photons into electrons. The solar cell does …

The world’s first Kilowatt Throwdown pits two universities in a contest to see who can generate the most electricity for the power grid – from exercising. Green System equipment from SportsArt Fitness will be used by students and faculty on each campus for a month starting February 15 In a first of its kind event, two universities – Tennessee Tech …

Preliminary results show an increase in 2012 year-end geothermal capacity   As the Geothermal Energy Association (GEA) prepares to release its annual development report at the State of the Geothermal Energy Industry Briefing on February 26 in Washington, preliminary industry data reveals that year-end geothermal growth in 2012 was up 5% from the previous year. This uptick in development, which produced …

Real Goods Solar Selected by Leading Production Homebuilder to Bring Solar to New Communities   Real Goods Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq:RSOL), a nationwide leader of turnkey solar energy solutions, has been selected by a leading production homebuilder to deploy solar in certain of its new communities, beginning in California and with an eye towards broader deployment to other solar friendly states. …

As Residential Solar Leases Become Available in Fourteen U.S. States, GTM Research Releases the Market’s First Complete Vendor Analysis Third-party financing of solar PV has become the predominant business model in some of the largest residential markets in the U.S.; today, third-party financed residential installations comprise greater than 50 percent of new residential solar capacity in California, Arizona, Colorado and …

Breakthrough For Hawaiian Solar Power Announced By Clean Energy Groups Barriers should come down for homeowners, businesses wanting to add rooftop solar Honolulu, HI — Today, national organizations Earthjustice and the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, Inc. (IREC) commended the Hawaiian Electric (HECO) utilities’ path-breaking plans to enable more rooftop solar systems to connect to the grid. The utilities and clean …

In the sprawling metropolis of Phoenix, Arizona, traveling via automobile is a hard reality. With gas prices remaining steady, new car buyers are looking for options that can save them money at the pump. Consumers are particularly curious about the Chevy Volt and hybrid vehicles in general. Phoenix Chevy dealers are not only pushing the environmental and fuel saving benefits …

The STEM principles of Science, Technology, Engineering and Math are all demonstrated through the use of solar Motech Americas has announced the completion of a large solar PV project by Pacific Power Renewables that is now providing all the energy needs for the Aerospace Museum of California in McClellan, California just north of Sacramento. The museum is also playing a …

American wind power has blown through an historic milestone: 50 gigawatts of electric generating capacity, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA). Denise Bode, CEO of AWEA, made the announcement at the recent National Clean Energy Summit in Las Vegas. The 50 gigawatts (GW) online means that U.S. wind turbines now power the equivalent of nearly 13 million American …

Obama Administration announces seven major renewable energy projects to be expedited As a part of his We Can’t Wait initiative, President Barack Obama recently announced that seven nationally and regionally significant solar and wind energy projects will be expedited, including projects in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Wyoming. Together, these job-creating infrastructure projects would produce nearly 5,000 megawatts (MW) of clean …

California’s big solar farms have surpassed a new milestone amid the late summer heat, reaching one gigawatt of electrical generation capacity, the state’s main grid operator said Tuesday. The state’s large-scale solar fields hit a new peak in production on Friday at nearly 1.1 gigawatts, or 1.1 billion watts, according to the California Independent System Operator. That peak output, which …

Global climate models may be overstating the warming properties of black carbon particles, according to new research led by the University of California, Davis. The study will be published online Aug. 31 in the journal Science. “Our results don’t change the fact that things are going to warm — just to what degree, literally,” said Christopher Cappa, a UC Davis …

New solar financing methods help houses of worship go green in California They span the range of religions and faiths. New solar financing tools now enable houses of worship throughout California to go solar and reduce their energy expenses. Berkeley’s Sun Light & Power has pioneered solar installations for non-profits and houses of worship in the Bay Area and throughout …

It’s not a difficult formula: the lighter a car is, the less fuel it needs to consume. So why aren’t all of our cars lighter and more fuel-efficient? The answer is a little more complicated. These days, drivers want a host of safety, entertainment and comfort features that ultimately make cars heavier. Lighter weight cars are more fuel-efficient, but they …

TAKING BACK AMERICA’S ENERGY FUTURE FROM THE LOBBYISTS: 1 MILLION AMERICANS TO FIGHT INDUSTRY EFFORTS TO KILL CLEAN ENERGY AGENDA Three Dozen Citizen Organizations From Across Nation Take on Undue Influence of Energy Company “Goliath”; Push Reflects Views of 83 Percent of Americans That a “New-Grassroots Driven” Effort is Needed. Fed up with the undue influence of the energy companies, …

How to grow a solar energy garden By Elisa Wood Getting energy from the sun is a great idea. However, installing solar panels house-by-house is slow, costly and cumbersome, and downright inefficient if the goal is to bring solar to the masses. This problem troubled Paul Spencer after he built his own uber-efficient, custom solar home near Aspen, Colorado in …

FedEx Express, a unit of Memphis-based FedEx Corp is rolling out a fleet of 43 electric trucks in the San Francisco Bay Area , joining 53 other electric vehicles in cities across the U.S. The giant logistics-and-delivery company’s new all-electric (EV) trucks will also be deployed in several Southern California cities, suburban Washington, D.C., New York City, and in some …