28 Mar 2012
Independent Power Producers (IPP) second bid focuses on job creation in South Africa... Kamstrup’s AMI solution in South Africa...South African I-WEC completes first prototype turbine blade...Kenya and Ethiopia sign power agreement
Engerati: South Africa’s IPP program focuses on jobs
Denise Philip, of Engerati, reports that South Africa’s second roundof renewable energy bids closed with 79 applications. According to Standard Bank head of power finance, Alastair Campbell, the second of five bids, proved more competitive than the first,and saw bidders “aggressive” in their bid prices.
The second bid focused on job creation and the use of local skills. The government intends to “spur...
16 May 2012
Aussie’s NSW biodiesel plant gets go ahead … while Kiwis prepare for GreenWave’s easy-to-use HEMs … Origin Energy enters record-breaking deal … and NZ smart homes project gets top tech platform!
EnergyBusinessNews.com: New South Wales biodiesel plant ago
Lachlan Colquhoun announced that NSW Premier, Barry O’Farrell, gave the green light to a US$273m soybean processing and biodiesel production facility. The Port Kembla, south-Sydney factory will produce soybean meal, used in stock feed, and also soy biodiesel, to be used as fuel.
The plant will produce 288 million litersof biodiesel annually to supply to major companies like Caltex, Xstrata and BHP. The company in charge of the...
04 Apr 2012
Germany’s grid expansions lead to higher electricity bills ... EU cuts subsidies as renewable energy matures ... China’s low cost meters may threaten US and EU manufacturers ... Germany searches for ideal energy sources to replace nuclear.Germany’s grid expansions lead to higher electricity bills ... EU cuts subsidies as renewable energy...
German Energy Blog: BNetZA Reported to Expect Rising Electricity Costs Due to Higher Grid Costs
Matthias Lang of the German Energy Blog reports that Germany’s electricity costs will rise to pay for the country’s grid expansion. The German Grid Regulator (BNetzA) predicts an increase of 5-7% for household customers, and 8% for commercial customers.
Grid investments of around US$39bn to US$63bn (€30bn to €47.5bn) are expected. However, these figures do not factor in:...
09 Feb 2012
DistribuTECH – home of the energy press release … and time to probe energy trends for the year ahead … a great show makes for excellent media …
Smart Grid News: DistribuTECH Buzz
The Smart Grid News Team wrote a comprehensive, three-part article highlighting the major announcements made at the DistribuTECH conference. This series proved to be a very valuable index of the big news that came out of the event.
Part one covered the following press releases:
Itron apps help utilities maximize value of smart grid data
Glen Canyon wins 1.5 million virtual AMI deployment in China
New Opower Marketplace...
16 Apr 2012
Smart grid reports Brazil will become one of the biggest global market players within a decade.
What happened
A new study carried out by Northeast Group, a US-based smart grid market intelligence firm, reports that Brazil’s smart grid investments will reach US$36.6bn by 2022. The Brazil Smart Grid: Market Forecast (2012-2022) reports that utilities in Brazil plan for these new smart grid projects to tackle:
Electricity theft
Grid reliability
New tariff schemes for consumers
Economic development
Bloomberg writes that Brazil has a very high level of electricity theft...
21 Mar 2012
Solar start-ups thinner silicon to profit solar sector … while IEEE submits new smart grid standards … and Metering International Awards celebrate smart grid excellence in the states!
Engerati: New Technology to Boost Wafer-Thin Solar Profits?
Jenni McCann of Engerati looks at a new technology unveiled by solar startup Twin Creeks, which promises to halve production costs of PV solar cells. The Hyperion 3 produces silicon wafers a tenth of the thickness of conventional ones, drastically reducing the amount of material needed to make solar cells.
This machine will replace 52 pieces of the machinery used to make solar cells and will reduce cell production from around...
09 May 2012
Sao Paulo’s AES Eletropaulo deploys new smart meter technology … Chile’s CGE is ready for smart grid rollout … Bolivia expropriates Spanish power company.
MercoPress: Bolivia seizes Spanish-owned power company, but promises fair compensation
MercoPress reports that Bolivia has expropriated Spain’s Red Eléctrica Española (REE) shares. Bolivian President Evo Morales also sent the army to seize the company’s head office. The article explains that RRE owns and operates about three-quarters of Bolivia’s power grid. Morales says the seizure is as a result of the REE’s insufficient investments. Spanish...
29 Feb 2012
Native American clean energy projects get governmental cash injection … while Southern Co’s Vogtle nuclear expansion faces first lawsuit … few opt out of PG&E smart meter scheme after all!
Engerati: Cash Reserves for Tribal Clean Energy Projects
Engerati reported that Steven Chu, US Energy Secretary has announced funding of around US$6.5m for 19 clean energy projects for Native American tribes. These projects are expected to promote clean energy within these communities by:
Assessing local energy resources – 13 projects will share US$3.6m to this end
Development of clean energy projects – four projects will share US$1.7m for planning projects...
26 Apr 2012
CAREBS unpacks bulk energy storage policy … while Greenpeace versus green Apple … and getting consumers to connect renewables with the smart grid.
Intelligent Utility: Bulk energy storage a modest proposal
Phil Carson writes for Intelligent Utility on the Coalition to Advance Renewable Energy Through Bulk Storage (CAREBS) policy document aimed at power industry stakeholders. (See: Getting Bulk Energy Storage Projects Built.)
CAREBS states that although market and policy conditions favor commercial bulk storage facilities, it cannot “monetize their benefits to the grid.” The organization wants to redefine the “grid...
10 Apr 2012
Huawei and Landis+Gyr sign a joint agreement to develop UK smart metering solutions ahead of the national rollout.
What happened
Chinese technology leader Huawei and smart meter manufacturer Landis+Gyr are joining forces to develop smart metering products for the UK by mid 2012, reports Smart Meters. The collaboration comes ahead of the UK’s planned smart meter rollout, whereby the UK government plans to install a smart meter in every British household by 2019, writes Manchester Evening News.
The companies will develop a "universal communications hub" for power utilities and...
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