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Tell Congress to Pass a National Renewable Electrical Standard and Set the Stage for Green Jobs

admin — Sun, 14 Mar 2010 16:15:33 +0000

Leading wind energy industry executives called on Congress this week to pass a strong national Renewable Electricity Standard (RES) as the best way to save and create U.S. jobs.

“We need to drive demand in a stable, predictable way,” said Vic Abate, Vice President for Renewables, GE Energy, the largest supplier of wind turbines in the U.S. market. “For the jobs to grow the Renewable Electricity Standard is critical.”

“There are three main points to make about the RES: jobs, jobs, and jobs,” said John W. Grabner, President, Cardinal Fastener & Specialty Company, Inc. The company, based in Cleveland, Ohio, makes steel bolts used in construction of wind turbines for many of the wind turbine manufacturers active in the U.S.

Denise Bode, CEO, American Wind Energy Association, said: “We have the potential for explosive growth if we can get long term support. A national RES will result not just in new installations, but also in new manufacturing. The RES is the most important buy-American policy we can do.”

“As a global power company, we balance and make decisions about where to invest years in advance,” said Ned Hall, Executive Vice President, AES Wind Generation, based in Arlington, Va. “So I am here to call on Congress to pass a national Renewable Electricity Standard, to create long-term demand in the U.S.”

“Manufacturers are chomping at the bit to come to the U.S. and it would be a tragedy if this investment were to stop,” said Donald Furman, Senior Vice President, Iberdrola Renewables, based in Portland, Oregon, and President of the Board of the American Wind Energy Association. “The RES is the missing link.”

The press conference took place as 120 wind energy representatives were traveling to Washington D.C. for “Wind Power on Capitol Hill.” on March 10. The industry representatives will hold over 70 meetings with lawmakers to urge passage of the RES.

In 2009, wind power was neck and neck with natural gas as the leading source of new electricity in the country. The U.S. added nearly 10,000 megawatts (MW) of new wind power generating capacity, enough to power the equivalent of 2.4 million homes or generate as much electricity as three large nuclear power plants.

China to Biuld it’s First Coal-fired Integrated Gasification Combined Cycle Power Plant

admin — Tue, 09 Feb 2010 02:27:49 +0000

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is supporting the construction and operation of a coal-fired integrated gasification combined cycle (IGCC) power plant in the People’s Republic of China (PRC), the first such plant in a developing nation.

The ADB Board of Directors today approved a $135 million loan to build a 250-megawatt IGCC plant in Tianjin City that can generate up to 1,470 gigawatt-hours of electricity every year.

PRC is the world’s largest coal producer and consumer. Its heavy use is causing serious pollution, including sharply lowered air quality and widespread acid rain. The large coal usage is also causing global concerns due to rising greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. In response, PRC has launched a clean coal power generation program, GreenGen, to sharply reduce pollution as well as lower the GHG emissions, with the Tianjin project being the cornerstone of the first phase.

ADB is also providing $1.25 million in technical assistance to pave the way for the second and third phases of the program which will result in a scaled-up IGCC plant fitted with carbon capture and storage technology by 2013.

Plants using IGCC technology turn coal into a synthetic gas, removing impurities, before the gas is burned in a gas turbine. It is more efficient than other clean coal technologies and emits less GHG and only a fraction of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide pollutants, but its adoption has been slow due to high costs and some perceived technology complexity and risks.

The advent of IGCC technology combined with a carbon dioxide capture and storage function, however, has provided fresh impetus for its use, with studies showing that it is now the least-cost option to cut carbon dioxide emissions from coal-fired power plants by up to 90%.

“The project will demonstrate the advantages of a technology with the potential for large greenhouse gas emission reductions. Its successful implementation will bolster the confidence of investors, project developers, and policymakers leading to scaled-up IGCC power plants and their expanded deployment,” said Ashok Bhargava, Principal Energy Specialist in ADB’s East Asia Department.

To help curb risks linked to the adoption of the new technology and to keep costs down, ADB is providing a $5 million grant from its Climate Change Fund to finance direct supervision and technical support from the component suppliers during the critical initial operation and maintenance phase. It will also be used to help strengthen project management capacity and to ensure compliance with key safeguards.

As the IGCC technology reduces coal use and GHG emissions, the project is expected to be eligible for carbon credits under the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of the Kyoto Protocol. ADB is providing technical support to help with the CDM registration process.

ADB’s loan from its ordinary capital resources makes up 32% of the total project cost of $419.59 million. The loan has a 26-year term, including a grace period of six years, with the interest rate determined in accordance with ADB’s LIBOR-based lending facility.

The loan component is due for completion by June 2012 and the grant component by June 2015.

The remaining costs will be funded from equity contributions of $84 million, a loan of $195.59 million from a group of local banks, and the grant from ADB’s Climate Change Fund – established in 2008 to invest in projects which address the causes and consequences of climate change.

China Huaneng Group, the managing partner of the government’s GreenGen program, is the executing agency for the project.

Duke Energy Enters the Solar Power Market with a Texas Solar Farm Purchase

admin — Wed, 27 Jan 2010 13:31:50 +0000

Duke Energy is adding solar power to its commercial renewable energy portfolio through the acquisition of a large-scale solar photovoltaic project under development in San Antonio, Texas.

Duke Energy Generation Services (DEGS), a Duke Energy Commercial Businesses unit that owns and develops renewable power assets, will purchase the Blue Wing Solar Project from juwi solar Inc., based in Boulder, Colo. The 14-megawatt (16-megawatt direct current) project will consist of 214,500 ground-mounted First Solar thin film panels.

“Demand for power from renewable resources continues to rise,” said Keith Trent, group executive and president of Duke Energy’s Commercial Businesses. “Our entry into the commercial solar power industry reaffirms Duke Energy’s commitment to generating emissions-free electricity for customers.”

With the acquisition comes a 30-year power purchase agreement to sell all of the output from the solar farm and associated renewable energy credits to San Antonio-based CPS Energy, one of the largest municipality-owned utilities in the U.S.

“Duke Energy’s acquisition of the Blue Wing Solar Project adds an exciting new dimension to our renewable power business,” said Wouter van Kempen, president of DEGS. “We took our wind energy business from zero megawatts to more than 730 megawatts in under three years, so I’m very confident we can grow our solar power business.”

Construction will follow the close of the acquisition, which is expected in the first quarter of 2010. The 139-acre project is expected to be completed and energized by the fourth quarter of 2010. No other terms were disclosed.

Blue Wing will be the first commercial solar power project Duke Energy will own and operate. Duke Energy Carolinas, part of the company’s regulated business, is installing solar panels on select business and residential customers’ rooftops as part of a $50 million program.

Duke Energy owns and operates 733 megawatts (MW) of commercial wind power generation – a figure that will rise to nearly 1,000 MW by the end of 2010. In total, the company has committed more than $1 billion since 2007 to build its wind energy business.

Although Duke Energy plans to wholly own the Blue Wing project, the company continues to look for opportunities to jointly develop commercial solar power projects in the U.S. with China-based ENN Group, pursuant to an agreement signed in October 2009.

First Solar and NRG Energy Open Largest Solar Thinfilm PV Power Plant in California

admin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 14:10:13 +0000

First Solar and NRG Energy recenlty announced the start of commercial operation for the largest photovoltaic (PV) solar project in California. First Solar developed and built the 21-megawatt (MW) power plant in Blythe, Calif., which was acquired last month by NRG through its wholly owned subsidiary NRG Solar. Electricity generated by the solar facility is being sold to Southern California Edison (SCE) under a 20-year power purchase agreement.

Located in Riverside County about 200 miles east of Los Angeles, the Blythe plant is the largest thin film PV project in the United States and is five times the size of the next largest PV project in California. NRG estimates that at peak capacity, the project can supply the power needs of almost 17,000 homes while helping California meet its renewable energy goals. Approximately 175 people built Blythe during its three-month construction and installation period.

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said;

“It is no surprise that America’s largest thin film solar project was built right here in California, where my Administration has successfully created a climate where green businesses can thrive. It is forward-thinking businesses such as First Solar that will help California reach its nation-leading greenhouse gas reduction and Renewable Portfolio Standard goals, as well as create the new green jobs that will help spur our economic recovery.”

“Solar is the great untapped resource in California, and we are pleased to be part of this significant milestone for solar development in our state,” said Marc Ulrich, SCE vice president, Renewables and Alternative Power. “Bringing this power to the grid helps SCE maintain its position as the nation’s leading utility for renewable energy.”

“California, as it has in many arenas, is leading the way in encouraging large-scale clean energy sources,” said David Crane, NRG Energy President and CEO. “NRG, through our association with pioneers like First Solar and forward-thinking companies like SCE, seeks to help clean our air while stocking our country’s clean energy economic growth through commercial implementation of solar technology.”

First Solar expanded its offerings in California in 2008. The Blythe plant is a model for First Solar’s future large-scale solar developments. “The development, project finance and construction of this solar plant demonstrate First Solar’s capabilities in utility scale projects,” said Bruce Sohn, president of First Solar. “With a three-month build-out, we are pleased to be bringing it online ahead of schedule.”

Using First Solar’s industry-leading thin film PV panels that convert sunlight directly into electricity with no water consumption during operation, the Blythe plant will generate over 45,000 megawatt-hours of clean, affordable, sustainable electricity per year. This solar generation will avoid approximately 12,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually – the equivalent of taking over 2,200 cars off the road. First Solar will provide operations and maintenance services at Blythe under a long-term contract with NRG.

About NRG

NRG Energy, Inc., a Fortune 500 company, owns and operates one of the country’s largest and most diverse power generation portfolios. Headquartered in Princeton, N.J., the Company’s power plants provide more than 24,000 megawatts of generation capacity–enough to supply more than 20 million homes. NRG’s retail business, Reliant Energy, serves more than 1.6 million residential, business, commercial and industrial customers in Texas. A past recipient of the energy industry’s highest honors–Platts Industry Leadership and Energy Company of the Year awards, NRG is a member of the U.S. Climate Action Partnership (USCAP), a group of business and environmental organizations calling for mandatory legislation to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. More information is available at www.nrgenergy.com.

NRG Solar is NRG’s subsidiary company responsible for developing, constructing, financing and operating a multi-technology portfolio of solar power assets in North America. Blythe is part of NRG’s solar strategy that also includes plans to construct commercial-scale solar thermal generation at sites in California and New Mexico. The first of these units is anticipated to begin operating as early as 2011.

About First Solar

First Solar manufactures solar modules with an advanced semiconductor technology and provides comprehensive photovoltaic (PV) system solutions. By continually driving down manufacturing costs, First Solar is delivering an economically viable alternative to fossil-fuel generation today. From raw material sourcing through end-of-life collection and recycling, First Solar is focused on creating cost effective, renewable energy solutions that protect and enhance the environment. For more information about First Solar, please visit www.firstsolar.com.

DOE takes Action to Encourage Innovation in Clean Energy Technology

admin — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 12:49:19 +0000

U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu recently outlined the Department’s plans to invest up to $366 million to establish and operate three new Energy Innovation Hubs focused on accelerating research and development in three key energy areas. The Hubs are part of a broad-based clean energy research strategy by the Obama Administration that will harness America’s innovation machine to achieve the breakthroughs we need.

Each Hub, to be funded at up to $122 million over five years, will bring together a multidisciplinary team of researchers in an effort to speed research and shorten the path from scientific discovery to technological development and commercial deployment of highly promising energy-related technologies.

Secretary Chu said;

“Given the urgency of our challenges in both energy and climate, we need to do everything we can to mobilize our Nation’s scientific and technological talent to accelerate the pace of innovation. The DOE Energy Innovation Hubs represent a new, more proactive approach to managing and conducting research. We are taking a page from America’s great industrial laboratories in their heyday. Their achievements—from the transistor to the information theory that makes modern telecommunications possible—are evidence that we can build creative, highly-integrated research teams that can accomplish more, faster, than researchers working separately.”

This strategy includes three new initiatives which are designed to complement each other:

1.The first approach is the Energy Frontier Research Centers launched by the Department’s Office of Science to support multi-year, multi-investigator scientific collaborations focused on overcoming hurdles in basic science that block transformational discoveries.

2.The second approach is spearheaded by the Department’s recently-formed Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (“ARPA-E”), which uses a highly entrepreneurial funding model that supports America’s passionate energy innovators to explore high-risk, high-reward potentially transformative technologies that are too risky for industry to fund.

3.The third novel funding model, Energy Innovation Hubs, will establish larger, highly integrated teams ideally working under one roof, conducting high-risk, high-reward research and working to solve priority technology challenges that span work from basic research to engineering development to commercialization readiness.

The three DOE Energy Innovation Hubs will focus on:

•production of fuels directly from sunlight;

•improving energy-efficient building systems design; and

•computer modeling and simulation for the development of advanced nuclear reactors.

Fuels from Sunlight Energy InnovationHub

The objective of this Hub is to accelerate the development of a sustainable commercial process for the conversion of sunlight directly into energy-rich chemical fuels, likely using mechanisms based on photosynthesis, the method used by plants to convert sunlight, carbon dioxide, and water into sugar. The Fuels from Sunlight Energy Innovation Hub will provide researchers with significant new resources to accelerate basic and applied research in the drive toward a potentially transformative new energy technology. Achievement of an efficient, cost-effective means to convert solar energy directly to fuel could have significant impact on U.S. energy security and on energy production globally.

Modeling and Simulation for Nuclear Reactors Energy Innovation Hub

This Hub is intended to produce a multi-physics computational environment that will be used by engineers to create improved understanding of issues with current and future nuclear energy technologies. The Department’s Office of Nuclear Energy hosted a workshop on the Modeling and Simulation for Nuclear Reactors Energy Innovation Hub on December 7, 2009 to provide an opportunity for those interested in this Hub and its upcoming FOA to fully understand the Hub vision, program objectives, and the procurement process for the establishment and operation of the Hub.

Energy Efficient Building Systems Design Energy Innovation Hub

The objective of the Energy Efficient Building Systems Design Energy Innovation Hub is to develop highly efficient buildings components, systems, and models. Achieving the Hub’s main goal of reducing energy use for indoor space conditioning will require a focus on advances in core technologies, such as advanced refrigeration cycles, as well as on development of fully instrumented infrastructure aided by buildings system design and modeling. Such solutions could have a major impact on national electricity consumption, as the nation’s buildings consume approximately 70 percent of all electric power.

A Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) inviting proposals for the Fuels from Sunlight Energy Innovation Hub has been issued, and a link to the FOA is available at the Energy Innovation Hubs website. The deadline for proposals for the Fuels from Sunlight Energy Innovation Hub is March 29, 2010. Funding opportunity announcements for the other two Energy Innovation Hubs are expected to be issued early next year. The Energy Efficient Building Systems Design Hub will also be the central component of a regional innovation cluster funding opportunity which will include coordinated grant opportunities from other agencies

Universities, national laboratories, nonprofit organizations, and private firms are eligible to compete for an award to establish and operate a Hub and are encouraged to form partnerships. Awards, based on evaluation by scientific peer review, will be announced next summer. The Hubs are expected to begin work in 2010 and will be fully operational by 2011.

Source: D.O.E.

The Department will provide $22 million in the first year for the establishment of each Hub and up to $25 million per year for the following four years to support the operations of each Hub—for a total award of up to $122 million per Hub. Important information on the DOE’s Hub implementation plan and strategy for managing the Hubs can be found on the Energy Innovation Hubs website: http://hubs.energy.gov.

Hydrogen Power Plant Being Built in World Cup Park , Seoul

admin — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 00:36:20 +0000

The Seoul city government will start constructing a hydrogen-fired power plant in World Cup Park in Seoul next May.

The 2.4 mega watt facility will generate electricity with hydrogen extracted from oil and gas. Such a method is considered environmentally friendly for emitting no sulfur oxide and other harmful chemicals.

A “Zero-Energy House,” where solar power and other environmentally friendly energies are used, as well as other power generation facilities using solar power and other “green energy” will be set up in the park. The city plans to promote the area as a landmark for next generation renewable energy.

The city plans to replace 10 percent of its energy consumption with renewable energy by 2020, of which 30 percent will be from hydrogen.

Source: www.Koreatimes.co.kr

Greenland to Increase Share of Renewable Energy through Storage in Hydrogen

admin — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 15:30:53 +0000

The national energy company of Greenland, Nukissiorfiit has started an exciting project, called H2KT that are to enable increase in the use of renewable energy in Greenland. The H2KT-project are to establish a hydrogen and fuel cell plant in Nuuk, the capital of Greenland, in order to demonstrate and gather the first operation experience of using the technology for storage of renewable energy. H2 Logic A/S has been selected as supplier of the plant, after a competitive bid round, with planned start of operation by end of the year.

Global challenges – Local solutions

Lately Greenland have achieved a significant attention in the climate debate, onwards the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen later this year. This is mainly because the effects of climate change are particularly visible in Greenland in terms of the drastic decrease of the ice coverage.

Even though the climate challenges and the effects in Greenland require global solutions Nukissiorfiit has initiated the H2KT project in order to increase the use of clean renewable energy locally. This will also help Greenland to reduce its dependency on polluting and increasingly expensive oil commodities.

The energy situation today

About half of the energy – electricity and heat – that Nukissiorfiit produces today are based on hydro power. The remainder energy is produced using imported diesel fuel. Especially the smaller towns and settlements are dependent on diesel based energy supply, and many of them do not have the possibility to establish hydro power or other types of renewable energy in larger scale. Further diesel energy production is also used as reserve in the cities that are supplied from hydro power today.

Besides the significant emissions from use of diesel, the dependency of imported diesel is a challenge for Greenland in the long term. The considerable rice in oil price in 2008 resulted in an increase of the diesel price in Greenland and thus increased energy costs for the end-users. In long term where the oil will be scarce and expensive this can become a considerable challenge for the energy supply in Greenland.

Better utilization of renewable energy

It is obvious to increase the use of the significant potentials for renewable energy that Greenland holds, among others hydro power. Calculations have shown that Greenland have a theoretical hydro power potential enough to supply 70% of Europe with electricity. However increasing the use of renewable energy requires new technologies and opportunities for storing energy. Storage is needed to balance the seasonal fluctuations in energy consumption and to enable distribution of energy to cities and settlements without local potential for renewable energy production.

Future opportunities in hydrogen

The H2KT-project shall investigate the opportunities of using hydrogen and fuel cells as energy storage in Greenland. The idea is to use electricity in periods of excess hydro power to split water into hydrogen and store this. In periods with higher energy consumption, typically during winter time, the stored hydrogen is concerted to electricity and heat in a fuel cell. In future the hydrogen can also be distributed to cities and settlements where it is not possible to produce renewable energy.

In long term hydrogen and fuel cells may enable Nukissiorfiit to completely avoid use of diesel for energy production. Also hydrogen can be used as fuel for transport and with the tremendous hydro power potential in Greenland, export of hydrogen may also be possible in the future.

Experimental plant

The hydrogen and fuel cell plant that will be established at the Nukissiorfiit headquarter in Nuuk, are to function as an experimental plant giving Nukissiorfiit specific experiences in both production and use of hydrogen. The plant will produce hydrogen based on electricity from the hydro power plant in Nuuk, and the hydrogen will be used for supplying energy for the Nukissiorfiit headquarter. The plant is also to help increase the public awareness of hydrogen and fuel cells in Greenland.

The plant is supplied by H2 Logic and consists of a hydrogen electrolysis system that uses electricity to split water into hydrogen. The hydrogen is then stored for later use in a fuel cell where it is converted to electricity and heat. Waste heat from the hydrogen production and the fuel cell is used for local heating while the electricity is supplied to the grid or used in the Nukissiorfiit headquarter.

The plant also includes a compression and distribution system that enables storing of the hydrogen under pressure in distributable bulks. This way the hydrogen can be distributed to other cities and settlements in Greenland where it can be used for local energy production. The plant is also prepared for a future upgrade with a hydrogen refuelling station, enabling use of hydrogen as fuel for transport.

Cyclone Power Technologies Signs Letter of Intent

admin — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:58:19 +0000

PRESS RELEASE

POMPANO BEACH, FL, Nov. 4, 2009. Cyclone Power Technologies Inc. (Pink Sheets: CYPW) has signed a Letter of Intent with Great Wall Alternative Power Systems Ltd. to advance the development and production of Cyclone’s award-winning heat-regenerative external combustion engine in China.
Under the terms of the Letter of Intent, Great Wall Alternative Power Systems (GWAPS) will invest capital, assets and know-how necessary for a development program aimed at making certain of the Cyclone engine systems ready for production, sales and marketing in China within the next 12 to 24 months. These investments will include: legal and financial structuring, intellectual property protection, recruitment and management of skilled personnel, and securing of facilities, hardware and software for engineering, manufacturing and testing the engine systems.

“Developing our technology for the Chinese market is absolutely necessary for the long term growth and viability of our company,” stated Cyclone COO, Frankie Fruge. “However, it is also a frightening proposition unless we have partners we can trust to establish strong protections for our intellectual property. With the talented principals of Great Wall, we believe we have found this dependable, knowledgeable and highly professional group.”

GWAPS, a company organized in the BVI and located outside of Beijing, plans to commence with the development of beta versions of Cyclone’s 95HP Mark V engine for electric power production, and the company’s biomass-to-power portable generator system. For these rights, GWAPS will pay Cyclone development and licensing fees not disclosed at this time and subject to the execution of a final Technology License Agreement.

“In the middle of a massive multi-decade power rollout, there is intense interest in increasing the efficiency and flexibility of China’s energy systems,” stated Robert Devine, Managing Director of GWAPS. “We believe that Cyclone’s groundbreaking engine technologies will have widespread application in China and a real opportunity for market breakthrough. GWAPS is very pleased to be working together with the Cyclone team on this opportunity.”

Cyclone received a patent in China earlier this year for its external combustion engine. Establishing licensing and joint venture relationships with companies experienced in the countries where Cyclone has secured patent protection is a key component of the company’s business model.

CORPORATE PROFILE
Cyclone Power Technologies is the developer of the award-winning Cyclone Engine – an eco-friendly external combustion engine with the power and versatility to run everything from portable electric generators and garden equipment to cars, trucks and locomotives. Invented by company founder and CEO Harry Schoell, the patented Cyclone Engine is a modern day steam engine, ingeniously designed to achieve high thermal efficiencies through a compact heat-regenerative process, and to run on virtually any fuel – including bio-diesels, syngas or solar – while emitting fewer greenhouse gases and irritating pollutants into the air. Currently in its late stages of development, the Cyclone Engine was recognized by Popular Science Magazine as the Invention of the Year for 2008, and was presented with the Society of Automotive Engineers‘ AEI Tech Award in 2006 and 2008. Additionally, Cyclone was recently named Environmental Business of the Year by the Broward County Environmental Protection Department. For more information, visit www.cyclonepower.com.

Duke Energy and China-Based ENN Group to Build Solar Power Projects in U.S.

admin — Sat, 24 Oct 2009 21:10:49 +0000

China-based ENN Group and Duke Energy will jointly develop commercial solar power projects in the U.S.

Under an agreement signed today, ENN and Duke Energy will concentrate on two types of solar photovoltaic designs: large “utility-scale” solar farms and commercial distributed generation solar projects. Distributed generation systems produce electricity close to where the energy is used, rather than at large, central power plants.

This joint development agreement builds upon a memorandum of understanding announced Sept. 23 at the Clinton Global Initiative’s annual meeting at which time the companies pledged to work together to accelerate the development of low-carbon and clean energy technologies.

“China is investing heavily in clean energy and we can make greater progress in the U.S. by joining forces and working together,” said Duke Energy CEO Jim Rogers. “Duke Energy and ENN seek to not only accelerate the development of solar power in the U.S., but help achieve economies of scale and drive down the cost of renewable energy.”

“ENN and Duke Energy have very complementary strengths,” said ENN Chairman Wang Yusuo. “We are both dedicated to the development and use of low-carbon, clean energy sources to combat the climate change crisis facing all humanity.”

Duke Energy Generation Services (DEGS), a commercial business unit of Duke Energy, will team with ENN to develop, own and operate the solar projects.

The joint development agreement will expand DEGS’ existing investments in renewable energy – including wind and biopower – and commercial transmission. DEGS owns and operates more than 630 megawatts (MW) of wind power projects in the U.S. and plans to add another 350 MW by the end of 2010. In the biopower market, DEGS is developing wood-waste-to-electricity power plants in the U.S through ADAGE, the company it formed in 2008 with French-based AREVA.

Keith Trent, president and group executive of Duke Energy’s Commercial Businesses, and Wouter van Kempen, president of DEGS, joined ENN Chairman Wang Yusuo and Vice Chairman and Chief Scientist Gan Zhongxue in Langfang for the signing of the agreement.

About ENN:

ENN is committed to clean energy for China and the world. Since its founding 20 years ago, ENN has grown into an integrated group of companies that delivers clean energy to tens of millions of customers and provides overall clean energy solutions to city governments and heavy industry. ENN has more than 100 subsidiaries in over 80 cities across China and around the world, and employs more than 24,000 people.

ENN Solar Energy is an international company that produces world-leading silicon thin film solar modules. It has also created an innovative system of integrated solar power stations.

Additional information about ENN is available on the Internet at: http://www.enn.cn/en/index/index.html.

About Duke Energy Generation Services:

Duke Energy Generation Services (DEGS), part of Duke Energy’s Commercial Businesses, is a leader in developing innovative renewable energy solutions, including wind, solar and biopower projects. DEGS builds, owns and operates electric generation for large energy consumers, municipalities, utilities and industrial facilities. DEGS is also working to build commercial transmission capacity to help the U.S. meet its energy needs of the future.

Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune 500 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available on the Internet at: www.duke-energy.com

Largest Solar Energy Plant with 90,000 Solar Panels is Ready to Go.

admin — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 13:52:57 +0000

JUNO BEACH, Fla. – Florida Power & Light Company announced today that it expects the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center in Arcadia, Fla., to begin delivering electricity to customers later this month – ahead of schedule.

The facility will overtake Nevada’s Nellis Solar Power Plant for the title of largest solar photovoltaic solar facility in the nation and in North America. Constructed in less than a year, the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center uses over 90,000 photovoltaic panels to turn the sun’s rays into electricity to power more than 3,000 homes.

The DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center is one of three new commercial-scale, renewable, solar power plants FPL is building in Florida, along with solar energy centers in Martin County and at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center. Together, these will total 110 megawatts of capacity by the end of 2010 and are expected to make Florida the second largest solar power-producing state in the country.

“Large-scale solar projects such as FPL’s DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center provide Florida with the opportunity to create and attract more clean-energy jobs and produce millions of dollars in new revenue for local governments while reducing greenhouse gas emissions and fighting the effects of climate change,” said FPL Vice President and Chief Development Officer Eric Silagy. “FPL is proud to lead the development of clean, renewable solar energy in Florida, and we are positioned to build even more over the next two to three years if the state’s legislative and regulatory leaders continue to support solar energy.”

Over the past year, the facility benefited the local economy in DeSoto County by creating more than 400 jobs during construction. The county will also receive annual tax revenues that will amount to $2 million for schools and other local services by the end of next year.

Solar photovoltaic power also provides significant environmental benefits because the facility consumes no fuel, uses no water and produces no waste. Over the life of the facility, the DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center will avoid the release of more than 575,000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere, which is equivalent to taking more than 4,500 cars off the road every year, according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. In addition, the electricity generated by this facility will reduce the use of fossil fuels in Florida by more than 277,000 barrels of oil and 7 billion cubic feet of natural gas.

For more information about FPL’s Next Generation Solar Energy Centers, visit www.FPL.com/solar.