Canadian Solar Inc. on October 2nd, 2011 announced that the Company supplied its high quality solar photovoltaic (PV) modules for Germany’s largest solar power plant.
Built by GP JOULE GmbH the open-space solar power plant has a specified output of 70 MW and occupies a 152 hectare surface in the Southern Brandenburg region of Eastern Germany.
The nimbys are mutating. Until recently the main opposition to renewable energy in the UK was directed against onshore wind turbines, along with some strong pylon-hating.
But today’s Times reveals the existence of solar farm nimbys too. You may not be able to read that story, it’s behind a paywall, but luckily it’s a pretty shameless replica of a story from the Daily Mail on Friday. It even has the same nimby, Robin Smith, who says his view of Somerset Levels has been spoiled, using exactly the same words: “It is blanket desecration of the countryside. I feel very sad that it is just for people lining their coffers.”
GE Energy Financial Services, in collaboration with US thin-film producer First Solar and state-owned firm Verve Energy announced their new plans for Australia’s “green energy” future. As the companies claim, a new giant solar project is under way.
The solar farm that the companies want to build is ten times larger than any yet built in the country. It will provide electricity for a desalination plant in Western Australia, which has a mandate to use the energy obtained from renewable sources for all new desalination projects.
Portland General Electric (PGE, Portland, Oregon, U.S.) and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) broke ground on a 1.75 solar photovoltaic (PV) plant at a rest area on a federal highway near Wilsonville, Oregon, United States.
The ODOT is describing the USD 10 million project at the Baldock Safety Rest Area on Interstate 5 as the nation’s largest solar highway project.
Gemasolar, the world’s first commercial high-temperature solar power plant, is expected to be able to supply energy to the grid based on demand, regardless of whether there is constant solar radiation
In an announcement that underscored the growing shift from concentrating solar power (CSP) technology to photovoltaics, especially in the United States, Solar Millennium announced that it would convert its 500-megawatt (MW) project in Blythe, Calif. to PV.
In a press release Thursday, U.S. subsidiary Solar Trust of America, cited the lower cost of PV modules and more favorable lending conditions for the shift in technology.
Construction has already begun on the first phase of the project. When completed, the two-phase project will be 1,000 MW – far larger than any current operating site.
The South African Department of Energy (DoE) has opened competitive solicitation process for renewable energy development, including 200 MW of concentrating solar power (CSP) and 1.45 GW of solar photovoltaics (PV).
The program will also solicit 100 MW from projects 1-5 MW in size, which can be PV, wind, biomass or biogas. It will not use the renewable energy feed-in tariff (Refit) published by the National Energy Regulator of South Africa in 2009.
“The abandonment of the Refit has raised anxiety levels among potential developers, which warned that the absence of a predetermined tariff would raise the risks associated with the roll-out of renewables projects in South Africa,” stated the South African Alternative Energy Association.
Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar has just approved the Desert Sunlight Solar Farm, a 550-megawatt (MW) solar power project to be built in the California desert east of Palm Springs. The solar-photovoltaic facility will create more than 630 jobs at peak construction and infuse an estimated $336 million into the local economy. When built, Desert Sunlight will generate enough energy to power over 165,000 homes.
“The Desert Sunlight Solar Farm is the largest photovoltaic facility Interior has approved thus far and, when built, will help power our nation and economy,” Secretary Salazar said. “With 12 large-scale solar projects approved in the last 18 months, we continue to make significant strides in spurring innovation, job-creation, and investment in the private sector while strengthening America’s energy security.”
Etrion Corporation (Geneva, Switzerland) released its financial results for the second quarter of 2011, reporting USD 17.8 million in revenues and a net loss of USD 2.1 million.
The company also reports that it generated 29.3 million kWh of electricity from its five solar photovoltaic (PV) plants during the quarter, more than double its first quarter 2010 sales.
“With a fully-funded solar portfolio of 60 MW, Etrion has substantial revenues and cash flows from operations,” stated Etrion CEO Marco Northland. “Our solar parks have been producing almost 10% above budget, and we look forward to increasing cash flow as we add additional capacity.”
The U.S. Army wants you, private investors, to install large-scale renewable energy projects on its lands to meet a goal of drawing 25% of electricity from clean sources by 2025.
“(It’s) the right thing to do for the environment – certainly in this age of diminishing resources the right thing to do for the federal taxpayers and, most importantly, the right thing to do for our soldiers,” Secretary of the Army John McHugh said during a media call at the GovEnergy conference.
On Wednesday, McHugh announced that the Army will open an Energy Initiatives Office (EIO) Task Force on Sept. 15 to serve as a “one-stop shop” for the private sector to find opportunities for partnerships in a variety of renewable energy projects. Unsolicited proposals are welcome.
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