Japan’s plan to supply all the world’s energy from a giant solar power plant on the moon
by todd woody

Shimizu, a Japanese architectural and engineering firm, has a solution for the climate crisis: Simply build a band of solar panels 400 kilometers (249 miles) wide (pdf) running all the way around the Moon’s 11,000-kilometer (6,835 mile) equator and beam the carbon-free energy back to Earth in the form of microwaves, which are converted into electricity at ground stations.

That means mining construction materials on the Moon and setting up factories to make the solar panels. “Robots will perform various tasks on the lunar surface, including ground leveling and excavation of hard bottom strata,” according to Shimizu, which is known for a series of far-fetched “dream projects” including pyramid cities and a space hotel. The company proposes to start building the Luna Ring in 2035. “Machines and equipment from the Earth will be assembled in space and landed on the lunar surface for installation,” says the proposal.

If that sounds like a sci-fi fantasy—and fantastically expensive—it’s not completely crazy. California regulators, for instance, in 2009 approved a contract that utility Pacific Gas & Electric signed to buy 200 megawatts of electricity from an orbiting solar power plant to be built by a Los Angeles area startup called Solaren. The space-based photovoltaic farm would consist of a kilometer-wide inflatable Mylar mirror that would concentrate the sun’s rays on a smaller mirror, which would in turn focus the sunlight on to high-efficiency solar panels. These would generate electricity, which would be converted into radio frequency waves, transmitted to a giant ground station near Fresno, California, and then converted back into electricity. continued…

first published week of:   12/09/2013

JCP&L to Invest $200 Million in 2013 to Enhance Customer Service Reliability

As part of its ongoing efforts to improve customer service reliability, Jersey Central Power & Light (JCP&L) has announced plans to invest nearly $200 million in 2013 to expand and strengthen its existing infrastructure in northern and central New Jersey, and continue rebuilding efforts in communities damaged by Hurricane Sandy.

Under the company's service reliability program, major projects scheduled for this year include completing a new substation, building new circuits, replacing underground cables, inspecting and replacing utility poles and ongoing vegetation management programs.

“In addition to the $200 million we invested last year and the hundreds of millions spent on JCP&L's infrastructure during the Hurricane Sandy restoration effort, we are making a substantial investment this year to continue to improve the quality of service we provide our customers,” said Don Lynch, president of JCP&L. “These infrastructure investments are designed to improve day-to-day service reliability now, along with ensuring our system is ready for future load growth.”

Details Here

first published week of:   03/04/2013

JP Morgan Chase may have stolen from California electricity users
by etc...

Remember when bank robbery meant someone was robbing the bank?  These days, it generally means the banksters are robbing the public.

Theft o’ the day? A JP Morgan subsidiary is being investigated for gaming the California electricity market, Enron-style.  Here, America’s media watchdogs point out (back in early July) that getting caught stealing can be bad publicity: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-07-03/jpmorgan-probed-over-potential-power-market-manipulation-1-.html  Listen to Bloomberg news quoting someone expressing concern:

“He’s got a PR nightmare in front of him,” said Paul Miller, a former examiner for the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphiaand analyst at FBR Capital Markets in Arlington, Virginia. “It’s another headline risk, which means more regulators, which means over-regulation, which will eventually hit their bottom line.”

See, this is how “over-regulation” happens.  First you steal, then you hide, then you get caught, and then those accursed regulators over regulate.  Before you know it, it’s harder to make money by stealing. continued…

first published week of:   08/05/2013

Lawmakers push to overhaul Ohio's energy standards
by andrew j tobias

A bill will be coming soon to overhaul Ohio’s standards for renewable energy and energy efficiency, according to a state lawmaker leading hearings on the issue.

Hearings on Ohio’s 2008 energy law that requires power companies to produce 12.5 percent of their energy from renewable sources such as wind, hydroelectric and solar panels by 2025, wrapped up last week. The law also requires similar investments in advanced energy sources such as nuclear technology and clean coal, and for power companies to cut electricity use through efficiency programs.

Sen. Bill Seitz, R-Cincinnati, said he hopes to introduce a bill overhauling the 2008 law as soon as the end of the month. continued…

first published week of:   05/13/2013

Louisiana House committee votes to phase out solar energy tax credits
by lauren mcgaughy, NOLA.com

Louisianians receiving solar energy tax credits could see those incentives phased out under a bill passed in committee Monday. The legislation was introduced as the state's clean energy tax credits are coming under increased scrutiny due to a ballooning price tag and questions from the state's power companies.

"(Wind and solar energy) systems will become more affordable over time. And therefore the discount, or the rebate reduction, won't really be realized because the cost of systems are really coming down as more people put them in," bill sponsor Rep. Erich Ponti, R-Baton Rouge, told the committee. continued…

first published week of:   05/13/2013

Major Solar Energy Project in Riverside County Could Be Doomed
by chris clarke

The California Energy Commission (CEC) is likely to deny approval to a major Riverside County solar power project that has been criticized for posing an unacceptable risk to birds and other wildlife.

In a proposed decision posted on the CEC's website Friday afternoon, Commissioner Karen Douglas -- who presided over the CEC's assessment of the proposed Palen Solar Electric Generating System (PSEGS) -- proposed that the CEC refuse to amend a permit that Palen Solar Holdings would require in order to build its proposed on 3,800 acres of land in the Chuckwalla Valley west of Blythe.

In the document, technically referred to as a Presiding Member's Proposed Decision (PMPD), Douglas cites mounting evidence of harm to wildlife from the Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System south of Las Vegas, which has a similar though smaller design to that proposed for PSEGS, as reason to deny the project's permit amendment. continued…

first published week of:   12/16/2013

Merced Irrigation District Chooses Milsoft Engineering Analysis

The Merced Irrigation District in California has purchased Milsoft Engineering Analysis (EA).

Milsoft EA is used by nearly 1,000 electric utilities, consultants, universities, research labs and others to model electric distribution networks for planning, analysis and operations. The extremely sophisticated but easy-to-use software has been helping utilities for more than 25 years to increase employee productivity, service reliability and operational efficiency as well as to ensure the most economical system improvements and additions. The software is unparalleled in detail, accuracy and versatility, and Milsoft’s excellence in customer support is legendary. continued…

first published week of:   10/21/2013

Missouri Environmental Groups Sue Utilities For Disobeying Renewable Energy Compliance Laws
by chelsea

Missouri environmental watchdogs are taking Missouri utilities companies to task over failure to increase power coming from renewables, as was approved by voters on a 2008 ballot initiative. Renew Missouri and Great Rivers Environmental Law Center (on behalf of seven other groups) are suing Ameren Missouri and Empire District Electric Company for about $100 million in noncompliance fines.

Renew Missouri and Great Rivers Environmental Law Center (GRELC) are calling for the enforcement of Missouri’s renewable energy standard, which requires investor-owned utilities to have 15% of they power coming from renewable by 2021, meeting annual minimum benchmarks along the way.

Renew Missouri says the $100 million fines would not affect ratepayers.

first published week of:   02/04/2013

Missouri utility to sign PV power deal with Strata Solar
by  ian clover

City Utilities is close to signing a contract to purchase electricity from a forthcoming 5 MW solar farm in eastern Greene County, Missouri, said to be the biggest in the state.

City Utilities, based in Springfield, Missouri, has announced that it is close to striking a deal to purchase solar power from the state’s largest solar energy farm – a 5 MW plant from Strata Solar that is due to open in Spring 2014.

The 40 acre site is located in eastern Greene County, close to City Utilities’ McCartney natural gas turbine between Springfield and Strafford.

"I think this is exciting for us," said Cara Shaefer, City Utilities’ director of energy management and conservation. "This is exciting for all of our customers too, to be part of this ground-breaking initiative where we’re going to have the largest solar power system in the state of Missouri." continued…

first published week of:   10/14/2013

most important chart in energy
by salim khan, ceo of stem

There’s a chart you’ve never heard of that perfectly represents how inefficient the power grid is and how much we need more distributed energy solutions. Agencies responsible for the reliability of the grid, including the California System Independent System Operator (CAISO), use what are called Load Duration Curves, or LDCs, to plan investments and monitor efficiency. The area under the LDC (see image below) represents the energy demanded by the system and the curve illustrates the relationship between energy use and generating capacity needs.

In order to meet California’s peak load in 2011, CAISO had to secure the equivalent energy of 20 nuclear power plants. This level of energy represents what is needed to serve peak capacity rather than average capacity. On most days, California’s electricity demand ranges between about 23,000 MW and 36,000 MW. In 2011, California demand exceeded 40,000 MW for only 0.8 percent of the year, or about 70 hours total (for reference, California hit an all-time for peak energy usage, reaching a total load of 50,270 MW in July, 2006).

Without transforming the power system to include energy storage and other distributed energy technologies, we have to build and maintain enough power plants to meet peak demand in real-time. Utilities will have to build additional generation assets, leading to increased generation investment while using this capacity for very few hours of the year.

... According to the Energy Information Administration, our national capacity factor, or the amount we actually generate vs. the amount we are capable of generating, is at or less than 40 percent. Most hours of the year, a massive fleet of generators sits cold and idle, not providing power to customers or earning revenue for their owners. Even idle, these plants require upgrades and maintenance to stay current.

With the problem of low asset utilization, the more optimal solution may lie on a micro- and not a macro- scale.  Many influential organizations, as varied as the Rocky Mountain Institute and the United States Military, are realizing the promise of smaller scale distributed energy generation and electricity storage as a way to combat the exact discrepancies that the LDC highlights.

Details Here

first published week of:   02/11/2013