Tag: news

The largest utility-scale solar PV power plant yet constructed in Japan, the 82 MW Oita Solar Project, is now online. Commercial operations at the plant are now ongoing, helping to notably boost the country’s, and region’s, renewable energy capacity. The new, nearly 100 MW solar plant is located in southern Japan, in Oita City, and was constructed by the noted

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The roots of energy independence lie in the energy crises of the 1970s. US oil production peaked in 1970, and we became increasingly dependent on oil imported from the Middle East. In response to US support for Israel, OPEC cut production and doubled prices in 1973 and again in 1979. The economy stagnated for most of the decade, and Americans

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Siemens is challenging General Electric’s bid to buy Alstom, setting up a trans-Atlantic power struggle that could create a new supergiant in smart grid technology, or be scuttled by regulatory and political pressure. That’s the latest update from Paris, where talks over the fate of the French power, train and grid giant were disrupted by Siemens’ offer of a cash

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Significant cost cuts in niche areas are still possible that could bring utility-scale solar down to $1.35 per watt, according to a panel of industry experts at the recent GTM Solar Summit. Five to ten years out, inverter and tracker technologies will have significant impacts on balance-of-system costs, according to E3 International Engineering VP John Schroeder. But for now, perceived

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California issued a storage mandate and settled its net metering debate last year. Texas is in the process of overhauling its ancillary services market. Minnesota has set a value-of-solar tariff. But all of that is small potatoes compared to the market transformation for electric distribution utilities that New York just announced. New York’s Governor Andrew Cuomo has asked his public

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New-build wind and solar energy systems can generate electricity for up to 50 per cent cheaper than new nuclear power plants, a German study has found. The research, commissioned by German think tank Agora Energiewende, compares feed-in tariffs for new nuclear in the UK with FiTs for renewables in Germany, and finds that nuclear and carbon capture and storage (CSS)

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Linear Technology Corporation introduces the LTC2933 programmable voltage supervisor with built-in EEPROM for simultaneous, accurate monitoring of up to six voltage rails from 0.2V to 13.9V. Requiring no external resistors to set thresholds, the LTC2933 provides an I²C/SMBus interface to access onboard EEPROM, so users can quickly configure the device and review faults or violation history through the easy-to-use LTpowerPlay™

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Engineering researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed a new type of rechargeable lithium battery with components made entirely of carbon. Unlike the lithium-ion batteries currently sold around the world to power smart phones, laptops, and countless other devices, this new battery is made without the toxic metal cobalt. The new technology, detailed in a research paper published this week

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Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) reported first-quarter revenue of $2.98 billion, net income of $487 million and earnings per share (EPS) of 44 cents. Those results represent a 3% increase in revenue from $2.88 billion in the first-quarter of 2013, an increase of 35% in net income from $362 million in Q1 of 2013 and an increase of 38% in EPS

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WATT Fuel Cell Corp. announced its purchase of tubular SOFC developer Pittsburgh Electric Engines, Inc. (PEEI). The acquisition makes PEEI a wholly-owned subsidiary of WATT and facilitates combining both companies’ fuel cell technologies and personnel into a single entity. WATT is a developer of SOFC systems that will operate on many readily available hydrocarbon fuels such as natural gas, propane,

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