Clean Tech Industry at a Crossroads

Manish Bapna, President of the World Resource Institute, wrote a piece for Forbes about the clean tech industry and the critical crossroads it faces today. The wind and solar industries have experienced strong growth over the past decade. Both wind and solar are even close to cost competitiveness with fossil fuels in many parts of the world.  For instance, according to the McKinsey & Co industry analysis, solar PV deployment could increase 50-fold by 2020, rivaling the rate of natural gas growth. And yet, the industry is still in its infancy, and just like the fossil fuel industry before it, still depends on government engagement to reach maturity.

Yet, as renewable energy becomes a talking point in an election year, the very subsidies that helped the clean tech industry get this far are being threatened and the industry itself is feeling the effects. As Bapna puts it "these policy shifts risk stalling progress toward cost competitiveness at the 11th hour." It would be a shame for us to miss out on the potential jobs, economic growth, and sustainable energy production because of a lack of foresight and patience. Fossil fuels have benefited from a century of government subsidies, why not see what the clean tech industry can do with even just a fraction of that support?! Read all of Bapna's piece to see who is still investing and what can be done to help the clean tech industry reach maturity.  

Michigan SREC market- dead or alive?

Although Michigan does not have it's own viable SREC market, current solar energy producers can sell credits to neighboring  markets, like Ohio. But some Michigan policy makers are tired of being left out of this green growth potential. New legislation has been proposed that would require Michigan energy providers to produce a quarter of their electricity from sources such as wind and solar, an increase from its current nominal 10%.

Unfortunately, influential groups like the Detroit Regional Chamber of Commerce, have chosen to disregard the economic benefits of a SREC market, and have officially opposed the 25% renewable energy mandate. The Chamber chose the first day of its annual three day policy conference to make its announcement of opposition. Ironically this year the focus of the conference  is to discuss how innovation can drive economic development. 

Read more about both the proponents and opposition reasons in this Detroit News article by Karen Bouffard.

Eradication Darkness

SunEdison has announced a rural electrification program called Eradication Darkness. Eradication Darkness will design, install, and manage distributed-generation solar power plants for Indian villages that have never had access to electricity.  The pilot project for this plan, the Merrwada project, installed a 14 kilowatt solar energy plant supplying electricity to 400 villagers.

The program will be implemented in phases.  The next phase will also serve to test an develop a successful business model that will facilitate rural electrification globally.  Twenty-nine villages in the Guna District have been identified for the next phase of the initiative. Financing is expected to be provided by a combination of government grants and private funds from investors and corporations. Financial and other partners are currently being sought for the next phase. Read more about SunEdison's work and project Eradication Darkness here.

Ghana to host international renewable conference

The "first international conference dedicated to off-grid renewables" to be held in October 2012 in Ghana. The event is being organized by the Alliance for Rural Electrification (ARE), the ECOWAS Regional Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency and the International Renewable Energy Agency. The event will be considered an official contribution to the UN Sustainable Energy for All Initiative.

The event will focus specifically on rural electrification in developing countries, and experts including the Director General of IRENA and African Energy Ministers will be among the attendees.  Read more preliminary details in the announcement here.  More details will be released shortly y the ARE.

Farmers Embrace Renewable Energy

One in five farmers in England and Wales will be producing clean energy by this summer. One in six farmers will be using solar photovoltaic equipment on their farm, and one in eight will be using energy directly from a renewable source.

These findings and more were released by NFU and NatWest in a recent study of renewable energy use in the UK. The UK has set a goal of producing 15% of energy from renewables by 2020, and as Ian Burrow, the head of agriculture and renewable energy at NatWest said,  the study results show "how the farming industry is playing a key role in helping the UK meet its target."

The survey also found that connectivity, permitting and financing were still barriers to accessing renewable energy. These are important things to keep in mind for any country attempting to reach renewable energy targets. Demand can't do it alone, public policy will play a major factor in facilitating clean technology use.  Read Jonathan Riley's article in Farmers Weekly.

Multi-tasking Solar PV Systems

The Southern California Gas Company is currently testing a new solar photovoltaic technology that produces energy for the building but also serves as an air conditioner at the same time. Instead of using electricity, or natural gas, the air conditioning system uses hot water pumped out by the solar PV system.

The dual system was developed by Cogenra Solar and uses a combination of mirrors and a computerized tracking system to capture sunlight and focus energy onto an system of collectors.

The Cogenra system provides 10 tons of cooling, and serves as an example of how clean energy technology can be incorporated into traditional infrastructure to save money and the environment. Read more about this new technology in Nancy Rivera Brooks' article in the LA times.

South Pacific aims for energy independence

Recently at a conference organized by the UN, 20 small island nations from the South Pacific announced plans to reduce their dependence on fossil fuels. Samoa and Tuvalu are aiming to be energy independent by 2020, Timor Leste aims to have 50% of their energy from renewable sources by that same time.  The Cook Islands plan to convert to solar panels and wind turbines.

Tokelau, however, is the first to take the plunge. Officials say that by the end of 2012, a hybrid system of solar energy and coconut oil will ultimately supply enough power for every resident.

Read all about it in Phil Mercer's article "Pacific Islands Aiming for Energy Self- Sufficiency" in the Voice of America.

Coalition to protect domestic market

A coalition of more than 200 solar manufacturing companies is currently pushing for more government protection against Chinese solar companies. The coalition employs about 17,000 workers across America, and includes installers, integrators and distributors. They believe that Chinese companies are dumping solar products on the US market at artificially low prices in order to drive out US manufacturers. The US International Trade Commission recently issued a unanimous preliminary ruling that the Chinese trade practices are injuring the domestic manufacturing industry.

On May 17th, the US Department of Commerce will determine the extent at which these business practices have affected the US market, and at what percentage margins. The margins will then be used to determine duties on imports of Chinese solar products to offset the unfair business practices.  You can read more about the effort in this article from Market Watch. (disclaimer the article was released by the Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing)

Tennessee examines impact of government on solar market

The University of Tennessee's Baker Center for Public Policy analyzed the impacts of the solar industry in the U.S. According to their analysis, a domestic solar market could produce anywhere between 240,000 and 965,000 direct or indirect jobs by 2030. Including an export business in that model could add up to 67,700 more jobs to that estimate. Read the full paper online here.  

An interesting point brought up by the researchers at the Baker Center, is the similarities between the solar energy trajectory and that of more traditional energy sources, like oil, gas or coal. The much politicized incentives to encourage innovation and early adoption of clean energy are no different than the market control measures for oil, and pipeline development for natural gas distribution. In fact, even though oil, gas and coal, by no means in early stages and so are considered mature sources, are still receiving subsidies and government assistance. This is an important similarity that is often conveniently left out of the solar vs. traditional energy debate. 

Along this same theme, the Baker Center hosted former New Jersey Governor, and former Director of the Environmental Protection Agency, Christine Todd Whitman to discuss the impact of partisanship on climate policy. The event titled, The Need for Climate Change in Washington: How Hyper-Partisanship has paralyzed Policymaking" can be watched online here.