ACI Smart Metering Summit 2013

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES) are delighted to announce ACI's Smart Metering Summit  that will take place in Valletta, Malta on the 20th and 21st of November. Join us for two days of informative and engaging talks that will bring together key industry stakeholders from the utilities industry, TSOs, DNOs, energy retailers, meter suppliers, NGOs, aggregators as well as technology providers to examine demand response & ancillary services and applications for future intelligent networks.    KEY TOPICS WILL INCLUDE:   Market Update & Rollout Outlook Policy & Regulatory Status Economies of Scale for Smart Meters Promoting Benefits to Consumer Acceptance Case Studies: Smart Meter Rollout Technology Challenges: Demand Response Data Management & Analytics Cyber Security & ReliabilityGrid Balancing & Energy Efficiency For a first draft of the agenda please click below: Alternatively request the brochure >> and we will send you a copy by email. HOST CITY: VALLETTA BROUGHT TO YOU BY Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES) & ACI Europe, 5/13 Great Suffolk Street, SE1 0NS London   EARLY BIRD DISCOUNT 20% OFFAvailable only till 31st July 2013Sign up now and pay only £1,195 (ex vat)instead of £1,495 (ex vat)    3 EASY WAYS TO REGISTER   +48 61 646 9780 agrabowska@acieu.co.uk Online Registration >>           SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES By exhibiting during ACI’s Smart Metering Summit you optimize your visibility and generate extensive brand awareness. We provide a great networking platform for decision makers and professionals. For information on available sponsorship and exhibiting opportunities contact:  Mark Thomas >>  +44 (0)20 7981 2509   SPEAKING OPPORTUNITIES If you would like to be considered as a speaker for ACI's Smart Metering Summit 2013 please let us know. Speaking slots are 30-45 minutes in duration. Contact : Johnnie Boateng>>  +44 (0)20 7981 2508   MEDIA PARTNERSHIPS If you would like to become a Media Partner for this event contact: Alicja Grabowska >>  + 48 61 646 9780

Do not miss out on the event of the year! Spaces are strictly limited. Reserve your seat now >> Forward to a Friend >> Unsubscribe >>

News and Events by CCRES February 09, 2013

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources  News and Events February 09, 2013

Thirteen Major Companies Join Energy Department's Charging Challenge   The Energy Department announced on January 31 that 13 major U.S. employers and eight stakeholder groups have joined the new Workplace Charging Challenge to help expand access to workplace charging stations across the country. The Workplace Charging Challenge is a collaborative effort to increase the number of U.S. employers offering workplace charging by tenfold in the next five years. The first 13 employers have signed the Workplace Charging Pledge as partners, including 3M, the Chrysler Group, Duke Energy, Eli Lilly and Company, the Ford Motor Company, General Electric, General Motors, Google, Nissan, the San Diego Gas & Electric Company, Siemens, Tesla Motors, and Verizon. The pledge commits each partner organization to assess workforce charging demands for plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) and to develop and implement a plan to install workplace charging infrastructure for at least one major worksite location. Eight stakeholder organizations also have signed the Ambassador Pledge to develop and execute plans to support and promote the workplace charging initiative, including: the California PEV Collaborative, CALSTART, the Electric Drive Transportation Association, the Electrification Coalition, the International Parking Institute, NextEnergy, Plug In America, and the Rocky Mountain Institute. The Energy Department will provide technical assistance and establish a forum for partners and ambassadors to share information. The Workplace Charging Challenge supports the broader efforts of the Department's EV Everywhere Grand Challenge, announced by President Obama in March 2012, to make PEVs as affordable and convenient for American families as gasoline-powered vehicles within the next 10 years. As part of the announcement, the Department released the EV Everywhere Grand Challenge Blueprint, which describes PEV technology and deployment barriers, as well as steps to move forward in achieving the EV Everywhere goal. See the Energy Department press release and the EV Everywhere Grand Challenge Blueprint and webpage.   Energy Department Invests $9 Million in Data-Driven SunShot Projects   The Energy Department announced on January 30 its selection of seven data-driven projects to unearth new opportunities for reducing solar energy costs and accelerating solar energy deployment in the United States. The Department will invest about $9 million in the seven projects, located in six states: California, Colorado, Connecticut, Massachusetts, North Carolina, and Texas. The projects are part of the SunShot Initiative, a collaborative national effort to make solar energy cost-competitive with other forms of energy by the end of the decade. For four of the projects, the Energy Department will provide $7 million to research teams led by Sandia National Laboratories, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Yale University, and the University of Texas – Austin (UT-Austin). These teams will partner with public and private financial institutions, utilities, and state agencies to apply statistical and computational tools to solve industry problems and lead regional pilot projects across the country to test the impact and scalability of their innovations. For example, Yale University researchers will partner with SmartPower's New England Solar Challenge to design and implement innovative strategies that can increase the effectiveness of community-led bulk purchase programs for solar power. The team from the UT-Austin will work with complex datasets from six Texas utilities to better understand customer needs and identify opportunities to streamline installation and interconnection. Similarly, NREL will develop a computational model to analyze data from a network of U.S. solar installers and help identify new types of community- and regional-scale strategies to drive down financing and deployment costs. The Department will also invest $2 million in three projects led by the University of North Carolina – Charlotte (UNC Charlotte), the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and SRI International to analyze decades of scientific publications, patents, and cost and production data. SRI International will develop advanced software that reads and analyzes thousands of scientific publications and patents to discover new ways to speed solar energy technology innovation and commercialization. Meanwhile, MIT and UNC Charlotte will apply computational tools to patent, cost, and production data to speed up solar technology cost reductions and better forecast future cost reductions for new energy technologies. See the Energy Department press release and the full list of projects.   AWEA: Wind Power Leads New U.S. Generating Capacity in 2012   The U.S. wind energy industry had its strongest year ever in 2012, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) announced on January 30. The industry installed a record 13,124 megawatts (MW) of U.S. electric generating capacity last year, achieving over 60,000 MW of cumulative wind capacity, enough to power almost 15 million homes. The annual total far surpasses the previous record of 10,000 MW installed in 2010. For the first time, wind energy became the number one source of new U.S. electric generating capacity, providing 42% of all new generating capacity. In last year's fourth quarter alone, 8,380 MW were installed, making it the strongest quarter in U.S. wind power history. AWEA noted that this was due in large part to impending expiration of the federal Production Tax Credit. It was slated to end on December 31, 2012, but was extended by Congress as part of the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012. The top 10 states for new capacity installations in 2012, in order, were Texas (1,826 MW), California (1,656 MW), Kansas (1,440 MW), Oklahoma (1,127 MW), Illinois (823 MW), Iowa (814 MW), Oregon (640 MW), Michigan (611 MW), Pennsylvania (550 MW), and Colorado (496 MW). The Golden State regained its position as the second largest state in installed wind capacity, surpassing Iowa, which had been number two since 2008. California achieved the 5,000-MW milestone in wind capacity, following Texas, and alongside Iowa. See the AWEA press release.   DOE Announces New Funding to Develop Biomass Supply Chain Technologies   The Energy Department on January 28 announced about $6 million for projects that will develop and demonstrate supply-chain technologies to affordably deliver commercial-scale lignocellulosic biomass feedstocks such as woody plant tissue to biorefineries across the country. This funding will help accelerate the development of integrated, cost-effective supply-chain systems that reduce time and costs to produce biofuels for cars, trucks, and airplanes. The Department will make available about $6 million this year for one to two multi-year projects. All selected projects will require a cost share contribution by the grant recipient, including 20% for research and development activities and 50% for demonstration activities. See the Energy Department Progress Alert and the full funding announcement.   Energy Department Expands Technical Assistance for Tribal Energy Projects   The Energy Department on January 30 announced the second round of the Strategic Technical Assistance Response Team (START) Program, which provides federally recognized Tribal governments with technical assistance to accelerate clean energy project deployment. Additionally, the Energy Department plans to seek information from tribes interested in launching or expanding utility services in their own communities, which will help establish a new START Utility Program (START-UP). Additional details on this effort will be available on the Office of Indian Energy website in the coming weeks. Over the past year, the START program has helped nine Tribal communities advance their clean energy technology and infrastructure projects, from solar and wind to biofuels and energy efficiency. The second round of technical assistance awards will build upon the initial successes of the START program and further help Native American and Alaska Native communities increase local generation capacity, enhance energy-efficiency measures, and create local entrepreneurial and job opportunities. In the contiguous United States, Energy Department and national laboratory experts will provide technical assistance on tribes' clean energy project development. In Alaska, the Energy Department and the Denali Commission will help rural Alaska Native communities conduct energy awareness and training programs and pursue new renewable energy and energy efficiency opportunities. Applications are due by March 15, 2013. See the Energy Department press release and the Office of Indian Energy Policy and Programs webpage.

CROATIAN CENTER of RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES (CCRES)   special thanks to U.S. Department of Energy | USA.gov

Letter from Secretary Steven Chu to Energy Department Employees Announces His Decision Not to Serve a Second Term   In a letter to Energy Department employees on February 1, Energy Secretary Steven Chu highlighted the tremendous progress of the last four years and announced his decision to not serve a second term as Secretary. Text of the letter is below. Dear Colleagues: Serving the country as Secretary of Energy, and working alongside such an extraordinary team of people at the Department, has been the greatest privilege of my life. While the job has had many challenges, it has been an exciting time for the Department, the country, and for me personally. I’ve always been inspired by Dr. Martin Luther King, who articulated his Dream of an America where people are judged not by skin color but “by the content of their character.” In the scientific world, people are judged by the content of their ideas. Advances are made with new insights, but the final arbitrator of any point of view are experiments that seek the unbiased truth, not information cherry picked to support a particular point of view. The power of our work is derived from this foundation. For the rest of Secretary Chu's letter, see the Energy Blog. Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)

News and Events by CCRES November 09, 2012

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources  News and Events November 09, 2012

Oak Ridge National Laboratory Debuts Titan Supercomputer   The Energy Department's Oak Ridge National Laboratory Titan supercomputer will be 10 times faster than the previous fastest Energy Department computer. Credit: ORNL The Energy Department's Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) on October 29 debuted the Titan supercomputer, a system capable of a theoretical peak performance exceeding 20 trillion calculations per second (or 20 petaflops). Titan employs a family of processors called graphic processing units (GPU), first created for computer gaming, and will be 10 times more powerful than ORNL's last world-leading system, Jaguar. Titan will provide unprecedented computing power for research in energy, climate change, efficient engines, materials, and other disciplines and will pave the way for a wide range of achievements in science and technology. Titan utilizes a Cray XK7 system contains 18,688 nodes, each holding a 16-core AMD Opteron 6274 processor and an NVIDIA Tesla K20 GPU accelerator. Titan also has more than 700 terabytes of memory. The combination of central processing units, the traditional foundation of high-performance computers, and more recent GPUs will allow Titan to occupy the same space as its Jaguar predecessor while using only marginally more electricity. See the ORNL press release.   USDA Announces $3 Million in Smart Grid Funding   The U.S. Department of Agriculture on October 19 announced $107.5 million in loan guarantees to modernize and improve rural electric systems, including nearly $3 million in Smart Grid technologies in North Dakota and Wisconsin. According to a 2009 Energy Department report that examined Smart Grid deployment nationwide, Smart Grids have the potential to dramatically change how we manage electricity use in the United States. In August, the USDA reported that it had met its goal to finance $250 million in Smart Grid technologies in fiscal year 2012. See the USDA press release.   Navy's China Lake Solar Plant Begins Operations   SunPower Corp. on October 19 announced the completion of the U.S. Navy's largest solar system, a 13.78-megawatt solar photovoltaic (PV) power system at Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake, California. The power plant is the first federal agency project to be financed through a 20-year term solar power purchase agreement. The plant, designed and operated by SunPower Corp., is generating the equivalent of more than 30% of China Lake's annual energy load, helping to reduce costs by an estimated $13 million over the next 20 years. The 20-year power purchase agreement requires no upfront capital or maintenance obligations from the Navy, matches conventional project financing terms for solar power facilities, and allows the Navy to secure electricity at up to 30% below the rate available through shorter duration 10-year power purchase agreements. SunPower has installed more than 50 megawatts (MW) of solar power systems at government facilities to date. The systems the company has delivered to the Navy and U.S. Air Force alone generate enough electricity to power about 9,000 homes. According to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency estimates, the Navy and Air Force systems will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emitted into the atmosphere by almost 732,000 tons over the next 20 years. See the SunPower press release. China Lake also has four geothermal power plants that produce up to 270 MW of electricity, or enough electricity for approximiately 378,000 households. The site has been in continuous operation since 1987, and was the Navy's first site to tap thermal energy. See the China Lake Natural Resources webpage.   Interior Announces Lease for Delaware Offshore Wind   The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) and its Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced on October 23 that BOEM has reached an agreement on the first commercial lease under its "Smart from the Start" initiative for offshore wind energy development. Situated in federal waters, the site covers 96,430 acres approximately 11 nautical miles off the coast of Delaware. The lease grants NRG Bluewater Wind Delaware LLC the exclusive right to submit one or more plans to BOEM to conduct activities in support of wind energy development in the lease area. The company may submit a Site Assessment Plan with a proposal to conduct site assessment activities, such as the installation of a meteorological tower or meteorological buoy. It can also submit a Construction and Operations Plan to propose construction of the actual wind facility and cabling to shore. NRG Bluewater originally proposed a 450-megawatt project off the coast of Delaware, with estimates that the project could generate enough power to supply electricity for more than 100,000 homes. This estimate could change after NRG undergoes additional planning and survey work and submits its plan to BOEM, which will assess the potential plans based on environmental, technical, and other factors before granting approval for construction. The Smart from the Start initiative for the Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf, announced in 2010, is designed to facilitate siting, leasing, and construction of new offshore renewable projects. See the DOI press release and the BOEM Delaware webpage, which includes a map of the site.

CROATIAN CENTER of RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES (CCRES)   special thanks to U.S. Department of Energy | USA.gov

INCITE Program Doles Out Hours on Supercomputers   What's one recipe for accelerating scientific discovery and innovation? Start by taking a couple of world-class supercomputers, including Titan, which just debuted as the world's most powerful machine for open science. Provide serious processing hours to dozens of brilliant people working on the toughest problems they can find. Plug the programs in and let them cook. When they're done, the result is simulations that astonish the mind, and more importantly, solutions that increase America's competitiveness and may lead to significant scientific advances. In a sense, that's the recipe for success of the INCITE (Innovative and Novel Computational Impact on Theory and Experiment) program. Since the program made its first awards in 2004, it has provided more than 10 billion processing hours on the Energy Department's fastest supercomputers to scientists across the globe taking on the field’s most difficult challenges. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog.   Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)

News and Events by CCRES August 30, 2012

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources News and Events August 30, 2012

Universities to Lead Energy Department-Funded CSP Projects   The Energy Department announced on August 28 new investments totaling $10 million for two university-led projects to advance innovative concentrating solar power (CSP) system technologies. The five-year projects are under the Department's SunShot Initiative, a collaborative national effort to make solar energy cost competitive with other forms of energy by the end of the decade. CSP technologies use mirrors to reflect and concentrate sunlight onto receivers that collect solar energy and convert it to heat that can be used to produce electricity. Heat transfer fluids are a key component of CSP systems that transfer heat from a receiver to the point where the heat is needed to drive a turbine. The investments will improve heat transfer fluids to increase efficiency and lower costs for CSP systems. Two university teams were selected to develop new heat transfer fluids. The University of California–Los Angeles will lead a team with researchers from Yale University and the University of California–Berkeley to investigate liquid metals as potential heat transfer fluids with the ability to withstand higher temperatures. And the University of Arizona, the second awardee, is teaming with researchers from Arizona State University and Georgia Tech to develop and demonstrate new, molten salt-based fluids as possible alternatives to traditional heat transfer fluids. The projects will focus on making dramatic improvements to fluids that gather thermal energy from the sun and transport it to the power block, where the energy is used to drive a turbine that generates electricity. Today's state-of the-art heat transfer fluids are capable of operating at temperatures up to about 1,050 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures in excess of 1,200 degrees Fahrenheit are needed to reach efficiencies greater than 50%, which allow CSP plants to capture more energy from solar power. The selected projects are working to develop heat transfer fluids that can operate at temperatures up to 2,350 degrees Fahrenheit, while simultaneously maintaining high levels of performance. See the Energy Department press release.   Energy Department Announces University Appliance-Design Winners   The Energy Department on August 23 announced that a University of Maryland team has won the Department's first Max Tech and Beyond Appliance Design Competition. The student challenge, which involved nine teams, aims to inspire students to pursue energy efficiency improvements in home and commercial appliances, helping to develop innovative ultra-efficient products. The University of Maryland team chose to simplify the design of a standard wall-mounted air conditioner by separating the systems that remove humidity and provide cooling. After the students tested a fully functional prototype, they found that the design reduced energy use by 30% compared with typical wall-mounted air conditioners already on the market. Because the current largest consumer of electricity in most homes nationwide is the air conditioning system, this innovative design has the potential to substantially decrease residential energy use and save consumers money. The runner-up team from Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, developed a prototype of a natural gas-fired combination water heater and clothes dryer that can use the waste heat from the clothes dryer to heat water for the next washing load. The team demonstrated that with this approach, they could get a 10% dryer efficiency improvement compared to the best comparable products on the market. The nine faculty-led student design teams were competitively selected and funded with up to $20,000 by the Energy Department to design, build, and test their prototypes during the 2011-2012 academic year. A panel of Energy Department experts along with those from the Department's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory judged each team's prototype based on its demonstrated ability to reduce energy use by 10% or more compared to best on-market products, or based on the prototype's ability to reduce production costs compared with typical high efficiency products already on the market by 20% or more. See the Energy Department Progress Alert and the Max Tech website.   EPA Awards $9 Million to 13 Universities for Climate Change Impacts Research   The EPA announced on August 22 that it awarded $9 million in grants to fund 13 universities for technologies that can help predict and prepare for the impacts of extreme weather triggered by climate change may have on air and water quality. The Massachusetts Institute of Technology was awarded $749,931 to examine the ability of models to represent the presence of extreme air pollution and the weather conditions. The project at MIT, based in Cambridge, Massachusetts, will use advanced statistical techniques to identify the drivers and occurrence of historical and future extreme air quality events in the United States from observations and models. The project combines the work of statisticians and atmospheric scientists. The other 13 grants were awarded to researchers at Columbia University, Cornell University, Georgia Institute of Technology, Michigan State University, Michigan Technological University, Mississippi State University, Ohio State University, Oregon State University, University of South Florida (two grants), Public Policy Institute of California, University of Texas at Austin, and the University of Washington. See the EPA press release and the list of projects.   New York Offers $107 Million for Large Solar Power Projects   New York Governor Andrew M. Cuomo on August 9 announced that $107 million is available for a major solar power incentive program that will increase the amount of electricity generated by photovoltaic (PV) systems throughout New York. The NY-Sun Competitive PV Program, administered by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, seeks proposals for PV systems greater than 50 kilowatts to be installed at larger commercial and industrial customer sites. The newly established NY-Sun Competitive PV Program will make $36.4 million available in 2012 and $70.5 million in 2013. This phase of the program is available through the end of 2013 for PV projects in New York City and upstate New York at eligible customer sites. This is an expansion of a two-year-old program that previously focused on large PV systems for the commercial, industrial, and municipal sectors exclusively in New York City, Westchester County, and the lower Hudson Valley. All projects will require co-funding to best leverage state resources with funding capped at $3 million per project. See the New York press release and the NY-Sun Competitive PV Program initiative website. The governor also signed a series of bills on August 17 as part of the NY-Sun initiative that will make solar energy more affordable for homeowners and businesses. The new laws include statewide tax credits for the lease of solar equipment and power purchase agreements, statewide sales tax exemptions for commercial solar equipment, and an extension of the real property tax abatement in New York City for solar installations. See the New York press release.   National Solar Tour Kicks Off in September   Local tours of solar houses are being offered throughout the United States starting in mid-September, with most on or around October 6. Credit: MSB Energy Associates The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) National Solar Tour officially takes place on October 6, but several events kick off as early as mid-September, and some offer weeklong action. Now in its seventeenth year, the annual showcase allows participants the opportunity to see innovative green homes and buildings that use solar energy, energy efficiency, and other sustainable technologies. ASES estimates that more than 165,000 participants will visit some 5,500 buildings in 3,200 communities across the United States. Kicking off the nationwide series of tours, the Michiana Solar Tour is scheduled to take place on September 15 at Goshen College in Goshen, Indiana. The following day, the BRING Home & Garden Tour bus will take ticketholders to a variety of sustainable sites in Eugene, Oregon. Most tours will take place on or around October 6, but there are events scheduled through October 27. See the ASES National Solar Tour website and the list of tours.

CROATIAN CENTER of RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES (CCRES)   special thanks to U.S. Department of Energy | USA.gov

Energy Efficiency Upgrades Part of a Winning Formula for Oregon School District   A while ago, we wrote about the quiet, rural community of Vernonia, Oregon, which had been through its share of hard economic times. After two “500-year floods” in an 11-year period devastated the area, damaging its schools and the community core, the town finally started to rebuild its school last April. More than a year later, residents of Vernonia had reason to celebrate when Former Governor Ted Kulongoski joined United States Senators Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Jeff Merkley (D-OR), and several other federal- and state-elected officials last week for the ribbon cutting of a new energy efficient K-12 school and community center. The "barn raising" mentality of the Vernonia community helped make the new school and community center a success. The energy efficiency upgrades were made possible using a combination of state, federal, private sector, and non-profit funds—paired with a $13.6 million municipal bond measure passed by the town’s voters. A $1 million grant from the Energy Department’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program helped the school district incorporate energy efficiency measures, including an energy efficient integrated heating and cooling system. This feature, along with upgrades to the building envelope and lighting, are estimated to reduce the school district’s annual energy usage by 43%—saving taxpayers more than $62,000 per year for the 135,000 square-foot school. The energy efficient upgrades provide not only a healthier learning environment for students and faculty but bolster the school district’s application for LEED Platinum designation. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog. Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)

News and Events by CCRES August 23, 2012

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources  News and Events August 23, 2012

New Public-Private Partnership to Support U.S. Manufacturing Innovation   The Obama Administration announced on August 16 the launch of a new public-private institute for manufacturing innovation. The new partnership, the National Additive Manufacturing Innovation Institute, was selected through a competitive process to receive an initial award of $30 million in federal funding, matched by $40 million from the winning consortium. The consortium includes manufacturing firms, universities, community colleges, and non-profit organizations from the Ohio-Pennsylvania-West Virginia "Tech Belt." On March 9, 2012, President Obama announced his plan to invest $1 billion to catalyze a national network of up to 15 manufacturing innovation institutes around the country that would serve as regional hubs for manufacturing. The President called on Congress to act on this proposal and create the National Network of Manufacturing Innovation. Five federal agencies—the Departments of Defense, Energy, and Commerce, the National Science Foundation, and NASA—jointly committed to invest $45 million in a pilot institute on additive manufacturing. Additive manufacturing is a process of making three-dimensional solid objects from a digital model. See the White House press release.   Energy Department Partnership to Certify Zero Net-Energy Ready Homes   The Energy Department on August 20 announced a new partnership between its Challenge Home program and the Passive House Institute US (PHIUS) on a voluntary certification process for energy-efficient homes. The partnership will streamline certifications for homes that can offset most or all of their utility bills with a small renewable energy system. These homes are referred to as "zero net-energy ready" homes. Home builders participating in these certification programs gain a competitive advantage in the marketplace by providing their customers with homes featuring energy savings, among other benefits. The Energy Department's Challenge Home program certifies homes that are 40% to 50% more energy efficient than typical homes. It also helps to minimize the risk of indoor air quality problems and ensures compatibility with renewable energy systems. Through the Challenge Home program and its original Builders Challenge specifications, the Department has certified more than 13,500 homes, which are saving consumers more than $10 million each year. Among these certified homes, more than 1,350 are considered zero net-energy ready homes based on Home Energy Rating System (HERS) scores of 55 or lower. PHIUS certifies building designs that are 65% to 75% more energy efficient than a typical new home, even before installing renewable energy systems. PHIUS has also trained nearly 400 construction professionals to build these homes. See the Energy Department Progress Alert.    USDA Funds Boost Renewable Energy Production   The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) on August 14 announced that 106 projects in 29 states, Guam, and Puerto Rico have been selected to receive funding for the production of renewable energy and energy efficiency improvements. Funding comes through the USDA's Rural Energy for America Program (REAP). One example of a selected project is in Washington County, Iowa, where a recipient is receiving a guaranteed loan to construct a 50 kilowatt (kW) wind turbine at his agricultural business. The turbine is expected to generate approximately 103,200 kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity annually—enough to meet the annual requirements of nine homes. WTE-Dallmann LLC in Calumet, Wisconsin, is another recipient of a REAP grant to help fund the installation of an anaerobic digester that will generate more than 4.8 million kWh of electricity—power for about 420 homes annually. The electricity will be sold to the local utility. See the USDA press release and the complete list of projects .   FERC Awards License for Oregon Wave Power Station   Ocean Power Technologies, which launched a device to convert wave energy off Hawaii's coast in 2009, plans to tap wave power off the Oregon coast. Credit: Ocean Power Technologies, Inc Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) announced on August 20 that its subsidiary has received approval from the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) for a planned 1.5 megawatt wave power station off the Oregon coast. This is the first FERC license for a wave power station issued in the United States. The license provides a regulatory approval for the deployment of up to 10 OPT devices, generating enough electricity for approximately 1,000 homes. Construction of the initial 150-kilowatt device is nearing completion and is expected to be ready for deployment about 2.5 miles off the Reedsport, Oregon coast later this year. The wave energy converter consists of an open steel cylinder extending downward into the ocean from a floating buoy. A piston is located midway down the cylinder, and as waves pass, the piston moves up and down along the cylinder, applying pressure to seawater-filled hoses that eject high-pressure seawater into a turbine, which drives a generator to produce power. OPT has received funding for this first system from the Energy Department with the support of the Oregon Congressional delegation and from PNGC Power, an Oregon-based electric power cooperative. Specifically, FERC has granted a 35-year license for grid-connected wave energy production. After the initial device is deployed, OPT plans to construct up to nine additional devices and grid connection infrastructure, subject to receipt of additional funding and all necessary regulatory approvals. See the OPT press release.

CROATIAN CENTER of RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES (CCRES)   special thanks to U.S. Department of Energy | USA.gov

Building the Largest U.S. Energy Efficiency Project   The popular expression "go big or go home" means to go all the way. And an energy efficiency project at a paper manufacturer in Longview, Washington, went so big that it's thought to be the largest of its kind in the United States, ever. It's so big that the energy experts at ESource, who answer thousands of energy-related questions every year, couldn’t find a reported project that's saved more energy. NORPAC is the largest newsprint and specialty paper mill in North America. Its 33-year-old mill produces 750,000 tons of paper a year and on a daily basis makes enough paper to stretch a 30-foot-wide sheet from their Northwest mill all the way to Miami, Florida. NORPAC is the largest industrial consumer of electricity in the State of Washington, requiring about 200 average megawatts of power—roughly 100 times more power than an average household uses in an entire month. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog. Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)

News and Events by CCRES August 16, 2012

Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources News and Events August 16, 2012

Energy Department Invests in Materials for Vehicle Fuel Economy   The Energy Department on August 7 announced it awarded $8 million for seven new projects to create stronger and lighter materials for the next generation of U.S. vehicles. These projects include the development and validation of modeling tools to deliver higher performing carbon-fiber composites and advanced steels, as well as research into new lightweight, high-strength alloys for energy-efficient vehicle and truck engines. The projects in Illinois, Michigan, Tennessee, and Washington will help provide additional technologies and innovations that will enable manufacturers to continue to improve vehicle fuel efficiency beyond the regulated levels. Advanced materials are essential for boosting the fuel economy of cars and trucks while maintaining and improving safety and performance. Replacing cast iron and traditional steel components with lightweight materials—including advanced high-strength steel, magnesium, aluminum, and carbon fiber composites—allows vehicle manufacturers to include additional safety devices, integrated electronic systems, and emissions control equipment on vehicles without increasing their weight. Using lighter materials also reduces a vehicle’s fuel consumption. The new investments support materials innovation in two critical areas. The first area has two projects designed to improve carbon fiber composites and advanced steel through computational design. For example, the department is investing $6 million to develop new modeling tools to advance third-generation high-strength steels. Through this project, United States Automotive Materials Partnership, based in Detroit, Michigan, will leverage an additional $2.5 million in private investment to help create modeling tools for deploying high-strength steels for lighter passenger vehicles. The second area is advanced alloy development for automotive and heavy-duty engines. Caterpillar Inc., based near Peoria, Illinois, is leveraging an Energy Department award of $3.4 million, as well as $1.5 million in private investment, to develop high-strength, iron-based alloys to allow for higher cylinder pressures and increased engine efficiency. See the Energy Department press release and the complete project list .   Army Announces $7 Billion Action to Support Renewable Energy   The U.S. Army announced on August 7 that it has issued a $7 billion Request for Proposal to procure renewable and alternative energy on federal property through power purchase agreements. The $7 billion capacity would be expended for the purchase of energy over 30 years or less from renewable energy plants that are constructed and operated by contractors using private sector financing. Contracts will be awarded to both large and small businesses among four different renewable energy technologies: solar, wind, geothermal, and biomass. Project locations may be on any federal property located within the United States, U.S. territories, or other property under the control of the U.S. government. The solicitation will be available for 60 days, with responses due by October 5. These contracts are part of a U.S. Department of Defense goal to get 25% of its total energy from renewable sources by 2025. See the Army press release.   Energy Report: U.S. Wind Industry Surges in 2011   The Energy Department released a new report on August 14 highlighting strong growth in the U.S. wind energy market in 2011. According to the 2011 Wind Technologies Market Report, the United States remained one of the world’s largest and fastest growing wind markets in 2011. Wind power represented 32% of all new electric capacity additions in the nation last year, accounting for $14 billion in new investment. Additionally, the report found that the percentage of wind equipment made in the United States also increased dramatically. Nearly 70% of the equipment installed at U.S. wind farms last year was from domestic manufacturers, doubling from 35% in 2005. The report finds that in 2011, roughly 6,800 megawatts (MW) of new wind power capacity was added to the U.S. grid, a 31% increase from 2010 installations. The nation’s wind power capacity reached 47,000 MW by the end of 2011 and has since grown to 50,000 MW, or enough electricity to power 13 million homes annually. The country’s cumulative installed wind energy capacity grew 16% from 2010, and has increased more than 18-fold since 2000. The report also finds that six states now meet more than 10% of their total electricity needs with wind power. According to industry estimates, the wind sector employs 75,000 American workers, including workers at manufacturing facilities up and down the supply chain, as well as engineers and construction workers who build and operate the wind farms. Despite recent technical and infrastructure improvements and continued growth in 2012, the report finds that 2013 may see a dramatic slowing of domestic wind energy deployment due in part to the possible expiration of federal renewable energy tax incentives, including the Production Tax Credit and the Advanced Energy Manufacturing Tax Credit. See the Energy Department press release and the complete report.   White House Expedites Seven Major Renewable Energy Projects   The Obama Administration on August 7 announced that seven significant solar and wind energy projects in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Wyoming will be expedited. Together, these infrastructure projects would produce nearly 5,000 megawatts (MW) of electricity, enough to power approximately 1.5 million homes. As a part of a Presidential Executive Order issued this year, the Office of Management and Budget is charged with overseeing a government-wide effort to make the permitting and review process for infrastructure projects more efficient and effective. Among the projects are BP Wind's proposed Mohave County Wind Farm, to be located on about 47,000 acres of public land in Arizona with the capacity to produce up to 425 MW of electricity, and NextEra's proposed McCoy Solar Energy project, a solar photovoltaic array that would be situated on 4,893 acres in Riverside County, California, and would produce an estimated 750 MW of solar energy. See the White House press release.   Interior Department to Review Proposal for First U.S. Floating Wind Turbine   A Statoil Hywind turbine in place off Norway's coast. Credit: Trude Refsahl, Statoil The U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI) on August 9 announced it will begin reviewing a proposal to build what would be the nation's first floating wind farm. DOI's Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) is proceeding with an assessment of Statoil North America's Hywind Maine project. The proposed wind farm, located about 12 nautical miles off the coast in water about 500 feet deep, would have a 12-megawatt capacity from four wind turbines. The area Statoil North America has requested for a commercial wind lease covers approximately 22 square miles, though the company states that the final park is expected to be closer to 4 square miles after determining its environmental impact and wind resources. BOEM is seeking public comment on environmental issues related to the proposed leasing, construction, and operation activities in the offshore area through a Notice of Intent to Prepare an environmental impact statement. Publication of a Request for Interest in the Federal Register will open a 60-day public comment period to solicit submissions of indications of competitive interest and additional information on potential environmental consequences and other uses of the proposed lease area. Accordingly, BOEM intends to prepare a statement that will consider the reasonably foreseeable environmental consequences associated with the Hywind Maine project. See the DOI press release, the Statoil proposal, the BOEM public comment Web page, and the Statoil Hywind Web page.   Ex-Im Bank to Help Finance U.S. Clean Tech Exports to South Africa   The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Ex-Im Bank) and the Industrial Development Corp. of South Africa Ltd. (IDC) on August 7 signed a Declaration of Intent to help advance South African economic development. Under the agreement, Ex-Im Bank will assist in financing up to $2 billion worth of U.S. technologies, products, and services to South Africa’s energy sector, with an emphasis on clean energy development. The Industrial Development Corp. is a South African national development finance institution meant to promote economic growth and industrial development. The IDC's primary objectives is to contribute to the creation of balanced, sustainable economic growth in South Africa and on the rest of the continent. See the Ex-Im Bank press release.

CROATIAN CENTER of RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES (CCRES)   special thanks to U.S. Department of Energy | USA.gov

Supercomputing Our Way to a Clean Energy Future   These days supercomputing isn’t just for niche applications like unlocking the secrets of dark matter, finding the Higgs boson particle, or helping us understand nuclear weapons without explosive testing. With recent strides in technology and a number of high-profile success stories, advanced computing technology is catching the attention of major companies looking to lower their research and development costs while producing more efficient and more powerful energy technology. Recently at the Workshop on the Grand Challenges of Advanced Computing for Energy Innovation near Washington, D.C., computing specialists from the private sector, national laboratories, and academia met to share best practices, discuss trends, and determine the future of supercomputing in energy technology. Computer-assisted design software took engineers from the drawing board to the keyboard decades ago, but the bulk of variable testing still takes place with prototype models with sensors that generate a great deal of data that requires analysis. But what if engineers could develop a virtual prototype and test it under every conceivable condition on a system-wide basis? With help from the national laboratories, energy technology companies are doing just that, and recent collaborative projects and programs have benefitted both the labs and companies. At the workshop, truck manufacturer Navistar reported significant advances in improving airflow to its vehicles, which increases fuel efficiency and durability. Instead of using expensive wind tunnel testing, Navistar used modeling and simulation software from Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory to make improvements for a fraction of traditional research costs. For the complete story, see the Energy Blog. Croatian Center of Renewable Energy Sources (CCRES)