Solar panels have become increasingly popular internationally as a cheap and affordable way for homeowners to own their own piece of electrical generation.
In this segment from National Public Radio, Ari Daniel Shapiro speaks with solar industry insiders in Spain, like Juan Casanovas, to understand the market trends in that country. He explores the impact of government incentives for the development of solar, and the reasons why the technology has become widespread in Spain. Keep reading →
Building a gas plant literally in the middle of a wind farm represents almost every trend underway in the energy sector today.
In this slideshow, GE Energy documents the groundbreaking of the CPV Sentinel natural gas plant that uses turbines to complement intermittent renewables like wind and solar. The CPV plant uses the LMS100, a quick-starting gas turbine that can back-fill wind supply. Keep reading →
Solar power is headed to infinity and beyond
NASA‘s Juno spacecraft took off for Jupiter this afternoon, making it the first solar powered probe to travel such a great distance from the sun. Equipped with three large solar panels, Juno launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida at 12:25 pm. Keep reading →
Rising demand for energy efficiency solutions abroad may offer new, and expanding, opportunities for US renewable energy firms.
Omani state-owned oil firm Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) has awarded California-based GlassPoint a contract to build a pilot 7MW solar enhanced oil recovery (EOR) system at a an existing thermal EOR project in southern Oman. Keep reading →
The British are coming…to help build solar power plants in the US.
Barclays Capital will partner with K Road Power for a “substantial commitment to fund” continued development, construction and operation of several major solar installations across the country, Barclays Natural Resource Investments (BNRI) announced on Tuesday. Keep reading →
Just how much of the process of creating, distributing and integrating solar power can be automated?
That is the question that Siemens seeks to answer in this video, which talks up its lengthy experience in innovation through partnerships and its history in integrating supply, manufacturing and distribution chains. Keep reading →
Solar panels are getting hot…and increasingly being used to power unexpected things.
This hotel boat, named ‘Kevin,’ runs on solar power. It is owned by Dominique Renouf (background, manning the barge) who navigates it regularly through the Lot river near Castelmoron-sur-Lot, southwestern France. Keep reading →
Renewable energy is increasingly at the core of the global electricity sector, propelling much of its growth.
Renewable energy delivered almost a fifth of global electricity production in 2010 and now comprises some 25% of global power-generating capacity, reflecting proactive government policies worldwide, particularly in China, according to the latest global assessment of renewables development. Keep reading →
The popular image of oil derricks place them in sunny locales, in deserts and at sea. But with the search for new oil reserves spreading, the ability to use solar power for enhanced oil recovery faces some elemental challenges.
Southern California, where GlassPoint Solar operates a facility, satisfies the two main requirements for solar thermal enhanced oil recovery –abundant sunlight and heavy oil. But these requirements limit the technology’s application in other areas of the country. Within the US, GlassPoint CEO Rod MacGregor mentioned only West Texas as prospective for solar thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR) use. Keep reading →
Using solar-powered facilities in enhanced oil recovery has attracted widespread attention in the industry, and now the sector’s largest firms are moving the technology out of the lab and into the market.
GlassPoint Solar’s successful start-up of the first commercial solar thermal enhanced oil recovery (EOR) system in California has raised questions about the technology’s prospects for widespread use, both in the US and internationally. Keep reading →
