Green Technology

As pricing for renewable energy infrastructure decreases, the return on investment for projects is increasing, driving a shift in investments.  Market competition is lowering the installed cost of solar energy systems while improving the viability of proposed projects.  …

…   “Clean Edge, which tracks developments in the clean-energy markets, estimates that the cost to install photovoltaic solar systems will drop by almost two-thirds with the next decade.”   …

Via Forbes: Renewable Energy Projects.

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GE scales its portfolio of solar project investments, doubling its financial commitment from the start of 2011 as costs have become more compelling.  …

…   “Solar farms have become an attractive investment because innovation and technology efficiency have lowered costs and allowed operators build large-scale projects.”   …

Via GE: Solar Bulls.

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Brightsource’s concentrated solar project gets financial boost from Google and the Department of Energy.  The company has a number of solar projects underway in California.  Brightsource technology consists of dual-mirror heliostats that follow the sun to increase energy production.  …

…   “Google stepped in as a new equity investor in the project, agreeing to provide $ 168 million.

And the project's construction contractor, Bechtel Corp., which was the first to commit equity in 2009, decided in the end to drop out as an equity investor.”   …

Via Nasdaq: Brightsource Project.

Brightsource CSP projects.

The three-plant Ivanpah Solar Complex will generate approximately 392 gross megawatts of electricity using the company's innovative, proprietary concentrating solar power CSP technology.

DOE Loan Guarantee for Brightsource in California.

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Lower cost solar energy moves closer to reality as 1366 Tech raises cash for commercializing its production process.  …

…   “1366’s Direct Wafer technology forms a 156mm multi-crystalline wafer directly from molten silicon in a semi-continuous, capital- and silicon-efficient process.

This is in stark contrast to standard multi-crystalline wafer manufacturing which involves a multi-step, batch process of ingot casting, blocking, squaring, and sawing that wastes up to 50% of the high-value silicon. 

By using standard silicon feedstocks and producing compatible wafers, Direct Wafer integrates into the existing silicon photovoltaic supply chain, providing cost savings to cell customers without added complexity.”   …

Via 1366 Technologies: Growth Financing.

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... "P. Daniel Dapkus, USC Viterbi School of Engineering: Energy Frontier Research Center for Emerging Materials for Solar Energy Conversion and Solid State Lighting, $12.5 million from the Department of Energy: To explore new phenomena in organic materials, in thin-layer semiconductor nanostructures, and in hybrid structures in order to improve the efficiency of solar cells and light sources. " ...

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... "Both bus and rail manufacturing jobs have synergies with other sectors in the clean energy economy that are very crucial, Lowe says. One of the most crucial components is energy storage and advances there will be key to wind, solar and nearly all of those really big green job sectors. " ...

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... "This is an investment in our clean energy future that will create jobs and reduce our dependence on foreign oil, said Secretary Chu. It will help build a customer base and begin laying the foundation for American leadership in the growing electric vehicles industry. This is part of a sustained effort to develop and commercialize technologies that will be broadly deployed throughout the American auto industry. Tesla’s planned Model S will consume no gasoline and will not produce any tailpipe emissions. " ...

Continue reading "Tesla Electric Vehicle Clean Energy Future" »

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... "The billions in government funding being allocated globally in clean technology have begun emboldening private capital, which has in turn helped propel clean technology to the leading venture investment sector, now eclipsing biotech and IT, said Dallas Kachan, Managing Director, Cleantech Group. The two largest venture deals (Solyndra and Tesla Motors) and the largest IPO (A123Systems) this quarter were all recipients of U.S. government funding. ... " ...

Continue reading "Solar Leads Cleantech Investment Space" »

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... "The project will reinforce the fundamental objectives of the SEGIS program to optimize interconnections across the full range of emerging PV module technologies through innovative systems integration. " ...

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"Royal Dutch Shell plc and Codexis, Inc. today [10-March-09] announced an expanded agreement to develop better enzymes that could accelerate commercialisation of next generation biofuels. ...Shell also increased its equity stake in Codexis ..."

" ... enhance the efficiency of enzymes used in the Iogen cellulosic ethanol production process.  The world-leading Iogen demonstration plant in Ottawa, Canada currently produces hundreds of thousands of litres of cellulosic ethanol from agricultural residue, such as wheat straw. "

" ... aims to enhance the Iogen process and shorten the timeline to its full-scale commercial deployment. ..."

 Via:  Shell  Link

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... "Analysts agreed that a U.S. tax credit extension removes a key concern for solar investors. " ...

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... "Good opportunities do exist and both solar and biofuels will have long term attractive returns. Energy efficiency, energy storage and carbon sequestration are ripe with opportunity, as are electric vehicles and water. " ...

Continue reading "Navigate Cleantech Investments" »

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... "This acquisition is a key step in our goal to become the leading equipment supplier to the solar industry, said Mike Splinter, president and CEO of Applied Materials. With our broad portfolio of advanced solar cell manufacturing technologies, we plan to reduce the production costs for both crystalline silicon cell and thin film modules, while also decreasing the grams-per-watt usage of silicon material. ... " ...

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... "GE Energy Financial Services is acquiring a majority equity interest in the five solar photovoltaic projects, which SunPower will design and build, operate and maintain. GE Energy Financial Services will finance and own the systems under the SunPower Access power purchase agreement program, which allows customers to take advantage of the environmental and financial benefits of solar power with no upfront capital costs. The solar electricity will be competitively priced against retail rates, providing customers a long-term hedge against rising peak power prices. Construction of the projects is scheduled to begin in February and be completed by the end of the year. " ...

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... "This integrated equipment set addresses critical processing steps in c-Si solar cell production that significantly affect solar cell efficiency and yield, while enabling the use of ultrathin silicon wafers. Combining Baccinis products and technologies with Applieds semiconductor interconnect processing expertise, manufacturing capabilities, and R&D resources will provide customers with world-class, automated production technology for fabricating advanced c-Si solar cells. Baccini is a privately-held company founded in 1967 and based in Treviso, Italy. Baccinis product line provides state-of-the-art material handling automation capable of processing wafers less than 120 micrometers thick, which are significantly thinner than those typically used in the industry. Reliable processing of ultrathin wafers is key to next-generation c-Si manufacturing because it will allow customers to minimize the use of silicon material, which now represents more than 60% of solar cell manufacturing cost. " ...

Continue reading "Solar Cell Company Acquisition Creates Ultrathin Silicon Wafer Manufacturing Powerhouse" »

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... "Our plan to neutralize Google's carbon footprint includes three basic strategies: reduce energy consumption by maximizing efficiency; invest in and use renewable energy sources; and purchase carbon offsets for the emissions that we can't reduce directly. " ...

Via Official Google Blog: Google Plans Carbon Neutrality by end of 2007

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... "RechargeIT is an initiative within Google.org's Climate Change Program aimed at accelerating the adoption of plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (plug-in hybrids) and vehicle-to-grid (V2G) applications. " ...

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John Doerr, Kleiner Perkins venture capital, collaborates with Al Gore to understand the full potential of investing in green and clean technologies.  The environmental for green technology requires navigating the challenging waters of politics.  ...

Via Financial Times:  The Green Valley ...

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