Intersolar China Heading For Beijing

Posted on November 19, 2011 by quest

Intersolar which started in Germany is now making a sweep around the globe. Next stop…Beijing! For the first time, the international solar industry is assembling at Beijing’s China National Convention Center for Intersolar China, where the event makes its inauguration to the upcoming solar market in Eastern Asia. The exhibition’s extensive accompanying program not only gives visitors and exhibitors an overview of the latest product innovations, but also provides the perfect opportunity to network with the international solar industry and forge new contacts in new markets. The Intersolar China Conference, taking place from December 6–8 at the InterContinental Hotel in Beijing, invites industry professionals to join with experts in discussing the latest market trends and pioneering technologies – over 500 experts are expected in total.

Intersolar China is a continuation of the successful Intersolar exhibition series, the world’s leading exhibition series for the solar industry. This will be the fourth event, joining Intersolar Europe in Munich, Intersolar North America in San Francisco and Intersolar India in Mumbai. It showcases all areas of solar power generation as well as the entire supply chain – from production through distribution to project development – including raw materials, production technologies, solar cells, photovoltaic modules, systems technology and components.

While the global face off between China and US solar manufacturers has yet to resolved, China still remains the world largest producer of solar panels and its economy is showing no signs of slowing. In addition to the latest developments in international solar markets, conference attendees also focus their attention on technological advances. The spotlight is equally being shone on the topic of sustainability in PV production. Together with the PV Cycle initiative, the voluntary take-back and recycling program of the photovoltaic industry, the conference addresses the recycling of end-of-life solar modules.

Carl Pope steps down as leader of Sierra Club

Lakers Players Shoot For Green Solar Energy

A Solar House Divided

Posted on November 18, 2011 by quest

What would Abraham Lincoln think about the internal divide within the US solar industry and its reaction into claims that China is using unfair trade practices to dump solar panels in the US market? A few days go the Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy (CASE) representing dozens of U.S. solar companies and thousands of American jobs, have joined to urge policymakers to help find a resolution to SolarWorld’s harmful trade petition. The Coalition now represents 52 American solar companies from across the United States and throughout the solar value chain or nearly 10% of the U.S. solar industry workforce.”Every day, new American solar companies are stepping forward to oppose SolarWorld’s bid to block competition in the U.S. solar industry,” said Alan Epstein, President and COO of KDC Solar LLC, a new CASE member based in New Jersey. “Competition is good for the U.S. solar industry, good for solar jobs, and most importantly, good for creating and preserving long-term jobs for our electric customers and therefore the economy. The solar industry must remain united in its mission to make solar energy affordable for everyone.”

The Coalition for Affordable Solar Energy actions comes on the heals of the U.S. Department of Commerce‘s decision to initiate an intensive, year-long investigation into Chinese solar export practices. “The anti-competitive tactics of Chinese exporters have threatened to wipe out U.S. producers and jobs said,” Gordon Brinser, president of SolarWorld and a leader for the Coalition for American Solar Manufacturing (CASM) Brinser said. “Domestic producers look forward to returning to steady increases in efficiency and sustainable decreases in pricing that directly result from legal international competition – and to advances in America’s renewable-energy future.” CASE members represent a large cross section of the U.S. solar industry, both large and small companies, including silicon and module manufacturers, project developers, financial and real estate services and installers.

“We’ve hired 400 employees this year, including electricians, roofers, salespeople, call center professionals – affordable solar energy in the United States is the catalyst for this new economic opportunity and these jobs,” said Ken Button, co-founder and president, Verengo Solar Plus. “If SolarWorld is successful with its petition, it would hurt the broader U.S. solar industry. Are SolarWorld’s jobs more important than ours?” In a recent solar industry report, Jefferies analyst Jesse Pichel explained why SolarWorld’s anti-trade petition could hurt broader U.S. solar industry growth: “The U.S. solar industry, already suffering from a lack of financing, will experience higher panel prices and lower demand if countervailing duties are imposed as early 2012. SolarWorld may see backlash as U.S. developers and installers are hurt by this scorched Earth approach.”SolarWorld‘s trade action has been largely unpopular in the U.S. solar industry, given its potential to hurt thousands of jobs throughout the solar value chain.

Hydropower and Fish Friendly

US Could Save $80 Billion With Renewable Energy

Posted on November 17, 2011 by quest

New findings of the nonprofit Civil Society Institute finds, Contrary to “Common Wisdom,” Fossil Fuels Are Not the Cheaper Route for Nation’s Future. It is a myth that switching to safe, renewable energy would mean an unreliable U.S. power supply that also is too expensive to afford. That is the major conclusion of a new Synapse Energy Economics report prepared for the nonprofit Civil Society Institute that details a future with more energy efficiency and renewable energy and less reliance on coal and nuclear power.

Titled “Toward a Sustainable Future for the U.S. Power Sector: Beyond Business as Usual 2011“Synapse-Toward-a-Sustainable-Future-11-11, the new Synapse/CSI report outlines a realistic transition to a cleaner energy future that would result in a net savings of $83 billion over the next 40 years. The Synapse report also details other major benefits, including: the avoidance of tens of thousands of premature deaths due to pollution; the creation of hundreds of thousands of new jobs; sharp cuts in carbon pollution; and significant cuts in water consumption for power production.

The new Synapse report findings for CSI are particularly significant in view of the fact that a strong majority of Americans want the U.S. to make the investments needed to be a clean energy leader on a global basis. More than three in four Americans (77 percent) – including 65 percent of Republicans, 75 percent of Independents, 88 percent of Democrats, and 56 percent of Tea Party members — agree with the following statement: “The U.S. needs to be a clean energy technology leader and it should invest in the research and domestic manufacturing of wind, solar and energy efficiency technologies.”

Sprint Honored at Global Green Sustainable Design Awards

Energy Secretary Testifying Today

New Solar Solutions Could Put Angelenos To Work

Posted on November 16, 2011 by quest

While Los Angeles is fast becoming a major player in the electric vehicle industry, a new jointly authored report by UCLA and USC research teams finds that Los Angeles is lagging behind on solar energy installation despite a significant trained workforce ready to perform clean-energy solar jobs. Further, the study finds that the areas in Los Angeles with the greatest potential for rooftop solar power – and thus the greatest capacity to support solar-related jobs – include many areas suffering from high unemployment and economic need.

The report urges officials to adopt a rooftop solar energy program known as a solar FiT (or feed-in tariff) that enables business owners and residents to install solar panels on their rooftops and sell surplus energy to the local utility. Such a program has been endorsed by a coalition of environmental groups, labor leaders, business organizations and other stakeholders. Thus far city leaders have failed to enact policies that would take advantage of this resource and put city residents to work.“Unless civic leaders ramp up efforts to expand solar programs, the city and region face the prospect of being left behind,” states the report, Empowering LA’s Solar Workforce: New Policies that Deliver Investments and Jobs.LABC_Solar_Workforce_Study_2011 “This report is, above all, a wake-up call to policymakers to make certain they are utilizing an important workforce segment – and creating policies that will put qualified people to work.”

While California has set a goal of generating 33 percent of its energy from renewable energy by 2020, the study reveals that the LA region lacks sound policies to meet these goals and employ ready green-economy workers. In fact, the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) has one of the weakest solar track records among major California utilities, generating less than one sixth as much solar power per customer as the state leader, Southern California Edison.The report, presented by the LABC Institute, will be formally released at the LA Business Council’s “Building LA’s Workforce” Summit at UCLA today, Nov. 16. It will be discussed at the event by a panel that includes three leading mayoral candidates– City Council President Eric Garcetti, Controller Wendy Greuel and Councilwoman Jan Perry.

Charging Up EV’s In Southern California

California’s Ninety Nine Percent Buying Solar Energy

Posted on November 15, 2011 by quest

PV Solar Report, an authority on California solar market data and SunRun, a leading home solar company, today announced that families in median income zip codes make up the majority of California’s home solar market. Two thirds of California home solar installations in 2009, 2010, and 2011 year-to-date have been in zip codes with median annual household incomes of less than $85,000 and not in the wealthiest areas of the state. In addition, the number of residential projects in lower income zip codes continues to increase as solar prices decrease. The top cities on the list are not California’s wealthiest and are home to more mainstream families. For example, Bakersfield and Fresno are among the state’s top five solar cities with annual household incomes averaging between $40,000 and $50,000. By comparison, Malibu, which was not even in the top 25, has a median annual household income of $160,000. The percent of total installations in California’s highest income zip codes is only 2-3 percent.

SunRun Director of Government Affairs Ethan Sprague said, “The data from PV solar report shows this model is working, and that it’s not just the wealthy driving and benefitting from solar adoption. We are working to educate consumers that solar is finally affordable.” “This is exactly the market transformation that the California Solar Initiative (CSI) was designed to achieve when it started in 2007. SunRun owns, insures and maintains solar panels and installs them on a homeowner’s roof. Families pay a low monthly rate for clean energy, fixing their energy costs for 20 years. The service makes solar accessible to more Californians because families who could not afford cash purchase can now go solar. One of every four SunRun customers reporting income makes less $50,000 per year.

“It’s exciting to analyze how the industry is growing right now, especially when trends indicate that solar is becoming more mainstream and not just reserved for the wealthiest individuals,” said Stephen Torres, founder and managing director of PV Solar Report. “Solar prices are coming down, it’s great for job growth from installing, financing, and servicing solar in local communities, and models like SunRun are helping drive growth because they eliminate large upfront investments.”

Solar Power Wars

Lakers Players Shoot For Green Solar Energy

Posted on November 14, 2011 by quest

The news that the NBA season is in peril isn’t good news. As just reported in the New York Times, “The union representing National Basketball Association players formally disbanded Monday and declared it would take its standoff with the league’s owners into federal court, a development that pushed the league as close as it has ever been to losing an entire season of play.”But recently Sungevity, a recognized national leader in solar innovation and customer satisfaction, announced the hiring of Lakers’ stars Metta World Peace and Devin Ebanks as part of the company’s “Rooftop Revolution” campaign – marking the first time out-of-work NBA stars are put their energy into the nation’s hot solar market and emerging green economy. In the land of abundant sunshine, the two Lakers drove Sungevity’s solar-powered, bio-diesel ice pop truck to Los Angeles hot spots and provided free, all-natural treats while promoting the ease and affordability of residential solar panel installation. “Without basketball or dancing on my schedule, I need a job!” joked Metta World Peace. “Sungevity is about positive, renewable energy, and I can’t think of a better way to spend my time than interacting with the fans and promoting the power of the sun to the city of Los Angeles.”

Ten years ago, there were just 500 home solar rooftops in California. Today, that number is over 60,000 and California is well on its way to reaching its goal of one million solar roofs by 2018. With the recent reintroduction of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power (LADWP) Solar Incentive Rebate Program on September 1, homeowners can enjoy added savings on their solar units. The LADWP is awarding rebates until the $40 million budget earmarked for its fiscal year runs out.

“While we share Los Angeles’ hopes of seeing Metta and Devin back on the Staples Center court soon, we’re thrilled to have them on our team promoting solar energy as the key to minimizing utility costs and gaining energy independence,” said Danny Kennedy, Founder, Sungevity. “Between our fast, free iQuote process and the LADWP solar rebate program, there has never been a better time for Los Angeles residents to go solar.” Leveraging web-based solar analytics and satellite imagery, the company’s online iQuote process – combined with its Solar Lease program – provides homeowners with the easiest, most affordable solar energy solution. Sungevity is growing at a rapid pace, increasing its customer base by ten-fold and quadrupling employee headcount over the past year. The company currently provides solar services in five states including, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey and New York, and is the exclusive residential solar partner for Lowe’s, the world’s second-largest home improvement retailer.