Sempra Generation A Solar Energy Champion

Posted on October 21, 2011 by quest

Sempra Generation has received the 2011 Solar Energy Industries Association Solar Champion Award in the Project Developer category. The national recognition is based on the significant impact the company has made over the last year in “helping build a strong solar industry to power America, and contributing to the industry goal of achieving 10 gigawatts of new annual installed capacity by 2015.”The award was announced at the Solar Power International 2011 conference, which was held in Dallas. Solar Energy Industries Association is the national trade association of the U.S. solar energy industry. Working with its 1,000 member companies, the organization is helping to grow and advance the solar industry through advocacy, policy development and education on the benefits of solar energy.

“We are truly honored to be recognized by the Solar Energy Industries Association, which is leading the way to advance and grow the U.S. solar industry,” said Jeffrey W. Martin, president and chief executive officer of Sempra Generation. “Solar power is positively impacting communities and local economies across the country, and we are excited to have the opportunity to support America’s transition to a cleaner energy future.””Innovative utility-scale solar project developers are a key piece of the industry’s vision of installing 10 gigawatts of solar each year by 2015,” said Rhone Resch, president and CEO of Solar Energy Industries Association. “Sempra Generation is helping the utility-scale market make significant strides in meeting that goal to power two million more homes year in and year out with clean, reliable solar energy.”

Sempra Generation is a leading developer of utility-scale solar projects in the U.S. The company operates the 48-megawatt (MW) Copper Mountain Solar 1 project in Boulder City, Nev., which is currently the largest photovoltaic solar plant in the U.S. Construction is expected to begin on a 150-MW expansion of this landmark solar installation in 2012. The company also recently broke ground on its 150-MW Mesquite Solar 1 project in Arizona, with completion anticipated in 2013.

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Revenge of the Electric Car LA Screening By REC Solar

Posted on October 19, 2011 by quest

REC Solar, a leading provider of home and commercial solar electric systems in the United States, took a lead in the movement for emissions free driving by announcing their sponsorship of the movie “Revenge of the Electric Car.” On Oct. 13, REC Solar hosted an advanced VIP screening of the feature film in Los Angeles – a week prior to the film’s premier on October 21st. More than 100 luminaries from diverse, but complementary industries including solar, electric vehicle (EV), utilities, government, media and entertainment were in attendance. “Revenge of the Electric Car,” from director Chris Paine who also brought us the 2006 film “Who Killed the Electric Car?,” takes viewers behind the scenes of Nissan, General Motors and Tesla Motors to chronicle key players in the race to create the cleanest vehicle. Filming started in 2007 and didn’t stop until each company’s electric cars were sold to the public. Paine has said, “You can’t kill an idea whose time has come.”

As soon as 2012, nearly 125,000 electric vehicles are expected to roll into traffic. EV enthusiasts, called “Revengers” by film promoters, also embrace solar power with most expressing interest in installing solar systems for their homes, if they have yet to do so.

Revenge of the Electric Car

“The industry is now forecasting one million electric vehicles to be on the road by 2016 which won’t just have an impact on [fossil fuel usage], but also on the environment when used with a solar system. The more solar energy is used with electric vehicles, the cleaner the environment becomes,” said Angiolo Laviziano, co-founder of Mainstream Energy, parent of REC Solar. “It is exciting to see the energy revolution unfolding in front of our eyes.”Other events such as National Plug-in Day are also bringing the electric vehicle center stage. By hosting the showing, REC Solar is calling attention to the ultra-sustainable intersection of solar and EV industries. When EVs are solar-charged, they are essentially “running on sunshine,” reducing greenhouse gases and lessening dependence on fossil fuels for a more secure, sustainable world – while at the same time delivering economic benefits to their drivers.

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Sky Power Brings Solar Energy To Electric Vehicles

Posted on October 17, 2011 by quest

Sky Power Solutions, an emerging leader in the development and marketing of next generation lithium-powered batteries worldwide, and a leading developer of residential Solar Power Generation system will present at Solar Power International in Dallas TX. Company representatives will be available to questions during the event. “We are excited to exhibit the Sky Power system at SPI. Taking about 1/3 the space of standard PV solar panels and the ability to derive heat from the unit makes it very efficient. In addition to the benefits of lower electric costs, the incentives being offered around the world reduces the users cost of the unit” says Rich Ralston, Public Relations and Media Manager for Sky Power Solutions.

The unique design of the Sky Power Solutions Residential system gives homeowners, for the first time, access to advanced concentrating PV (photovoltronic) technology combined with sun tracking while taking only about 1/3 the space compared to standard solar PV panels. Solar Power International (SPI) is North America’s largest, most comprehensive solar power trade show and conference. This annual, business-to-business event was the first of its kind in North America and grows bigger and better every year. Nearly 24,000 professionals from 125+ countries attend. With one out of five attendees coming from outside the United States, SPI is truly a global event. In 2011, over 1,100 companies from all vertical markets in the solar power spectrum will exhibit in a space of more than 1 million gross square feet.

The Sky Power Solutions residential solar power station will have the ability to reduce the average user’s monthly electric grid consumption by up to 30-40% with ZERO emissions and a ZERO carbon footprint; using only the power of the Sun. Visually appealing, the Sky Power Solutions system can easily be installed in most backyards taking less than one third of the space of conventional Solar panels. The entry level price point for a Sky Power Solutions-Concentrated Solar electric system is estimated to be $5,000 at release. Many financial incentives are available which reduces the user’s actual costs. Multiple units can be combined for increased capacity. Electric consumption in the United States is increasing at a rate that will outpace the anticipated expansion of the US Electric Grid’s capacity and Sky Power Solutions has identified this and is poised for expansion into the Residential Electric Power Generation market to allow end users to generate and return 30-40% of their electric usage back to the grid using “Net-Metering” and the Sky Power System.

Solar Energy Revolution Star Trek and The Wizard of Oz

PBS Wins Environmental Wildlife Film Festival

Posted on October 17, 2011 by quest

Nature, the number one documentary series on PBS, adds to its accolades a coveted Grand Teton Award for Broken Tail: A Tiger’s Last Journey, given at the 2011 Jackson Hole Wildlife Festival recently at Grand Teton Park. This is Nature’s first time in receiving the Festival’s top prize, considered as one of the wildlife industry’s highest honors. In total, Nature received six of 22 awards bestowed by the Festival. Two of the winning films will premiere this fall on PBS. They include the season opener Radioactive Wolves and My Life as a Turkey. The series Executive Producer Fred Kaufman, and his colleagues Bill Murphy and Janet Hess were honored to be part of this historic night.

Launched in 1991, the Jackson Hole Wildlife Film Festival’s biennial conference is an unmatched international industry event drawing 650+ international leaders in science, conservation, broadcasting and media. Internationally renowned as one of the largest and most prestigious competitions of the nature genre, this year’s competition included 510 films from more than 30 countries — a record number of submissions competing for 22 special category awards. More than eighty judges from North America, Europe, Asia and Africa participated in the preliminary selections.Celebrating its 30th season, Nature is a production of THIRTEEN in association with WNET, the parent company of THIRTEEN and WLIW21, New York’s public television stations and operator of NJTV. For nearly 50 years, WNET has been producing and broadcasting national and local documentaries and other programs for the New York community.

“We are elated that Nature has received this honor,” said Paula Kerger, President and CEO of PBS. “In today’s crowded media landscape, Nature stands out as a high quality wildlife series that continues to attract audiences and leading filmmakers alike. As one of our most broad-reaching series, we have WNET and their producing partners to thank and congratulate them on receiving the Grand Teton Award.””We are privileged to join the pantheon of past winners of Jackson Hole’s Best of Festival prize,” stated Neal Shapiro, President and CEO of WNET. “The recognition is a testament to Nature’s 30-year commitment to bring the wonders of wildlife and critical environmental concerns to millions of public television viewers each week. I am truly proud of our team.”

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Largest US Solar Factory Being Built In Colorado

Posted on October 16, 2011 by quest

GE has announced plans to build its new solar panel factory in Aurora, Colorado. When completed, the advanced manufacturing facility will create 355 jobs in Colorado and will be larger than any existing solar panel factory in the country today. GE anticipates the new factory will first start up earlier than expected with the first panels coming off the line in 2012 with commercial availability in 2013. “This is great news for Colorado and further proof that our state is emerging as a center of innovation. GE’s move to Aurora takes advantage of Colorado’s clean energy resources and a collaborative business environment that is committed to helping the company succeed,” said Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper. “We look forward to supporting GE as it fosters its technical innovation and research capabilities in Colorado.”

GE will locate the factory in an existing building in Aurora, just east of Denver. This location, which also is in proximity to GE’s existing solar center of excellence, enables an accelerated start-up schedule with production equipment installation beginning in January 2012. At capacity, the new factory will produce enough panels per year to power 80,000 homes and will be larger than 11 football fields. When complete, the new solar factory will highlight a $600 million investment in GE’s solar business. “I am so proud GE is building the largest solar panel factory in the nation right here in the 7th Congressional District of Colorado. This plant will create over 350 jobs and reinforces Colorado’s leading role in renewable energy. This solar technology was originally developed at NREL and further highlights how this world-class lab continues to partner with the private sector to create long-term jobs and bolster our nation’s energy security. Making things here in Colorado and America ensures we will make it in America,” stated U.S. Rep. Ed Perlmutter.

“Working with our Colorado-based solar team, we were able to achieve record efficiencies in our solar panels in record time,” said Victor Abate, vice president of GE’s Renewable Energy business. “The Colorado location will allow us to deliver our technology roadmap faster and commercialize industry-leading panel efficiencies sooner. We also look forward to continuing to build our relationships with Colorado’s local, state and federal officials who have been extremely helpful as we moved through the site selection process.” “This is terrific news for Aurora, for Colorado and for solar, and it shows the tremendous potential renewable energy holds to create jobs and power our economy,” said U.S. Sen. Mark Udall.

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Dereliction Of Foodies

Posted on October 15, 2011 by quest

As urban farming becomes a valid source of obtaining fresh foods with local sources addressing energy and conservation concerns, will the direction we work towards be thwarted by local government or lack of necessary resources to continue our efforts?

The short answer to a long question is there are no guarantees. I have watched one community garden after another closed for a variety of reasons. All who partake should be aware of legalities http://www.theselc.org/food-and-livelihoods-project/ and poised to take action as the South Central Farmers in Los Angeles have. Although they didn’t prevail in the legal sense a commitment to continue sent them in many directions. Some facilitated by the mayor whose campaign led the farmers to believe he would be able to help them. During times like this when good food is unaffordable to many and we realize that subsidized means substandard products it is important to continue efforts and sometimes battles for the right to clean water and fresh foods. http://gefoodlabels.org/ By Susan Rigali

Susan Rigali is Owner/Executive Chef of Savor Solar. She has invested a significant amount of her career to education and research in the areas of food safety and the slow food movement. She has been a part of many organic urban gardening projects in L.A., which aim to transform socio-economic barriers that keep families from accessing healthy food and practicing eco-friendly lifestyles. For the majority of her career, Susan has worked in connection with the unique world of film and television production. Her accomplishments range from large scale events to intimate dining affairs.