Solar thermal (inc. CSP)

Where is the smart money going - in the US and worldwide?

US President Obama has been making much of the potential of renewables. He says that “We know that the country that harnesses the power of the clean, renewable energy will lead the 21st century” and as part of the US Economic Stimulus package he allocated over USD150 billion over ten years to a range of renewable energy and green energy projects – a tenfold increases on previous levels of departmental support.

China – a greening giant

As the global installed base of renewable electricity generation capacity continues to expand, China is increasing in importance both as a consumer of green technologies, and as an exporter. The world’s biggest manufacturing nation in solar PV cells is increasingly consuming its own output in this area, and China is also ramping up production of wind turbines fast enough to supply half of a colossal domestic demand – and is established as a major exporter too.

The global renewable generation context

Germany Country Profile

The expansion of renewable energy sources in Germany has been an unprecedented success. The country has emerged as Europe’s leader in wind utilisation and biofuel production. Also, despite being geographically positioned with modest solar radiation, Germany has been experiencing a remarkable boom in solar energy. It is the largest solar thermal market in Europe and a major producer and consumer of PV power systems. Over the past few years, the share of total final energy consumption from renewables has more than doubled, standing at 8.6 % in 2007.

Green heat: losing its Cinderella status in the UK

Heat supply has been the Cinderella area in the green energy field - the emphasis has so far mainly been on electricity. But things are changing, in recognition of the fact that, as the UK House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee put it in its new report on the Economics of Renewable Energy, two-fifths of the UK’s energy usage is on heat, and only one fifth on electricity.

Abu Dhabi's renewable city emerges from the sand

In the heart of the Middle East’s oil-rich nations, the small Emirate of Abu Dhabi continues to pin its economic future on renewable and low-carbon technologies. Two years after the announcement of the Masdar Initiative - a clean-tech investment fund, property developer and renewable-energy start-up designed to position Abu Dhabi as a green leader – the government announced that it is setting a goal of 7% of the country's power to come from renewable energy by 2020.

A trans-continental supergrid

Dr Gregor Czisch from the University of Kassel in Germany claims that a 100% renewable power supply for Europe is possible. In a series of papers and reports he suggests that a programme of renewable energy - largely wind power supported by biomass and existing hydro power for storage and smoothing - can meet the EU's entire future electrical energy needs at cost levels similar to those at present, with the same level of reliability, and without the need for nuclear or fossil fuel.

Concentrating solar power: Energy from deserts

Concentrating solar power (CSP), using focused solar heat to generate electricity, has moved up the agenda as a promising new energy option. In fact it’s not a new idea. The USA was one of the early pioneers with Solar 1 and Solar 2 large mirror arrays focused on so-called central “power towers” installed in the Mojave desert in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Similar projects were tested elsewhere, for example in Italy – with “heliostat” mirrors tracking the sun. But the technology was expensive.

Scenarios for non-domestic on-site renewable energy generation in Europe: implications for the market supply-side

This article aims to apply a formal scenario planning process to the evolution of the non-domestic on-site / renewable energy technology market. In preparing this article, we have referred to several existing reports covering the microgeneration and on-site renewables market (a brief bibliography of relevant reports that we have consulted is given in at the end of this article) and spoken with independent observers of the market as well as microgeneration technology suppliers. We thank all those that have helped us.

CSP technology provider BrightSource Energy raises USD115 million in funding

BrightSource Energy of California announced on 14 May that it has raised USD115 million in funding from investors including Google.org, BP Alternative Energy, StatoilHydro Venture and Black River, as well as its existing investors. The amount is a significant increase over previous funding rounds.

New projects worldwide confirm Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) is moving up the agenda

By Dave Elliott

The big new thing in the renewables field is Concentrating Solar Power (CSP) - with focused solar heat from troughs, mirrors or dishes used to raise steam for power generation. There have been some large solar power tower projects before, in the USA and Italy, but now it is looking more economic.

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