I wrote this story for Grist, where it first appeared. More good news on the renewable energy front Monday: The cost of onshore wind power has dropped to record lows, and in some regions is competitive with electricity generated by coal-fired plants, according to a survey by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, a market research firm. [...]
Archive for the ‘wind power’ Category
Wind power now competitive with coal in some regions
Posted in renewable energy, wind power on February 8, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
Sage-grouse map could help avoid wind farm fights
Posted in endangered species, renewable energy, wind power on January 16, 2011 | Leave a Comment »
I wrote this story for Reuters, where it first appeared on November 26, 2010. In an effort that could help avoid conflicts between wind energy developers and environmentalists, the United States Department of the Interior this week released a map that identifies breeding densities of the imperiled sage-grouse in 11 Western states. The chicken-sized bird [...]
Tilting at turbines: China takes the wind out of the U.S.
Posted in green policy, wind power, tagged Bloomberg New Energy Finance on October 28, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
I wrote this story for Grist, where it first appeared. Installation of new wind power capacity in the United States is expected to decline 39 percent this year, according to a report released Thursday. Now that would be a brutal blow for any industry battered by a vicious recession. But it’s particularly bad news for [...]
Google’s big green power purchase
Posted in alternative energy, energy, environment, Google, green financing, green tech, renewable energy, wind power, tagged Google, Google Energy, NextEra Energy, wind power on July 25, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
Image: Google I wrote this story for Grist, where it first appeared. Google is officially in the green energy business. The search giant announced on Tuesday that its Google Energy subsidiary signed a 20-year power purchase agreement with NextEra Energy. Google will begin buying 114 megawatts of electricity from an Iowa wind farm on July [...]
Top execs leave three renewable energy startups
Posted in alternative energy, biofuels, Clipper Windpower, enviro startups, environment, renewable energy, solar energy, solar power plants, SolarReserve, wind power, tagged Aurora Biofuels, Clipper Windpower, Douglas Pertz, Robert Walsh, SolarReserve, Terry Murphy on March 11, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
photo: Aurora Biofuels As I write in The New York Times on Friday, it’s spring cleaning at three renewable energy firms as top executives depart SolarReserve, Clipper Windpower and Aurora Biofuels: The past week has brought a spate of executive departures at renewable energy startups, with the president of SolarReserve, a power plant builder, and [...]
IBM opens China energy lab, moves execs to Beijing
Posted in alternative energy, corporate green, electric cars, energy, environment, green grid, IBM, smart grid, solar energy, wind power, tagged Beijing, Brad Gammons, China, Energy & Utilities Solutions Lab, IBM on March 8, 2010 | Leave a Comment »
In The New York Times on Monday, I write about IBM’s new smart grid lab in Beijing that will develop technology for the global market: In another sign of China’s emergence as an epicenter of green technology, I.B.M. has opened a lab in Beijing to develop smart grid software for the global market. “We’re developing [...]
Black & Veatch: Future looks carbonated
Posted in alternative energy, energy, environment, green policy, nuclear energy, solar energy, wind power, tagged Black & Veatch, energy, fossil fuels, renewable energy on January 15, 2010 | 1 Comment »
Could we really be as dependent on fossil fuels in 2034 as we are today? In The New York TImes on Friday, I write about a projection from energy consultants Black & Veatch that sees fossil fuels continuing to play a dominant role in the United States a quarter century from now: A quarter century [...]
Old-line tech giant buys big stake in wind company
Posted in alternative energy, Clipper Windpower, wind power, tagged Clipper Windpower, United Technologies, wind energy on December 11, 2009 | 2 Comments »
photo: Clipper Windpower Tech and defense industry conglomerate United Technologies has shown growing interest in alternative energy and this week it bought nearly half of California wind turbine maker Clipper Windpower. As I write Friday in The New York Times: United Technologies, a global industrial heavyweight, will invest $270 million for a 49.5 percent stake [...]
Bats take down West Virginia wind farm
Posted in alternative energy, endangered species, green policy, wind power, tagged Beech Ridge Energy, Endangered Species Act, Indiana bat, Invenergy, wind farms on December 10, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
I’ve written before about the coming collision between green energy projects and endangered wildlife. Now we have a federal court decision in a case involving an endangered bat and a West Virginia wind farm. As I write Thursday in The New York Times: A federal judge’s ruling that stopped construction of a West Virginia wind [...]
Got wind? There’s an iPhone app for that.
Posted in alternative energy, energy, green marketing, green tech, wind power, tagged Create with Context, iPhone, iPhone wind speed app, Mariah Power on October 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
There are a growing number of “green” software applications for the iPhone. One of the newest is an app that turns the gadget into an anemometer to clock wind speeds for those considering installing a backyard turbine. As I write in The New York Times on Thursday: Thinking of putting a wind turbine in your [...]
