82 MW Of Solar At 17 Japanese Sites (Including Former Airport); Solar Tree Installations At GM; Solar Chargers For Camping (+ More Clean Power News)

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Solar Power

1st EVSI Solar Tree Installations Will Be At California GM Dealership: GM hasn’t been hiding it — it has taken a liking to solar power. As yet another indication of that, it’s been announced that Envision Solar International’s “Solar Tree” will see its first installation at a GM dealership in California, the Fremont Cadillac Buick GMC dealership.

82 MW Of Solar Power Plants On 17 Sites In Japan (FTW!): “Japan is the next Germany (when it comes to solar). Its generous feed-in tariff for solar power is sparking a solar boom, and we can only hope that will inspire more countries to follow suit…. News of one major solar development in Japan popped up this week that I think is worth a bit of gawking. ORIX Corporation, which bills itself as ‘a leading integrated financial services group’ announced that it is going to develop ‘large-scale solar power plants (mega-solar) at 17 sites across Japan with a combined maximum output of 81.6 MW (81,600kW).'”

Former Airport To Be Covered In Solar In Japan: “I just wrote about ORIX Corporation’s whopping 82 MW of solar power plants under development in Japan (thanks to Japan’s generous solar feed-in tariff). One notable project (of the 17) is this project on a former airport site.”

Solar Chargers: A Camping Must-Have Also Helps During Hurricane Sandy: “Although the weather outside can be a little chilly to consider camping, the holiday season is a fabulous time to equip the eco-conscious campers in your life.  And nothing is hotter this holiday season than solar lights and solar phone chargers.”

NREL Announces “Policy Stacking” Report and Webinar: “A recent analysis of state policies reveals that the sequence of policy implementation can accelerate solar PV markets—and that policy change doesn’t have to be costly…. Learn about these findings in a 1-hour webinar on Dec. 5 from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. MST featuring report author Elizabeth Doris, senior project leader for technical assistance and state and local policy at NREL.”

EU may consider German EEG “state aid”: “It would be a complete about-face – the European commission has told Angela Merkel’s coalition that it now considers the German Renewable Energy Act (EEG) to be state aid, not because of the feed-in tariffs, but because of the massively expanded privileges for industry.” (Also see: Renewable Energy Sources Act (EEG) Compliant with EU State Aid Rules?)

Expanded Availability Announced for DOW POWERHOUSE Solar Shingles: “The Dow Chemical Company has released good news for solar shingle enthusiasts today. The company will expand availability of its solar shingle line, a residential roofing system that protects homes like standard shingles that contain embedded solar cells.”

Yingli Solar Provides Modules For 24 MW Puerto Rico Project: “Chinese manufacturer Yingli Solar has provided around 110,000 modules for the Ilumina 24 MW solar plant in Puerto Rico.” (Note: we wrote about this project in October.)

India To Auction 1650 MW Of Solar PV Capacity In 2013 Under Phase II Of JNNSM: “The Indian government has announced a new form of financing mechanism for the solar power projects to be implemented in the second phase of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM). Apart from the currently available mechanisms of bundling and generation-based incentive, the government will auction projects under ‘Viability Gap Funding’ scheme as well.”

SolarCity IPO Launches This Week: “The SolarCity IPO is scheduled for this week, according to Dan Primack of Fortune. SolarCity hopes to sell 10 million shares of its stock at $13 to $15 per share in its maiden offering. A total of 65,012 shares are to be sold by stockholders. SolarCity’s plans to raise $201M have been pulled back — the firm now looks to raise approximately $151 million, according to this filing with the SEC.”

First Solar To Supply 2 MW Of Advanced Thin-Film Modules For China Project: “First Solar, Inc. (Nasdaq:FSLR) has completed an agreement with Zhenfa New Energy Science & Technology Co., Ltd. to supply 2 megawatts (MW) of First Solar’s advanced thin-film solar modules to one of Zhenfa’s approved solar projects in Xinjiang province in the first quarter of 2013. The collaboration will create First Solar’s first commercial demonstration project in China and provide a strong platform to showcase the company’s state-of-the-art photovoltaic (PV) technology.”

A Roundup Of PV In Q3: “At the beginning of December, a number of countries published installation statistics for the third quarter of 2012 or for the first 10 months. Germany continues to roar on towards a new record for the year, and there was also significant movement in other countries.”

Californians Encouraged to Take Advantage of Significant Increase in Solar Water Heating Rebates: “The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has approved an increase in rebates offered through the California Solar Initiative (CSI)-Thermal Program of up to 45 percent. The CPUC authorized the higher rebates to help boost early adoption of solar water heating technology and encourage involvement in the statewide program.”

The 4.1 megawatt solar rooftop system is located at First Solar’s facility in Mesa and is expected to begin operation by year end. (Photo: Business Wire)

Blue Oak Energy Completes Construction of Arizona’s Largest Rooftop Solar Electric System at First Solar Facility: “Blue Oak Energy today announced that it has installed Arizona’s largest rooftop solar system. The 4.1 megawatt solar rooftop system is located at First Solar’s facility in Mesa and is expected to begin operation by year end.”

Wind Power

GE, MetLife and Union Bank Invest Nearly $247 Million in Wind Capital Group’s Kansas Wind Farm Powered by GE Turbines: “A group comprising GE, GE Energy Financial Services, Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, and Union Bank, N.A., has invested nearly $247 million in Wind Capital Group’s recently commissioned 201-megawatt Post Rock wind farm. Wind Capital Group, supported by its parent company, NTR plc, maintains a substantial equity stake and serves as managing member of the project, located 80 miles outside Wichita, Kansas, in Ellsworth and Lincoln Counties.”

Gamesa To Supply 49.3 MW Of Wind Turbines To Guangdong Nuclear Group In China: “Gamesa, a global technology leader in wind energy, has signed a deal to supply 49.3 MW of capacity (58 of its 850 kW wind turbines) to China Guangdong Nuclear Wind Energy Limited for the wind farm located in Shandong Province, in China. The wind farm is under construction and is expected to be connected to the grid at the end of this year.”

Blow Out The Candles: Australia’s Oldest Wind Turbine Turns 25: “November might have been a milestone month for solar, with cumulative PV installations reaching 2GW, but it also marked a reasonably big milestone for wind: 25 years since the Breamlea Wind Turbine, near Geelong in Victoria, was commissioned.” The turbine is still running strong.


 

Clean Power (In General)

Ron Pernick On How America Can Lead In Cleantech: ‘The Challenge Is How To Deploy, Not Just Invent’: “What did it feel like to publish a book on the future of cleantech in the U.S. just as the sector became a target in national politics?

“’It was pretty tense there for a while. We were holding our breath,’ says Ron Pernick, managing director of the market research firm Clean Edge and co-author of the new book, Cleantech Nation.

“Forget about selling books. This is an industry that Pernick, along with his co-author and Clean Edge co-founder Clint Wilder, lives and breathes. And for people who’ve watched the industry grow from lab-scale tinkering to a full-on industrial powerhouse, the vicious attacks were, well, insulting.”

Will India Surge Ahead Of The West In Renewable Energy?: “This August, power shortages in India that left 300 million in the dark made it very clear that one of the world’s fastest growing economies was facing an energy crisis. Less clear is how realistically to solve it. Many firms are looking for new sources of oil to fulfill India’s growing energy demands, but this could prove to be painfully expensive. On the brighter side, solar energy and other renewable resources are already being rapidly harnessed in the non-Western world, and they are becoming cheaper and cheaper.”

Insight: How Communities Can Take Lead In Green Energy: “This is the second in a series looking more deeply into issues which affect the development of the clean energy industry in Australia. The first was on the 2kms set-back rule imposed by the Victorian government and at least partially adopted in NSW.”


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Zachary Shahan

Zach is tryin' to help society help itself one word at a time. He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director, chief editor, and CEO. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, Canada, and Curaçao. Zach has long-term investments in Tesla [TSLA], NIO [NIO], Xpeng [XPEV], Ford [F], ChargePoint [CHPT], Amazon [AMZN], Piedmont Lithium [PLL], Lithium Americas [LAC], Albemarle Corporation [ALB], Nouveau Monde Graphite [NMGRF], Talon Metals [TLOFF], Arclight Clean Transition Corp [ACTC], and Starbucks [SBUX]. But he does not offer (explicitly or implicitly) investment advice of any sort.

Zachary Shahan has 7324 posts and counting. See all posts by Zachary Shahan