A bill has been introduced to the US Congress, which aims to help industrial facilities become more efficient and retain power during significant storms.

The Power, Efficiency and Resiliency (POWER) Act would increase tax credits for industrial facilities that install energy-efficient technologies such as combined heat and power (CHP) and waste heat to power (WHP) and allow them to continue generating power during a blackout.

Specifically, the bill would increase the investment tax credit from 10 per cent to 30 per cent, and allow it to be applied to WHP upgrades, according to Business Journal.

“The Power Act incentivizes investment in energy-efficient systems that protect our environment, encourage economic growth and ensure that hospitals and other critical facilities are able to continue operating in emergencies, even when the electric grid goes down,” says bill co-sponsor Rep. Allyson Schwartz of Pennsylvania in a release. “That is why this legislation has the support of Democrats and Republicans, as well as a diverse coalition of business, labor, energy and environmental organizations.”

According to a study from the Oak Ridge National Laboratory, CHP could be used to produce up to 20 per cent of US electrical capacity by 2030. TheEnvironmental Protection Agency says it estimates that WHP could be used to generate 10 gigawatts of emissions-free energy, enough to power 10 million homes.

A consortium of Alstom and Saft have been awarded a contract by EDF group to provide an initial energy storage system.

The consortium will contribute to the EDF’s demonstration on a megawatt scale for frequency regulation using a lithium-ion battery storage system.

Under the contract, the Alstom-Saft consortium will develop 1MW/30min energy storage and conversion system, using a container of Lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, capable of regulating the frequency of the grid.

Saft’s Intensium Max 20M storage system and Alstom’s MaxSine eStorage solution wil be integrated and installed on EDF R&D’s experimental Concept Grid, designed for the development of grids and smart electrical systems.

Alstom Grid senior vice-president of smart grid & HVDC Patrick Plas said the battery energy storage system is part of the Nouvelle France Industrielle project, which was launched by the French government in 2013.

“At the cutting edge of smart grid and power transportation infrastructure optimisation technologies, Alstom Grid is contributing its technological expertise to the excellence of the French and European energy industry,” Plas said.

Located on the EDF site of Les Renardières in the south of Paris (Seine-et-Marne region), the storage system and the power converter will be delivered in late 2014.

Saft energy storage activity director François Bouchon said: “With our international experience in the integration of renewable energies especially for networks in the Paris area, this innovative experiment will demonstrate the added value of a battery storage system and the performance of Li-ion technology in this promising sector.”

Abengoa together with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) and the Colorado School of Mines, has been selected by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop a new solar energy storage technology for thermo-electric plants.

The program will last for two years and will require an investment of $1.76 million by the DOE.

Abengoa will be responsible for leading the systems integration work and the technical-financial analysis, focusing on the commercial potential of this technology in future solar plant projects.

Plans by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) to establish solar power plants at its airports have progressed with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).

AAI proposals to meet not only its own requirements but also to feed surplus power into the grid include the installation of 50 MW of cumulative capacity solar plants in Phase I, which will be enhanced to 150 MW over a period of time.

The plants will be installed on surplus land available within the AAI portfolio and on the large roof tops of AAI’s structures.

In all about 30 Airports have been identified by AAI as suitable for the establishment of solar power plants.

Shri Ashok Lavasa, India’s Secretary of Civil Aviation, highlighted the importance of tapping solar energy through various outlets, including storage of the power generated in rechargeable batteries. He also emphasized the potential, including roof top surfaces, as large areas are available at airports.

PV plant will produce sufficient clean energy to power more than 7,400 residents.

Chinese solar panel manufacturer Yingli Green Energy is planning to participate in Dubai’s 100MW solar park project, as part of the company’s expansion plans in the Middle East and Africa in 2014.

The company is looking to expand its business in emerging markets such as the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Qatar, Kuwait, Pakistan, Nigeria and others.

The National cited Yingli Green Energy managing director Dimitirios Bachadakis as saying that the company will bid on Dubai’s independent power plant (IPP) project.

“There is a huge move towards solar energy in Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE to name just a few,” Bachadakis said.

As part of the plan to diversify its energy mix by 2030 in the UAE, the state utility Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has issued a tender for the solar park project, with the deadline on 5 July 2014.

The tender for the solar part forms part of the AED1bn 1,000MW Mohammad bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park project.

Yingli executive director Middle East Evangelos Lianos was quoted by Reuters as saying, “It is either we will partner with other companies together and then will submit our bid, or it might be that our strategy is we will support this project with services to the participating companies.”

Currently, DEWA is negotiating with other partners and governments to equip large-scale solar installations in the region.

WEG has supplied a complete solar photovoltaic plant for the Energy Company, Pernambuco State (Celpe), part of the Neoenergia group. The plant is installed at the Air Force Command and will supply 4.6% of the total energy consumption of the island, which represents a saving of almost 10% of the annual consumption of diesel.

The new Fernando de Noronha plant is part of the Celpe Energy Efficiency Program regulated by the National Electric Energy Agency (Aneel), which is conducted in partnership with the Air Force Command. The distance from the mainland hinders the use of energy through the network distribution centre, making the sun an attractive energy source in comparison to fossil fuels.

“Some hotels on the island already use solar energy to heat water; however, this is a pioneer project for electricity generation,” said Ana Christina Mascarenhas, the spokeswoman for Neoenergia Energy Efficiency Group. “The installation of a photovoltaic solar power plant, in addition to the benefits to the environment, promotes training in this new technology and helps expand the installation of this system of power generation.”

An additional project to install a second plant that will generate 500 kWp is currently awaiting authorisation from the relevant environmental agencies. As a further element to the project, wider strategies are being defined for the use of renewable energy on the island.

A new solar material that has the same crystal structure as a mineral first found in the Ural Mountains in 1839 is shooting up the efficiency charts faster than almost anything researchers have seen before—and it is generating optimism that a less expensive way of using sunlight to generate electricity may be in our planet’s future.

Researchers at the Energy Department’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) are analyzing the new material, perovskite, using the lab’s unique testing capabilities and broad spectrum of expertise to uncover the secrets and potential of the semiconducting cube-like mineral.

NREL has already produced three scientific papers on perovskite, reporting on the science behind the very large length of the electron pairs (or charge diffusion length) in mesostructured perovskite solar cells. The two most-studied perovskite device structures are mesostructured (of medium complexity) and planar (two-dimensional). NREL Research Fellow David Ginley, who is a world-renowned materials scientist and winner of several R&D 100 Awards, said what makes perovskite device structures so remarkable is that when processed in a liquid solution, they have unusual abilities to diffuse photons a long distance through the cell. That makes it far less likely that the electrons will recombine with their hole pairs and be lost to useful electricity. And that indicates a potential for low-cost, high-efficiency devices.

NREL Senior Scientist Daniel Friedman notes that the light-absorbing perovskite cells have “a diffusion length 10 times longer than their absorption length,” not only an unusual phenomenon, but a very useful one, too.

Work has just started on a new 1MW anaerobic digestion (AD) plant that will use locally grown grass, whole crop silage and some maize at Consett in north east England.
The build phase of the project will be completed in late 2014 with full production of heat, power and liquid fertiliser (digestate), which will be spread back on the nearby farmland.
Nutrient-rich digestate from the facility will ensure that future crops destined for the plant are produced in a sustainable way whilst improving soil organic matter.
Hallwick Energy Ltd, renewable energy plant developer, has started work on the project, with funding provided by Ingenious Clean Energy investee company, Generation X Energy Limited.
The plant will be supplied by MT-Energie UK and it will produce power and heat for the neighbouring Thomas Swan & Co Ltd, a leading chemicals and nanotechnology company in the UK.
The use of generated heat and electricity will offset Thomas Swan’s use of fossil fuel sourced power, contributing to the reduction of their carbon footprint.
Harry Hoskyns Abrahall from Hallwick Energy said: “With this project we prove that AD is a viable and effective solution which brings benefits not only to farms and households but also to energy-intensive businesses.”
Andrew Black, managing director of MT-Energie UK, added: “We are looking forward to a good working relationship with Hallwick Energy, and we are delighted to be an integral part of this ambitious project.”
Harry Swan, managing director of Thomas Swan, said his company had always been committed to the search for more sustainable energy generation and reduction of waste.
“Through this plant we will be able to integrate our existing energy needs with a clean source which will reduce the environmental impact of our activity. We will also be less susceptible to ever rising energy prices, reducing overheads and securing our business.”