Energy
SC Johnson Powers Up Wind Energy At Company’s Largest Manufacturing Facility
December 19, 2012 10:23 am | News | CommentsWhen the blades started spinning yesterday on SC Johnson’s two new wind turbines, the company’s Waxdale manufacturing facility began to further minimize its dependence on fossil fuels. The addition of the turbines means that products made at Waxdale — trusted brands like Scrubbing Bubbles®, Glade® and Windex® — will now be made using clean energy.
Report: Shale Gas Key To U.S. Manufacturing Recovery
December 12, 2012 11:54 am | News | CommentsFavorable oil-to-gas price ratios driven by the production of natural gas from shale will drive a renewed U.S. competitiveness that will boost exports, and fuel greater domestic investment, economic growth and job creation within the business of chemistry, according to the Year End 2012 Situation and Outlook, published today by the American Chemistry Council (ACC).
Panel: Fault Under Japan Nuke Plant May Be Active
December 11, 2012 10:35 am | News | CommentsThe five-member panel commissioned by the Nuclear Regulation Authority announced Monday that the structure underneath the Tsuruga plant showed signs of seismic movement around 100,000 years ago, recent enough to still be active. Japanese guidelines prohibit nuclear facilities above active faults.
Nuke Industry Plans Rescue Wagon For Disasters
December 10, 2012 9:01 am | by Ray Henry, Associated Press | News | CommentsIf disaster strikes a nuclear power plant in the U.S., the utility industry wants the ability to fly in heavy-duty equipment that could avert a meltdown.That capability is part of a larger industry plan being developed to meet new rules that emerged since a 2011 tsunami struck a nuclear plant in Japan, flooding its emergency equipment and causing nuclear meltdowns.
IntelliCENTER Software Simplifies Controller Integration And Energy Reporting
December 6, 2012 12:43 pm | Product Releases | CommentsRockwell Automation has released two new features in Allen-Bradley IntelliCENTER software — IntelliCENTER Integration Assistant and IntelliCENTER Energy — to accelerate the configuration time and enhance end users’ data-driven energy decisions.
Study: Natural Gas Exports Would Help Economy
December 5, 2012 4:47 pm | News | CommentsExporting natural gas would benefit the U.S. economy even if it led to higher domestic prices for the fuel, according to a study commissioned by the Energy Department. Consumer advocates and manufacturers that use natural gas as a raw material or fuel source have opposed exports. They fear exports will drive up prices for residents and increase manufacturing costs.
Fossil Fuel Subsidies In Focus At Climate Talks
December 3, 2012 1:42 pm | by Karl Ritter, Associated Press | News | CommentsQatar — the host of U.N. climate talks that entered their final week Monday — is among dozens of countries that keep gas prices artificially low through subsidies that exceeded $500 billion globally last year. Renewable energy worldwide received six times less support.
Analyst Sees Coal Industry Improving In 2013
November 30, 2012 11:51 am | News | CommentsCoal is becoming more competitive since natural gas prices have risen closer to $4 per 1,000 cubic feet. It was below $2 earlier this year. And coal demand is expected to pick up as emerging-market economies get healthier, Sterne Agee analyst Michael S. Dudas said.
Revised 'Fracking' Regulations Released In NY
November 30, 2012 10:55 am | by George M. Walsh, Associated Press | News | CommentsA revised set of proposed regulations for hydraulic fracturing natural gas has been released by New York environmental officials who will begin taking public comment on them in December. It has been a year since the last public hearings on the original proposal. New York has not yet approved the technology, which drillers want to use to tap gas in the Marcellus Shale formation.
First Section Of New Shelter For Chernobyl Ready
November 27, 2012 8:27 am | News | CommentsWorkers have raised the first section of a colossal arch-shaped structure that is eventually to cover the exploded reactor at the Chernobyl nuclear power station. Project officials on Tuesday hailed the raising as a significant step in a complex effort to liquidate the consequences of the world's worst nuclear accident, in 1986.
NY Gov: Fracking Regs Likely Delayed Into 2013
November 20, 2012 10:18 pm | by Mary Esch, Associated Press | News | CommentsA health impact review of shale gas drilling by national experts will make it impossible to meet a looming deadline for new fracking regulations, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Tuesday, pushing a much-delayed decision on the contentious issue into 2013.
The Energy Of Stunt Kites
November 16, 2012 1:30 pm | by Fraunhofer | Articles | CommentsIt may seem as though the German plains are all but tapped out when it comes to wind energy production. To refute this theory researchers are sending stunt kites into the skies to harness the wind and convert the kinetic energy generated into electricity.
Google Invests $75M In Iowa Wind Farm
November 15, 2012 11:58 am | News | CommentsGoogle is investing $75 million in an Iowa wind farm as part of its effort to encourage development of cleaner energy sources. The deal announced Thursday gives Google Inc. a stake in the Rippey Wind Farm in Greene County, Iowa. RPM Access LLC is the primary owner.
Calif. Panel Rejects Quake Study Near Nuke Plant
November 14, 2012 8:00 pm | by Alicia Chang, AP Science Writer | News | CommentsCiting harm to marine life, California coastal regulators rejected a utility's plan to map offshore earthquake faults near a nuclear power plant by blasting loud air cannons. The unanimous vote by the California Coastal Commission came after an hours-long public hearing attended by environmentalists, fishermen and residents who were overwhelmingly opposed to the seismic testing.
Governors Want Wind Energy Tax Credit Renewed
November 14, 2012 8:12 am | by Jeff Barnard and Nicholas, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe fate of a tax credit that advocates say is needed to maintain tens of thousands of wind energy jobs will be decided during high-stakes, last-minute negotiations between President Obama and House Republicans over fiscal issues, officials said Tuesday. The wind energy production tax credit is due to expire at the end of the year.
Official Backs Studying Quake Risks At Nuke Plants
November 9, 2012 8:28 am | by Ray Henry, Associated Press | News | CommentsRecent earthquakes demonstrate the need for the nation's nuclear industry to re-evaluate the geologic hazards facing power plants, a process that has already started, the new chair of the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission said this week. NRC Chairwoman Allison Macfarlane said in an interview that a spate of natural events shows the importance of further study.
OPEC Sees Coal Use Increasing
November 8, 2012 9:15 am | News | CommentsOPEC says that fossil fuels will remain the main energy source in the coming decades with coal's share growing and oil's falling. In its annual World Oil Outlook, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries also projects that a barrel of benchmark crude will cost $155 by 2035, compared with under $100 now.
German Solar Power Production Up
November 5, 2012 8:58 am | News | CommentsGerman utilities say solar power production rose by more than 50 percent on the year over the first nine months of 2012 amid a boom in installations of photovoltaic panels. The German utilities' industry association BDEW said Monday the solar power output rose to 25,000 gigawatt hours in the January to September period, from 16,500 gigawatt hours a year earlier.
Jobs Dwindle During Green Power Debate
November 5, 2012 4:43 am | by Nicholas Riccardi, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe wind energy boom President Barack Obama touted as key to his energy strategy has hit a wall in an election-year dispute over taxpayer support for renewable energy. The government poured billions of dollars into renewable energy, hoping to unleash a wave of good-paying, high-tech manufacturing jobs.
Japan Nuclear Plant Checked For Fault Line
November 2, 2012 8:51 am | News | CommentsJapanese nuclear regulators inspected ground structures at the country's only operating nuclear plant to examine if an existing fault line is active. The inspection Friday determines whether the Ohi plant in western Japan should close. Its No. 3 and No. 4 reactors went back online in July, becoming Japan's only operating reactors.
Vestas To Close 3 R&D Sites
November 1, 2012 8:06 am | News | CommentsVestas Wind Systems says about 85 people will lose their jobs when the wind turbine manufacturer closes its three U.S. research and development offices next year. Vestas also closed research offices this year in China, Denmark and Singapore. Its research and development workforce is down by about 20 percent from 2011.
Indigenous Vs. Multinationals In Mexico Wind Power
October 31, 2012 1:53 pm | by Mark Stevenson, Associated Press | News | CommentsMexico is putting up wind power turbines at a breakneck pace and the expansion is pitting energy companies against the Indians who live in one of the windiest spots in the world. The country is posting one of the world's highest growth rates in wind energy, and almost all of it is concentrated in the narrow waist of Mexico known as the Isthmus of Tehuantepec.
Decision On Crippled Fla. Nuke Plant Delayed
October 31, 2012 8:38 am | by Bill Kaczor, Associated Press | News | CommentsA lawyer for Progress Energy Florida said a decision on whether to repair or shut down a crippled nuclear power plant is being delayed, which could trigger a $100 million customer refund. A prior settlement between Progress Energy and consumer advocates calls for a refund if repairs don't begin at the Crystal River plant by the end of the year.
Nuclear Plants Shut Down Units As Storm Hits
October 30, 2012 8:36 am | by Josh Lederman, Associated Press | News | CommentsParts of two nuclear power plants were shut down late Monday and early Tuesday, while another plant — the nation's oldest — was put on alert after waters from Superstorm Sandy rose 6 feet above sea level. One of the units at Indian Point, a plant about 45 miles north of New York City, was shut down Monday because of external electrical grid issues.
Hitachi To Buy Horizon Nuclear
October 30, 2012 7:59 am | News | CommentsJapan's Hitachi Ltd. has agreed to buy British atomic power company Horizon Nuclear Power Ltd. from its German owners for $1.12 billion. The companies announced the deal Tuesday, ending months of uncertainty after the 50-50 owners of Horizon, RWE AG and E.ON AG, abandoned plans to build nuclear power plants in Britain.
