Category Archives: solar
New Tools for Navigating Renewable Energy Incentives
The tools for navigating the bewildering array of renewable energy incentives in the U.S. just got a bit better. There are thousands of such incentives, and their purpose is to accelerate the adoption of renewable energy in the United States. There … Continue reading
Filed under biofuels, incentives, solar, sustainability
Solar Powered Cars?
I’ve been monkeying with energy statistics long enough to know that, as with any statistics, with enough ingenuity you can find some number somewhere to prove your point. My goal on this blog has not been to prove points but … Continue reading
Filed under biofuels, efficiency, solar, transportation
Onshoring and Offshoring Photovoltaic Manufacturing
The New York Times reported today that Suntech Power, China’s largest solar panel manufacturer, will open its first American plant in the U.S., nearl Phoenix. It’s a good thing that some of the economic action around cleantech manufacturing is happening … Continue reading
Filed under solar
Unintended Consequences, Part III: Electricity vs. Water
The latest installment in my compilation of the unintended consequences of new energy technologies: “clean” power projects can be giant water hogs. (Here’s part I and here’s part II.) The New York Times reported today that utility-scale solar energy projects … Continue reading
The Multidisciplinary Challenges of Clean Tech
I am having a blast covering clean tech from a research and consulting perspective. What is it that makes clean tech such a stimulating area? The panel discussions at the excellent Financial Times conference on the U.S. energy business yesterday … Continue reading
Filed under carbon, coal, energy storage, grid, solar
My Clean, Green, Sustainable Reading List
Over the last few months I’ve been reading through the literature on clean tech, energy and sustainability. In case you are looking for suggestions, I can recommend any or all of these. If you have any reactions or suggestions for … Continue reading
Filed under biofuels, carbon, coal, efficiency, emissions, energy prices, energy storage, grid, illumination, natural gas, oil, solar, sustainability, transportation, water
Solar by the Numbers, Take 1
I’m looking for a good, basic set of figures to provide an overview of the major alternative energy sectors. So far I haven’t found anything I like. So I’m exploring the data sources and am playing with compiling my own … Continue reading
Filed under solar
Energy Technologies and Unintended Consequences
All energy technologies–indeed all technologies–carry the baggage of unintended consequences. Continue reading
The Taxing Economics of Carbon Capture
A Bush administration decision to pull the plug on a large-scale project to assess carbon sequestration technology was justified using a mathematical error according to a report today in The New York Times. “The Energy Department made a $500 million … Continue reading
How Energy is Like Web 2.0
Web 2.0 and Alternative Energy Sometimes Share a Stage If you travel in Internet circles and are tracking developments in clean tech or alternative energy, you have noticed that Web 2.0 and energy have sometimes shared a stage. We had, … Continue reading
Filed under energy storage, grid, oil, solar, transportation
Clean Tech Innovation from Geeks to Wonks
With jargon like thin-film photovoltaics and carbon capture and sequestration, it may seem that clean tech innovation is all about science and esoteric technology–a pretty different place than, say, digital media and e-commerce, where much of the action has been … Continue reading
Filed under energy storage, illumination, solar, transportation
Recent News on Nuclear and Solar
Amid Boom, Concerns at Small Solar Firms Solar power is in the midst of a boom in the United States. High energy costs are one reason. But what may be more important are generous state and power company incentives and … Continue reading
Filed under solar
