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 are so many incentives, and they change so often, that it can be a full-time [...]
Entries Tagged as ‘solar’
November 24, 2009
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 rather to learn and maybe to teach. Today I set out to learn a little [...]
November 18, 2009
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 in this country. I recently came across this graphic showing the large disparity between Chinese [...]
October 1, 2009
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 in the sun-rich but water-poor Southwest and California are running into obstacles as project developers [...]
September 26, 2009
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 prompted me to reflect on this question. (You can see my conference tweets here.) Yes, [...]
July 28, 2009
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 further reading, please consider leaving a comment. Solar Revolution: The Economic Transformation of the Global [...]
June 6, 2009
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 set. Today I’ve pulled together a few figures from the Energy Information Administration on the [...]
May 5, 2009
Energy Technologies and Unintended Consequences
All energy technologies–indeed all technologies–carry the baggage of unintended consequences.
March 12, 2009
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 math error a year ago when it withdrew its support from a ‘near-zero emissions’ coal [...]
January 30, 2009
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, for example, climate change fighter Al Gore speaking at O’Reilly’s recent Web 2.0 Summit (update: [...]
December 11, 2008
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 in marketing and business model innovation. So I’ve been thinking about how different industry sectors [...]
September 26, 2008
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 rebates, as well as tax credits that make solar systems affordable to many more people [...]
