Grist | Topics | 15 Results

RESULTS		Results 1 – 15 of 15
Headline	Author	Published	Section
Sustainable economy 101 Lessons from Europe and Japan	Jon Rynn	23 Jun 2008	Gristmill
The following article appeared in Foreign Policy in Focus, and was reposted at commondreams.org. When New York City wanted to make the biggest purchase of subway cars in U.S. history in the late 1990s -- more than $3 billion worth -- the only companies that were able to bid on the contract were foreign. The same problem applies to high-speed rail today: Only European or Japanese companies can build any of the proposed rail networks in the United States. The U.S. has als ...
Topics: solar voltaic power, economy, energy, solar thermal power, business, wind power, greenish companies, renewable energy (all these topics)

Entreprenews you can use: Sungevity 'Dell of solar' seeks to make it cheap and user-friendly to get rooftop PV	David Roberts	23 Jun 2008	Gristmill
Today, a company called Sungevity announced the availability of what they're calling the cheapest solar system in the world: a rooftop solar panel system, fully installed, for $2,000. That's as much as I paid for my computer. For that price, the average home will save $21,000 in electricity over 25 years -- a 45 percent return on investment. From a simple web interface, customers can plug in their address and Sungevity will use satellite and aerial imagery to asse ...
Topics: business, energy, greenish companies, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Markets, not technologies A long-term extension of the solar investment tax credit is vital	Adam Browning	14 Apr 2008	Gristmill
Joe is correct to point out that solar energy is not a monolith -- but he's got the categories wrong. The relevant division is not between technologies but markets. Market No. 1 is distributed generation solar -- that is, solar sited on the customer side of the meter, serving on-site load. Think rooftops. This market will be served almost exclusively by photovoltaics (for electricity -- hot water is another case) -- and the relevant cost comparison is the retail pr ...
Topics: business, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Do we need a massive government program to generate breakthroughs to make solar energy cost-competitive? Concentrated solar power is already doing great; no breakthroughs needed	Joseph Romm	11 Apr 2008	Gristmill
Almost certainly not and absolutely not. I give two answers here because there are two very different types of solar energy: Solar photovoltaics, PV, which is direct conversion of sunlight to electricity. It is well known, high-tech, uneconomically expensive in most parts of this country (but poised to resume dropping sharply in price), and intermittent (power only when the sun shines). Solar thermal electric or concentrated solar power (CSP), which uses mi ...
Topics: business, Department of Energy, energy, renewable energy, solar thermal power, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Solar's new mega-plants	David Roberts	03 Apr 2008	Gristmill
Good stuff.(Thanks, Brian)
Topics: business, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Another entrant in the $1/watt solar sweepstakes Cost of solar cells may be driven down dramatically	David Roberts	26 Mar 2008	Gristmill
Well lookie here! A series of manufacturing process improvements could make the cost of electricity from silicon-based solar cells comparable to today's prices for coal generation within about four years, according to a company emerging out of stealth today. The company, 1366 Technologies, will be using technologies developed in MIT labs to reduce the manufacturing costs of standard-issue multi-crystalline silicon solar cells. They say they can ultimately reduce ...
Topics: business, carbon sequestration, coal, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Next Up on the Panel ... Solar-panel manufacturers dumping toxic waste in China		10 Mar 2008	News
Posted at 4:54 PM on 10 Mar 2008 Solar panels may look bright and shiny, but they have a dark underbelly: production of polysilicon for panels gives off a highly toxic byproduct called silicon tetrachloride. In China, where factories are rushing to alleviate a polysilicon shortage that's cramping the global solar-panel industry, the bubbly white liquid is often just dumped in nearby villages. "The land where yo ...
Topics: business, China, energy, news, renewable energy, solar voltaic power, toxics (all these topics)

Blow by Blow Company creates global map of wind patterns		04 Mar 2008	News
Posted at 10:11 AM on 04 Mar 2008 Any way the wind blows, weather-consulting service 3Tier wants to map it. The company has created a global map of weather patterns that's available free on the internet, allowing anyone to check whether there's strong enough air movement -- and transmission capacity -- to power property in a certain area. 3Tier plans to do a similar project to show the potential of solar energy, to keep the renewable-energ ...
Topics: business, energy, greenish companies, innovation, news, renewable energy, solar voltaic power, wind power (all these topics)

If you build it, they will come Growing solar industry depends on key tax credit that will expire this year	Adam Browning	22 Jan 2008	Gristmill
Advocates talk a lot about how renewable energy is not just good for the environment, but good for the economy as well. And here is some real-world proof: New Mexico, with strong leadership by Gov. Richardson, PRC Commissioners Lujan and Marks, and many others, has done more than most to establish the full suite of policies necessary to build a solar market. And the reward? Schott AG is investing $100 million in a new manufacturing facility outside of Albuquerque. It w ...
Topics: business, economy, energy, New Mexico, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

The growth of renewable energy markets In which I come to the defense of Shellenberger and Nordhaus -- sort of, anyway	Adam Browning	04 Oct 2007	Gristmill
I was planning on sitting out the Nordhaus/Shellenberger debate. But then I thought: Adam, you are not the top-rated Gristmill blogger (see list at left) for nothing. People want to hear from you. So, here's my take:The first place Nordhaus and Shellenberger go wrong is their predilection for publicity photos that resemble '80s album covers.After that, they get it mostly right. Carbon legislation is good and helpful, sure, but it's about 30 percent thought-through, eno ...
Topics: business, climate, climate change mitigation, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Solar So Far Solar-powered homes a bright spot in California housing market		25 Sep 2007	News
Posted at 12:34 PM on 25 Sep 2007 Take that, housing market: Solar-powered homes in California are outshining the competition. source:� Los Angeles Times see also, in Grist:� Utility will pay for solar on Habitat for Humanity houses in California From the Archives We Really Needed Some Disclosure. More companies disclosing and mitigating emissions, says new report. Connecting the DOT. DOT offici ...
Topics: business, California, energy, news, renewable energy, solar voltaic power (all these topics)

Coal myths They're still common, but they make no sense	David Roberts	20 Aug 2007	Gristmill
A little while back I praised Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) for opposing new coal plants in his home state. Now he's clarified his position: he opposes new coal plants anywhere in the world. Word. One grumpy note. Look at this: Michael Yackira, president and chief executive officer of Sierra Pacific Resources, said his company 'respectfully disagrees' with Reid's position. His company is seeking approval to build one of the plants. 'We believe what ...
Topics: business, coal, energy, Harry Reid, politics, renewable energy, solar voltaic power, wind power (all these topics)

Interview with thin-film startup Nanosolar CEO Interesting stuff on the hottest new green tech	David Roberts	30 Jul 2007	Gristmill
I've been waiting for a good excuse to link to Earth2Tech, an interesting new project from internet legend Om Malik's GigaOm family of blogs. It's focused on clean tech startups, which as we all know are the hot new thing. I've also been waiting for a good excuse to post something about thin-film solar, which is hopping right now. Shell and Honda, which are big-timers in solar, both recently dropped their crystalline silicon programs and switch to full-time thin-fil ...
Topics: business, energy, renewable energy, solar voltaic power, tech (all these topics)

PG&E to buy 550 MW of concentrated solar from world's largest CS plant Solar has arrived	David Roberts	24 Jul 2007	Gristmill
Pacific Gas & Electric is buying 550 MW of concentrated solar. It's one of the biggest solar purchases ever, from what will be the world's biggest concentrated solar plant. The company is trying to conform to California's mandate that it get 20% of its power from renewables by 2010. According to Mr. [Fong] Wan [VP for energy procurement], about 12 percent of P.G.& E.'s electricity today comes from renewable sources, divided somewhat evenly among wind, biom ...
Topics: business, energy, solar voltaic power, renewable energy, California (all these topics)

All's Well That Ends Wells Investors bullish on clean energy technologies		14 Sep 2005	Daily Grist
All's Well That Ends Wells Investors bullish on clean energy technologies The clean-energy sector is experiencing a post-Katrina bounce. Petroleum stocks are looking less attractive after the storm damaged Gulf Coast oil rigs and refineries, and many investors seem to think pre-Katrina high fossil-fuel prices are here to stay, making renewable-energy investments more attrac ...
Topics: business, energy, news, oil, renewable energy, solar voltaic power, wind power (all these topics)

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