Viewing posts tagged: "Feedstock"

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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 18, 2008, 3:05 AM
Slow news day edition.
  • SunPower locks it in to lock it down. At the end of last week SunPower announced a 3 GW polysilicon supply agreement with Jupiter Corp., the sales office of Qingdao DTK, a subsidiary of California Beef Noodle King. Just kidding. The supply agreement kicks off in 2010 and runs through 2016. Qingdao DTK will build a new polysilicon plant in - where else? - Qingdao, China to meet the contract and will source the output to SunPower's ingot suppliers. SunPower now has a deeper bench than the '86 Chicago Bears.

  • Ever the go-getter, Monsanto is not content with merely controlling the world's food supply through its pursuit of patent infringement lawsuits against small farmers in developing countries. Computerworld announced recently Monsanto was one of its top 12 green IT companies for 2007. The IDG property cited Monsanto's efforts in building green data centers while simultaneously crushing the will of over 2 billion people annually. Mark Showers, Monsanto CIO, said the company's next mission was to capture methane from the pig species whose genes the company owns.

  • Who doesn't love that dirty water? Boston and Cambridge took third and sixth, respectively, on a list of greenest cities in the U.S. Despite all the hot air emitted over the MIT campus, Cambridge was recognized for its new construction standards and public mobility plans. Boston was recognized for capturing Kendall Square's emissions and turning it into liquid fuel to power Manny Ramirez's fleet of barbecue grills.

  • Proving once again that VCs don't get their investments, the GTM crew received an email this morning from Israel Cleantech Ventures, announcing the closing of a $10 million A round by Pythagoras Solar, a "low concentration solar" startup. Less than two hours later, we receive a follow up email stating "'low concentration solar' is not an accurate description of Pythagoras Solar." Because... low concentration solar, really? Is that like little men with magnifying glasses? Anyway, I'm sure they're better than some other concentrated PV companies we've been hearing about. Just don't ask them for the square of the hypotenuse.

  • And finally today... Your moment of Ben.
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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 15, 2008, 5:29 AM
  • The ever reliable Xinhua News Service is reporting the signing of the Tokyo Declaration, a commitment by "twelve globally famous companies" to cut emissions 50 percent by 2050. The globally famous companies, which include Sony, Nokia, Nike, and HP, are committed to "serving as ambassadors of the industry" while forcing their suppliers to take massive energy cuts. Whatever... I'm psyched for my biopolymer Jordans.

  • Bu16, BP's and Dupont's much anticipated biobutanol love child, took its first steps in England today. The biobutanol blend, comprised of 16 percent biobutanol and 84 percent gasoline, was successfully run through an internal combustion engine without destroying the engine or separating into its component parts. Must be the Ritalin.

  • John Hofmeister finally got his Cold, Dead Hands moment. Shell's President, channeling Charlton Heston, recently told the Detroit News (it's like Fox News, but for Detroit) that Americans will never give up their SUVs. Ever. Not in a million years. While lacking Ben Hur's dramatic flair, Hofmeister did manage a meager "Don't take my SUV away from me" while simultaneously killing a puppy with a whiffle ball bat.

  • Western GeoPower? We don't need no stinking Western GeoPower. After Western GeoPower terminated a 25.5 MW PPA with PG&E for their geyser powered geothermal plant, the California utility has gone knocking on Calpine Corp.'s door, seeking a 175 MW geothermal PPA. The catch? Calpine's geo comes from the same geyser as Western Geo's. When reached for comment Pete Darbee, PG&E CEO said "fool me once, shame on — shame on you. Fool me — you can't get fooled again."

  • And finally today... we're having a party and you're all invited. BYOC* (*bring your own chair, because we're at max capacity and the fire marshal doesn't care about solar power. The roof is, literally, on fire. ) Free booze!
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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 14, 2008, 4:39 AM
  • Stealthy hybrid engine startup Adura Systems received an injection of hot capital from wind developer New Frontier Renewable Energy. Adura, which has yet to announce the specifics of its Prius-killing series hybrid engine, has said only that the technology delivers "near zero emissions and extreme fuel efficiency." This lack of specificity hasn't stopped the China Automotive Technology and Research Center from forming a strategic alliance with the engine startup. As far as the actual technology behind the series hybrid engine, this release mentions a "microturbine serial plug-in electric drive bus," which is VC-speak for HotWheels!

  • David Kubiak's ocean fertilization company Planktos has finally succumbed to its moldy business model. Deep breath. The company was trying to grow algal blooms in the ocean, which were supposed to absorb carbon dioxide and sink to the sea floor. Kubiak's plan was to sell carbon credits from the absorbed carbon dioxide. Kubiak and Pico, the company's dubious "coccolithophorid" mascot, were the subject of an insipid Treehugger profile about two years back - the kiss of death for any greentech company. Now the company claims they were the victims of a "highly effective disinformation campaign." And if by "disinformation campaign" you mean an extensive international research project with results published in the Journal of Geophysical Research and certified by the International Maritime Organization, then yes. I blame the scientists. More on this later in the day...

  • South Africa has run out of power. No, seriously. The country relies on a state-owned utility for nearly all of its electricity generation. None of this is funny. Eskom, the government monopoly, announced today it will cut more than 90 percent of the electricity going to mines and industrial customers between now and 2012 when their new coal plant comes online. Our favorite analyst tells us Eskom warned the government about this back in 1998, but the government called them silly and suggested they get busy seeding the ocean with iron dust or something...

  • Solar stocks exploded yesterday. Boom. First Solar was up $52.90 on the day after beating earnings expectations, closing at $228.46 before overnight trading. Yingli followed suit, moving up $3.44 to $24.19, while JA Solar bounced $2.93 to $20.34. Canadian Solar rose $2.60 $22.80, while Evergreen edged up $1.23 to $11.34. Then everyone realized how lame they were compared to First Solar.

  • And finally today... Breaking is up hard to do.
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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 13, 2008, 4:41 AM
Wintry mix edition...
  • Iberdrola, basking in the honeymoon glow of their marriage to Scottish Power, announced today 2007 was their biggest year ever. The company generated 14,708 million kWh of electricity from renewable sources - up 87 percent from 2006. Wind power, which accounted for more than half of their generation portfolio, was especially strong in the U.S., where Iberdrola generated 5,234 million kWh - 36 percent of the company's 2007 output. With 7,704 MW of capacity, and an extra 42,053 MW in the pipeline, the company also announced a three-year, €8.5 billion expansion aimed at boosting its on-stream renewable capacity by an extra 2,000 MW per year until 2010. Rumors are half the cash has been set aside for the diamond-encrusted turbine Iberdrola Renewables chief Xabier Viteri is building for his summer palace in Romania.

  • Evergreen Solar scaled back their common stock offering from 20 million to 16 million shares, citing possible dilution from current market conditions. The underwriter option has also been scaled back, from 3 million shares to 2.4 million. The Mass. based panel and wafer manufacturer hopes to raise $152 million, and will spend most of it making sure those damn pine trees stop turning brown.

  • London mayor Ken Livingston announced a £25 CO2 tax on SUVs in the City of London. The tax, which will go into effect in October, targets nearly 30,000 vehicles, while also giving tax breaks to hybrid and low-emissions car drivers. Livingston's opponent in the next mayoral election, the aptly named Boris, decried Livingston's car-hating, "tax the motorist" policy. The Ministry of Silly Walks was reportedly overjoyed. Mary Poppins could not be reached for comment.

  • WorldWater, a solar company, has finalized a $35.64 million private placement with the Quercus Trust to continue funding construction of their 50 MW production plant in Texas. CEO Quentin Kelly, a nervous Aquaman by his side, assured the press that despite the company's foray into solar and their recent acquisition of ENTECH, WorldWater would remain committed to rebuilding the ancient city of Atlantis.

  • And finally today... First Solar has announced their 4Q 2007 earnings: $0.77 EPS on income of $62.9 million with $201 million in revenue. This beat the analyst consensus of $0.53 EPS on $180 million revenue. Mike Ahearn, First Solar's CEO, credits full production at the company's Odern plant. Well done, Gunther - this time. You may have won the battle, but you will not win the war.
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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 12, 2008, 4:21 AM
  • Ford Tamer, the new kid on the greentech block at Khosla Ventures, was given only one day at the firm to prove his worth. Kaai and Soraa, two advanced LED and optics startups, and Tamer, a former VP at Broadcom and Agere, are teaming up to destroy Blu-ray with lasers. Yes... lasers. When asked to comment on his newest employee, Vinod said, "Here's the plan. We get the warhead and we hold the world for ransom for... ONE MILLION DOLLARS!"

  • Reva put 2,500 EVs on the road last year, making it the world's largest electric car company. Take that Tesla. The company, a JV between Maini Group India and AEV LLC of California, has been selling the cutest little car ever in India since 2001 and was buttressed in 2006 by a $20 million round lead by Draper Fisher Jurveston. Reva's skunkworks are reportedly busy developing lithium ion and lithium polymer batteries in preparation for their entrance into the American Noe Valley market. Tim Draper celebrates his investment in Reva

  • On February 4, Evergreen Solar registered for a public offering of 20 million shares of common stock, hoping to raise $231 million, and up to $266 million if its underwriters jump on board. We used to be good friends, and Evergreen should know that if they ever needed the money I'd be happy to loan them a couple hundred. I just hope they're using the cash to get help, and not blowing it at the dog track.

  • BioEnergy LLC has closed a $201 million round of debt financing, allowing them to begin construction on Pennsylvania's first ethanol plant. The Clearfield, PA plant is, according to bankers who worked on the deal, a miracle "of innovative debt structuring techniques and the dedication of many financial professionals." Because, well, it turns out debt financing is the only good thing corn ethanol has to offer.

  • And finally today, ecogeek jumps on the fusion bandwagon and prepares for a long, bumpy ride.
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The Morning Feedstock

Daniel Englander: February 11, 2008, 5:33 AM
Welcome to The Morning Feedstock, our look at the day's earliest news cycle through uncaffeinated goggles. We'll be here every morning delivering mostly fair and slightly balanced coverage of greentech's latest developments. So, hey, at least we're honest.

  • Indian company Moser Baer decides it's time to stop messing around and start building the largest thin film plant ever. Almost. Well, not quite, but at 600 MW it's certainly bigger than Nanosolar's.

  • Solazyme's Soladiesel is solawesome. CEO Jonathan Wolfson announced the company is now testing B100 blends of its biodiesel, which is produced from engineered algae that creates oil with a high lipid content. Like McDonald's fry grease. I wonder if they go skinny dipping in the bioreactor after work?

  • Abu Dhabi's newest feat of awesomeness has gotten under way with the laying of a virtual cornerstone by Crown Prince Mohammad of Abu Dhabi. The $22 billion Masdar City will be the world's first zero emissions, car free city, and will be powered completely from renewable energy sources. Note to FutureGen - that's how it gets done.

  • Proving once again that everyone likes a little bit of regulation, the California Bay Area Air Quality Management Board has finally gotten around to proposing a fee on stationary sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Like they're sooo progressive. The proposed fee stands at $0.42 per metric ton of carbon dioxide and would target everything from coal power plants to that cute little cupcake place down the street.

  • And finally today.... Man bites insect. And, at least for Sam Nejame, that's good thing. Taste like chitin.
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