Viewing posts tagged "Wind"

Chinese Wind Power Maker to Set Up Factory in U.S.

A-Power Wind Generation Systems and the U.S. Renewable Energy Group have said that they will build a wind turbine factory in the U.S. that will produce 1,100 megawatts worth of wind turbines a year and employ approximately 1,000 American workers.

One-thousand jobs is great, but the real interesting part is who the companies are. China's A-Power and U.S. Renewable are part of a joint venture that wants to build a 600-megawatt wind farm in Texas that is something of a Chinese creation. Shenyang Power Group, the U.S. Renewable Energy Group and Cielo Wind Power. Shenyang will own 49 percent of the project. It will employ turbines from A-Power Generation. Jinxiang Lu is CEO of both SPG and A-Power. Commercial banks in China will provide financing.

When it was first announced, the joint venture said that the Texas wind farm would create about 2,800 jobs, but only about 240 in the U.S. U.S. politicians began to thunder. Hence the change.

"A-Power sees great opportunities in renewable energy in America and this state-of-the-art facility will be our first major step towards bringing clean, renewable energy to the world's largest wind power country," said John Lin, A-Power's Director and COO in a prepared statement. 

And the key takeaway for you job seekers is this: Brush up on your knowledge of international relations. Just as Japanese manufacturers became large employers in the '80s in the U.S. Chinese manufacturers seem posed to do the same in the next decade. Suntech Power Holdings plans to open a module assembly facility in Arizona. Duke Energy Services has linked up with China's ENN, which makes thin-film solar panels and develops solar farms, to bid on contracts for utility-scale solar farms and large commercial solar projects in the U.S. Duke will bring its expertise in navigating through public hearings and the legal hurdles of getting large-scale projects off the ground along with technology for building them to the 50/50 partnership, while ENN will provide expertise for building solar farms and possibly solar panels.

And let's not forget Coda Automotive, which wants to bring an electric car effectively designed and built in China to the U.S. Former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is an investor.

Britain Ramps Up on Nuclear; What Will Scotland Do?

The U.K. today approved 10 sites for the possible construction of nuclear plants that could be deployed before the end of 2025, according to Power Engineering among others. The country also outllined an improved strategy for deployment. Nothing is set in stone and the approval does not take into account environmental factors, etc. It is just a starting poing.

Like the U.S., the U.K. gets around 20 percent of its electric power from nuclear but hasn't constructed new nuclear plants in ages. Instead, much of the activity in recent years has focused on wind and biomass.

It will be interesting to see how the Scotland reacts. Earlier this year, the government, which will likely seek a vote on autonomy in the relatively near future, placed a ban on future nuclear. In part, the ban exists to help get the local wind and wave industries off the ground, Jim Mather, Scotland's energy minister, told us.

Most Jobs for Chinese Wind Farm in Texas to Go to China: WSJ

A consortium of Chinese and U.S. companies want to build a 600-megawatt wind farm in Texas that they say will create jobs in the U.S.

Well, some.

The project, which will cost an estimated $1.5 billion, will create 2,800 jobs, backers told the Wall Street Journal. Fifteen percent – or around 240 – will be in the U.S. The rest will be in China. The wind farm is being developed by a joint venture formed by Shenyang Power Group, the U.S. Renewable Energy Group and Cielo Wind Power. Shenyang will own 49 percent of the project. It will employ turbines from A-Power Generation. Jinxiang Lu is CEO of both SPG and A-Power. Commercial banks in China will provide financing.

The backers will also seek stimulus funds and tax credits.

The deal is fascinating and bears worth watching for several reasons. First, the deal – like the deal between Duke Energy and China's ENN to build solar farms – will not just involve bringing comparatively inexpensive wind turbines or solar panels to the U.S. Chinese companies and banks will likely be actively involved in building and managing these power plants. In other words, Chinese companies will be involved in the sort of higher-value services that white-collar America craves.

Second, alternative energy appears to be China's opportunity to establish brands worldwide. Companies like Toyota, Sony and Toshiba helped Japan move from a back-end manufacturer to a maker of goods in its own right. South Korea's economy was greatly enhanced when Samsung and LG became respected leaders in consumer electronics. China hasn't really had a brand yet. Many thought Haier, the electronics maker would be the first, but that hasn't happened. But in alternative energy, Suntech is already a brand name in solar and some of the companies listed above will likely become familiar, at least in some regions in the U.S.

Don't get me wrong. I actually admire Chinese companies. The quality and ambition of the entrepreneurs behind companies in China has consistently impressed me. They also pay their CEOs less than U.S. companies. The companies behind the wind venture also wouldn't be the first international entries into the stimulus derby: Spanish and South Korean companies have received millions through U.S. joint ventures. But it is an interesting trend. In the near future, one of the best places to work might be a U.S. subsidiary of a Chinese company.

Nuclear CEO Asks Senate to Put Nukes in Renewable Standards

A very interesting tidbit in the WSJ's Environmental Capital blog today:

John Rowe, CEO nuclear power plant operator Exelon, suggested in a hearing in the U.S. Senate that nuclear be included in renewable portfolio standards.

That's one way to hit the 20 percent by 2020 mark in the typical RPS standard. Nuclear already accounts for 9 percent of the total energy consumed in America, including petroleum, and 20.6 of the electricity generated. That 20.6 percent, by the way, comes from 104 plants. Done.

He also wants $50 billion in loan guarantees.

If anything, the hearings and debates over the energy bill may prod the long awaited showdown on nuclear to occur.

Nuclear proponents and opponents have jousted over several topics in the past few years and several companies have begun to suggest new technologies – such as modular nuclear plants – to reduce some of the planning and financial risks associated with nuclear. Unfortunately, it will also be a debate where the known unknows far outweigh the facts.

A nuclear plant hasn't been built in the U.S. in years and since then the safety, proliferation and expense issues have become more complex. And the solar and wind companies have this going for them: They will be able to put massive amounts of capacity continue to put capacity in the ground before the first permits to build a new nuclear plant are even granted.

Pelamis Wave Power Jettisons Its CEO, Rough Waters Ahead?

Pelamis Wave Power looks like it is taking in a bit of water.

Phil Metcalf has resigned as the CEO of the company by mutual agreement, according to Max Carcas, the business development director. Carcas, however, denied rumors that the company has or is contemplating layoffs. Pelamis has about 70 employees.

Right now, the company is concentrating on getting its next-generation device out the door and into the waters off of Scotland's Orkney Islands. The 170-meter long devices headed for the European Marine Energy Centre will be owned and tested by E.on. Carcas also reported that EDF and some Portuguese industrialists are interested in reviving a wave power experiment that was kicked off, but shut down off the coast of that country in 2008. The Portuguese consortium, however, won't likely go to the dry-docked Pelamis wave machines. Those machines are "sub-optimal," said Carcas. The new device coming out are 30 meters longer than the next generation machines and the joints holding the segment of the Pelamis are not as good. The owners of those devices have been trying to sell them.

"It's a challenging environment," he said.

The news of Metcalf's resignation could be both good and bad news for the wave and tidal power industry. Critics will assert that it shows that wave and tidal power remain impractical and expensive. The potential for ocean power might be tremendous, but the engineering and maintenance costs currently outweigh the benefits. Pelamis, after all, has raised 43 million pounds and still not really in commercial deployment. Finavera Renewables gave the industry a black eye earlier when its test buoy was lost off the Oregon coast.

On the flip side, various wave and tidal execs have complained that Pelamis promoted the concept too much, raising expectations for wave and tidal power before the devices were ready. And interest remains high in wave power. For its part, Pelamis maintains it remains ahead of most competitors and will produce electricity from waves that will be sold commercially.

The company's claim to fame is the eponymous Pelamis Wave Energy Converter, an orange, undulating device that looks like a sea monster and harnesses power from trains of ocean waves. Pelamis tinkered with prototypes for years and last year claimed to become the first company to produce wave power commercially. (See a video of the devices here.)

Three of its devices, each capable of producing 750-kilowatts of power, were installed off of the coast of Portugal in 2008. At times, the individual devices were producing around 200 kilowatts of power, Carcas said earlier this year.

However, Pelamis hit technical problems and had to tow the devices into shore in November 2008. The technical problems were fixed, but by then the financial crisis was raging throughout the world. The owner of the devices, energy services company Babcock & Brown, then decided not to redeploy the devices and looked for ways to sell them.

All that occurred in 2008. Pelamis, however, was keeping a lid on the news because Babcock & Brown had not gone public with it. "We're still in the work-up phase. We only got things going September. But the results are in line with what we were expecting," Carcas said in February 2009. A few weeks later, it came out that the devices had been on land for several months.

Scorecard: Which Foreign Nation Is Doing Best in the Stimulus Program

The $787 Billion American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will pump millions into startups and established companies toiling in alternative energy and efficiency. And while most recipients are from the U.S. a significant portion will go to joint ventures partly owned or controlled by foreign corporations or to U.S. subsidiaries.

First, let me explain: I am not jingoistic. I have never owned an American car and there's a good chance I never will. All of my grandparents came from overseas. I've been told that "my kind" are taking away jobs from decent Americans by drunken, unemployed morons, and would actually favor legislation that would revoke citizenship of anyone that – after their family has spent five generations in this country – can only manage to get a C- average at junior college and wears a baseball hat backward. Up or out, I say.

But it's still interesting to see what nations are doing well, so I'm starting to keep a scorecard. If you have some to add, please send me a note. Here's what I've got so far:

South Korea: $312.4 million went to joint ventures with South Korean partners under the $2.4 billion in grants to electrify cars. $161 million went to Dow Kokam, a joint venture between Dow Chemical and Kokam America, the U.S. subsidiary of a South Korean conglomerate. Meanwhile, $151.4 million went to Compact Power, the battery venture backed by LG Chem that will make the batteries for the Chevy Volt.

Spain: Iberdrola participates in projects that received $294 million of $500 million worth of renewable energy grants awarded yesterday.

France: Where modern solar technology was born. Saft America landed a $95.5 million grant to develop lithium-cobalt and lithium-iron phospate batteries. Saft comes out of the Saft Group in France. Expect to see French nuclear companies like Areva to participate in upcoming nuclear plants: much of the world's expertise comes from there.

Japan: These weren't direct grants, but Japanese car makers Toyota and Honda had five cars in the top ten list of most popular cars to buy with Cash-for-Clunkers grants. Toda America, meanwhile, got $35 million in battery grants.

Germany: Chemetall got $28.4 million in battery grants while BASF got $24 million.

Canada: Canadians. Hardworking ... but sneaky! The U.S. division of Zenn Motors will seek out a grant to build a factory in Michigan.