Rockefeller Fund Divests From Fossil-Fuel Business It Helped Build, Invests in Renewables

Here are some of the stories we’re reading this morning.

Eric Wesoff July 29, 2016

Eric Wesoff

Editor-at-Large
Greentech Media

Eric Wesoff is Editor-at-Large at Greentech Media. Prior to joining GTM, Eric Wesoff founded Sage Marketing Partners in 2000 to provide sales and marketing-consulting services to venture-capital firms and their portfolio companies in the alternative energy and telecommunications sectors. Mr. Wesoff has become a well-known, respected authority and speaker in these fields.

His expertise covers solar power, fuel cells, biofuels and advanced batteries. His strengths are in market research and analysis, business development and due diligence for investors. He frequently consults for energy startups and Silicon Valley's premier venture capitalists.

Bloomberg: Rockefeller Fund Takes First Green Stake in Pivot From Oil

The Rockefeller Brothers Fund, the foundation divesting from the fossil-fuel industry it helped create, took its first direct stake in a renewable energy company in a move meant to bolster the fight against climate change.

The New York City-based fund, founded in 1940 with the profits of Standard Oil Co., provided $10 million to Mainstream Renewable Power Ltd. to expand renewable energy in Africa. The investment was part of a $117.5 million funding round announced last month that included International Finance Corp. and other backers. The investment will help finance as much as $1.9 billion for green energy on the continent.

Utility Dive: Headed for the Exits, Nevada PUC Commissioner David Noble Lifts Lid on Net Metering Fight

At the end of last year, the epicenter of solar net metering battles shifted to Nevada, where regulators reduced incentives and imposed new fees for rooftop solar owners in the state.

The Dec. 22 decision, upheld by regulators in later votes, set off a firestorm of criticism at the Nevada Public Utilities Commission. Solar owners protested the regulatory body, saying the lower rates violated contracts they had previously signed with installers, and a group filed a lawsuit against the PUC.

Morning Consult: ConocoPhillips Posts $1.1 Billion Loss for Second Quarter

ConocoPhillips on Thursday reported a $1.1 billion net loss for the second quarter of 2016.

Oil production was also down to 1,546 thousand barrels of oil equivalent per day (MBOED) this quarter, marking a 49 MBOED decrease from last year's levels. ConocoPhillips pointed to normal field decline, dispositions, planned downtime and the effects of California’s wildfires as a reason for the production cuts. However, cuts were offset by major projects and development programs. Improved well performance also help to combat negative factors.

Business Wire: Genovation's GXE Breaks All-Electric Land Speed Record, Reaches 205.6 mph

Genovation today announced that it has made history by breaking the land speed record for a street-legal all-electric vehicle with the Genovation Extreme Electric car (GXE). The GXE reached the record-breaking speed of 205.6 mph during supervised tests with Johnny Bohmer Racing at Space Florida’s Shuttle Landing Facility in Kennedy Space Center, FL. The record was certified by the International Mile Racing Association (IMRA). The previous record, which also was held by Genovation, stood at 186.8 mph.

The GXE is a Z06 Corvette that has been re-engineered by Genovation to be a performance-driven all-electric vehicle.

Chicago Tribune: RedWave Raises $5.5 Million to Turn Heat Into Electricity

RedWave Energy, a local startup developing technology that harvests heat energy, closed a $5.5 million round of funding this week that will help bring it closer to a prototype.

RedWave is working to save the lower-temperature heat put off during manufacturing processes -- like those at glass factories or electric power generation plants -- and convert that heat into electricity and get it back on the grid, said CEO and co-founder Jim Nelson. [...] RedWave’s technology uses tiny antennas -- millions per square inch -- formed and tuned to pick up the wavelengths from the heat waste, Nelson said. The electrons then flow off the antennas and are turned into electricity that can be placed back on the grid.