A next-generation cadmium telluride, thin-film photovoltaic solar module plant will be built in the State of Indiana, it was announced earlier this week. Abound Solar, which specializes in solar modules that reduce the cost of solar power generation, has leased a 781,750 square foot facility in Tipton where it will be establishing the plant. Abound Solar was (more…)

I have three predictions for 2011:

• When it comes to energy policy, austerity will be in.

• Therefore, energy efficiency will become a favored choice among mayors, governors, state lawmakers and Congress, as government becomes increasingly edgy about the cost of (more…)

Waxman Industrial Services, Ltd. (Waxman), recently announced that it will host an 87,000 square foot photovoltaic (PV) installation on its Burlington, Ontario rooftop. Installing solar panels on the building’s roof will create work for graduates of Ontario’s green energy training courses. When complete, the installation will produce an estimated 500 kW of environmentally (more…)

Every surfer knows you can’t ride a wave until it breaks.  But for the residential energy efficiency industry, whose surge in growth has often been compared to a tidal wave, the wave may be more of a slow ripple.

Despite the billions of dollars that have been allocated nationwide to increase demand for residential retrofits, the corresponding surge in job growth just (more…)

I don’t envy the folks charged with determining where the public charging infrastructure should be installed to support the rollout of plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs). The lucky owners of the first Volts and Leafs that are delivered during the next few weeks and months will primarily rely on home charging, but that will be complemented by public locations. (more…)

This past weekend at the second annual Japan-Arab Economic Forum, the governments of Japan and Tunisia formally sealed a deal to collaborate on a sustainable business project that takes advantage of Tunisia’s ample solar resources. Together the two countries will be building a solar power plant in the Sahara desert, which is rapidly becoming a (more…)

Report suggests current transportation policy in most U.S. states will likely worsen greenhouse gas emission trends.

With federal policy action on climate and energy appearing unlikely for at least the next couple years, public policy and financial analysts are increasingly turning to state-level analyses to inform (more…)

In a push to improve air quality in London, city officials will require that all new black taxi cabs be electric by 2020. Under increased pressure to reduce the worst air pollution in Europe, London Mayor Boris Johnson says the city will refuse licenses to any taxi older than 15 years beginning in 2012, a move that will remove about 1,200 black cabs from London’s roads. (more…)

One of my loyal readers was kind enough to bring to my attention a troubling article from the Washington Post in which a man who had earned 9 green certifications and sent out hundreds of resumes still has yet to receive a single job offer.

In September, I spoke at a Woodrow Wilson Foundation event on green jobs for women. (more…)

Tidal power, also called tidal energy, is a form of hydropower that converts the energy of tides into electricity or other useful forms of power. The first large-scale tidal power plant (the Rance Tidal Power Station) started operation in 1966. Harnessing the power of ocean tides has long been imagined, but countries are only now putting it into practice. A demonstration (more…)