Government guarantee schemes and increasing electricity bills, combined with dwindling fossil fuel resources and the dire need for solutions to climate change make solar panels a compelling solution for the eco and budget conscious homeowner.

A solar system – simplified
Solar power uses photovoltaic (PV) cells on the roof of your house to convert light from the sun into electrical energy which can be used in your house, or fed back into the national grid. A chemical reaction creates a flow of electrons in the solar panel (direct current or D/C), which feeds into an inverter to convert this into alternating current (A/C) to power your house.

Will it work if I don’t live in Southern California?
Solar panels don’t actually need sunshine to work, the photovoltaic cells react to daylight. So even on a completely overcast day solar panels can generate 40% of their potential electricity yield. And you are still connected to the electricity grid, so outside of daylight hours you can draw from the grid just as before. Plus, any extra electricity from your panels which you don’t use will be fed back to the grid and you’ll actually get paid for it! (See below)

The environmental benefits
The environmental case for renewable energy is becoming louder and more critical all the time. Barely a week goes by without a major news story involving the rising price of oil and gas, the terrible environmental impact of fossil fuel recovery methods such as “fracking” and tar sands which leave areas of land devastatingly polluted and emit up to 45% more greenhouse gas than even traditional oil and gas (and of course 100% more than solar). With peak oil production rapidly approaching, solar is widely seen as an integral part of the low-carbon future, and thankfully one which you can start to benefit from now.

The financial benefits
Arguably just as important as the environmental benefits, there are now real cost savings to be made by going solar. Government schemes both in the UK and US now provide homeowners with compelling cost incentives for installing solar panels at home. Last year in the UK the government introduced the Feed-in Tariff (FIT) as an incentive scheme to encourage homeowners to invest in solar PV.

in the UK, the FIT ensures payment of 43.3 pence (0.70 dollars) for each unit of electricity that their domestic solar system produces, irrespective of whether they use that electricity in their home or not. Additionally, the FIT also pays 3 pence (5 cents) per unit for electricity not used in the home and exported to the National Grid. The scheme is guaranteed for 25 years, and the amount will increase with inflation linked to the Retail Price Index.

With this in place, homeowners can make around £12,000 (US$19,500) profit over the lifecycle of their solar panels. This is on top of savings on electricity bills of between £70 (US$114) and £130 (US$212) every year.

Anything else to stop you?
Installation and all the technical know-how are handled by the solar panel provider, along with maintenance over the life of the panels. In the vast majority of cases you won’t require any planning permission to install solar panels. Although the initial cost of the panels is between £8,000 (US$13,000) and £14,000 (US$23,000), the feed-in-tariff, and bill savings ensure you will start earning this back from day one. Also, many solar panel providers offer free panels in exchange for rights to the feed-in-tariff until the cost is paid off. So there really should be nothing stopping you from going solar at home.

Article by Ben Saffer, appearing courtesy EnergyRefuge.

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Earlier this month, Tendril Networks and Siemens Energy, Inc. announced a strategic alliance to market the Tendril Connect platform to utilities. Tendril Connect, the core of Tendril’s home energy management offering, is one of the most comprehensive home energy management solutions available. The Siemens partnership could do big things for Tendril by connecting it with a new set of potential utility customers.

With its Tendril Connect platform, Tendril is aiming to get into the home for the benefit of both the utility and the consumer. It consists of a suite of energy management applications that will not just collect and analyze data but enable remote control of home systems on behalf of the utility and the consumer. The platform will enable personal energy use visualization, demand response, load control, energy efficiency, electric vehicle charging, and on-site renewable energy integration.

With deregulation and competitive retail electricity markets on the rise in the United States and abroad, Tendril is also setting its sights on competitive electricity suppliers by offering customized services that will match customers with the best suppliers and pricing plans given their energy usage behaviors.

Siemens, by virtue of its deep presence in the U.S. utility sector and its project management and implementation capabilities, is in a position to take Tendril’s technology to the next level. Tendril already counts over 30 utilities as customers, ranging from small municipal utilities to major investor-owned utilities such as SCE, ComEd, and National Grid and competitive suppliers such as Reliant and Green Mountain. Through its partnership with Siemens, Tendril will be on the fast track to landing new customers with larger footprints and, with any luck, selling them more fully-fledged versions of its platform.

In addition to augmenting these existing utility relationships, Siemens’ venture capital wing, SVC, will help sharpen Tendril’s market strategies and support its financial and operational planning efforts. The size of SVC’s investment into Tendril was not disclosed, however.

In the United States, the near-term path to success for home energy management players will be through partnerships with utilities. In other countries, such as the United Kingdom, home energy management companies such as AlertMe and PassivSystems are making a play by selling straight to the consumer. While Tendril’s long-term ambitions are international, it’s focusing on the United States today, and its partnership with Siemens will help cement the relationships it needs to expand its uptake in the United States.

Article by Eric Bloom.

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The number of homes and shops equipped with solar power systems in rural Bangladesh doubled in the last year to more than 870,000 with the help of funding from the World Bank and other organizations, according to a World Bank report.

In 2009, the World Bank provided $130 million to support government initiatives to reach remote parts of Bangladesh that would otherwise not be connected to the national grid. Fewer than half the people in Bangladesh have access to electricity.

“With a small [solar] connection one can power four lamps and one black and white television set,” said Ruhul Quddus of Rural Services Foundation, a Bangladeshi charity that installs solar units.

For Bangladesh, which already faces 2,000 megawatts of electricity shortages, finding new sources of power will become increasingly critical as population growth, industrialization, and a rise in the use of electrical appliances adds another 500 megawatts of demand annually.

In another new report, the U.S.-based advisory firm KPMG LLP predicts that India, Asia’s third-largest energy consumer, may be able to produce electricity from solar power as cheaply as from coal by 2017.

Article appearing courtesy Yale Environment 360.

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Since January 1st, the British Department of Transport started to issue grants of £5,000 (US$7,724) to purchase electric vehicles (EVs) as part of a larger, £400 million (US$618 million) drive to reduce emissions from road transport.

In response to the initiative, the Electrical Contractor’s Association (ECA) has issued a statement expressing concerns related to infrastructure.

“Whilst I welcome the introduction of the Electric Vehicle (EV) grant, for EVs to be truly successful we must first make sure we have the infrastructure in place. This means having enough charging points throughout the country; all with a common installation standard, to ensure that they work properly” said Steve Bratt, ECA’s CEO.

ECA represents 3,000 member companies involved in electrical installation work with a combined turnover of £5 billion (US$7.72 billion) and 30,000 staff. Its main mission is to promote safety, training, qualification, technological development and industry performance.

“If this initiative is successful, and the number of EVs on the road does increase significantly, it will be vital that the National Grid can cope. As without the correct infrastructure, the public could be left stranded as their car runs out of electricity. Before the Government takes steps to incentivise the purchase of electric cars, it first needs to address the issues which stand in the way of their future success. If we’re not careful we could see a rerun of battery cars, which became an object of media and popular ridicule during the 1980s”, added Bratt.

The first nine models to become eligible for grants are Mitsubishi iMiEV, smart fortwo electric drive, Peugeot iON, Citroen CZero, Nissan Leaf, Tata Vista EV, Toyota Prius Plug-in, Vauxhall Ampera and Chevrolet Volt. More will be added in 2011.

Article by Antonio Pasolini, a Brazilian writer and video art curator based in London, UK. He holds a BA in journalism and an MA in film and television.

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An Irish university has launched the world’s largest hydro-electric wave energy converter off the coast of northern Scotland.

The so-called Oyster is a mechanically-hinged flap that is embedded into the sea floor — at a depth of about 32 feet (10 meters) — and moves with the motions of the waves. That wave energy pumps high-pressure water to a shore-based electric turbine.

Power will be fed into the national grid and provide electricity to homes in the Orkney islands. Researchers say a farm of 20 Oysters could eventually provide enough electricity to power 9,000 three-bedroom homes.

The technology was developed by Queen’s University Belfast and Scotland-based Aquamarine Power Ltd.

“Devices such as these have the power to revolutionize the world’s energy industry and help combat climate change,” said Trevor Whittaker, professor in the Queen’s School of Planning, Architecture and Civil Engineering and lead investigator for the project.

School officials say wave and tidal power could one day provide 20 percent of the UK’s energy needs.

VIDEO: The mechanically-hinged flap, which is embedded into the sea floor at a depth
of about 32 feet (10 meters), moves with the motions of the waves. That wave energy pumps
high-pressure water to a shore-based electric turbine.

Article appearing courtesy of Yale Environment 360

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The Obama administration is awarding $3.4 billion in grants to modernize the national electric grid. One-hundred companies, utilities, manufacturers, and cities will receive the grants — ranging from $400,000 to $200 million — for projects that help build a “smart” grid that cuts energy costs, reduces blackouts, and has the capacity to deliver more wind and solar energy to American homes and businesses. Calling the nation’s grid system “dilapidated,” Carol Browner, the Obama administration’s top adviser on climate and energy issues, said federal funds would be used to expand the national grid and make it work more efficiently.

Among the award recipients are Baltimore Gas and Electric Company, which will get $200 million to implement a “smart” meter network for its 1.1 million customers, enabling them to better manage energy use in their homes. The San Diego Gas and Electric Co. will get $28.1 million to install 1.4 million smart meters. The administration’s announcement represents the biggest single-day award of funding from the $787 billion economic stimulus package.

Article appearing courtesy of Yale Environment 360

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