EREN Network News

April 7, 1999

News and Events

• Southern Company to Lease Electric Vehicles to Employees
• DOE Awards $5 Million for Solar Cell Research
• EIA Lowers Projection of World Energy Use for 2010

Site News

• Electric Utility Restructuring

Energy Facts and Tips

• Alliance to Save Energy's "Did You Know...?" Page
• Using Less Energy for Heating Water

About this Newsletter

News and Events

Southern Company to Lease Electric Vehicles to Employees
Southern Company, an Atlanta-based energy company, announced on March 31st that it will be leasing 400 electric- powered cars and trucks to its employees over the next four years. This new program will be the largest corporate electric vehicle lease program in the United States, and will build on Southern Company's experience with its corporate fleet of 190 electric vehicles. Employees can lease an electric Ford Ranger for $150 per month or a GM EV1 for $200 per month. See Southern Company's press release.

DOE Awards $5 Million for Solar Cell Research
Secretary of Energy Bill Richardson announced on April 2nd nearly $5 million in awards to 18 universities for photovoltaic research. Photovoltaic solar cell technology uses semiconductor materials such as silicon to convert sunlight directly to electricity. The funding will be used to support research to increase the amount of electricity produced, reduce the cost of photovoltaic cells, and ensure their performance for longer periods of time. For more information, see the DOE press release.

EIA Lowers Projection of World Energy Use for 2010
DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on March 31st the "International Energy Outlook for 1999," which projects world energy use to the year 2020. Lower projections for economic growth have led EIA to lower its estimates for global energy-related carbon emissions in 2010 (the key date for the Kyoto Protocol on global warming). Worldwide carbon emissions in 2010 are projected to be 4 percent lower than in last year's "Outlook," but still 39 percent above 1990 levels.

Projecting from 1996, the report anticipates a 65 percent increase in energy use by 2020. Much of that growth is expected in developing countries, which taken together are expected to use 6 percent more energy than the industrialized countries by 2020. In 1996, developing countries as a whole used 40 percent less energy than the industrialized countries. For further information, see EIA's "International Energy Outlook for 1999".

Site News

Electric Utility Restructuring
DOE's Office of Power Technologies has been tracking electric utility restructuring developments across the country. Their Electric Utility Restructuring Web site provides a weekly update on restructuring activities at both the state and federal levels, and links to DOE's Comprehensive Electricity Competition Plan and the Energy Information Administration's Electric Industry Restructuring Page. The site also includes a publication, "Retail Electric Competition: A Blueprint for Consumer Protection," which examines laws and policies that can protect the consumer in a deregulated environment.

For this and other recent additions see the EREN Web site.

Energy Facts and Tips

Alliance to Save Energy's "Did You Know...?" Page
The Alliance to Save Energy (ASE) is honoring Earth Day this month by posting a series of energy facts and tips. ASE's "Did You Know...?" page on the ASE Web site will feature a new energy fact each day, leading up to Earth Day on April 22nd. For instance, today's fact is, "If every U.S. household replaced four incandescent bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs, we'd save as much energy as removing 7 million cars from the road." See the "Did You Know...?" page.

Using Less Energy for Heating Water
For the average U.S. home, about 14 percent of the energy use goes toward heating water. You can reduce that energy use by turning down the thermostat on your water heater to "low" or 120 degrees Fahrenheit. If you haven't already, add a jacket of insulation to your water heater so it loses less energy to its surroundings. Most hardware stores sell water heater insulation kits. You can also cut your hot water use by installing low-flow faucets and showerheads.

If you need to replace your hot water heater, consider installing a heat-pump water heater, a "demand" hot water heater, or a solar hot water system. For more information, see the Homeowners section of DOE's Office of Building Technology, State and Community Programs Web site.

About this Newsletter

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