EREN Network News

August 23, 2000

News and Events

• GSA Installs Large Solar Electric System at Federal Center
• Cinergy Orders 52 Capstone Microturbines at $1.5 Million
• USPS Installs One-Megawatt Fuel Cell System in Alaska
• DOE Awards $8 Million to Advance Biobased Products
• California Approaches Review Date for ZEV Requirements
• Three More States to Receive Efficient Air Conditioners

• Irish Energy Centre
• State Energy Program Web Site on EREN Updated

• Report: Greenhouse Efforts Should Not Focus on CO_²

News and Events

GSA Installs Large Solar Electric System at Federal Center
The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has selected Pepco Energy Services, Inc. and Applied Power Corp. to install a 100-kilowatt solar electric system at the Suitland Federal Center in Suitland, Maryland. DOE is partially funding the installation, which is expected to begin providing power to the facility's central cooling plant by September. Ground has already been broken for the system, which will include 2,800 thin-film photovoltaic modules.

Applied Power recently installed a 22-kilowatt photovoltaic system for the City of Colton Electric Utility in California. The solar electric system provides shade for cars parked at a city building while generating electricity that is fed into the electrical grid.

See both stories on the Applied Power Web site.

Cinergy Orders 52 Capstone Microturbines at $1.5 Million
Capstone Turbine Corporation announced Monday that Cinergy Corp., a diversified energy company, has ordered 52 of its microturbines at a cost of roughly $1.5 million. Capstone says the order is part of a distribution agreement with Cinergy.

Microturbines are an efficient way to produce electricity onsite from a variety of fuels, primarily natural gas. They are one of many technologies that can generate electricity at or near the customer's location—a concept called distributed generation. Capstone microturbines were approved earlier this month for connection to the New York electrical grid as part of the state's new distributed generation standard.

Capstone is also working with Japan Steel Works (JSW) to use microturbine exhaust as a heat source to drive a refrigeration unit. JSW has developed a metal hydride absorption chilling technology that can use moderate- temperature heat sources to cool air to as low as 14 degrees Fahrenheit (minus 10 degrees Centigrade). JSW is carrying out pre-commercial testing of the system, which uses no ozone-damaging chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).

See the press releases on the Capstone Web site.

USPS Installs One-Megawatt Fuel Cell System in Alaska
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) and Alaska's largest electric utility announced earlier this month that the nation's largest commercial fuel cell system began generating power at the Anchorage Mail Processing Center. The one-megawatt system consists of five fuel cells manufactured by International Fuel Cells. The Chugach Electric Association, Inc. installed and will operate the system for the USPS. See the International Fuel Cells press release.

Public Service of Colorado to Nearly Triple Wind Capacity
The Public Service Company of Colorado (PSCo) announced last week that it will add 36 megawatts of wind energy capacity over the next five years, thereby nearly tripling its 20-megawatt wind energy capacity to a total of 56 megawatts. The company will add 10 megawatts to its Ponnequin Wind Facility in northern Colorado. It will also purchase 26 megawatts from enXco, Inc., which will build a new facility in Peetz, Colorado, just west of the Nebraska state line. The additional capacity will be used to meet customer demand for PSCo's WindSource product. See the PSCo press release.

DOE Awards $8 Million to Advance Biobased Products
DOE announced last week that it will award $8 million over the next three years to advance biobased products such as plastics, paints, and adhesives. Biobased products are made from such sources as crops, trees, and agricultural and forestry wastes. Approximately $6.5 million will go to six research and development partnerships. The remaining $1.5 million will go toward a new educational initiative, providing support for graduate-level programs at six schools. See the DOE press release.

California Approaches Review Date for ZEV Requirements
California's Air Resources Board (ARB) will meet September 7th to review the state's requirements for zero emission vehicles (ZEVs). Reviews of the program are carried out every two years. Since the program was originally adopted in 1990, the mandate was scaled back twice, in 1996 and 1998. Due to lead times in auto production, the 2000 review is the last significant opportunity to review requirements that 10 percent of new California car sales be ZEVs by 2003. Sales of ultra clean vehicles can be used to meet part of the requirement, but to date only the Nissan Sentra has met the criteria.

In preparation for the September review, several public workshops have been held, and the ARB staff have prepared a report that summarizes the current standing of ZEV technologies and vehicles. See the ARB Web site.

Auto makers have argued against the ZEV mandate, largely based on market considerations. Toyota, for instance, released a report that says electric vehicles would have to be $28,000 cheaper than equivalent gasoline-fueled vehicles for consumers to buy them. In essence, Toyota claims, it would have to essentially give the cars away. See the Toyota press release.

In related news, Toyota has announced that as of late July, online sales of the hybrid-electric Prius had reached nearly 1800. According to the Los Angeles Times, Toyota only expected to sell 1000 of the cars each month. See the "Prius Marketing Campaign Launch" on the Toyota Web site.

Three More States to Receive Efficient Air Conditioners
A DOE program to deliver energy-efficient air conditioners to sweltering southern states, first announced on August 1st, has been expanded to Alabama, Arkansas, and Mississippi, DOE announced last week. DOE is working with major manufacturers of Energy Star room air conditioners to make more than 53,000 units available to local Weatherization Assistance Program agencies at a reduced price. The local agencies will help install these highly energy efficient units in eligible low-income homes. See the DOE press release.

Site News

Irish Energy Centre
As Ireland's national agency for energy efficiency and renewable energy information, the Centre's mission is to promote the development of a sustainable national energy economy. The site covers energy policy in Ireland, introduces sustainable energy technologies, and discusses specific activities of the Irish Energy Centre. Users can view the Centre's current newsletter on renewable energy and find out about energy-related news and events. In addition, users can request documents via e-mail from a large collection of free publications.

For this and other recent additions to the EREN Web site, see http://www.eren.doe.gov/new/whats-new.html.

State Energy Program Web Site on EREN Updated
DOE's State Energy Program (SEP) Web site has been updated with highlights from a variety of innovative energy efficiency and renewable energy projects sponsored by the states. Many of these projects feature local partnerships that promote energy efficiency in commercial buildings and build infrastructure for clean, alternative fuel vehicles.

Energy Facts and Tips

Report: Greenhouse Efforts Should Not Focus on CO_²
A new report from the Goddard Institute for Space Studies (GISS)—part of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration—has attracted significant media attention by suggesting that efforts to reduce greenhouse gases should focus on sources other than carbon dioxide (CO_²). The conclusion is based in part on the fact that fossil fuel use is the main source of both CO2 and aerosols—haze-causing particles such as sulfates and black carbon. These aerosols offset the effects of the CO2, leading the authors to conclude that other greenhouse gases, such as methane and various refrigerants, are the greatest cause of recent warming. They also base their conclusion on the recent slow growth in CO_² emissions.

Based on their analysis, the authors suggest that reducing methane, refrigerants, and black carbon (from burning coal) would be a useful strategy for the next 50 years, while other technologies are being developed. However, "investments in technology to improve energy efficiency and develop non- fossil energy sources are also needed to slow the growth of carbon dioxide emissions and expand future policy options," the authors conclude. They also state that it is "unlikely that a flat growth rate of CO_² … can be maintained without a flattening of the growth rate of fossil fuel emissions."

The report was meant to counter some scientific assertions that "thirty Kyotos" may be needed to reduce warming to an acceptable level. "Although this interpretation does not alter the desirability of slowing CO_² emissions," says the report, "it does suggest that it is more practical to slow global warming than is sometimes assumed." See the Goddard Institute report.

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