EREN Network News

October 4, 2000

News and Events

• New Fuel Economy Guide Kicks Off Energy Awareness Month
• Efficiency, Renewables are Keys to World's Energy Needs
• United Solar to Increase Photovoltaic Production Five-Fold
• Calpine to Boost Geothermal Power Production at The Geysers
• DOE Proposes New Standards for Air Conditioners, Heat Pumps
• Organizations Receive Awards for Solar Energy Investments
• New Inverter Promises Increased Safety for Solar Power

• High-Performance Commercial Buildings Roadmap

• A Look at the Energy Use of Energy-Intensive Industries

News and Events

New Fuel Economy Guide Kicks Off Energy Awareness Month DOE marked the start of Energy Awareness Month on Monday with an updated version of the Fuel Economy Guide that includes the 2001 Model Year. The guide, a joint effort of DOE and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, ranks the fuel efficiency of vehicles in various class sizes. The Honda Insight and the Toyota Prius — both hybrid gasoline-electric vehicles — currently top the list for fuel efficiency. See the DOE press release.

If you should find yourself in the Denver area this month, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) is providing a variety of tours and workshops to celebrate Energy Awareness Month. See the NREL press release.

The American Solar Energy Society (ASES) contributes to energy awareness on October 14th, when it sponsors the National Tour of Solar Homes. In more than 100 communities in 42 states, solar homeowners open their doors to visitors to demonstrate the renewable energy and conservation features of their homes. For information on tours in your area, see the ASES Web site.

Efficiency, Renewables are Keys to World's Energy Needs
New approaches to the world's energy requirements are needed now, says a new report by several international agencies. The "World Energy Assessment," released last month, concludes that broad-based economic development in this century depends on far-sighted policies and pricing mechanisms to encourage greater energy efficiency, more reliance on renewable energy sources, and accelerated development of new energy technologies. The report was prepared by the United Nations (UN) Development Program, the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, and the World Energy Council. See the "News and Events" section of the World Energy Council Web site.

The full report is available on the UN Development Programme Web site.

The World Energy Council has also launched a database of greenhouse gas reduction projects on its Web site.

United Solar to Increase Photovoltaic Production Five-Fold
United Solar Systems Corp. announced late last month that it will build a new photovoltaic manufacturing facility in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The facility will produce enough photovoltaic products in one year to generate 25 megawatts of electricity, increasing United Solar's production capacity by a factor of five. The announcement was made by United Solar and its two partners in the joint venture, Energy Conversion Devices, Inc. (ECD) and Bekaert-ECD Solar Systems LLC. See the press release on the ECD Web site.

Michigan Governor John Engler hailed the announcement of the new facility, which will bring an estimated 646 jobs to Michigan — 272 jobs at the manufacturing plant and 374 jobs due to economic growth caused by the plant. Despite a significant tax incentive package for the company, Michigan expects to garner $36.6 million in tax revenues from the plant over the next 15 years. See the Governor's press release.

Calpine to Boost Geothermal Power Production at The Geysers
Calpine Corporation announced last week that it will invest $140 million in The Geysers over the next five years, increasing the electricity generated by about 140 megawatts. The Geysers is a 30-square-mile region in northern California that holds one of the world's largest resources of geothermal steam in underground reservoirs that are very near the surface. Twenty one power plants tap this steam to produce approximately 1,000 megawatts of electricity — enough to power about one million homes. Calpine, which owns 19 of the power plants, will work to increase the efficiency of these plants to increase their power production. Calpine will also invest in technologies that will help ensure the long-term viability of the steam resource. The announcement was made during the celebration of the fortieth anniversary of commercial power production at The Geysers. See the Calpine press release.

DOE Proposes New Standards for Air Conditioners, Heat Pumps
DOE proposed new standards yesterday for residential air conditioners and heat pumps, which provide both heating and cooling. The standards, which take effect in 2006, will increase the energy efficiency for air conditioners by 20 percent and increase heat pump efficiency by 30 percent. The electricity used to cool homes contributed significantly to electrical power shortages during this summer's heat waves. DOE estimates that by 2020, the standards will avoid the need for 31 new 400-megawatt power plants in the United States. DOE is accepting comments on the standards for the next 60 days. See the DOE press release.

Organizations Receive Awards for Solar Energy Investments
The Utility PhotoVoltaic Group (UPVG) presented on Monday six awards for investments in solar energy. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power won an award for launching a five-year, $70 million program to provide solar power to its customers. Spire Corporation and Commonwealth Energy won for their revitalization of an abandoned industrial site with a new Spire manufacturing facility. Hawaiian Electric Industries won for creating a subsidiary, ProVision Technologies, which will sell solar energy systems for off- grid residences in Hawaii, Asia, and the Pacific. The Long Island Power Authority won for its "Solar Pioneers" program, which encourages homeowners and businesses to buy photovoltaic systems. And the Electric Division of the City of Westerville, Ohio, was awarded for helping to build a solar community through a partnership with the school district and by using solar power for emergency systems and traffic lights.

The awards were presented as part of the UPVG's annual conference. See the UPVG press release.

New Inverter Promises Increased Safety for Solar Power
DOE's Sandia National Laboratories announced last month that it has developed a new inverter for solar photovoltaic (PV) systems that will increase the safety of the systems during a power outage. Inverters convert the direct current (DC) electrical output from PV systems into alternating current (AC), which is the standard current for household wiring and for the power lines that supply electricity to homes.

Because inverters can be used to connect the PV system to the power grid, electric utilities have worried that the systems can cause a safety hazard by keeping local power lines energized during a power failure — a situation known as "islanding." Utility line workers attempting to repair the cause of the outage could unexpectedly come in contact with these energized lines. To avoid this situation, Sandia has developed an inverter that automatically diverts power from the power lines during a power outage. Two companies are already using the technology in their commercial inverters. See the Sandia press release.

In related news, Applied Power Corporation announced last month that its SunSine 270-watt AC photovoltaic module has been approved for connection to the electric grid in New York State. The SunSine module has an integral inverter that enables it to produce AC power, allowing a simpler connection to home wiring systems. See the Applied Power press release.

Site News

High-Performance Commercial Buildings Roadmap
This technology roadmap outlines a plan to integrate research, development, and deployment for the next generation of commercial buildings. The roadmap aligns government resources with industry needs and explains how a "whole-buildings" approach will help to coordinate the efforts of researchers, developers, architects, and the many other participants in the commercial buildings industry. The site also provides news of upcoming events and includes a look at 4 Times Square, a model high-performance building in Manhattan.

A press conference and implementation workshop for the roadmap will be held today at 10 a.m. eastern time at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C. A link to the live Webcast of this event is available on this site.

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

Energy Facts and Tips

A Look at the Energy Use of Energy-Intensive Industries
DOE's Energy Information Administration (EIA) has prepared a set of "Industry Analysis Briefs" for the seven industries that use the most energy to produce their products: the chemicals, forest products, glass, metalcasting, petroleum and coal products, and steel industries. While providing an overview of each industry, the briefs also present a detailed summary of their energy use, the processes that use most energy, the technologies being used to curb energy use, and other energy-management techniques. Particularly interesting are the charts of energy intensity — the energy used per dollar of product – over time for each of the industries (in the "Energy Use" section of each brief). See the Industry Analysis Briefs on the EIA Web site.

DOE has targeted these and other energy-intensive industries with its Industries of the Future strategy, which aims to develop industry-specific technologies to reduce energy use in these industries. See the Industries of the Future page on DOE's Office of Industrial Technologies Web site.

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