Sustainability Outlook Headlines

Germany’s Show of Solar Power

Germany has long been a leader in renewable energy technology, especially solar power tech. It has now demonstrated that even large economies can depend on the sun and wind for their energy needs.

Germany demonstrated its prowess by producing 22 gigawatts of electricity — equivalent to 20 nuclear power stations last weekend. A Reuters story said Europe’s biggest economy met half of its power requirement on Saturday midday from solar power alone.

When a giant Tsunami battered Japan on March 11, 2011, it also caused one of the worst nuclear disasters in history at a power... Read more..

Energy Storage Technologies Set to Total $1.66Bn in 2012 Says New Visiongain Report

Electricity grids are becoming increasingly unstable due to strong electricity demand growth and increasing penetration of intermittent energy generation sources - Visiongain.com.

In order to manage this, large amounts of inefficient spinning reserves are required to quickly be added to or removed from power supply according to demand patterns. Every grid network must be able to supply peak power, which is only required for a small part of the day, meaning grid networks are somewhat wasteful. Even in more developed economies loss of energy from generation to consumer can easily... Read more..

Consolidation Expected in Clean Energy in 2012, E&Y Says

Declining investments, lower prices and the uncertain future of government subsidies will result in more consolidation among renewable-energy companies over the next year, according to Ernst & Young LLP.

Mergers and acquisitions in the first quarter of 2012 increased 41 percent worldwide to $21.7 billion from the previous quarter and will continue to grow this year, the New York-based consulting company said in a report today.

Global overcapacity is driving down prices and profit margins in the wind and solar industries, which is spurring consolidation, Ben Warren, Ernst... Read more..

Govt allots Rs 270 crore for solar-powered rickshaws

Green trail May opt for global tendering to find manufacturer, rickshaws to be given free

In an effort to go green, the Samajwadi Party government has planned to make an initial provision of Rs 270 crore in the upcoming budget for solar-powered rickshaws.

“We will provide motorised rickshaws to each rickshaw-puller in the state. We are in talks with several companies like Scooter India, Hero Honda and Bajaj for manufacturing of these rickshaws. We might opt for global tendering for choosing the manufacturer,”said Minister of Urban Development Azam Khan.

“Since the... Read more..

Water Shortage Looms Over India’s Farmlands

A water shortage is looming over many of India’s most productive farmlands, a development that may pose serious challenges to the country’s food security.

We are talking about the farmlands that drove the country’s so-called Green Revolution in the mid-sixties, a program that made India largely self-sufficient when it came to food.

India’s usable supply of water by 2030 could fall short of projected demand by as much as 50%, according to a recent study by the Council on Energy, Environment and Water, a New Delhi-based think tank.

“In your most productive states,... Read more..

U.N. climate talks stall over rich-poor divisions

U.N. climate talks ran into gridlock Thursday as a widening rift between rich and poor countries risked undoing some advances made last year in the decades-long effort to control carbon emissions that scientists say are overheating the planet.

As happens so often in the slow-moving negotiations, the session in Bonn bogged down with disputes over technicalities. But at the heart of the discord was the larger issue of how to divide the burden of emissions cuts between developed and developing nations. Developing nations say the industrialized world - responsible for most of the... Read more..

Solar lights to brighten Sainik School campus

Kittur Rani Channamma Residential Sainik School for Girls (KRCRSSG) of Kittur in Bailhongal taluk, shortly to have an integrated solar campus, under Soura Belaku Yojane of the rural development and panchayat raj department. KRCRSSG is the only public school in South Asia that imparts education on the lines of military schools for girls. 

The school was established in 1969 by the former CM S R Kanthi, in order to prepare the girls academically, physically, mentally and intellectually and bring the public school education within the reach of common citizens. The school is situated on... Read more..

Solar powered plane takes 'last rehearsal' flight over Mediterranean

A solar powered plane takes off for its "last rehearsal" before a round-the-world attempt in 2014.

The Solar Impulse took off on the world's first cross-Mediterranean flight from an airfield in western Switzerland and is scheduled to make a stopover in Spain after a 20-hour flight, before finally flying to the Moroccan capital Rabat on Monday.

This last rehearsal flight will help prepare the pilots for an attempt at a round-the-world journey.

"Today it's the last rehearsal for the flight around the world in 2014. For Andre and myself as pilots and for the entire team,... Read more..

Special solar energy council setup by Ministry of new and renewable energy

Ministry of new and renewable energy has constituted solar energy industry advisory council (SEIAC) to advice it on various technology related matters, attracting investments across the value chain, suggest steps required to encourage R&D and drive down costs and make the Indian solar industry globally competitive.

Anand Mahindra, vice-chairman and MD, Mahindra&Mahindra, has been named as the chairman of the council.

Assuring the support of industry to the national solar mission, Mahindra said, "The council would deliberate and offer advice on technology matters,... Read more..

Global carbon-dioxide emissions increase by 1.0 Gt in 2011 to record high

Global carbon-dioxide (CO2) emissions from fossil-fuel combustion reached a record high of 31.6 gigatonnes (Gt) in 2011, according to preliminary estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA). This represents an increase of 1.0 Gt on 2010, or 3.2%. Coal accounted for 45% of total energy-related CO2 emissions in 2011, followed by oil (35%) and natural gas (20%).

The 450 Scenario of the IEA’s World Energy Outlook 2011, which sets out an energy pathway consistent with a 50% chance of limiting the increase in the average global temperature to 2°C, requires CO2 emissions to peak... Read more..

Rural women in Gujarat get energy-efficient products

International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is helping Ahmedabad-based Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA) provide energy-efficient cook stoves and solar lanters to its members. IFC will provide a partial credit guarantee for a $5 million loan that an Indian private sector bank is providing to SEWA-sponsored Grassroots Trading Network for Women.

Under the initiative, women from various villages in Gujarat will be provided a loan to buy the combination of stove and lantern, at Rs 2,800 and Rs 1,800 respectively. At an installment of Rs 300 per... Read more..

Nation’s Green Czar Withdraws Nomination for Top Energy Post

Arun Majumdar, director of the Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, will be leaving his White House post June 9.

Majumdar has served as ARPA-E’s director since 2009. APRA-E, created in 2007, was charged with finding and funding “out of the box” innovative technologies to reduce the country’s reliance on foreign energy and tools to improve energy efficiency, and also mandated with finding technologies effective in reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

The new agency was not funded until 2009; Majumdar was the ARPA-E’s first director and was dubbed the nation’s “green czar”... Read more..