Rob Wile — Elon Musk Announced Another Huge Bet Today, And The Fate Of The Solar Industry Is Riding On It

Musk continues to be the most ambitious executive acting to address climate change.

Business Insider
Elon Musk Announced Another Huge Bet Today, And The Fate Of The Solar Industry Is Riding On It
Rob Wile

Kiley Kroh — California Installed More Rooftop Solar In 2013 Than Previous 30 Years Combined

Climate Progress
California Installed More Rooftop Solar In 2013 Than Previous 30 Years Combined

Kiley Kroh

Ari Phillips — Ford Debuts New Car That Saves Each Driver Four Metric Tons Of Greenhouse Gas Per Year

That's a state of the art solar panel on the roof.

Climate Progress
Ford Debuts New Car That Saves Each Driver Four Metric Tons Of Greenhouse Gas Per Year

Ari Phillips

Joe Romm — Must-See Chart: Cost Of PV Cells Has Dropped An Amazing 99% Since 1977, Bringing Solar Power To Grid Parity

Climate Progress

Must-See Chart: Cost Of PV Cells Has Dropped An Amazing 99% Since 1977, Bringing Solar Power To Grid Parity

Joe Romm

Gail Tverberg — Our Energy Predicament in Charts

In order for a new alternative fuel to truly fix our current predicament, it would need the following characteristics:

1. Abundant – Available in huge quantities, to meet society’s ever-growing needs.
2. Direct match for current oil or electricity – Needed to avoid the huge cost of building new infrastructure. Electricity needs to be non-intermittent, to avoid the cost of mitigating intermittency. We also need an oil substitute. This oil substitute theoretically might be generated using electricity to combine carbon dioxide and water to create a liquid fuel. Such substitution would require time and investment, however.
3. Non-polluting – No carbon dioxide or air and water pollution.
4. Inexpensive – Ideally no more than $20 or $30 barrel for oil equivalent; 4 cents/kWh electricity. Figure 15 shows wage growth has historically occurred primarily below when oil was below $30 barrel.
5. Big energy gain in the process, since it is additional energy that society really needs – This generally goes with low price.
6. Uses resources very sparingly, since these are depleting.
7. Available now or very soon
8. Self-financing – Ideally through boot-strapping–that is, generating its own cash flow for future investment because of very favorable economics.

Our Finite World
Our Energy Predicament in Charts
Gail Tverberg

Jeff Spross — In Australia, Wind Power Is Already Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels, And Solar Is Right Behind

According to the latest research from Bloomberg New Energy Finance, electricity from wind power can now be supplied more cheaply in Australia than power from either coal or natural gas — and solar and other forms of renewable energy aren’t far behind.
Older coal-fired power plants from the 70s and 80s still compete at lower prices than renewables — but only because their construction costs have depreciated. For the deployment of any new power generation in Australia, renewables now appear to be the way to go.

Australia currently charges polluters $23 in Australian dollars per metric ton of carbon they emit, but the study concluded that wind power would still undercut fossil fuels even without that correction of the market’s failure to properly build in the costs of carbon pollution....

Climate Progress
In Australia, Wind Power Is Already Cheaper Than Fossil Fuels, And Solar Is Right Behind
Jeff Spross

SunDial — US Military Leads the Way in Developing and Implementing Mobile Clean Energy Technology

Over the course of the past half-century, the U.S. military has proven prescient when it comes to developing and implementing new technology. From satellites to microwave technology to the internet to cellular phones, the military has taken the lead on nearly every significant technological advance that has later swept the private and consumer markets. Now, the military is getting a leg-up on another technology that is poised to lead the next major private-sector revolution - not weapons or communications, but large-scale mobile solar-powered energy systems.

Through a contract with SunDial Capital Partners, the Department of Defense has been implementing a new interface for mobile solar technology. Founded in 2009, SunDial pioneered a system custom-made for on-the-move military operations, harnessing renewable solar energy into a highly mobile unit. With deep military roots, SunDial President Dan Rice, Vice President Keegan Cotton, and Partner Lee Van Arsdale - all three West Point graduates and combat veterans - recognized a unique market for mobile power supply. As energy prices from traditional fuels rise and the military's dependence on energy continually grows, SunDial envisioned a new application for existing solar technologies for remote locations.

Read it at Sirra Club Compass
US Military Leads the Way in Developing and Implementing Mobile Clean Energy Technology
by Gordon Scott and Anusha Narayanan

See also In-Q-Tel

In-Q-Tel of Arlington, Virginia, United States is a not-for-profitventure capital firm that invests in high-tech companies for the sole purpose of keeping the Central Intelligence Agency, and other intelligence agencies, equipped with the latest in information technology in support of United States intelligence capability. 

Izabella Kaminska — The exponential growth in solar consumption

Good sign.

Read it at The Financial Times | FT Alphaville
The exponential growth in solar consumption
by Izabella Kaminska
(h/t Naked Capitalism)

Building Out The Transmission Infrastructure Could Allow Renewable Sources To Supply 80% Of U.S. Electricity By 2050

If the U.S simply committed to building out the transmission infrastructure, the Department of Energy (DOE) believes that currently existing renewable energy technology “is more than adequate” to supply up to 80 percent of the nation’s daily electricity use by the year 2050, a new study has found.

Put together by the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Labratory, the study is the largest-ever to examine the nation’s potential renewable energy capacity. It predicts that while fossil and nuclear fuels will still be needed in 2050, they won’t continue to supply the more than 60 percent of America’s energy they do today.

The U.S. Energy Information Center noted that in the 12 months ending in March 2012, coal, natural gas and nuclear were still by far the most relied-upon sources of power, with coal coming out on top, accounting for more than 40 percent of U.S. electricity generation. But provided the U.S. has the political will and the private sector motivation to build out the transmission grid, the DOE believes wind power will become a dominant a force in the U.S. energy market.

Combined with solar, the two technologies could supply up to 50 percent of daily U.S. electricity use on their own, the study found. The DOE also noted that all regions of the U.S. have roughly equivalent opportunity for renewable energy exploration, with offshore areas being prime real estate for wind energy generation.

The greatest challenge foreseen by the study is growing the transmission capabilities for wind energy, which must expand beyond 439 gigawatts [from the present 50] if the DOE’s numbers are to ever be fulfilled.

Read it at Raw Story
Study: Renewable sources could supply 80% of U.S. electricity by 2050
by Stephen C. Webster

Solar cell breakthrough taps previously unused energy source — the infrared spectrum

A scientific breakthrough by researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology(MIT) has produced a new type solar cell capable of absorbing energy from the infrared spectrum, where about 40 percent of the energy in sunlight exists.

All prior solar cells ignored the infrared spectrum for energy stored in visible light, but the new cell uses purified carbon fibers converted into microscopic tube-like structures called nanotubes to capture the hidden power. Details of the new cell were published in the latest edition of the scientific journal Advanced Materials.

A bonus: Researchers said that because the cells are transparent, they could one day be laid on top of currently existing solar arrays, turning the less-efficient and more common photovoltaic cells into hybrids capable of much greater energy output.

Although the new cells’ energy conversion efficiency ratio is currently very low, the team believes they can scale it up as the product becomes more refined with later iterations. If widely adopted, the new technology could give the U.S. a significant leg up on its renewable energy goals.

Read it at Raw Story
Solar cell breakthrough taps previously unused energy source
by Stephen C. Webster

Three Charts That Illustrate Why Solar Has Hit A True Tipping Point

A new report from the prominent global consulting firm McKinsey shows why solar photovoltaics have hit a tipping point.

As the economics of solar PV continue to improve steadily and dramatically, McKinsey analysts conclude that the yearly “economic potential” of solar PV deployment could reach 600-1,000 gigawatts (1 million megawatts) by 2020.In the year 2000, the global demand for solar PV was 170 megawatts.

That doesn’t mean 1 million megawatts will get built per year after 2020; it’s just an estimate of the economic competitiveness of solar PV. When factoring in real-word limitations like the regulatory environment, availability of financing, and infrastructure capabilities, the actual yearly market will be closer to 100 gigawatts in 2020.

That could bring in more than $1 trillion in investments between 2012 to 2020.

The McKinsey report, appropriately named “Darkest Before Dawn,” highlights three crucial factors that are giving the solar industry so much momentum — even with such a violent shakeout occurring in the manufacturing sector today.

Read the rest at Climate Progress

Three Charts That Illustrate Why Solar Has Hit A True Tipping Point
By Stephen Lacey

The Solar Envelope: How to Heat and Cool Cities Without Fossil Fuels

For weekend reading: this is a long but fascinating post about passive solar that is a must read for anyone interested in alternative energy, environmentalism, energy economics, environmental economics and ecological economics. I suggest reading it in conjunction with the Tom Murphy post on economics and physics that just went up. The post looks at passive solar historically and how it can not only be adapted today, but also scaled up.

Read it at The Oil Drum
The Solar Envelope: How to Heat and Cool Cities Without Fossil Fuels
Posted by Rembrandt

Michio Kaku sees the age of renewable energy beginning in ten years

Solar energy will become competitive in 10 years and the world is set to enter the solar/hydrogen fusion era in 20 years, renowned theoretical physicist Dr Michio Kaku has told Gulf Times.

“The falling cost of solar, hydrogen, renewable, wind power, geothermal power and the rising cost of fossil fuels will cross within 10 years, causing market forces to kick in and push solar and then in 20 years, fusion power becomes a possibility,” he predicted

Read it at Peak Oil

Physicist sees fusion powering the world

by  Gulf Times

Kaku has said this before, but it's worth reiterating for those that may not have heard him. 

The problem is that the world doesn't have ten years to spare according to climate scientists.

Thomas Edison on energy sources

“We are like tenant farmers chopping down the fence around our house for fuel when we should be using Nature’s inexhaustible sources of energy--sun, wind and tide. I’d put my money on the sun and solar energy. What a source of power! I hope we don’t have to wait until oil and coal run out before we tackle that.” — Thomas A. Edison

(Although this is widely quoted, I have not been able to find a citation of the original)

Solar value increases with time-pricing

Last week I wrote about the time-of-use pricing scheme that PG&E offers in San Francisco, and how solar power is worth 14% more compared to a standard flat-rate electricity plan.  In reality, it's 36% or more.

In the interest of simplicity, I only looked at the rates PG&E charges for using up to ~250 kilowatt-hours (kWh) per month (their "baseline" rate).  But baseline rates only apply to the first 3,000 kWh consumed per year, one-third the U.S. average.  Very few customers use so little electricity.

Rather, most customers will consume electricity in Tier 2, which applies to consumption from 3,000 to 6,900 kWh per year, or even Tier 3, which applies to consumption up to 14,500 kWh.  And the electricity rates in these tiers are substantially higher.

Read it at Energy Self-Reliant States

Electricity Priced by the Hour Boosts Distributed Solar Value by a Third or More

by John Farrell

(h/t Climate Progress)

The energy revolution is proceeding apace with advances in solar

Read it at Climate Progress
Polysilicon Prices To Drop in 2012, Bringing Solar PV Prices to 70 Cents a Watt
By Stephen Lacey

Important from point of view of sustainability and renewables, but also important from the MMT point of view since energy costs have recently been the primary cause of inflation.

Solar Thermal

The bright future of solar powered factories

Most of the talk about renewable energy is aimed at electricity production. However, most of the energy we need is heat, which solar panels and wind turbines cannot produce efficiently. To power industrial processes like the making of chemicals, the smelting of metals or the production of microchips, we need a renewable source of thermal energy. Direct use of solar energy can be the solution, and it creates the possibility to produce renewable energy plants using only renewable energy plants, paving the way for a truly sustainable industrial civilization.

DFH's and many living off the grid have been using small scale solar furnaces and stoves for decades. This is about scaling up that technology.

Think about it. Earth is pretty much a closed system other than for the solar energy it is being bombarded with daily, for free.