STUFF

China's biggest coal producer took stakes in 3 wind power projects in Tasmania. Also potential investor in 600Mw, $2.1B offshore Tasmania wind farm. Australia's A$10B Clean Energy Finance Corp starts making loans in July. Australia Renewable Energy Agency has another A$2.2B for clean energy support. Australian unit of China's Goldwind began build on 165Mw wind farm in Austral. Looking at further projects.

Global investment in wind energy fell to $78.3B in '12, down 13% for 2nd straight yearly decline. New investment in China slowed to $27.5B, down 11% from '11.

Fraunhofer Inst (Germ) developing ways to automate manufacturing rotor blades for wind turbines. (Once more, why isn't the US working on this and leading the world on another tech?) Blades ~1/4 of total cost. 5-yr project funded by Germ govt (Euro8M). Spain project seeks to reduce cost of offshore wind turbines by ~30% by development of compact superconductor-based generator. (Remember AMSC's theft by Sinovel? When the heck does US wake up?) Aiming for 10Mw turbines. Conventional gear or direct-drive permanent magnet generators hard to scale up any further. Size and weight. Euro5.4M budget funded by EC. (Where is the US?!)

Hanwha (S Korea) (HSOL) invested $30M more in OneRoof Energy (NH) to help expansion into new markets. OneRoof a solar leasing comp. 5-25% savings for customers.

VW flipped switch on solar power at TN plant.

Yellowstone National Park's new 230Kw hydropower plant online. $80K/yr savings. $1.1M grant from stimulus part of funding. 1st hydro plant in Park since '03 (that one long gone). (Maybe I'm naive, but isn't there a super volcano load of geotherm reserve there? Can't US develop that?)

OR zoned its coast for wave energy development.

In '80's, US was largest producer of uranium in world. 43M lbs/yr. Now 4M. Megatons to Megawatts program ends this year (U from Russia). TX comp now plans to frack for U. But U is 400-800ft blw ground, where aquifers exist.

Electric motorcycle using lithium-polymer batt made trip around world for $400.

UK, Ireland signed pact on clean/renewable energy trading.

Novozymes (Denmark) says biofuel could supply 90% of its revenues by '30 if more govts promote biofuels. Now world's biggest maker of enzymes for laundry soap, 16% from biofuels, under 1% from enzymes for cellulosic ethanol. $2B/yr revenues.

PA to step up monitoring of naturally occurring radiation levels in water, rock cuttings, drilling wastes associated with oil/NG drilling in peer-reviewed year-long study. Will also assess radiation in pipes, casings, storage tanks, treatment systems and trucks used by NG industry. PA EPA already checking radioactivity in drilling wastes. So far found only "very low levels of natural radiation in landfills, streams". State auditor also to scrutinize shale drilling oversight.

Shell signed $10B contract to frack NG in Ukraine. Could be 4TCF reserves, produce 8-11 cubic meters/yr (~20% of Ukraine's use). Chevron negotiating for shale gas acreage in Ukraine, drilling in Poland.

Chesapeake Energy opened the door to EPA for fracking study.

Colo town mulls putting fracking ban on ballot.

Halliburton deployed 1st bacteria-fighting truck in Australia to clean fracking water. Intro'd 2 yrs ago in US. UV light instead of biocides.

Energy comps mounting new opposition to Cal's plan to lower fuels' avg carbon content by 10% by '20 for fuel sold in state.

Fed appeals court won't reopen challenge to DOI '09 decision to cancel 77 oil and NG leases near fed lands in Utah.

Fed appeals court refused to reconsider its decision that tossed out EPA program for air pollution that drifts across state lines.

Fed appeals court threw out EPA mandates for cellulosic standards.

BLM agreed to re-eval drilling plan for Colo Roan Plateau.

Russia surveying nuke waste sites in icy waters now opening up for drilling.

This year, majority of fish we eat will be farmed, not wild.

McDonald's switched to sustainable seafood. (Farmed?)

2 UN agencies opened global campaign to address 1.3B tons of food wasted/yr while hundreds of millions go hungry. Calling for changes in harvesting, storage, transport, processing, marketing. 1/4 of annual waste would feed the hungry.

New data show Amazon deforestation accelerating.