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EREN NETWORK NEWS -- May 8, 2002
A weekly newsletter from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE)
Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network (EREN).
<http://www.eren.doe.gov/>
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Featuring:
*News and Events
G-8 Energy Ministers Emphasize Energy Efficiency, Renewables
Vehicle Technologies Highlighted During G-8 Energy Forum
Colleges, Universities Buy Wind Power, Cut Greenhouse Gases
BP to Switch to Ethanol in California by Year-End
New Fuel Cell Projects Installed Throughout the Country
Miniature Fuel Cells Show Hope for Portable Electronics
DOE Awards $9.9 Million for Home Weatherization
*Energy Facts and Tips
Responding to Drought: Saving Water Also Saves Energy
*About this Newsletter
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NEWS AND EVENTS
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G-8 Energy Ministers Emphasize Energy Efficiency, Renewables
A meeting last week of the energy ministers from the Group of
Eight (G-8) countries resulted in a published statement that
shows considerable support for the roles of energy efficiency and
renewable energy in meeting the world's energy needs. The
ministers from the leading industrialized countries noted that
energy security, economic growth, environmental protection, and
sustainable development are supported by improved energy
efficiency and diversified energy sources. They also reaffirmed
the importance of renewable energy for diversifying energy
supplies.
The ministers committed to explore areas where existing
cooperation among their countries in energy science and
technology could be strengthened, particularly in the areas of
emerging renewable energy, energy efficiency and cleaner
energy technologies. They also vowed to continue to encourage
the development and introduction of these technologies, and
noted that significant investments will be needed. They noted
that private investments could be facilitated by sound policies,
and affirmed the importance of working with developing countries
to help them develop such policies.
Brian Wilson, the U.K. Minister for Energy, gave a keynote
speech that emphasized the role of renewable energy in
eliminating poverty, noting that 1.7 billion people still have no
access to electricity. "Renewable technologies offer huge
opportunities to reduce that figure," said Wilson. "We need to
adopt the scale of vision which the G8 Renewable Energy
Task Force recommended. They concluded that a billion
people could be supplied with renewable energy over the
next decade." See the May 2nd press release from the U.K.
Department of Trade and Industry at:
<http://www.nds.coi.gov.uk/coi/coipress.nsf/gti>.
The G-8 countries include the United Kingdom, Canada, France,
Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States, which was
represented by Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham. The
meeting, held in Detroit, Michigan, was co-chaired by Secretary
Abraham and Canadian Minister of Natural Resources Herb
Dhaliwal. See the statement from the co-chairs on the DOE Web
site at:
<http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases02/maypr/G8Statement.htm>.
Vehicle Technologies Highlighted During G-8 Energy Forum
Prior to the Detroit meeting of the G-8 Energy Ministers on
May 3rd, a two-day G-8 Energy Forum brought together
business leaders, public interest groups, energy experts and
other interested members of the public to discuss energy
policies. The forum, sponsored by the State of Michigan and
the United States Energy Association (USEA), touched on a
range of energy issues, but focused largely on
transportation technologies. See the USEA Web site at:
<http://www.usea.org/g8ministerialforum.htm>.
The full proceedings are posted on the USEA Web site at:
<http://www.usea.org/energyforumproceedings.htm>.
Energy Secretary Spencer Abraham announced during the
forum that DOE will host an international conference on
future transportation technologies this fall. The International
Conference on the Future of Energy Transportation
Technologies will also be held in Detroit and will focus on
hydrogen fuel cell technologies for cars and trucks -- a
research area currently being pursued by DOE's
FreedomCAR program. The conference is also expected to
include sessions on energy-efficient vehicle technologies,
lower-emission drives for two- and three-wheeled vehicles,
alternative fuels, public transportation, and urban planning
and traffic management. See the DOE press release at:
<http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases02/maypr/pr02074.htm>.
General Motors Corporation showcased its AUTOnomy fuel-
cell concept vehicle at the forum, as well as its Parallel
Hybrid Truck. Delphi Corporation featured a range of
efficient vehicle technologies. See the press releases at:
<http://www.delphi.com/news/pressReleases/pr11805-05012002>
and <http://gm.com/company/gmability/>.
If you live on the East Coast and would like to see some of
the newer automotive technologies first-hand, check out next
week's Tour de Sol. Organized by the Northeast Sustainable
Energy Association (NESEA), and sponsored in part by
DOE, the road tour of state-of-the-art cars, buses, bikes, and
neighborhood vehicles starts with a festival in Baltimore,
Maryland, on May 12th, but truly hits the road on May 14th in
Washington, D.C. It then works its way gradually to its finish
in New York City on May 18th. See the NESEA Web site at:
<http://www.nesea.org/transportation/tour/>.
Colleges, Universities Buy Wind Power, Cut Greenhouse Gases
The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
(DEP) announced in late April that eight more colleges and
universities in the state will buy a portion of their electricity
from wind power projects. Allegheny College, Bucknell
University, Dickinson College, Franklin & Marshall College,
Gannon University, Gettysburg College, Juniata College and
Swarthmore College join 17 other Pennsylvania institutions
of higher learning that are buying wind power. The first
institution to make that commitment, Carnegie Mellon
University, also announced it will expand its commitment to
wind power. And Penn State University, which is already
buying the output of more than three wind turbines,
announced it will purchase the output of an additional wind
turbine this year. See the DEP press release at:
<http://www.dep.state.pa.us/newsreleases/default.asp?ID=1659>.
A number of colleges and universities have committed to
reducing their emissions of greenhouse gases, mainly
through the use of renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Cornell University, for instance, instituted an energy-saving
program as an attempt to meet the emission goals of the
Kyoto Protocol. The university has retrofitted the lighting
system for its hockey rink and is considering solar power
installations. But just encouraging students to turn off lights
and equipment over the December holidays saved more
than 360,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity. See the Cornell
press release at:
<http://www.news.cornell.edu/releases/March02/conservation.ws.html>.
Tufts University is also attempting to meet the Kyoto
Protocol goals through its Tufts Climate Initiative (TCI). The
initiative is investigating green power options and
encouraging the use of energy efficiency and renewable
energy technologies. Tufts has installed solar panels on one
building and installed energy efficiency improvements, a
geothermal heat pump, and a solar hot water system in
another building. TCI also added a hybrid-electric Toyota
Prius to the university's fleet of vehicles. See the TCI Web
site at: <http://www.tufts.edu/tie/tci/TCIMenu.html>.
Of course, colleges and universities pursue these
technologies for a number of reasons, including economics.
Southern California's Antelope Valley College, for instance,
found that a low-interest loan from the California Energy
Commission would allow it to pay off $1.7 million in energy
efficiency improvements in just seven years, saving
$362,000 a year. Among the projects is a solar water heating
system for the school's indoor pool. See the college's press
release at: <http://www.avc.edu/News/news.htm#rays>.
BP to Switch to Ethanol in California by Year-End
BP announced last week that it has signed contracts with
several ethanol suppliers in order to voluntarily phase out its
use of the gasoline additive MTBE in California by year-end.
BP supplies 20 percent of the gasoline market in California
through its 1200 ARCO stations. See the BP press release
at: <http://www.bp.com/centres/press/p_r_detail.asp?id=894>.
The BP news follows the March announcement from
California Governor Gray Davis that the mandated phase-out
of MTBE in the state would be extended to the end of 2003.
See the March 20th edition of EREN Network News at:
<http://www.eren.doe.gov/newsletter/archives/2002/mar20_02.html>.
New Fuel Cell Projects Installed Throughout the Country
Fuel cell companies are charging ahead with new fuel cell
installations at homes, businesses, and municipal facilities
throughout the United States. New fuel cell systems are
installed or planned in Colorado, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri,
New Jersey, New York and Virginia.
In New Jersey, FuelCell Energy, Inc. will provide two
250-kilowatt fuel cell power plants for installation at two
hotels owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
The fuel cell systems will provide one-quarter of the power
and hot water heating needs for the Sheraton Parsippany
Hotel and Sheraton Edison Raritan Center. Construction
should start this summer, and the units should be operating
by year-end. FuelCell Energy was also recently awarded a
patent for its high-efficiency system that combines a fuel cell
with a gas turbine. See the April 3rd and 17th press releases
on the FuelCell Energy Web site at:
<http://www.fuelcellenergy.com/>.
In New York, the first of two 5-kilowatt fuel cell installations in
residential homes was completed in Lewiston in mid-April;
the second installation will be at a home in Colden. The
systems will be operated for one year and then returned to
the manufacturer, Plug Power Inc., for testing. Meanwhile,
the Long Island Power Authority (LIPA) announced plans to
install 17 Plug Power fuel cell systems at commercial and
municipal customer locations across Long Island this
summer. LIPA also plans to install three 5-kilowatt backup
power systems by year-end and to expand the fuel cell
operations at its West Babylon substation, where 75 fuel cell
systems were installed last year. See the Plug Power press
releases at:
<http://www.plugpower.com/news/NM_Detail.cfm?ID=2337> and
<http://www.plugpower.com/news/NM_Detail.cfm?ID=2339>.
Plug Power also provided two 5-kilowatt fuel cell systems
that DTE Energy Technologies installed at a Detroit Edison
power station in Commerce Township, Michigan. The fuel
cells will be tested while providing power to the electrical grid
over the next year. See the DTE Energy Technologies press
release at: http://www.dtetech.com/pressroom/4_1_043002.asp>.
In Colorado, Illinois, Missouri and Virginia, four rural electric
cooperatives are now each operating one 4.5-kilowatt fuel cell
system from H Power Corporation as a beta test of the
company's newest product. The company will install more
systems this month at other cooperatives that are members
of Energy Co-Opportunity, Inc., an energy services
cooperative that provides distributed energy solutions to
U.S. electric cooperatives. See the H Power press release at:
<http://www.hpower.com/cgi-bin/pr.cgi?idPressRelease=64>.
Miniature Fuel Cells Show Hope for Portable Electronics
Fuel cells offer an advantage over many other power
sources by producing a lot of power in a small volume.
Several companies are now trying to squeeze fuel cells into
smaller and smaller spaces, allowing them to potentially
provide a long-lived power source for cell phones, laptop
computers, and other portable electronic devices.
One such company is Manhattan Scientifics, Inc., which is
developing a miniature fuel cell powered by sodium
borohydride. In mid-April, the company claimed to have
boosted the power of its miniature fuel cell to at least six
times better than lithium ion batteries. See the Manhattan
Scientifics press release at:
<http://www.mhtx.com/media_center/pressrelease44.htm>.
An example of the competition is Mechanical Technology
Inc., which unveiled its methanol-fueled miniature fuel cell in
mid-March. In late April, the company received an award of
$500,000 from the New York State Energy Research and
Development Authority to further develop the technology.
See the Mechanical Technology press releases at:
<http://www.mechtech.com/news/article.cfm?A_ID=3326> and
<http://www.mechtech.com/news/article.cfm?A_ID=3519>.
Researchers at the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA) have developed their own solution to
the problem: a flat fuel cell, also powered by methanol. The
fuel cell group at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
has proven that the cell will work -- now they just need to
make it smaller. See the JPL press release at:
<http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/releases/2002/release_2002_94.html>.
DOE Awards $9.9 Million for Home Weatherization
DOE awarded $9.9 million in weatherization assistance
funds to Minnesota yesterday. The funds will be used to
improve the energy efficiency of the homes of low-income
families in the state. For every dollar spent, DOE's
Weatherization Assistance Program returns $1.80 in energy
savings over the life of the weatherized home, based on
recent energy prices. See the DOE press release at:
<http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases02/maypr/pr02077.htm>.
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ENERGY FACTS AND TIPS
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Responding to Drought: Saving Water Also Saves Energy
With drought conditions now extending over much of the
West and up and down the East Coast, its worth noting that
saving water also saves energy. People who pump water
from their own well know that all too well, but people that
draw on municipal water systems may forget that their water
is pumped -- sometimes over long distances -- and usually
requires energy-intensive water treatment. According to the
Alliance to Save Energy (ASE), providing and treating water
consumes about 3 percent of U.S. electricity supplies. With
that in mind, the ASE is providing some tips on how to save
energy by conserving water. See the ASE press release at:
<http://www.ase.org/media/newsrel/waterwater.htm>.
The ASE also notes that most water utilities are missing
opportunities to save energy. See the ASE report at:
<http://www.ase.org/programs/international/watergy.htm>.
Water is also tied to energy in a different way: in the
production of electricity using hydroelectric power. But in
California, at least, there's good news: the California Energy
Commission expects the state's hydroelectric plants to
produce a near-normal output this summer. Although the
southern part of the state is very dry, the northern part,
where the hydropower facilities are located, has received
normal precipitation this year. See the May 1st press release
on the CEC Web site at:
<http://www.energy.ca.gov/releases/index.html>.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
(NOAA) predicts gradual improvement in drought conditions
in the East and much of the West, with severe drought likely
to persist in the desert Southwest and in Montana. See
NOAA's Drought Information Center, particularly the
"Drought Monitor" and "Drought Outlook," at:
<http://www.drought.noaa.gov/>.
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ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER
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