Electricity

Electricity is generated by conventional energy and renewable energy sources, for example, oil, gas, solar arrays, and wind power. Proton exchange membrane fuel cells (PEMs) and other new alternative sources to generate electricity also are covered here. Finally, we look at different means to control and measure electric output including smart meters and smart grids.

Efficiency Could Cut Electricity Use 15%, Report Says

Efficiency Could Cut Electricity Use 15%, Report SaysEnergy efficiency is likely to bring down U.S. electricity consumption by five to 15 percent by 2020, relative to forecast trends, according to a ...

November 15, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Solar Zones, Ozone Hearing, Carbon Tax

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Solar Zones, Ozone Hearing, Carbon Tax Interior Secretary Ken Salazar (pictured left) on Thursday announced a revised plan to establish solar energy zones in Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah, ...

October 28, 2011

Austin, Texas, Joins US’s Top Ten Renewable Energy Buyers

Austin, Texas, Joins US’s Top Ten Renewable Energy BuyersThe recent announcement by the City of Austin, Texas, that it is now powers all of its facilities using only renewable energyhas made the municipality ...

October 26, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: FERC Regulations, Wastewater Rules, Fines for ConocoPhillips and Sherwin-Williams

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: FERC Regulations, Wastewater Rules, Fines for ConocoPhillips and Sherwin-WilliamsThe Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced that it has published three final rules on Thursday, dramatically shaking up the payment method for transmission, particularly in the ...

October 21, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Ethanol Cuts, South Africa Carbon Fines, Cuba Offshore Drilling

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Ethanol Cuts, South Africa Carbon Fines, Cuba Offshore Drilling Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz) introduced an amendment to the chamber's 2012 agriculture appropriations bill on Tuesday that would block the government from funding gas station "blender" ...

October 19, 2011

Nestle Purina, Perdue Open Major Solar Arrays

Nestle Purina, Perdue Open Major Solar ArraysNestle Purina PetCare and Perdue Incorporated have unveiled major solar arrays in Arizona and Maryland. Nestle Purina’s 1,900 panel, 427-kilowatt solar photovoltaic system covers 70,000 square feet ...

October 12, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Keystone XL Conflict, Wisconsin Wind Rules, Coal Ash Pushback

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Keystone XL Conflict, Wisconsin Wind Rules, Coal Ash Pushback The State Department allowed a company with close financial ties to TransCanada to perform a crucial environmental impact study of the proposed Keystone XL pipeline, ...

October 10, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: New House Bills, EU Airline Lawsuit, Mountaintop Removal

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: New House Bills, EU Airline Lawsuit, Mountaintop RemovalThe House of Representatives passed a bill on Thursday to block the EPA's proposed rule to reduce emissions from large cement manufacturing plants, The New ...

October 7, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Solar Loan Guarantees, Keystone XL Delays, Merck Penalty

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: Solar Loan Guarantees, Keystone XL Delays, Merck PenaltyThe Energy Department has finalized more than $1 billion in loan guarantees for two large-scale solar projects, just before the Sept. 30 deadline expires for the ...

September 30, 2011

NORESCO, UMD Ignite $34M CHP System, Energy Efficiency Project

NORESCO, UMD Ignite $34M CHP System, Energy Efficiency ProjectEnergy services provider NORESCO has secured a $33.9 million guaranteed energy savings agreement with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Division of Capital Asset Management and Maintenance ...

September 30, 2011

Annual Non-Utility Electricity Sales Hit $29.5bn, Set to Rise

Annual Non-Utility Electricity Sales Hit $29.5bn, Set to RiseThe market for energy sales from firms selling directly to consumers, bypassing utility companies, grew to over $29.5 billion in 2009, according to a report by ...

September 20, 2011

Blackout May Have Caused Millions in Losses

Blackout May Have Caused Millions in LossesThe blackout that cut off power to four million Californian and Mexican customers on Thursday has had wide-ranging effects on businesses, with up to ...

September 12, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Enforcement Briefing: CA Tweaks Environmental Reviews; Hecla Settles; RGGI All-Time Low

Policy & Enforcement Briefing: CA Tweaks Environmental Reviews; Hecla Settles; RGGI All-Time LowA group of environmentalists has launched a campaign urging EPA administrator Lisa Jackson not to resign, after President Obama ordered the agency to scrap a ...

September 12, 2011

Data Revealed: Google Uses More Power than Salt Lake City

Data Revealed: Google Uses More Power than Salt Lake CityGoogle has broken its silence on energy consumption, announcing that it consumed 2,259,998 MWh in 2010. In a new section on the Google Green ...

September 9, 2011

EL Pro Dell to Revamp GHG Measurement; No Longer Carbon-Neutral

Dell to Revamp GHG Measurement; No Longer Carbon-NeutralDell’s changing business model is forcing the company to craft a new way of measuring its carbon footprint, the company notes in its ...

September 7, 2011

Lee Disrupts Power, Raises Oil Prices

Lee Disrupts Power, Raises Oil PricesHundreds of thousands are without power after former tropical storm Lee pushed through the deep south over the holiday weekend. As many as 200,000 lost ...

September 6, 2011

Contract Briefing: Xiolink, Siemens, Endesa, Ala. Corrections

Contract Briefing: Xiolink, Siemens, Endesa, Ala. CorrectionsXiolink, a provider of private cloud computing and managed infrastructure, has selected Modius’s OpenData Enterprise Edition to monitor, maintain, and provide analytics ...

August 30, 2011

Volkswagen Plans $1.45 Billion Renewables Investment

Volkswagen Plans $1.45 Billion Renewables InvestmentAutomaker Volkswagen is planning on investing almost 1 billion Euros ($1.45 billion) in renewable energy, according to a report by the Financial Times Deutschland (via Reuters). The ...

August 29, 2011

EL Pro Policy & Compliance Briefing: PNM Penalty, Efficient Refrigerators, Chemical Secrecy

Policy & Compliance Briefing: PNM Penalty, Efficient Refrigerators, Chemical SecrecyA federal judge overseeing hundreds of lawsuits against BP alleging financial losses after last year's oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico on Friday allowed most ...

August 29, 2011

Irene Shuts Down Nuclear Plants, Refinery; 6 Million Without Power

Irene Shuts Down Nuclear Plants, Refinery; 6 Million Without PowerHurricane Irene has left millions without electricity, and forced the closure of several power plants, after sweeping along much of the East Coast. As of 3.00 pm ...

August 29, 2011