William Opalka, Author at Environment + Energy Leader

Agrion Names its ‘Disrupt 25+’

February 20, 2014 by William Opalka

A company that cut energy and water use at a data center by 80 percent and set a record in power use effectiveness (PUE) is the first one to be featured as one of the most disruptive startups in a clean energy and sustainability ranking. Agrion Americas assembled over 100 leading ... Read more »

Energy Efficiency Program Receives Award

February 19, 2014 by William Opalka

The Nicor Gas Energy Efficiency Program won an award from the Association of Energy Services Professionals for developing a program that doubled the amount of energy saved during a comparable time period. The award was given for its work on the 6 Million Therm Savings campaign, developed by CLEAResult. The ... Read more »

FERC Approves Alaska Tidal Project

February 18, 2014 by William Opalka

The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) approved a successive preliminary permit 240-MW tidal energy project in Alaska. In February 2013, Turnagain Arm Tidal Energy filed an application proposing to continue to study the feasibility of the Turnagain Arm Tidal Electric Generation Project. The project would be located on the Turnagain ... Read more »

EnerNOC Acquires Overseas Firms

February 17, 2014 by William Opalka

Demand response company EnerNOC acquired two demand response firms in Europe, expanding its international footprint to include Ireland and Germany. It acquired Dublin-based Activation Energy, a provider of demand response software and services. EnerNOC also acquired German firm Entelios, a provider of demand response in Europe. Terms were not disclosed. The Activation ... Read more »

Fusion Reactions Inching Ahead

February 14, 2014 by William Opalka

A small step in creating a controlled fusion-energy reaction was reported in the online journal Nature. Scientists are mimicking the interior of the sun inside a laboratory by using 192 lasers to compress a pellet of fuel and generate a reaction in which more energy came out of the fuel core ... Read more »

Utilities, NRDC Push Modernized Policies

February 13, 2014 by William Opalka

The old model for financing power grid improvements is broken and the utility industry knows it. Financing is becoming more difficult, so an industry trade group and the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC) have joined to promote innovative policies. The Edison Electric Institute (EEI) and NRDC announced a joint agreement to ... Read more »

Solar Projects Online

February 12, 2014 by William Opalka

Two solar projects in California owned and operated by Washington Gas Energy Systems are complete and ready to generate energy for separate educational institutions. Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona, Calif., and Corcoran Unified School District in Corcoran, Calif., are holding dedication ceremonies this week. Systems have 20-year power purchase agreements. ... Read more »

Is the Grid Ready for Distributed Resources?

February 11, 2014 by William Opalka

The utility industry’s research arm has started studies of the rapid rise of distributed energy resources (DER) and how best to integrate them into the grid. The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) is studying the transformation of the electric power grid brought about by large numbers of rooftop solar panels ... Read more »

Fukushima Wants 100% Renewables

February 10, 2014 by William Opalka

The province of Fukushima in northeast Japan plans to switch to 100 percent renewable energy by 2040. The province is the site of the nuclear disaster at the Fukushima Daichi nuclear power plant that suffered a nuclear meltdown three years after the earthquake and tsunami. The energy will be generated ... Read more »

How Efficient Can Solar Photovoltaics Become?

February 7, 2014 by William Opalka

Costs for some solar photovoltaics (PV) have dropped sharply over the past few years, but efficiency has not necessarily followed suit. The search for PV modules that are both low-cost and highly efficient continues at government research labs. Plasmonic energy conversion, which generates “hot” (highly energetic) electrons in plasmonic nanostructures through the ... Read more »

HMI Panels Introduced for Commercial Facilities

February 6, 2014 by William Opalka

American Industrial Systems (AIS) introduced its standard and custom offering of human machine interface (HMI) panels for the building automation industry. Its building control and monitoring systems are designed for commercial and industrial facilities. AIS HMIs help building owners and operators manage their Building Management Systems (BMS), Energy Management Systems (EMS) ... Read more »

General Services Trials LED Controls System

February 5, 2014August 2, 2019 by William Opalka

The US General Services Administration (GSA) has selected Philips’ SpaceWise technology to participate in the FY2013 Green Proving Ground (GPG) program that evaluates innovative sustainable building technologies. SpaceWise is designed for large, open-plan office spaces. Intelligent and dimming controls are tuned to specific application needs in the LED luminaire. Energy ... Read more »

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