GreenBeat

U2 gets behind carbon trading, raises money for geothermal

Known for its international relief efforts, rock band U2 is now raising funds in Turkey to pay for the country’s Dora-1 geothermal plant. It is also selling carbon offset credits for $1.89 a pop.

The credits will go toward purchasing clean power to neutralize the 127 kilograms of greenhouse gases each of the band’s fans, on average, generates to see the band play. Incidentally, the Dora-1 project could save as many as 30,000 tons of... Continue Reading

New material could turn your car’s body into a giant battery

A new invention out of the Imperial College of London could forever alter how we think about batteries — and powering cars for that matter. Researchers have patented a mixture of carbon fiber and polymer that can store and discharge electricity, meaning that eventually the body of your car could also be running its engine.

This technology could be game changing for three reasons. First, the material could replace lithium-ion batteries as a source of... Continue Reading

LEDs take the spotlight with flurry of recent, positive news

Last month, the U.S. government granted $37 million to 17 projects developing light-emitting diodesfor various applications ranging from lighting systems to screen technologies. All the while, ongoing research and development is finally driving down the costs and increasing the efficiency of LEDs and their organic, increasingly popular cousins.

With lifespans exceeding 50,000 hours, LEDs have incandescent and fluorescent light bulbs beat hand down. But so far they have been prohibitively expensive. Most of the work... Continue Reading

Minnesota’s frozen turbines raise new doubts about wind power

In Minnesota, the wind is blowing but turbines aren’t turning. The machines, bought used from California and installed last fall, are completely frozen in place. Even on the windiest days, the blades sit at a standstill, producing no power. Why should anyone care? The problem highlights some of the less intuitive challenges associated with wind power — long considered to be the most feasible and cost effective source of renewable energy.

The likely culprit in... Continue Reading

Areva buys Ausra, looks ahead to bright solar thermal future

French nuclear company Areva has just taken its first step into the solar market with the acquisition of Ausra, a Mountain View, Calif.-based maker of solar thermal equipment. The deal represents a major new market for Areva, while simultaneously propping up Ausra, which weathered some hard knocks last year.

Last year at this time, the solar startup provider scrapped plans to build several massive plants across the southwest and California deserts. Weakened by the economic... Continue Reading

Tesla takes us on a wild ride

Tesla has been  throwing a few curve balls at us lately. Between the almost half-billion dollar government loans, the IPO (which contains a “no Roadsters will be built after 2011″ announcement) and now a right hand drive Roadster being announced, we have as many questions as answers.

Tesla’s IPO late last month created an instant buzz. The heady mix of electric cars, clean energy futures and lots and lots of money had most of us... Continue Reading

PG&E takes a chance on wave power off California’s coast

All signs point to wave power being a huge untapped resource. So far, only one commercial installation has been tried, even though the motion of the waves has the potential to generate between 1 and 10 terawatts. To put this in context, even just 1 terawatt would be enough to power a billion homes. Now, finally, Pacific Gas & Electric is stepping up to test new wave energy designs off the coast of Northern California.... Continue Reading

San Francisco goes green, adds jobs with $19.2M for energy efficiency

San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom has announced that the city will invest $19.2 million from the state government to make the city by the bay more energy efficient, creating up to 22 new jobs and generating $3 million in energy savings every year going forward.

About $11.5 million of the stimulus funds will be distributed via San Francisco’s Energy Watch program — a project working on the installation of more efficient lighting and HVAC systems.... Continue Reading

Biofuel leader LS9 buys demo plant to churn out renewable diesel

LS9, one of the biggest names in the burgeoning biofuels market, just took a giant step closer to making cost-effective renewable petroleum on a commercial scale. Armed with $25 million in capital raised in September, it has bought a demonstration-scale production plant in Florida for the bargain price of $2 million.

To give you a sense of how important LS9’s success is to the green fuel and chemicals movement, two of its biggest investors are... Continue Reading

Vulcan bags $108M to make geothermal cost competitive with coal, gas

Vulcan Power, a major developer of geothermal energy sources in the American west, has just landed $108 million in equity from an affiliate of Denham Capital. The company, which already has permits to use 170,000 acres in Arizona, Oregon, California and Nevada, will apply the money generate 300 megawatts of energy — enough to power 300,000 homes at peak output.

What makes Vulcan special? It already has several power purchase agreements in the pipeline with... Continue Reading

Jaguar developing turbine hybrids

Jaguar is working on what could prove to be the next big thing in hybrids — partnered with Bladon Jets and SR Drives (an electric parts supplier in the U.K.), the British sports car icon is developing a gas micro-turbine powered hybrid. The effort recently won $1.8 million in funding from the U.K.’s Technology Strategy Board.

Though any car brought to market is likely to be branded as a Jaguar, make no mistake: Bladon’s gasoline... Continue Reading

Obama forges ahead on nuclear as leaks, risks come to light

The debate over nuclear energy is heating up again. While many argue that it’s unsafe, just as many people see it as the only viable option to combat climate change. President Barack Obama has taken up this second position, calling for “a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country,” last week during his State of the Union address.

But his remarks may have been unfortunately timed. Just as he was touting... Continue Reading

Green Plug raises a second round for green power charging

Green Plug said today it has raised a second round of funding for its environmentally-friendly electrical power charging technology.

The San Ramon, Calif.-based company did not disclose the size of the round, which was led by Herald Investments UK, Killik & Co., and Peninsula Venture Partners. Green Plug did say that the pre-money valuation for the second round was significantly higher than the company’s first round in January, 2008.

Green Plug launched at DEMO in... Continue Reading

EV maker Aptera in disarray as founders fade away

It’s official: Steve Fambro, co-founder of Aptera, the futuristic three-wheeled electric car company, has officially vacated his post along with his partner Chris Anthony. Both publicly took a hiatus starting in November and then failed to return, following disputes with the company’s current management. Could this shakeup delay Aptera’s release? And will it matter in a market dominated by Tesla, Fisker, Toyota, and General Motors?

The Aptera 2e has made its way onto many lists... Continue Reading

Recurrent Energy lands 50-MW solar contract with SoCal Edison

Recurrent Energy is celebrating a big victory today — landing a long-term power purchase contract for 50 megawatts with major utility Southern California Edison. All of this energy will be generated by the small-scale solar systems Recurrent has become known for.

The deal is important for two reasons. First, it furthers SoCal Edison’s goal of generating 33 percent of its power output from renewable sources, complying with the California state mandate. While no financial details... Continue Reading

Smith Electric, Proton Power join forces for hydrogen fuel-cell fleets

Smith Electric Vehicles, better known in the U.K., has failed to inspire much interest. Mostly because its flagship product, the “Newton,” is a fleet delivery truck with a 100-mile driving range and top speed of 50 miles per hour. With competitors exceeding both metrics, it seems to stand little chance in the global market. But a new deal with hydrogen fuel cell maker Proton Power Systems could change everything.

Today, the two companies announced they... Continue Reading

Obama’s 2011 budget gives $28.4B to the Energy Dept., scraps fossil fuel subsidies

President Barack Obama has released his $3.8 trillion 2011 budget request, including $28.4 billion for the U.S. Department of Energy to jumpstart green technologies and build a requisite job force. Surprisingly, nuclear would get a big boost. Not so surprisingly, oil and gas companies would have to kiss some of their tax credits goodbye.

The most interesting this about the energy budget request is just how hard hit the fossil fuel industry would be. About... Continue Reading

San Francisco to funnel $171M into green transit center

San Francisco has long had plans to extend the Bay Area’s Caltrain line into the heart of its Financial District. Now, recent designs show that the transit facility could be extremely (and uniquely) green — which makes it even better news that the project just landed a $171 million loan from the federal government under the banner of the Transportation Infrastructure and Innovation Act.

The new building, which got approval for construction almost two years... Continue Reading

EV infrastructure on a roll — Coulomb bags $14M for charging stations

Companies working on ideas for charging and fueling green cars have been on a roll lately. The streak kicked off last Sunday with Better Place landing $350 million in equity, and continued with SunHydro touting plans to dot east coast highways with hydrogen fueling stations. Now Coulomb Technologies, provider of electric charging stations for plug-in vehicles, has gotten its turn, raising $14 million in a second round of venture funding.

All of these companies have... Continue Reading