Alternative Energy

Feb 16, 2017 2016 was a successful year for clean energy. How will 2017 shape up? I make 5 predictions based on last year’s numbers and trends. My first prediction is that we will see solar energy prices plummet further. Last year brought astonishingly low tariffs for solar generation. This was a pleasant surprise. No…

Even if solar and wind capacity continues to grow at breakneck speed, it will not be fast enough to cap global warming under two degrees Celsius (3.6 degrees Fahrenheit)AFP by AFP, Jan. 30, 2017 Paris (AFP) – Expansion of renewable energy cannot by itself stave off catastrophic climate change, scientists warned Monday.

by Lorraine Chow, Jan. 17, 2017 U.S. solar employs more workers than any other energy industry, including coal, oil and natural gas combined, according to the U.S. Department of Energy’s second annual U.S. Energy and Employment Report.

by Jess Shankleman and Chris Martin, Bloomberg, Jan. 3, 2017 Global average solar cost may fall below coal within 10 years Countries from Saudi Arabia to Mexico planning auctions Solar power is now cheaper than coal in some parts of the world. In less than a decade, it’s likely to be the lowest-cost option almost…

by Jess Shankleman and Chris Martin, Bloomberg, January 3, 2017 Solar power is now cheaper than coal in some parts of the world. In less than a decade, it’s likely to be the lowest-cost option almost everywhere.

by Anna Hirtenstein, November 23, 2016, Bloomberg Electric avenues that can transmit the sun’s energy onto power grids may be coming to a city near you. A subsidiary of Bouygues SA has designed rugged solar panels, capable of withstand the weight of an 18-wheeler truck, that they’re now building into road surfaces. After nearly five…

By Danessa Rivera (The Philippine Star), October 1, 2016 MANILA, Philippines – There would be no need for feed-in tariff (FIT) incentives for solar when prices of solar panels have gone down and the country would need to import more gas by 2022, making it competitive with other sources of power, the Philippine Solar Power…

by Anna Hirtenstein, June 15, 2016, http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-06-15/cost-of-clean-energy-to-keep-nosediving-into-next-decade The cost of renewables technology is set to keep falling into the next decade, boosting the economic case for clean energy, according to an industry group.

by Economist, Apr 16th 2016, http://www.economist.com/news/leaders/21696935-see-how-bright-future-solar-energy-look-developing-world-new-sunbathers?fsrc=scn/tw/te/pe/ed/thenewsunbathers To see how bright the future of solar energy is, look to the developing world THE sun is the world’s battery pack. Photosynthesis captured the energy that is burned in fossil fuels. The sun drives the wind and ocean currents. And in an hour and a quarter the amount…

By Rey Gamboa (The Philippine Star), March 8, 2016 Even with the recent ups and downs in crude oil prices, the fact remains the average levels today continue to be depressed if compared to the $100 per barrel pricing that fueled the world economy for more than a decade.

This is part of a series on the Global Goals for Sustainable Development, in collaboration with the Stockholm Resilience Centre. Size now matters: in a single human lifetime we have become a big world on a small planet.

The United Kingdom saw the steepest single-year drop in greenhouse gas pollution in more than two decades in 2014, according to government data released on Thursday. The country’s carbon emissions fell 8.4 percent, even as its economy grew by 2.6 percent.

MANILA, Philippines – Ethanol production in the country remains scarce, leaving oil firms no choice but to import overseas to comply with the government’s E10 requirement for gasoline, according to a study by a United Nations arm.

MANILA, Philippines – Hydropower opportunities in the Philippines are overflowing with potential, but so far have failed to wash away the country’s energy woes.

The world needs to triple the energy it gets from renewables, nuclear reactors and power plants that use emissions-capture technology to avoid dangerous levels of global warming, United Nations scientists said.

MANILA, Philippines – Four local governments who host renewable energy (RE) projects shared how these inspired the confidence of other investors.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines risks losing “over $2.5 billion in potential renewable energy investments” due to delays in the crafting of rules and mechanisms that were causing investor uncertainty, a 2013 World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) report said.

The Philippines will receive €3.5 million (roughly P189 million) in grants from the European Union (EU) in support of a cleaner, more energy-efficient industrial production.

ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates – The International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA) launched the world’s first atlas on clean energy which will offer open-access information on countries’ renewable energy potential.

WASHINGTON – There’s enough wind to power the world many times over, according to a study out Monday, but it would take a massive infrastructure investment to harness it that analysts say is not realistic. As the world seeks to lessen its reliance on fossil fuels like coal and natural gas, renewable energy sources like…

MANILA, Philippines – The E-tricycles project of the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Department of Energy (DOE) will generate a P20-billion business in the Philippines, industry players said.

The Hyperion machine robotically places wafers into this proton induced exfoliation machine which creates thin solar cells from standard-thickness silicon wafers.

Development of the country’s renewable energy (RE) resources have hit a road block since the bulk of investors have found that their service contract (SC) areas not viable for power generation.

Some proponents of renewable energy are getting desperate. They have apparently engaged some PR professionals to get media behind their attempt to unfairly benefit from a government imposed subsidy supposedly to save the environment. Thus far, they have failed to get what they want, thanks to a group of economists and public policy advocates who…

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines has to import more biothanol this year as local production still cannot cope with increasing demand for the alternative fuel, the Department of Energy (DOE) said.

MANILA, Philippines – Bayan Muna partylist Rep. Teddy Casiño said yesterday he would ask the Department of Energy (DOE) and the National Renewable Energy Board (NREB) to explain the supposed cap on the use of renewable energy (RE) sources, particularly on solar power.

BUSINESSES in Midnanao are clamoring for solar energy projects to ease the region’s tight power supply situation. In a position paper, various business groups from Mindanao called on the government to increase the volume of solar power that would qualify for tariff incentives.

Anakpawis Rep. Rafael Mariano is seeking a probe into numerous planned and ongoing construction of privately owned and operated coal-fired power plants in the country.

Prices at the Wholesale Electricity Spot Market may drop by as much as P3 per kilowatt-hour once the initial 200 megawatts from renewable energy projects come online, a study conducted by the technical working group of the National Renewable Energy Board shows.

While it is against “RH” – the Reproductive Health (RH) bill, the Catholic Church is for “RE” – Renewable Energy. In a news release posted on its website, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said (CBCP) said it supports the government’s move to tap renewable energy (RE).