Cleantech news you might have missed: 30 Jan. 2009

Couldn’t keep up with all the cleantech news coming out yesterday? Here are some stories you might have missed:

• Texas is moving ahead with plans for $5 billion (US) worth of new electricity transmission lines to deliver wind energy to its big cities, Reuters reports. The top wind-energy producer in the US, Texas has added numerous turbines in the windy, western part of the state, but lacks the network capacity to deliver energy from those sources to places like Dallas in the east.
• The state of Nevada recently boosted its supply of renewable energy with the opening of the 10-megawatt El Dorado Energy Solar facility. Billed as North America’s “largest thin-film solar facility,” the project is Sempra Energy’s first solar installation and took just six months to construct.
• California-based Sentilla Corporation this week released its Sentilla Energy Manager™, which provides detailed analyses of data center power use so IT managers can improve efficiency, reduce energy consumption and save on operating costs. “As energy resources become more scarce and IT and operating budgets get leaner, companies are looking at ways to do more with less,” said Bob Davis, Sentilla’s CEO.
• Automakers need to find a way to dramatically slash carbon emissions if we want to stabilise atmospheric carbon dioxide levels by mid-century, according to researchers from the University of Michigan. They said the average carbon emissions for a passenger vehicle would need to drop to 20 grams per mile (12.4 grams per kilometer), down from the current average of 160 grams per mile (99.4 grams per kilometer).
• The US Air Force has put the kibosh on a prospective coal-to-liquid synthetic fuel plant in Montana after determining the project was not viable. A review found the proposals submitted raised concerns for air base security, as well as flight and safety concerns.
• Inhabitat reports that the Caribbean island of Bonaire is on track to become the region’s first island to be powered entirely by renewable energy. The switch to clean energy is expected to be complete within three years, thanks to a wind farm and five biodiesel plants now under construction.
• Nine European countries are coming together to develop 15 joint laboratories for carbon capture and storage research, according to the SINTEF Group. Countries participating in the €81 million initiative include Norway, Germany, France, Denmark, the Netherland, Switzerland, Hungary, Poland and Croatia.