smart metering

What's the smart-energy outlook for 2012?

The past year was a busy one for the smart grid, with advanced energy meters and other major grid improvements being rolled out everywhere from Mexico and China to South Korea and the US. So what does 2012 hold? Chris King, who’s chief regulatory officer for the smart-grid firm

low carbon

New UN rules could help world's poor go greener

Simple, small-scale green technologies, such as clean cookstoves for poor households, could soon find it easier to get carbon funding, thanks to changes in the UN’s Clean Development Mechanism (CDM). Set up under the Kyoto Protocol, the CDM allows industrialized governments and businesses to meet their carbon reduction commitments

energy

Greenbang's top 10 energy stories of 2011

What topics did Greenbang readers find most interesting in 2011? Following is a look at the 10 most-read stories of the past year: 1. Who’s the leading smart-city brand? Which companies are leading the way in helping the world’s cities become smarter, more connected and more efficient? This

solar energy

Remembering Brian Robertson of Amonix

Our thoughts today are with the family, friends and co-workers of Amonix CEO Brian Robertson, who passed away Dec. 22 in a plane crash in York County, Pennsylvania. He is survived by his wife and three children. “We are devastated by this tragic accident,” said Vahan Garboushian, Amonix founder, CTO

energy security

Could we quit fossil fuels for good?

Coal, oil and natural gas helped power the Industrial Revolution, and make life as we know it today possible. But there are plenty of increasingly compelling reasons for us to try and quit the fossil fuel habit. The question is: Is that even possible? Why ask? Well, first, the signs

rare earth metals

Five key clean-energy materials face 'critical' supply risk

With budget cuts, rampant climate-change denial and a Republican party eager to turn back the clock on efficiency efforts, the US was already facing enough roadblocks on the path to a cleaner-energy future. Now along comes the news that five rare earth elements that are vital for technologies like wind

Off-grid energy: The solution to Africa's 'resource curse'?

Despite being rich in natural resources — including a vast amount of renewable solar energy — Africa remains solidly at the bottom among the world’s continents in terms of human well being and development. It’s a situation that often causes people to invoke the “resource curse.” The idea behind the

innovation

Could 'parasite power' change the world?

By 2016, many of the little energy aggravations that inconvenience you today — a run-down cellphone battery, a laptop with dwindling reserve power — could be a thing of the past, thanks to parasite power. Researchers at IBM believe that parasitic power collection could be one of the top innovations that radically

oil

Will oil prices hit record highs - or crash - in 2012?

Will 2012 be the year we see oil prices rise to crushing record highs? Or will the cost of crude collapse as doomsayers’ predictions about the death of the euro, the bursting of China’s real-estate bubble and other economic calamities come true? We can’t tell you. With so

Technology

Sub-atomic 'avalanche' could pave way for super solar cells

Researchers at Kyoto University have discovered a way to unleash an “avalanche” of excitons — electron-hole pairs — 1,000 times as dense as normal from semiconductor material. The finding could help lead to the development of extra-efficient solar cells and ultra-high-speed transistors, they say. Scientists at the university’s Institute for

energy

What energy innovations will lead the way in 2012?

Among the startups vying to earn the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) title of “America’s Next Top Energy Innovator” are a firm looking to double the energy capacity of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, a business that’s developing “smart boxes” for electronic cargo tracking and a company working on

data centers

Greenpeace 'likes' Facebook for 'unfriending' coal

Environmental activist group Greenpeace has made a lot of friends over the years through its campaigns and communication efforts on Facebook, but up until now, Facebook itself wasn’t among them. Blame it on the social networking giant’s 2010 decision to choose coal-fired power for its new Oregon data

cloud computing

Small utilities find energy 'smarts' in the cloud

Across the US, large utilities like investor-owned Pacific Gas & Electric and municipally operated Austin Energy have been working for several years to roll out smarter energy metering and advanced technologies designed to bring electricity services and operations into the 21st century. Smaller community utility providers, on the other hand,

fossil fuels

Keystone XL vote is energy policy madness

An 11th-hour deal by US Senators this past weekend paved the way for a two-month extension of unemployment benefits and a cut in payroll taxes. But Republicans wouldn’t say yes until they got something in return: an agreement to fast-track approval of the Keystone XL pipeline. (And now their

lighting

US vote sets loose a plague of 'zombie' green light bulbs

As the old saying goes, there’s more than one way to skin a cat. And the same applies to methods for flaying a government regulation you don’t like. That seems to be the case for US House Republicans who, according to a report released yesterday, have yet to

fossil fuels

Yes, energy and the economy are linked ... just not how you think

The inextricable link between energy and economic growth has been painfully clear to many people since mid-2008, when crude oil prices peaked at more than $145 per barrel … followed by the global economy taking a nose-dive. (Other factors also helped to bring on the recession, of course, but there’s

wind energy

For nuke-nixing Germany and Siemens, it's full-steam ahead with wind

Nuke-rejecting Germany plans to expand its renewable energy base even further with a new offshore power wind-energy plant featuring 80 massive turbines with rotors 120 meters (394 feet) across. Siemens Energy plans to supply the 3.6-megawatt (MW) for the Amrumbank West project in the North Sea. Being developed by

fossil fuels

Low-carbon future? Ha ... Coal demand to grow by 600,000 tons A DAY

While it’s common knowledge to anyone who follows energy news that the world’s appetite for coal keeps growing, this is ridiculous: over the next five years, global coal demand is projected to expand by 600,000 tons a day. That news tends to tarnish any enthusiasm about the

green buildings

Why judge a green building by its cover? Why not?

We already have energy efficiency ratings for appliances, electronics, light bulbs, windows and doors … what’s next: a ratings scheme for bricks, lumber and siding? Why not? Buildings around the world account for a major portion of our energy consumption, and the choice of facade materials can make a big

green buildings

Greener US schools could save $20 billion in energy

Making school buildings more energy efficient does more than help cut electricity, gas and water bills. Over the long term, the money saved could help schools improve education and expand jobs, according to the US Green Building Council (USGBC). “Why green our schools?” asks Rachel Gutter, director of the USGBC’

wind energy

New ventures to put China's wind energy on steroids

After several years of courtship, Siemens and Shanghai Electric are tying the knot and looking to raise a giant offspring together: the fast-growing Chinese wind-energy market. The companies have come together in two new joint ventures: one focused on wind turbine research, development and production, the other to specialize in

fuel poverty

Bundle up this winter: Cheap energy is gone for good

Late December brings with it more than Christmas these days: as winter looms in the northern hemisphere, it also raises the annual — and growing — specter of energy poverty. Rising fuel and food prices are among the top concerns of people worldwide, according to the latest annual survey from the BBC

electric cars

How to cure an oil addiction? Electric cars are key

Boost domestic hydrocarbon production? Yes. Improve the fuel economy of cars on the road today? Yes again. But an even bigger key to curbing US hunger for imported oil lies with plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) … a whole lot more of them, according to the non-partisan advocacy group Securing America’s

algae-based fuels

Could algae step in when (affordable) oil runs out?

Back in the heyday of the muscle car, even the fuels had a macho air (“Put a tiger in your tank.”) It’s hard to imagine a similar campaign these days, considering how much corn now ends up in the average car. (“Five a Day: It’s good for cars,

low carbon economy

$52 billion in climate disasters could buy a lot of Leafs

The cost of weather- and climate-related disasters in the US in 2011 could have paid for nearly one-and-a-half million Nissan Leafs, covered the price of solar panels on four million homes, provided weatherization assistance to eight million households or allowed the country to deliver broadband to unserved areas with billions