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December 20, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Google-backed Nanosolar rolls out first set of panels

Even without additional funding from Congress via the recently passes energy bill, the future of solar power is looking bright. As reported the other day in the New York Times, Google-backed solar-panel start-up Nanosolar has started cranking out a new breed of panels that can be manufactured "at a price at which solar energy becomes less expensive than coal."

The NYT quotes Nansolar's founder and CEO Martin Roscheisen saying, "With a $1-per-watt panel, it is possible to build $2-per-watt systems."

That $2-per-watt figure comes from the Energy Department, the cost of building a new coal plant.

Nansolar's Roscheisen celebrated the milestone in his blog, touting the advantages of Nanosolar's panels over those of competing companies as:

"the world's first printed thin-film solar cell in a commercial panel product; the world's first thin-film solar cell with a low-cost back-contact capability; the world's lowest-cost solar panel -- which we believe will make us the first solar manufacturer capable of profitably selling solar panels at as little as $.99/watt; [and] the world's highest-current thin-film solar panel -- delivering five times the current of any other thin-film panel on the market today and thus simplifying system deployment."

Want to get your hands on one of Nansolar's first commercially available panels? The company is selling them on eBay, of course. As I write this, the highest bid is $11,000.

The one of eBay is actually the second panel Nanosolar rolled out. The first will remain at Nanosolar for exhibit, and the third was donated to the Tech Museum in San Jose.

Posted by Ted Samson on December 20, 2007 04:18 PM

December 10, 2007 | Comments: (0)

A view to Google's solar power

Google's headquarters, the Googleplex, has long been an architecturally pretty impressive building, but with the addition of 9,000-plus solar panels, it looks all the cooler. The search behemoth has posted pics of the installation on its Solar Panel Project Web site , brought to my attention by the folks over at TreeHugger.

Google solar infoworld

"This installation is projected to produce enough electricity for approximately 1,000 California homes or 30-percent of Google's peak electricity demand in our solar powered buildings at our Mountain View, Calif. headquarters," Google reports.

Google also received a tidy sum in incentives from PG&E for its installation: $4.5 million.

As an interesting, though perhaps gimmicky, addition: Google reports how many kilowatt-hours of energy the panels supply over a 24-hour period, a seven-day period, and since the installation in June of this year.

For example, as I write this, for example, Google reports that it's generate 675 kilowatt-hours in the past 24 hours -- enough to power 5,625 hours of flat screen TV watching or 2,812 alarm clocks for 24 hours. Those numbers may be off, though, as the site reports the monitoring system seems to be having some problems right now.

Ted Samson is a senior analyst at InfoWorld and writer of the Sustainable IT blog. Subscribe to his free weekly Green Tech newsletter.

Posted by Ted Samson on December 10, 2007 12:20 PM

December 07, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Akeena Solar CEO weighs in on energy bill

Following is an e-mail I just received penned by Barry Cinnamon, the
CEO of Akeena Solar. In it, he voices his support for the energy bill that Congress is in the process of weighing. The bill, as approved by the House of Representatives, included the extension of two solar tax credits and increased the annual credit cap from $2,000 to $4,000.

Although Cinnamon, of course, has a clear bias here, I thought his letter was worth sharing. Moreover, the progress of the energy bill should of interest to both citizens and organizations that are contemplating investing in solar energy.

What a difference 24 hours make!
The strongest solar bill ever introduced in Congress is hanging in the balance. This week the House passed an energy bill that included the extension of two necessary solar tax credits and increased the annual credit cap from $2,000 to $4,000. 24 hours later, the Senate concluded an administrative cloture vote and the bill failed to move forward 53 to 42. The Senate now will review, rewrite and present their version of the energy bill back to the House in hopes of moving it into law. This is Congress' chance to get the energy bill right and finally move forward with strong support of clean renewable energy sources.

It's astonishing that solar energy—America's most abundant renewable resource—has to compete with oil for government support. It's also clear that with oil hovering around $90, and recently breaking $100 a barrel, oil companies are not having a problem competing (especially with the big three oil companies reported profits of $72 billion in the fourth quarter of 2006 alone).

With about two-thirds of $21 billion tax package in the bill on the major oil companies, the Energy Bill provides the opportunity for Congress to put its money where its mouth is and turn towards renewable energy sources such as solar power. Keeping the solar investment tax credits in the bill allows the outdated oil and gas subsidies to now be invested in what is right and necessary --supporting clean renewable energy and advancement in technology and initiatives.

The extension of solar tax credits -- eight-year extension of the 30 percent investment tax credit for businesses and six-year extension of the 30 percent investment tax credit for residential solar systems -- are essential in the development and progress of both business and residential solar investments.

Additionally, with the proposed increase in the residential cap from $2,000 to $4,000, the payback for a typical California home will be reduced by two years. And if the residential cap were fully removed, paybacks for solar customers could be reduced to as low as five years.

With the right kinds of programs in place, an estimated 50 percent of all new electricity in the U.S. could be generated by solar power within eight years. The Senate has the opportunity -- and quite frankly, an obligation to their constituents throughout the country -- to bring solar to its rightful place as a viable alternative energy source for every American.

Best Regards,
Barry Cinnamon
CEO, Akeena Solar

Ted Samson is a senior analyst at InfoWorld and writer of the Sustainable IT blog. Subscribe to his free weekly Green Tech newsletter.

Posted by Ted Samson on December 7, 2007 01:07 PM

December 07, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Chinavision pen camera has green-spy appeal

If you have an aspiring spy with green leanings on your holiday-gift list, take note: A company called Chinavision is offering a solar-powered wireless spy camera pen.

As described by the company, the device is a fully functioning pen -- except it has an inconspicuous built-in wireless mini spy camera. "Just whip out the pen, twist the cap to start the wireless transmission, have the included MP4/wireless receiver within 20 meters, and you can view and record everything that your spy camera pen sees," the company says.

The camera is powered by a Li-ion battery, which in turn is charged by solar energy. Pricing starts at $328.76.

If this psuedo-green gadget doesn't appeal to you, consider some of these other eco-friendly gifts for geeks.

(Thanks, by the way, to Ubergizmo (and various other green blogs) for pointing out the Chinavision camera pen.)

Ted Samson is a senior analyst at InfoWorld and writer of the Sustainable IT blog. Subscribe to his free weekly Green Tech newsletter.

Posted by Ted Samson on December 7, 2007 12:45 PM

November 28, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Google to invest millions in seeding green energy

In a move with clear environmental and business benefits, Google has announced plans to pour tens of millions of dollars next year into research and development and related investments in renewable energy. The company also plans to invest hundreds of millions of greenbacks in breakthrough renewable energy projects that have a tangible financial ROI.

Dubbed RE < C (which presumably stands for "renewable energy costs less than coal-generated energy"), the initiative initially will focus on advanced solar thermal power, wind power technologies, enhanced geothermal systems and other potential breakthrough technologies.

"Our goal is to produce one gigawatt of renewable energy capacity that is cheaper than coal. We are optimistic this can be done in years, not decades," said Larry Page, Google co-founder and president of products

Coal is used to supply 40 percent of the energy in the world, according to Google. Coal-spawned energy also results in the production of greenhouse-gas emissions. Renewable energy can reduce the amount of GHGs spewed out each year.

As part of the RE < C, Google will work with various organizations in the renewable energy field, including companies, R&D laboratories, and universities. Among them, there's eSolar, a Pasadena, Calif.-based company specializing in solar thermal power which replaces the fuel in a traditional power plant with heat produced from solar energy.

There's also Makani Power, located in Alameda, Calif. The company is developing high-altitude wind-energy extraction technologies aimed at harnessing the most powerful wind resources.

Sergey Brin, Google co-founder and president of technology, cited by both the economic and environmental benefits of fostering renewable energy sources: "Cheap renewable energy is not only critical for the environment but also vital for economic development in many places where there is limited affordable energy of any kind."

Of course, "places in the world where affordable energy is sparse" aren't the only ones to benefit from emerging alternative-energy technologies. As with other companies that have power-hungry operations and are investing in renewable energy, Google's move ties in to its own long-term sustainability. Being able to reduce power bills and to generate its own electricity results in more resources to expand.

Posted by Ted Samson on November 28, 2007 09:06 AM

November 27, 2007 | Comments: (0)

HP harnesses solar, wind power

Looking to reap financial savings and reduce its carbon footprint, HP today announced that it will use solar power for its forthcoming datacenter in San Diego and wind power for facilties in Ireland.

For the San Diego facility, HP has signed an agreement with SunPower that covers the installation of a 1-megawatt solar-electric power system and required maintenance of the system for the next 15 years. The solar installation won't belong to HP; rather, it will be financed and owned by a third-party financier. That means HP won't put down a dime in upfront capital costs. Moreover, under the terms of the agreement, HP has locked in a reduced, locked-in rate under the SunPower Access program.

HP estimates it will save approximately $750,000 in energy costs during the next 15 years. The company also will earn renewable energy credits as the installation will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by nearly 16 million pounds during the next 15 years.

The SunPower installation will include 5,000 solar panels atop five of the seven buildings. Notably, it will only provide just over 10 percent of HP's energy use at the San Diego facility.

Over in Ireland, HP has sign a contract with Airtricity, a renewable energy company developing and operating wind farms across Europe and North America. Through the agreement, Airtricity will supply renewable wind energy, generated by both onshore and offshore wind farms. to a number of HP's facilities in Ireland for fiscal year 2008.

Through the contract, HP will purchase more than 80 gigawatt-hours of renewable energy. The company predicts it will save around $40,000 over the year-long contract, and that it will reduce its carbon emissions by 40,000 tons.

Posted by Ted Samson on November 27, 2007 08:37 AM

October 30, 2007 | Comments: (0)

IBM's silicon recycling technique a boon for solar

Big Blue has devised a technique to reduce silicon waste that will save the company money and benefit the burgeoning solar-power industry, according to a Reuters report.

The company has found a way to remove silicon circuitry from wafers -- discs of silicon -- that are deemed too flawed to be used for processors, according to the report. Those little pieces of silicon have traditionally been discarded.

However, IBM engineers has come up with a technique to remove the circuitry "with an abrasive pad and water, which saves money and leaves the silicon in better shape for reuse," according to the report. "Eric White, one of the engineers behind the process, said it would let IBM get five or six monitor wafers out of one that otherwise would be scrapped. By extending the life of the silicon, IBM believes it will save about $1.5 million a year and leave more of the material available for the solar industry, where supplies have been tight."

Posted by Ted Samson on October 30, 2007 09:29 AM

August 01, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Update: Web-host company fully embraces solar

Correction: In the original version of this article, I mistakenly suggested that Greenest Host was the owner of the solar-powered datacenter I discuss. The facility belongs to AISO; Greenest Host is leasing a portion of the datacenter for its Web-hosting operation.

Additionally, I reported that Greenest Host is running 600 servers. They say they've reserved enough space to run as many as 600, though at the time of writing, they are unable to provide a specific figure.

I apologize for any confusion I may have caused.

InfoWorld: New Web-host company fully embraces solar While large companies such as Microsoft and Google have gingerly plugged in to the sun's energy, a newly announced Web host called Greenest Host is fully basking in it, with much thanks to AISO (Affordable Internet Service Online).

Following the lead of other companies seeking to boast green credentials, San Diego, Calif.-based Greenest Host has set up its Web-host service in AISO's 100-percent solar-powered datacenter. The facility is located in the inland desert of Southern California where its solar panels can soak up the sun year 'round.

The appeal of being a fully solar-powered company was strong for the company's CEO Mike Corrales. "Personally, my core values tend to skew toward green application and green causes," he says. "We wanted to make it really easy for end consumers and small businesses to be able to build their own Web sites in a way that coincided with their own personal value system."

According to Phil Nail, founder of AISO, many organizations have been turning to his company's hosting services for similar reasons. "We've seen a lot of that," says Nail. "Even out of the U.K, they're really coming out of the woodwork. A lot of companies have decided to resell our service."

By day, AISO's servers feed directly off the panels. By night, they get their power from batteries that store the excess solar energy. But the company has a backup plan. "[AISO.net] has a backup generator that runs on propane, just in case there is a shortage, or for some reason, we went 30 days in a row without sun," says Corrales.

Inside the datacenter, AISO runs new AMD Opteron-powered servers, "which use 60 percent less energy and generate 50 percent less heat" than the previous generation, according to the company.

"[AISO] worked closely with AMD to make sure that we have the best possible solution for our green datacenter. Because of their willingness to literally work hand-in-hand through the entire design and development process of the datacenter infrastructure, [AISO] felt that AMD was and still is the only way to go," says Corrales.

And, of course, AISO employs virtualization (from VMWare, specifically) "to reduce cooling and electrical requirements with a 30:1 ratio of virtual servers to physical servers."

For cooling, AISO uses two Energy Star-compliant systems from Freus. The cooling systems monitor outside air temperature, according to the Greenest Host, and when it reaches 50 degrees or below, "they suck the outside air in, filter it, and direct it into the datacenter, thus saving electricity when it's cool outside."

Moreover, AISO employs redundant environmental monitors from APC. These act as smoke alarms, but they also monitor humidity and cooling levels. "In case of a cooling issue, our support staff is notified immediately. This ensures all servers are maintained in a cool environment, which will prolong the life of the servers," according to the company.

The datacenter itself is built from steel and multiple layers of environmentally friendly insulation, the company says. The design keeps the cool air in and the hot air out, thus reducing the amount of energy necessary to run the facility.

AISO is also in the process of adding a green roof, which it says will reduce cooling and heating requirements by up to 50 percent. (A green roof, essentially, is a layer of soil and vegetation atop a building.)

Moreover, the company has a to-do list of other innovative and eco-friendly projects, according to Nail. "We are adding an underground water-storage tank to recycle grey water. Next, we are installing a new solar-panel automated-washing device we created. This will automatically wash the solar panels each morning, and all excess water will be filtered back into the storage tank. We'll also be using the storage tank water to water our landscape," he tells me via e-mail.

Given the green wave that's swept the business world, Corrales anticipates organizations will be lured by the eco-friendly nature of the service. "We can have an ethically superior choice available for people, but they don't have to sacrifice higher performance," he says. "Our pricing is pretty in line with all the major standard Web-hosting options out there."

Greenest Host will open to the public on Aug. 1. For more information, go to greenesthost.com. For more information about AISO, go to aiso.net.

Posted by Ted Samson on August 1, 2007 01:31 PM

June 19, 2007 | Comments: (0)

Google basks in $4.5 million solar-energy incentives

Google flips the On switch for its 9,212 panel installation, demonstrates vehicle-to-grid technology

Google basks in $4.5 million solar-energy incentives There's no doubt about it: Google is one power-hungry company. I'm speaking from an energy-consumption perspective, of course, and the company is take eco-friendly steps to sate that hunger.

Google today announced the completion of a 1.6 megawatt photovoltaic system at its Mountain View, Calif.-based Googleplex, a project that has reaped the search behemoth approximately $4.5 million in incentives from PG&E (Pacific Gas and Electric).

Google's solar installation is the largest on any corporate campus to date, generating enough electricity to power 1,000 homes. The company will use the energy to power of its several Mountain View facilities, "offsetting approximately 30 percent of the peak electricity consumption at those buildings," according to the announcement.

The announcement was made the same day that Google and PG&E demonstrated vehicle-to-grid (V2G) technology, another plank in Google's green platform.

"Today's demonstration provides a glimpse of what we are calling the new energy economy," said Brad Whitcomb, vice president of customer products and services for PG&E. "Through our collaboration with Google, we are showing how the high-tech, transportation and energy sectors are intersecting to meet our country's growing energy needs and protect the environment."

V2G technology allows for the bi-directional sharing of electricity between electric vehicles and the electric power grid. The technology essentially transforms each vehicle into an energy storage system, thus increasing power reliability and the amount of renewable energy available to the grid during peak power usage.

PHEVs (plug-in electric hybrid vehicles) include additional battery capacity, which boost the vehicle's ability to run completely on electricity. Down the road, converted PHEVs could as a repository for excess solar energy that could be fed back into Google facilities during peak hours, according to the announcement.

Google's solar installation will boast 9,212 solar cell modules, manufactured by Sharp and capable of producing up to 208 watts of power each, according to reports.

PG&E is handing Google an incentive check for $4.5 million for the solar installation. The utility has interconnected more than 16,000 solar customers who generate more than 100 MWs of solar energy. Through the California Solar Initiative, PG&E will be able to provide almost $950 million in rebates over the next 10 years to help customers purchase their own solar systems.

For more information about about PG&E's incentive programs, go to pge.com.

For a peek at Google's solar installation, go here.

Posted by Ted Samson on June 19, 2007 12:01 PM

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