WCA November 2014

From the Americas

The researchers, led by Mark Z Jacobson, a Stanford professor of civil and environmental engineering, also found that the decrease in emissions attendant on the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energy would reduce California’s climate change-related costs – eg for coastal erosion and extreme weather damage – by about $48 billion per year. (“Study Shows How to Power California with Wind, Water and Sun,” 25 th July) To co-author Mark Delucchi of the University of California, Davis, the most interesting finding was that the plan will reduce social costs related to air pollution and climate change by about $150 billion per year in 2050 – ‘and that these savings will pay for all new energy generation in only seven years.’ For his part, co-author Anthony Ingraffea, of Cornell, stressed that the technologies needed for a quick transition to an across-the-board, renewables-based statewide energy system are available today. He summed up the stark choice facing both California and New York: “Double down on 20 th Century fossil fuels or accelerate toward a clean, green energy future.”  A current renewable energy initiative is the re-purposing of the former Bethlehem Steel plant at Lackawanna, New York. BQ Energy, of Poughkeepsie, which is also responsible for a local wind farm, has announced plans to commence installation of 13,000 solar panels on the historic site before the end of the year. During World War II, Bethlehem Lackawanna was the largest steelmaking operation in the world, with 20,000 workers producing steel plate for ships, tanks and other military material. “[The solar project] shows that we’re heading in a new direction,” Fred Heinle, the town’s director of development, told CBS-TV (14 th August). “We’re taking our rust belt image and we’re creating a new, green, sustainable, resilient community here in Lackawanna.” Solar redux: After a prolonged slump, American solar panel manufacturers get a boost from US trade pressure on China Finding that Chinese solar companies had dumped their products on the American market, the United States Commerce Department at midyear imposed duties on those imports ranging from 10.74 per cent to 55.49 per cent. The action followed quickly on a separate ruling by Commerce that Chinese solar panel manufacturers had benefited from unfair government subsidies, and imposed duties of about 19 per cent to 35 per cent. As noted by Diane Cardwell and Keith Bradsher of the New York Times , the two rulings – while preliminary – had the effect of reshaping the industry, lifting manufacturers based outside China while also raising prices of solar panels for developers. (“Solar Industry Is Rebalanced by US Pressure on China,” 25 th July) The bracing effect of the higher tariffs was quickly evident, running panel prices up by about ten per cent in the interval

Perceived roadblocks for suppliers include tighter regulations and more electronics and technology in vehicles. Despite these factors – and the necessity for the auto industry to deal with potentially disruptive forces such as automated vehicles and new players like Google, competing for talent – Mr Andrea saw suppliers as more optimistic about the ensuing 12 months than they were at the same point in 2013.  A report on earnings from Nissan Motor Co for the quarter ended 30 th June – the first of the Japanese automaker’s fiscal year – reflected particularly strong sales growth in the USA and China, up 14.1 per cent and 21.1 per cent, respectively. The strong showing in these key markets drove company revenue up 10.4 per cent to $24.1 billion and net income higher by 36.7 per cent to $1.1 billion. But Nissan may have hit its outside limit in the USA where, according to the World Bank, car ownership is nearly 800 per 1,000 people – close to complete saturation. Growth prospects are much greater in China, the world’s largest car market, where ownership is less than 100 cars per 1,000 of the population. Energy Technically and economically feasible now: conversion of California’s energy infrastructure to one powered by renewables “I believe that, with these plans, the people and political leaders of California and New York can chart a new way forward for our country and for the world.” The plans cited by Robert Howarth, a professor of ecology and environmental biology at Cornell University (Ithaca, New York), are being developed for all 50 states of the USA with the intention of promoting a nationwide shift away from fossil fuels toward energy from wind, water and sunlight. The first to be published charts a way for California to supply all of its transportation, electric power, industrial, and heating and cooling needs with inexpensive and reliable renewable energy by mid-century. As reviewed by Rob Jordan in R&D magazine , a study published by Stanford University (Palo Alto, California) and co-authored by Dr Howarth and others presented a scenario whereby the Golden State’s power demands of 2050 would be met from a mix of sources including: • 25,000 onshore 5-megawatt wind turbines • 1,200 100-megawatt concentrated solar plants • 15 million 5-kilowatt residential rooftop photovoltaic systems

• 72 100-megawatt geothermal plants • 5,000 0.75-megawatt wave devices • 3,400 1-megawatt tidal turbines

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Wire & Cable ASIA – November/December 2014