Traffic tie-ups aren’t just a headache for drivers, they can also be a significant source of pollution. But new, low-cost, wireless sensors could offer real-time information on traffic hotspots, potentially helping to clear up the congestion, and clear the air. UK researchers are showing off a […] Read more »
eSolar, a startup that claims to leverage algorithms and software to bring down the cost of solar power thermal plants, has signed its second licensing and investment deal in as many weeks. These deals prove promising for the startup as the company has been pretty quiet […] Read more »
Can a car run on solar? Yes —as long as you don’t need to fit a whole lot in your trunk. And as long as you don’t mind that it doesn’t actually have a trunk. The new solar car from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Solar […] Read more »
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Spanish solar power developer Fotowatio said today that it’s buying most of the assets of San Francisco’s MMA Renewable Ventures in a $19.7 million deal, a move that could make Fotowatio one of the largest solar power developers in the U.S. MMA Renewables, part of Baltimore’s […] Read more »
Our ethanol deathwatch map is getting pretty crowded. Sacramento, Calif.’s Pacific Ethanol said today it has temporarily suspended operations at two of its 60-million-gallon-per-year plants in Burley, Idaho, and Stockton, Calif., just a few weeks after the company suspended another facility in California, a 40-million gallon […] Read more »
Wacker Chemie said today that it plans to build a $1 billion polysilicon production facility in Bradley County, Tenn., to supply the solar and semiconductor industries, taking advantage of what it said are cheap electricity rates, as well as other state and local incentives. This follows […] Read more »
IBM said today it joined a smart grid project in Denmark that’s aiming to upgrade the country’s electric transmission grid to handle the large-scale adoption of electric vehicles. The project will start off with test work on a small Danish island before tackling the whole nation. […] Read more »
Updated: SAGE Electrochromics said today that it has raised $20 million in a third round of funding for its smart window tinting technology. The new cash comes from Good Energies, Applied Ventures — the venture capital arm of Applied Materials — and Bekaert. That money will […] Read more »
Yes, Virginia, there is a solar thermal market. NRG Energy and eSolar have signed an agreement to develop up to 500 megawatts of solar thermal projects in California and throughout the Southwest region of the U.S., the two said today, marking the industry’s second big deal […] Read more »
Update: The eye in the sky didn’t quite make it to its lofty perch — after it’s launch this morning the satellite failed to reach orbit. It’s a bird … it’s a plane … it’s a carbon-spotting satellite from NASA! The U.S. space agency’s first satellite […] Read more »
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Germany’s SFC Smart Fuel Cell said today it’s launching commercial sales of its portable fuel cell system, called the Jenny — one of only a handful of portable fuel cells to hit the market. But don’t go running out to your local electronics store just yet, […] Read more »
Borrego Solar Systems has looked at its bottom line and decided to drop its residential solar power installation business and stick with commercial and government projects, which it said yesterday represented more than 75-percent of its new revenue last year. Don’t worry about that residential business, […] Read more »
Massachusetts showed its appreciation for local solar startup Konarka today with $5 million in financing for manufacturing and job creation in the state. Konarka officially opened its first thin-film manufacturing plant in New Bedford, Mass., last October, but the company has yet to announce the start […] Read more »
The Crown Estate, which manages property in the UK, has picked 10 projects today for offshore wind development in Scotland, paving the way for up to 6 gigawatts of renewable power for the UK grid. But the nine companies and organizations involved in the projects, including […] Read more »
Automakers around the world may be feeling the pain of the global credit crunch, but some big car companies and their suppliers are expressing confidence in the future of hybrid and electric vehicles. French auto parts maker Valeo said today it’s teaming up with fellow French […] Read more »
Biofuel developer Changing World Technologies has withdrawn its filing for an initial public offering, making it even more unlikely that we’ll see any cleantech startups debut on the public markets this year. The West Hempstead, N.Y.-based company’s share sale was expected to price this week, but […] Read more »
Energy harvesting has been getting interest from a number of different sectors for tiny, energy-saving applications, and now it’s making its way down to the nanoscale. Researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have attached a tiny muscle-movement-driven generator to a hamster and let him loose […] Read more »
Wind turbine makers are aiming ever higher to get more power from the giant machines, building turbines that pack more of an electricity generating punch, as well as towers and blades that are just, well, bigger. But how big can the turbines get? American Superconductor is […] Read more »
Some long-awaited rules and regulations related to offshore renewable development could be introduced in the U.S. this year, potentially cutting the red tape for startups looking to put their wind, wave, or tidal projects in the water. Ken Salazar, the new head of the Department of […] Read more »
Update: It’s a massive 1.3 GW deal with solar startup BrightSource — read about it in our updated post. Southern California Edison plans to announce what it’s calling “the world’s largest solar deal” tomorrow morning, but details are scarce. There are a couple of ways this […] Read more »
Newark, N.J.’s Public Service Electric and Gas announced today that it wants to put solar panels pretty much everywhere — on utility poles and streetlights, on the roofs of schools and municipal buildings, on public housing, as well as in some ground-mounted systems — all part […] Read more »
Start aiming for the potholes! Engineers on both sides of the Atlantic have come up with different ways to get the cars of the future to generate power just from hitting a few bumps — a cleantech dream, an evil plot from the makers of Dramamine, […] Read more »
Ford Motor announced today that its first electric vehicle will be based on its Transit Connect compact van. But Ford isn’t going it alone on this project, it’s working with the UK’s Smith Electric Vehicles on the electric conversion. Part of the publicly-traded Tanfield Group, Smith […] Read more »
Knockoffs aren’t just for high-end fashion and electronics anymore. Suntech Power Holdings says that you need to check the label before you make a deal on your next shipment of solar panels — they could be fakes. Wuxi, China-based Suntech today said it has been granted […] Read more »
First, Clipper Windpower laid off some workers. Now the Carpinteria, Calif.-based turbine maker is cutting its production for 2009, blaming a rocky economy and deferred customer orders. The company manufactured 289 wind turbine drivetrains at its Cedar Rapids, Iowa, plant in 2008, but expects a 15-20 […] Read more »
Updated: Thin-film solar developer HelioVolt won’t be shipping its commercial thin film solar material until at least early 2010, a HelioVolt spokesperson told us today, and at the same time is doing the management shuffle. Founder BJ Stanbery will no longer be in the CEO spot […] Read more »
Things are looking up for Beacon Power. The Tyngsboro, Mass.-based developer of flywheel energy storage technology has announced a $3 million contract with U.S. Naval Sea Systems Command to look at flywheels for shipboard applications. Beacon’s flywheel technology uses spinning discs to help stabilize electricity grids, […] Read more »
If you’re holding out for a new fuel cell car to drive onto the hydrogen highway, you may have to wait a while. The Department of Energy in a new report says fuel cell costs are still too high and durability too low for the auto […] Read more »
The UK’s National Grid says up to half of the country’s homes could be heated using biogas made from waste, using technology that until now has been primarily focused on electricity generation. Most biogas production in the cleantech industry today is used to generate electricity via […] Read more »
Austin could get one of the biggest solar photovoltaic plants in the country if a deal is approved between Gemini Solar Development and the city-owned Austin Energy. But the planned 30-megawatt project comes as some companies are scaling back their sun-powered operations and laying off staff, […] Read more »
Following in the footsteps of the wind industry, marine power is getting its own power map. The government of Scotland, home to the world’s only open sea testing facility for wave and tidal power, has launched a project to map out the potential of renewable energy […] Read more »
Two different airlines had algae biofuel test flights this month, and both turned to the well-funded Sapphire Energy for their needs. Japan Airlines took flight today on a plane partially powered by camelina, jatropha and a small percentage of algae-based biofuels, while Houston’s Continental Airlines took […] Read more »
Looks like energy efficient retrofits of public housing is becoming the green cause of the year — it’s cheap, fights climate change and cuts the energy bills of those who need them. This week the UK government launched a new competition, Retrofit for the Future, that’s […] Read more »
It’s not just cars that are getting a cleantech makeover in Michigan; buses are getting a shot at cleaning up, too. Troy, Mich.-based Fisher Coachworks has raised $3.2 million for its new lightweight plug-in hybrid buses, according to a regulatory filing found by peHub. Hybrid buses […] Read more »
There wasn’t much cash for cleantech in the proposed 2009 federal budget for Canada that was released this week, especially when compared to the lofty goals of the new administration in the neighboring U.S. The Canadian Wind Energy Association says the proposed budget drops support for […] Read more »
Getting cheaper solar power into the market isn’t just about making the solar cells more efficient at converting sunlight into energy, it’s also about streamlining the manufacturing. To that end, Israel’s BrightView Systems said it has raised $6 million in its first round of funding that […] Read more »
The proliferation of electric cars and convenient places to charge them took another step toward becoming reality in Denmark today, with the announcement that startup Better Place and Danish partner DONG Energy have closed €103 million ($135.8 million) in financing for an electric car-charging network in […] Read more »
With serious questions being raised about the costs of the world’s largest planned offshore wind farm, the London Array, and the never-ending saga that has crimped the controversial offshore Cape Wind project in Massachusetts, it’s easy to dismiss offshore wind as being too expensive and ultimately […] Read more »
Smart-charging startup Coulomb Technologies, announced today that it has raised $3.8 million in its first round of venture capital funding. The round, led by Berlin’s Estag Capital, could be the cash the company needs to make a move into overseas markets. Richard Lowenthal, founder and CEO […] Read more »
Abu Dhabi is continuing to spread its oil money around, announcing a deal today to set up a cleantech fund targeting Japanese startups. Masdar, the oil-rich emirate’s cleantech development group, is teaming up with Japan’s SBI Holdings for the joint venture, with each group investing $10 […] Read more »
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