A few weeks ago, ExxonMobil announced a commitment to invest $300 million over five to six years in Synthetic Genomics, which the famous scientist Craig Venter founded and now leads as CEO, and to spend an additional $300 million on a complementary internal algae program. Here’s more about this new investment.
The push is to take advantage of algae’s ability to efficiently transform sunlight into lipids that can be relatively easily converted into diesel, gasoline, and possibly even advanced hydrocarbons used to manufacture plastics, chemicals, and other products.
By the barrel, algae fuel provides three to four units of energy for every unit used to make it–a ratio that approaches petroleum’s 5-to-1 level of efficiency. The ratio for making ethanol from corn is a mere 1.2 to 1, according to some studies. Even making ethanol from cellulosic plants like switchgrass, researchers can achieve only a 2.5 to 1 ratio.
Venter’s company has been developing strains of bioengineered algae that ramp up the output of lipids and can in some cases produce hydrocarbons directly. However, Venter and Emil Jacobs, senior vice president for R&D at ExxonMobil Research and Engineering, both emphasize that their companies will collaborate to investigate any viable option to push algae into the big time of energy sources.
Since research in algae fuels began in the 1970s at the Department of Energy–as part of President Jimmy Carter’s efforts to develop alternative fuels after the oil shocks of that era–several methods have emerged.
First is an open-pond system that grows algae out in the sun. Another is a closed, sunless system that feeds carbon from feed stock such as sugarcane to algae plants in fermentation tanks. A third type is a closed-system bioreactor that uses sunlight.
Energy, Investment, Oil
algae
About two decades ago when the Central Asian republics got their independence, there was the optimism that now Pakistan can get better access to energy and oil. It has taken many painful years but it seems that now we are finally starting to see some cooperation. The recent quadrilateral summit meeting of 4 countries: Pakistan, Tajikistan, Afghanistan and Russia on Thursday in Dushanbe, recognized the significance of strengthening mutually beneficial economic co-operation as an important component of solidifying mutual ties.
The joint statement issued after President Asif Ali Zardari, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai met here in the Tajik capital, also stressed the importance of the development and strengthening of economic and trade relations among the four countries.
They also agreed to support measures at national and international levels for promoting socio-economic rehabilitation and development of the region. The four leaders agreed to create a favourable investment climate in their countries and promote direct ties among the business communities.
The statement stressed for increase in foreign investment flows and implementation of projects in the sphere of hydropower, construction of transmission lines and development of transport infrastructure. Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recalled his meeting with President Zardari in Yekaterinburg, Russia recently and said their meeting today reflects the desire of the countries to cooperate in various fields.
“The region needs to cooperate in energy, trade, rail and transportation links,” he said. President Asif Ali Zardari on the occasion said that the meeting will help bring the regional and neighbouring countries more closer for economic co-operation and for facing future challenges jointly. “I remind the world what we do today will help the coming generations,” he added.
“I hope we can move forward together for the progress and prosperity of our coming generations.” President Zardari appreciated Tajik President for holding the meeting. “Indeed we owe debt of gratitude to Tajikistan for organising and hosting this historic gathering,” he stated.
Read more…
Energy, power
cooperation, dushanbe
Via Technology Review.
Stirling Energy Systems (SES), based in Phoenix, has decreased the complexity and cost of its technology for converting the heat in sunlight into electricity, allowing for high-volume production. It will begin building very large solar-power plants using its equipment as soon as next year.
The company is currently building a 1.5-megawatt, 60-unit demonstration plant that will use the company’s latest design. Stirling expects to finish that project by the end of the year. It also has contracts with two California utilities to supply a total of 800 megawatts of solar power in Southern California. The first of the plants that will supply this power could be built starting the middle of next year, pending government permits and loan guarantees from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).
The projects are part of a resurgence in what’s known as solar thermal power. Various solar thermal technologies were developed starting in the 1970s, but a breakdown in government funding and incentives caused them to stall before they reached a scale of production large enough to drive down costs and allow them to compete with conventional sources of electricity. “It was a classic problem with solar. The market support to bring solar to high volume wasn’t there,” says Ian Simington, the chairman of SES and chief executive of the solar division of NTR, a company based in Dublin, Ireland, that bought a controlling share of SES last year.
Recent state mandates and incentives for renewable energy have led to a new push to commercialize the technology. There are over six gigawatts of concentrated solar power under contract in the southwestern United States right now, says Thomas Mancini, program manager for concentrated-solar-power technology at Sandia National Laboratory in Albuquerque, NM. That’s equivalent to about six nuclear-power plants. BrightSource Energy has contracts to provide 2.6 gigawatts of solar power with concentrated solar power (a previous version of this story sited only one of two 1.3 gigawatt contracts), and Solar Millenium has announced a project that would generate nearly one gigawatt of power.
Electricity, Energy, Innovation, Renewable Energy, Solar, research
Fuel cost is one of the most expensive items for many developing and developed countries. In Pakistan we have a lot of waste and inefficient use of our cars and commercial fleets. Perhaps high tech devices can help in this area. Check this out:
In an uncertain economy, organizations are turning to GPS-enabled Service Workforce and Fleet Management solutions to drive efficiencies into their service organizations so as to maintain customer satisfaction levels, drive resource utilization levels while controlling service-related costs. These firms are actively looking to increase visibility into all service resources via GPS, according to a recent research report titled “Service Workforce and Fleet Management: Driving Utilization with Location Intelligence,” published by the Aberdeen Group, a Harte-Hanks Company.
“Organizations responding to our research indicate that they currently monitor and track the location of 35% of their workers and 47% of their vehicles,” said Sumair Dutta, senior research analyst, Aberdeen Group. “This is up from averages of 23% for workers and 35% for vehicles in 2008 with indications of further investments in 2010. These results are indicative of the value offered by GPS-enabled tracking, navigation and routing solutions in meeting cost containment and customer management pressures faced by today’s service and manufacturing organizations.”
Research findings in the Service Workforce and Fleet Management report indicate responding firms have seen the following average improvements in key service performance indicators since the adoption of GPS-enabled solutions:
– A 25% reduction in idle times
– A 32% increase in fleet utilization
– A 22% decrease in fuel costs and a 31% drop in daily mileage
– A 23% boost in workforce productivity
Via Telematics
Conservation, Fuel, Oil, Petrol
fleet, gps
I came across a really good article (from consulting firm McKinsey and company) about the global state of solar power and its economics. Leave a comment if you want the full paper.
Solar energy is becoming more economically attractive as technologies improve and the cost of electricity generated by fossil fuels rises. By 2020, hundreds of billions of dollars of investment capital will probably boost global solar-generating capacity 20 to 40 times higher than its current level.
As the new sector takes shape, producers of solar components must drive their costs down, utilities must place big bets despite enormous technological uncertainty, and regulators must phase out subsidies with care. The actions these players take will determine the solar sector’s scale, structure, and performance for years to come.
Economics, Energy, Renewable Energy, Solar, research
Daily Times reports that Ministry of Science and Technology(S & T) is to complete surveys for windmill farm sites. The S&T Ministry received Rs 4.1 billion in budget. Here are the details.
To attract public private investment in the power-producing sector, the government has asked the Ministry of Science and Technology (S&T) to complete the survey report of 24 sites in Northern Areas for the establishment of windmill farms.
The Ministry of S&T has to complete the survey report during the fiscal year 2009-10 so that work on these sites could be initiated soon, the Annual Plan 2009-10 revealed. The government is determined to overcome electricity shortfall by December 2009 so that economic activities might get momentum to optimal level.
The plan further revealed that growing level of investment in research and development was generally correlated with improved gross domestic product (GDP). For the fiscal year 2009-10, the government has allocated Rs 4.1 billion in public sector development programme for S&T sector projects. Out of which, an amount of Rs 3.3 billion had been earmarked for the Ministry of S&T and Rs 0.8 billion for the S&T projects of Pakistan Atomic Energy Commission.
Pakistan Council for Renewable Energy Technologies (PCRET): The council would provide indigenous technological support to the local industry to develop and promote renewable energy products of international quality. PCRET would start production of solar cells and modules up to 80kw annual capacity.
Read more after the break about the different research organizations and their spending plans.
Read more…
Buildings, Cars, Clean Technology, Electricity, Energy, Investment, Water, Wind
Pakistan Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (PCSIR) was established in 1953 under Societies Act to promote the cause of Science and Technology in the country. I remember their facility on Ferozpur road Lahore. PCSIR is one of the important research institution with a rich history and has evolved throughout the years.
In a recent blog post, a PCSIR officer mentioned the need and desire to work on cost-effective local solar cell production. We wish them the best of luck and hope that they are successful in getting the funds for such work.
A PCSIR officer said that “Rice husk contains 13 % oil which can be further processed to be used as biofuel. The remaining husk has a lot of quartz content which is needed to make solar cells. We have yet to determine the exact yield of quartz from rice husk, but initial tests have indicated a good percentage.”
It is to be noted that Pakistan is the world’s third largest rice producer and tons of rice husk is wasted or put to fire, which can be used in the production of low-cost, high quality solar cells.
Energy, Pakistan, Solar, research
PCSIR
National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has issued show-cause notice to Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) on its failure in power supply to Karachi and surrounding areas and upgradation of system. According to official sources, the authority sought detailed report from KESC within 10 days and warned that if it fails to submit report besides imposing fine its licence could also be cancelled.
They said on failure to respond to the notice, the NEPRA may cancel both distribution and production licences of KESC and on violation KESC may also face heavy fine on daily basis. They said in its show-cause notice, the authority reminded the KESC that it already issued notice to the company on August 25 last year on not submitting report to the authority regarding its investment plan while another show-cause notice was issued on November 28 last year on same matter.
In its present notice, the authority said that the KESC administration couldn’t satisfy the authority in its report that had sought on long power break down in Karachi on June 17 and 18 this year on which the authority had constituted a two-member committee.
The committee in its inquiry report had held KESC responsible of power break down and said that the it was the negligence of the company as it failed to get electricity from its TDC system besides taking any other step to handle the situation.
Electricity, Energy
Pakistan Supreme Court got involved with NEPRA on the issue of power rates going up. It has issued a stay order on proposed increase in power tariff, which was withdrawn on Thursday.
A three-member bench of the apex court comprising Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Justice Chaudhry Ijaz Ahmed and Justice Jawwad S Khawaja withdrew the stay order on assurance of National Electric Power Regulatory Authority that it would not raise power tariff.
The bench hearing a suo moto on the proposed raise in electricity tariff also issued notices to ministries of water and power, finance to inform the court about the withdrawal of subsidy on power tariff and adjourned the hearing till three weeks.
Counsel for NEPRA, Anwar Kamal told the court that the government has decided not to withdraw subsidy on electricity charges for the time being.
He said that as far as NEPRA is concerned it only makes recommendation on power tariff after examining the suggestions given by power generation companies keeping in view their revenue requirements.
Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry took suo moto on appeals and columns that appeared in different sections of print media requesting therein that rates of electricity have been increased despite of decrease in oil rates at International Market.
Via Business Recorder
Electricity, Energy, Pakistan
nepra, power, supreme court
