Melloussa wind farm in Morocco.
After a long tender process, involving sixteen bidders, Nareva Holding has been awarded the development rights for the Tarfaya wind farm in Morocco. The wind farm is to have 200 MW of installed capacity. The final choice for the awarded company was made from the two remaining companies in the tender – Nareva and GDF Suez.
Scottish Minister Alex Salmond met with Statoil representatives, during his ongoing visit to Norway, to discuss the possibility of developing the world's first commercial flaoting wind farm in Scotland. Statoil has already showed us the concept is feasible with its Hywind project, located off the coast of Norway, floating over the seabed 200 meters below.
France is planning to award a total of USD 1.75 billion in grants and loans as support for renewable energy and biofuel-chemistry projects by 2014. This is one of several sustainable development programs to be launched by the Environmental and Energy Management Agency.
Costa Rica has begun development of a wind farm in the country's Central valley, which is the part of the country with three of the most populated cities. The project has a USD 45 million value, and is expected to begin commercial operation in August 2012. All power will be sold and distributed through the state run National Power and Light Company.
Once completed, the new wind farm will be able to generate enough clean electricity for supplying about 6000 average homes in the area. Even though, Costa Rica has several smaller wind energy projects under way in the northern parts of the country, this is the first major wind project in the country's most urban central area. About 93% of consumed electricity in Costa Rica comes from hydropower sources, while 7% comes from thermal energy facilities, using fossil fuels.
[source: Terra.com (in Spanish), image: CostaRicaFrog]
The US Department of Energy has designated the Center for Ocean Energy Technology (COET) at Florida Atlantic University (FAU), as the national center for ocean energy R&D. The Southeast National Marine Renewable Energy Center (SNMREC) is now the third such research center, joining the existing two in the Pacific Northwest and Hawaii. DoE will provide funding for SNMREC operations involving research and development of advanced technologies for harnessing the energy from the ocean. These include ocean current and ocean thermal energy, among others. FAU has a very good location for research and testing these technologies, being near Florida Straits and the Gulf Stream, much like the European Marine Energy Center (EMEC) is located in Orkney, next to prime marine energy locations, on the northern coast of Scotland.
SNMREC will collaborate with industrial partners in order to refine, investigate, produce and test next generation ocean power technologies. Initial work by the center will be the deployment of ocean current observation systems, with the goal to establish a reasearch baseline. At some point, SNMREC will be doing full-scale testing of prototypes.
[source: Florida Atlantic University]
Iberdrola Renovables announced the company has been awarded more funding from the US government, bringing the total amount of funding awarded to the company so far to USD 976 million. The awarded funding is part of the US government's strategy to provide incentives for companies to invest and build projects in the United States. This financial boost will significantly help Iberdrola's strategic plans to install about 1000 MW of wind capacity in the US in 2011 and 2012. The company has expressed reassurances it will invest the awarded funding into new renewable energy projects in the country.
The grants have been awarded in tranches, the latest being a USD 109 million injection for the company's 202 MW Peñascal II wind farm, part of the Peñascal wind complex, located in Kenedy County in Texas, USA. The complex has a total of 404 MW of capacity, and is the largest wind energy facility operated by Iberdrola in the world, featuring 168 Mitsubishi MHI 92 2.4 MW wind turbines. Power generated at the wind farm complex is enough to supply about 150,000 average US homes with clean electricity.
[source: Iberdrola]
Sinohydro announced a signing of an MoU between Sinohydro and Energia Argentina, which happened in mid-July in China, for cooperation in energy. Emphasis was put on clean energy technologies such as hydropower and wind energy. A work group is being planned, which will carry out related works and practices.
This MoU is significant as it marks the beginning of Sinohydro's involvement in energy development projects in Argentina, representing a base for future expansion of the company's presence in the South American country.
[source: Sinohydro]
Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) announced the company has been awarded a GBP 1.5 million grant from South West of England Regional Development Agency (SWRDA) for the development of OPT's 500 kW PowerBuoy, PB500, wave energy conversion technology. OPT is the first company to have commited to participating in the Wave Hub, a marine energy project being developed by SWRDA in Cornwall, England.
This is the second funding amount awarded to OPT for the development of PB500. The company was awarded USD 1.5 million from the US Department of Energy in April this year.
[source: Ocean Power Technologies]
Tidal Energy announced the company will receive funding from the GBP 1.4 million funding boost received from the EU, to continue development of the DeltaStream technology for harnessing the energy of tidal currents. Tidal Energy will be doing an assessment study to determine whether the waters off the coast of West Wales offer good conditions for tidal stream testing.
The study will be backed by GBP 572,000 of funding from the European Regional Development Fund, through the Welsh government. Tidal Energy will be performing surveys, assessments and design work at the proposed test site at Ramsey Sound, Pembrokeshire. The project will last for 12 months, during which the project will provide a sustainable source of electricity to the local population. A full scale prototype is expected to be the result of the funding, sometime in 2011.
The demo device will have 1.2 MW of power generating capacity, and will be placed on the seabed in Ramsey Sound. DeltaStream technology allows easy device installation, servicing, and requires no special preparation before installation.
[source: Tidal Energy]
Greece will be facing a huge economic challenge in 2012, when the EUR 110 billio bailout loan from the EU and IMF is to expire. The country needs to create a growing economy and employment opportunities if it is to be able to start paying off debts.
