Photo via NASA

Never before has the Earth been captured in such high resolution. Researchers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center recently uploaded an amazing series of composite pictures of our planet, named “Blue Marble,” onto the photo sharing Web site Flickr. One look at such a clear view of Earth, Read the full story on TreeHugger

Read more….

A new analysis by the European Wind Energy Association finds that the European Union (EU) is going to exceed its target of producing 20% of its energy from renewable energy sources by 2020.

The reports looked at all forms of renewable energy. It found that 13 of the 27 EU countries are set to meet their target, 8 are set to exceed it and the remaining 6 are expected to fall short.

(more…)

Read more….

This post contains additional media. Click here to view the full post.
.

I think it’s commonly known now that Obama is quite supportive of nuclear power. He mentioned it prominently in his State of the Union speech as a form of clean energy (“to create more of these clean energy jobs, we need more production, more efficiency, more incentives. And that means building a new generation of safe, clean nuclear power plants in this country….”). Now, he has announced over $8 billion in loan guarantees to build two new nuclear reactors in Georgia (“scheduled to be the first U.S. nuclear power plant to break ground in nearly three decades”) and has proposed $54 billion in loan guarantees for nuclear power plants.

Of course, it didn’t take long for environmentalists, economists and others to jump on all of this and call it a bad idea, (see: “Obama’s nuclear error: $54 billion in loan guarantees make little policy or political sense“, “5 Reasons Why Nuclear Energy is Even Worse than Clean Coal“, “Next in Line for a Bailout: The Nuclear Industry?“, “There’s a New Drive for Nuclear Power, But It’s Still a Financial Dead End“, “The loan arranger: Obama triples budget for nuke loan guarantee program… but hasn’t seen a single promising application in two years“).

Energy Secretary Steven Chu decided to respond to some of these concerns on Facebook, explaining the administration’s rationale for supporting nuclear.

Of course, the debate is not over. And now, to try to stop the new nuclear reactors in Georgia and others from being built, Friends of the Earth is running very eerie TV ads on the topic (one above and another one below).

“Even if nuclear reactors weren’t top terrorist targets,” the one above asks, “even if radioactive waste didn’t remain deadly for ten thousand years, even if you wouldn’t mind radioactive waste passing through your town, how would you feel about exposing your family to a potential radiation accident? Tell President Obama: ‘No bailout for new nuclear reactors. They’re just not safe.’”

(more…)

Read more….

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Green Daily

There are a lot of unknowns concerning the upcoming plug-in vehicle market expansion, but we don’t often hear that we might have too many lithium-ion batteries in the coming decade. Nonetheless, that’s what a new report from Roland Berger Strategy Consultants called “Powertrain 2020: Li-ion batteries – The next bubble ahead?” suggests. Specifically, RBSC believes that the U.S. and Japan are building so much li-ion battery making capacity that, between 2014 and 2017, we’ll see “significant overcapacity” relative to the demand. RBSC writes:

Given the announced investments, capacity in 2015 will already reach 200% of the demand projected for 2016. In addition, not all investments have been announced; as-yet unknown investments by key players will lead to further overcapacity, and national subsidies will stimulate even more investments.

Who’da thunk it?

All of this overcapacity, RBSC says, will severely decrease the number of battery manufacturers that will be able to survive. In fact, RBSC predicts that just six to eight “global battery manufacturers” will survive through that timeframe, out of about 60 today.

[Source: Roland Berger Strategy Consultants via Green Car Congress]

Will there soon be “significant overcapacity” in global lithium-ion battery market? originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sun, 28 Feb 2010 19:46:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read more……..

Filed under: EV/Plug-in, Hybrid, Hydrogen, Mitsubishi, Tesla Motors, Legislation and Policy, UK

Would-be buyers, both individuals and businesses, of certain low emission vehicles in the UK will be offered a sweet incentive starting in 2011. How does 25 percent off the purchase price, up to &ound;5,000 ($7,618 at today’s rates), sound to you? The fiscal inducement will be available for purchases of plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), hydrogen-fueled vehicles and battery-powered electrics (BEVs) that meet emissions, performance and safety criteria. The barriers to the bounty include a CO2 output of no more than 75 grams per kilometer. As well, BEVs must have a range of 70 miles (113 kilometers) while PHEVs need to be capable of at least 10 miles (16 km) before the petrol starts burning. All vehicles must be capable of reaching 60 miles per hour (96 kilometers per hour), come with at least a three-year warranty and meet crash standards.

With &ound;230 million ($350.4 million) in the program that runs until 2014, the line-up of people ready to take advantage of extra cash at purchase time may find themselves facing a small choice of vehicles. When things kick off next January, the menu will consist of Mitsubishi i MiEVs and Tesla Roadsters (if there are even Roadsters still available). As the year progresses, the number of choices is expected to expand with the Nissan Leaf becoming available in March and market entrances may be made by the Reva NXR and the Opel Ampera. The program will be reviewed one year after its implementation and any changes deemed necessary will go into effect by April of 2012. Hit the jump for bonus videos of Britain’s ITV News’ take on electric cars featuring (mostly) Mitsubishi’s Japanese jellybean.

[Source: Guardian / Department for Transport]

Continue reading UK to give up to £5000 for ultra low carbon vehicles

UK to give up to £5000 for ultra low carbon vehicles originally appeared on Autoblog Green on Sun, 28 Feb 2010 13:11:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Read more….

A team of engineers has developed a highly efficient, environmentally friendly process that selectively converts gamma-valerolactone, a biomass derivative, into the chemical equivalent of jet fuel.

Read more….

Replace lumber with recycled rubber Tire Logs. Photo from Re-Tread Products

Don’t grind old tires; slice ‘em and roll ‘em up into rubber logs to use like lumber. From footwear to handbags and earthship homes, recycled tires have found various forms of an afterlife, but that doesn’t come close to dealing with the vast numbers of waste tires generated each year. Most “recycling” of tires … Read the full story on TreeHugger

Read more….

Tom Konrad, CFA

Hubbell
Inc. (HUB-B) is a
strong grid stock that also has strong
financials, signaled by a recent dividend increase.

I came across
Hubbell Inc. (HUB-B) when researching General
Cable
(BGC) for my recent
article
on
the company.  Just one more example of when you
start researching a sector, (in this case electrical
transmission
and
distribution, or “strong grid”) you never know what
new
companies
you may find.

Hubbell is a diversified electrical supplier, serving electric utility,
residential, commercial, and industrial markets worldwide.  About
a quarter (26%) of revenue comes from the “Power Systems” segment,
which is roughly what I am focusing on in this series on the “Strong
Grid.”  I
previously rejected EMCORE
Group (EME) because it only has about 20% of its revenues from the
strong grid, so the reader might reasonably ask, “What’s so much better
about Hubbell?”

The main advantage is that Hubbell’s other divisions have exposure to
the Smart Grid, and Energy Efficient lighting, which means that my best
guess of the company’s overall exposure to my favorite clean energy
sectors is somewhere around 50%.  Emcore also had some exposure to
these sectors (it is a diversified mechanical and electrical
construction group), but probably not so much.

The Dividend Increase

And then there’s the dividend increase.  As a value-oriented
investor, I love dividends.  I’m especially fond of companies that
keep increasing their dividends.  Dividends signal that management
is confident about the solidity of their revenues going forward, and
they are also a valuable source of return in the low-growth (or even
no-growth) environment I’m expecting to prevail in coming years. 
The new quarterly dividend payment of $0.36 per share (vs. $0.35
previously) equates to a 3% dividend yield at $48 per share. 
Three percent is not much by historical standards, but it’s pretty good
in current markets.

The company’s growth strategy is also one of acquisitions.  With
companies still finding it difficult to raise funds, companies like
Hubbell that can fund acquisitions directly from their balance sheet
are in a good position to scoop up bargains, and the company’s long
experience with such acquisitions gives us some assurance that they
will be able to integrate the acquired companies successfully. 

Share Structure
Both Hubbell class A (HUB-A) and class B (HUB-B) shares are traded on
the NYSE, with B shares having much higher volume, and class A shares
trading at a slight discount to B shares.  Class A shares have 20
times the voting rights of class B shares, but only have about 1/100 of
the trading volume.  A long term, small investor would probably be
better off holding A shares to take advantage of the discount (and the
voting rights) but larger investors and traders will gravitate towards
the B shares.

Valuation
On the other hand, despite the solid balance sheet and cash flow, the
company is trading at too high a Price/Earnings ratio (15) for me to
consider buying in what I expect to be a down market in 2010.  But
if the market decline I expect materializes, that high-ish P/E will
give Hubbell some room to fall.  If a market decline brings
Hubbell into the mid-to-low 30′s, I’ll have my finger on the “buy”
button.

Selected data as of 2-21-2010:

DISCLOSURE: Long BGC.

DISCLAIMER: The information and trades provided here and in the
comments are for
informational purposes only and are not a solicitation to buy or sell
any of
these securities. Investing involves substantial risk and you should
evaluate
your own risk levels before you make any investment. Past results are
not an
indication of future performance. Please take the time to read the full
disclaimer here.

Read more….

A lunch box staple is the core idea behind solar technology that could bring cost effective solar-heated hot water to cold climates.  Solar Panels Plus has come up with a solar hot water heater based on evacuated tubes similar to those popularized by Thermos.  Last year two of the company’s models were certified as eligible for Canada’s ecoENERGY for Renewable Heat program, but the real test will occur in southeastern Idaho, where Solar Panels Plus has installed a solar hot water system at the Homestead Family Restaurant in Blackfoot.

If the installation keeps the solar hot water coming in cold weather, it’s another big step forward for the ability of solar energy to compete with fossil fuels.  Restaurants are hot water gobblers, and a low cost solar installation that works in cold weather would have a relatively short payback for high volume users — especially if it receives solar energy incentives from its utility, as was the case here.

(more…)

Read more….

Surprisingly, after Obama’s announcement to give $8 billion to High Speed Rail (HSR) projects across the country, popular support for HSR has dropped, but it is still 88%. Not bad.

Of course, more money is needed to make HSR the reality people dream of.

A new survey shows that 83% of people think HSR and mass transit should be getting more money.

(more…)

Read more….