Energy efficiency: great deals and new ideas

The economic premise behind energy efficiency –, it is cheaper, a unit of energy than to make a save - on trapped in the United States has. Energy efficiency issues, and our energy consumption is declining, both per capita and per dollar gross domestic product measured according to the Government.

So it is not surprising, the year several begins energy efficiency with busy in traditional markets, as well as some good suggestions, respond how they moved customers more elusive.

Here are some of the recent deals that came across my desk.

Ameresco, one of the major players in the contracts, energy services was early January with two contracts out of the gate. First contract the Massachusetts-based company a $6.8 million energy performance with a housing authority in Fall River, Massachusetts for more than 1,500 residential units. The work includes CHP, control and monitoring systems, and upgrades to water, temperature and lighting controls, and mechanical space heat and domestic hot water systems. The Housing Authority expects to save $13 million over 20 years. Secondly, the company hit a $5.2 million deal with Austin Energy of the nation eight largest publicly-owned electrical use. Under an energy performance contract, Ameresco installed a new memory system for 24,000 tonne-hour chilled water to the utility district cooling plant, which power consumption hours will layer as energy is less expensive.EnerNOC, which after a live-ticker on its website customers more than $545 million (and counting) has saved provides demand response and energy efficiency for the Denver Public Schools. The project includes 24 school buildings, a total 4.5 million square feet. The deal comes after Denver Mayor Michael Hancock homebuilders, non-profit organizations and President Barack Obama Push for energy savings meet public schools by 20 percent by 2020 over 1.6 billion square feet of Office, industrial, municipal, hospital, University and school in question provided. World energy solutions, a Massachusetts-based energy management services company with $30 billion in energy, request-reply and ecological raw materials transactions, installed the Telkonet EcoInsight thermostats in 187 supported living apartments in the State. The thermostats are the first step towards the introduction of a more complex energy management Systems.American DG Energy began operating two 75 kW power heat power (CHP) plant at the Cumberland County jail in Portland Maine, under a $2.4 million, more than the company uses 15 years dealing with a business model that has the American DG Energy and operates cogeneration units prior to place utility called and the prison pays only for the energy, which he used. American DG Energy guarantees that the prison pay less than what would free the local utilities.
New ideas

Meanwhile came some interesting reports around the first of the year, reaching efficiency opportunities for energy companies offer new or sometimes indifferent.

Washington, D.C.-based market transformation Institute has, for example, consultancy, efficiency to the multifamily housing. The Institute published a report in early January, promoting benchmarking of multifamily housing. Provides benchmarking data of the building energy use, the equivalent of a nutritional label for food. MTI underlines several advantages for the approach: it leads to a better designed programmes and incentives, the owners, to promote updates. Upgrade the tenants energy costs lower, creating a comfortable indoor climate and can give owners better cash flow. Furthermore, in real estate transactions buyers better understand of the building energy profile and can accordingly set the property value. MTI provides $9 billion in savings from America's multifamily building.

"As a rule of thumb, a positive development, the markets work better transparency all around, to help", said Julia Stasch, Vice President of the U.S. programs of the John D. and Catherine t. MacArthur Foundation.

Meanwhile, Northeast the Connecticut Fund for the environment (CFE) and environment published a report here for, to create successful energy efficiency financing programs for private clients.

"A well designed residential energy efficiency financing program can help expand access to capital and pave the way for increased program participation" Roger Reynolds, Senior Attorney for the CFE said. "This report shows that there are a number of program design elements that are necessary for the success of energy efficiency financing products and therefore the programmes as a whole."

And most recently, the clean energy and Bond Finance Initiative (CE + BFI) a financing model that uses bond financing on safe, low-cost capital for energy efficiency and renewable energy projects exhibited.

"How the clean energy industry matures and grows, it needs to be less dependent on federal tax credits as an important source of financing," said Lew Milford, President of the clean energy group.

Industrial development bonds or IDBs called, offering tax-free interest to private borrowers, comply with the specific requirements of the non-profit. Borrower must have or middle small American manufacturers.

The paper on the IDB model is part of a series on the financing of CE + BFI published. It is aimed at the State and local governments. See www.cebfi.org.

ELISA Wood is a long-time energy writer. Subscribe to their free energy RealEnergyWriters.com EfficiencyMarkets newsletter

Clean tech Accelerator means new ideas for global renewable energy applications

San Jose--scores of clean-tech company of CEOs, built their leading ideas of seed capital angels and venture capitalists this year's clean tech open 2012 global forum in San Jose, California. On the occasion of the Hayes mansion on November 8 and 9, the meeting is the culmination of numerous regional competitions of the organization that has helped more than 600 companies that raise more than $660 million financing since 2006. After 10 minutes business plan pitch over a thousand participants belongs were finalists by a jury for hundreds of thousands of competing demand, if not millions of dollars in capital to start.

The business fields of the competing companies include renewable energy, the environment and the economy in General. Among renewable energy, finalists were companies to improve the efficiency of solar cells this year, offer residential wind and solar plants to marry, and provides overpressure in the water tap for energy distribution systems. 2012 Clean tech global forum winner was HVET from Chicago, won $250,000 in financing and services. Motor/generators with increased reliability and disruptive cost his patented switched reluctance motors offer high-performance alternatives to the induction and permanent magnet, so the company. The product is an electric assist, bicycles provide rolled out but other versions interfere with current engine technology by about 150 watts to one megawatt and also from applications such as air conditioning, oil and gas pumps, they add.

Runner up to 2012 title was Rentricity of New York, a system of excess water pressure water distribution systems in electricity to convert that, offered by bypassing existing pressure relief valves with new back-pumping generators. CEO of the Frank Zammataro said that the micro-hydro system already has been detected in the tube, within what estimates in four commercial projects $2.4 billion U.S. market has 23,000 potential locations for the implantation of the technology. The company has partnered with xylem, to produce the reverse pump, and seeks first the 5 to 30 kW segment of the market. Rentricity claims that he can install his system at a price of US $0.04 per kWh. The company is looking for funds to expand their sales activities and partners with leading industry - water companies, the latest generation to develop water system upgrading.

Finalist Malachite Technologies Inc., San Francisco, suggested the idea of using sputtering deposition technology a 1 µm to thick layer of gallium arsenide on a conventional silicon chip, the efficiency of the resulting array together increase by 33 percent. CEO Robert Weiss added that once the chip its current consolidation wave undergoes processing industry, survival rivals an edge of efficiency, should that his company could offer within two or three years. The company is looking for funding for the proof of concept data.

Another finalist, Pika energy, Gorham, Maine, unveiled a new design wind turbine applications at a price of $8,000, about one-third of the cost which beat current leader, Ben Polito, CEO of the start-up. Reduce the cost by making an injection Pika composite design can be dipped fan, motor cooling, the mass in contrast to the layered, which is standard in the industry today. The company developed also a mechanical safety brake for its turbine and a makes-inverter system, which a Pika-wind turbine can be combined with a generic solar photovoltaic system. The company is looking for funds to the sound to start mass business.

Apart from the finalists in their technology under a large tent showed pitched dozens of other clean-tech start-ups companies, the financing by the judging Committee in the courtyard of the Villa. Target markets ranged movement space heating from solar systems on tidal power on motorway.

Sun edge LLC, of Wilmington, a water-filled solar concentrator system presented the four is located in a closed polycarbonate tubes, time can result in normal solar energy with the addition of only 25 percent more PV materials. David President of the company Argentar said that the cost of the patent pending system is one-third of the yield comparable technologies. With a 10-MW demonstration plant scheduled for completion this year in Dover, Delaware SunEdge is looking for financing of commercial production.

Elemental, tidal-energy unit, which captures the flow of water through a turbine to generate electricity energy technologies, from Sydney, touted their sea urchin. While initial installations, barge and catamaran aimed applications, so nearby Darwin until end of 2013 a pilot 1-MW array installed Finance Director Douglas will hunt. When arrays are attached with shared cable, the turbines can power AU costs $0.10 to 0.12 per kWh (US $0, 10-0, 12), produce, he said.

Finally, captures the energy intelligence LLC, of WABAN, Massachusetts, presented its substructure Highway motion generation system which generate weight a moving tire through a plate activation energy. The location of the system would be likely, where vehicles are already forced to slow down and power sockets are available, such as the approach for a toll station. Awarded a patent and two outstanding will the system provide projected levelized cost energy between US $.055 and $0.07 / kWh, according to Daniel Shani, CEO of the company. Clean tech open the firm received $20,000 in New England regional competition in October.

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New ideas arise from the SunShot incubator

To a new idea to slip, need solar startups often a supportive environment to help, to take their first steps toward the introduction of new technologies into the market. In the last five years, DOE SunShot invested incubator program in nearly 40 small businesses to help to bring the way.

How businesses develop innovative solar technologies produce and a 17.5 million investments in seven companies is to win, to more than $1.6 billion in private finance through the first round of the program incubator gone. On 8 February, DOE announced that it will provide $ 12 million for the next generation of solar technologies in the 7th round of the successful SunShot incubator program. The objective of this funding opportunity is hardware progress solar energy support and soft cost reductions and pilot production projects. Read the full story in DOE's energy blog.

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