Obama's clean energy plan expected to boost renewables

After a year of consultations and over 4 million public comments, President Obama's Clean Power Plan will be finalised early next week.

The strategy will outline restrictions on CO2 from electricity that individual states will have to implement.

The EPA said that emissions from electricity generation need to be reduced by 30% of the 2005 level by 2030.

At that time the EPA said that individual states need to get their plans in place by 2016 and they were to become operational by 2020.

But after consultations with industry, states and 4.3 million comments from the public, the EPA is likely to extend the deadline for the start of carbon cutting until 2022.

The thinking appears to be that a shorter deadline makes it more likely that states will switch from coal to natural gas, as they have been doing in recent years.

It's expected that there will be increased support for solar, wind and other renewable sources

A longer timeframe supports the view that energy efficiency, renewables and emissions trading between states could all play a greater role, and result in bigger carbon savings over time.

Experts believe that the delay will come with some sweeteners to encourage the take-up of renewable energy sources like wind and solar.

International observers are keenly awaiting details of the plan, to see how it might affect UN-sponsored talks on climate change, that are due to agree a new global treaty later this year.

The US has put forward a proposal to cut its overall emissions by 26-28% of their 2005 levels by 2025. The widespread acceptance and implementation of the electricity plan is vital to achieving this target.

Follow Matt on Twitter @mattmcgrathbbc.

Most Green Fuel Efficient Car

Today the selection of efficient, lower-pollution cars includes a bewildering array of technologies and models — hybrids, plug-in hybrids, battery electrics, diesels and hydrogen fuel cells. Conventional gasoline cars, meanwhile, have made great strides in going farther on less fuel.

Battery electric cars — those that run solely on electricity — are the cleanest and least expensive to operate. But they typically get only about 80 miles of driving range on a full charge (Tesla's Model S is the exception, traveling more than 250 miles on a charge, but it typically sells for about $100,000.)

"Electric vehicles are the greenest choice for California drivers," said Dave Reichmuth, senior engineer at the Union of Concerned Scientists. "But even switching to a more efficient gasoline vehicle can lead to significant emissions reductions and lower petroleum use."

Battery electric

For the true environmentalist, nothing beats an electric car charged by renewable energy sources. Homeowners with rooftop solar panels can literally drive on sunshine. Electric car buyers also get generous state  subsidies.

But even electric cars powered by the grid produce less carbon emissions than other vehicles. More surprising, the efficiency doesn't necessarily exact a penalty in performance.

"A lot of people don't realize that the electric motor has a lot more torque from a stop, which means the cars can be fun to drive," Reichmuth said.

But there are drawbacks. All but the Tesla have ranges under 100 miles. They can take hours to charge. They are generally more expensive than a similar gasoline vehicle.

Hydrogen fuel cell

Hydrogen powered cars are finally entering the U.S. auto market after years of anticipation. Hyundai is leasing its Tucson fuel cell vehicle to consumers who live near the handful of hydrogen stations in California. 

Like electric cars, fuel cells are expensive but come with generous government subsidies to buyers. The bigger obstacle for buyers will be fueling infrastructure — just 20 stations are expected to be in operation in California by the end of this year.

Because natural gas is used to make most hydrogen, fuel cell cars are also not as clean as battery electrics. On the plus side, they can be fueled up as quickly as gasoline vehicles and have a range of about 300 miles between refills.

Diesel

Although popular in Europe, diesel has never caught on in the U.S. You see it stateside in German passenger cars, domestic pickup trucks and in commercial trucking. But modern diesel engines are cleaner, less noisy and more efficient than they have ever been.

They also offer a great driving experience and ranges of more than 500 miles, making them ideal for those with long highway commutes. When it comes to carbon emissions "diesel pencils out about the same as an efficient gasoline car but not quite as efficient as the hybrids," Reichmuth said.

Compressed natural gas

Once thought of as a promising transitional technology on the road to hydrogen and electric cars, compressed natural gas cars have driven into a dead end. Honda is discontinuing its natural gas Civic after the current model year, and no other automaker is stepping in with a passenger car that runs only on CNG.

Natural gas cars are only a little more polluting than a comparable hybrid, and they are less expensive to fuel. But the CNG tanks take up too much space, limiting the size of the cabin and trunk, and their driving range is limited. The CNG Civic travels less than half the distance on one fueling than the gasoline model and only a third of the hybrid.

.Hybrid

With the exception of the Toyota Prius, hybrids have never achieved the popularity some environmental groups and auto industry analysts expected. A variety of factors hold back sales. For instance, to reduce weight and improve fuel efficiency, automakers have removed sound deadening materials, allowing road and wind noise into the cabin, especially at highway speeds.

Hybrids cost more than regular cars. With the average price of regular gasoline now well under $3 a gallon nationally, the payback period on gas savings can be long.

Still, hybrids are a great choice for those who drive many miles — especially in stop-and-go traffic, when the cars recapture energy during braking to power electric motors that help propel the car and save gas. . A compact hybrid generates about 240 grams of carbon dioxide per mile, or just 55% of the amount generated by a conventional gasoline car that gets 25 mpg.

Some are exceptionally well done. The Honda Accord hybrid is a full-size, family sedan that gets 47 mpg in combined driving and goes more than 550 miles between gas station stops.

Plug-in hybrid

Plug-in hybrids run on electricity until their batteries are drained and then switch to gasoline. They're the Swiss Army knife of green cars.

 Diesels

Diesel engines are cleaner, less noisy and more efficient than ever. Above, a diesel-powered Audi A3. (Tribune News Service)

The Volt has an all-electric range of 38 miles. As a group, Volt owners drive about 60% of their miles on electricity alone. Many drive nearly exclusively on electricity, using the gas mode only for long-distance trips. That's why Volt carbon emissions approach the levels of fuel cell vehicles and battery-only electric cars. It's also one of the least expensive vehicles to operate. Just $6.83 in power and fuel will take you 100 miles. Those numbers are expected to improve for owners of the next generation Volt, which comes out this year with an all-electric range of 50 miles.

But not all plug-in hybrids are equal. The Prius plug-in has an all-electric range of just 11 miles, making it barely useful for running the children back and forth to school. The all-electric mode on the Accord plug-in is just 13 miles.

Gasoline

Don't write off the internal combustion engine as an efficient option, especially until automakers can make alternative drivetrains less expensive and more practical. Automakers have greatly improved gas mileage in recent years and offer a wider range of economical gasoline models.

These vehicles also cost less to buy than those with alternative fuel , although they produce about a third more pollution per mile than a comparably sized hybrid.

jerry.hirsch@latimes.com

Apple Ditches Nest Thermostat

Apple reportedly has pulled the Nest smart thermostat from both its online and brick-and-mortar stores, possibly paving the way for its own line of smart home appliances. The thermostat disappeared from Apple's product offerings earlier this month.

Apple's stores now are selling the Ecobee 3, a thermostat that works with Apple's HomeKit, an Internet of Things platform that's part of iOS. HomeKit allows users to control devices in the home via an iPhone or iPad. The newly launched Ecobee 3 retails for US$249.
This is not the first time Apple has pulled rival products. It stopped selling devices from Jawbone and Nike ahead of its launch of the Apple Watch.
However, it seemed that Apple's partnership with Nest was fairly solid, due largely to the fact that Nest CEO Tony Fadell helped develop Apple's iPod. Nest's staff includes many other former Apple employees, and there once was speculation that Apple might acquire the startup.
However, Nest was snapped up by Google for $3.2 billion early last year. That could have created a crack in the Apple-Nest relationship, which apparently has now fractured. It's not clear how big a rift there might be between the companies, however.
The Nest thermostat is still on sale in Apple retail outlets in the UK, Ireland, France, Belgium and the Netherlands, and the Nest camera and smoke alarm could find their way to Apple stores in the near future.
"Apple is a valued partner to Nest, and our new products will be available in Apple in the coming weeks," Nest Labs spokesperson Ivy Choi told the E-Commerce Times.

Camco Clean Energy

Camco Clean Energy is a business in transition – and unrecognisable from the company that effectively hit the buffers in 2012 when the carbon trading market ground to a halt.

It is on the verge of something pretty significant, according to its broker finnCap, as it aims to become a world leader in large-scale liquid energy storage.

Okay, it is a firm in the early commercial phase; but if the technology takes off then we’ll be hearing a lot more about Camco over the next 18 months.

And in American contract manufacturer Jabil Circuit, which manufactures the iPhone for Apple, it has a partner with enough financial muscle and scale to make some very lofty ambitions a reality.

Camco’s REDT technology can trace its evolution back to NASA in the 1970s. It uses an electrolyte of vanadium and sulphuric acid to hold an electric charge for weeks and sometimes months at a time.

While this liquid energy storage has been around for something like 40 years, Camco is one of only two companies to have developed it to a level where it is commercially viable. The other is Cellstrom, which is now owned by the German green energy specialist Gildermeister.

It can be deployed to garner energy from renewable sources such as wind or solar that can be fed into the grid as and when it is needed and not just when it is blowing a gale or during a heatwave.

It can also be used to replace back-up generators that might be used by hospitals or by the telecommunications industry.

In fact Camco and Jabil are targeting four separate markets – utilities, telecoms, diesel genset replacement and the renewables industry.

The idea is the technology will be cheaper than what’s already out there and in most instances REDT is also likely to be a more efficient method of storing power.

At this point it must be pointed out there is more to Camco than energy storage – although the other two businesses won’t be long-term drivers of equity value.

Its African business, which used to advise on financing renewable energy projects, is now a fund manager that has won one mandate and expects to land more as the year progresses.

In the US it has a renewables arm, which doesn’t appear to be part of Camco’s long term focus.

In fact in recent deals it sold California carbon credits that will bring in up to US$3.9million and will help with its short term cash needs.

And, based on its last market update, it is also looking at potentially selling its American biogas arm, which should bring in funds enough to see it through to break-even.

‘It has to be stressed here the equity story is very definitely the battery,’ Camco chief executive Scott McGregor told Proactive Investors.

So the focus is on REDT and the commercial trials taking place in 12 locations around the world.

The locations of two have already been revealed – they are 1.68-megawatt-hour facility next to a wind farm on the Isle of Gigha in Scotland and 240-kilowatts supplying an eco-hotel in South Africa.

Ten other smaller units will be unveiled as the year progresses. The idea is to show potential customers just how cost effective its product is, rather than simply asking them to take it on trust.

‘Our view is we need to implement these systems and the demand will come,’ said CEO McGregor.

‘We have had plenty of interest from prospective customers. We want to focus on getting the initial 12 systems out there.’

The Jabil tie-up, which is a long term collaboration, is an interesting one in that it provides third party validation of the technology.

It also reveals the ambition of both sides as the US firm will be looking to mass produce units for sale around the world – so obviously believes REDT has legs.

‘Interestingly, they found us,’ said McGregor.

‘Jabil had a team searching storage globally because they wanted to get into the market. They decided they wanted to go into flow batteries.

‘After carrying out due diligence on number of companies they decided to go with us.’

Broker finnCap reckons Camco could be turning over £84million (115million euros) by 2018, which translates to operating profits £8.8million (12million euros) – and that it will break even the year before that.

Certainly this isn’t factored into the share price, which has marked time in the year to date and values the business at less than £15million. And this, for prospective investors at least, provides an opportunity.

In a recent note, finnCap analyst Raymond Greaves made this observation: ‘Camco is on the verge of turning itself into a pure-play on the commercial and utility-scale energy storage market – a market that is expected to grow exponentially at least to the end of the decade.

‘Its REDT energy storage business has developed a game-changing product that has been production and cost-engineered by Jabil Circuit, one of the world’s largest sub-contract manufacturers.’

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