Strengthening Seen In Solar Market

August 24, 2009

For months, solar panel pricing has been weak as over production gluts the market with excess supply.

This imbalance may be moderating, at least temporarily. Prices earlier this month began to firm after six weeks of decline.

This suggests inventories are drying up, says G Dan Hutcheson, director of the Web site weSRCH and CEO of VLSI Research. When inventories get low, resellers need to replenish their shelves with new orders to manufacturers.

The pricing news comes even as producers continue to feel the pain of a weak market. Late last week, Chinese producer Suntech Power Holdings said second-quarter sales fell by a third and profits plunged 81 percent.

The company cut its expected annual production plans to 600 megawatts, down from previous projection of as high as 700 megawatts.

Hutcheson said retail solar panel prices rose 3 percent the week of Aug. 14 to $4.62 from $4.49 a week earlier. Prices are still off 7 percent from last year.

But special sale pricing programs ended, as did a steady drop in prices.

This decline may be temporary as over supply is a long-term problem that will likely plague the industry into 2010. But some respite may be welcome.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Amyris Closes On Another $24.7 Million And Expects More This Fall

August 21, 2009

Amyris Biotechnologies’ reputation as one of the more closely watched bio-fuels startup is secure.

The new money will be used to accelerate the development of Amyris bio-fuel

The new money will be used to accelerate the development of Amyris' bio-fuel

The Emeryville company announced two days ago it raised another $24.75 million and now says it expects to complete the rest of an estimated $62 million Series C round by this fall.

The round is being led by existing white-shoe investors: Khosla Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. TPG Biotech and the Brazilian conglomerate Votorantim Novos Negocios also are leading the round.

The company is among the highest profile startups attempting to use a bio-engineered form of yeast to convert sugar cane into a variety of renewable fuels and chemicals, including a diesel replacement. In June, it showed off a demonstration facility built in the heart of the Brazilian sugar cane processing industry.

The company plans to use the $24.75 million it raised to accelerate the development of its bio-fuel operations. The plan is to begin commercializing the fuels and chemicals in 20i1, with a goal of producing 200 million gallons a year.

The company had previously raised $120 million.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Chip Market Turns Corner And Posts Strongest Results In A Year

August 21, 2009

The chip market’s fortunes have suffered in the global recession.

In December, business was so slow sales slumped 22 percent. The industry was clearly shrinking.

July orders to shipment ratio highest in a year, VLSI Research says

July orders to shipment ratio highest in a year, VLSI Research says

This week, two reports have confirmed a solid recovery is underway. They suggest companies are once again growing, with orders exceeding shipments for the first time since the downturn began.

According to research released Friday from VLSI Research, the industry began showing signs of a strong recovery in July. The book-to-bill ratio for the month of 1.29 (meaning $129 of orders come in for every $100 of product shipped) was the highest since July 2008.

Integrated circuit orders advanced 8.1% and were almost double the level of February, VLSI said.

A separate report from SEMI, a trade association for makers of semiconductor manufacturing equipment, also found an expansion under way.

Manufacturers in North America posted a July book to bill of 1.06. It is the first time the industry has seen orders exceed shipments since January 2007. (Orders are still well below last year’s level, however.)

Obviously several more months of improving conditions will be necessary before real confidence returns. But the industry looks to have taken an important step toward recovery.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Is Nuclear The Solution To Global Warming

August 20, 2009

Fact of the day: the world needs roughly 14 terawatts of carbon-free power in the next 40 years to make a reasonable stab at containing greenhouse-gas warming.

Satisfying world energy demand would require building one nuclear plant a day until mid century.

Satisfying world energy demand would require building one nuclear plant a day until mid century.

That figure stems from two assumptions. First, global energy demand will double by mid century from today’s 14 terawatts (or 14 trillion watts).

Second, a reasonable goal will be to keep atmospheric CO2 at or below 550 parts per million compared with today’s 280 ppm.

Will nuclear power be able to shoulder the burden? Not likely. To satisfy projected demand, the world will need to build a gigawatt-sized nuclear plant each day between now and mid century, says Robert Armstrong, deputy director of MIT’s Energy Initiative.

Such a pace of construction is almost inconceivable. Only one country has the capacity to build a nuclear reactor and that is Japan. Unfortunately, production is sold out for the next nine years.

The solution to global warming may include nuclear but needs to look far beyond splitting the atom.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Carbon Sequestration Still Too Expensive

August 20, 2009

Carbon sequestration holds out considerable hope in the battle against global warming. Gathering carbon before a power plant releases it into the atmosphere (or perhaps after!) and bury it underground where it will sit for decades or longer.

Governments across the globe have coughed up money for experimental projects and to training a new generation of sequestration engineers – including the U.S.

Costs need to decline at least 50 percent, says Sheel WindEnergys Richard Williams

Costs need to decline at least 50 percent, says Sheel WindEnergy's Richard Williams

Industry is stepping up as well. Chevron, BP, Shall, ConocoPhillips, Encana and Statoil all have invested in projects. Chevron is working in Australia. Encana is already taking carbon and injecting it in depleting oil fields to enhance oil recovery.

Royal Dutch Shell and ExxonMobil are planning an effort in the Netherlands.

Despite the activity, the cost of projects is still too high, says Richard Williams, president of Shell WindEnergy. To pipe, compress and inject the carbon underground costs $100 a ton, Williams said Thursday during an MIT Technology Review “Future of Energy” Webcast.

It needs to get to between $40 and $50 a ton. Until then it is not economically feasible.

Williams said government incentives are needed for firms to run test projects.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Solar Panel Prices Fall Again But At Slower Pace

August 20, 2009

The over supply of solar panels has pulled the leg out from under pricing.

In the past year, panel pricing has fallen 17 percent. Consumers have been the beneficiaries. Roof-top solar panels now cost less.

But there are signs of stabilization in this troubled market. Prices are falling more slowly in the past weeks. And second quarter sales rebounded from a treacherous first quarter, despite the continued economic softness.

According to VLSI Research’s weSRCH, panel prices fell only 6 cents last week to $4.49 per Watt. This is a sixth week of a decline, but a slimmer one than previously.

Sales in the solar market tumbled an astonishing 54 percent in the first quarter. But they rebounded 43 percent to $6.9 billion in the second quarter.

Perhaps this is a first sign of recovery.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Burning Man Photo Copyright Controversy

August 19, 2009

What this has to do with clean-tech (or regular tech) I don’t know. But I can’t resist a controversy about copyright (and personal rights) in the Internet age

Electronic Frontier Foundation criticizes BM photo policy

Electronic Frontier Foundation criticizes BM photo policy

A debate has flared up about Burning Man’s long-standing (and restrictive) policy toward photos and videos, just 10 days before 40,000 or so burners gather in the Nevada high desert for a week of self-expression and celebration.

It began a week ago when Corynne McSherry of the Electronic Frontier Foundation criticized a clause in the policy that gives Burning Man officials ownership of photos and video if they object to how they are displayed. That way they can be quickly taken down.

“This ‘we automatically own all your stuff’ magic appears to be creative lawyering intended to allow (Burning Man) to use the streamlined ‘notice and takedown’ process enshrined in the Digital Millennium Copyright Act to quickly remove photos from the Internet,” says McSherry in a blog post, thereby misusing the act.

Burning Man’s Andie Grace responded Wednesday by saying the issue is more complicated than the EFF acknowledges. The goal is to protect the privacy of the ephemeral inhabitants of Black Rock City and to prevent companies from using Burning Man images to sell products, she says.

“Find me a participant who would vote ‘yes’ on seeing a video or photo of the Man burning, or their own art car or sculpture, in a car commercial,” she writes in a Web posting. “You probably can’t.”

What’s interesting about this debate is that both sides have merit. I leave you to craft a compromise.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

Germany Wants 1 Million Electric Cars In Use By 2020

August 19, 2009

Germany has been among the world’s leaders in solar technology. It holds out great hope of wind power, especially offshore in the blowy North Sea.

Now it plans to crank the dial on electric cars. The government of Angela Merkel is crafting a plan to put 1 million electric cars on German roads by 2020.

Target expands to 5 million cars by 2030

Target expands to 5 million cars by 2030

Government spending is to spark the nation’s market place. Ministers have agreed to spend $750 million to develop electric vehicles by 2011, according to Bloomberg News.

Then starting in 2012, the country will begin to offer financial incentives to support the sale of vehicles to consumers. Details of these incentives are to be hashed out in the fall.

The plan is part of a broader effort to cut greenhouse gas production in the country by up to 40 percent by 2020. And it is hoped to nurture an electric car industry in this home of Volkswagon and Daimler, with a goal of seeing 5 million cars in use by 2030.

Certainly one might argue the upcoming German elections are playing a part in this latest ecological development – which is the result of unusual unity among parties in Merkel’s ruling coalition. Merkel’s conservative CDU is well ahead in the polls, but looking for enough votes to form a government without the more liberal Social Democrats.

Still, the development is a welcome unilateral effort given the resistance of some governments to budge until others lead the way. To his credit, Barack Obama announced earlier this month $2.4 billion in federal grants to develop electric vehicles.

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Posted by Mark Boslet

ATI Faces More Executive Exodus Ahead Of Major Product Launch

August 18, 2009

ATI's former mobile graphics chip boss Phil Eisler is now Nvidias general manager of the 3D Vision business unit

Can ATI stop the talent exodus?

After ATI’s former CEO David Orton, CTO Bob Drebin and other executives and engineers defecting the Canadian outfit, the chipmaker recently lost its senior vice-president and general manager of the chipset and notebook business unit Phil Eisler who was just named last night Nvidia’s general manager of its emerging 3D Vision business unit.

“3D Vision has created immense buzz since its’ launch. The team has brought a very high quality interactive solution to market, at a very affordable price. Gaming, movies and digital photography are all being pushed to a new level with 3D Vision. Phil will be responsible for driving NVIDIA 3D Vision onto a global scale and building it into a key differentiator of GeForce based desktops and notebooks,” said senior vice-president of Nvidia’s GeForce business unit Jeff Fisher in an internal memo.

At AMD/ATI, Esler was responsible for the mobile and integrated product lines, including mobility Radeon graphics processors. He had been at ATI for nearly 15 years.

The funny part is that despite leaving some months ago, when AMD decided to relocate some ATI staff to its Austin, Texas, headquarters, Esler’s bio is still up on ATI’s website. Nostalgia maybe?

ATI will officially launch its next generation graphics chip dubbed “Evergreen” – previously shown at Computex and QuakeCon – on September 10th at the U.S.S. Hornet in Alameda, Calif.

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Posted by TechPulse 360

Wind Turbine Market Could Stabilize As Government Money Begins To Flow

August 18, 2009

The global recession continues to put the hurt on the wind turbine market. But government stimulus dollars could begin to stabilize sales in the next several months.

New banks also are beginning to lend again for wind projects

New banks also are beginning to lend again for wind projects

This assessment came Tuesday from Vestas Wind Systems, the largest supplier of wind turbines. Across the industry, suppliers have seen order shortfalls this year, Vestas included.

*The company shipped 618 turbines in the second quarter, down 12 percent from last year.

*The capacity of the systems was 1,172 MW, down a larger 20 percent.

The shortfalls can be traced largely to the financing markets. Banks and traditional lenders have resisted loaning money in unsettled times.

This is changing. “The many governmental initiatives around the world are starting to have an impact, and market prospects are beginning to improve,” Vestas said in a press release.

“At the same time, several new banks and financing institutions have come onto the market, which means that the impact of the credit crisis on the wind power market is slowly starting to taper off,” Vestas said.

In fairness, these new banks are looking deeper at projects and are far more critical in their analysis. This increases the time it takes for deals to get done. The delays are worse when more than one bank gets involved.

Still, the likelihood of increased government spending could provide a boost for wind energy, especially in the United States.

Renewable energy currently accounts for “less than 2 per cent of the world’s electricity production,” says Vestas. That share will rise to “at least 10 per cent by 2020, equal to an installed capacity of at least 1,000,000 MW.”

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Posted by Mark Boslet

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