text:
Blue Pearl Energy's presence in the French energy services market is on the rise with its fourth acquisition in less than 2 years
Blue Pearl Energy today announced the acquisition of Alpes Energie, a French company specialising in HVAC and plumbing systems for new residential buildings. Alpes Energie is the fourth French SME to join Blue Pearl Energy's European platform. This operation allows Blue Pearl Energy to strengthen its foothold France, where it is already active through its subsidiaries Alcad Clim & Service, Ventimeca and Climacool, with the ambition of establishing itself as a major player in B2B energy services.
Alpes Energie works primarily as a contractor to large residential property developers. It was created in 2001 by its Chairman Bruneau Martin, who has managed it since 2005 with his co-shareholder and company CEO Pascal Boyer.
"With the departure of Mr. Bruneau Martin, who is retiring from business at the age of 77, Alpes Energie was seeking a solid partner to ensure its continued development. We are delighted that they have chosen to trust Blue Pearl Energy to approach this new turning point in their history," comments Eric de Seguins Pazzis, Co-Founder and CEO of Blue Pearl Energy.
In particular, this acquisition will allow a strong partnership between the Ventimeca group and Alpes Energie, both based in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Alpes Energie will thus be able to benefit from additional technical and financial expertise to better support its customers in their energy transition.
"We are pleased to join the Blue Pearl Energy SMEs network. By taking advantage of synergies with its other subsidiaries, we will be able to accelerate our growth by providing more comprehensive solutions to property developers, whose needs will change significantly under the new RE 2020 regulations, applicable to all new buildings from 2022 onwards. », explains Bruneau Martin and Pascal Boyer.
The new RE 2020 regulations set new and ambitious energy and ecological performance criteria, by imposing, among other things, a substantial share of local renewable energy production and very demanding ratios in terms of final energy consumption per sqm and limitation of CO2 emissions in kgeq CO2 / sqm.
With this new acquisition, Blue Pearl Energy continues to rapidly grow its innovative European energy services platform by bringing together SMEs into an efficient and cohesive network. "By bringing together complementary SMEs, Blue Pearl Energy is able to offer complete and competitive energy solutions to public and professional customers and to accelerate the growth of our subsidiaries by opening up new markets to them. Alpes Energie is the seventh SME to join our structure. This is yet another signal that confirms the success of our development model and our value proposition," concludes Eric de Seguins Pazzis, Co-Founder and CEO of Blue Pearl Energy.
The Blue Pearl Energy project is structured around the acquisition of majority stakes in the capital of the SMEs integrating its network, through the financial support of an infrastructure fund. The owners and managers of the acquired businesses continue to run their company and serve their customers independently, while actively participating in the construction of the Blue Pearl Energy transformation project.
With this new partnership, Blue Pearl Energy continues to reinforce its position as a new credible player in energy services sector. Designed as an alternative to large energy services groups, blue Pearl Energy can offer its customers all the benefits of local expertise, agility, and the strong territorial footprint characterizing the SMEs in its network.
Waga Energy and Meridiam secure refinancing of four biomethane units from French banks consortium
Waga Energy, the European leader in the production of biomethane from landfill gas, and Meridiam, an investment fund specializing in public infrastructure finance, obtained a non-recourse loan of 10.4 million euros from BNP Paribas and Banque Populaire Grand Ouest to refinance four WAGABOX® biomethane units located in France. The deal underpins Waga Energy's ability to rely on financial institutions to deploy its innovative WAGABOX® gas-to-biomethane technology.
The WAGABOX® units are part of two SPV companies, one of which is jointly owned by Meridiam. These two companies signed a non-recourse credit agreement with the banks for 10.4 million euros to repay the loans previously contracted with Waga Energy and Meridiam. The refinancing of these four WAGABOX® units will strengthen Waga Energy's cash flow and enable further financing of new projects in Europe and North America.
The SPV company jointly owned by Waga Energy and Meridiam hosts three biomethane units, one of which is still under construction. The second SPV company hosts one unit and is 100% owned by Waga Energy. When the final unit is commissioned, the projects will generate a total of 95 GWh of biomethane per year and prevent the emission of the equivalent of 17,000 tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere.
Marie-Amélie Richel, Administrative & Financial Director of Waga Energy, declares: "The success of this refinancing operation demonstrates the finance community's confidence in our business model and our technology. Our ability to raise bank debt to reduce the cost of project financing is a major factor in the competitiveness of the biomethane we produce".
Julien Touati, Partner at Meridiam, declares: "This partnership with Waga Energy, which is entering a new phase with the mobilization of leading long-term banking partners, is a perfect illustration of our desire to bring technological solutions to the service of the energy transition. Fostering circular economy models is at the heart of our mission. We have supported Waga Energy for three years now, and we embrace this pioneering role in the production of biomethane and green gas, a sector in which we are now one of the main investors in France".
Waga Energy's proprietary technology is the result of 10 years of research and development. It makes it possible to upgrade landfill gas into grid compliant biomethane, also known as Renewable Natural Gas. Waga Energy currently operates ten WAGABOX® units in France. Ten more projects are also under construction in France, Spain and Canada. The Group plans to have 100 WAGABOX® units in operation worldwide by the end of 2026, to achieve a production capacity of around 4 TWh per year and avoid the emission of 700,000 tonnes of CO2 per year in the atmosphere.
EBRD invests US$75 million in sustainability-linked Eurobond issued by Ukrenergo
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is investing US$75 million in the US$825 million sustainability-linked bond issued by Ukraine's national power company, Ukrenergo, in a bid to resolve the payments crisis gripping the country's renewable energy sector.
It is the first sustainability-linked bond issued by a Ukrainian company and the EBRD's participation as the anchor investor provided comfort to other institutional investors, further widening the market participation.
The proceeds will cover all payment arrears owed to renewable energy producers. The investment will help to restore the credibility of the Ukrainian renewable energy sector and boost the confidence of private investors and financiers, paving the way for much-needed investment to support the country's green transition.
source www.ebrd.com/news
PPC accelerate investments in renewable energy in Greece and south-eastern Europe
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is supporting the transformation of the Public Power Corporation (PPC), Greece's largest power producer and electricity supplier, with an investment of €75 million in the company's €1.35 billion share-capital increase.
The EBRD's proceeds will be used exclusively for renewable energy assets and will explicitly exclude any fossil fuel assets.
The new capital will enable PPC to accelerate its investments in renewable energy, both in Greece and in south-eastern Europe, and to become a financially and environmentally sustainable, modern and digital utility. As a result of the transaction, PPC also aims to benefit from a more diversified investor base that has a greater focus on environmental, social and governance (ESG) issues.
PPC has a total capex target of €6 billion for 2022-24, of which €3.2 billion is expected to be invested in renewable energy and €1.0 billion in electricity distribution. The firm's rapid programme for phasing out lignite will be complemented by a massive increase in renewable energy capacity, which is expected to grow from 3.4 GW in 2021 to 8.4 GW in 2026.
Office of Sustainability and the Green Economy at The National Bank of Romania
The National Bank of Romania has set up an internal structure, the Office of Sustainability and the Green Economy, in order to further explore the implications of climate change in the Romanian banking sector, according to a statement from the institution.
"On September 16, 2020, the National Bank of Romania became a member of the Network of Central Banks and Supervisors for the Greening the Financial System (NGFS). The National Bank of Romania has taken steps to identify, develop and use certain specific tools to analyze the risks posed by climate change in the process of implementing the financial stability policy, a research analysis that is highlighted in the latest editions of the Financial Stability Report, such as the December edition 2019 ", it is said in the declaration of commitment of the National Bank of Romania, as an institutional member of the Network for Greening the Financial System.
Romanian Energy on a Sunday
The Cernavoda nuclear power plant is the main source of energy production, on Sunday morning, providing 25% of the national total, according to Transelectrica data.
In second place is coal, with 24.4%, followed by hydrocarbons - 24.2%, hydro - 17.1%, wind - 6.5%, photovoltaic - 1.9%, biomass - 0.8% .
At 9:30, the country's electricity consumption was 5,951 MW, production of 5,661 MW, and the difference of 290 MW was imported.
New Study by Leading Renewables Consultant ArcVera Shows Texas Icing Event Led to Over $4 Billion Financial Loss for Wind Farms
Study points to shortcomings in the hedged financial structures, with asymmetric price risk leading to significant losses for wind farm operators and gains for counterparties. Significant implications for future wind farms and ERCOT planning are described in the study.
ArcVera Renewables, a leading international provider of consulting and technical services for wind, solar, and storage projects, today publishes its report "ERCOT Market Cold Weather Failure 10-19 February 2021: Wind Energy Financial Losses and Corrective Actions".
The study set out to quantify the lost energy production and calculate the financial impact of the rare Texas winter weather event. It is focused on wind farm outages reported by the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) grid operator for the period 14-19 February 2021, when the grid experienced extensive wind farm downtime, lost energy production, and high hub-settled electricity prices. Three repricing scenarios are evaluated using market pricing before the imposition of $9000/MWh prices by ERCOT.
"Given that the market demand was decreased by ERCOT with blackouts so that production balanced that reduced demand with market prices high but not near the $9000/MWh imposed value, we consider that the $9000/MWh ERCOT mandate could have imposed large, and quite possibly artificial, financial impacts (windfalls and losses) on wind energy power plant operators and investors", said Dr. Gregory S. Poulos, ArcVera Renewables CEO, Principal Atmospheric Scientist, and author of the report.
"With more installed wind capacity than any other state in the United States and its projections for renewable energy capacity to dominate ERCOT generating capacity within a decade, we believe that ERCOT must now more stringently apply atmospheric science-based risk assessment, particularly concerning extreme weather operational scenarios. Renewable energy production is governed by the weather. Peak electricity demand scenarios are also governed by weather, such as high and low-temperature events. As such, there is a clear need for restructuring electricity system resilience to account for weather-driven production and demand, concomitant with the pace of the transition to renewable energy-dominated production," explained Dr. Poulos.
The icy weather conditions and an unprecedented period of below-freezing temperatures caused extensive wind farm downtime. The study analyzes the outage periods documented by ERCOT for 191 wind farm units, with a nominal capacity of 21,888 MW, of which 57% (12,495 MW) is subject to a hedged financial structure.
The findings of the study show the lost energy production from wind farms, aggregating individual wind farm results, was 629,700 MWh with a financial impact of this lost production, whether the financial loss to the owner or gain by others, estimated at $4.18B. This represents an average financial impact on any project of $44.4M. For hedged projects, the financial impact of this lost proxy production is even greater, with an average financial impact of $45.4M.
The study makes three assessments:
Hedged financial structures in ERCOT need to properly reflect realistic meteorological conditions, extreme weather stress tests, and, therefore, more realistic production assurances.
Hedged products need to recalibrate their strike prices to reflect the asymmetric risks presented by the availability of different resources during extreme electricity demand, ERCOT minimum and maximum prices, and market interventions by regulators.
Wind farm owners and their hedge counterparties need to partner with turbine OEMs to develop reliable, cost-effective weatherization technologies to reduce the asymmetric risks from future icing events.
"Our observations, taken together, clearly describe a condition where, with greater attention to the atmospheric science details when assessing the risks of weather-driven electricity production and demand, an adequately resilient and interconnected ERCOT electricity system can be created. ERCOT planning should consider that cold-weather events worse than the recent February 10-19, 2021 event are possible." Dr. Poulos concluded.
Having worked on ERCOT measurements and detailed wind energy resource assessment for more than 20 years, ArcVera has evaluated hundreds of wind farms in ERCOT development and amassed in-depth knowledge of wind behavior across ERCOT's vast expanse of wind farms. Combined with decades of atmospheric science and engineering experience, ArcVera has devised a method to determine materially accurate estimates of net energy production at the wind farms that experienced outages during the event.
Waga Energy to deploy its break-through landfill renewable natural gas technology in Quebec
Waga Energy, the European leader in landfill gas-to- renewable natural gas (RNG) technology, has been enlisted by The Mauricie Residual Materials Management Board (RGMRM) to deploy its innovative gas upgrading solution at the Saint-Étienne-des-Grès landfill, in Quebec. The green gas produced will be purchased by Énergir, the largest gas distribution company in the province, and injected into its gas grid onsite. This landfill gas-to-RNG project will be the first in Canada to use the WAGABOX® technology, developed by Waga Energy to recover landfill gas in the form of RNG, also known as biomethane.
Under the agreement signed in March, Waga Energy will buy the landfill gas from RGMRM for a period of at least 20 years. It will then be transformed into grid-compliant RNG by a WAGABOX® gas treatment unit built onsite. Waga Energy will generate income by selling its RNG production to Énergir. Until now, the landfill gas at Saint-Étienne-des-Grès was captured and burned in a flare.
Designed to process 3,400 cubic meters of biogas per hour (2,000 scfm), the WAGABOX® unit in Saint-Étienne-des-Grès will produce 468,000 GJ* of renewable gas per year, corresponding to the annual consumption of 8,000 local households. The WAGABOX® unit will be built in Shawinigan by a local company under the supervision of Waga Energy's Canadian subsidiary, except for the cryogenic distillation module which will be imported from France. The project is scheduled to be completed by 2022.
Mathieu Lefebvre, president and co-founder of Waga Energy, declared: "Thanks to the WAGABOX® solution, hundreds of landfill sites across the United States and Canada will be able to produce renewable natural gas, contribute to the energy transition, and generate a new revenue stream, without the need for investment, and free from additional operating constraints."
The project carried out jointly by RGMRM and Waga Energy will improve the environmental record of Mauricie and will contribute to Quebec's energy transition. It will prevent the release of 23,000 tons of CO2 per year into the atmosphere by substituting renewable gas for fossil natural gas.
Michel Angers, President of RGMRM, said: "This contract is the result of an initiative undertaken several months ago to identify the best technology to enable us to use our landfill gas to its full potential. Thanks to the WAGABOX® technology, treating our gas is no longer an expense, it is a new income stream, and more importantly, it is yet another step towards a more sustainable approach to landfill management. The project fits perfectly with the government's greenhouse gas reduction objectives and we are proud to contribute to Quebec's energy transition."
Renault Lortie, Vice-President, Customers and Gas Supply, at Énergir, concluded: "The development of the green gas industry in Quebec is one of the cornerstones of our efforts to decarbonize our economy. Énergir aims to inject an ever-increasing amount of renewable gas into its network, corresponding to a volume of at least 10% that of the annual volume it distributes by 2030. This fantastic project brings us a step closer to this objective, demonstrates the value of smart circular economy, and allows more and more of our customers to benefit from clean and local energy".
* 468,000 GJ = 130 GWh (Europe) or 444,000 mmBtus (USA)
Urban design: PowerNEST and OpenRemote take sustainable living to new heights
In Strijp-S, the industrial heritage site of the former Philips lighting factories that now makes up the dynamic heart of Eindhoven, Trudo's latest social housing development projects are leading the way for affordable and sustainable living with two new smart buildings. The first one is the 'Haasje Over' residence, to be built above one of the largest skate halls in Europe, and topped by a PowerNEST, an innovative rooftop structure combining a wind turbine with solar panels to generate renewable energy. The second one is the impressive 'Trudo Toren', a 70-metre-high residential tower integrating a vertical forest.
This social housing project brings together modern design, renewable energy and advanced IoT technology, demonstrating the latest trends in smart urban residential development.
The PowerNEST is a breakthrough solution providing renewable energy for high-rise buildings, using limited roof space to generate as much energy as possible. Alexander Suma, CEO of IBIS Power, describes the process: "Underneath a solar roof, a system of funnels and turbines is installed along the roof edge to capture the wind flow from the building façade and accelerate it towards the turbines. The concentrated air flow drives the turbines, generating energy even from the slightest breeze. Architecturally integrated into the building design, this innovative wind and solar combination generates six times more energy per square metre than common roof solar solutions and delivers an attractive payback time." Installed on the rooftop of both buildings, PowerNEST will produce 125,000 kWh per year.
Shared lighting, electric vehicle chargers, and elevators are just some of the solutions installed in the buildings. Using OpenRemote's open-source IoT for data flows means that all these solutions are connected. Pierre Kil, CEO of OpenRemote explained: "Energy management consists of predicting renewable energy generation by wind and solar to optimise energy consumption. By connecting the monitoring and control of assets in a single platform, workflows are improved, maintenance is facilitated, and new energy-saving applications can be created. We are exploring different options, such as coordinating energy consumption within the buildings, adding battery storage to reduce installed grid capacity, encouraging energy cooperation with residents, and even distributing energy across other on-site Trudo buildings."
Fieke van den Beuken, Trudo project manager for the two buildings described the ambition that drives the project: "Our aim is to create an attractive living environment for people with a modest income. For these two housing projects, we aim to set a new standard for urban developments, by incorporating renewable energy, state-of-the-art energy management technologies and adding green facades to reduce CO2 emissions and generate energy savings."
16th World Bioenergy Congress and Expo. April 26-27, 2021 Barcelona, Spain
With the magnificent success of Bioenergy 2020, Conference Series LLC Ltd is proud to announce the "16th World Bioenergy Congress and Expo", to be held during April 26-27, 2021 at Barcelona, Spain. Theme of the Bioenergy conference is "Bioenergy for Sustainable Development" with an objective to encourage young minds and their research abilities by providing an opportunity to meet the experts in the field of Bioenergy. Bioenergy
congress is designed to explore various applications in different fields.
Join us for two intensive and interesting days of discussing contemporary Bioenergy Expo research. We invite you to contribute and help to shape the Bioenergy congress through submissions of your research abstracts, papers and e-posters. Bioenergy International is cordially inviting for presentation at the conference.
Bioenergy technology mainly focuses on usage of Biomass Energy as an alternative source for Energy Production for future generation and aims to bring together leading academic scientists, researchers and research scholars to exchange and share their experiences and research results.
Bioenergy 2021 aims to promote various researches on Biomass among scientists, academia and industries. Bioenergy 2021 offers various topics for interaction including Biomass, Bioenergy research, Algal Biofuel Production, Biomass conversion Processes to useful Energy. For the period 2014-2022 based on the historical years - 2012 and 2013. Projections have been provided for installed capacity (MW), power generation (Million KWh), and revenue (USD Million). The report includes the key market dynamics affecting the demand for biomass power generation feedstock and technologies. As a part of our market dynamics analysis, we have analysed market drivers, market restraints, and market opportunities. A comprehensive competitive landscape, which includes company market share analysis and market attractiveness analysis, has also been provided in this report.
Conferences series LLC LTD has been and will be organizing Bioenergy Conferences and events to put front the research advances. The gathering will highlight the opportunities in both Biomass Conferences and Biofuel Conferences.
Title : 16th World Bioenergy Congress and Expo
Date: April 26-27, 2021 Barcelona, Spain
Theme: Bioenergy for Sustainable Development
web https://bioenergy.insightconferences.com/
Actis chooses WinJi's software platform to maximize asset performance and support value creation for renewable energy projects in its Actis Long Life Infrastructure Fund ("ALLIF")
WinJi, a Swiss based company leading in artificial intelligence for renewable energy asset management and it's innovative "True Power" platform, has been selected by Actis, a leading energy asset investor in growth markets across the globe, to implement their True Power platform.. WinJi was chosen following a competitive selection process and is expected to support maximising the overall performance across Actis' rapidly growing portfolio of renewable energy assets in its long life fund.
WinJi will provide its performance and software platform solution for existing and new assets for the Actis long life infrastructure fund ("ALLIF"), which is investing 1.2 billion US$ in operating energy infrastructure projects across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. The True Power platform will be initially integrated into 800 MW of existing renewable assets located in Brazil, Chile and India.
WinJi's best-in-class asset management platform has been specifically developed for asset owners to meaningfully improve the overall profitability, resulting in significant project IRR optimization. By applying sophisticated, AI based data analytics, the True Power Platform identifies performance anomalies, quantifies loss drivers and calculates suggestions to improve production efficiency. Key Performance Indicators help to improve asset management effectiveness, while historic benchmarks support top down decision making.
"WinJi's expertise in AI based performance analytics, their in-depth industry knowledge together with the ability to provide value-adding insights, were the main criteria to sign this agreement", explained Dr. Ralf Nowack, Energy & Infrastructure Operations Director at Actis.
Bernhard Brodbeck, CEO and founder of WinJi stated: "We are proud to partner up with Actis, dedicated to support Actis in their vision for excellent asset management. We are determined to support Actis in successfully achieving their ambitious goals and will ensure best-in-class asset management practice across their growing portfolio to maximize asset value."
ArcVera Renewables Achieves IECRE Approval for Wind Power Performance Testing Services
ArcVera Renewables, a leading international provider of consulting and technical services for wind, solar, and storage projects, is now one of the first companies based in the United States approved by the International Electrotechnical Commission - Renewable Energy (IECRE) to operate as a Renewable Energy Testing Laboratory. IECRE is the IEC system for certification to standards relating to equipment for use in renewable energy applications. IECRE approval validates the quality of ArcVera's wind turbine PPT processes and the thoroughness of its quality management system.
The IECRE process included a thorough audit by a set of industry peers who reviewed ArcVera's procedures and processes, which were approved as being consistent with industry best practices.
"With the achievement of IECRE accreditation, ArcVera can now pursue testing on several types of turbines and perform accredited power curve tests to the IEC 61400-12-1 standard, including all of the subtasks of such tests, such as terrain and obstacle assessments, site calibration, test planning, equipment installation, and test execution", said Matt Cramer, Business Development Manager. Matt Cramer recently joined ArcVera to lead the business development of power performance testing services.
IECRE is the leading internationally accepted conformity assessment system for renewable energy; its harmonized accreditation requirements ensure both quality and consistency throughout the global renewable-energy industry. The ubiquity of IECRE accreditation has contributed to improvement of efficiency and lowered the cost of bringing projects online, and has thus been a major catalyst in the gradual global transition to sustainable energy. IECRE is focused on facilitating international trade in renewable-energy-related equipment and services in a way that maintains the required level of safety and quality.
"We are thrilled to lead the way in the US Wind Energy Industry with IECRE approval for power performance testing. As more companies follow ArcVera's lead and obtain IECRE approval, it should raise the bar on quality for the entire industry," said John Bosche, President & Principal Mechanical Engineer.
To date, ArcVera has completed over 25 PPTs on more than 2GW of renewable projects for leading industry players. With IECRE approval achieved, the ArcVera team is excited to be able to increase those numbers and solidify itself even more as a PPT services leader in the industry. ArcVera also represents the United States on the IEC committee, which develops standards for wind turbine power performance testing (61400-12-1), nacelle lidar power performance testing (61400-50-3), and energy assessments (61400-15).
Solar Heat European Market 2019 Report
The European solar heat market has grown by 2.5% in installed capacity in 2019 and 3.4% on year-on-year sales. The sector has been growing its cumulative capacity continuously for over 4 decades and there are over 10 million solar thermal systems installed in Europe today.
Growth in total installed capacity
At the end of 2019, the total solar thermal installed capacity has reached 37 GWth, corresponding to a total area of 52.9 million square meters. Among the top ten European markets, the highest increase in cumulative capacity was observed in Denmark and Poland, with around 10% growth.
Growth in annual sales
The annual sales have increased again in 2019 by 3.4%, reaching 1.59 GWth, corresponding to over 2.27 million m2 of solar thermal collectors installed. This growth follows a growth of 2.4% in 2018. From the top European markets, those showing the largest growth were Denmark, with an increase of 174% – totalling 137 MWth(196 000 m2) – and the Netherlands, with a 44% increase (35 MWth / 50 000 m2). Among Southern European countries, the main market, Greece, has grown 10%, corresponding to annual sales of 253 MWth (361 000 m2).
Germany, the largest European market
The largest European market remains the German one, which experienced growth of 0.5% in installed capacity and a decrease of 11% in annual sales. This market has seen mainly an impact on combi-systems (used for both space and water heating). Though preliminary 2020 data indicates a substantial growth in this market, reverting the previous trend.
More jobs, less CO2 emissions
In terms of economic impact, the solar heating and cooling market has achieved an increased turnover of 1.9 billion Euros in 2019, representing up to 20 000 jobs. The market also brought substantial environmental benefits, as the 26 TWhth energy generated annually represents the equivalent of 7 MtCO2 savings per year.
Among the top 5 most deployed renewables, both in Europe and globally
Solar thermal for heating and cooling is one of the main renewable energy sources (RES) in Europe and globally, in terms of cumulated capacity and annual energy generation. The total installed capacity globally amounted to 442 GWth in 2018, corresponding to an energy generation of 363 TWhth. In Europe, there are 37 GWth of cumulative capacity for solar thermal energy, generating 26 TWhth in 2018. This makes it, together with bioenergy, hydro energy, wind and solar photovoltaics, the main renewable energy solutions in the market.
One of the most competitive renewable energy sources
Solar thermal provides energy at the lowest costs among all RES. It can compete with direct electrical heating solutions and some solutions can even compete with gas, even without considering costs associated to externalities from those sources, such as CO2 emissions or other.
To get access to the report please visit the following section from Solar Heat Europe's website.
About Solar Heat Europe/ESTIF
Solar Heat Europe/ESTIF's mission is to achieve the prioritisation and acceptance for solar heat as a key element for sustainable heating and cooling in Europe and to work for the implementation of all necessary steps to realise the high potential of solar heat. With members in more than 15 European countries, Solar Heat Europe represents directly or indirectly over 90% of the industry, across the value chain.
Pedro Dias, Secretary General
pedro.dias@solarheateurope.eu
Deutsche WindGuard unlocks complex wind sites with ZX Lidars
With the introduction of a solution to allow the standalone use of wind lidar ZX 300 in complex terrain, Deutsche WindGuard has made a successful start to 2021. The new "ZX Complex Flow Solver" (ZX CFS) is the result of a joint development with the leading computational wind engineering organization ZephyScience, supported by lidar OEM ZX Lidars. Fully based on computational fluid dynamics (CFD), ZX CFS identifies, quantifies and resolves the relative differences between lidar and cup anemometer measurements witnessed in complex terrain.
"Deutsche WindGuard has been supporting lidar applications since 2004," says Johannes Cordes, Wind and Data Analyst at Deutsche WindGuard's Wind Resource Assessment team. "While stand-alone lidar measurements in flat terrain have already had a high acceptance in the past, we see the particular challenges of stand-alone measurements in complex terrain well addressed and appropriately treated with the ZX CFS application. The design and structure of this service provides the best available solution for bankable wind resource and energy yield assessment based on stand-alone lidar in complex terrain."
In complex, non-benign terrain, the assumption of homogeneous flow conditions within the measurement volume introduces differences between lidar and cup anemometer. The Complex Flow Solver algorithm developed by Deutsche WindGuard is optimized for ZX Lidars' wind field reconstruction. Incorporating results from a high-resolution CFD model, it derives a set of conversion factors. Applied to the volume-based wind data from Continuous Wave Lidar ZX 300, which samples 50 measurements points per second, these conversion factors produce single point measurements equivalent to those of a cup anemometer installed at the same location.
ZX CFS even provides guidance on where to install the lidar initially to achieve the lowest possible uncertainties. Cloud computing delivers fast, transparent and accurate results.
Uncertainties associated to inhomogeneous flow conditions within the measurement volume according to IEC 61400-12-1 Ed. 2 (2017) L.4.5 can thus be reduced significantly. This widens the usability of ZX 300 wind lidar standalone deployments for wind resource assessments in complex terrain with no additional onsite met mast.
Romania | Hidroelectrica buy Crucea Wind Farm
On end of December 2020, STEAG GmbH ("STEAG") and Societatea de Producere a Energiei Electrice in Hidrocentrale Hidroelectrica S.A. ("Hidroelectrica") signed an agreement concerning the sale of STEAG's shares in Romanian subsidiaries Crucea Wind Farm S.A. ("Crucea Wind Farm") and STEAG Energie Romania S.R.L. ("STEAG Energie Romania") to Hidroelectrica, following a highly competitive process which involved both local and international bidders. The transaction will complete in accordance with conditions stipulated in the agreement.
Hidroelectrica is focused on diversifying its production by adding high-quality renewables capacities to its portfolio, as part of the company`s recently approved development strategy. The company restates its objective of remaining 100% green throughout the portfolio diversification process.
Developed by STEAG and commissioned in 2014, Crucea Wind Farm is one of the most modern and best-maintained onshore wind farms in Romania with an installed capacity of 108MW.
Blue Pearl Energy's presence in the French energy ...
Waga Energy and Meridiam secure refinancing of fou...
EBRD invests US$75 million in sustainability-linke...
PPC accelerate investments in renewable energy in ...
Office of Sustainability and the Green Economy at ...
New Study by Leading Renewables Consultant ArcVera...
Waga Energy to deploy its break-through landfill r...
Urban design: PowerNEST and OpenRemote take sustai...
16th World Bioenergy Congress and Expo. April 26-2...
Actis chooses WinJi's software platform to maximiz...
ArcVera Renewables Achieves IECRE Approval for Win...
Deutsche WindGuard unlocks complex wind sites with...


text:
Gangs chase fleeing Central American migrants, children
Posted @ 7/16/2014 by Jay | Files in News
CNS PHOTO | DAVID AGREN
A Salvadorian policeman holds an infant who arrived back in San Salvador from Mexico.
DAVID AGREN
Giovani Melendez, 31, fled San Salvador, the capital of El Salvador, with his family, setting out suddenly on a search for safety in the United States after gangs demanded growing extortion payments he was unable afford.
The family – Melendez, his wife, and children, ages five and 12 – only made it to the southern Mexican state of Chiapas, where officials stopped them and sent them back to El Salvador.
"The main motive for leaving is insecurity," Melendez, an auto painter by profession, said after arriving back on a bus carrying families and children – including infants.
"I was doing well here with no problems" or plans to leave, he said. "But (the gangs) wouldn't let me work."
Emigration from El Salvador has been common in past decades; civil war and poverty prompted many to pull up stakes and flee for far-flung corners of the world. Efforts at reunifying families made many more follow.
But Central America is experiencing another outflow, as many minors attempt to escape violence or reconnect with their parents who support households they have not seen in years. The parents hope the law will look kindly upon children arriving in the United States.
Central American deportees describe desperation in their daily lives, in which violence is reaching intolerable levels and increasingly impacting children, who can be killed for coming from the wrong gang-controlled neighbourhood, or forced into lives of crime as gangsters.
"They roughed me up," said Oscar Mancilla, 17, another deportee waiting to be processed. "(The gangs) ask you to join, even if you don't want to."
The violence is forcing some families across Central America to send their children unaccompanied toward the United States; sometimes they pay a smuggler to accompany them.
Often, though, they often just wish the youngsters well as they steal rides through Mexico, where the risks range from robbery to rape to having their limbs cut off by the northbound trains they ride.
CHASING HOPE
Migrants now leave Central America with something new, however: hope, especially that this time the children arriving will receive asylum or permission to stay, even though there has been no change in U.S. policy.
Coyotes – human smugglers – are likely responsible for such rumours.
"It's a lie, but it's been propagated throughout the country," said Carlos Flores Pinto, director of the border project at Casa Alianza (Covenant House) in San Pedro Sula, Honduras.
"Mothers and fathers decided this is the opportunity to save their children or, if they (parents) were already (in the United States,) the chance to see their kids again," he said.
Those children have created concern for U.S. officials. U.S. Customs and Border Protection says it has detained 47,017 unaccompanied children from October 2013 through May 2014, an increase of 92 per cent from the same period a year earlier.
Crisis could describe "three of the region's poorer countries (offering) little economic opportunity for an increasingly younger population," said Mike Allison, an expert on Central American politics at the Jesuit-run University of Scranton, Penn.
The northern triangle of Central America – Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala – includes three of the most violent countries in the world, with the murder rate in Honduras topping 90 per 100,000 residents, according to the UN office on Drugs and Crime. The rates are roughly half as high in Guatemala and El Salvador.
Honduras has struggled since a 2009 coup, which ushered in instability and allowed drug cartels to subsequently take advantage of the increasing instability and impunity to use the country as a transit point.
Gangs also grew in power, while a disease known as coffee rust wiped out the most recent coffee crop, throwing hundreds of thousands of poor Hondurans out of work. But no one reason explains the exodus of children, said Juan Sheenan, country director for Catholic Relief Services (CRS), the charitable arm of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.
El Salvador has experienced a similar story of poverty and violence, especially with gangs, which have their origins in the Salvadoran immigrant enclaves of Los Angeles and were brought back with deportees in the 1990s.
TRUCE FOLDS
A gang truce produced a pause in the violence by driving down the homicide rate by 40 per cent in recent years – but the truce has since unraveled.
"In any place we go, there's violence. On top of that, there's enormous poverty, which generates more violence," said sales representative Rafael Ardon, 22.
Rick Jones, CRS deputy regional director for global solidarity, justice and growth in Latin America and the Caribbean, has heard horror stories, too: children hiding at home because gangs threatened them at school, an estimated 130,000 people internally displaced due to violence, and a woman who had gangsters demand she hand over her two daughters – to be their girlfriends.
"She left the next day," Jones said of the woman, who was recently deported back to El Salvador, but was likely to leave again.
TRY, TRY AGAIN
"Eighty per cent turn around and head right back," he said of deportees.
Melendez expressed uncertainty about heading out again. He once owned a business painting cars and doing bodywork, but gangs started asking for extortion payments. One-hundred-dollar monthly payments became $200, in a country where the minimum wage is slightly more than $300 per month. Then came the threats.
"The gangs know more about you, your family . . . than anyone else," he said.
He sold his business immediately to pay for a trip to the United States, taking 30 cents on the dollar by his estimation. Relatives came by the house to claim personal items the Melendez family could not carry on their backs.
Where he will go next remained uncertain. "I need to find a faraway family member," he said.

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaCommonCrawl


text:
LISTEN: A Conversation With Flanagan
The Rotunda #155 6/18/18 - Joe Flanagan, city council candidate in Pawtucket, makes his Rotunda debut tonight as he calls in to talk about his campaign to unseat a long time city councilman. A refreshing look at a hardworking resident who is truly interested in public service not for what's in it for him, but what he can do to help his community.
In the first segment, Scott is in rare form as he goes off on the latest TV celebrity to have his career jeopardized by accusations of misconduct. Is it a good thing that we hold people accountable for their actions now, or have we gone too far, swinging the pendulum from victim blaming all the way over to #MeToo McCartyism, where even a whisper of wrongdoing ends a career? If so, is there anyone among us who is not in danger?
Hit Play
To Listen
The Rotunda


No reviews for Picco EX Cute 1/12 Scale Fashion Doll: Moi Lumi Raili yet.
the price for Picco EX Cute 1/12 Scale Fashion Doll: Moi Lumi Raili drops.
Picco EX Cute 1/12 Scale Fashion Doll: Moi Lumi Raili is available.
there are new images or links available for Picco EX Cute 1/12 Scale Fashion Doll: Moi Lumi Raili.


text:
Press Release: NLG Announces Federal Defense Hotline
Contact: massdef@nlg.org
The National Lawyers Guild (NLG) National Office is launching a hotline for activists and lawyers to report incidents of federal repression, such as FBI "door-knocks" at activists' homes, grand jury investigations and subpoenas, and any other federal law enforcement efforts to undermine civil rights, including federal grab squads and the use of unidentified federal agents to police protests. The line is live at: 212-679-2811.
Since May, the NLG has continued to support the movement for Black lives, organizing to support legal defense efforts and provide Legal Observers for demonstrations. In the last week, we have seen the use of anti-protest shock troops by the federal government, such as Portland, where federal grab squads have arrested activists and taken them away from demonstrations in unmarked vans.
A memorandum from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) suggests that these officers are acting under the auspices of DHS and are members of the Border Patrol Tactical Unit (BORTAC). This is a unit typically tasked with high level law enforcement operations and it is formed under US Customs and Border Patrol (CBP). These officers are acting under direct orders from the Trump Administration and Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf.
The use of BORTAC to disrupt activism is a recent escalation by the federal government, which has also used the National Guard, FBI, and Secret Service in order to violently quell protests. These efforts come in combination with an aggressive political and legal strategy labeling 'antifa' a domestic terrorist organization. Federal prosecutors are also filing criminal charges against activists throughout the country.
The NLG Federal Defense Hotline will allow callers to have privileged conversations with attorneys, and to receive attorney referrals, know-your-rights information, and resources for responding to grand jury investigations and subpoenas. Inquiries about the line can be sent to massdef@nlg.org. The line is staffed by attorneys organizing with the NLG, and will remain active as long as federal prosecution efforts continue.
The National Lawyers Guild, whose membership includes lawyers, legal workers, jailhouse lawyers, and law students, was formed in 1937 as the United States' first racially-integrated bar association to advocate for the protection of constitutional, human and civil rights.
VIDEO: Federal Repression of Activists & Their Lawyers: Legal & Ethical Strategies to Defend Our Movements
The Role of Joy and Imagination in a Revolution
Imagine a world where Trayvon Martin was offered a ride home instead.
This sentence stopped me in my tracks last week. I found it in the last line of a poem (the author of which I was unable to find despite careful internet combing) and it took me several days to realize that these twelve short words hold the key to an abolitionist future.
The longer I have the privilege of learning about and working toward peace and justice, the more convinced I am of the power of imagination and joy in creating a future of liberation. James Baldwin writes: "in our time, as in every time, the impossible is the least that one can demand—and one is, after all, emboldened by the spectacle of human history in general, and American Negro history in particular, for it testifies to nothing less than the perpetual achievement of the impossible." Angela Davis echoes this by saying "you have to act as if it were possible to radically transform the world. And you have to do it all the time." Assata Shakur writes: "part of being a revolutionary is creating a vision that is more humane. That is more fun, too. That is more loving. It's really working to create something beautiful." And Audre Lord describes the "joy in living" as "one of our most potent weapons." At the intersection of all of these quotes, from four essential American voices, is the notion that joy and imagination play an integral role in the movement for peace and justice.
Imagining a world where Trayvon Martin could have been offered a ride home instead — and, in turn, imagining a world without police — requires us to envision a world we've never lived in. And this act, of striving for a future which we have never tasted, can only be sustained if its source is positive — if its source is joy. My sister and I often distinguish between the songs we like and the songs we love by asking each other whether the song "fills us up" when we listen to it. In these moments, we are recognizing music as a source from which joy springs and sustains us.
I am learning that it's not only a healthy personal practice to "follow your delight," as adrienne maree brown would say (here is a link to a Black-owned book supplier selling brown's book "Emergent Strategy," about how joy intersects with social activism), but it is in fact a critical element of effective resistance. In the same way that anger and individualism are drains to the soul, joy and collectivism are powerful nourishment.
Applying this to the current canvas of political and social activity, at the same time that the struggle for Black lives is receiving a record level of national and international attention, it also seems to be exhibiting many signs of a social media trend. And in the middle of a pandemic, our streets and physical workplaces — historically common sites of social change — have undergone rapid obsolescence. So how do we create a movement which grows in strength despite this time of social distancing? One which survives our waning attention spans and the grab-and-go design of internet culture? How do we open up a third space, necessitated by a pandemic and the inability to gather, where imagination and joy are the pillars of our interaction?
When I say that our source of resistance must be positive, I'm not talking about positivity as a personality trait. I'm not saying you have to be or act happy all the time. Grief, rage, and discouragement have important places in this work, too. I'm saying that in order to engage in the work of worldmaking, we must allow ourselves to be continually revitalized by that which fills us up. (Within the movement, Black folks are expected to achieve this while simultaneously fighting for their basic rights — white people must remember this when we think we're experiencing burnout from the work.) Adrienne maree brown names some of these sources of joy: good sex, delicious food, a fulfilling community, life's small coincidences, and love. At the center of revolutionary power is radical love. And in a capitalist system where we are taught to look out for ourselves first and foremost, love in essentially any form is already radical.
I wanted to write about joy, imagination and love during this critical time when the movement for Black lives has gained more momentum than I have ever seen in my lifetime. It seems that much of the activism currently trending only emphasizes concrete action steps, such as donating, attending protests, reading books, watching documentaries, etcetera. While these are no doubt crucial, it feels important to me to also reflect on the more abstract needs of a revolution. White supremacy culture values objectivity, overworking, and neglecting self-care — joy interrupts that. White supremacy culture encourages power-hoarding, defensiveness, and the idea that there is only one right way — imagination interrupts that. White supremacy culture teaches us to be individualistic, self-serving, and distrustful of each other — love interrupts that. Therefore, joy, imagination and love are revolutionary tools which actively defy capitalism and white supremacy. They are not merely helpful but essential ingredients for a new and better world — ingredients which Black theorists, activists, women and trans women have been using for centuries.
When James Baldwin, Assata Shakur, Angela Davis and Audre Lord wrote the words I quoted above, they were living in times that required them to imagine a world that then seemed unattainable. We have since heroized them for believing in the "impossible," but they were never doing that alone. Their work was grounded in a collective vision, along with many people who may never have risen to fame but who were crucial in bringing us to the world we live in today. And, right now, we are being called into a movement that requires the same collective and constant (re)imagining that characterized the transformative epochs in which these people lived.
Many of us, if we are white, are new to the concept of prison and police abolition. We must remember that Black organizers and activists have been envisioning it for a long time out of necessity. None of us have lived in a world without police (yet), so it is difficult to imagine what that world might look like. But, as Baldwin suggested, belief in the impossible must be a daily exercise. And, after all, how do we get good at anything? By practicing it constantly. We must rise each morning convinced by the viability of a future where our brothers and sisters and siblings aren't being murdered in the streets. We must practice joy, practice imagination, practice love. In doing so, we free ourselves, and each other.


text:
Nationaal park Exmoor, een nationaal park in het zuidwesten van Engeland
Exmoorpony, een kleine pony die in halfwilde kuddes leeft in Exmoor
 een civil parish van 82 km² in het district Somerset West and Taunton

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaWikipedia


text:
class CreateActivities < ActiveRecord::Migration
  def change
    create_table :activities do |t|
      t.string :name
      t.text :description
      t.datetime :start_time

      t.timestamps
    end
  end
end

redpajama_set_name: RedPajamaGithub