Earn your Certificate in Sustainability Management from the Sustainable Practices Program and CU-Boulder. Each single-day course provides training for professionals interested in create a more sustainable economy and career.
We are now enrolling for “Energy Legislation and Policy Analysis” on April 6, 2012. This course will focus on contemporary policies regarding renewable energy at a local, state and national level. Students will be trained in techniques for effective management of government legislation as it applies to their businesses.
Posted on behalf of the University of Colorado. Fun Fact: Bella Energy installed 99 kW of solar energy systems for the University of Colorado. Including a 40 kW array atop the Coors Event Center.
Construction on the 1.65 MW Salt Palace Solar Array started in early December, 2011. The project is moving along well and recently Bella Energy surpassed the 50% complete mark, as the project grows and excitement continues to build we’ll be posting updates on our progress.
Completed in mid 2011, Bella Energy provided the turnkey installation and financial consulting for a Sun Edison PPA with the City of Broomfield. The project is located at two sites; providing 189 kW of solar energy generation for the City.
The first is an 89 kW ground mounted array at the wastewater treatment plant. The second is a 100 kW ground mounted array for the Broomfield Detention Center. The array runs across a hilltop with highly variable terrain and very high wind speeds.
In 2011, Bella Energy completed 298 kW of solar for the City of Louisville. The projects provide power to the City’s water and waste water treatment plants. Each array is a 99 kW ground-mount system located on variable terrain surrounding the water treatment centers.
Bella Energy provided a turnkey installation and financing partners for the project, allowing the City to realize greater savings v.s. a conventional purchase.
Completed in the summer of 2011, Bella Energy’s 140 kW project with the City of Lafayette provides power to 2 unique sites. The project was completed thanks to PPA financing arranged by Bella Energy, allowing the city to realize solar power without negatively impacting the budget. The City of Lafayette project consists of a ground mount array at City Hall and a roof mounted system atop the Rec. Center.
In the winter of 2010, Bella Energy completed 198 kW of solar energy systems for the Town of Superior. Designed to cover over 8% of the Town of Superior’s electric consumption, the project covered 2 different sites.
The ground mounted 99 kW arrays are located at the waste water and water treatment facilities. Annually the systems produce more than 280,000 kWh of clean energy and reduce the Town’s electric costs by more than $14,000. In addition, the town receives $22,800 per year in renewable energy credit payments from the local utility. In total the Town’s investment will produce a perpetually positive cash flow in excess of $500,000.
Global reports have stated that “India is the top target for being the new Germany for Solar”. Several countries are looking toward the Indian market for new opportunities for manufacturers and renewable energy solution providers. Commercial solar installers and service providers are debating about which overall strategy that they should adopt since India policies differ from state to state and state to centre. Opportunities off grid, in grid, and micro-grid sectors and government grants need to be considered, as well as the long term commitment of the nation itself. Read the rest of this entry »
Already one of the leading developers of commercial solar panels in the world, Siemens Energy has now launched an innovative wind turbine at the EWEA 2011 wind power exhibition conference in Brussels. The main feature of the SWT-2.3-113 wind turbine is a small permanent magnet generator. The generator features a simple design that doesn’t need excitation power, control systems or slip rings, resulting in high power production at sites with low wind speeds. The turbine has a capacity of 2.3MW, and diameter of 113 meters. It consists of Siemens B55 Quantum blades, and requires only half of the parts that a conventional geared wind turbine would need. The blade improves efficiency and performance. Read the rest of this entry »
The 8.9-magnitude earthquake and horrifying tsunami in Japan caused explosions at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant northeast of Tokyo. This has caused alarm and placed a spotlight on the nuclear sector. Debates are hot and heavy over whether or not to let Germany proceed with their plans to extend their nuclear power plants. German Chancellor Angela Merkel decided it was in everyone’s best interest to delay the plans and declared a three-month stay until Japan’s problems are resolved. Due to the disaster in Japan, Frankfurt trading of shares in the two biggest German power companies, EON and RWE, showed a 6.43 percent loss at 21.60 euros and 5.21 percent at 45.43 euros. The DAX index on which they are listed was off by 1.75 percent overall. Read the rest of this entry »
The largest photovoltaic power plant in the Alpes-Maritimes was recently opened in Cote d’Azur by the Chamber of Commerce and ValSolar Industries, a commercial solar installer. The four solar buildings are fitted with 9,000m² of photovoltaic cells on the roof areas and cover a total surface area of 20,000m². The large construction site has just been completed in Nice St Isidore in the Eco Valley.
Nice Côte d’Azur, the building’s owner, along with the Chamber of Commerce and Industry, chose ValSolar to help them make necessary improvements on the buildings, such as waterproofing. After they install a photovoltaic production facility they will become Eco Valley’s first green energy producer. The facility will have 570kWp (kilowatts peak) of power which is equivalent to the yearly consumption of 260 homes or 630,000 kWh (kilowatt hours). The PAL is the region’s first Logistics Park to produce a solar project on that large a scale.
ValSolar is responsible for the installation, while the CCI provided the roof of the buildings which have a ten year guarantee that they will not leak and a twenty year maintenance agreement. This is ideal for local owners who can avoid the maintenance costs for their roofs and make them available to create local jobs for the area.
This solar program has inspired other in the region. Nice’s St-Isidore is just one of many initiatives that have been built by ValSolar in the Alpes-Maritimes. Some other large scale projects are currently underway in the towns of of Antibes (3000m²), Villeneuve Loubet (7 000m²), Vallauris (12 000m²), Cannes (8000m²), Mougins (5000m²), Carros (2000m²) and Saint André de la Roche (2000m²). This year, solar power plant installation and renovation projects in the region represent a total area of 45,000m of facilities that are fitted with commercial solar panels on the roofs. Read the rest of this entry »
