News

New Jersey and Arizona see surges in solar power generation. New Jersey's Board of Public Utilities announced that the state had generated 1 gigawatt of installed solar capacity. This makes New Jersey only the third state to reach 1 GW of solar, after California and Arizona. NJ.com reports:

Proving Texas isn't the only state with strong winds perfect for wind energy generation, Iowa set a wind generation record in 2012. Wind-generated electricity made up more than 24 percent of Iowa's total electricity generation in 2012. South Dakota generated 23.9 percent of its total electricity from wind, and other midwestern states like Kansas and Oklahoma weren't far behind. Fierce Energy reports on the overall wind power picture:

President Obama reiterated his commitment to advanced energy, releasing specifics on a proposed energy security trust fund he first introduced in his February State of the Union address.  In a speech at Argonne National Laboratory last Friday and in hisweekly address, the President sized the trust at $2 billion in support for advanced energy over 10 years, with funds derived from a portion of federal oil and gas royalty revenues.  Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), ranking minority member of the Senate’s energy committee, has also proposed such a trust, funded by expansion of drilling in areas now considered off limits. AEE CEO Graham Richard responded in support of the President’s proposal as optimizing federal resources to drive innovation and commercialization of new energy technologies rather than subsidize mature technologies.  

The following op-ed written by AEE CEO Graham Richard was featured in The Hill’s Congress Blog. To find out more about AEE's Federal Budget and Tax Reform Program, click here.

Britain's power generation capacity is aging, and the country expects to have to replace or update its nine aging nuclear plants over the next decade. One first step along that process is a new nuclear power plant, just approved for Hinkley Point in southwest England. The New York Times reports:

First session brought together advanced energy and utility executives to address challenges to rapid adoption of innovative energy technologies

Advanced Energy Economy CEO Graham Richard commented today on the release of more details around President Obama’s proposed energy security trust, which would provide $2 billion over 10 years for advanced energy research:

This is an excerpt from our weekly newsletter. To receive it in your inbox every week, click here. 

Transatomic Power is developing a nuclear reactor that could cut the cost of a nuclear power plant by as much as 50%. The reactor would be an "updated" molten-salt reactor, which are resistant to meltdowns. First demonstrated in the 1960s, the technology has never been widely used. The small reactor would be assembled in a factory rather than on-site. Technology Review points out its potential for cost-savings:

San Jose Mercury News // Mar 08, 2013