Current US Government Funding for Alternative Energy Projects
Department of Energy Awards $156 Million for
Groundbreaking Energy Research Projects:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 29, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy
has announced 60 cutting-edge research projects aimed at dramatically
improving how the U.S. produces and uses energy. With $156 million from
the Fiscal Year 2011 budget, the new ARPA-E selections focus on
accelerating innovations in clean technology while increasing America's
competitiveness in rare earth alternatives and breakthroughs in
biofuels, thermal storage, grid controls, and solar power electronics.
The projects selected are located in 25 states, with 50% of projects led
by universities, 23% by small businesses, 12% by large businesses, 13%
by national labs, and 2% by non-profits. Earlier, ARPA-E had awarded
$365.7 million in funds to approximately 120 groundbreaking energy
projects within seven program areas. This most recent round of
selections brings the total to 180 projects, 12 program areas and $521.7
million in awards at ARPA-E to date. Demonstrating the success ARPA-E
has already seen, the program announced this year that eleven of its
projects secured more than $200 million in outside private capital
investment.
Energy Department Finalizes $1.2 Billion Loan
Guarantee to Support California Solar Generation:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 30, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a $1.237 billion loan guarantee
to support the California Valley Solar Ranch Project, sponsored by
SunPower Corporation. The project, which is being built in San Luis
Obispo County, CA, includes the construction of a 250 megawatt
alternating current photovoltaic solar generating facility and
associated infrastructure. The project is also expected to avoid over
425,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide annually and produce enough to
power over 64,000 homes. California Valley Solar Ranch will be the
largest utility-scale PV project in the U.S. to utilize tracking
technology combined with an innovative monitoring system that will
improve annual output by approximately 25 percent compared with
traditional fixed PV installations.
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Energy Department Finalizes Loan Guarantee
for Transformational Rooftop Solar Project:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 30, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a partial guarantee for a $1.4
billion loan to support Project Amp. The solar generation project
includes the installation of approximately 752 megawatts of photovoltaic
solar panels, which is over 80% of the total amount of PV installed in
the U.S. in 2010. Project Amp will support the installation of solar
panels across approximately 750 existing rooftops owned and managed by
Prologis. The electricity generated from those panels will contribute
directly to the electrical grid. Solar installations will be built in up
to 28 states and the District of Columbia. Project Amp is expected to
generate enough clean, renewable electricity to power over 88,000 homes
and is expected to avoid approximately 580,000 metric tons of carbon
dioxide annually.
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Energy Department Finalizes $646 Million Loan
Guarantee to Support Innovative Solar Power Plant:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 30, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a $646 million loan guarantee to
AV Solar Ranch 1, LLC. The loan guarantee will support the Antelope
Valley Solar Ranch 1 Project, a 230 megawatt alternating current cadmium
telluride thin film photovoltaic solar generation facility that will be
located in Antelope Valley in North Los Angeles County, California. The
Antelope Valley Solar Ranch 1 Project will employ First Solar’s FS
Series 3 PV Module and will feature innovative inverters with voltage
regulation and monitoring technologies that are new to the U.S. market.
The facility is expected to generate over 622,000 megawatt hours of
electricity per year, equivalent to powering over 54,000 homes, and will
avoid over 350,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
==================================
Energy Department Finalizes Loan Guarantee to
Support California Solar Generation Project:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 30, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy finalized partial loan guarantees of $1.46
billion in loans to Desert Sunlight 250, LLC and Desert Sunlight 300,
LLC to support the Desert Sunlight Project. The 550 MW project is
expected to be one of the world’s largest solar photovoltaic plants.
The facility is expected to generate enough electricity to power over
110,000 homes and will avoid over 735,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide
annually. Project construction will take place in two phases: Phase I
will generate 300MW of power, which will be sold to Pacific Gas &
Electric Company, while Phase II will generate 250 MW of power, which
will be sold to Southern California Edison. The project will be located
on land managed by the Bureau of Land Management in eastern Riverside
County, California.
==================================
Energy Department Finalizes $132 Million Loan
Guarantee to Support the Abengoa Bioenergy Project:
U.S.
Department of Energy, September 29, 2011
The
U.S. Department of Energy has finalized a $132.4 million loan guarantee
to Abengoa Bioenergy Biomass of Kansas, LLC to support the development
of a commercial-scale cellulosic ethanol plant. The project is expected
to convert approximately 300,000 tons of agricultural crop residues,
including corn stover, into approximately 23 million gallons of ethanol
per year using an innovative enzymatic hydrolysis process. The project
maximizes the use of agricultural crop residues that would otherwise not
be utilized and uses feedstock that does not compete with feed grains.
Annually, the project is expected to displace over 15.5 million gallons
of gasoline, which will avoid over 139,000 tons of carbon dioxide
emissions. The project will be located in Hugoton, Kansas, about 90
miles southwest of Dodge City, Kansas. |