The Sun-Bag is rather straightforward in its approach, especially by proclaiming its solar powered status loud and clear. Its size is big enough to be of practical use, and it is actually more practical with the claim of being the “lightest solar energy bag available on the market.”
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There are a number of devices or solar chargers that offer to charge gadgets with solar energy. But most of them are impractical, to say the least. It is simply not possible or viable for most people to allow their gadgets to be placed in direct sunlight for the entire day. That is where the ReNu Modular iPhone charger scores, it does not require the user to keep the iPhone in the sunlight all day long to charge it.

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Solar Powered Robot Takes Various Shapes

The current challenge for mankind is to seek the advantages of alternative energy. We are not quite sure whether we have reached a level where we can actually use solar energy to entertain ourselves but, if someone creates an “android” based on the same theory, we’re going to hail the development first and than be caustic.

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A United States-based company is seeking to produce the tiniest solar cells ever made. Semprius, based in Durham, North Carolina, was inspired by research conducted by Professor John A Rogers and his team at the University of Illinois.

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Pacific Gas & Electric on Wednesday announced it has gone into solar-power contracts with Oakland’s BrightSource Energy to produce a total of 1,310 megawatts of electricity. That’s enough to power 530,000 California homes during peak hours— 12 noon – 7pm.

Solar farm by BrightSource Energy

Go California! Wait! Let me check my PG&E bill. Somebody has to pay for this.

The new agreement includes seven power plants. This is in addition to a deal the two companies struck in April 2008. In that deal 900 megawatts would come from solar thermal power.

BrightSource now has 2,610 megawatts under contract. The new PG&E contract is the largest. BrightSource folk say their output represents more than 40 percent of all large-scale solar thermal contracts in the United States.

“The solar thermal projects announced today exemplify PG&E’s commitment to increasing the amount of renewable energy we provide to our customers throughout Northern and central California,” senior vice president of energy supply for PG&E, said in a statement. “Through these agreements with BrightSource, we can harness the sun’s energy to meet our customers’ power requirements when they need it most — during hot summer days.”

CEO of BrightSource Energy, said the additional contracts came about after BrightSource showed off its technology in Israel with results that were “at or above all the specifications.”

“It proved to them that our technology works. They saw us executing and delivering” efficient solar energy production.

Gov. Schwarzenegger terminated in “more evidence that reliable, renewable and pollution-free technology is here to stay and sunshine will eventually power hundreds of thousands of homes and businesses across our golden state.”

Construction costs for BrightSource will be at least $3 billion and the facilities will be located in the southwestern deserts of California, Nevada and Arizona. The first plant, a 110-megawatt facility at Ivanpah in eastern San Bernardino County will begin operation by 2012.

What I want to know is who is going to pay for this? More specifically, how much will my PG&E bill be going up each month to fund this new venture?

Palmdale was set to be the location for a new international airport in LA. However, it never got off the ground. Today, however, there is good news! Apparently the authorities have finally come up with a plan for the location. The Los Angeles Department of Water and Power wants to install a solar farm on some 4,000 (largely undeveloped) acres of the land.

Palmdale Regional Airport

With solar power becoming the energy source of choice as the most effective and environmentally friendly way to power buildings, LA official have decided to set up a solar energy structure that can generate as much as 100 megawatts of environmentally friendly energy.

The whole plan looked like a good deal considering that a pending proposition requires Los Angeles to produce at least 400 megawatts via solar power by 2014. This project alone could provide 1/4 of the energy needed to meet the city’s goal. No problems, right?

Wrong!

If all passed with no complaints, Los Angeles could be well on its way to a cleaner and greener future.

But…but… is there anyone who could oppose such a fantastic proposition? Indeed there is. Apparently there are other activists who think it is unnecessary to build such a large solar power facility and want to use the land for something else.

It’s hard enough when the environmentalists and land grubbers can’t agree. It’s even harder when the environmentalists can’t agree among themselves, eh?

Image by gtarded

While the rest of the world is in an economic slump, Wal-mart keeps chugging along. It makes sense to me. When all else fails, which is the case these days, Wal-mart is still the cheapest place to buy anything … anything that the company sells.

Wal-Mart aims to buy the green power at prices equal to or less than traditional energy.

Wal-mart is about to put some life into the renewable energy market. The company announced on Earth Day that it plans to double the size of its solar power initiative in the next 18 months. Some 10-20 stores in and distribution centers in California will get solar panels on their roof tops. Sam already has solar set ups on 18 stores in CA and HI.

Wal-mart will save the equivalent of enough energy for 2,600 homes or keeping 4,000 cars off the road each year. Until Sam sells those cars, I suppose. And Wal-mart won’t buy the solar setups outright, but will instead pay only for what it uses under a 10-year power purchase agreement. The stores that use solar power get 20-30% of its electricity from above.

“The pilot program led us to the point that we believe in solar,” says Kim Saylors-Laster, Wal-Mart’s vice president of energy.

And, that is good news for the renewable energy market.

I wonder what Wal-mart thinks about nuclear power?

Tokyo will soon require domestic electricity companies to buy surplus solar power generated by households at about twice the current price.

The plan will come into effect as early as April the start of Japan’s new fiscal year. Tokyo wants to promote solar power as part of Japan’s efforts to cut greenhouse gas emissions.

“Japan has already led solar power technology in the world. With the scheme, we would like to firmly secure the lead.”

Japan’s utility companies now voluntarily buy surplus electricity from domestic solar panels. A bill will go to parliament to make buying mandatory for power companies at double the current price. Homeowners will be able to recover the initial cost of installing photovoltaic cell systems quicker and more homes will be encouraged to install solar panels.

Japan has pledged a 10-fold increase in solar power use by 2020 from today’s level and offer solar power systems at half the current price within four years.

Japan is badly behind in meeting its own targets under the Kyoto Protocol. With this new scheme, they will start catching up, or else.

Image courtesy of lcrf

 Not all is good news in the solar industry, and researchers are not helping …

Indian solar cell manufacturers were hanging out at the 18th International Photovoltaic Science and Engineering Conference & Exhibition. Yeah, they really do have conventions for this kind of thing. This one took place from Jan 19 to 23, 2009, in Kolkata, India.

India’s solar cell manufacturers all have plans to enhance production capacity, BUT, many of them are postponing their plans because of the ongoing global financial crisis.

Titan Energy Systems Ltd, is based in Hyderabad-based. The company makes solar modules. Plans to increase its annual production capacity from current 100MW to 500MW by the end of 2009 may have to be put on hold for about six months says the company.

Jupiter Solar Power Ltd, is a solar cell manufacturer that was established in 2007. The company originally planned to start manufacturing photovoltaic cells last year in November 2008. That date was postponed until February 2009 because of the financial crisis. Additionally, Jupiter Solar Power is delaying its production increase scheduled for 2010, until 2011.

Business is good for those in the solar industry … not so good for those trying to get in.

We hear that China is not very eco-friendly. That may be true in many regards, but not so when it comes to the builders of Asia’s largest railway station – Beijing South. The station is large enought to hold a 747, has a roof area the size of 24 football pitches, can send 30,000 passengers on their way each hour and needs only 150 people to operate. Best of all…the power for the facility is generated by 3,246 solar panels that sit atop a glass roof. This gives new meaning to what’s above a glass ceiling, eh?

China is investing $735 billion over the next 11 years to expand it’s railway system to reach 120,000km (70,000 miles). To think…if all the new stations are green. China has 150 projects under construction and eight more were announced last month.

China definitely takes a beating on environmental concerns, and many of them rightfully so. Can you say fossil fuel consumption and coal power? But, Beijing South is a step in the right direction.

You can find Beijing on a map of China.