Solar: James E. "Jim" Baak, is the director of policy for utility-scale solar for the Vote Solar Initiative

Geothermal: Dan Schochet, was the chairman for the Governor Gibbons’ Renewable Energy Transmission Access Advisory Committee for phase I and II; the treasurer for the Nevada Geothermal Council; and a member of the Western Governors Association, Clean Energy Development Advisory Committee. He is the vice president for Ram Power Inc.

Wind: Brian Palmer, is the vice president of Optimization and Control for GE Energy

Distributed Generation: Pending Election, Nevada Lead of the Solar Alliance

Electric Utility: Jack McGinley, is the renewable energy development director for NV Energy

Public Lands:  Dr. John Tull, is the conservation director for Nevada Wilderness Project

Labor:  James Halsey, is the membership development representative and the assistant business manager for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 357

Contractors: Matthew Frazer, is the officer of Nevada Chapter Associated General Contractors; officer/board member of National Electrical Contractor Association; trustee of Electrical Workers Health and Welfare Trust; trustee of the Electrical Workers Pension Trust; and trustee of the Cement Masons Pension Trust. He is the division manager for PAR Electrical Contractors, Inc.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory hosted a one-hour web presentation to discuss the new wind potential estimates and maps that were recently posted to the U.S. Department of Energy Wind Powering America Web site. You can see the Nevada map here.

Dennis Elliott, Marc Schwartz, and Donna Heimiller of NREL and Michael Brower of AWS Truewind discussed the methodology, products, and results of this project. Subjects covered in the presentation included the wind resource data used in the assessment, validation of the data, the approach and methods used to estimate the wind potential, and analysis of the uncertainties in the estimates. A question and answer session followed at the end of the presentation.

You can download the web presentation any time here.

With wind energy expanding rapidly, and with an increasing number of communities considering wind development nearby, there is an urgent need to empirically investigate common community concerns and thereby provide stakeholders in the siting process a common base of knowledge from which to work.  The concern that property values will be adversely affected by wind energy facilities is often put forth by stakeholders.  Although this concern is not unreasonable, given property value effects that have been found near high voltage transmission lines, landfills, and other electric generation facilities, the impacts of wind energy facilities on nearby home sales had not previously been investigated thoroughly.

The team of researchers for the project collected data on almost 7,500 sales of single-family homes situated within 10 miles of 24 existing wind facilities in nine different U.S. states, and that occurred between 1996 and 2007; the closest home was 800 feet from a wind facility.  The conclusions of the study are drawn from eight different hedonic pricing models, as well as both repeat sales and sales volume models.  A hedonic model is a statistical analysis method used to estimate the impact of house characteristics on sales prices.

None of the models uncovered conclusive evidence of the existence of any widespread property value effects that might be present in communities surrounding wind energy facilities.  Specifically, neither the view of the wind facilities nor the distance of homes to those facilities was found to have any consistent, measurable, and significant effect on the selling prices of those homes.  Though the analysis cannot dismiss the possibility that individual homes or small numbers of homes have been negatively impacted, it finds that if these impacts do exist, they are either too small and/or too infrequent to result in any widespread, statistically observable effect.

The final report can be downloaded here

WASHINGTON – Obama Administration officials today released a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by nine Federal Departments and Agencies to make it faster and simpler to build transmission lines on Federal lands.  The goal of the agreement is to speed approval of new transmission lines, reduce expense and uncertainty in the process, generate cost savings, increase accessibility to renewable energy and jumpstart job creation. 

The Las Vegas valley sees wind almost everyday. So why not harness it to power a house or business? That's what one valley company is doing and they hope others will too.

Steven Stoney, manager of NV Energy's renewable energy program, is overseeing the installation of a 30-foot wind turbine at a Las Vegas metal shop. "I think it's an exciting thing to see the wind generating energy," he said.

Read the full sotry on Las Vegas Now

From Lee Plemen, AICP, Planning Director, Carson City Planning Division:

The Board of Supervisors introduced the small wind turbine ordinance on June 18, 2009. A copy of the ordinance that will be going for adoption by the Board of Supervisors on July 2, 2009, is attached. The ordinance would become effective after the July 2nd meeting, if adopted at that meeting.

The only minor changes that were made to the version of the ordinance as recommended by the Planning Commission were to 18.05.080(2)(h)(i) clarifying that the lower noise standard applies to properties of "one acre or less" and clarifying that malfunctioning units exceeding the required noise limits must not resume operation until they meet the noise standards.

This $24 million program initiative will fund consortia between institutions of higher learning and industry that will perform focused research on critical wind energy challenges. DOE intends to award 2-3 grants. The maximum range of a DOE award will be between $8-12 million. Applicants must provide at least a 10% cost share of total project costs including at least 20% for R&D. DOE funds will be provided under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 to preserve and create jobs, promote economic recovery, and provide investments needed to increase wind energy R&D.

Applicants need to address two complementary areas:

1. Partnerships for Wind Research and Turbine Reliability: Universities in regions of the country in a Power Class 3 at 50 meters or greater wind region with consistent wind resources throughout the year are encouraged to team with industry partners to establish facilities/equipment and a research agenda necessary to study major challenges facing today's wind industry. Proposals that address one or more challenges described in the "20% Wind Energy by 2030" report and include descriptions of how the wind hardware and software purchased will be acquired. DOE will highly encourage research in "turbine reliability" as a topic in any consortia proposal.
2. Wind Energy Research & Development: University R&D to advance material design, performance measurements, analytical models, and leveraging partnerships with industry to improve power systems operations, maintenance or repair operations, wind turbine and/or component manufacturing, and interdisciplinary system integration. Fellowships, internships, etc. may be used to support the research agenda. Universities are encouraged to partner with the wind industry in defining their R&D agenda, developing their curriculum, and intern partnerships.

The announcement includes instructions for a letter of intent requirement and the FOA application. Only those applicants who submit a letter of intent are eligible to submit final applications under this announcement. Applicants who have not submitted a letter of intent will not be considered for an award. The applicant and consortium members may only submit a letter of intent and FOA application on one team. Letters of intent are due by June 16, 2009 and FOA applications are due by July 30, 2009.

Hear Nevada business leaders discuss how the stimulus package will help create green jobs in Nevada

http://www.ktvn.com/Global/story.asp?S=9875324

and

http://www.kolotv.com/news/headlines/39883617.html

On February 27th at 10:00 a.m. Mountain, 9:00 Pacific the Regional Wind Energy Institute will hold a "Workforce Training for Wind Energy Careers:  How the West is Preparing Workers for the Green-Collar Economy" webcast.

Fair, whose previous title was executive, Renewable Energy, has been in charge of the company’s growing renewables energy department since February 2006. He joined NV Energy as director of Environmental Affairs in 2004.

Geraghty’s previous title was executive, Generation, a position he has held since joining the company in June 2008.

Both Fair and Geraghty, who continue to report to Roberto Denis, Senior Vice President, Energy Supply, have extensive utility industry experience.

The company still plans to proceed with the construction of a 250-mile transmission line to electrically link northern and southern Nevada and will seek approval from the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada (PUCN) to accelerate its development.  The proposed transmission line, which was part of the company’s original plan for the Ely Energy Center coal plant in White Pine County, will be designed to transport electricity from renewables and other energy production facilities in both northern and southern Nevada.

The wind turbine ordinance has been removed from the Board of Supervisors agenda for February 19, 2009, by the City Manager in order for further evaluation of the ordinance to occur with regards to compliance with State law and city requirements. The ordinance is tentatively scheduled to be on the Board of Supervisors agenda for the March 5 meeting.

LAS VEGAS – NV Energy (NYSE:NVE) and Renewable Energy Systems Americas Inc. (RES Americas) are moving forward with development of the China Mountain 200-megawatt (MW) wind-energy project in northeastern Nevada and southern Idaho. Earlier this year the companies finalized a joint development agreement and NV Energy recently closed on its purchase of a 50% interest in the project development which was contemplated under the agreement.

The China Mountain project is proposed for a location at the Nevada/Idaho border on a combination of federal, state and private lands. Construction of the project to serve NV Energy's electric customers would be conditioned on grants of rights-of-way (ROW) by respective landowners and approval by the Public Utilities Commission of Nevada. Consideration of ROW applications for federal lands includes analysis of the environmental impacts of a proposed project.

"Tapping into the wind resources in Nevada fits well within NV Energy's strategy of being the premier energy supplier in Nevada for Nevadans," said Michael Yackira, NV Energy President and CEO. "We will continue to expand our leadership position in renewable energy by investing in and developing projects to provide the most affordable and clean energy to our customers."

GeoCommunicator provides searching, accessing and dynamic mapping of the following BLM activities:

• Oil, Gas, and Geothermal Leasing
• Coal and Other Solid Mineral Leasing
• Rights-of-ways (power, water, communications, roads, railways, pipelines, wind and solar energy)
• Mining Claims (unpatented)
• Land Use Permits
• Mineral Materials, community pits
• Land & Mineral Title
• Land Withdrawals & Classifications
• Range Allotments and Pastures, Allotment reports
• Federal Surface Management Agency boundaries
• Subsurface Mineral Estate
• Public Land Survey System - PLSS (township, range, section, lots, surveys)

Alternative energy advocates and residents opposed to giant wind turbines overlooking their homes in Warm Springs Valley are expected to square off when Nevada Wind’s proposed wind farm comes before the Washoe County Planning Commission on Tuesday.

With the wind turbines and transmission line built on private land and requiring no lengthy environmental studies, Nevada Wind partners Tim Carlson and John Johansen say their $190 million project should be the first utility-strength wind farm built in Nevada. Construction would start in 2010.

Read the full story in the Reno Gazette Journal.

The report titled “The Southwest Intertie Project: An Assessment of Potential Benefits” concludes that the SWIP will provide significant benefits to the Northwest and Southwest regions of the U.S and to the holders of SWIP transmission capacity.

The report further concludes that cost savings to utilities in the Southwest for renewable portfolio standard compliance could be between $195 million and $500 million annually before accounting for the cost of transmission.

NV Energy, formerly known as Nevada Power Company and Sierra Pacific Power Company, has issued a Request for Proposals (RFP) for renewable energy resources.

Proposals will be considered for solar, wind, geothermal, biomass and other resources eligible for portfolio energy credits under the Nevada renewable portfolio standard. Responses are due November 10,2008.

In an editorial discussing how Texas has decided to become the country's largest wind purchaser, the Reno Gazette Jounal stated, "If that road can be blazed in Texas, there's no reason Nevada can't be a renewable energy capital, too."

The Reno Gazette Journal has issued an editorial in support of Nevada Wind's 50 wind turbine project in the Pah Rah Range.

..."Nevada Wind wants to build as many as 50 wind turbines in Northern Nevada that could produce enough energy to power 125,000 homes. (Another project that involves Sierra Pacific is proposed for the Jackpot area.)

That's an idea that all of us, regardless of party, can support."

Nevada Wind's proposed wind project has been making news. The $300 million project will be built in the Pah Rah Range above Spring Valley.

Two Reno Gazette Journal articles describe the project in detail and provides quotes from the community supporting the project.

The Las Vegas Review Journal has also reported on the project.

In an effort to help pass the production tax credits (PTCs) for wind energy, the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) has joined with a broad network of affiliates to launch the "Clean Energy Now" campaign.

The campaign consists of an

• continuing efforts to promote media attention and editorial support;
• direct pressure on key swing senators through meetings, emails and calls (key targets are listed below);
• mobilization of key allies and activists in the business and environmental community;
• the major outreach effort at both Democratic and Republican national conventions;
• paid advertising with an emphasis on placements at the conventions and in Washington, DC after Congress returns in September;
• coordinated outreach to mobilize the many supportive governors; and
• a major Washington, D.C. lobby day for wind industry CEOs on September 17.

To learn more about AWEA's efforts to pass the PTC, visit the AWEA web site.

The USDA is moving quickly to implement the department's Energy Title Programs. It intends to issue program guidelines for two programs within the next three months to get them started for 2009:

• Biorefinery Assistance (loan guarantees for commercial-scale biorefineries)
  

   

• Rural Energy for America Program (REAP, formerly the "Section 9006" program) 

For REAP, the USDA will focus primarily on three areas:

• Audit/assessment program – REAP offers grants for third parties like universities and rural electric cooperatives to provide energy audits and renewable energy assistance.
  

   

• Feasibility studies – although REAP requires USDA to fund feasibility studies, the statute provides virtually no guidance on how USDA shall issue awards.
  

   

• Other improvements – USDA will accept comments on how to improve other areas of REAP from the previous Section 9006 program.USDA is focusing on these programs first because they have both mandatory funding AND deadlines for USDA to spend some or all of the funds by early next year.

BroadStar Wind Systems has reached an agreement with JCPenney to install AeroCam wind turbines at the major U.S. retailer’s 1.6 million-square-foot distribution center in Reno, Nevada.

The pilot program will utilize BroadStar’s innovative, building-mounted AeroCam wind turbines, which capture wind energy and generate power more efficiently than conventional propeller and fixed-blade turbines. After installation is completed in November 2008, JCPenney will purchase electricity generated by the system from BroadStar. Read the full story here.

Three large wind power developers have applied for BLM permits to build a total of 900 megawatts of wind farms in Nevada.

The proposed projects include: Babcock & Brown's 250-megawatt Spring Valley Wind Project southeast of Ely; Mission Energy's 450-megawatt plant 30 miles north of Panaca, and RES America's 200-megawatt China Mountain Wind Farm 10 miles from Jackpot, near the Idaho border.

To learn more about these projects and about LS Power's 500 mile transmission project read Stephanie Tavares' "Blowin' in the Wind" story in In Business Las Vegas.

REE's Power Control Center





In May, members of the Bonneville Power Administration, California Independent System Operators, 3TIER Environmental Group and the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory visited Red Electria de Espana (REE). REE controls and operates the Spanish transmission system.

Upon returning to the US, the group published their findings in “Notes on Visit to Red Electrica de Espana (REE).”  The following excerpts are taken from that report.

The Spanish System depends strongly on hydro and combined-cycle power generation. The total generating capacity in Spain is 82,722 MW. Wind power amounts to over 10% of total electricity production (installed capacity 14,877 MW) with wind power production peaks of about 40% of demand.

Wind power production peaks of 10,800 MW versus valleys of only several hundred MWs have been observed. Maximum wind production ramps range from -785 MW/hr to 1,172 MW/hr. Intra-day swings reach 1,800 MW.

June 17, 2008—

"If 20% of the nation’s power came from renewable energy by 2020, which happens to be the same standard in Nevada but for 2015, we would create at least 185,000 new jobs and actually save consumers $10.5 billion in lower electricity and natural gas bills,” Reid said. “The West will need 7,500 miles of new transmission lines over the next decade to significantly expand renewable energy production. The Western Governors Association and the states of Nevada, Texas, Oregon, Colorado and California are beginning to consider how to connect renewable resources to transmission. This is responsible action, but their efforts will not be sufficient without more constructive Federal involvement.”

Wind could be generating up to one-fifth of the nation's electricity supply by 2030, a federal report shows, but while no such generation exists in Nevada, utilities are working toward that goal.

The report by federal Energy Department research labs and industry says getting to the 20 percent threshold, the portion of electricity now produced by nuclear plants, would pose major challenges but is achievable without the need for major new technological breakthroughs.

Indeed, the biggest challenge in Nevada is more geographical since wind is best harnessed atop mountains, said Todd Eagleston, a renewable energy development director for Sierra Pacific Power Co. in Reno and Nevada Power Co. in Las Vegas.

Read the full story in the Reno Gazette Journal.

Energy Department Report Calls for 75,000 New Wind Turbines, New Transmission Lines

Wind power could provide 20 percent of the nation's electricity by 2030, according to a report released Monday by the Department of Energy that advances a plan for the industry's growth.

Today, wind farms produce about 1 percent of the nation's energy needs. A 20 percent share would put wind on par with nuclear energy as an energy source.

In order to dramatically increase wind energy output, the report calls for about 75,000 new wind turbines and a new network of transmission lines to carry the power across the country.

Read the full story in the Las Vegas Review Journal. To learn more about the 20% Wind Power by 2030 initiative, including the transmission lines necessary to deliver the energy, visit the 20% Wind Power by 2030 web site.

One of the first steps in the implementation of Nevada’s new Small Wind Energy System Demonstration Program is the development of a training program to teach installers how to install small wind energy systems. To begin developing that program, Robert Buntjer, Assistant Director of the Electrical Joint Apprenticeship Training Committee of Southern Nevada recently attended a workshop at the Denver Joint Electrical Apprenticeship Training Center.

“Training, and the certification that comes from that training, will be critical to the success of Nevada’s new Small Wind Energy System Demonstration Program,” said Buntjer. “Our goal, and the goals of our National Electrical Contractors Association, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Southern Nevada Western Apprenticeship Coordinators Association, and College of Southern Nevada partners is to ensure that all Nevada’s small wind energy systems are installed safely and efficiently. We look forward to working with our education and training partners, small wind system manufacturer partners and national organizations like the North American Board of Certified Energy Practitioners to create the best small wind system training program possible.”

USDA Rural Development has released its Notice of Funding Availability for this year's Section 9006 clean energy grant and loan guarantee program.

One of the "sweet spots" for this program is small renewable energy projects that use well-known, reliable technologies. These smaller projects are allowed to submit a simpler application. An example of a successful small wind application can be found here.

The program rules are similar to last year's with a few changes.

At the February 2008 POWER-GEN Renewable Energy & Fuels conference, Nevada Senator Harry Reid delivered a major policy address about the importance of investing in renewable energy and how Nevada stands to benefit from the clean energy revolution.
 

• Consumer Choice.  Power companies should make renewable energy available to consumers and give them the option to power their homes from those sources at a fair and reasonable cost.
• Consumer Empowerment.  Consumers should have the ability to reduce their power bills by generating renewable power at home or at their business.  Consumers should also have the option to have a net meter installed at a fair and reasonable cost so they can get credit from their electricity provider for home generation.  
• Make Space for Renewable Energy.  The government should set aside significant tracts of federal land that are environmentally appropriate for renewable energy production.
• Encourage Investment in Nevada.  Provide strong incentives to utility companies to encourage them to invest first in energy efficiency and renewables.  
• Pave the Way for Electric Cars.  Build a smart power grid that can charge electric automobiles and store electricity to reduce our reliance on oil, including oil from unstable regions of the world.

Visit Senator Reid's web site to read the keynote speech.

Senior Director of Governmental & Public Affairs Gregory Wetstone of the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) released the following statement after the vote in the House of Representatives on a bill that includes an extension of the renewable energy production tax credit:

"The American Wind Energy Association, on behalf of our more than 1200 member companies, is grateful to House Leadership and the members of the House Ways and Means Committee for moving quickly to extend renewable energy tax incentives. With 116,000 jobs and $19 billion in clean energy investment at risk from the looming expiration of the widely popular renewable energy tax credits, it is clear that prompt Congressional action on the Renewable Energy and Energy Conservation Tax Act of 2008 is essential to one of the fastest growing areas of the American economy."

Nevada’s largest utility could meet the state’s growing energy demand without coal-fired power plants, according to a California environmental group.

Sierra Pacific Resources, parent company of Nevada Power, could keep the lights on with energy efficiency improvements and by developing renewable energy, long-distance transmission lines and natural gas plants, according to a report released Wednesday by The Energy Foundation in San Francisco.

Read the full story in the Las Vegas Sun. A copy of the Report can be found on the Reports page of this web site.

A former Nevada utility regulator is urging state leaders to consider alternatives to a coal-fired power plant at Ely, given uncertainty about whether the proposed plant will be built and growing demand for power in the Southwest.

Carl Linvill, an economist who served on the Public Utilities Commission and as energy adviser to former Gov. Kenny Guinn, made the recommendation in an 84-page report for the Energy Foundation, a nonprofit group with offices in San Francisco. Linvill works for Aspen Environmental Group in Sacramento, Calif.

Read the full story in the Las Vegas Review Journal. A copy of the report can be found on the Reports page of this web site.

A new state report calls for developing transmission lines so that geothermal, wind and solar energy can be shipped from remote areas of Nevada to cities.

Dan Schochet, chairman of the Renewable Energy Access Advisory Committee created by Gov. Jim Gibbons, said the document calls for Nevada to develop its vast renewable energy resources for in-state use and for export to other states.

Read the full story in the Reno Gazette Journal.