Green Energy Presents the Suntech 10 year Aussie Celebration!!

GREEN ENERGY SUPER SUNTECH 10 YEAR CELEBRATION PROMOTION!

Entry Is Open To

a) Customers who have had Suntech installed after 28th September 2011 and before 31st January 2012

b) Customers who have paid a deposit and placed an order with their solar installer for Suntech panels between 1st November 2011 and 31st January 2012

How To Enter

1. Click on the below 'Enter Here' button
2. Enter your details
3. Click 'Submit'

Don't forget to retain a copy of your installation receipt / invoice as a proof of purchase.

ENTER HERE!!

Ho Chi Minh City: The First Contest Of Vehicles Running On Solar Energy

   A competition of vehicles running on solar energy began October 24 in the high-tech zone in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam for the first time. This event is    a joint initiative of the Municipal Department of Science and Technology, Television in Ho Chi Minh City and the Energy Conservation Centre (ECC) in Ho          Chi Minh City.

Funded by the Danish Embassy in Vietnam, this competition brings together 42 teams from universities and companies in five provinces and cities of Khanh    Hoa (Centre), Ho Chi Minh City, Dong Nai, Binh Duong and Vinh Long (South).

These 42 teams were divided into nine groups and the competition will be concluded on the 1^st of December.

According to Huynh Kim Tuoc, director of the ECC in Ho Chi Minh City, the competition aims to attract public interest on the application of solar energy and strengthening its research. It is also an opportunity for individuals and organizations to apply their knowledge in the use of solar energy.

The winning team will attend the world finals held in Australia in 2012.

 
   Meticulous Preparations

Before the race started officially on October 24, the teams participating in the workshops took their time to refine their technological jewels.

According to Pham Xuan Hien, a teacher of the Faculty of Physics and Electronics, University of Natural Sciences in Ho Chi Minh City and head of the              Solar Car Team, “this competition can stimulate the creativity of students. They have the opportunity to design and implement solutions to optimize the              accumulation of solar energy. ”
The University of Transport and Communications has sent two teams, Green and Solar Car Vehicle. According to Cong Danh, teacher of Mechanics of the school, each team has its own creativity. He and another teacher were involved in the design; the remaining ten members are the students responsible for manufacturing.

Apart from nine candidates from universities across the country, Solar Car Racing also has 23 companies specializing in solar power. Hoang Cuong, Chief Executive Officer of An Lac and senior member of the team ”joint venture An Lac – xanh Nang Luong“, said that after being informed about this competition, almost all engineers and workers of companies specializing in mechanics and repair cars were very happy to subscribe to satisfy their creativity and contribute to the fight against air pollution. ”We have cooperated with the company Nang Luong xanh to participate in this contest. If the weather is optimal, our vehicle can travel at 40 km/h,” he informed.

Nguyen Viet Nam is a member of the television team from Ho Chi Minh City (HTV). He and his colleagues decided to participate “to find the joy of creativity during the school years.” They made a vehicle that complies with the rules of the ECC in Ho Chi Minh City, which can reach 20 km/h. winning or losing is not important to him. What he means is that the results of this competition are to help make other solar-powered equipment, such as the building where he works.

According to Dr. Le Hoai Quoc, head of the Management Committee of the high-tech zone in Ho Chi Minh City, technologies and inventions have always been interesting to young people. And in this century that will see the exhaustion of fossil fuels and large climate disturbances, solar energy is a key concern.

If you’re a fan of solar energy vehicles races and want to know more about it, you can go check our blog post about The World Solar Challenge Which took place in Australia!

Basma – Green Energy International Correspondent – 31/10/11

Biomass Is The Most Significant Source Of Renewable Thermal Energy In Germany

Germany’s position as a biomass energy resources user has been reinforced at the “Heat Production From Biomass” conference held on October 19, 2011 by the Federal Ministry of Food, Agriculture and Consumer Protection (BMELV) of Germany. On this occasion, 180 industry professionals in energy and science and policy experts were able to learn about the current situation of ​​the thermal energy scene in Germany and discuss the need to act soon in view of the Renewable Thermal Energy (EEWärmeG) new law expected in 2012. 

Indeed, in order to achieve the federal government energy objectives, the share of thermal energy produced from biomass should be significantly increased. "The heat generated from biomass is already responsible for about 9% of the total heat supply in Germany," said Peter Bleser, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Minister of Agriculture. 

92% of the renewable heat in Germany comes from the raw biomass and wood especially. This type of energy is the only efficient substitute available for fossil fuels and it can save annually about 36 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Biomass can also be considered as the most climate-friendly energy source. It is also regarded as the most versatile renewable energy source because it can be stored in solid, liquid or gas states and thus be available throughout the year. 

The positive effects of the biomass use for energy purposes should also be enrolled in the next EEWärmeG law. Modern boilers and heating systems in homes using biomass fuel are not pretty effective only but also environment respecting in isolated residential areas. "This is an exemplary energy at hand. The heating produced from biomass cannot be discriminated against in terms of renewable thermal energy law (EEWärmeG) compared to other renewable energy technologies", says M. Bleser. 

This is the main reason why the BMELV, as part of its strategy of sustainability funds, is going to release 50 million euros a year for research, development and commercialization of renewable raw materials. They’ve also set up a German Research Center On Biomass (DBFZ) in Leipzig. Action plans for energy consumption and sustainable raw material such as biofuels CO2 balance improvement have been developed too.

Basma - Green Energy International Correspondent - 28/10/11

The E-4 Ziegelhaus Solar House

(House Concept)

Sustainable construction projects are not lacking in Austria. And today we’re going to direct the spotlight on one of them and that is the "E-4 Ziegelhaus 2020" solar house ("Ziegel" means "tile"), which promises an energy balance and a positive CO2 balance.

Collaboration between Wienerberger and TIAs
This is a concept of a two-story house with an optimized energy consumption, this house is being built in the small town of Zwettl in Lower Austria, which is known for being one of the coldest areas in Austria - the temperatures frequently go down below twenty degrees Celsius in winter. Thus, manufacturers can determine if the concept is effective even in such an environment. At a cost of the normal prices in the area (i.e. around 1700 euros per square meter), this house does indeed consume only little energy - and this energy does come largely from the house itself: the solar thermal energy is used for hot water and heating (in this case supplemented by a boiler) and photovoltaic cells.

The field implementation does not allow optimal solar exposure. This is why the building's architecture is adapted: the roof is rotated relatively to the body of the building while the solar collectors are installed on a slope at 60°. This arrangement allows us to reflect most of the solar radiations in summer, to capture as much power as possible in winter when the sun is low in the sky and drag the snow itself so that it obstructs no floor space. And at the heart of the house, lies a storage tank of 9600 liters, where water can be heated to a maximum of 38° C. Great!

According to calculations made by the Austrian Institute Of Technology (AIT, the largest research organization outside the university in the country), this house needs 39 kWh per square meter per year for heating. The total energy consumption (including electricity) is estimated at 71 kWh per square meter per year - while it should produce 73kWh at least. At the same time, the carbon must be slightly positive during the use of this accommodation. The comparison with the results of the calculations will be done in three years: the owners will move in the summer of 2012 and will have to measure the two years energy parameters and compare them to the simulations.

This project, led by Wienerberger (Austrian company employing approximately 12,000 people, including world leader in the manufacture of bricks), has more than a dozen partners and supporters.

Basma - Green Energy International Correspondent - 26/10/11

The World Solar Challenge, Go!

The start of the 2011 World Solar Challenge, the World Championship Of Solar Car, was given on Sunday, October 16. Participants had to cross Australia from the north to the south, which was more than3000 km from Darwin to Adelaide. Among the participants was a Belgian car: the Umica and a Taiwanese car: Appollo VI that stood out.

The Taiwanese Participation

It was a team from a university supported by Taiwan's AU Optronics company that could mold solar cells into a solar car, named Apollo VI!

The way this car works is truly fantastic as the solar energy is captured by the performing monocrystalline cells (23%) "Back contact”, which covers an area of ​​6 square meters. 

The ultimately flat craft carries a single passenger (the driver) at a speed of 80 km/h with a possible peak of 120 km/h! For 130 pounds, the car has a length of 4.70 meters and a width of 1.80 meters and a height of 1.10 meters.

The aim of the team of 20 students from the National Kaohsiung University of Applied Sciences is to visit Australia to participate in the louse WSC famous race, the World Solar Challenge, with about forty other competitors! Great challenge in perspective...

The Belguim Participation

Organized for the first time in 1987, the World Solar Challenge was a biennial competition through which young engineers envisioned the future of mobility. Vice-world champion in 2007 but forced to retire in 2009 after a collision, the Umicore Solar Team returns in 2011 with big ambitions. Competition was fierce; including students from Stanford, but the Belgian team could count on the participation of Vanina Ickx.

For professional drivers, the World Solar Challenge was truly a challenge with solar vehicles behaving so strangely different (no accelerator pedal, etc.). Three other drivers made it to the team: Jeroen Moens (designer of the suspension and brakes), Boudewijn Sarens (designer of solar panels and electronics) and Claes Brecht (who formerly dealt Umicore Marketing).

In 2009, the winners had fallen at an average speed of 100 km/h, against 90 km/h in 2007 and this year, due to an unpredictable weather announced during the first part of the course, cars speed tended toward the average speed of 2007. 

That said, The Umicar Imagine car was capable of giving a peak speed of 120 km/h.

How It went

Thirty-seven teams from twenty different countries have developed vehicles that will cross the finish line using only the sun's energy. This technology has evolved since 1987 which was the date when the first World Solar Challenge race took place. As along with improving the efficiency of photovoltaic cells (most silicon-based this year) and batteries, the average speed of the winner has risen up from 67 to 95 km/h over this year.

During the first stage, only 25 teams managed to cross the checkpoints in time. After twenty-nine hours and forty-five minutes was the team from the University of Tokai, Japan, who won for the second year in a row. Equipped with silicon solar cells with a yield of 22%, the three-wheeled carbon shelled vehicle had traveled the route at an average speed of about 100 km/h.


Basma - Green Energy International Correspondent - 24/10/11

After The Revolution: Tunisia Creates a green industry to generate Green Jobs

It is important to remember that there are important reasons to promote renewable energy; it contributes to energy security and has a beneficial impact on the environment. 

On the other hand, some of these reasons are purely economic:
• Industrial competitiveness.
• Development of a strong green industry for the local market and exportation.
• Regional Economic Development.
• Job creation.

Employment positions created are spread over a range of sectors, which are mainly private entities:
• the development and manufacturing.
• The construction and installation.
• The operation and maintenance.
• The strategy of export of goods and services worldwide.

In the case of Europe, job creation falls in the range of 1.66 million. The estimations say that 2.463 million jobs are going to be created by the year 2020.

In the case of Tunisia, the annual increase in the energy needs is within the range of 7%, which is the equivalent of 200 megawatts per year. This increment requires a heavy investment from the state which can be amounted to hundreds of millions dinars. 

While trying to discuss this issue, some people have proposed the following:

To develop a green industry that can generate thousands of job positions and reduce the Tunisian government commitments, 50 of the 200 megawatts of annual growth have to be generated from private Tunisian companies to encourage them to produce green and renewable energy only in areas that are identified by the State. 

The 50 megawatts will take the form of small plants of a few megawatts each, dedicated to industrial zones (these zones don’t exist yet, but they are coming soon HOPEFULLY). In these regions, the State will encourage the installation of engineering offices, installers and maintenance services for these plants.

STEG (Tunisian Society of Electricity and Gas) will handle the distribution of this energy and give a well-studied “Feed In Tariff”-“FIT” that will allow private businesses to recover their investment and profit over the next medium term. Currently, the STEG is reluctant to apply a FIT beneficial for private investors in Tunisia which is the main reason why the renewable energy industry could not take off. According to their analysis, the STEG is being reasonable when thinking about the costs of KW and the state compensation when it fails in the long run. 

In this case, the state will pay more by:

a) The blocked funds invested by the State in areas of conventional energy, which could be invested in other sectors.
b) The positions of potential jobs are to be lost due to the non-development of the green industry with its integrated components of consultants, installers, labor, etc...
c) With the price of a barrel that can reach $ 200 one day, the bill the state will pay will be greater than the premium subsidy FIT it gives to a private company to develop a green industry.

On the other hand, this approach has enabled the success of this industry in Germany (with 300 000 positions and jobs created), especially in the disadvantaged regions of the former GDR. The green energy industry employs mainly graduates with immediate solutions to youth employability and future opportunities for economic and technological influence of Tunisia on the international stage.

So what do you think? Will the political and social Tunisian revolution expand to cover the renewable energy? And if it does, will it be a success? Stay tuned!

Basma - Green Energy International Correspondent - 21/10/11

The Largest Solar Power Plant In The World Powered By 636 000 Modules By Canadian Solar

The Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ), a leading global player in the photovoltaic solar energy production, has provided 636,000 solar modules for the largest photovoltaic complex in the world, located in southern Brandenburg, Germany. Canadian Solar and its two partners, Saferay and GP JOULE, provided 148 MW of the 166 accounts that this park possesses. The base power of the 78 MW system was guaranteed by Saferay. The park is expected to produce enough green energy to meet the energy needs of nearly 50,000 homes. It was inaugurated by Matthias Platzeck, Minister President of Brandenburg, on September 24. The ceremony took place at the site of the photovoltaic Senftenberg.

During his speech, Mr. Platzeck presented his thanks to corporate partners of the project, stating that "large-scale photovoltaic power plants, such as Senftenberg and Schipkau play a major role in energy supply in Germany and help accelerate the energy shift desired. Brandenburg is at the forefront of renewable energy in Germany, giving it their full support and promoting it, which allowed it to be recognized as the best land (federal state) for renewable energy." The photovoltaic plant is a further evidence of the relevance of Germany for projects of this size, an opinion shared by Andreas Fredrich, Mayor of Senftenberg, stated that "thanks to the large number of former mining sites and existing power grids, our region is the ideal place to host large photovoltaic systems."

Dr. Shawn Qu, Chairman and CEO of Canadian Solar, said, meanwhile, another major asset for many communities, "cities and communities do not only get an environmental benefit but they can also benefit from the income from the taxation of solar parks, or incentive rates when operating them themselves. In addition, projects such as this have a positive impact on the local economy since most construction contracts and operations are carried out by local businesses. We are delighted to have contributed to the economic development of Brandenburg. "

The central Senftenberg II / III plant was built in three months on 200 hectares of former mining site Meuro. This site, owned by Agrargenossenschaft Großräschen eG coop., Can accommodate up to 330,000 crystalline photovoltaic modules. "The project Senftenberg, can demonstrate that the development and construction of large Photovoltaic systems are faster than for any other type of plant. Thus, even in a country like Germany, which has a lower sunshine duration, we are able to produce energy cheaper than offshore wind farms ", says Dr. Marko Schulz, CEO of saferay GmbH.  The project funding, required a budget of nearly 150 million EUR which was provided by three German banks. Saferay holds two thirds of the investments and operations.

The effort to develop this solar park has drawn Unlimited Energy GmbH, a developer of projects in Berlin. In addition to working on the legal framework of the project, Unlimited Energy GmbH has also focused on the issue of environmental protection during the studies of plant design. Torsten Kasch, CEO of Energy Unlimited GmbH, explains that "we have defined an area of ​​24 hectares only for larch, outside the PV Park. In addition, the rows of PV modules are protected by splendid windbreak belts and green belts that can become a habitat for birds and other wildlife. Similarly, we have attached particular importance to the protection of plants and animals in our thinking about the concepts of site maintenance. "

About Safery GmbH

Saferay GmbH builds and finances power plants and operates essentially to clean and actively contribute to the development of future energy concepts of the world's largest markets. The company has installed a capacity exceeding 350 MW.

About Unlimited Energy Gmbh
Unlimited Energy GmbH is a promoter of renewable energy projects, particularly in the photovoltaic and wind power. The company, whose headquarters in Berlin, specializes in assembling solutions that meet the special requirements of large scale projects and already has to its credit the development of solar and wind farms of several hundred megawatts since its inception. Besides Germany, which is its main market, Unlimited Energy Gmbh is also present in Bulgaria in the development of renewable energy sector.

About Canadian Solar
Canadian Solar Inc. (NASDAQ: CSIQ) is one of the largest companies specializing in solar power worldwide. This manufacturer produces high quality of ingots, wafers, cells and solar modules, solar systems and customs which are used worldwide. Throughout the world, Canadian Solar provides its customers with products for solar installations connected to the network and stand-alone systems. With subsidiaries in North America, Europe, Australia and Asia, Canadian Solar is characterized by exceptional quality and cost effective solar solutions all by staying environment friendly and promoting sustainable development worldwide. You can find more information about this company at www.gewa.com.au

Basma - Green Energy International Correspondent - 18/10/11