Please can you put out a yahoo message that we are in need of immediate need for copywriters to help develop content for our website. These talents need to have specific experience in developing website content. They can contact me directly.

The presentation handouts from the DOE Sunshot 3.0 Event in Plano Texas a few weeks back are available online at:

http://solar30.org/handouts-from-plano-texas-workshop-now-available

For those working in the solar PV business, it’s an excellent overview and covering the NEC 2011, but also IBC, IRC and IFC.

The best way to go is a rooftop antenna placed in your attic, and then fed into your distribution system to the decoder.  I did these YAGI antennas for 35 years.

Travis Cagle

Commercial Business Development

Alternative Power Solutions

15150 Sommermeyer Street, Suite 100

Houston, TX 77041

Office: 713-595-6375 x 234

Fax: 713-595-6382

Cell: 713-594-8663

travis.cagle@...

apowersolutions.com | mytexassolar.com | mylouisianasolar.com

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This transmission (including all attached pages) is intended only for the use of the named address(es), and may contain information that is privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not a named addressee, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distributing or copying of this transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please destroy all copies and notify us immediately at this telephone number: (713) 595-6375. Thank you!

By Jennifer Runyon, Managing Editor, RenewableEnergyWorld.com
September 12, 2012 | 7 Comments

ORLANDO -- This afternoon at Solar Power International 2012, Former President Bill Clinton offered words of encouragement and admiration for solar companies in America and around the globe.

Addressing the crowd whom he acknowledged are “people who represent what I believe in,” the former president said that “creative cooperation” is the only way for industry to make big accomplishments at home and abroad. “There is not a single successful example on earth of a country that is succeeding who doesn’t have shared cooperation,” he said.

According to the Solar Electric Power Association’s Julia Hamm, who introduced Clinton, he had always wanted to speak at Solar Power International but his schedule and the show schedule were simply never aligned. This year, however, to the delight of show organizers SEPA and SEIA, he showed up in Orlando at precisely 4pm on Wednesday to address a packed auditorium.

In his speech, Mr. Clinton acknowledged that he was “preaching to the saved” but emphasized the dire need for the solar industry to set the record straight regarding the economic and environmental benefits that solar power and other renewables are already providing to various parts of the globe. He said that most Americans don’t know that Germany has netted 300,000 jobs in solar energy even accounting for the draw that the feed-in tariff has had on its economy. He said that most Americans don’t know how much public-private cooperation is already happening.

Clinton also said that most people don’t really know what happened to Solyndra, explaining that in his view, it was simply a failed start-up that couldn’t get to scale before it ran out of money. “I think a mistake was made by not having the industry as a whole offer a credible explanation [for Solyndra],” he later told Rhone Resch during a question and answer session. “People will accept the fact that DOE made a mistake,” he said. He also pointed out that most Americans don’t know that $22 are given in subsidies for fossil and nuclear energy for every one dollar given to renewables.

“These are things people need to know,” he said.

Speaking for more than an hour, Clinton touched on some of key projects he has spearheaded through the Clinton Global Initiative such as using solar power in Haiti to power schools and hospitals. He said that he had learned on a recent trip to Costa Rica, that the country is already mostly powered by clean energy (hydropower) and has plans to tap geothermal and solar energy in the near future. Clean energy is not just a race between China and U.S., he said, but rather it’s about people who are thinking about the future.

“You represent the future,” he told the audience, stating that in his view people working in the solar industry are lucky that they get to get up every day, look in the mirror and say ‘I’m going to make something good happen today.’

The solar industry is in the "future business" according to the former president, reminding the audience that the industry must do everything it can with what it already has in front of it. “It is a great mistake to worry about what will happen next year,” he said. “Good and bad things happen over a long period of time and just when you least expect it, you reach a tipping point,” he said.

“You are going to win this battle, the question is when and where and how,” he said.

Ralph Parrott

Founder and Director

Alternative Power Solutions

15150 Sommermeyer

Houston, Texas  77041 - *New*

O. 713-595-6375

F. 713-595-6382

C. 281-455-9083

www.apowersolutions.com

President

http://houstonrenewableenergy.org

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This transmission (including all attached pages) is intended only for the use of the named address(es), and may contain information that is privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not a named addressee, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distributing or copying of this transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please destroy all copies and notify us immediately at this telephone number: (713) 595-6375. Thank you!

By Doreen Hemlock, Contributor
September 13, 2012 | Post Your Comment

ORLANDO -- The solar industry in Latin America is starting to take off, aided by shrinking costs for photovoltaics and new government programs that facilitate business, experts said Wednesday at Solar Power International 2012.

The Latin American region of nearly 600 million residents holds great promise for solar, thanks to relatively high costs for electricity, ample sunlight and a fast-expanding middle class that is increasing its energy consumption, panelists said.

Puerto Rico, the U.S. Caribbean island of 4 million people, offers one of the best solar markets short-term. The island has ambitious renewable energy targets and offers both federal and local incentives for solar, said industry veteran Elias Behar, who runs Latin American sales for manufacturer SolarWorld Americas.

Chile, the South American nation of 15 million people that often ranks top for business in Latin America, also offers strong opportunities now. While its government offers no specific solar incentives, Chile has an open market and excellent sun to tap, especially in the Atacama desert, said Behar.

Brazil, the South American giant with nearly 200 million people, offers a more mid-term play instead. The country is setting up a net-metering program that will allow solar producers to obtain credits for energy sold to the grid. The government’s electricity agency expects to finalize details of net-metering this year, likely prompting a spike in solar business starting next year, said Jose Renato Colaferro, director of projects and operations for Blue Sol Solar Energy, a Brazilian distributor.

Brazil has only a small solar market now and is on pace to import just 5 MW of PV panels this year. Residential and commercial projects offer the best opportunities mid-term, but even then, small demonstration projects likely will be key to convince customers to invest in solar, said Colaferro.

“It’s not going to be quick. It’s not going to be explosive,” Colaferro said of Brazil’s solar future. “But it’s probably going to be much more organic and much more solid, when it starts.”

Mexico, with its 112 million residents, now has roughly 40 MW of installed PV, some of it from Walmart, the largest Mexican retailer. The country has started a net-metering program, allowing sales to the sole electric utility, the government’s CFE. But to gain approvals for solar projects, “put your patience hat on,” suggested Luis Cejudo, chief executive of Mexico’s Solargreen.

Financing remains a key challenge for Mexico’s solar industry, discouraging investment even when electricity can run 31 cents a kilowatt hour, triple the rates in nearby Texas, Cejudo said.

“it is easier to buy a car in Mexico now than to finance a PV system,” agreed Carlos Flores, managing director of Conermex, a Mexican distributor now expanding into Central America.

Panelists said they’re optimistic that financing options in Latin America will expand, as more U.S. and European firms look to the region to grow their solar business. Local banks and governments also may help with funding as the solar industry matures in countries south of the United States, they added.

In the meantime, veteran Behar warned solar newcomers to the region, “it’ a serious issue how to get paid.”

Ralph Parrott

President

http://houstonrenewableenergy.org

Siemens on Tuesday said it will reduce its US wind energy workforce by about 38%, citing adverse market conditions caused by federal policy uncertainties, price competition from natural gas and sluggish growth in electricity demand.

The move will affect 615 workers as follows: 407 at a rotor blade plant in Fort Madison, Iowa; 146 at a nacelle plant in Hutchinson, Kansas; and 62 more in Orlando, Florida. After the move is completed, about 220 workers will remain in the Iowa facility, 152 in Kansas and 150 in Florida.

Siemens also has a wind research and development center in Boulder, Colorado; two gearbox manufacturing sites in Elgin, Illinois; an offshore wind office in Boston, and nationwide service, parts and components supply operations.

The company has invested $100m since 2007 to build a US manufacturing presence that enabled it to become a strong number-three wind turbine supplier there, behind General Electric and Vestas. Siemens in 2011 delivered 534 turbines in the US, a 15.4% market share, according to the American Wind Energy Association.

It also has dominated the fledgling offshore turbine market, with commitments from Cape Wind and developer Deepwater Wind for its pilot project in Rhode Island state waters, and interest from Lake Erie Economic Development Corporation for a demonstration project in Lake Erie facing Cleveland.

The German-owned company reaffirmed its commitment to the US wind market and to retaining both manufacturing plants.

In a statement, the company says a workforce adjustment is necessary until market demand for turbines revives. Analysts forecast US turbine installations could reach 12GW this year but plunge to between 1.5GW and 3GW in 2013, as developers freeze projects and orders to await a decision by Congress on whether to extend the federal production tax credit (PTC).

"As a result, following the rapid ramp-up of the wind power industry over the past five years, the industry is facing a significant drop in new orders, and this has an unfortunate consequence on employment in this segment of the power industry," the statement says. "Now, we have had to make the difficult decision to adjust the manufacturing, projects and administrative support functions of our wind power operations to reflect the current and projected business volume."

Siemens officials had earlier told Recharge that they hope to boost export business to Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean, which would help utilize manufacturing capacity at the US blade and nacelle plants. Acciona, Gamesa, Vestas and other competitors have the same strategy as their own US plants wind down activity.

In response to the Siemens announcement, Kansas Governor Sam Brownback issued a statement saying that he supports the federal wind PTC, set to expire on 31 December.

“I have been and will remain a strong advocate for the wind industry. While the federal government struggles with its effort to create a balanced energy policy, my administration will do everything we can to support the industry at the state level moving forward. – and to assist those Kansans affected by this announcement," he says.

Hutchinson City Manager John Deardoff in August had expressed concern in an interview with Recharge that Siemens could slash its payroll if its order book grew thin, and over the economic impact this could have on the city. Siemens chose Hutchinson for its nacelle plant after looking at 80 possible locations across the US.

Richard A. Kessler

Published: Wednesday, September 19 2012

Ralph Parrott

President

http://houstonrenewableenergy.org

IMPORTANT NOTICE: This transmission (including all attached pages) is intended only for the use of the named address(es), and may contain information that is privileged or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. If you are not a named addressee, you are hereby notified that any use, dissemination, distributing or copying of this transmission is strictly prohibited. If you have received this transmission in error, please destroy all copies and notify us immediately at this telephone number: (713) 595-6375. Thank you!

http://www.latimes.com/news/science/sciencenow/lat-sci-sn-new-material-efficiently-turns-heat-into-electricity-20120919,0,2411599.story