GLREA News
The Michigan Energy Fair had great weather, exhibitors, and presenters this year, but also attracted anti-wind protesters. Tours of Consumers Energy’s Lake Winds Energy Park were part of the Fair this year and may have prompted the picketing at the entrance to the fair grounds.
GLREA will be leaving its building in Dimondale in the near future for financial reasons. Michigan Energy Options in East Lansing has provided space for staff and this is greatly appreciated.
GLREA Member Highlight
Atwell has made significant contributions to wind energy in Michigan and the Great Lakes region during the past 5 years. To date, the firm has supported the land acquisition and leasing of more than 30,000 acres for generation and transmission and designed wind energy facilities with capacity of more than 2,500 MW. Atwell offers site selection and land acquisition services; environmental permitting, review and compliance; micro-siting and layout; engineering and surveying; and construction management services. A recent milestone for the group was the construction of Tuscola Bay Wind I, a 120 MW wind farm. For four years, Atwell has served as the lead design consultant and construction manager on this 28,800-acre project, and with construction in the final stretch, it represents the successful delivery of a project utilizing an integrated, full-service approach to successful design and delivery. For more information, please contact Deb Wilson at 248.447.2000 or visit www.atwell-group.com.
Michigan News
Consumers Energy’s Lake Wind Energy Park is Ludington’s newest tourist attraction. Construction is ongoing all summer and many tourists and local residents are interested in how utility-scale wind turbines are erected. Consumers Energy and the Ludington and Scottville Area Chamber of Commerce have teamed up to provide the tours. The tour begins with an introductory video and the bus ride around the wind farm will be done with the help of a chamber intern as guide. Tours are Thurs and Fri at 3:30 p.m. and Sat at 10:30 a.m. through Labor Day. Reservations are encouraged by calling the chamber at (231) 845-0324. The video and tour are less than two hours and participants receive a coupon for a free ice cream cone from the famous House of Flavors in downtown Ludington.http://www.mlive.com/news/muskegon/index.ssf/2012/06/ludington_is_all_about_ferry_b.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+MuskegonNews+(Muskegon+Chronicle+News+-+MLive.com)
Great Lakes Entrepreneur’s Quest hosted its 12th Annual Statewide Business Plan Competition Award Ceremony on June 12 at MSU. In the category of Alternative Energy Innovation, an award sponsored by NextEnergy in the amount of $10,000, was presented to GreenLancer Energy. Greenlancer offers access to a virtual network of clean energy engineers through a cloud-based platform that makes clean energy expertise available from across the country. www.greenlancer.com
50 kW PV array is powering 15 EV charging stations at WMU. The 216 PV modules are mounted on 18 poles in a parking lot across from the James W. Miller Auditorium. Coulomb Technologies supplied the Level 2 chargers which are part of the ChargePoint Network the company is building with help from DOE. In May, the array produced 5,246 kWh of which 1,139 kWh went directly to power vehicles. http://www.midwestenergynews.com/2012/06/12/electric-vehicles-at-michigan-campus-run-on-solar-powe/
Rich VanderVeen recently attended the National Renewable Energy Lab’s All States Summit in Atlanta. At the meeting he accepted the Wind Powering America’s 2012 “Larry Flowers Leadership Award” for Mackinaw Power and the Gratiot County Wind Project. The award was given for “Engaging, Educating and Earning the Trust of the Local Community While Developing the Wind Project.” Congratulations to Rich and Gratiot County!
Nexteer, located at the former GM Saginaw Steering Gear plant, is turning its expertise from electronic power steering to the sun. The company’s first alternative energy product is SunSteer, a solar tracking actuator. SunSteer uses a precision built, high-efficiency ball screw-and-ball nut combination that provides operating efficiencies of up to 95%. High-performance coatings developed under extreme vehicle testing are used on SunSteer to reduce corrosion and provide long life performance of greater than 20 years. Using Nexteer’s advanced electronic power steering technology, SunSteer requires no hydraulic fluids and provides high mechanical load capabilities. sunsteer@nexteer.com http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/06/20/nexteer-taking-proven-technology-to-solar-energy-market/
Arbor Brewing Company and its Ypsilanti location, the Corner Brewery, will become Michigan’s first solar breweries. The Corner Brewery is nearing completion on its $250,000 project which includes solar thermal, PV, and geothermal along with new windows, awnings and energy-efficient chiller equipment. The solar system is expected to provide almost all of Corner Brewery’s hot water needs and up to 15% of its electricity. The $95,000 Arbor Brewing Company project includes a 2.4 kW PV array, 300 solar thermal collector tubes, a high efficiency tankless water heater, and LED lighting. The improvements will offset gas usage by between 40-50% and electricity usage between 15-20%. http://www.annarbor.com/business-review/with-the-installation-of-nearly/
A123 Systems has produced a new lithium ion battery that delivers 20% more power, works at temperatures as low as –30 degrees Celsius and as high as 60 degrees C, and should be just as easy as current batteries to manufacture. The improved power and expanded temperature range suggest that A123 scientists have improved the way that electrons and ions shuffle through the battery system. A123’s internal results have been independently verified by the Center for Automotive Research at Ohio State University. http://www.scientificamerican.com/article.cfm?id=better-lithium-ion-battery-from-a123-systems
Robert Prud’homme talked about his Concept 22 (22nd Century Living In The 21st Century) at a recent conference held by the Detroit Regional Chapter of the U.S. Green Building Council. Prud’homme has designed a system of steel-framed structures, 12 ft wide by 12 ft high by 12, 36 or 48 ft long, that he says “can be used for anything from a single family home to an eight-story commercial infill project, and anything in between.” http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/06/04/new-green-building-concept-conference-coming-friday/
Oakland University SBA-SECS is offering an Energy Management Certificate Program. It is a six week program designed for busy professionals that will start October 5 and be held on Fri, noon – 4 pm & Sat, 8:30 am- 4 pm. Optionally, all sessions will be offered on-line. Visit www.oakland.edu\energymgmtor or contact Maureen Callaghan, Professional Development Coordinator at 248-412-3235 or mpcallag@oakland.edu
18 Electric Vehicle Charging Stations have been installed at 6 parking locations in downtown Ann Arbor. The Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority was able to secure federal grant funding through the Clean Energy Coalition. Dave Konkle, the DDA’s energy programs director, said that the DDA’s goal was to spread them out so there will be electric car charging spots available every few blocks.
University of Michigan will defend its title next month in the American Solar Challenge that includes an overnight stop in its hometown on July 16. The student team is vying for its 7th first-place finish and 4th consecutive championship. This year, the team will race Quantum, its lightest-ever vehicle, which finished third in the World Solar Challenge in Australia last fall. The 1,650-mile American race starts in Rochester, N.Y. on Sunday, July 14 and ends in St. Paul, Minn. http://solarcar.engin.umich.edu http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/06/27/solar-car-powerhouse-um-gets-home-field-advantage-in-upcoming-american-race/
Michigan Public Service Commission staff report on advanced meters indicates that advanced meters are a safe technology and that the health risk is “insignificant.” DTE Energy has installed more than 800,000 advanced meters in its SE Michigan service area and plans to have 1.2 million meters installed by the end of 2013. The meters allow utilities to quickly locate and reduce the length of power outages and remotely connect and disconnect service for faster response to customers. Customers also will be able to track, manage and control their energy usage as a result of timely information provided by the meters. The MPSC staff report noted there have been numerous comments against the meters. DTE is developing an option that will allow customers to ‘opt out’.http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2012/07/01/dte-energy-hails-mpsc-report-on-advanced-meters/
Beyond Michigan
Scotland has ambitious smart grid plans which will help it reach its 2020 goal of having 100% of its energy capable of being provided by renewables. The recently released Scottish Smart Grid Sector Strategy includes jobs for 12,000 people in the smart grid and another 28,000 in wind, micro-grids on outlying islands, smart meters at every home and business, and harnessing enough offshore wind to power Scotland and export excess power. Currently, renewables make up about 35% of Scotland’s generation. http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/will-scotland-dominate-in-smart-grid/
Windstalk, designed for Masdar City in Abu Dhabi, has 1203 ‘stalks’ made of carbon fiber-reinforced resin. The stalks will stand 55 meters tall and will be anchored to concrete bases 10 to 20 meters in diameter. The stalks decrease in diameter from base to tip and will light up with the aid of LEDs as winds pick up. Within each hollow pole is a stack of piezoelectric ceramic discs and between the ceramic disks are electrodes. When the wind causes the stalks to sway, the discs compress, generating a current. http://designbuildsource.com.au/wind-turbines-windstalks
Events
Energy Academy, designed for high school students, will be held on July 8-13 at Ferris State. www.ferris.edu/summercamps
Introduction to Solar Electric Systems will be held on Wed. July 11, 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Hartley Outdoor Education Center, 12633 Beaver Rd., St. Charles (SW of Saginaw). This session is designed to provide an overview to persons who have an interest in solar energy or persons considering the purchase of a PV system for their home or business. There is no cost for the seminar, but please RSVP to johnsarver3@gmail.com
Solar Cooking in Michigan will be held on Friday, July 13,10am – 2pm at GLREA, 257 S. Bridge St. in Dimondale. Participants will learn from Ben Brown, Solar Cooker enthusiast since the 1980’s, on how to construct a simple panel solar cooker. It’s a great way to learn how you can personally benefit from renewables and see the suns power in action. Cost is $45 for GLREA members and $55 for the public. You must RSVP to samantha.keeney@glrea.org so we have enough materials for everyone to make their own collector.
Introduction to Small Wind Energy Systems will be held on Wed. July 18, 6:30-7:30 p.m. at the Hartley Outdoor Education Center, 12633 Beaver Rd., St. Charles (SW of Saginaw). This session is designed to provide an overview to persons who have an interest in wind energy or persons considering the purchase of a small wind energy system. There is no cost for the seminar, but please RSVP to johnsarver3@gmail.com.
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Source/Prepared by: John Sarver for Great Lakes Renewable Energy Association (GLREA)
