On Monday, U.S. Secretary of Energy Steven Chu announced an award of approximately $40 million to two teams led by Pittsburgh-based Westinghouse Electric Co. and San Diego-based General Atomics for conceptual design and planning of the Next Generation Nuclear Plant (NGNP) capable of producing electricity as well as process heat for industrial applications.  About 16% [...]

On Tuesday, President Obama outlined more details of a new “HOMESTAR” program that would help create jobs by encouraging American families to invest in energy saving home improvements.  Key components of the HOMESTAR Program include: rebates at the point of sale for a variety of energy-saving investments in homes; Silver Star rebates up to $1,000 [...]

On Monday, Department of Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced conditional commitments for more than $1.37 billion in loan guarantees to BrightSource Energy, Inc. in support of the construction and start-up of three utility-scale concentrated solar power plants. The plants, to be located in the Mojave Desert in Southeastern California, will generate approximately 400 megawatts (MW) [...]

On Thursday, The American Wind Energy Association (AWEA) issued a statement from CEO Denise Bode on a new assessment from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) showing that U.S. wind resources are larger than previously estimated. Bode said, “This new analysis confirms that America is blessed with vast wind resources that can energize our economy, [...]

On Tuesday, top executives in the renewable energy sector gathered in Washington D.C. and called for Congress to pass a strong national renewable energy standard (RES) with clear near- and long-term goals, along with expansion and extension of credit incentives, and comprehensive legislation.  They cited a major a new study conducted by Navigant Consulting, Inc. revealing [...]

President Barack Obama has announced that the U.S. Federal Government will reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) pollution by 28 percent by 2020.  As the single largest energy consumer in the U.S. economy, the Federal Government spent more than $24.5 billion on electricity and fuel in 2008 alone.  “As the largest energy consumer in the United [...]