Tag Archives: wind energy

ERCOT acknowledges that meeting EPA clean air requirements won’t be that big a deal

Posted on December 27, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

From Texas Clean Air Matters: Well, it didn’t take long before the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) released, at the request of Texas’ very political Public Utilities Commission, another report about the impacts of the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA’s) … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on ERCOT acknowledges that meeting EPA clean air requirements won’t be that big a deal

It’s OK if energy costs go up for now

Posted on November 21, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That’s my reaction to this. As Texas regulators weigh a response to President Obama’s proposal to combat climate change, the operator of the state’s main electric grid says the plan would raise energy costs and threaten reliability – particularly in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on It’s OK if energy costs go up for now

Google energy

Posted on July 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Fascinating. Google may not seem like an energy company, but it sure is acting like one. Through more than $1 billion in investments and through large contracts for renewable power, Google has become the most significant player in the energy … Continue reading →

Posted in Technology, science, and math | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Google energy

Will we have enough power?

Posted on January 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe not. From the EDF. It’s understandable that no one seems to have noticed a strongly worded letter to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) from the North American Electric Reliability Corporation (NERC) last Monday demanding more action to … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Will we have enough power?

Laura Spanjian – From Industrial to Green Revolution: The New Houston

Posted on July 16, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The following is from a series of guest posts that I will be presenting over the next few weeks. Bike Share kiosks in downtown. Electric vehicle charging stations at the grocery store. Over 15 miles of new rail lines being … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Desalinization and power plants

Posted on June 13, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The Trib has another story about desalinization in Texas, and reading it brings up a point that I don’t think gets enough attention. Interest in desalination surged more than a decade ago, when the technology became more efficient and cost-competitive, … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Desalinization and power plants

West Texas wind

Posted on March 12, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

The wind energy business in Texas is going strong. BP and other energy companies are funneling millions of dollars into building and operating wind farms in West Texas, helping to transform the oil country into one of the nation’s leading … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Illegal electrons

Posted on February 3, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Hilarious. As Texas struggles to keep the lights on, who should come to the rescue? Mexico. That’s right, Mexico’s state electricity company on Wednesday started supplying electricity to Texas, where cold weather and power shortages forced rolling blackouts across the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Taking another step for solar power

Posted on March 1, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Texas missed out in the last legislative session on a chance to take a big step forward with solar energy, but there are still some things that can be done to keep moving in that direction. Texas already leads the … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Seeing gold in green

Posted on February 25, 2010 by Charles Kuffner

Denying climate change and the adverse effects of carbon dioxide may be official policy of our Republican leaders, but word has apparently not filtered down to the business entrepreneurs whose capitalistic opportunism those Republicans usually lionize. “Energy is the biggest … Continue reading →

Posted in Bidness | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Building a better turbine

Posted on September 20, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Good to see R&D being done on improving wind energy. Universities and businesses across Texas are expecting to spend millions in the next few years honing the blades, gearboxes and generators that make up turbines designed to harness power from … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Building a better turbine

Wyoming and wind

Posted on September 1, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Interesting story about the boom in the wind energy industry out west and how some of that is bumping up against private property and NIMBYism, but what caught my eye was this bit: Wyoming and the West are home to … Continue reading →

Posted in National news | Tagged , , , , , , | Comments Off on Wyoming and wind

Going green in Seguin

Posted on June 13, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

Cool. The residential wind turbine is one of several renewable initiatives featured at the $6 million Guadalupe Valley Electric Cooperative’s Seguin office complex, which just opened May 19. The two-story, 24,000-square-foot facility includes solar panels that offset water-heating needs and … Continue reading →

Posted in The great state of Texas | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

The state of solar power

Posted on May 27, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

The Chron has a feature story on efforts to ramp up solar power in Texas. [S]olar advocates say the right legislation could do the wind industry’s success one better. One approach, incentives to install solar panels on homes and businesses, … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Solar power

Posted on March 29, 2009 by Charles Kuffner

As you know, I’ve been a big advocate for wind energy on this site. Texas has done a lot to make itself a leader in that industry, and I believe it will pay many long-term dividends. But just as we … Continue reading →

Posted in That's our Lege | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Solar power