Tag Archives: energy

World solar power topped 100,000 Megawatts in 2012

The world installed 31,100 megawatts of solar photovoltaics (PV) in 2012—an all-time annual high that pushed global PV capacity above 100,000 megawatts. There is now enough PV operating to meet the household electricity needs of nearly 70 million people at the European level of use. While PV production has become increasingly concentrated in one country—China—the […] … learn more→

World nuclear electricity generation down 5 percent since 2006

World nuclear electricity-generating capacity has been essentially flat since 2007 and is likely to fall as plants retire faster than new ones are built. In fact, the actual electricity generated at nuclear power plants fell 5 percent between 2006 and 2011. In 2011, following Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, 13 nuclear reactors in Japan, Germany, […] … learn more→

Hydropower continues steady growth

World hydroelectric power generation has risen steadily by an average 3 percent annually over the past four decades. In 2011, at 3,500 billion kilowatt-hours, hydroelectricity accounted for roughly 16 percent of global electricity generation, almost all produced by the world’s 45,000-plus large dams. Today hydropower is generated in over 160 countries. Four countries dominate the […] … learn more→

Clean energy prices (not the sky) falling in California

The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) released a report this month on the costs of California’s progress in generating more electricity from renewable power, and there was good news. Prices of new contract bids submitted to utilities last year were about 30 percent lower than in 2009, according to the report, signaling a more competitive […] … learn more→

For businesses, going green brings in greenbacks

Nearly a third of companies now say that the adoption of sustainable practices has added to their profitability, according to a new MIT study — and manufacturing firms are in the vanguard. Two-thirds of more than 2,800 companies surveyed by MIT Sloan Management Review say they have made sustainability a permanent agenda topic within their […] … learn more→

Thinking green, and thinking big

A problem as complex and potentially intractable as climate change demands equally big solutions. At the first Harvard Thinks Green on Thursday, six Harvard professors gathered at Sanders Theatre to provide just that kind of thinking. The event was meant to tap into the “original fundamental reason why we are all here on campus for […] … learn more→

Duke launches energy initiative to tackle major global issues

Energy is essential to our mobile, connected, productive lifestyle, and the world\’s economic recovery and growth depend on it. But producing and consuming energy has also become the fundamental force behind some of our most pressing global issues, including economic competitiveness, security and the health of the planet\’s environment. Duke University is launching an interdisciplinary, […] … learn more→