Committee of US Senate approves mixed energy bill

A US Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee approved a comprehensive energy package that includes a requirement for utilities to generate 15% of electricity from renewable sources such as solar and wind power by 2021. But because the bill also contains concessions for drilling off of Florida’s gulf coast, it is likely to face quite a battle on the larger Senate floor, where several lawmakers pledged to seek major changes.

During his presidential campaign, U.S. President Barack Obama set a goal to generate 25% of power from renewable energy by 2025. The energy bill is far less aggressive and directs power plants to produce 3% of their output from renewables between 2011 and 2013 and then increasing the amount to 15% between 2021 and 2039. Feelings on this measure are mixed to say the least: some lawmakers have attacked the panel's renewable power mandate as too lenient, while others claim its measures will hurt states without much solar or wind resources.

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  • Photovoltaics International 14th Edition

    Photovoltaics International 14th Edition

    Published in November 2011, the 14th edition of Photovoltaics International provides a variety of technical papers from some of the industry’s stalwarts. Features include: TÜV Rheinland on junction box testing; Laser Zentrum Hannover on laser edge isolation of mc-Si cells; Calisolar on the importance of traceability; Fraunhofer ISE on EWT cells; and EPIA on Europe’s LCOE.

  • Photovoltaics International Lite, Volume 05 - 2011

    Photovoltaics International Lite, Volume 05 - 2011

    This digital interactive Lite sees Tom Cheyney follow Agua Caliente’s progress on becoming one of first truly utility-scale PV power farms, where 40–50MW (AC) will be commissioned by the end of the year. We also feature one of the world’s largest silicon thin-film PV power plants, Avenal; a report on warnings of the collapse of module prices from Solarbuzz and PI-Berlin presents tips on PV module testing. A print version of this edition will be distributed at Solar Power International 2011 in Dallas, Texas.

  • Manufacturing The Solar Future: The 2011 Production Annual

    Manufacturing The Solar Future: The 2011 Production Annual

    Manufacturing the Solar Future is the primary source guide for detailed information on the PV production process. This annual provides technical details on how the leading companies and research organizations worldwide are addressing this need by dramatically improving their manufacturing processes.

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