Message-ID: <14260970.1075861009018.JavaMail.evans@thyme> Date: Tue, 22 Jan 2002 16:00:03 -0800 (PST) From: keber@mail.nrel.gov To: eren@mail.nrel.gov Subject: EREN Network News -- 01/23/02 Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit X-From: EREN X-To: eren@mail.nrel.gov X-cc: X-bcc: X-Folder: \Richard_Ring_Mar2002\Ring, Richard\Deleted Items X-Origin: Ring-R X-FileName: rring (Non-Privileged).pst ================================================= EREN NETWORK NEWS -- January 23, 2002 A weekly newsletter from the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network (EREN). ================================================= Featuring: *News and Events California Cut Electricity Use by 6.7 Percent in 2001 Spire Solar Chicago Installs 100 Kilowatts of Solar Power DOT Proposes No Change in Light Truck Efficiency Standards Real-World Test of Superconductor Cable Delayed Report Questions Government Support for Renewable Energy *Energy Facts and Tips Report Claims Utilities are Struggling to Power Data Centers *About this Newsletter ---------------------------------------------------------------------- NEWS AND EVENTS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- California Cut Electricity Use by 6.7 Percent in 2001 The final numbers for California's electricity use in 2001 are in, and they're impressive: compared to 2000, the state reduced its total electricity use by 6.7 percent and its peak electricity demand by 8.9 percent, or nearly 3,800 megawatts. Those numbers are adjusted for economic growth and differences in weather, but the cold, raw numbers still show a 4.4 percent drop in electricity use and a 5.4 percent drop in peak demand. Governor Gray Davis lauded Californians for their achievement. See the statistics, with a link to a January 17th press release from Governor Davis, at: . The Pacific Northwest can be proud, too, according to DOE's Bonneville Power Administration (BPA): the region reduced its electricity demand by roughly 85 megawatts, or enough to power more than 80,000 homes, in 2001. See the BPA press release at: . Spire Solar Chicago Installs 100 Kilowatts of Solar Power Spire Solar Chicago, a business unit of Spire Corporation, announced last week the installation of a total of 100 kilowatts of solar photovoltaic systems on six roofs in Chicago. The systems were installed on the DuSable Museum of African American History, the Homan Square Community Center, Commonwealth Edison's South Hydome facility, two Chicago public schools, and a small commercial building. The installations are part of a local public/private partnership to produce clean energy in Chicago. See the Spire press release at: . DOT Proposes No Change in Light Truck Efficiency Standards The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration NHTSA), a part of the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), released last week its proposed fuel efficiency standards for Model Year 2004 light trucks. The proposed standard holds the Corporate Average Fuel Efficiency (CAFE) standard for light trucks at its current level of 20.7 miles per gallon. The light truck classification includes vans, pickup trucks, and most sport utility vehicles (SUVs). Since 1996, Congress has prohibited NHTSA from spending any funds to consider changes to the CAFE standards. Although that prohibition was lifted in December, the NHTSA claims it has not had sufficient time to consider changes to the standard. The NHTSA must issue its proposed rules early enough to allow public comment and changes prior to a final rulemaking, which must be issued by April 1st. The public is invited to provide comments on the proposed fuel efficiency standard before mid-February. See the January 18th press release on the NHTSA Web site at: . On January 14th, four days before the proposed standards were released, the National Research Council (NRC) sent NHTSA a report confirming the NRC's conclusions on CAFE standards, originally released in a detailed report published in July 2001. The reassessment was performed after the initial report was challenged by the automotive industry. The latest report reaffirms that "technologies exist that, if applied to passenger cars and light-duty trucks, would significantly reduce fuel consumption within 15 years," and that "assessment of currently offered product technologies suggest that light-duty trucks, including SUVs, pickups, and minivans, offer the greatest potential to reduce fuel consumption..." See the new report on the National Academy Press Web site at: . According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the overall fuel economy of light vehicles -- including both light trucks and cars -- is now at a 21-year low of 20.4 miles per gallon. Although car mileage has remained essentially flat for the past 16 years and light truck mileage has stayed largely unchanged for the past 20 years, the growing market share of light trucks has dragged down the overall fuel economy of light vehicles. See the EPA "Light Duty Automotive Technology and Fuel Economy Trends" Web page at: . Note that actual fuel economies can be lower than the CAFE standards for a number of reasons, including the fact that manufacturers earn credits for any alternative-fuel vehicles that they sell. Some manufacturers also fall below the standards and pay penalties. To see how the details of how manufacturers are meeting the standards, see the NHTSA report on Model Year 2000 CAFE standards at: . Real-World Test of Superconductor Cable Delayed A test of a high-temperature superconductor (HTS) cable at a Detroit Edison substation has been delayed indefinitely. According to American Superconductor Corporation, which made the HTS wires for the cables, a problem with the vacuum insulating system used to help keep the cables cool is preventing Detroit Edison from placing the HTS cables into service. The company says the HTS wires met all their performance requirements, and the vacuum insulating technology is a proven technology that would not be expected to hinder the future use of HTS cables. Pirelli Energy Cables and Systems, the cable manufacturer, is expected to issue a revised timetable for the demonstration project in spring. The Detroit Edison substation is the site of the first installation and demonstration of an underground HTS cable in a U.S. utility network. The utility installed three 400-foot cables inside 4-inch-diameter underground ducts during the summer of 2001. All other cable components, including the cryogenic cooling and vacuum insulating systems, were completed in the fall. American Superconductor does have some good news, though: its 5,000-horsepower HTS motor prototype, which uses HTS wires in its rotor winding (the part of the motor that rotates), was successfully tested at full load early this month. The motor also successfully carried a peak load of 7,000 horsepower while running at its rated speed. Both the HTS rotor coils and the refrigeration system met or exceeded their performance goals, and the system as a whole operated at an efficiency of 97.2 percent. The company claims it also identified potential changes to the stator (the part of the motor that stays still, or static) that could boost the efficiency of the motor to 97.7 percent. See the American Superconductor press releases at: . Report Questions Government Support for Renewable Energy A report issued early this month by the Cato Institute, a non-profit public policy research foundation, says that government subsidies for renewable energy sources are unwarranted. The report says that renewable energy is not likely to gain significant market share in the foreseeable future without a significant increase in government subsidies or mandates. The report also claims that the environmental benefits of renewable energy could be achieved more cheaply using other technologies. The report does acknowledge that government subsidies for fully commercialized fossil energy technologies -- oil, coal, and natural gas -- are nearly double those for renewable energy, while nuclear and fossil fuels are also receiving more research and development funds. It also suggests that natural gas prices and availability will remain stable for the foreseeable future. See the Cato Institute press release, with a link to the full report, at: . ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ENERGY FACTS AND TIPS ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Report Claims Utilities are Struggling to Power Data Centers A report issued last week suggests that electric utilities are having a difficult time providing power to electronic data centers, including so-called "Internet hotels" that provide servers for Web sites. The Platts report finds that such data centers can consume from 8 to 50 times the electricity per square foot used by standard commercial buildings. For instance, a 344,000-square-foot data center under construction in Washington State is expected to draw up to 105 megawatts of power when it is complete. Such high power loads are causing some data centers to develop their own power sources. See the news release from Platts, one of The McGraw-Hill Companies, at: . The Platts report might be somewhat suspect, however, in light of a report issued last summer by DOE's Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL). That report found that, for a variety of reasons, data centers often greatly exaggerate their power needs. It concluded that data centers use at most 50 watts per square foot, and usually closer to 40 watts per square foot. This number applies only to the computer room part of the facility, and not surrounding office areas. Using these figures, the data center in Washington would need at most 17.2 megawatts of power -- probably much less. See the August 29th edition of EREN Network News at: . A report released last month by the Renewable Energy Policy Project (REPP) suggests that energy use in data centers could be even lower. Using efficient servers, properly sized and efficient cooling systems, and other energy efficiency approaches, data centers could reduce their electricity demand by 20 to 50 percent, according to the report. See the REPP announcement, with a link to the full report, at: . ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ABOUT THIS NEWSLETTER ---------------------------------------------------------------------- You can subscribe to this newsletter using the online form at: . This Web page also allows you to update your email address or unsubscribe to this newsletter. The Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Network (EREN) home page is located at . If you have questions or comments about this newsletter, please contact the editor, Kevin Eber, at kevin_eber@nrel.gov.