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STRATEGIC BIOMASS SOLUTIONS
July 2013
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Quick Links
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Director's Cut
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July 2013 is an historic month for energy efficiency in Mississippi, as it culminates a three-year long effort by the Mississippi Public Service Commission to adopt a rule that requires electric and natural gas utilities to establish energy efficiency programs for their customers. We caught up with Brandon Presley, MPSC Commissioner for Northern District to get his personal thoughts on the adoption of Rule 29 and what lies ahead on his policy agenda. Read the exclusive interview with Commissioner Presley in this newsletter where he talks about the impetus behind "getting Rule 29 done," the challenges they had to overcome and his take on net-metering in Mississippi. Energy efficiency does not mean that we just use less energy, but it means that we conserve it when appropriate and do more with every kilowatt hour and BTU expended. Using energy more efficiently means reducing the rate at which energy is used by a piece of equipment or in a process while maintaining or improving the user's level of comfort and end-use functionality. Obvious examples include using better insulation to lower heating and cooling bills and using compact fluorescent or LED (light emitting diode) lamps instead of the centuries-old technology of incandescent light bulbs.
In 2012, Mississippi ranked 51st on the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy's State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, the nationally recognized authority for tracking state-level energy efficiency leadership. Rather than ignoring this ranking or using excuses to justify it, policy makers and other leaders in Mississippi have taken a series of steps that are practically guaranteed to change this ranking. It started with Governor Phil Bryant recognizing the value of energy efficiency in his "Energy Works: Mississippi's Energy Roadmap," which was released in 2012. The action plan's energy efficiency components were to lead by example, adopt statewide commercial energy building codes for new construction and initiate an energy efficiency market policy and program analysis. The roadmap document states that energy policy and economic development policy are closely connected. State agencies, including the Mississippi Development Authority and the Department of Environmental Quality, are leading the way and providing the necessary resources and support for promoting energy efficiency within Mississippi.
Formal legislative action was taken in the 2013 session by passing House Bills 1281 and 1266, both authored by Representative Angela Cockerham. These bills made Mississippi the first state in the Southeastern United States and third in the nation overall to adopt the latest energy efficiency codes for commercial building and public facilities. This set of guidelines, or codes, are promulgated by the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air Conditioning Engineers and are commonly referred to as the ASHRAE 90.1-2010 code. Prior to HB 1281 coming into effect July 1, 2013, Mississippi was governed by the ASHRAE code dating back to 1975!
We want to hear from you about how you may be planning to incorporate energy efficiency in your operations or daily lives. If you are a service provider or have a success story you would like to share, please contact me at sarora@innovate.ms or 601-960-3659. Let us help you get the word out and connect with the right audience. Stay tuned for news about our E3 program in partnership with InnovateMEP.ms and please don't forget to register for the upcoming Renewable Energy Venture Development workshop at RETECH 2013 and the 12th Annual Southern BioProducts & Renewable Energy Conference.
Sumesh Arora, Ph.D.
Director, Strategic Biomass Solutions
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July Featured Interview
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Commissioner Brandon Presley, who represents the Northern District of the state on Mississippi's Public Service Commission, recently took the time to talk with Strategic Biomass Solutions about the energy efficiency rules passed July 11. Read this interview to learn more about how these rules developed, as well as Presley's thoughts on the future of energy efficiency in Mississippi.
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Funding Opportunity News
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The Energy Department recently announced four research and development projects to bring next generation biofuels online faster and drive down the cost of producing gasoline, diesel and jet fuels from biomass. The projects - located in Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah and Wisconsin - represent a $13 million Energy Department investment.The University of Maryland awarded $3.8 million through the Maryland Industrial Partnerships (MIPS) program to 17 teams. MIPS, a technology acceleration program, grants money matched with company funds to faculty engaged in each project. Building on President Obama's Climate Action Plan, which calls for steady, responsible steps to reduce carbon pollution and reduce energy bills for U.S. businesses, the Energy Department announced an award of $10 million for six projects to help small commercial buildings save money by saving energy. |
Policy News
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The United States approved two solar projects and one geothermal plant that will total 520 MW of capacity in Arizona and Nevada. The 100-MW Quartsize Solar Energy project will be located in Arizona, while the 350-MW Midland Solar Project and 70-MW New York Canyon Geothermal Project will be located in Nevada.
Government spending on renewables and other green energy programs would be halved and incandescent light bulbs dropped from federal regulation under the fiscal 2014 Energy-Water Development appropriations bill passed in the House of Representatives.
The U.S. House of Representatives passed a stripped down version of the Farm Bill July 11. Members of Congress voted 216-208 to approve the Federal Agriculture Reform and Risk Management Act of 2013, or H.R. 2642. The House failed to pass a previous version of the bill, H.R. 1947, June 20, when members of Congress voted down the measure 195 to 234.
The Environmental Protection Agency is issuing a supplemental final rule, containing a lifecycle greenhouse gas analysis for renewable fuels made from giant reed (Arundo donax) and napier grass, and a regulatory determination that such fuels qualify as cellulosic renewable fuel under the RFS program. |
Technology and Research News
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Hot off the heels of a solar plane making the final leg of its journey across the United States, the students behind the Stanford Solar Car Project began the final preparations for their own solar-powered, cross-country journey. They will compete against 46 other teams in the Great Solar Challenge, a 2,000-mile race in the Australian Outback.
High-Octane Bacteria Could Ease Pain At the Pump
New lines of engineered bacteria can tailor-make key precursors of high-octane biofuels that could one day replace gasoline, scientists at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University and the Department of Systems Biology at Harvard Medical School report in the June 24 online edition of Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.Emerson Process Management now offers an integrated solution that enables biomass-fueled power plants to continually monitor feedstock moisture content and adjust the combustion process for better efficiency. The new solution, which combines a biomass fuel moisture sensor with Emerson's Ovation™ expert control system, can help reduce maintenance costs as well as boost net yearly MWh production. A new algae production facility at Iowa State University makes use of an innovative design that's attracting interest from other universities and private industry. The algal production facility, which was built inside a greenhouse on the BioCentury Research Farm in rural Boone, went online in January and has been filling orders for algae researchers ever since. US scientists have discovered the first microorganism that anaerobically degrades plant biomass to release sugars for biofuel feedstocks. At present, this is the only known anaerobic microbe capable of solubilising all plant components - including cellulose, glucose, and lignin, which is extremely difficult to break down - at the same time and at similar rates.Climate friendly fuel cells for hydrogen cars have come one step closer. Researchers at the Department of Chemistry, University of Copenhagen, have shown how to build fuel cells that produce as much electricity as current models, but require markedly less of the rare and valuable precious metal platinum.
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Market and Business News
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Biofuel producers will invest as much as $69 billion to expand output during the next decade, driven in part by U.S. policies that increase blending of plant-based fuels into petroleum-based fuel, according to a report from Navigant Consulting Inc. (NCI). Annual biofuel sales will increase to $7.6 billion by 2023 as fuel blenders meet mandated growth targets in the United States.
California's groundbreaking efforts to encourage homeowners and businesses to install rooftop solar panels were so successful in 2012 that the program is now effectively winding down, according to a new report. A new report from the United States Energy Information Administration projects that world energy use will increase by 56 percent over the next three decades. This growth will be driven, in large part, by rising prosperity in India and China. Wind to Double and Solar to Triple in Six Years, Says International Energy Agency The headline summary of the new Medium-Term Renewable Energy Market Report 2013 from the International Energy Agency (IEA) has been well reported: Renewables will surpass natural gas for electricity generation globally by 2016, doubling nuclear output and coming in second only to coal in power generation. Xcel Energy Plans to Grow Wind Power by 30 Percent Xcel Energy, already the country's top wind energy provider, proposes to significantly expand its wind power production to reduce customer costs, protect against rising and volatile fuel prices, and benefit the environment. The move is made possible by extremely competitive prices and the extended federal Production Tax Credit. Wells Fargo Invests $100 Million in Distributed Solar Projects Wells Fargo subsidiaries plan to invest more than $100 million of tax equity financing in 2013 and 2014 combined to fund US solar photovoltaic distributed generation power projects developed by SunEdison. 2012 was the second highest year ever for renewable energy investments, which total $1.3 trillion since 2006. And there was a continuing upward trend in developing countries in 2012, with investments in the South topping $112 billion vs $132 billon in developed countries -- a dramatic change from 2007, when developed economies invested 2.5 times more in renewables (excluding large hydro) than developing countries, a gap that has closed to just 18 percent. |
Event News
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September 9-11, 2013 Washington, D.C. September 9, 2013Washington, D.C. September 17-18Tunica, Mississippi September 24-25, 2013 Tampa, Florida
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Please forward this to other interested parties and contact us if you have any questions.Strategic Biomass Solutions is dedicated to connecting entrepreneurs, investors and economic developers in order to drive renewable energy technologies to market. SBS is funded in part by the United States Department of Energy.
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Sumesh Arora, Ph.D.
Director
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Bubba Weir
Innovation Resource Development
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Joseph Linton
Economic Analyst
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Claire Sojourner
Outreach Intern
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134 Marketridge Drive, Ridgeland, MS � 601.960.3610
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