December 17, 2010
Financing is critical to the functioning and advancement of the cleantech industry, particularly when it comes to solar technologies. This week our solar news round up will focus on the financial aspect of renewable energy projects; we will cover an example of a private investment, governmental funding that will facilitate future solar technology production, and the global potential for clean power.
Chevrolet commits $40 million on clean energy projects
Chevrolet recently announced this that the company will aim to offset 8 million metric tons of carbon emissions over the next 3-5 years, which equals to the electricity used by almost 1 million homes. This amount is based on the amount of emissions from the 1.9 million cars the company expects to sell in 2011.
You’ve probably heard quite a bit about the new Chevy Volt, the automaker’s new electricity-powered car that can run 25-50 miles on battery power before using gas power. General Motors CEO (GM is the parent company of Chevy), Dan Akerson stated that, “Chevrolet’s investment is an extension of the environmental initiatives we’ve been undertaking for years because the solution to global environmental challenges goes beyond just vehicles”. This month, 350 Volts will be available in showrooms for Chevy customers in California, Texas, New York, and Washington D.C.
The $40 million investment will focus on nation-wide projects that promote renewable energy, responsible consumption of natural resources, energy saving technologies, and investments in third-party organizations.
Abound Solar secures $400M DOE loan guarantee
This week, Abound Solar Manufacturing secured a $400 Million loan guarantee from the Department of Energy to expand its thin-film solar panels production capacity. In addition to the loan guarantee, the Colorado-based panel manufacturing company has raised $110 million in private investments. Abound Solar will use the funding to build a new manufacturing plant in Indiana, which when complete, will ramp up production to 840 MW of solar panels annually. Construction is expected to begin in 2012 with a completion date in 2014, and will create 1,200 new green jobs in the area of Tipton, Indiana.
By improving its manufacturing scale and cell efficiency technology, Abound Solar expects to lower prices to be very competitive. VP of Marketing, Russ Kanjorski stated that, “Without the DOE loan guarantee, Abound Solar would not be able to commercialize its technology”.
Global clean power has the potential to reach $2.3 trillion in private investments by 2020
Looking ahead, the financial future of the clean energy industry looks bright. According to a Pew Charitable Trusts report, the private investments in the clean power sector could total $2.3 trillion world-wide by the end of the next decade. By looking at three different policy scenarios, the report found that countries have the potential to add $546 billion to renewable energy projects over the next 10 years if enhanced clean energy policies are implemented as opposed to maintaining current policies. By passing strong renewable energy policies, the U.S. could gain a $342 billion investment in projects. This would be a 40% increase in investment to the amount attracted if the U.S. were to carry on with “business-as-usual” policies.
