GreenMountain.com Signs Agreement with Toyota
GreenMountain.com and Toyota Motor Sales (TMS) recently signed an agreement under which TMS will purchase renewable power produced by GreenMountain.com. The agreement, effective immediately, is one of the largest commercial green energy contracts in California.  "We are pleased to announce that Toyota has enhanced their commitment to changing the way power is made," said GreenMountain.com western regional president Julie Blunden. "They are purchasing 100 percent renewable Green Mountain Energy Power blend that includes at least five percent new wind power from three new turbines in San Georgonio, CA, specifically developed last year to serve GreenMountain.com customers."  The company said Toyota has long been a trailblazer for environmental responsibility. The development of the Prius hybrid electric vehicle, on sale this summer, is one example of the company's commitment to environmental protection.  Toyota is one of the first automotive companies to purchase renewable power. The company estimates that the annual usage under the contract will be 40 million kilowatt-hours of renewable energy, equivalent to the amount of power used annually by 6,060 average homes in California.  Other companies that have chosen Green Mountain Energy renewable energy blends include, Kinkos, Birkenstock, the Episcopal Diocese of California, and Real Goods Trading Company. GreenMountain.com said Toyota is the most recent addition to the growing list.  Contact: Toyota, website  http://www.toyota.com  Source: Greenmountain.com Release 5/23/2000 via EIN Renewable Energy Today 5/25/2000.

US Postal Service and Santa Barbara to Go Green
The United States Postal Service has awarded Go-Green.com a three-year contract to supply renewable power supply to more than 1,100 sites in California, possibly making this the largest single switch to renewable power ever.  Go-Green will supply the USPS with 100% certified renewable power from California generators, most of which is geothermal and biomass power generation. The award is the result of a competitive request for proposal developed by the USPS last September.  "We're proud of our recent purchase of 100% green power for over one thousand of our facilities in California. Conducting our business in a socially responsible manner is one of our core values. By doing this we remain true to this value while accomplishing two very important things; the
acquisition of a cost-effective energy source, and the opportunity to make a contribution to the environmental health of the communities we serve." Jesse Durazo, VP Operation USPS, CA , HI, and the Pacific Islands. Go-Green.com sells only 100% renewable power and the amount of renewable power being offered by proposers was a main factor in the selection.  Also this week, the City of Santa Barbara approved Go-Green.com to supply City buildings with 100% renewable power, making the City one of the largest purchasers of green power in the state.  The City of Oakland has also committed to buying renewable power and Go-Green.com has been short-listed in that selection as well. Last month, Go-Green.com announced its agreement with the Association of California Water Agencies (ACWA) to provide renewable power to its more than 450 member agencies.  Go-Green.com had been selling renewable power in California under the name cleen `n green energy for the past two years and only recently changed names. Contact:  www.Go-Green.com  , Rick Kohl, 408/224-5717 x47.   Source: Business Wire, 4/21/2000 via EPRI Green Power News 4/21/2000.

PacifiCorp Announces "Blue Sky" Wind Program
PacifiCorp announced last week the start of their new "Blue Sky" program to sell wind-generated electricity in the western United States. The company is currently accepting customer sign-ups for the program, which will sell 100-kilowatt-hour monthly blocks of wind power for $4.75 per month. The program is currently available to customers of Pacific Power & Light in Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming and to customers of Utah Power & Light in Utah. PacifiCorp is currently negotiating on the actual wind site. The company plans to choose the location by fall 2000, with operation beginning by the end of 2001. See the "Blue Sky" page on
the PacifiCorp Web site at:  http://www.pacificorp.com/bluesky.html  .Source: EREN Network News 4/19/2000.

Three Green Power Programs Accredited by CRS
The Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) recently announced that three companies have met or surpassed national accreditation standards for their "green" energy programs. CRS recognized Wisconsin Electric's Energy for Tomorrow program, the Tennessee Valley Authority's Green Power Switch program and Madison Gas and Electric's MGE Wind Power program for their work to provide "high-quality green energy programs." CRS said the renewable energy programs are all accredited under its CRS Green Pricing Accreditation Initiative. To achieve accreditation status, utilities must meet a series of strict guidelines requiring the use of renewable resources, appropriate product pricing and marketing, and customer education. The programs also undergo a yearly verification process which documents whether the utility has delivered green power to its customers as promised.  "The Green Pricing Accreditation Initiative is part of efforts by consumers and environmental protection groups across the country to help use the power of customer choice to promote renewable energy and protect the environment," said CRS executive director Jan Hamrin.  The Energy for Tomorrow and MGE Wind Power programs are both run by utilities in Wisconsin. Renew Wisconsin executive director Michael Vickerman lauded CRS' accreditation program, noting that "consumers want to help drive the development of renewable resources in the Midwest."  TVA's Green Power Switch program is one of the first "serious green power [program's] in the South," and its accreditation by CRS marks one of the first significant renewable energy developments in the Southeast. CRS is a nonprofit organization dedicated to building human capacity and institutions for energy, economic and environmental sustainability. Contact: Seth Baruch, CRS, phone 415-561-2100.  Source: Business Wire 4/19/2000 via EIN Renewable Energy Today 4/21/2000.

Santa Barbara City Switching to Green Power
City-owned facilities in Santa Barbara, Calif. will soon be getting 80-percent of their power from renewable sources supplied by Preferred Energy Services, Inc.  The deal is worth approximately $1.6-1.8 million annually.  Several other California cities have made similar switches, but Santa Barbara's agreement is said to be one of the largest direct purchases of green power yet.  Contact:  Center for Energy Efficiency and Renewable Technologies, Kari Smith, 415/431-5182.   Source:  EEI Daily Energy News, April 21, 2000.

CEC to Open First-Ever Retail Energy Store in CA
Commonwealth Energy Corporation (CEC), a retailer of Green-e certified electricity and energy products, recently announced that it will open its first retail store in Santa Monica, CA, later this month. The company said it has invited such individuals as Lee Iacocca, and other local business leaders for the event. "This monumental event not only signifies the success of the renewable energy movement, it also proves that the restructuring of the electric utilities will bring innovative ideas to the market," said CEC chairman and CEO Ian Carter.  The company said its new store will feature such products as the Power Planner Series by EnergySmart, which regulates energy flow to an appliance and offers energy savings by as much as 20 percent. In addition, Lee Iacocca's EV Global Motors Company electric bike will be offered at the store.  The NightStar renewable energy flashlight by Applied Innovative Technologies, which does not require batteries, will also be featured.  Other renewable energy products include the Quake Alarm by JDS Products, which detects early warning compression waves and GE Lighting's Super Long Life compact fluorescent light bulbs, which has a lifespan of seven years and use only 15 watts of power.  CEC operates in California and in Pennsylvania, under the name electricAmerica, and provides its residential customers with electricity that comes from renewable sources and offers incentives to customers who switch from conventional utilities to green energy.  Contact: CEC, website   http://www.electric.com   CEC Release 4/18/2000 via EIN Renewable Energy Today 4/21/2000.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on Green Power go to:  http://www.eren.doe.gov/greenpower/   or   http://www.thegreenpowergroup.org/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sanyo to Boost Spending on Solar Batteries
Sanyo Electric Company recently announced plans to implement an eightfold increase in production of its solar batteries within the
next five years. The company said it will invest 33 billion yen (about $311 million) to boost its annual solar battery production capacity to 120 megawatts (MW).  By FY 05, the company hopes to achieve solar battery sales of 50 billion yen (about $472 million), which represents nearly five times current solar battery sales. The company said its HIT Power 21 solar batteries are a hybrid between crystal silicon and thin-film amphorous silicon and provide the highest solar cell conversion and module efficiency capabilities.  Separately, Sanyo plans to construct one of the world's largest solar power systems at its facilities in Gifu Prefecture, Japan. Next year, the company will invest 6 billion yen (about $56.7 million) to build a 3.4-MW solar power generation system.  The "Mega Solar" center will include two structures. The Solar Ark, a wall reaching over 300 meters wide, will stand in front of the main building. The Solar Wave will be located on the roof of the center's parking garage and will produce 1.8 MW of electricity. The entire facility will produce about 3,700 MW of power.  Contact: Sanyo Electric Company, website  http://www.sanyo.co.jp  .  Source: SANYO News Release 3/31/2000 via EIN Renewable Energy Today 4/25/2000.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on Renewable Resources go to:  http://www.eren.doe.gov/repis/
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Free Software Program to Assess Renewables Catches On
RETScreen, a free software program that allows a user to assess the financial viability of a renewable energy project in any location around the world, is rapidly gaining new adherents, according to information from Natural Resources Canada (NRC), one of the program's major backers.  The Canadian agency released the information recently in conjunction with the availability of a new revised version of RETScreen.  Since the program's original release in May, 1998, the agency said, RETScreen has been distributed to more than 7,500 users in 150 countries, and usage is growing at a rate of 100 new users every week  While renewable energy has been growing in popularity for a number of reasons, including its freedom from net greenhouse gas emissions and the steadily dropping cost of new installations, the expense of conducting preliminary feasibility studies at proposed sites has been a major barrier.  According to NRC, "Pre-feasibility studies typically can add $5,000 to $200,000 to the cost of a project, depending on the technology and the scale of the facility. In addition, the accuracy of preliminary reports has often been lower than required for proper decision-making, and this 'investment-versus-accuracy' dilemma has delayed the adoption of widespread renewable energy as a result."   RETScreen can be used to assess eight of the more cost-effective renewable energy technologies: wind energy, small hydro and photovoltaics for electricity generation, and biomass heating, solar air heating, solar water heating, passive solar heating, and ground-source heat pumps (geothermal energy) that can be incorporated into space heating and cooling applications.   NRC's CANMET Energy Diversification Research Laboratory (CEDRL) and the National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) have cooperated to allow direct access for users of RETScreen to NASA's existing Global Satellite Surface Solar Energy Database via the Internet. In addition, NASA is creating a new Global Satellite Weather Database, which will include additional data required to prepare a renewable energy technology project preliminary feasibility analysis using RETScreen. "Access to such weather data," NRC notes, "will allow users around the globe to better evaluate potential projects where ground monitoring station weather data are not available."  According to the agency, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is also cooperating with CEDRL to develop a greenhouse gas emissions mitigation model that will allow RETScreen users to estimate the amount of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases that will be avoided by the renewable energy project under evaluation. Recent additions to the program include an on-line manual that allows users to access valuable project related information directly from within the software such as, an on-line weather database of 1,000 ground monitoring stations around the world, and an on-line product database of various manufacturers of renewable energy technologies, including a wide range of product specifications and performance data. These features are available for use with the three new RETScreen models (solar water heating, passive solar heating, and ground-source heat pumps). The first five technologies of RETScreen are also being upgraded to extend their applications and to incorporate all of these features.  The eight technology modules of RETScreen are available free of charge for download, along with the databases and user manual, from the Internet at  http://retscreen.gc.ca  .  According to NRC, the government of Canada made an early decision to allow unlimited access to the program for all users because of the relatively low cost of maintaining and distributing the software electronically, combined with the government's desire to pursue sustainable development objectives. The software is available in English and French, and CEDRL is considering translation into other languages.  Source:  AWEA Wind Energy Weekly 4/21/2000.

Introduction to Power Operations for Non-Technical Staff  Tentative dates of June 6-8, 2000
Do equations make your break out in a cold sweat?  Have you been working in the electrical power business for 20 years and still don’t know a volt from an amp from a hole on the ground?  Have you always been curious how your household could become a preference power customer under the Reclamation Act?  EPTC has a solution for your problems.  Enroll in the fun-filled EPTC “Intro” course, which the Lead Instructor likes to call “Power Systems for Poets.”   Students learn about power system operations by hands-on use of the Miniature Power System, the only one in North America.  The Dispatcher Training Simulator lets students experience what a dispatcher does every day.  Some classroom topics are:  How a power system works, explained in non-technical terms;  Federal power generation and transmission; What does a dispatcher do, anyway;  Hydrology and power production,
The environment and power systems;  Changes in the power industry – deregulation;  For more information, including tuition charges, please visit Western's website at:  www.wapa.gov/cso/eptc/  . To register call Kaye Weinant at 720-962-7800 or contact her via e-mail at  weinant@wapa.gov  .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on Educational Resources go to: http://www.thegateway.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

National Biobased Products and Bioenergy Coordination Office
The National Biobased Products and Bioenergy Coordination Office is officially up and running.  This Office was called for by Executive Order 13134 to manage the preparation of interagency budgets, ensure effective day-to-day coordination of actions designed to implement the strategic plans and guidance provided by the Interagency Council, and respond to recommendations made by the Advisory Committee.  The Office is headquartered at the Department of Energy.  We would like to welcome our new staff to the Office:  Frank McCann from DOE, Karen Wilson from DOE, and Carol Whitman from USDA.  Additional staff from other agencies may be added in the near future.  The Coordination Office can be reached at (202) 586-7766, fax (202) 586-5010, or via e-mail at mailto:  biocoord@ee.doe.gov  . Source: Biobased Products and Bioenergy Monthly Newsletter 4/21/2000.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on legislative activities go to: http://www.kannerandassoc.com/fedenergybills.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Derugulation Bill Should Spur Reliance on Renewable Energy
Congress could increase the US's reliance on renewable energy while reducing electricity prices by passing an electricity restructuring bill that encourages reliance on alternative power sources, according to a report released yesterday by the DC-based Union of Concerned Scientists.  The report found that if reliance on power from the wind, sun and other renewable sources is increased by 2010, energy prices could be cut by 13%. It also said that increased reliance on renewables could freeze emissions of greenhouse gases and help the US meet targets set by the Kyoto climate change treaty.  UCS recommends that Congress pass legislation similar to that offered by Sen. James Jeffords (R-VT) last year that would increase renewables to 20% of electricity
produced. A White House proposal would increase the share to only 5.5%.  A Jeffords spokesperson said Jeffords is expected to reintroduce his legislation this session.  For the UCS' own version,  www.ucsusa.org/releases/1-21-99.html  .   And if you're interested in seeing some of their analysis, check out:  www.ucsusa.org/energy/ei.exec.html  .  Source: Washington, 1/20/2000  Reuters.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on marketing and market research go to: http://www.researchinfo.com/  or  http://www.nrel.gov/analysis/emaa/index.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Financial Assistance for Geothermal Resource and Exploration
The U.S. Department of Energy, Albuquerque Operations Office (DOE-AL) is competitively seeking applications for cost-shared research and development that will lead to the definition of new geothermal resources.  The solicitation and any subsequent amendments will be accessible on the Internet through the DOE-AL Solicitation Reading Room under http://www.doeal.gov/cpd/default.htm .  For questions regarding this solicitation, please contact Nancy Hoffman, (Phone) 505-845-4127; (Fax) 505-845-5181; or e-mail at nhoffman@doeal.gov  .
Source: Seattle Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Energy, Solicitations (Issue 72), 4/27/2000.

DOE's Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) has issued its FY 2000 Agriculture Industry of the Future solicitation
DOE's Office of Industrial Technologies (OIT) has issued its FY 2000 Agriculture Industry of the Future solicitation.  OIT is seeking applications for innovative cost-shared research, development and demonstration of technologies that will enhance economic competitiveness, reduce energy consumption and reduce environmental impacts in the emerging renewable bioproducts industry. The research must address high priority goals in either the processing or utilization barrier areas identified in the "Technology Roadmap for Plant/Crop-Based Renewable Resources 2020." DOE anticipates making 3 to 6 awards with the total estimated funding of $400,000 to $750,000 per award per year, each with a duration of three years or less.  The deadline for receipt of the  applications is 3:00 p.m. MDT on June 6, 2000.  For more information and to access the  solicitation, visit the following website: http://www.id.doe.gov/doeid/PSD/proc-div.html  (after you click on this website, then click on:  1) current solicitations 2)
Financial Assistance 3) Solicitation No. DE-PS07-00ID13959).  Source: Biobased Products and Bioenergy Monthly Newsletter 4/21/2000.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For more information on funding solicitations go to: http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/index.html
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The above information is protected by the copyright laws of the United States. The copyright laws prohibit any copying, redistributing or retransmitting of any copyright-protected material.  Western provides this information to you for educational purposes towards the advancement of green power.  To unsubscribe from the Green Power and Market Research News service, send a message to "Manion@wapa.gov"  In the body of the message type "unsubscribe" and "your email address."