Wind-energy developers are working with the state of Hawaii and Hawaii’s largest electric utility to develop wind resources on two islands and deliver power to Oahu. One estimate pegs the program’s cost at $3 billion, but another source says it could cost twice that amount. + Image Photo: Illustration by Martha Hernandez, Courtesy of The Honolulu Advertiser Interisland Wind Project: University of Hawaii performed a sea-floor survey and feasibility study for the state to identify routes and possible obstacles for cable. The Interisland Wind Project encompasses two 200-MW wind farms to be developed on the islands of Lanai and Molokai,

Geothermal energy “appeared to be on a launch trajectory” in 2009, says the Geothermal Energy Association in its year-end report. With more than 3,150 MW of geothermal capacity on line in the U.S. in August and 144 new geothermal plants under development, the Washington, D.C.-based industry association says the accelerating growth could add 7,000 MW of new plants. The U.S. already leads the world in geothermal installed capacity and could have 10,000 MW in a few years, officials say. GEA credits state and federal policies—including state renewables portfolio standards, the Dept. of Energy’s extension of a loan program for innovative

Wind energy from north-central Oregon will power homes in Southern California when an 845-MW wind farm is completed in 2012. Turbine supplier GE and developer Caithness Energy LLC say the $2-billion project, with 338 wind turbines sprawling across 30 sq miles near the town of Arlington, Ore., will be the world’s largest operating wind farm. Photo: GE Wind turbines to be installed in Oregon will be GE’s largest in the U.S, but similar machines have been successfully operating for several years in Europe and Asia. Under a $1.4-billion contract, Fairfield, Conn.-based GE will furnish and deliver its newest 2.5-MW wind

An unusual wave-power system that pumps high-pressure water to an onshore hydroelectric plant recently began feeding electricity into the U.K.’s national transmission system. The 315 kW “Oyster device” is the world’s only functioning hydroelectric wave-powered plant, claims its Edinburgh-based developer, Aquamarine Power Ltd. Slide Show Photo: Aquamarine Power Ltd. The 200-tonne 315-kW wave-power device was installed in Scotland for six months of full-scale demonstration trials. Related Links: Wave Power: Swells Drive Onshore Generator Finland’s WaveRoller Has Seabed Generator Oyster’s hydraulic pumping power is generated at the hinge of a seabed-mounted flap that moves with waves. The 10-m-long by 18-m-wide steel

The $15-billion Papua New Guinea liquefied natural-gas project has secured several new off-take commitments from energy companies across Asia, leading joint-venture senior partner ExxonMobil to announce it will press ahead with the 435-mile pipeline project. It would represent the largest foreign investment in Papua New Guinea to date and, when the project is completed, will deliver an estimated 6.3 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas per year to customers across east Asia. PNG LNG, as the project is known, is a joint venture led by Esso Highlands, a subsidiary of ExxonMobil; Oil Search, Santos; the government of Papua New Guinea;

Designing a custom system to lift and set 2,200-ton and 2,600-ton offshore platforms is notable enough. But Belle Chasse, La.-based Versabar Inc. had to work with three different cultures across nine time zones and sail past real-life pirates to a site 8,500 miles away to make its most recent job successful—all within 10 months. Photo: Versabar Inc. Versatruss raises deck and carefully positions it over its jacket (above), then gently lowers it onto the jacket (below). Operators tested the procedure dockside before executing in 110 ft of open water. Versabar was hired by Al Khafji Joint Operations to use its

Slow responses from plant vendors have impeded generic design assessments (GDA) of two nuclear reactor types vying for the U.K.’s potentially large “new build” program. In an interim report released on Nov. 7, the U.K. Health & Safety Executive (HSE) lists inadequate submissions in support of the Westinghouse AP1000 and Areva’s EPR reactors. “If we are to complete GDA on time, we need the design companies to work with us and provide the high-quality and timely information we need,” says Kevin Allars, HSE’s director of the assessment. HSE is scheduled to complete the GDAs in June 2011 after 42 months

Sacramento Municipal Utility District is leading the national shift to �smart grid� networks with help from a $127-million stimulus grant. Photo: SMUD In June, SMUD hired Greenville, South Carolina-based Utility Partners of America, Inc. for $7.5 million to replace the smattering of 620,000 electromechanical and first-generation solid-state meters with Landis+Gyr smart meters that collect usage information digitally in real time from 50,000 demand-response, control relay access points. The digital meters will allow customers who generate their own energy using solar or wind turbines to act as micro-generators and sell power to the grid. The devices could also improve customer service

The U.S. Energy Dept. on Nov. 23 announced it will award $18 million to 107 small businesses to research, develop and deploy clean-energy technologies. The companies were selected competitively from 950 applicants based on near-term commercialization and job-creation prospects. Funding is from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Firms with successful results are eligible for $60 million in additional grants.

The Dept. of Energy has selected 32 projects to receive a total of $620 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act funds to advance and evaluate new technologies to make the nation's electricity grid more effective. The DOE funding will be complemented by more than $1 billion in private-sector matching funds for those projects. Related Links: Smart Grid Demo List Grid Modernization Will Mean Construction DOE Awards $3.4 Billion for 'Smart Grid' Upgrades The "smart grid" funding awards, announced Nov. 24, include energy-storage pilot projects, as well as plans that involve smart metering and distribution and transmission monitoring equipment. If