The energy industry is reinventing itself in combined efforts to limit as much as possible the effects of climate change. Evermore photovoltaic farms emerge around the world, evermore wind projects spring up onshore, offshore near shore, and even air borne—the industry is still in perfecting mode, new ideas turning into new ways to harvest green energy. There’s one more breakthrough in the solar energy world, coming from the scientists at the University of British Columbia. The Canadian researchers managed to develop a bacteria-powered solar cell that can convert light to energy, regardless of the weather, working as efficiently in dim and bright light, which could be a step forward in places like British Columbia and parts of northern Europe where overcast skies are common. Called biogenic cells, these solar cells made of living organism, are intriguing. This new cell generated a current stronger than any previously recorded from such a device. This is the first time when researchers connected nine biological-solar (bio-solar) cells into a bio-solar panel, in an attempt to replicate photosynthesis—the natural way to convert light energy into chemical energy that is later released to fuel the organism’s activities. Previous endeavors were centered around extracting light-sensitive dye from genetically modified bacteria, but the process proved to be quite costly, complex and also not quite safe as during the extraction process, the dye was often damaged by the solvents used. The Canadian team tried something different—they used E.coli genetically engineered to produce ample amounts of lycopene—the molecule that gives tomatoes their orange-red tint. Now, some of you might startle at the sight of E.coli, but this bacteria was chosen for cloning due to its low mutation and recombination rates. Lycopene is considered an excellent natural dye and is fantastic at harvesting sunlight. Their...

After signing its first agreement to purchase all the electricity from a 114-megawatt wind farm in Iowa in 2010, Google set the target to be powered 100 percent by renewable energy only two years later. According to one of the company’s latest blog posts on the initiative, the said target will be reached in 2017, following a complex process involving many power purchase agreements. “To reach this goal we’ll be directly buying enough wind and solar electricity annually to account for every unit of electricity our operations consume, globally. And we’re focusing on creating new energy from renewable sources, so we only buy from projects that are funded by our purchases,” said Urs Urs Hölzle, Google’s senior VP of technical infrastructure. Technology companies have been criticized for the carbon footprint of their operations, which have expanded so fast they now account for about 2 percent of global greenhouse emissions, rivaling the aviation industry. The internet giant is already the world’s biggest corporate buyer of renewable electricity (Amazon is a distant second), last year buying 44 percent of its power from wind and solar farms. The majority of the green power comes from windfarms in the U.S., but also from projects around the world including sites in Sweden, the Netherlands and Chile. In order to get here, Google took part in a number of large-scale deals with renewable producers, guaranteeing to buy the energy they make with their wind turbines and solar cells. Those guarantees help wind companies obtain bank financing to build more turbines. One of the most attractive, cost-efficient features of wind power is that, unlike carbon-based power, wind supply prices don’t fluctuate, thus allowing Google to plan better. Moreover, the more renewable energy it purchases, the cheaper those sources get—in Chile, Google said,...

Editor’s note: This piece originally appeared in the fall issue of NAREIM Dialogues. Electrification is perhaps the greatest technological advancement of the 20th century.  The electric power grid, the system that delivers electrification, is considered by many to be the largest and most successful machine ever built.  But it may be about to die. The power grid “machine” is an interconnected system of long distance transmission lines, local distribution systems, transformers, substations, generating power plants, and the computers and control systems that manage it.  In the United States, it delivers $400 billion in electricity annually over 7 million miles of power lines and through the efforts of 3,200 utility companies.  The infrastructure in the system is valued at over $850 billion.  Uptime is an astonishingly high 99.97% (I certainly wish my laptop could approach that level of reliability) and growth in the system is delivered relatively reliably by simply calling your utility.  All this is delivered at price that is slightly below where it was in 1960 in real terms. This is an incredible success story; it seems like there is little here to concern real estate investors and owners…right? If only it were so simple.  We have entered a period of incredibly rapid change in energy technologies, and the future of the utilities that deliver power to our buildings, and even the future of the electric grid itself, is in considerable flux.  The forces threatening to disrupt the power grid include distributed solar systems, fuel cells, demand response technologies, battery storage, energy efficiency, electric vehicles, and various micro grid technologies.  We can sum these up with the phrase: be your own power plant.  Or to be cheeky, “adios, utility company.”  Even if you think your particular investments, assets, buildings or properties won’t mess...

Institutions and regular citizens are transitioning from a fossil-fueled past to a cleaner energy future. The cost of installation for such systems has dropped considerably in recent years, making them more affordable for general use. Currently, one of the biggest wrinkles in this still young industry is storage. A study by EuPD Research shows that just 34 percent of photovoltaic installers in the U.S. offer storage solutions to customers. The company’s latest PV Installer Survey revealed that current pricing of batteries impedes demand, meaning margins are too low for installers and the “technological maturity” of the systems on the market is not currently convincing. But things are gradually changing—26 percent of survey participants say they are working on adding storage products sometime this year. However, across all sectors there is a growing trend for more storage globally—IHS forecasts as much as 900 MW of storage projects will come online in 2016, meaning a doubling of the current cumulative installed storage capacity globally. GTM found that in the U.S., the storage market more than tripled in 2015, growing 241 percent for the year, spurred by pro-storage policies in many solar states, as well as incremental price decreases for leading battery technologies like lithium-ion. The leader in the field is  Tesla’s Powerwall; the product scored top marks for “unaided brand awareness” in the EuPD Research survey, as installers discovered they had very little marketing to do to consumers. Another very popular battery brand is Trojan (solar & storage installations), but we want to talk about the new Orison home battery, the product of a San Diego-based startup. Launched on Kickstarter this year, Orison is going up against the biggest names in energy storage, an emerging area of technology of great importance. Orison’s stylish new product has...

Blessed with an average of 266 sunny days per year, it’s no surprise San Diego currently generates 189 megawatts of solar power. Though it boasts the second highest solar wattage in the country, the city doesn’t plan to rest on its laurels. Instead, this southern California metropolis of over 1 million has set its sights on something grander: to be largest U.S. city completely powered by renewable energy. Known as the “birthplace of California,” this trans-border urban outpost sits at the center of U.S. innovation, playing host to military, biotechnology and medical research and manufacturing. Over the years, San Diego’s commitment to sustainability and environmentally focused city planning has resulted in an extensive infrastructure renaissance and citywide green initiatives. With an eye on reducing carbon emissions and mitigating the effects of global warming, a bipartisan coalition led by Republican Mayor Kevin Faulconer unanimously approved the city’s Climate Action Plan last December. The goal is to cut greenhouse gas emissions and shift to 100% renewable energy sources by 2035. The Climate Action Plan also includes a goal of 90% solid waste recycling along with significant funding for public transportation. “Today, we are faced with an issue that affects us all. Our city’s responsibility is to ensure a clean, sustainable San Diego for generations to come,” Faulconer writes in his introduction to the Climate Action Plan. “San Diegans from different backgrounds are coming together to proactively address environmental concerns, strengthen our economy and improve our quality of life.” The Climate Action Plan includes practical policies designed to strike a balance between environmental protection and economic opportunity. Those strategies include improved water resource management, targeted public information campaigns, and green jobs incentives. “We have an opportunity to improve the lives of every San Diegan,” concludes Faulconer. “This...

It’s been all over the news – the real-life Tony Stark has unveiled Tesla Energy, an ambitious plan to power the world with a home battery which eventually will not only make the consumers less dependent on the grid, but take them off it entirely. Tesla founder Elon Musk has presented the Powerwall. And it makes complete sense. Tesla launched the home battery system and Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk is the chairman at SolarCity; SolarCity will handle the installation of the Powerwall. The Powerwall measures 51.2” x 33.9” x 7.1” and comes in different colors; its primary function is that of storage system for solar power, but will also work for non-solar energy consumers in cases of power outage and furthermore to avoid feeding from outside electricity during peak periods (evenings) when utility prices are highest. Up to 9 devices (totaling 90kilowatt hours) can be stacked per home. It is good to know that the typical American home consumes daily about 30 kWh, so in order to cover the entire power need, one would need several batteries. Additionally, Musk announced that there will also be the Powerpack, a similar device designed with industrial usage in mind, as well as a smaller 7 kWh Powerwall. Here are some specifications on the Powerwall: Models: 10 kWh $3,500 – For backup applications 7 kWh $3,000 – For daily cycle applications Warranty – 10 years Compatibility – Single phase and three phase utility grid compatible. Power – 2.0 kW continuous, 3.3 kW peak Operating Temperature: -4°F to 110°F / -20°C to 43°C Musk’s new baby is already promising to grow big and strong as there is major interest in the product – the company has announced that so far it has taken 38,000 reservations for the home battery, a number that made...