Solar water heating in the world: Strong diffusion due to the large impact of incentives

Water heating represents about 15% of households’ energy uses in Europe, 20% in the United States and even 30% in Japan. Switching from electricity and gas to solar water heating could strongly reduce fossil fuel consumption and CO2 emissions.

World Energy Expenditures

US$6,000bn for energy consumers, and substantial revenues for governments

World energy expenditures have more than doubled in 20 years

More than US$6,000bn -10% of the world Gross Domestic Product (GDP)- is spent each year in the world for energy purposes (figures in US$2005ppp). This places energy second to health care expenditures in many countries; and in some cases first.

Photovoltaics – the Law of Comparative Advantage in Action

China has an important share in world patents for upstream high-value processes in photovoltaic cell manufacture, such as the production of silicon, ingots and wafer segments. But those patenting activities are the result of Chinese public research institutes’ efforts to break the country’s dependence on foreign suppliers of hi-tech components, according to researchers from Mines Paris Tech.

Global PV market up 139% Tougher times ahead

A record 18.2 GW of solar photovoltaics was installed across the world in 2010, according to the annual survey from the Californian solar energy consultancy Solarbuzz. That is growth of 139% in installations over 2009.

The survey reports that the PV industry generated US $82 billion in global revenues in 2010, up 105% over 2009. The top five countries by PV market size were: Germany, Italy, the Czech Republic, Japan, and the United States.

China - Europe competitiveness

Our economies are growth-dependent. But we are consuming resources at an unsustainable rate. The first steps out of this dilemma may be taken in a couple of months by an unlikely source – China.

LED lamps, electronic converters and ...

Electronic transformers or converters for 12 V halogen lighting raise many a claim over conventional transformers made from lots of iron and copper. One is that the output voltage is regulated and hence offsets variances of the load. Variances of input voltage, they do not balance out, but this they do not claim. So much as an aside.

Small hydroelectric power plants in China

Driving rural development

The Beijing Olympic Games have certainly made us all aware of China’s ability to tackle massive projects. When it comes to generating hydroelectricity, the country has proven itself equally successful with the construction of the much-contested Three Gorges Dam. But hydroelectric generation in China is not limited only to such huge scale projects. In recent years, the country has become one of the most successful adopters of small hydroelectric facilities (plants up to 25 MW) as a means of achieving carbon emission free rural development.

The total installed capacity of small hydroelectric plants in China is estimated at approximately 50,000 MW and growing at about 6,000 MW annually.