Convention center solar project seeks bidders

The city has put out a request for qualifications for a  110-kilowatt solar system planned for the roof of the Knoxville Convention Center. The city is asking a contractor to design, build and finance the project. The RFQ was issued Monday with a deadline of  March 5 and the City anticipates selecting the most qualified contractor on March 19. The solar installation should be completed and generating electricity by 2012.

The system, comprised of more than 500 panels, will generate enough electricity to power the annual equivalent of 15 homes, according to a city release.

Communications firm w/green focus

A new company specializing in “environmental communications” is offering advertising, marketing, training and other services focused on sustainability and green practices. Called GreenLink Partners, the Knoxville firm is headed by Dick Harrison and Wayne Bowman. Their website is www.greenlinkpartners.com.

Here’s the full release:

Nissan tour to stop in Knoxville

Nissan will be in Knoxville Friday showing off its new battery-operated car, the LEAF.

The carmaker is on a 22-city to promote the car, which will be available for sale in Knoxville, one of the company’s early test markets, in 2010. Tennessee will be part of the network of about 2,500 charging stations that are being established for the new car.

A press event will be at World’s Fair Park from 8 a.m. – 9 a.m. and the car will be on public display from 9 a.m. – 11 a.m. While only the prototype version of the LEAF will be on display, there will be a Nissan Versa with The LEAF’s electric motor and lithium-ion battery pack available for drives with members of the media.

Code green in CA

While Tennessee is just now adopting statewide building code for homes, California is stepping up its code to include specifically green requirements. Here’s the locals’ take in the L.A. Times. Here’s my story of last month on Tennessee’s recent effort to roll out residential building codes.

TVA sets new records

From an agency release:

Weekly demand for TVA power reached new record highs for the seven-day period ending Jan. 10, 2010. Total weekly energy use across the Tennessee Valley region was recorded at 4,633 gigawatt-hours. That’s more than 200 gigawatt-hours higher than the previous record set Aug. 12, 2007.

A new TVA record was set for total energy use in a 24-hour period on Friday, Jan. 8, at 701 gigawatt-hours.

The highest weekend daily record was set on Saturday, Jan. 9, at 673 gigawatt-hours. That was also the third-highest daily usage on record.  A record for Sunday usage was set on Jan. 10, at 644 gigawatt-hours.

Hemlock gets tax boost

Hemlock Semiconductor, which is building a plant to manufacture polysilicon for the solar industry, will get about $169 million in federal energy manufacturing tax credits throught the Obama administration’s stimulus plan. The tax credits include $141.9 million for Hemlock Semiconductor’s recently announced expansion of its Michigan polycrystalline silicon operations, and $27.3 million for a monosilane plant Dow Corning is building, according to a news release. Wacker, which plans to build a plant near Cleveland in East Tennessee, is getting nearly $128.5 million in tax credits, according to a story in the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle.

Georgia still seeking biofuel success

Here’s an interesting take on neighbor Georgia’s efforts to push biofuel innovation and production. They’ve been doing it a couple of years longer than Tennessee and are still waiting to see promised economic benefits, according to the story in the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

TVA reports spike in demand during cold snap

Nothing like a plunging mercury to get those electrons flowing. TVA reports winter peak demand—so far—for electricity this week of 31,300 megawatts throughout its coverage area. Record demand in winter, however, was recorded last January 16 when the temp averaged 9 degrees and demand reached 32,572.

The all-time record was achieved during the hot and dry summer of 2007, when demand hit 33,482 megawatts on Aug. 16. TVA has a power generation capacity of “more than 36,000 megawatts,” according to a TVA release.

This winter ain’t over yet. Here’s the full release:

Local farms need more

Here’s an interesting blog post about the need for more economic infrastructure to support the whole concept of local farming, which, the author writes, needs a lot more support than a few farmers markets. She cites the Clinch Powell Community Kitchens near Rogersville that helps local producers package and market value-added products such as salsa, jellies and jams. There’s also been discussion about the possibility of re-establishing slaughter houses in the state capable of processing locally-raised meats.

Clinton solar prospect has local ties

Missouri-based solar start-up Confluence Solar is the firm eyeing property in Clinton for a manufacturing facility, and one of its principals formerly worked at Oak Ridge National Laboratory.

According to a variety of news reports over the past year, Confluence has been seeking a location to set up production headquarters for a silicon processing facility since early last year, with Tennessee one of the states under consideration. Reports indicated the company has also considered sites in Missouri, Michigan and Alabama for the plant. In November, the Clinton City Council approved the sale of land to an unnamed solar company. The site would be 25 to 40 acres in the Clinton/Interstate 75 Industrial Park, according to previous News Sentinel reports. The $400 million facility would create 400 local jobs.

John DeLuca, technical advisor for the St. Louis-based firm, worked at ORNL in nuclear materials research, according to the company’s website. ORNL spokesman Bill Cabage said a J.P. DeLuca worked at the lab from 1969 to 1971 in the then metals & ceramics division.

Confluence was founded in 2007 and is backed by Convexa Capital of Oslo, Norway, which led a $12.7 million venture investment into the firm last year. Confluence refines silicon material into high quality single crystals used in solar applications.

“Founded by semiconductor industry veterans, Confluence Solar utilizes certain cost effective manufacturing technologies originally developed for semiconductors applications to the production of single crystals for the solar market,” the website says.

A Confluence spokeswoman would not comment on its plans for the plant, writing in an email, “We will be in touch once we are able to share details on our site selection decision.”