Energy Conservation News articles from December 1999

Energy Conservation News archives from December 1999

OUTLOOK: Household Consumption Declines by 27%.(US energy consumption)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... According to a just-published Energy Information Administration (EIA Reports, U.S. Department of Energy, Washington, DC 20585) report, A Look at Residential Energy Consumption in 1997, average on-site energy consumption per household dropped...

Electric Rates and DSM Declining at Fast Clip.(demand side management)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... The average price of electricity in the United States decreased in 1998 for the fifth consecutive year to the lowest rates since 1990. Moreover, the 1.6% decrease in 1998 was greater than the price drops in the previous four years combined,...

GOVERNMENT: Competition for Advanced Technology.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... The Commerce Department's National Institute of Standards and Technology has just announced a new competition for fiscal year 2000 to co-fund new, innovative R&D projects under the Advanced Technology Program. Many proposed projects implicate...

Construction Code Act Is Signed.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Pennsylvania has a new statewide uniform construction code. On November 10, 1999, Governor Ridge signed in to law the Pennsylvania Construction Code Act (also known as the Uniform Construction Code). The Uniform Construction Code adopts the...

Energy Innovations Grants Awarded.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... This month, the California Energy Commission announced the latest awards for their Energy Innovations Small Grant Program. Program awards of relevance to ECN readers are discussed below. Makel Engineering, Inc. (Darby Makel, 1020 Marauder...

INTERNATIONAL: IEA Involved in Promoting Solar.(International Energy Agency)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... A group of prominent business leaders has asked the International Energy Agency (IEA) to coordinate international efforts to stimulate growth in the solar energy market. Meeting recently in Venice at the third IEA Executive Conference on...

ENERGY MANAGEMENT/FINANCING: Georgia Tech Is ANSI Developer.(American National Standards Institute)(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Energy specialists at the Georgia Institute of Technology (430 Tenth St. N.W., Suite N-116, Atlanta, GA 30318; Tel: 404/894-6986, Fax: 404/894-1826; Website: gtri.gatech.edu/rco.html) have taken a major step toward development of what will be...

RESIDENTIAL: Companies Announce Product Promotions.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... As part of the release of the Greening of the White House Report, a number of large companies are announcing a series of incentives to help promote the use of energy-efficient products. Currently, over 1,200 manufacturers and some 4,000 retail...

Savings Heat Up Housing Authority.(New York, New York)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... The New York City Housing Authority will save time, energy, and money with the help of energy efficiency programs developed by the Department of Energy's Pacific Northwest National Laboratory. Under a recently signed contract with the housing...

NiSource-IGT Offers Total Energy Solution.(Institute of Gas Technology)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... At a news conference in Chicago this month, NiSource Inc. (801 E. 86th Ave., Merrillville, IN 46410-6272; Tel: 219/853-5200, Fax: 219/647- 5589; Website: yes2nisource.com) and the Institute of Gas Technology (IGT, 1700 S. Mount Prospect Rd.,...

COMMERCIAL: Internet Unleashes Energy Savings.(Center for Energy and Climate Solutions report: The Internet Economy and Global Warming.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... By reducing the amount of energy and materials consumed by business (often dramatically) and increasing overall productivity, the Internet is already revolutionizing the relationship between economic growth and the environment, according to a...

Get Off the Roof, Go Online and Save.(Pentech Energy Solutions Inc. launches E-MAC Internet-based service)(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Pentech Energy Solutions, Inc. (6885 Flanders Dr., San Diego, CA 92121; Tel: 888/550-PERC, Fax: 888/550-7995; Email: Sales@pentechsd.com, Website: pentechsd.com) has introduced E-MAC (Energy Management and Control), the first wireless,...

Elevator Technology Promises Savings.(Montgomery KONE introduces EcoSystem elevator)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Montgomery KONE (One Montgomery Ct., Moline, IL 61265; Tel: 800/956- KONE; Website: montgomery-kone.com) has introduced an elevator technology to the U.S. market that may provide significant energy savings over competing systems used in low-...

INDUSTRIAL: Cable Technology Could Save Billions.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... This month, the U.S. Patent Office issued a Patent 5,994,647 to the General Science & Technology Corp. (4608 S.W. 74th Ave., Miami, FL 33155; Tel: 305/269-0500, Fax: 305/269-0501; Email: sales@generalscience.com, Website: generalscience.com)...

TRANSPORTATION: Ballard Receives $575,000 Order.(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Orders are still trickling in for Ballard (9000 Glenlyon Pkwy., Burnaby, B.C. V5J 5J9, Canada; Tel: 604/454-0900, Fax: 604/412-4700; Website: ballard.com) fuel cells from various vehicle manufacturers. And, "trickling" is the operative word...

UTILITIES/POWER GENERATION/ENERGY PRODUCTION : Hydrogen Peroxide Could Power Fuel Cell.(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Researchers are developing a new type of environmentally friendly fuel cell that runs on aluminum and renewable resources and generates about 20 times more electricity per pound than car batteries. The cell produces electricity through...

Pulse Combustion Technology Revealed.(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Australian scientists have perfected a new-age combustion technology which is poised to clean up greenhouse gas emissions, slash energy costs, and significantly boost productivity. "We have produced a new-generation, pulse combustion...

Syngas Plants Feature Improved Efficiency.(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... Synetix, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the ICI Group of Companies (Imperial Chemical House, 9 Millbank, London SW1P 3JF, U.K.; Tel: +44- 171-834-4444, Fax: +44-171-834-2042; Website: ici.com), Methanex (1800 Waterfront Centre, 200 Burrard St.,...

Large Industrials Throw Hat into Fuel Cell Ring.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Two utility companies, a major energy company, and a major supplier of engine components and automotive products have joined forces to power up a fuel cell demonstration and evaluation project at the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC)....

MicroTurbines to Power Japan.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Capstone Turbine Corp. (18700 Oxnard St., Tarzana, CA 91356; Tel: 818/774-9600, Fax: 818/774-0228; Website: capstoneturbine.com) and Active Power Corp. of Tokyo have entered into a strategic marketing alliance under which Active Power will be...

APPLIANCES: Fast Management of Electric Loads.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Cannon Technologies, Inc. (1212 E. Wayzata Blvd., Wayzata MN 55391; Website: cannontech.com) has begun shipping its LCR 5000, the utility industry's first load control receiver to use Motorola's 900 MHz FLEX paging technology. The LCR 5000...

Transistor Lets Devices Consume Less.(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... On December 1st, Motorola Labs (1303 E. Algonquin Rd., Schaumburg, IL 60196; Tel: 847/576-5000, Fax: 847/576-5372; Website: mot.com) announced that it has built the world's thinnest functional transistor using a new class of semiconductor...

Appliance Standards Could Cut CO2.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... As the demand for energy grows, U.S. carbon emissions are projected to increase 47% above the 1990 level by 2020, assuming no changes in federal laws and regulations. However, adoption of revised appliance efficiency standards could reduce...

INDUSTRY NEWS: Steel Mills Start CoJet Gas Injection.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... Praxair, Inc. (39 Old Ridgebury Rd., Danbury, CT 06810-5113; Tel: 203/837-2000, Fax: 203/837-2450; Website: praxair.com) has announced start-up of its patented CoJet gas injection system at four steel mills: CSC Ltd., Ohio; Global Steel and...

SatCon Makes Strategic Acquisition.(SatCon Technology Corp.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... SatCon Technology Corp. (161 First St., Cambridge, MA 02142; Tel: 617/661-0540, Fax: 617/661-3373; Website: satcon.com), which manufactures and sells power and energy management products for telecommunications, silicon wafer manufacturing,...

REFRIGERATION: China Set to Reduce CFCs.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... China's refrigerator industry is the largest in the world. As such, it contributes significant emissions of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs). Now, an internationally funded project to improve the energy efficiency of Chinese refrigerators,...

LIGHTING: Ballast Makers 'See the Light'.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 19, 1999... In the first major test of the new U.S. DOE standards process, efficiency advocates and lighting manufacturers negotiated an agreement for a joint recommendation to DOE for a new national fluorescent lamp, ballast energy efficiency standard....

NEMA Releases Luminaire Efficacy Ratings.(National Electrical Manufacturers Association)(Brief Article)
December 19, 1999... The National Electrical Manufacturers Assn. (NEMA, Rosslyn, VA), in cooperation with Global Engineering Documents, a distributor of standards, have released the standard, Procedure for Determining Luminaire Efficacy Ratings for Commercial,...

CALENDAR.
December 19, 1999... January 24-25, 2000, 5th Annual U.S. Water & Wastewater Summit, Washington, DC. Contact: Center for Business Intelligence; Tel: 800/817-8601, Fax: 781/939-2490; Email: cbireg@cbinet.com, Website: cbinet.com. March 22, 2000, National...