Water breakthrough: Device uses solar power to produce clean water – and electricity
Obtaining fresh drinking water is not easy for certain areas of the world. There has been constant research regarding various projects to convert non-drinkable water into something potable. Peng Wang of King Abdullah University and his team released their discoveries on the topic this week. The technology they use “recycles waste heat from photovoltaic (PV) solar panels using a multi-stage membrane distillation system to produce clean, drinkable water.” The idea is to be as useful as possible for those with limited access to fresh water such as in Africa and Asia. The benefits from the PV system alongside the yielding of water speak for themselves. However, looking at the bigger picture, it has potential to be used wherever there is a need for clean water- to irrigate plants, to clean, or even to colonize another planet.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
Additional Information: https://www.express.co.uk/news/science/1151632/water-solar-power-electricity-saudi-arabia-fossil-fuel-spacex-elon-musk-mars
Transforming Energy Education In The Digital Age
Advancements within technology have allowed the furthering of knowledge across nearly all topics. However, it is believed that we can greatly increase learning around the energy industry. Data sharing could grow efficiency, improve safety, decrease educational costs and enable many benefits across the board. Starting with our academic system, we can provide education and train students to lead to more opportunities and developments. The potential to affect various sectors of the industry is large and we need to focus on bettering all involved in its entirety.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
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Consumers vs. DTE long term planning – winners and losers?
How do the 2 largest utilities in Michigan plan to continue to provide electric services?
Their planning is part of each utilities submission of their long range plans required to be submitted and approved by the MPSC.
Consumers’ plan is approved and was praised by environmental groups and energy professionals for aggressively moving to renewable energy that is less costly than fossil fuels.
DTE on the other hand just recently submitted their plan. It was of course compared to Consumers. Most environmentalists and energy professionals found it to be less ambitious and more likely to maintain current status.
A comparison of the 2 plans is below.
DTE made the case they need a new solar plant while Consumers demonstrated that solar and wind can supply much of their forecasted need.
Unlike solar energy which requires no fuel, natural gas is a volatile commodity that can increase in price dramatically over time.
DTE customers will pay for any increase if the operating costs for the new gas plant are above predictions. Likewise, Consumers customers could see declining energy prices.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
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DOE EIA Weekly Gas Storage Report
Working gas in storage was 2,301 Bcf as of Friday, June 21, 2019, according to EIA estimates.
This represents a net increase of 98 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 236 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 171 Bcf below the five-year average of 2,472 Bcf. At 2,301 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.
Michigan Line 5 backers ramp up public campaigns
Lake Michigan, Mackinac Straits, and a pipeline.
Environmental issues and awareness are certainly more acute today in 2019 than in 1950. Line 5, which brings Canadian oil to the US, touches upon the need for power and the offsets required to receive that power.
Line 5 carries some 23 million gallons of oil per day to refiners in Michigan and Ohio. The State of Michigan and the pipeline owner Enbridge negotiated a deal with the Governor of Michigan that would allow Line 5 to retire. It would be replaced with a pipeline corridor that could expand the volumes flowing into the US.
The pipeline deal, like all energy projects, is being legally challenged to ensure compliance with all state and federal laws.
The US relies on many energy sources and it will continue to do so. Current awareness of the risks such projects pose (e.g. contamination of 20% of the world’s fresh water) needs to be assessed so that past projects do not continue without examining current risks, technology and alternatives.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
Additional Information:
DOE EIA Weekly Gas Storage Report
Working gas in storage was 2,203 Bcf as of Friday, June 14, 2019, according to EIA estimates.
This represents a net increase of 115 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 209 Bcf higher than last year at this time and 199 Bcf below the five-year average of 2,402 Bcf. At 2,203 Bcf, total working gas is within the five-year historical range.
Zero Energy Ready Homes
With renewable energy increasing across the world, Zero Energy Ready Homes are the new trend. About 50% more energy efficient than a typical home; these houses have LED lights, efficient HVAC systems, and lower air infiltration. Although the purchase costs are slightly higher, the money saved in the long run make these homes of the future well worth the investment.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
Additional Information: https://www.energy.gov/eere/buildings/zero-energy-ready-home;
https://www.kcrg.com/content/news/First-Zero-Energy-Ready-Homes-built-in-Cedar-Rapids-511391462.html
Is less really more?
Views on energy efficiency vary depending on who you’re speaking with. Some believe we should lower usage and lessen electricity waste. We’ve all heard not to leave lights on that aren’t being utilized. On the other hand, economists address efficient use of electricity and overcoming market failures.
These perspectives come into play when discussing electricity rate design and how usage affects those rates. It is believed by some that lower rates encourage higher usage whereas higher rates encourage the opposite.
Social marginal cost is ideally based on customer usage and “the incremental amount they pay matches the incremental cost they impose on society”. Basically, we want to increase awareness of the behaviors discouraged and encouraged when it comes to energy usage. Efficiency should be about decreasing wasteful consumption to achieve “the ultimate goal of a prosperous, clean-energy society”.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
Additional Information: https://energyathaas.wordpress.com/2019/06/03/how-much-electricity-consumption-is-too-little/
Illinoisans deserve a better energy market
Balance is essential. For instance, you cannot disrupt a practice unless there is change. The Illinois legislators overwhelmingly passed Illinois Customer Choice over 15 years ago. The cost of energy in Illinois is lower as a result.
However, with change comes competition which must be fair.
Some Energy Marketers have pursued very aggressive and even dishonest marketing and sales campaigns.
Fortunately, the Illinois Senate has singled out some of the worse practices such as to:
- Stop alternative suppliers from automatically renewing a contract from a fixed rate to a variable rate (a rate that changes monthly) and then jacking up the price. The bill would require companies to get a customer signature before those contracts renew.
- End termination fees on supply contracts for residential and small-business customers.
- Protect Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) funds from supplier overcharges; making sure the money available can help as many people as possible.
- Require alternative supplier marketing materials as well as utility bills to clearly state the utility’s price, so consumers can make an apples-to-apples price comparison.
Realgy welcomes these changes and encourages all Illinois utilities to provide accurate information to consumers.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
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‘Land no one else wants’ gets solar as coal, nukes die
What does land contaminated with radioactivity from past nuclear accidents have in common with abandoned coal mines? Typically these lands are unsuitable for nearly any use.
Until solar energy is looked at.
Solar energy installations are turning these liabilities into productive energy and helping offset environmental damage.
A 20 year old contaminated coal site in Kentucky and the Chernobyl nuclear site are both being retrofitted for solar power generation.
Regions long dependent on traditional energy sources for jobs and tax revenues (such as Appalachian coal in Kentucky) are increasingly turning to solar and wind power. U.S. coal produced power continues to shrink (down 6.3 % in 2018), while wind and solar are growing to replace coal, oil, nuclear and natural gas.
Consider beyond the environmental benefits; wind generated electricity is the least costly energy source in the U.S. Reread that last sentence; yes, wind generated electricity costs are lower than any alternative including coal, nuclear and natural gas. This fact will drive its adoption further across the U.S. and the world.
Realgy Energy Services is a registered Retail Energy Marketer in the states of Illinois, Michigan, Indiana and Ohio. We offer Service Plans that will provide electric and natural gas at wholesale pricing direct to customers without any utility markup. Our Service Plans work with the local utility to provide seamless service and annual energy savings. Service Plans include Guaranteed SavingsTM, ManagedPriceTM, ManagedGreenTM Index, Fixed and PriceAssuranceTM.
Realgy owns and operates 7 solar plants in Illinois and is looking to invest in additional locations.
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