imported>John Foster |
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| | '''Renewable energy''' is derived from natural processes that are regularly replenished. Renewable energy sources and technologies include [[solar power]], [[wind power]], [[Hydroelectric power|hydropower]], [[geothermal energy]], [[biomass]], and [[biofuel]]s. Each of these has unique characteristics which influence how and where they are used.<ref>International Energy Agency (IEA)(2003). [http://www.iea.org/textbase/nppdf/free/2000/Renew_main2003.pdf Renewable energy... into the mainstream] p. 9.</ref> |
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| '''Renewable energy development''' involves three generations of [[renewable energy]] technologies dating back more than 100 years. First-generation technologies, which are already mature and economically competitive, include [[biomass]], [[hydroelectricity]], [[geothermal power]] and heat. Second-generation technologies are market-ready and are being deployed at the present time; they include [[solar heating]], [[photovoltaics]], [[wind power]], [[List of solar thermal power stations|solar thermal power stations]], and modern forms of [[bioenergy]]. Third-generation technologies require continued [[R&D]] efforts in order to make large contributions on a global scale and include advanced [[biomass gasification]], [[biorefinery]] technologies, [[hot-dry-rock]] geothermal power, and [[ocean energy]].<ref name="IEA">[[International Energy Agency]] (2007).
| | About 18% of global final energy consumption comes from renewables, with 13% from traditional [[biomass]] (which is mainly used for [[heating]]) and 3% from [[hydroelectric power]]. The share of renewables in [[electricity generation]] is around 18%, with 15% of global electricity coming from hydroelectricity and 3.4% from new renewables (small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels).<ref name="REN21-2007">[[Renewable Energy Network in the 21st Century]] (REN21) (2008). [http://www.ren21.net/pdf/RE2007_Global_Status_Report.pdf Renewables 2007 Global Status Report] (Paris: REN21 Secretariat and Washington, DC: [[Worldwatch Institute]]).</ref> |
| [http://www.iea.org/textbase/papers/2006/renewable_factsheet.pdf ''Renewables in global energy supply: An IEA facts sheet'' (PDF)] OECD, 34 pages.</ref><ref>International Council for Science (c2006). [http://www.icsu.org/Gestion/img/ICSU_DOC_DOWNLOAD/858_DD_FILE_CSD-14_Discussion_paper.pdf ''Discussion Paper by the Scientific and Technological Community for the 14th session of the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD-14)'' (PDF)]</ref> | |
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| [[Renewable energy]] technologies are essential contributors to the energy supply portfolio, as they contribute to [[energy security|world energy security]], reduce dependency on [[fossil fuel]]s, and provide opportunities for mitigating [[greenhouse gases]].<ref name="IEA" /> | | According to the [[International Energy Agency]] (IEA), renewable energy technologies can play an important role in addressing the challenges of moving towards clean, reliable, secure and competitive energy supply. Many countries have made progress in promoting renewables in their energy mix, but obstacles remain and, says the IEA, greater efforts are needed.<ref>International Energy Agency (2008). [http://www.iea.org/g8/2008/G8_Renewables.pdf Deploying Renewables] p. 1.</ref> |
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| ==Overview== | | ===Rationale for renewables=== |
| The term ''renewable energy'' covers a number of sources and technologies at different stages of commercialization. The [[International Energy Agency]] (IEA) has defined three generations of renewable energy technologies, reaching back over 100 years:
| | [[Renewable energy]] technologies are essential contributors to the energy supply portfolio, as they contribute to [[energy security|world energy security]], reduce dependency on [[fossil fuel]]s, and provide opportunities for mitigating [[greenhouse gases]]. Climate-disrupting [[fossil fuels]] are being replaced by clean, climate-stabilizing, non-depletable sources of energy: |
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| *''First-generation technologies'' emerged from the [[industrial revolution]] at the end of the 19th century and include [[hydropower]], [[biomass]] [[combustion]], [[geothermal power]] and heat. These technologies are quite widely used.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| *''Second-generation technologies'' include [[solar heating]] and cooling, [[wind power]], modern forms of [[bioenergy]], and [[solar photovoltaics]]. These are now entering markets as a result of research, development and demonstration (RD&D) investments since the 1980s. Initial investment was prompted by [[energy security]] concerns linked to the [[1973 oil crisis|oil crises]] of the 1970s but the enduring appeal of these technologies is due, at least in part, to environmental benefits. Many of the technologies reflect significant advancements in materials.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| *''Third-generation technologies'' are still under development and include advanced [[biomass gasification]], [[biorefinery]] technologies, concentrating [[solar thermal]] power, [[hot-dry-rock]] geothermal power, and [[ocean energy]]. Advances in [[nanotechnology]] may also play a major role.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| First-generation technologies are well established, second-generation technologies are entering markets, and third-generation technologies heavily depend on long-term RD&D commitments, where the public sector has a role to play.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| ==First-generation technologies==
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| First-generation technologies are widely used in locations with abundant resources. Their future use depends on the exploration of the remaining resource potential, particularly in developing countries, and on overcoming challenges related to the environment and social acceptance.
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| ===Biomass===
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| [[Biomass]] for heat and power is a fully mature technology which offers a ready disposal mechanism for municipal, agricultural, and industrial organic wastes. However, the industry has remained relatively stagnant over the decade to 2007, even though demand for biomass (mostly wood) continues to grow in many developing countries. One of the problems of biomass is that material directly combusted in cook stoves produces pollutants, leading to severe health and environmental consequences, although improved cook stove programmes are alleviating some of these effects. First-generation biomass technologies can be economically competitive, but may still require deployment support to overcome public acceptance and small-scale issues.<ref name="IEA" /> | |
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| ===Hydroelectricity===
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| [[Hydroelectric]] plants have the advantage of being long-lived and many existing plants have operated for more than 100 years. Hydropower is also an extremely flexible technology from the perspective of power grid operation. Large hydropower provides one of the lowest cost options in today’s energy market, even compared to fossil fuels and there are no harmful emissions associated with plant operation.<ref name="IEA" />
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| Hydroelectric power is currently the world’s largest installed renewable source of electricity, supplying about 17% of total electricity in 2005.<ref>[[Mark Z. Jacobson]] (2009). [http://www.stanford.edu/group/efmh/jacobson/EnergyEnvRev1008.pdf Review of Solutions to Global Warming, Air Pollution, and Energy Security] p. 5.</ref> [[Three Gorges Dam|China]] is the world's largest producer of [[hydroelectricity]] in the world, followed by [[Hydroelectric power in Canada|Canada]].
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| However, there are several significant social and environmental disadvantages of large-scale hydroelectric power systems: dislocation of people living where the reservoirs are planned, release of significant amounts of carbon dioxide and methane during construction and flooding of the reservoir, and disruption of aquatic ecosystems and birdlife.<ref>Duncan Graham-Rowe. [http://www.newscientist.com/article.ns?id=dn7046 Hydroelectric power's dirty secret revealed] ''New Scientist'', 24 February 2005.</ref> Hydroelectric power is now more difficult to site in developed nations because most major sites within these nations are either already being exploited or may be unavailable for these environmental reasons. The areas of greatest hydroelectric growth are the growing economies of Asia. India and China are the development leaders; however, other Asian nations are also expanding hydropower.
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| There is a strong consensus now that countries should adopt an integrated
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| approach towards managing water resources, which would involve planning hydropower development in co-operation with other water-using sectors.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| ===Geothermal power and heat===
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| [[Geothermal power]] plants can operate 24 hours per day, providing [[baseload]] capacity. Estimates for the world potential capacity for geothermal power generation vary widely, ranging from 40 GW by 2020 to as much as 6,000 GW.<ref> Bertani, R., 2003, [http://www.geothermal-energy.org/files-15.html "What is Geothermal Potential?"], IGA News, 53, page 1-3.</ref><ref name="IPCC Geothermal 2008">Fridleifsson, I.B., R. Bertani, E. Huenges, J. W. Lund, A. Ragnarsson, and L. Rybach (2008). [http://www.iea-gia.org/documents/FridleifssonetalIPCCGeothermalpaper2008FinalRybach20May08_000.pdf The possible role and contribution of geothermal energy to the mitigation of climate change]. In: O. Hohmeyer and T. Trittin (Eds.), IPCC Scoping Meeting on Renewable Energy Sources, Proceedings, Luebeck, Germany, 20-25 January 2008, p. 59-80.</ref>
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| Geothermal power capacity grew from around 1 GW in 1975 to almost 10 GW in 2008.<ref name="IPCC Geothermal 2008"/> The United States is the world leader in terms of installed capacity, representing 3.1 GW. Other countries with significant installed capacity include the Philippines (1.9 GW), Indonesia (1.2 GW), Mexico (1.0 GW), Italy (0.8 GW), Iceland (0.6 GW), Japan (0.5 GW), and New Zealand (0.5 GW).<ref name="IPCC Geothermal 2008"/><ref>Islandsbanki Geothermal Research, United States Geothermal Energy Market Report, October 2009, accessed through [http://www.islandbanki.is website of Islandbanki].</ref> In some countries, geothermal power accounts for a significant share of the total electricity supply, such as in the Philippines, where geothermal represented 17 percent of the total power mix at the end of 2008.<ref>Leonora Walet. [http://www.reuters.com/article/GCA-GreenBusiness/idUSTRE5A43HC20091105 Philippines targets $2.5 billion geothermal development], ''Reuters'', November 5, 2009.</ref>
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| Geothermal (ground source) heat pumps represented an estimated 30 GWth of installed capacity at the end of 2008, with other direct uses of geothermal heat (i.e., for space heating, agricultural drying and other uses) reaching an estimated 15 GWth. As of 2008, at least 76 countries use direct geothermal energy in some form.
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| ==Second-generation technologies==
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| Markets for second-generation technologies have been strong and growing over the past decade, and these technologies have gone from being a passion for the dedicated few to a major economic sector in countries such as Germany, Spain, the United States, and Japan. Many large industrial companies and financial institutions are involved and the challenge is to broaden the market base for continued growth worldwide.<ref name="IEA"/>
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| ===Solar Heating===
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| [[Solar heating]] systems are a well known second-generation technology and generally consist of [[solar thermal collector]]s, a fluid system to move the heat from the collector to its point of usage, and a reservoir or tank for heat storage. The systems may be used to heat domestic hot water, swimming pools, or homes and businesses. The heat can also be used for industrial process applications or as an energy input for other uses such as cooling equipment.<ref>International Energy Agency. [http://www.iea-shc.org/task25/index.html Solar assisted air-conditioning of buildings]</ref>
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| In many warmer climates, a solar heating system can provide a very high percentage (50 to 75%) of domestic hot water energy. As of 2009, China has 27 million rooftop solar water heaters.<ref>Lester R. Brown. ''Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization'', Earth Policy Institute, 2009, p. 122.</ref>
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| ===Photovoltaics===
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| Photovoltaic (PV) cells, also called solar cells, convert light into electricity. In the 1980s and early 1990s, most photovoltaic modules were used to provide [[remote-area power suppy]], but from around 1995, industry efforts have focused increasingly on developing [[building integrated photovoltaics]] and [[photovoltaic power stations]] for grid connected applications.
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| As of October 2009, the largest photovoltaic (PV) power plants in the world are the [[Olmedilla Photovoltaic Park]] (Spain, 60 MW), the [[Puertollano Photovoltaic Park]] (Spain, 50 MW), the [[Moura photovoltaic power station]] (Portugal, 46 MW), and the [[Waldpolenz Solar Park]] (Germany, 40 MW).<ref name="PV">Greenpeace Energy (2008). [http://www.pvresources.com/en/top50pv.php World's largest photovoltaic power plants]</ref> The largest photovoltaic power plant in North America is the 25 MW [[DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center]] in Florida. The plant consists of over 90,000 solar panels.<ref name=de>LCG Consulting. [http://www.energyonline.com/Industry/News.aspx?NewsID=7401&FPL_Commissions_DeSoto_Next_Generation_Solar_Energy_Center__ FPL Commissions DeSoto Next Generation Solar Energy Center] ''Energy Online'', October 28, 2009.</ref>
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| At the end of 2008, the cumulative global PV installations reached 15,200 MW.<ref name=re>[[REN21]] (2009). [http://www.ren21.net/pdf/RE_GSR_2009_update.pdf Renewables Global Status Report: 2009 Update] p. 12.</ref> Photovoltaic production has been doubling every two years, increasing by an average of 48 percent each year since 2002, making it the world’s fastest-growing energy technology. The top five photovoltaic producing countries are Japan, China, Germany, Taiwan, and the USA.<ref>Earth Policy Institute (2007). [http://www.earth-policy.org/Indicators/Solar/2007.htm Solar Cell Production Jumps 50 Percent in 2007] Retrieved on 3 December 2008.</ref>
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| ===Wind power===
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| Some of the second-generation renewables, such as [[wind power]], have high potential and have already realised relatively low production costs.<ref>[http://www.earth-policy.org/Books/PB2/pb2ch10.pdf "Stabilizing Climate" (PDF)] in [[Lester R. Brown]], ''[[Plan B 2.0]] Rescuing a Planet Under Stress and a Civilization in Trouble'' (NY: W.W. Norton & Co., 2006), p. 189.</ref><ref name="clean">[[Clean Edge]] (2007). [http://www.cleantechnology.com.au/pdf/ctf2007slides/CTF2007_CleanEdge.pdf ''The Clean Tech Revolution... the costs of clean energy are declining'' (PDF)] p.8.</ref> At the end of 2009, worldwide [[wind farm]] capacity was 157,900 MW, representing an increase of 31 percent during the year,<ref>Lars Kroldrup. [http://greeninc.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/02/15/gains-in-global-wind-capacity-reported/ Gains in Global Wind Capacity Reported] ''Green Inc.'', February 15, 2010.</ref> and wind power supplied some 1.3% of global electricity consumption.<ref>World Wind Energy Association (2008). [http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/pr_statistics2007_210208_red.pdf Wind turbines generate more than 1 % of the global electricity]</ref> Wind power is widely used in [[Wind power in the European Union|European countries]], and more recently in the [[Wind power in the United States|United States]] and [[Wind power in Asia|Asia]].<ref name="Glob"> [http://www.gwec.net/uploads/media/07-02_PR_Global_Statistics_2006.pdf Global wind energy markets continue to boom – 2006 another record year] (PDF).</ref><ref>Global Wind Energy Council (2009). [http://www.gwec.net/fileadmin/documents/Publications/Global%20Wind%202008%20Report.pdf Global Wind 2008 Report], p. 9, accessed on January 4, 2010.</ref> Wind power accounts for approximately 19% of electricity generation in [[Wind power in Denmark|Denmark]], 11% in [[Wind power in Spain|Spain]] and [[Wind power in Portugal|Portugal]], and 9% in the Republic of Ireland.<ref>[[International Energy Agency]] (2009). [http://www.ieawind.org/AnnualReports_PDF/2008/2008%20AR_small.pdf IEA Wind Energy: Annual Report 2008] p. 9.</ref> These are some of the largest wind farms in the world, as of January 2010:
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| {| class="wikitable sortable"
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| ! Wind farm !! Installed <br> capacity <br/>(MW) !! Country
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| | [[Capricorn Ridge Wind Farm]] || 662 || USA
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| | [[Fowler Ridge Wind Farm]] || 750 || USA
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| | [[Horse Hollow Wind Energy Center]] || 736 || USA
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| | [[Roscoe Wind Farm]] || 781 || USA
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| | [[San Gorgonio Pass Wind Farm]] || 619 || USA
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| | [[Tehachapi Pass Wind Farm]] || 690 || USA
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| |}
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| ===Solar thermal power stations===
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| [[Solar thermal power]] stations include the 354 MW [[Solar Energy Generating Systems]] power complex in the USA, [[Nevada Solar One]] (USA, 64 MW), [[Andasol 1]] (Spain, 50 MW) and the [[PS10 solar power tower]] (Spain, 11 MW). Many other plants are under construction or planned, mainly in Spain and the USA.<ref name=global>[[REN21]] (2008). [http://www.worldwatch.org/files/pdf/renewables2007.pdf Renewables 2007 Global Status Report (PDF)] p. 12.</ref> In developing countries, three [[World Bank]] projects for integrated solar thermal/combined-cycle gas-turbine power plants in [[Egypt]], [[Mexico]], and [[Morocco]] have been approved.<ref name=global/>
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| ===Modern forms of Bioenergy===
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| Global [[ethanol]] production for transport fuel tripled between 2000 and 2007 from 17 billion to more than 52 billion litres, while [[biodiesel]] expanded more than ten-fold from less than 1 billion to almost 11 billion litres. Biofuels provide 1.8% of the world’s transport fuel and recent estimates indicate a continued high growth. The main producing countries for transport biofuels are the USA, Brazil, and the EU.<ref>United Nations Environment Programme (2009). ''[http://www.unep.fr/scp/rpanel/pdf/Assessing_Biofuels_Full_Report.pdf Assessing Biofuels]'', p.15.</ref>
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| [[Brazil]] has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of [[ethanol fuel]] from [[sugar cane]], and ethanol now provides 18 percent of the country's automotive fuel. As a result of this and the exploitation of domestic deep water oil sources, Brazil, which for years had to import a large share of the petroleum needed for domestic consumption, recently reached complete self-sufficiency in liquid fuels.<ref>[http://www.renewableenergyaccess.com/rea/news/story?id=44896 America and Brazil Intersect on Ethanol] ''Renewable Energy Access'', 15 May 2006.</ref><ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/04/21/AR2006042100139.html New Rig Brings Brazil Oil Self-Sufficiency] ''Washington Post'', 21 April 2006.</ref>
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| Most cars on the road today in the U.S. can run on blends of up to 10% ethanol, and motor vehicle manufacturers already produce vehicles designed to run on much higher ethanol blends. [[Ford Motor Company|Ford]], [[DaimlerChrysler]], and [[General Motors Corporation|GM]] are among the automobile companies that sell [[flexible-fuel]] cars, trucks, and minivans that can use gasoline and ethanol blends ranging from pure gasoline up to 85% ethanol (E85). By mid-2006, there were approximately six million E85-compatible vehicles on U.S. roads.<ref name="world">Worldwatch Institute and Center for American Progress (2006). [http://images1.americanprogress.org/il80web20037/americanenergynow/AmericanEnergy.pdf ''American energy: The renewable path to energy security'' (PDF)]</ref> The challenge is to expand the market for biofuels beyond the farm states where they have been most popular to date. Flex-fuel vehicles are assisting in this transition because they allow drivers to choose different fuels based on price and availability. The [[Energy Policy Act of 2005]], which calls for 7.5 billion gallons of biofuels to be used annually by 2012, will also help to expand the market.<ref name="world" />
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| The growing ethanol and biodiesel industries are providing jobs in plant construction, operations, and maintenance, mostly in rural communities. According to the Renewable Fuels Association, the ethanol industry created almost 154,000 U.S. jobs in 2005 alone, boosting household income by $5.7 billion. It also contributed about $3.5 billion in tax revenues at the local, state, and federal levels.<ref name="world" />
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| ==Third-generation technologies==
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| Third-generation renewable energy technologies are still under development and include advanced [[biomass gasification]], [[biorefinery]] technologies, [[hot-dry-rock]] geothermal power, and [[ocean energy]].<ref name="IEA" /> Third-generation technologies are not yet widely demonstrated or have limited commercialization. Many are on the horizon and may have potential comparable to other renewable energy technologies, but still depend on attracting sufficient attention and RD&D funding.<ref name="IEA" />
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| ===New bioenergy technologies===
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| According to the International Energy Agency, [[cellulosic ethanol]] biorefineries could allow biofuels to play a much bigger role in the future than organizations such as the IEA previously thought.<ref>International Energy Agency (2006). [http://www.worldenergyoutlook.org/summaries2006/English.pdf ''World Energy Outlook 2006'' (PDF)] p. 8.</ref> Cellulosic ethanol can be made from plant matter composed primarily of inedible cellulose fibers that form the stems and branches of most plants. Crop residues (such as [[Corn stover|corn stalks]], wheat straw and rice straw),
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| wood waste, and municipal solid waste are potential sources of cellulosic biomass. Dedicated energy crops, such as [[Panicum virgatum|switchgrass]], are also promising cellulose sources that can be [[Sustainable biofuel|sustainably produced]] in many
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| regions of the United States.<ref>Biotechnology Industry Organization (2007). [http://bio.org/ind/biofuel/CellulosicEthanolIssueBrief.pdf ''Industrial Biotechnology Is Revolutionizing the Production of Ethanol Transportation Fuel''] pp. 3-4.</ref>
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| {| class="wikitable sortable"
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| |+Selected Commercial Cellulosic Ethanol Plants in the U.S.<ref>Decker, Jeff. [http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/magazine/story?id=54346 Going Against the Grain: Ethanol from Lignocellulosics], ''Renewable Energy World'', January 22, 2009.</ref><ref>[http://www.grainnet.com/pdf/cellulosemap.pdf Building Cellulose]</ref>
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| <br>(Operational or under construction)
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| ! Company !! Location !! Feedstock
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| | [[Abengoa]] Bioenergy || Hugoton, KS || Wheat straw
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| | [[BlueFire Ethanol]] || Irvine, CA || Multiple sources
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| | [[Gulf Coast Energy]] || Mossy Head, FL || Wood waste
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| | [[Mascoma Corporation|Mascoma]] || Lansing, MI || Wood
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| | [[POET LLC]] || Emmetsburg, IA || Corn cobs
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| | [[Range Fuels]]<ref>[http://www.bcbr.com/article.asp?id=98245 Range Fuels receives $80 million loan]</ref> || Treutlen County, GA || Wood waste
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| | [[SunOpta]] || Little Falls, MN || Wood chips
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| | [[Xethanol]] || Auburndale, FL || Citrus peels
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| |}
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| ===Ocean energy===
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| First proposed more than thirty years ago, systems to harvest utility-scale electrical power from ocean waves have recently been gaining momentum as a viable technology. The potential for this technology is considered promising, especially on west-facing coasts with latitudes between 40 and 60 degrees:<ref name=je>Jeff Scruggs and Paul Jacob. Harvesting Ocean Wave Energy, ''Science'', Vol. 323, 27 February 2009, p. 1176.</ref>
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| <blockquote> | | <blockquote> |
| In the United Kingdom, for example, the Carbon Trust recently estimated the extent of the economically viable offshore resource at 55 TWh per year, about 14% of current national demand. Across Europe, the technologically achievable resource has been estimated to be at least 280 TWh per year. In 2003, the U.S. Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI) estimated the viable resource in the United States at 255 TWh per year (6% of demand).<ref name=je/>
| | ...the transition from [[coal]],[[Petroleum crude oil|oil]], and [[Natural gas|gas]] to wind, solar, and geothermal energy is well under way. In the old economy, energy was produced by burning something — oil, coal, or natural gas — leading to the carbon emissions that have come to define our economy. The new energy economy harnesses the energy in wind, the energy coming from the sun, and heat from within the earth itself.<ref>[[Lester R. Brown]]. ''Plan B 4.0: Mobilizing to Save Civilization'', [[Earth Policy Institute]], 2009, p. 135.</ref> |
| </blockquote> | | </blockquote> |
| | | The [[International Energy Agency]] estimates that nearly 50% of global electricity supplies will need to come from renewable energy sources in order to halve carbon dioxide emissions by 2050 and minimise significant, irreversible climate change impacts. |
| Funding for a wave farm in Scotland was announced in February 2007 by the [[Scottish Executive]], at a cost of over 4 million [[pound sterling|pounds]], as part of a £13 million funding packages for [[Renewable energy in Scotland#Wave power|ocean power in Scotland]]. The farm will be the world's largest with a capacity of 3 MW generated by four Pelamis machines.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/scotland/6377423.stm Orkney to get 'biggest' wave farm] ''BBC News'', 20 February 2007.</ref>
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| The world's first commercial [[tidal power]] station was installed in 2007 in the narrows of [[Strangford Lough]] in Ireland. The 1.2 megawatt underwater tidal electricity generator, part of Northern Ireland's Environment & Renewable Energy Fund scheme, takes advantage of the fast tidal flow (up to 4 metres per second) in the lough. Although the generator is powerful enough to power a thousand homes, the turbine has minimal environmental impact, as it is almost entirely submerged, and the rotors pose no danger to wildlife as they turn quite slowly.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/northern_ireland/6728073.stm World tidal energy first for NI, BBC News] ''BBC News'', 7 June 2007.</ref> | |
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| ===Enhanced geothermal systems===
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| As of 2008, geothermal power development was under way in more than 40 countries, partially attributable to the development of new technologies, such as Enhanced Geothermal Systems.<ref name=renewables>[[REN21]] (2009). [http://www.ren21.net/pdf/RE_GSR_2009_update.pdf Renewables Global Status Report: 2009 Update] pp. 12-13.</ref> The development of [[binary cycle power plant]]s and improvements in drilling and extraction technology may enable [[enhanced geothermal systems]] over a much greater geographical range than "traditional" Geothermal systems. Demonstration EGS projects are operational in the USA, Australia, Germany, France, and The United Kingdom.<ref>{{Citation
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| | first = Ruggero
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| | last = Bertani
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| | contribution = "Geothermal Energy: An Overview on Resources and Potential"
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| | contribution-url =
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| | series = International Geothermal Days
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| | year = 2009
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| | place = Slovakia}}</ref>
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| ===Nanotechnology thin-film solar panels===
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| Solar power panels that use [[nanotechnology]], which can create circuits out of individual silicon molecules, may cost half as much as traditional photovoltaic cells, according to executives and investors involved in developing the products. [[Nanosolar]] has secured more than $100 million from investors to build a factory for nanotechnology thin-film solar panels. The company expects the factory to open in 2010 and produce enough solar cells each year to generate 430 megawatts of power.
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| ==References== | | ==References== |
| <references/> | | <references/> |
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