Posted by Petah Marian on September 22nd, 2008
Australia, the largest exporter of coal in the world, has unveiled plans to sweep carbon underground.
The Australian government has announced it will fund a $100m (that’s in Aussie dollars) a year carbon capture and storage (CCS) institute. It will help Australia to meet a G8 commitment to have at least 20 industrial scale CCS projects in operation by 2020.
At a press conference Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said any effective solution to tackle climate change and CO2 emissions must deal with clean coal and that CSS could be a large part of the answer.
He said:
“Climate change is a threat for the future. It is a threat also for the future of our coal industry in Australia. Therefore, we need to act on it. Not enough has been done globally on this. This proposal from Australia is our effort to close that gap.”
In an AFP report Rudd said CSS has the potential to capture nine billion tonnes of carbon by 2050, which is about 20 per cent of the reduction needed to cap atmospheric levels at 450ppm.
However, the plan has been criticised by Greenpeace who are highlighting the risk of captured gasses escaping into the environment. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation quoted Greenpeace spokesperson Simon Roz:
“If there’s any sort of escape, that massive store of carbon dioxide would be released, We know over time that there’s movement with geological formations, how are they going to ensure this stuff would remain safe over time, and most importantly, who’s going to have to pay for the potential clean up?”
Posted by Rowan on September 22nd, 2008
Today’s entry from Greenbang’s special report on UK Clean Tech Start-up businesses is about Orecon Ltd, just one of the many companies found in the report.
- Founder/Chief Executive: David Crisp
- Founding date: 2001
- Number of employees: 10
- Turnover: N/A
- Website: www.orecon.com
- Investment: VC funding: $24 million in Feb 08
For the past six years Orecon has been developing the next generation offshore wave energy converter, known as Orecon MRC (multi-resonant chambers), to take advantage of all that lovely energy that the sea throws out every day.
According to the company, this next generation product is significantly more efficient and most importantly reliable than other options. The buoy has no moving parts underwater, it is designed to stay in place for 25 years, and could deliver 1.5MW generating capacity to onshore grids among other things.
The Greenbang Barometer
The company’s mooring system has been designed with an artificial reef, which is expected to boost the marine fish population. There are no chemicals or hydraulic oils and no emissions - good news for the ocean. The onsite maintenance approach reduces the need for heavy maintenance schedules and costly support vessels, so cuts downs on disturbance to the local environment as well as CO2 emissions.
Orecon’s work also coincides with the government’s decision to fund an energy-generating wave hub off the Cornwall coast in the next couple of years - if the company finds a place on the project, it’ll be a major boost. Until recently, Orecon’s founders were struggling through lack of investment. With venture capital now in place as well as funding from the Technology Strategy Board, it is moving ahead rapidly to the manufacture of the first 1.5MW unit next year.
Posted by AndyMcCue on September 22nd, 2008
The number of small wind turbines in the UK is set to almost double by 2009 to 27,866 installations, but renewable energy trade association the British Wind Energy Association (BWEA) says the government needs to do more to back the burgeoning sector and make the planning process easier.
Small wind turbine systems are those with a rating under 50kW, and can be either building mounted or free standing. The BWEA claims a small wind turbine with a power rating of 11kW - and a bit of wind behind it, no doubt - and a life span of 20 years can pay for itself in five years.
Alex Murley, BWEA small systems manager says:
“With large economic and export opportunities at stake, the UK is in an ideal position to support a strong manufacturing industry in a fast growing global sector, with the potential of delivering tens of thousands of UK based jobs.”
One of the barriers to this growth is the tough planning process for getting approval for these wind turbines.
Hurley adds:
“Two years after government promised to tackle this issue, industry, local authorities and consumers are still waiting for detailed planning guidance and Permitted Development Rights to be issued.”
The full BWEA Small Wind Systems UK Market Report 2008 is here.
Posted by AndyMcCue on September 22nd, 2008
Nice article in this Sunday’s Observer newspaper about some of the environmental and conservation work going on behind bars in some of the UK’s ‘big houses’. Among the new facts Greenbang learnt is that the country’s 140 prisons include nine internationally recognised sites of special scientific interest (SSSIs) and an internationally important wetland.
We’ll let you enjoy the full article for yourself here but one of the projects includes prisoners at Bullingdon near leafy Bicester making bird boxes from scrap wood. The boxes are used in prison grounds and on RSPB sites and the prisoners take home just under a tenner a week (yes that’s per week) for their efforts. It’s not going to change the world, but it’s got to be better than sewing mail bags or sitting in their cells for 24 hours a day playing computer games and watching TV.
There’s even a quote from sex offender Richard:
“It’s amazing what you can do when you’ve got enough time. It’s a lot better than doing nothing. We get a very minimal wage, but we are very self-motivated and enjoy what we do. It does pass the time a lot quicker if you are out here busy, rather than sitting brooding in your cell.”
Posted by Rowan on September 21st, 2008
Today’s entry from Greenbang’s special report on UK Clean Tech Start-up businesses is about Onzo, just one of the many companies found in the report.
- Founder/Chief Executive: Joel Hagan
- Founding date: February 2007
- Number of employees: 17
- Turnover: £7 million+ contract with
- Scottish & Southern Energy
- Website: www.onzo.co.uk
“Where smart consumer and smart grid meet.” Onzo’s products help consumers to monitor their electricity usage, but it doesn’t stop there. As a consumer, you get a sleek display that gives realtime data on energy consumption.You can view the data on your PC, track energy use and download personalised tips.
The company also works with power suppliers, which distribute the product, giving them an opportunity to strengthen relations with customers.
The Greenbang Barometer
These smart meter makers are very smart indeed. As the company says on its website: “We can help to transform your business from solely supplying energy to the more sustainable business of providing tailor-made energy services.”
Scottish and Southern Energy is so impressed it has not only invested in the company but has secured exclusive rights to distribute Onzo’s products in the UK and Ireland.
The device can fit through a letterbox (no waiting at home for the delivery driver), can be recycled at the end of its life (green commitment all the way through) and has the sort of interface anyone could understand.
It’s not a big stretch to see why such a concept could prove popular. The company has done so well.
Posted by Rowan on September 20th, 2008
Today’s entry from Greenbang’s special report on UK Clean Tech Start-up businesses is about IWMS Ltd, just one of the many companies found in the report.
- Founder/Chief Executive: Philip Mossop
- and Robert Twiselton
- Founding date: May 2006
- Number of employees: 15
- Turnover: £5 million
- Website: www.iwmsuk.com
Helping customers make money from waste reduction is IWMS’s bread and butter. The company works with UK businesses to recycle more waste and send less to landfill. The system it developed generates revenue too. IWMS has invested heavily in technology for real-time monitoring and reporting of its clients’ waste and recycling systems.
Customers can access information ranging from whether a waste collection has happened at one of their stores to just how much waste that store has produced over a 12 month period.
The Greenbang Barometer
Proof if proof were needed that some of the cleverest clean tech ideas don’t necessarily have to depend on whizz-bang science: IWMS gets the nod for finding a green niche and exploiting it successfully.
The system is obviously working. In just two years the business has grown from a two-man band with just £10,000 in the bank to a 15 company with a turnover of £5 million. In the next six months that turnover is expected to double to £10 million. As we all know, turnover is for egos, but look at the clients: Caffe Nero, Waitrose, Allied Carpets, Goldsmiths, H & M, Paperchase, Lush and many more. It doesn’t get much better than this.
Posted by AndyMcCue on September 19th, 2008
We don’t usually cover much by way of eco gadgets and consumer products on Greenbang but it’s Friday, so what the heck.
Courtesy of Engadget we spotted this “eco-friendly” USB stick made out of recycled newspaper. As you can see from the photo, it looks like a tiny little piece of chip board.
It’s called the Recycle and it’s produced and distributed by a company called INF Import. It does all the usual things you’d expect USB sticks to do and comes in sizes ranging from 512MB up to 16GB.
No details on pricing though.
More here.
Posted by Rowan on September 19th, 2008
It’s Friday, so to ease you into your weekend here is a snippet of Greenbang’s Clean Tech Start-up Index.
- Founder/Chief Executive: James Swanston, CEO; Chris Holt, Founder
- Founding date: March 2008
- Number of employees: 7 including parttime
- Turnover: pre-revenue, pilots starting in Q3 2008
- Website: www.golowtransport.com
‘GoLow: don’t go alone’, pretty much sums up this business model. Essentially GoLow is a technology platform to make road transport more efficient. The initial focus is the taxi and private hire vehicle industry, which currently uses 750,000 tonnes of fossil fuels a year. These vehicles are empty of passengers about half of the time they’re working, with airport journeys one of the biggest culprits.
GoLow systems will match customer demand with the best vehicle for the job, by identifying a vehicle as close to a pick-up point as possible. So instead of a taxi taking a passenger from the airport and returning home empty, the GoLow system will find a customer heading in the same direction as the taxi on its way back to base and match them up: no more empty taxi.
The Greenbang Barometer
It’s still early days, but aside from reducing the dead mileage, GoLow hopes to get the best use out of vehicles on the road. Getting customers to share a journey (not always easy) or using a vehicle to deliver courier packages as well as passengers are two examples of how this might work. GoLow also encourages use of telematic devices to measure driving styles and help drivers to be more efficient.
The company impressed Greenbang not only through its smart use of technology, but for the sheer simplicity of its businessmodel: find a car that needs a passenger, and a passenger that needs a car and bring the two together. So simple even your granny could understand it. GoLow also has the advantage of being an easy sell to both businesses and individual consumers too, by promising nice eco-credentials as well as money saving.
Posted by Rowan on September 18th, 2008
Todays post from Greenbang’s special report on UK Clean Tech Start-up businesses is on G24 Innovations Ltd.
Founder/Chief Executive:Robert M.Hertzberg, Co-founder and Chairman;Edward J. Stevenson, Co-founder andCEO
- Founding date: September 2006
- Number of employees: 60
- Turnover: pre-revenue
- Website: www.g24i.com (see also
- www.renewablecapital.com)
- Investment: $20m Morgan Stanley;$30m from the 4RAE fund; $60m fromFounders
G24 Innovations (G24i) makes next-generation dye-sensitized thin-film solar cells as an alternative to traditional, and costly, silicon solar cells. G24i’s solar cells try to mimic the process of photosynthesis. The cells are lightweight, durable and able to convert light into electricity even in dim indoor conditions, which makes them ideal for powering mobile electronic devices.
The Greenbang Barometer
We’ve heard a lot from G24i this year. The company is preparing a range of solar cell products for the market, from mobile phone chargers capable of generating 20 minutes of charge for every hour of sun - handy for countries where a lot of users are off the grid but not short on sunlight - to business-grade pay-as-you-charge kiosks.
Renewable energy is already proving popular with telecoms companies (for their carrier equipment) and a lot of work is going into renewable energy for the devices themselves - G24i has rather cleverly gone after both ends of the market.
The founders have risked $60 million of their own capital to back the project - always a good sign, and they’re also of the view that subsidized businesses are not sustainable. G24i’s key objective is to produce low cost, easy to use products that compete with pricey battery power rather than the electrical grid. Developing countries, where electricity may not be guaranteed, is a clear market opportunity.
Focusing on the business fundamentals doesn’t mean they have forgotten their values. G24i is committed to being a truly green company – earlier this year they were granted planning permission for a 2.5MW wind turbine, which will be installed in their car park. Combined with their onsite vegetable garden which supplies food to their free canteen for employees - they really are committed to “doing well by doing good.”
Posted by Rowan on September 17th, 2008
Flybrid Systems LLP is just one of the companies included in Greenbang’s Clean Tech Start-up Index, here is a bit more information on the company.
- Founders Jon Hilton, managing partner;
- Doug Cross, Technical Director
- Founding date: January 2007
- Number of employees: 6 with two hires
- planned
- Turnover: £897,000 in year one
- Website: www.flybridsystems.com
Another solution for hybrid vehicles comes in the form of Flybrid Systems. This start-up has designed and developed a high-speed flywheel-based hybrid system that recovers and stores lost energy from cars. The Flybrid System claims to be roughly twice as efficient as current electric hybrid systems as well as smaller, lighter and lower cost. And when the product comes to the end of its life, it’s easy to recycle, the company says.
“Flywheel hybrids are not new. What is new is that Flybrid has managed to make the rotation speed of the flywheel in vehicles faster by as much as three times than was previously possible. That means Flybrid can cut down the size and weight of the device. Vehicles featuring the technology could be on sale by 2013.”
The Greenbang Barometer
Here we see two founders who were willing to throw their own capital behind the project and with good reason - in the long-term, kinetic energy recovery is likely to be mandatory on every vehicle from cars to buses and trains. From a cost point of view, a car fitted with a Flybrid system is expected to save as much as 30 to 35 percent in fuel costs.
For high-mileage or high-fuel consumption vehicles, the savings are potentially significant and finding early favour with truck and bus fleets will be the cherry on the cake.
