CleanTech.Org

On the 16^th and 17^th of October 2012 the Viridis Africa conference is to be held in Johannesburg, South Africa.  The event is dedicated to the introduction of clean technologies and associated business/investment opportunities.

The intention of Viridis Africa is to bring together investors and entrepreneurs from Africa and rest of the world, to jointly explore commercial initiatives in green technologies.

 The program includes presentation of specific projects or business initiatives, ranging in size and scope and encompassing most of the priority areas such as bioenergy, hydro, wind power, green chemistry, recycling, water treatment, desalination, amongst others.

 According to conference organiser, Suza Adam, managing member of Spindle Communications, “principals who would present their business opportunities at this event would have the audience of numerous local and foreign investors. Investors would include venture capital, private equity, project and corporate finance outfits and others dedicated to the clean tech sector. Also included are major companies who seek strategic alliance and acquisitions.”

 New technologies currently being developed by academic and research institutions will also have their opportunity so as to introduce potential business opportunities through the commercialization of the above.

 “Additional business proposals are invited from clean tech sub-sectors including clean energy generation (wind, solar, hydro, biofuels, geothermal, clean coal technologies), storage (fuel cells, advanced batteries, hybrid systems), efficiency (smart grids, waste heat recovery), water & waste water (water treatment, water conservation, waste water treatment, desalination) and recycling and waste (recycling, waste treatment, organic matter, plastics) etc.” says Adam.

 The event will also introduce parties with complimentary technologies and business models to one another in order to explore mutually beneficial opportunities.

 “In the main the conference and its exhibition will endeavour to bring about a vibrant market trading place for entrepreneurs and corporates to propose and conclude investment deals with funders”, concludes Adam.

 Although the event is to be held once a year, it is designed to give the participants long term continuity vis a vis  the provision of web-based interaction platforms, inducing social networks.

 For more information about the conference: please visit us at www.viridisafrica.com.

A hundred miles southwest of Houston, amid the refineries and petrochemical plants that dot Texas' Gulf Coast, construction on the first fully licensed nuclear plant to be built in this country in the last 30 years could begin soon.

For the remainder of the article (by Steve Hargreaves, CNNMoney.com staff writer, November 02, 2009), visit: http://cnnmoney.mobi/money/archive/archive/detail/179010/full;jsessionid=1CAB061D4054106829F86E631FFA2B85.liveapp18j#p1

Commentary:
It may be of interest to share some information acquired during a recent meeting with Austin Energy's (AE) Operations Team and a tour of their Sand Hill Energy Center, Del Valle, Texas. This station is AE's newest gas-fired power plant (currently 300 Megawatts, with expansion to 500 Megawatts).

AE provided a cost breakdown for each type of fuel used to generate electricity. As a % of total power output and average cost (kWh), the breakdown was:

Nuclear - 20%, $0.08

Coal - 20%, $0.16

Gas (methane) - 40%, $0.25

Renewables [gas (methane), wind and solar] - 15-20%, $1.50 (unsubsidized).

Power from AE's nuclear station is always online and is considered base output. Demand, cost and emissions compels AE to bring the gas and coal stations online when needed.

While AE's nuclear plant provides the lowest cost of electricity, AE's operations manager indicated further expansion of nuclear plants was considered but for undisclosed reason(s) was abandon. Plausible reasons may relate to nuclear's high capital cost , the lengthy regulatory pathway and concern over waste disposal. Note: The French recycle nuclear wastes. Plutonium and uranium can be separated out of the waste and reused. Though recycling leaves a small amount of high-level waste to dispose of.

Sidebar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioactive_waste):

A 2004 article from the BBC states: "The World Health Organization says 3 million people are killed worldwide by outdoor air pollution annually from vehicles and industrial emissions, and 1.6 million indoors through using solid fuel."  In the U.S. alone, fossil fuel waste has been linked to the death of 20,000 people each year. A coal power plant releases 100 times as much radiation as a nuclear power plant of the same wattage. It is estimated that during 1982, US coal burning released 155 times as much radioactivity into the atmosphere as the Three Mile Island accident.

End

Supply reliability is the reason gas appears in two line items, i.e., direct and renewable.  Direct gas is reliably supplied 24/7 from one of three natural gas companies. Renewable gas is supplied from renewable sources such as landfill and water/sewage treatment; is  limited, erratic and cannot be counted on when needed.

Government mandates and incentives appear to be the primary reasons why AE has plans for solar and wind assisted power plants.