[Top News] from [REUTERS]
[Green Business]
Google working on "smart" plug-in hybrid charging
Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:30am EDT
By Poornima Gupta
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc is in the early stages of looking at ways to write software that would fully integrate plug-in hybrid vehicles to the power grid, minimize strain on the grid and help utilities manage vehicle charging load.
"We are doing some preliminary work," said Dan Reicher, Google's director of Climate Change and Energy Initiatives. "We have begun some work on smart charging of electric vehicles and how you would integrate large number of electric vehicles into the grid successfully."
"We have done a little bit of work on the software side looking at how you would write a computer code to manage this sort of charging infrastructure," he said in an interview on the sidelines of an industry conference.
Google, known for its Internet search engine, in 2007 announced a program to test Toyota Prius and Ford Escape gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles that were converted to rechargeable plug-in hybrids that run mostly on electricity.
One of the experimental technologies that was being tested by the Web search giant allowed parked plug-ins to transfer stored energy back to the electric grid, opening a potential back-up source of power for the system in peak hours.
Google has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm.
Reicher said Google has been testing its fleet of plug-in hybrids "pretty intensely" for the last couple of years.
"One of the great things about plug-ins is this great opportunity for the first time to finally have a storage technology," he said
Reicher said the company is trying to figure out how to manage the impact of having millions of future electric vehicle owners plugging in their vehicles at the same time.
"We got to be careful how we manage these things," he said. "On a hot day in July when 5 million Californians come home, you don't want them all plugging in at the same moment."
Reicher laid out a scenario where power utilities, during a time of high demand, could turn on or off the charging of electric vehicles. The owner of these vehicles, who have agreed to such an arrangement, would get a credit from the utility in turn.
"The grid operators may well be indifferent to either putting 500 megawatts of new generation on or taking 500 megawatts off," he said. "The beauty of plug-in vehicles is that with the right software behind them, you could manage their charging."
Apart from plug-in hybrids, Google also is working on other green technologies such as developing its own new mirror technology that could reduce the cost of building solar thermal plants by a quarter or more, and looking at gas turbines that would run on solar power rather than natural gas.
The often-quirky company also said in late 2007 that it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy -- at a price less than burning coal -- within a few years, casting the move as a philanthropic effort to address climate change.
(Reporting by Poornima Gupta; editing by Carol Bishopric)
[Green Business]
Mercedes' green claim rejected by advert watchdog
Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:57am EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - Mercedes-Benz adverts for its new E class saloon series which said "CO2 emissions for the range are down to 139g/km" were banned on Wednesday after the advertising watchdog ruled the ads were misleading.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) noted only two out of the 24 possible permutations in the Mercedes range had a 139g/km figure, the exact CO2 emissions figure per vehicle being dependent on a number of possible variations.
Those variations included the choice between petrol and diesel, manual and automatic gearbox, and were also affected by various alloy wheel size.
"We considered that the headline claim would give the impression to readers that a significant proportion of the range had achieved the lowest emissions figure, or a figure that was relatively low for the class, when that was not the case," the ASA said in its ruling.
The watchdog said the advert must not appear again in its current form.
(Reporting by Matthew Jones)
[Green Business]
Environmentalists fear EU softening eco-labeling for tires
Wed Sep 30, 2009 9:09am EDT
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union negotiators are on the brink of agreeing new rules to inform consumers about the eco-performance, noise and wet grip of tires, diplomats said, but critics charge the draft has been softened and lacks teeth.
Earlier versions of the proposal would have required stickers on each tire sold, like those that have boosted European sales of energy-efficient fridges and washing machines.
The current deal between the European Parliament, the executive European Commission and EU member states offers tire makers a softer alternative -- that the label be "shown to the end user in the immediate proximity of the tire," critics said on Wednesday.
Such alternatives have in the past led to retailers displaying mandatory information posters in obscure areas such as the toilets, they said.
"It's not too late to put this back on track and help consumers choose the most efficient tires which save on fuel bills and emissions," said Jos Dings of environment group T&E.
"A voluntary scheme won't work and is a huge waste of legislators' time," he added.
Tire maker Michelin said it would prefer labels to be mandatory on the tires.
"We will show the labels on the tires ourselves, even if it is not compulsory," said Michelin spokesman Fabrice Lenica.
Under the proposed rules, tires' energy efficiency and wet grip would be rated on a scale of A-G.
Critics say manufacturers of cheap tires have had too much influence on the political process.
"It is essential that the label is displayed on the tire itself," said Stephen Russell, secretary general of consumer group ANEC.
The rules are part of an EU push to reduce its reliance on costly and unreliable oil imports, and to curb energy consumption to one fifth below 1990 levels by 2020.
(Reporting by Pete Harrison, editing by Anthony Barker)
[Green Business]
Google working on "smart" plug-in hybrid charging
Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:30am EDT
By Poornima Gupta
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Google Inc is in the early stages of looking at ways to write software that would fully integrate plug-in hybrid vehicles to the power grid, minimize strain on the grid and help utilities manage vehicle charging load.
"We are doing some preliminary work," said Dan Reicher, Google's director of Climate Change and Energy Initiatives. "We have begun some work on smart charging of electric vehicles and how you would integrate large number of electric vehicles into the grid successfully."
"We have done a little bit of work on the software side looking at how you would write a computer code to manage this sort of charging infrastructure," he said in an interview on the sidelines of an industry conference.
Google, known for its Internet search engine, in 2007 announced a program to test Toyota Prius and Ford Escape gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles that were converted to rechargeable plug-in hybrids that run mostly on electricity.
One of the experimental technologies that was being tested by the Web search giant allowed parked plug-ins to transfer stored energy back to the electric grid, opening a potential back-up source of power for the system in peak hours.
Google has pushed ahead in addressing climate change issues as a philanthropic effort through its Google.org arm.
Reicher said Google has been testing its fleet of plug-in hybrids "pretty intensely" for the last couple of years.
"One of the great things about plug-ins is this great opportunity for the first time to finally have a storage technology," he said
Reicher said the company is trying to figure out how to manage the impact of having millions of future electric vehicle owners plugging in their vehicles at the same time.
"We got to be careful how we manage these things," he said. "On a hot day in July when 5 million Californians come home, you don't want them all plugging in at the same moment."
Reicher laid out a scenario where power utilities, during a time of high demand, could turn on or off the charging of electric vehicles. The owner of these vehicles, who have agreed to such an arrangement, would get a credit from the utility in turn.
"The grid operators may well be indifferent to either putting 500 megawatts of new generation on or taking 500 megawatts off," he said. "The beauty of plug-in vehicles is that with the right software behind them, you could manage their charging."
Apart from plug-in hybrids, Google also is working on other green technologies such as developing its own new mirror technology that could reduce the cost of building solar thermal plants by a quarter or more, and looking at gas turbines that would run on solar power rather than natural gas.
The often-quirky company also said in late 2007 that it would invest in companies and do research of its own to produce affordable renewable energy -- at a price less than burning coal -- within a few years, casting the move as a philanthropic effort to address climate change.
(Reporting by Poornima Gupta; editing by Carol Bishopric)
[Green Business]
Mercedes' green claim rejected by advert watchdog
Wed Sep 30, 2009 12:57am EDT
LONDON (Reuters) - Mercedes-Benz adverts for its new E class saloon series which said "CO2 emissions for the range are down to 139g/km" were banned on Wednesday after the advertising watchdog ruled the ads were misleading.
The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) noted only two out of the 24 possible permutations in the Mercedes range had a 139g/km figure, the exact CO2 emissions figure per vehicle being dependent on a number of possible variations.
Those variations included the choice between petrol and diesel, manual and automatic gearbox, and were also affected by various alloy wheel size.
"We considered that the headline claim would give the impression to readers that a significant proportion of the range had achieved the lowest emissions figure, or a figure that was relatively low for the class, when that was not the case," the ASA said in its ruling.
The watchdog said the advert must not appear again in its current form.
(Reporting by Matthew Jones)
[Green Business]
Environmentalists fear EU softening eco-labeling for tires
Wed Sep 30, 2009 9:09am EDT
BRUSSELS (Reuters) - European Union negotiators are on the brink of agreeing new rules to inform consumers about the eco-performance, noise and wet grip of tires, diplomats said, but critics charge the draft has been softened and lacks teeth.
Earlier versions of the proposal would have required stickers on each tire sold, like those that have boosted European sales of energy-efficient fridges and washing machines.
The current deal between the European Parliament, the executive European Commission and EU member states offers tire makers a softer alternative -- that the label be "shown to the end user in the immediate proximity of the tire," critics said on Wednesday.
Such alternatives have in the past led to retailers displaying mandatory information posters in obscure areas such as the toilets, they said.
"It's not too late to put this back on track and help consumers choose the most efficient tires which save on fuel bills and emissions," said Jos Dings of environment group T&E.
"A voluntary scheme won't work and is a huge waste of legislators' time," he added.
Tire maker Michelin said it would prefer labels to be mandatory on the tires.
"We will show the labels on the tires ourselves, even if it is not compulsory," said Michelin spokesman Fabrice Lenica.
Under the proposed rules, tires' energy efficiency and wet grip would be rated on a scale of A-G.
Critics say manufacturers of cheap tires have had too much influence on the political process.
"It is essential that the label is displayed on the tire itself," said Stephen Russell, secretary general of consumer group ANEC.
The rules are part of an EU push to reduce its reliance on costly and unreliable oil imports, and to curb energy consumption to one fifth below 1990 levels by 2020.
(Reporting by Pete Harrison, editing by Anthony Barker)
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