*LED lights saved utility customers $675 million in 2012. With a life of 5 to 15 years it also saves tens of thousands of older folks bulb changing fall injuries.
*GE's new 2.4MW wind turbine has a one minute battery back up. 1 minute, that's it? It's big this minute. A minute at full 2.4MW rate is a lot of power. If they were just pulling a small percent of the capacity load when it goes down it may carry that for a long time. Within a network of turbines this creates extra buffer for the system to adjust. No doubt battery backup will grow in these products.
*France has made a decision on fracking, NO! NEVER! Siting the damage it has done to rural residents health and water quality in the US. NO! Pass the cheese and wine, we don't need no stinking burning water.
Vectern - the power and light company came through the apartment and installed those energy saving bulbs, put in a new shower head, and did something to the firnace.
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They may be softening me up for a rate hike...
Sarge
Ron, softening you up for a rate hike, maybe not. The power company giving new lights, rebates for energy saving appliances, tuning the AC has been done in other locations the last few years to reduce power consumption. Seems counterintuitive but for some power companies building more capacity may not make sense financially. Instead if they can reduce consumption they can still take growth in the number of customers with their current generating equipment. It's hugh man. Almost 40% of the nations energy is used for lighting, if they can cut that over half with new bulbs, plus these bulbs produce about 10% of the heat of tungsten bulbs, then there is another savings in summer AC energy. (energy use is greater for AC in summer than winter)
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