The Rancho Cordova Post (Free subscription) | yesterday
Pacific Gas and Electric has determined that natural gas imported in to their system was over odorized and is currently in the pipelines. Many people may notice a stronger “gas” smell as the natural gas is moving through the northern California service area over the weekend. The smell from the extra odorant is expected to [...]
Power Smart Pricing Blog (Free subscription) | 21/11/2009
Lesson Learned from the PG&E Smart Meter Suit: It’s a Communication Problem We’ve yet to delve too deeply into all of the fisticuffs surrounding the suit filed by a Bakersfield, Calif. resident against utility PG&E for a smart meter that he says tripled his electricity bill. Will consumers plug into home energy displays? Dozens of home energy monitors are coming to market, but nobody...
Bakersfield.com (Free subscription) | 21/11/2009
The state Public Utilities Commission voted Friday to expedite the hiring of a contractor to provide independent testing of Pacific Gas and Electric Co.'s SmartMeters, the electrical meters that have prompted complaints recently in Bakersfield and elsewhere about unusually high power bills. The unanimous vote allows the commission to move forward quickly with its plan to back up PG&E's internal...
MATTER MAGAZINE (Free subscription) | 21/11/2009
By Susan Kraemer Storage is needed to harvest the full yield available from intermittent sources of energy like wind and solar. One of the options is compressed-air storage; till now only possible in underground caverns. But SustainX Energy Solutions; a Dartmouth College start-up that got $4 million in VC funding from Polaris Venture Partners and Rockport Capital this year is working on compressing...
California Energy Blog (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
As if PG&E didn't have enough problems with SmartMeters ... David Baker's article in today's San Francicso Chronicle reveals yet another nasty feature to the new technology: they allow PG&E to shut off power to a home remotely. No sending out a technician, just flip a switch. So, in these "brother, can you spare a dime" days, it's a lot easier to cut off someone's electricity for...
MATTER Features (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
By Nick Nigro If Internet companies and some utilities have their way, the smart grid will rely on the existing infrastructure of the information superhighway in order to function. They argue that by relying on existing standards like Internet Protocol (IP), the smart grid will grow faster and more organically than if utilities adopt an assortment of proprietary methods. Issues like security become...
MATTER MAGAZINE (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
A California company that designed a personalized residential energy management solution for heating, ventilation and air conditioning won the business plan competition this year in the Cleantech Open. Selected from the 12 finalists, EcoFactor (www.ecofactor.com) will receive $100,000 in seed money and an additional $150,000 in business services. The Cleantech Open is a business competition created...
San Fransisco Chronicle (Free subscription) | 20/11/2009
The number of low-income households cut off by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. after they fell behind on their utility bills jumped 75 percent this year, according to a state report released Thursday. For the 12 months that ended in August, 91,393 low-income...
VentureBeat (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
Steve Westly, former California State Controller and current operator of the venture firm Westly Group, says he got interested in the smart grid and clean tech in order to save the world and make massive amounts of money in the process. Greeting the assembled crowd warmly and expressing a great deal of excitement to be present atGreenBeat 2009, he recalls putting solar panels up on Carter’s...
Earth2Tech (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
We’ve yet to delve too deeply into all of the fisticuffs surrounding the suit filed by a Bakersfield, Calif. resident against utility PG&E for a smart meter that he says tripled his electricity bill. Other residents in the area have complained to the media and PG&E about billing discrepancies. In response, PG&E has slowed down [...]
VentureBeat (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
Google’s Ed Lu stepped on stage to enthusiastic applause from the crowd today. Discussing Google’s Powermeter with Matt Marshall, Venture Beat Editor In Chief and CEO, he seemed to be playing his cards close to his vest on some topics but was smilingly helpful on others. Marshall comments that PG&E might be getting nervous with Google’s entry into energy networks. After all,...
Betty's List (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
Jill of All Trades - Upcoming Home Maintenance Hands-On "How-To" Classes - Winter 2009-10 Take a class that will empower you with the skills needed to get those home fix-it projects off of your to-do list! All classes are taught at the Jill of All Trades classroom in San Francisco. To sign up for our classes email danielle@jillofalltrades.net or call 415-861-5764 $25 discount for each class...
smoke and mirrors (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
Did you know it takes two cows to power the average California home on what is called "poo power" or cow farts? And that's every day...talk about renewable. How does this work? Methane gas is captured from cow manure. Then, after cleaning it up, the West Coast power company Pacific Gas & Electric will feed it directly into PG&E's natural-gas pipelines. Currently, the US doesn't regulate...
Sufiy. (Free subscription) | 19/11/2009
" Nov. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Electric vehicles should provide three-fourths of U.S. driving needs by 2040, with oil imports effectively “reduced to zero,” executives from companies including Nissan Motor Co. , PG&E Corp. and FedEx Corp . said." We have a very strong demand for lithium and REE according to these estimations, with 21kg of lithium carbonate (LC) per each BEV with...
Fergie's Tech Blog (Free subscription) | 17/11/2009
Camille Ricketts writes on VentureBeat : Last week, [it was] reported [about] the lawsuit being filed against Pacific Gas & Electric for price hikes seemingly caused by installation of smart meters in the Bakersfield area of California. Now the plaintiff’s attorneys say that PG&E’s suppliers should also be sued — a who’s who of Smart Grid companies including General...
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