“Our goal at Proterra is to fundamentally transform urban transit,” said Jeff Granato, Chief Executive Officer of Proterra, “The tremendous resources of Kleiner Perkins, leveraged with GM’s automotive expertise and the financial and technical strength of Mitsui, Vision Ridge and 88 Green Ventures gives us an enviable platform to compete and win in the electric transit bus market.”

Proterra’s 35 foot (10 meter) EcoRide BE35™ bus, in daily service at Foothill Transit in Pomona, CA since last September, will be rolling out to VIA Transit in San Antonio and Tallahassee StarMetro later this year. The whisper-quiet, emissions-free bus of tomorrow is completely recharged in under 10 minutes with Proterra’s FastFillTM charging station resulting in a 1 for 1 replacement of diesel buses in service on routes today. Proterra’s lightweight, composite-body bus is a major advance in the transit industry, meeting the stated 2030 goals set by the Federal Transit Agency (FTA) for advanced technology buses nearly 20 years ahead of schedule. Providing significant operating cost savings for its customers, the EcoRide is averaging close to 24 miles per gallon (diesel equivalent) in service, a more than 600% improvement over a typical diesel bus, which averages under 4 miles per gallon, resulting in hundreds of thousands of dollars in fuel cost savings.

“Electrification of public transportation has tremendous benefits to governments, municipalities and citizens by reducing the operating cost of transit, while also eliminating local air pollution and reducing C02 per passenger mile in the industry,” said Al Gore, former U.S. Vice President and Partner with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers.

This investment enables Proterra to complete critical federal validation testing of its bus, roll out additional pilot fleets and complete initiatives to significantly reduce costs and increase volume production at its Greenville, South Carolina manufacturing plant, which will have a capacity to produce 400 buses annually. The bus has more than 80% U.S. content from 33 states, and will create approximately 2,400 jobs nationwide by 2015.

Proterra has also strengthened its board by electing a manufacturing industry veteran, David Lehmann, as its new chairman. Mr. Lehmann is a seasoned multinational business executive and has successfully built businesses with $2 billion annual sales. He has conducted business in 28 countries for firms such as General Electric Co., Caterpillar and Solar Turbines Inc. Michael Linse, a partner at KPCB, has also joined the board.”

Read more: Press Release

Under the terms of the agreement, First Solar and CPINE will initially explore collaboration on solar PV projects in China and identify project investment opportunities for CPINE in the U.S. and other global solar markets, leveraging CPINE’s role as a leading renewable energy developer in China, including CPINE’s planned 2 GW of solar in China by 2020, and First Solar’s expertise as a leading global solar PV technology company, including its 2.4 GW pipeline in North America.

“We are very pleased to build an extensive and in-depth relationship with First Solar, a global leader in solar PV technology. This cooperation leverages our advantages in the domestic solar power industry, and helps First Solar further expand its business presence in China. In addition, we are happy to explore other cooperation opportunities in different areas and through different methods with First Solar, working together to further expand in the global market,” said Madame Li. “Solar power offers tremendous growth potential in China and the U.S.”

“First Solar is very pleased to be expanding our commercial presence in China by establishing this relationship with CPINE, one of the premier clean energy state-owned companies in China and a leader in clean energy development,” said Kallenbach. “Both China and the U.S. are important markets with vast potential for sustainable solar energy, and this agreement can serve as a model for U.S.-China collaboration on renewable energy. Our agreement with CPINE also includes the potential to expand to other international markets, which could open up tremendous opportunities.” ”

Read more: First Solar Press Release

“Inaugurating the first Freedom Station in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex is a critical first step toward making electric vehicles the smart and convenient choice for Texans who want to reduce their cost of driving while contributing to cleaner air and America’s energy independence,” said David Crane, NRG President and CEO. “We’re taking a page from Southwest Airlines when they started out 40 years ago to link the major population centers in Texas. This first station is the start of an ecosystem that will eventually give Texas EV owners the freedom to drive with range confidence throughout the region.””

Read more: Press Release

“Solyndra has excellent marketplace momentum, with record installations of our product in the fourth quarter and annual revenues exceeding $140 million last year,” said Brian Harrison, Solyndra’s president and CEO. “With strong acceptance of our 200 Series product, we are seeing growth in the U.S. and markets throughout Europe. We have recently reached a number of significant milestones, including the shipment of nearly 100 megawatts of panels, the completion of more than 1,000 installations in 20 countries and the announcement of our PV greenhouse solution.”

The company’s construction of its new, world-class manufacturing and customer demonstration facility is complete. The 300,000 square foot project was completed ahead of schedule, employing approximately 3000 construction workers. Installation of the remaining production tools occurs in 2011 and will bring Solyndra’s annual production run rate to approximately 200 MW per year by year’s end. When fully ramped, the new facility’s annual production capacity will reach 300MW per year. The new facility will also enable Solyndra to manufacture products with an installed system cost-of-goods sold (COGS) of approximately $2 per watt in the first quarter of 2013, which is expected to be highly competitive with all other technologies.

“We are confident that with this round of funding and the continued support of our existing investors we are on track to be cash flow positive at the end of this year,” continued Harrison. “Solyndra’s fast and easy to install panels are a proven and scalable solar solution, ideal for rooftop applications. Today we are demonstrating competitive ’all in’ pricing, strong ROI and economics for rooftop owners, and many enthusiastic new and repeat customers.”

The new financing also included the restructuring of the Company’s outstanding indebtedness. Solyndra’s existing convertible notes have been exchanged for new notes and the U.S. Department of Energy which provided a loan guarantee agreed to certain loan modifications including an extension of the amortization period. Together with the existing indebtedness, the new credit facility is secured by all assets of the Company.”

Read more: Solyndra Press Release

The competitively bid contract awards are co-funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and include a 50 percent cost-share from each of the contracted companies.

USABC awarded the contracts to develop and assess advanced energy storage technologies for a lower-energy energy storage system (LEESS) for power-assist hybrid-electric vehicles (PAHEV) and high-energy density battery cells and battery packs for electric vehicle (EV) applications.

The companies receiving advanced battery development contracts are:

• Cobasys LLC of Orion, Mich., a subsidiary of SB LiMotive, which was awarded a three-year $8.36 million contract for the development of high-energy lithium-ion cells for use in EV applications. The contract will include the design, development, delivery and validation of conforming design-intent cells, and through the design, development, delivery and verification of a 40kWh technology demonstration battery pack.
• Maxwell Technologies Inc. of San Diego, Calif., which was awarded $7.01 million for a two-year ultracapacitor program to help develop technology that will double existing capacitor power density from 10 to 20 kilowatts per kilogram (kW/kg) and double existing energy density from 15 to 30 watt-hours per kilogram Wh/kg. The advanced ultracapacitors then will be integrated into modules that will be evaluated against the USABC goals for LEESS applications.

In addition, SK Energy Co. LTD of Seoul, South Korea, was awarded $195,149 for a one-year technology assessment of the performance, cycle life and accelerated calendar life of the company’s EV batteries against USABC goals.

“We are pleased to announce the award of these contracts as part of USABC’s broad battery technology research and development programs,” said Steve Zimmer, executive director of USCAR. “These programs are essential to advance the technology needed to meet both near- and long-term goals that will enable a broad spectrum of vehicle electrification.”

USABC is a subsidiary of the United States Council for Automotive Research LLC (USCAR). Enabled by a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), USABC’s mission is to develop electrochemical energy storage technologies that support commercialization of electric, hybrid electric and fuel cell vehicles. As such, USABC has developed mid- and long-term goals to guide its projects and measure their progress.

The U.S. DOE’s overarching mission is to advance the national, economic and energy security of the United States. DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Program works with industry, academia and national laboratories to develop advanced transportation technologies that reduce the nation’s use of imported oil and increase its energy security. Electrochemical energy storage has been identified as a critical enabling technology for advanced, fuel-efficient, light and heavy-duty vehicles.”

Read more: Press Release

Source: Tessera Solar

Bord Gáis Energy will initially invest EUR1million in OpenHydro whose business is the design and manufacture of marine turbines for generating renewable energy from tidal streams. Bord Gáis has also agreed to invest a further EUR1million on achievement of certain milestones relating to the tidal farm development.

Commenting on the announcement, James Ives, chief executive at OpenHydro said: “We are delighted to have secured this investment from Bord Gáis Energy and to have established this exciting new joint venture focused on the development of Ireland’s first utility scale tidal farm. The
additional funds will be used to support OpenHydro’s continued expansion in turbine production and deployment capability. We very much look forward to working with Bord Gáis Energy as a key partner in the development of our business and in delivering tidal energy to Irish homes.””

Read more: OpenHydro Press Release

Lineage Power had revenues of approximately $450 million in 2010. The transaction is valued at approximately $520 million or eight times enterprise value on 2011 EBITDA basis. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2011, subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approval. Lineage Power is headquartered in Plano, Texas, and has nearly 2,300 employees, with manufacturing operations in China, Mexico and India.

The deal is the latest in a series of announcements that will expand GE’s $40 billion energy portfolio of solutions for customers in vital industries. In October 2010, GE announced the signing of a contract to acquire Dresser Inc., a Dallas-based energy infrastructure company. Last month, the company announced its intention to make an offer for 100 percent of Wellstream Holdings PLC, a British oil pipe manufacturer.

“According to recent studies, there will be 1.1 billion smartphones sold globally by 2013,” said Dan Heintzelman, GE Energy Services president & CEO. “Every new mobile device plugs into an infrastructure that requires an ever increasing amount of high-quality power. The growth in high-bandwidth mobile internet applications and cloud computing is accelerating that demand. A globally networked planet needs a lot of power to keep spinning. Customers want efficient, reliable means to manage that power.”

Heintzelman adds, “As the data-driven economy grows, the addition of Lineage Power’s business platform continues the expansion of GE Energy’s offerings from the electric grid to datacenters, cell towers, routers, servers and circuit board electronics.”

Lineage Power complements GE because it is based on technology leadership, deep customer relationships, proven domain expertise of its employees, a strong services business and a global growth strategy. It is right within GE’s core expertise—managing electricity. GE’s technology investments and resources, and global reach and scale, are expected to help grow this business around the world and across industries.”

Read more: Press Release

Read more: Abound Solar Press Release