LANSING - Gov. Jennifer Granholm signed two bills on Monday that she said would help keep Michigan at the forefront of automotive development by helping ensure that the advanced battery development and manufacturing takes place in the state. With the enactment of HB 4515 (PA 5, Immediate Effect) and SB 319 (PA 6, Immediate Effect),
DEWITT - The Clean Energy Coalition is now offering incentives to cover up to $5,000 of the cost to install or upgrade an existing gas pump capable of dispensing E85, a blend of 85 percent ethanol and 15 percent gasoline. Upgrading the pumps also would qualify a station owner to take advantage of significant tax
ROCHESTER HILLS �?? While the long term future for solar energy is bright, short term the global economic meltdown has even caught up with Energy Conversion Devices, which said Monday it will lay off 70 people at its solar panel production plat at the older of its two Auburn Hills factories. Energy Conversion also said
CAMBRIDGE - The outpouring of technology innovation in green technologies could be stymied without healthier financial markets and significant changes to government policies, speakers warned last weekend at the MIT Energy Conference. . Numerous speakers said the economy and current regulations are barriers to cleaning the energy industry fast enough to mitigate the effects of
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.- Utility company American Electric Power plans this year to place equipment in residential areas capable of storing a few hours of electricity, one of the first tests of distributed storage on the power grid. Ali Nourai, AEP's manager of distributed energy resources, calls the storage program a potential "game changer" for the utility
TUSCON - Alternative energy company Ecotality said on Friday that it will supply charging stations in Arizona as part of the planned roll-out of plug-in electric cars from Nissan next year. Nissan North America has committed to making its electric vehicles available to municipal or private organizations in the Tucson, Ariz., area, Ecotality said. Nissan's
NOVI - Electric power transmission company ITC Holdings Corp. has hired Terry Harvill, Ph. D. as vice president of energy policy. The newly created position is aligned with ITC's strategy to become a more active leader in policy issues related to the transmission industry. Harvill will report to Linda Blair, ITC's executive vice president and
GRAND RAPIDS - Supercenter retail chain Meijer will soon expand its green initiatives to include the use of wind power at some of its West Michigan facilities. Meijer received approval to install the wind turbines from the zoning board of appeals in the city of Walker, the Grand Rapids suburb where Meijer's headquarters facility is
TRAVERSE CITY - SEEDS will present initial findings from their baseline assessment of the greenhouse gas emissions from Grand Traverse County residents, businesses and visitors including strategies for reducing emissions on March 5 at the Traverse Area District Library. With a clear picture of where our emissions are coming from we can develop targeted strategies
LANSING - In hopes of getting as much as $750 million of the $2 billion in federal stimulus money to promote advanced battery manufacturing, legislative leaders have launched an effort to expand the tax benefits the state offers for high tech battery makers. The Senate Commerce and Tourism Committee expects to report SB 319 on