ENERGY FEATURE

Two solar power plants in California will produce 12 times the amount of electricity of current plants, the companies said.

The OptiSolar plant slated for San Luis Obispo County, will produce 550 megawatts, The New York Times reported Friday. A SunPower Corp. installation, also slated for the same county, will produce about 250 megawatts, the Times said.

Combined, the two installations will cover 12.5 square miles and produce as much power as a small nuclear power plant, the Times reported.

The U.S. Department of Energy says its "Carbon Sequestration Atlas of the United States and Canada" has won a publication excellence award.

The U.S. Department of Energy will help the federal government save money on energy.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Energy Efficiency David Rodgers announced four Energy Savings Performance Contracts to help government agencies save up to $13 million on energy-related costs per year.

The contracts with four national laboratories total $140 million and will be used to install energy efficiency improvements in Energy Department facilities across the country, Rodgers said.

A report released Tuesday said spending cuts affecting virtually every school district in the United States are coming this fall due to higher energy prices.

A U.S.-based research firm suggests solar power is spreading through Europe.

Texas oil billionaire T. Boone Pickens has outlined a wind-power campaign.

The 10-year plan Pickens has outlined in an effort to increase U.S. wind power generation came as a surprise but was welcomed by wind advocates including the American Wind Energy Association, U.K. Business Green reported.

The Pickens Plan aims to build wind farms down the center of the country from Canada to Texas. Pickens estimates the new wind could supply more than 20 percent of the U.S. energy demands.

A Florida-based firm is pushing solar power as a solution to rising energy costs.

Vermont-based Green Mountain Power will help spread solar power.

The U.S. Department of Energy said Monday it reached an agreement with six turbine-makers to promote and develop wind as a power source.

Working with GE Energy, Siemens Power Generation, Vestas Wind Systems, Clipper Turbine Works, Suzlon Energy and Gamesa Corp., the two-year memorandum of understanding is designed to foster cooperation on current wind power strategies, develop industry standards and advance technical capabilities.

The goal is to have wind power produce 20 percent of the country's electricity needs by 2030, a DOE statement said.

Ontario's $20 million Municipal Eco Challenge Fund is now under way.

Revonergy will build a waste-to-energy plant in Nigeria.

The U.S. wind industry sees wind as being more locally based.

The U.S. Department of Energy announced solar funding opportunities.

Atlanta-based GE Energy inked a $1 billion deal with wind farm operator Invenergy.