Ultima Networks and Green Energy
Ultima Networks is pleased to announce it has completed the purchase of 22 hectares of land in the Puglia region of Southern Italy at a cost of approximately (Euro's) Euro600,000 and the establishment of three Italian subsidiaries (Ultima Italia srl, Harlicon srl and Lecsolar srl) with the intention of each developing a 1 Mega Watt Solar Park.
The project, which is still subject to planning permission being granted, builds upon Ultima's existing experience and capability in the solar market, the Company having distributed and installed solar panel equipment for the past 8 years and utilised rechargeable solar power technology for powering the Company's range of electric bikes.
The project will have access to the Italian Government's market leading tariffs and will be sited in the south of Italy taking advantage of naturally high solar irradiation providing excellent conditions for the efficient generation and supply of solar generated electricity. The project provides a platform for the Company to deploy its existing and growing expertise in the field of solar energy provision and to participate in a rapidly growing market sector.
What is Green Energy?
Green energy is the term used to describe sources of energy that are considered to be environmentally friendly and non-polluting, such as geothermal, wind, solar, and hydro. Sometimes nuclear power is also considered a green energy source. Green energy sources are often considered "green" because they are perceived to lower carbon emissions and create less pollution.
Green energy is commonly thought of in the context of electricity, mechanical power, heating and cogeneration. Consumers, businesses, and organizations may purchase green energy in order to support further development, help reduce the environmental impacts of conventional electricity generation, and increase their nation’s energy independence. Renewable energy certificates (green certificates or green tags) have been one way for consumers and businesses to support green energy.
In the media, green energy is often used interchangeably with the term Renewable energy. Alternative energy and clean technologies are other terms often used instead of renewable energy. The terms suggest a non-polluting, non-fossil-fuel source. Green power is sometimes used in reference to electricity generated from "green" sources. Brown energy is sometimes used to contrast non-renewable or polluting energy sources with green energy.
Green sources
Green energy includes natural energetic processes that can be harnessed with little pollution. Anaerobic digestion, geothermal power, wind power, small-scale hydropower, solar energy, biomass power, tidal power, and wave power fall under such a category. Some definitions may also include power derived from the incineration of waste.
Some organizations have specifically classified nuclear power as green energy, but environmental organizations indicate the problems with nuclear waste and claim that this energy is neither efficient nor effective in cutting CO2 emissions, excluding it from clean energy.
No power source is entirely impact-free. All energy sources require energy and give rise to some degree of pollution from manufacture of the technology.
Renewable Energy
Renewable energy is energy generated from natural resources—such as sunlight, wind, rain, tides and geothermal heat—which are renewable (naturally replenished). In 2006, about 18% of global final energy consumption came from renewables, with 13% coming from traditional biomass, such as wood-burning. Hydroelectricity was the next largest renewable source, providing 3% of global energy consumption and 15% of global electricity generation.
Wind power is growing at the rate of 30 percent annually, with a worldwide installed capacity of 121,000 megawatts (MW) in 2008, and is widely used in European countries and the United States. The annual manufacturing output of the photovoltaics industry reached 6,900 MW in 2008, and photovoltaic (PV) power stations are popular in Germany and Spain.
Solar thermal power stations operate in the USA and Spain, and the largest of these is the 354 MW SEGS power plant in the Mojave Desert. The world's largest geothermal power installation is The Geysers in California, with a rated capacity of 750 MW. Brazil has one of the largest renewable energy programs in the world, involving production of ethanol fuel from sugar cane, and ethanol now provides 18 percent of the country's automotive fuel. Ethanol fuel is also widely available in the USA.
While most renewable energy projects and production is large-scale, renewable technologies are also suited to small off-grid applications, sometimes in rural and remote areas, where energy is often crucial in human development. Kenya has the world's highest household solar ownership rate with roughly 30,000 small (20–100 watt) solar power systems sold per year.
Some renewable energy technologies are criticised for being intermittent or unsightly, yet the renewable energy market continues to grow. Climate change concerns coupled with high oil prices, peak oil and increasing government support are driving increasing renewable energy legislation, incentives and commercialization. New government spending, regulation, and policies should help the industry weather the 2009 economic crisis better than many other sectors
Source: Wikipedia
