Industry
News
Coal Update Available
A new 240-page report providing up-to-date, comprehensive information on
clean coal technology and use has been
published by The Thinking Companies.
Titled Back to Coal: Why Utilities Must
Reconsider This Cheap, Plentiful Fuel, the
report draws on interviews and research to
cover such topics as how coal combustion
and efficiency improvements have progressed, what cleanup techniques are
emerging to solve emissions problems and
why coal gasification is a realistic contender
for electricity generation. Back to Coal may
be ordered for $250 by calling (207) 829-
3223 or going online to www.thinking
energy.com.
Navy Region Hawaii Wins
Energy Award
Navy Region Hawaii received Hawaiian
Electric Co.’s 2004 Energy Award at a special
ceremony held Oct. 28 at the Sheraton
Waikiki Hotel. The event, which recognized
outstanding achievements in energy efficiency, was held in conjunction with Hawaiian
Electric’s Efficient Electro-Technology Expo
and Conference.
The region’s recognition resulted from
the successful construction and implementation of a central chiller plant to provide
more efficient air conditioning in office
spaces. Serving eight buildings at the Pearl
Harbor Shipyard, the new 1,800-ton chiller
plant has reduced the amount of energy
expended by more than 7. 9 million k Wh
per year, with annual energy savings totaling more than $775,000. The project is the
first district cooling system for a Navy
installation in Hawaii.
Qatar Cool To Add
New Buildings
Qatar Cool announced that the
International Trade and Development Co.
(ITD) has joined the list of building owners
that will be connecting to the company’s
new district cooling operation in the West
Bay area of Doha, Qatar. ITD has two
building projects that will link to the system: Al Dana Tower, with its 29,000 sq m
(312,153 sq ft) of office space, and the
Residential Tower, a 30-story complex housing 270 apartments, leisure facilities, a
cafeteria and parking. Both towers are due
to be completed in 2006.
IEA Releases World
Energy Outlook
This past October, the International
Energy Agency (IEA) released World Energy
Outlook 2004, the most recent edition of
its flagship publication. This year’s report
presents a reassuring assessment of the
prospects for global energy supplies, but
draws attention to serious concerns about
energy security, investment, the environment and energy poverty. It calls for a more
vigorous action to steer the global energy
system onto a more sustainable path.
According to the Outlook’s “Reference
Scenario,” which projects energy trends in
the absence of new government policies
or accelerated deployment of new technology, world primary energy demand is set
to rise by 59 percent from now till 2030.
Eight-five percent of that increase will be
in the form of carbon-emitting fossil fuels.
Two-thirds of the new demand will come
from the developing world, especially
China and India. Demand for oil will continue to expand at 1. 6 percent a year. Gas
use is projected to double by 2030, largely
because it will be the fuel of choice for
electric-power generation. Nuclear power
will grow very slightly, decreasing in Europe
while advancing in Asia.
To purchase a copy of World Energy
Outlook 2004, visit the online bookshop at
www.iea.org.
Oregon Campus To Get
CHP Plant
Siemens Building Technologies Inc. has
announced it will design, build, operate
and maintain a combined heat and power
(CHP) plant to serve Oregon Health &
Science University’s new River Campus in
Portland. Five natural gas-fired microtur-bines at the plant will produce all of the
heat required by the facility and 34 percent
of its electric power.
The new plant will serve Building One,
a 400,000-sq-ft facility set to open in 2006.
It will house medical offices, outpatient surgery, research laboratories, a wellness center,
an imaging center, conference center, retail
outlets and parking. The university estimates
that CHP will lower its carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 9 MMlb/yr. The
building will eventually also be served by
a Siemens-designed chilled-water plant.
Tabreed Bahrain Finalizes
Incorporation
The Bahrain District Cooling Company
(Tabreed Bahrain) has finalized its incorporation and held the first general assembly
meeting of its shareholders: Tabreed, based
in the United Arab Emirates; Esterad
Investment Co.; and Abdulla A Bin Hindi.
According to Tabreed Bahrain Chairman
Abdulrahman Jamsheer, the new joint venture company could reduce the electricity
consumed by air conditioning in Bahrain’s
commercial buildings by up to 70 percent.
Tabreed Bahrain has an authorized capital of
BHD 5 million (approximately $13.3 million).
Getting Into Hot Water
in Rochester
By December 2004, FVB Energy and
RMF Engineering Inc. expected to complete
key portions of the detailed design for a
major new district hot water network and
related building connections at the
