Fact-check: Half of fed-funded green companies bankrupt?
Everyone’s entitled to a little hyperbole every now and then. But the closing minutes of last night’s presidential debate contained a real whopper. Republican candidate Mitt Romney claimed that half...
View ArticleCA gas prices fall — a teensy bit
After smashing records for four straight days, California’s gasoline prices have finally started to fall. Not that it’s easy to tell. The statewide average price for a gallon of regular slipped half a...
View ArticleHigh-altitude wind power pioneer Corwin Hardham dies at 38
Corwin Hardham was part of a small clutch of engineers chasing a very large dream — high-altitude wind power. He co-founded Makani Power and helped develop the company’s flying wind turbine, which...
View ArticleCA gas prices to fall below $4 — finally
Barring another refinery fire, California’s average price for a gallon of regular gas should drop below $4 this weekend for the first time since August. That’s hardly a bargain. But it’ll be a welcome...
View ArticleState saves fish, blocks PG&E quake tests
Siding with a broad coalition of environmentalists, the California Coastal Commission on Wednesday unanimously rejected a plan by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. to study offshore earthquake faults near...
View ArticleA little bit of Solyndra — yours for $9.50
At this point, it’s entirely possible that no one wants Solyndra’s solar modules except political junkies and clean-tech geeks. But an electronics dealership in Santa Clara will happily sell you one...
View ArticleChevron VP: forget cellulosic biofuel, build better cars
The oil industry is mounting a concerted push to roll back biofuel mandates, both in Washington and Sacramento. At the federal level, oil lobbyists have joined with environmentalists and ranchers — a...
View ArticleFord taps PlugShare for EV charging app
For the last two years, an app called PlugShare has been showing electric car drivers where to charge up in public. Even better, PlugShare asks its users to add to the list any new charging stations...
View ArticleThe Onion: Energy Sec. Chu’s drunken fling with solar panel
Steven Chu has his share of haters. But you’ve got to credit the guy with a sense of humor. Less than a week after announcing he would not serve another term as Pres. Obama’s secretary of energy, Chu...
View ArticleCalifornia solar rebates: going, going, almost gone
The California program that gives state residents rebates for going solar has been so successful that the money is almost tapped out. In fact, in parts of the state served by Pacific Gas and Electric...
View ArticleSan Jose’s SoloPower cuts jobs
If you feel like you’ve heard this story before, you’re not alone. A Bay Area solar startup, SoloPower, confirmed Thursday that it would cut jobs as part of a company-wide “restructuring.” SoloPower...
View ArticleSolar rebates: a few more left
Earlier this week I wrote about how California’s rebates for homeowners who go solar are almost tapped out in PG&E territory. Turns out there are more available than previously thought. The...
View ArticleCharging your electric car in public just got easier
Two rival Bay Area companies that install public charging stations for electric cars have decided to link their networks so customers can use both. ChargePoint and ECOtality have formed a joint venture...
View ArticleReport: solar use up, revenues down
To get a sense of why so many solar manufacturing companies are in trouble these days, considering the following: Last year, world-wide installation of solar panels set a record, with enough new...
View ArticleSalazar: frackers should disclose chemicals
U.S. Interior Secretary Ken Salazar may be headed for the exits, but he isn’t slowing down. Salazar, the quiet Westerner who oversees America’s public lands, stopped by San Francisco Wednesday to...
View ArticleU.S. Solar installations jump 76% in 2012
Solar power’s spread across the country accelerated at a stunning clip last year, with installations surging 76 percent, according to an annual report released Thursday. Enticed by plunging prices,...
View ArticleRenewables add up, but so do costs
California installed enough solar systems last year to generate as much electricity as a nuclear reactor, largely due to a state law that orders utilities to use more renewable power. It’s an idea that...
View ArticleTesla’s Model S meets the jaws of life
The all-electric Model S sedan from Tesla Motors is one gorgeous car, inside and out. So it might seem perverse that anybody would want to tear one apart. Brock Archer did. Archer teaches fire fighters...
View ArticleFeds side with Chevron vs. activist shareholders
Chevron Corp. shareholders will not get to vote this year on a proposal to strip CEO John Watson of his other title as chairman of the oil company’s board. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission...
View ArticleA fracking moratorium in CA?
So far, fracking for oil and natural gas in California hasn’t taken off the way it has in other states. But it’s growing fast enough that some state legislators want to rein it in. Several bills are...
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