RED Alert! | February 2008

Major silicon producer moves to recycle energy

Silicon manufacturer West Virginia Alloys (WVA), a unit of Globe Specialty Metals, Inc., has entered into an innovative agreement with Recycled Energy Development (RED) to recycle energy, improving the efficiency of its operations while slashing greenhouse-gas emissions and other pollutants. RED will invest $45 to $55 million to recycle hot exhaust into a net 40-44 megawatts of electricity generation, offsetting roughly one-third of WVA’s electric consumption. This project marks RED’s first deal under the recently announced partnership with private equity firm Denham Capital Management to invest $1.5 billion in energy recycling projects. View the full press release and project fact sheet.

Congress approves waste energy legislation

The 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act features several provisions to advance industrial energy efficiency. Subtitle D creates a Waste Energy Recovery Incentive Grant Program, authorized to provide $10 per megawatt-hour for documented electricity produced from waste energy recovery projects. The legislation also requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to create an inventory of the country’s waste-energy-recycling opportunities. Moreover, the law encourages states to allow energy recyclers to sell their electricity in the open market—including direct sales to third parties and the transport of power over private transmission lines. Read a summary of Subtitle D.

Job openings

RED is seeking qualified candidates for the following positions:

RED writings

Recent RED articles include Tom Casten’s chapter in Sudden and Disruptive Climate Change, Sean Casten's and Myra Karegianes' The Legal Case Against Standby Rates in The Electricity Journal (November 2007), Tom Casten's articles in Energy Pulse on Mitigating Climate Change: Asking the Right Questions (November 29, 2007) and Pollution Regulation’s Unintended Consequences (January 15, 2008), and Sean Casten's blog postings on Grist.