the new business imperative

Delayed China nuclear plan may be approved next month

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 18:01

A report in Bloomberg says China’s State Council is likely to approve revised safety and development plans for the country’s nuclear industry by the end of June. According to Xu Yuming, the vice secretary general of the China Nuclear Energy Association, the plan – which was originally expected by the end of last year – was earlier rejected and amendments are being made to some “minor” details.

China suspended new nuclear projects after last year’s earthquake and tsunami in Japan crippled the Fukushima Dai-Ichi plant and prompted a global review of atomic energy plants.

Backlash predicted to hefty new US solar anti-dumping tariffs

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 17:20

The international solar industry sector is holding its collective breath as it awaits the real fallout from the US Commerce Department’s decision today to punish China solar panel makers with hefty tariffs ranging from about 31 percent to as high as 250 percent on charges of illegal “dumping.”

The Chinese have so far remained silent on the decision, which was announced overnight in Asia, but it won’t stay mum for long and the response is almost certain to be more than measured.

ADB raises $339 mln from second clean energy bond sale

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 13:21

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has raised USD339 million from its second sale of Clean Energy Bonds to Japanese retail investors.

China allocates another $79 bln to fight growing water pollution

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 13:16

The Chinese government plans to allocate 500 billion yuan (USD79 billion) for the prevention and control of water pollution in major drainage areas from 2011 to 2015, up from 300 billion yuan for the previous five-year period, according to Xinhua.

Beijing to impose near Euro V fuel standards

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 13:10

Beijing will introduce new fuel standards on May 31 that municipal officials say are nearly on a par with the European Union's Euro V, the first Chinese city to do so.

Taiwan inks MOU with Dutch for joint green research projects

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 12:59

The Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI), one of Taiwan’s leading scientific centers, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Energy Research Center of the Netherlands to develop green energy applications.

Shift to renewables means big jump for Japan’s solar shipments

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 12:47

Japan’s shipments of solar-power devices will exceed 2.5-GW in the year ending March 2013, said Mikio Katayama, chairman of the Japan Photovoltaic Energy Association, at a press conference yesterday.

Another Indian clean energy firm seeks relief from debt burden

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 12:31

Moser Baer India (MBI), the nation’s biggest solar manufacturer, plans to restructure USD738 million of loans and bonds as it jostles to survive a supply glut that has claimed at least 10 US, German and French panel makers, according to Bloomberg.

China announces additional export quotas for rare earths

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 12:24

China’s Ministry of Commerce announced Thursday additional export quotas for rare earth minerals totalling 10,680 tonnes, including 9,490 tonnes of light rare earths, and 1,190 tonnes of medium and heavy rare earths

Vietnam government mandates use of biofuel mix in major cities

Fri, 05/18/2012 - 10:00

Vietnam’s car and motorbike drivers in several big cities must start buying petrol mixed with bio-fuel E5 by the end of next year, under new rules outlined by the Ministry of Industry and Trade (MoIT) this week.

Shanghainese confusion over US PM2.5 air quality presentation

Thu, 05/17/2012 - 21:56

Summary: The decision by the US State Department to start putting its PM2.5 fine particulate matter readings from its Beijing Embassy on-line last year was clearly a positive force in getting Beijing’s authorities to come clean on air pollution and hastened the introduction of the new standards and AQI. Now that those changes are in train, however, how helpful is the diplomats’ presentation of the data? CleanBiz Asia executive editor Fergus O'Rorke analyses the issue as they are now being played out in Shanghai.

The move this week by the US Consulate in Shanghai to monitor and publish the level of fine particulate matter, less than two microns in diameter (PM2.5), in the air around its office has caused a certain amount of confusion and consternation among local residents and officials. The US diplomats are in part to blame for this because, although their measurements are no doubt sound, their data presentation in somewhat misleading.

Following in the footsteps of the country’s embassy in Beijing, the Shanghai consulate now publishes the concentration of PM2.5 in micrograms per cubic meter of air (µg/m3) on an hourly basis and also publishes the average over the previous 24 hours at noon and midnight each day.

Government to introduce green credit policy to China lenders

Thu, 05/17/2012 - 18:58

China is working on criteria which it will use to evaluate the implementation of its green credit policy by banks and enterprises, according to the China Banking Regulatory Commission yesterday.

Indian wind firm seeks $30 mln to keep creditors at bay

Thu, 05/17/2012 - 18:48

Bloomberg reports that Indowind Energy, which sells wind power in India to companies including Oracle and Citibank, seeks to raise USD30 million to help pay off loans and bondholders.

China throws $4.2 billion behind green consumer purchases

Thu, 05/17/2012 - 18:39

China will provide financial subsidies of 26.5 billion yuan (USD4.2 billion) to stimulate the consumption of energy-saving products, mainly automobiles and household appliances, the State Council announced today.

Philippine government to ease lofty biofuel expectations

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 18:38

The Energy Department will revisit the country’s biofuel program and come up with “more realistic targets,” a government official said.

Ten Chinese and Indian airlines slip EU emissions report deadline

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 18:21

A total of 10 Chinese and Indian airlines failed to submit carbon-dioxide emissions data for 2011, rebuffing European rules that seek to expand the region’s emissions trading system to include aviation, according to news agencies.

There has been “systematic non-reporting” of emissions to and from Europe from 10 airlines based in India and China, according to a statement on the European Commission’s website yesterday.

All other international carriers flying to or from Europe have complied, the European Union's climate chief told reporters on Tuesday.

HK entrepreneurs turning cruisers into vegetarians

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 18:16

A pair of former investment bankers based in Hong Kong has launched a new business that aims to persuade owners of diesel-powered pleasure boats, of which there are plenty in local waters, to run their craft on waste vegetable oil (WVO). And, like all good sustainable business ventures, this one looks capable of making a healthy profit while also helping the environment.

The idea of running a diesel engine on vegetable oil is not new – inventor Rudolf Diesel having demonstrated one of his eponymous motors fueled by peanut oil at the 1900 Paris Exhibition – but neither is it commonplace, especially in Asia. In the intervening century or so the idea has been largely ignored because of the prevalence of low-cost petroleum diesel oil.

Vestas targets South Korea's offshore wind plan

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 17:57

In a quest to prop up its flagging business Vestas, the world’s largest wind turbine manufacturer, has pinpointed South Korea as a future growth area for the company’s offshore ambitions.

Beijing sets up subsidy scheme for local rain makers

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 17:29

China's central government is to launch a special fund to support weather modification operations by local authorities in areas prone to drought and haze, according to a Ministry of Finance announcement yesterday.

$30 million Australian forest project in Sumatra under threat

Wed, 05/16/2012 - 16:00

The future of a much-vaunted A$30 million (USD29.7 million) Australian project to protect Indonesian forests for their carbon is in doubt after an independent review found it is not the best use of the money, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

Unsustainable water use threat to China, India & Pakistan future

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 18:16

The viability of water supplies throughout key regions of China, India, Pakistan, South Africa and the US are under threat from unsustainable domestic, agricultural and industrial demands, according to a new study that maps water use down to 10km² worldwide.

The growth economies of China and India, and the world’s largest economy USA are identified by risk analysis company Maplecroft, in its newly released Water Stress Index, as having vast geographical regions and sector areas where unsustainable water use is outstripping supply.

China aims for 70% post-consumer recycling by 2015

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 17:54

Aware of the need to improve resource efficiency, China’s state bodies are gearing up to increase recycling across the country, aiming for a 70 percent recycling rate for consumer products by the end of 2015.

The National Supply and Marketing Co-operative General Agency has just released its “Opinion on the Acceleration of Construction of Post-Consumer Recycling Systems”, which says that my the end of the 12th Five Year Plan in 2015, over 80 percent of urban communities will establish standardized recycling stations and 1,000 recylced material markets. The system’s consumer products will account for over 60 percent of the volume of all recycled materials.

Local assembly agree to restart reactors in southwest Japan

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 16:53

The local assembly of Ōi, a town in Fukui prefecture on the southwest coast of Japan, has agreed to the restarting of two nuclear reactors at the nearby nuclear power station operated by Kansai Electric Power Company (KEPCO).

The assembly’s approval in itself does not clear the way for the restarting of reactors 3 and 4 at KEPCO’s Ōi plant. The mayor has said he will make a decision, expected this week, after considering the assembly’s approval and the opinion of a panel consisting of experts from prefecture and then convey his view to the governor of Fukui.

World’s largest capacity power line to reduce China’s emissions

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 16:36

A new power line boasting the world's largest capacity is underway in China's far western Xinjiang region, which, when complete, will ultimately reduce 317,000 tonnes of sulfur dioxide and 267,000 tonnes of nitrogen oxide that would result from transportation of coal.

India report shows increased climate risk to Himalayan forests

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 16:09

Citing a government report released recently, the Times of India reported that climate change will be an additional stress on Indian forests, especially in upper Himalayan stretches, which are already subjected to multiple challenges including over-extraction, livestock grazing and human impact.

Malaysian wind turbine group plans $800 million Vietnam venture

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 13:14

Malaysia’s Timar Wind Solar Energy Sdn Bhd plans to invest USD800 million in developing the wind power manufacturing facilities in Vietnam’s Ninh Thuan province, having just signed an MOU to that effect with the provincial authorities.

India may auction offshore blocks for wind farms

Tue, 05/15/2012 - 12:38

The Indian government is looking at auctioning offshore wind farm block in a way similar to the auction of oil and gas blocks.

120 bln square feet of energy-efficient homes to built by 2020

Mon, 05/14/2012 - 20:02

Construction of new energy-efficient homes, and retrofits of existing buildings, will increase at a compound annual growth rate of 42 percent from 2012 to 2020, the cleantech market intelligence firm Pike Research forecasts, producing 118.6 billion square feet of energy efficient residential space and driving an annual market value of USD84 billion by 2020.

Philippines signs up to stricter marine pollution protocol

Mon, 05/14/2012 - 19:50

Effective June 8, the Philippines will be bound by an international agreement to control pollution of the sea, after it formally acceded to the International Maritime Organization’s 1996 Protocol to the Convention on the Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping of Wastes and Other Matter.

India miffed as UNDP suggests Asia take more climate action

Mon, 05/14/2012 - 18:57

The Government of India has taken umbrage over perceived “biases” in the United Nations Development Programme's (UNDP's) Asia Pacific Human Development report, One Planet To Share – Sustaining human progress in a changing climate, which was released on Thursday.

The report argues that in the face of climate change, countries in Asia and the Pacific “will need to change the way they manufacture goods, raise crops and livestock, and generate energy.” This will mean “moving to greener, more resilient, lower-emission options that not only sustain the environment but also offer opportunities to the poor for employment and income.”

the new business imperative

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