Generator Sales Surge After Big Storms

FAIRFIELD COUNTY, Conn. – Sales of backup generators are surging across Fairfield County. 
After the twin power-outage fiascos that followed Hurricane Irene and the historic October nor’easter set records for power outages, fewer homeowners completely trust their electric companies. 
In fact, homeowners are rushing to their Town Halls to apply for backup generator permits and to stores that sell the units for $3,000 to $15,000. Permit and application fees can also cost hundreds of dollars, depending on the town and the cost of the units.               
“I’ve been doing this a long time, and I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Jim Gilleran, chief building official for the town of Fairfield. “Since Irene and the October snowstorm, people have been flocking in here every day for backup generator permits.”
During an average year, about 20 backup generator permits are issued in Fairfield. But a whopping 115 applications have been filed after the August and October storms, Gilleran said. 
“A lot of people are coming in and saying they’ve had it, they don’t want to be without power for a week or longer again, especially during winter,” he said. “They’re afraid to be without heat and hot water.”
Getting a permit can be a complicated, monthlong process that involves gaining approval from the town’s Planning and Zoning Department, Wetlands Commission, building inspectors and electricians, Gilleran said.
Next door in Westport, there have been 155 applications for generator permits, with several dozen more still being processed, said Building Department clerk Tricia Harty, who processes the permits.
“It’s off the charts, we’re busy every day working on these applications,” Harty said. 
In 2009, just nine applications were filed for backup generators in Westport. But in 2010, after numerous residents lost power from a wind storm and nor’easter, nearly 130 permits were issued, Harty said. 
“People have been coming in nonstop. We’ve been swamped with applications for months, and it doesn’t look like it’s going to stop any time soon,” she said.
Norwalk’s chief building official, William Ireland, said his department is also being deluged with backup generator applications. “In a typical year we have about 10. This year, we’ve had more than 75 applications,” Ireland said. “After Irene and the October storm, it’s been especially crazy.”
All that adds up to big sales for companies that sell and install the generators, which are generally about twice the size of a central air-conditioning unit and are installed on the side or rear of a home.
Mark Holzner, owner of Northeast Generator in Bridgeport — one of the largest distributors of backup generators in Connecticut — said sales have doubled over the past few months.
“There was a huge surge in sales after Irene and another one following the second storm,” said Holzner. “For months, sales for the (backup) generators rose dramatically and even now we’re still up between 15 (percent) to 20 percent over our usual sales.”
Prices for automatic generators that go on within a minute of losing power range from $5,000 to $15,000, with units that have to be turned on starting at about $600, Holzner said.
“We’ve been in business for 40 years, and this has been one of the busiest periods for generator sales,” he said. “Everybody’s pretty sick and tired of losing power, and during winter people get worried. As soon as we get the first big snow storm we expect to get another big rush.”
http://www.thedailywilton.com/news/generator-sales-surge-after-big-storms

SON To Rid Markets Of Substandard Power Generators

The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) expressed its readiness to rid the nation’s markets of substandard   power generating sets.

Dr Joseph Odumodu, the SON Director-General, said this on Monday in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos.

Odumodu said that SON would meet with both the local manufacturers and importers on Dec. 7, today in Lagos to find a lasting solution to the problems.

According to him, it has been established that the life span of those generators in the nation’s markets are below what was inscribed on them.   

Odumodu said that about 50 per cent of the generating sets in the market were rated above their actual capacity while over 30 per cent were of low capacity.
He also said that the breakers installed to the generators had failed short circuit test and have very high noise level, in spite of the fact that they were soundproofed.

Odumodu said that there was a very high level of counterfeiting of the approved generators which had low quality winding wire.

``All importers and assemblers of the generating sets must meet the required standard parameters, especially the Nigeria Industrial Standard (NIS),’’ he said.

The director-general, however, advised the importers to assist SON in identifying individuals or organisations behind the importation of substandard products. (NAN)

http://leadership.ng/nga/articles/9793/2011/12/07/son_rid_markets_substandard_power_generators.html

ET-built generators fueled by plant material, waste

A historic resort being renovated to welcome visitors to the 2012 London Olympics should be lit by the time the torch arrives with a biopowered generator built by an East Tennessee company.
Lenoir City-based Proton Power landed in October the first two customers for its Cellulose to Hydrogen Power system, which utilizes switchgrass, sawdust or even junk mail to make hydrogen, which is used to power a generator.
The technology was developed by former Oak Ridge National Laboratory researcher Sam Weaver, who has launched a number of local technology companies since setting up shop in an 1800s-era cabin adjacent to the Roane County Industrial Park.
“What we do is make cheap hydrogen,” he says. “It’s scaleable, on-demand, clean, carbon-neutral, economic and renewable.”
Proton Power will build a system for electricity production and another for thermal production at Heckfield Place, whose owners describe it as a “luxury country house hotel” in Hampshire, England, with the goal of supplying all the resort’s heat and power needs, Weaver says. The systems’ size and the feedstock that will fuel them are still to be determined, although developers are looking to utilize some kind of waste product, he adds.
The second customer is a landfill operator near Charlotte, N.C., where the technology will be used to generate power from demolition and construction wood waste.
The units cost about $3 per watt, with a megawatt plant costing about $3 million, Weaver says. Since Proton Power went commercial with its CHyP system, the company has received inquiries from around the world, including Vietnam, Russia and Haida Gwaii, an island off the coast of Canada.
“Islands are really a sweet spot for our technology,” Weaver says, noting that many small islands depend on diesel generators. The CHyP system provides a quieter, cheaper, green alternative that can utilize locally generated fuel.
Depending on the feedstock, according to Weaver, producing electricity with the units costs 5 cents to 15 cents per kilowatt hour — about 5 cents for wood waste, 8.5 cents for grass clippings or tree limbs and 15 cents for mixed paper. This compares to utility rates of 8 cents to 16 cents per kilowatt hour.
Proton Power is also shopping the units for other potential applications. Ballard Power Systems, a fuel cell manufacturer in British Columbia that is owned by Ford Motor Co., is pairing the CHyP system with its product offerings in proposals to potential
customers.
Weaver believes the hydrogen production systems hold promise for broader power requirements, particularly as the market seeks cleaner sources.
“In many ways it’s an enabling technology for the other green technologies like solar and wind,” Weaver says, because it can supplement what nature can’t provide on a calm day or in the dark of night. “There are a lot of spots in the world for which this is extremely economical, and we expect once we get a bunch of units up … then you’ll see maybe a broader interest.”
Larisa Brass is a contributing writer to the Greater Knoxville Business Journal.
http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/nov/07/et-built-generators-fueled-plant-material-waste/

Wind-power generators fueling a firestorm in Riga Twp, Mich

RIGA TOWNSHIP, MICHIGAN (WTVG) -- It's been a major battle for months and now proposed wind farms in Riga Township, Michigan may hit a stand-still.

So many people turned out to the last meeting, they moved it to the American Legion so everyone had a chance to vent. Wind-power generators are fueling a firestorm in Riga Township. Two proposed projects would bring up to an estimated 120 wind turbines to the area south of Blissfield.
Wednesday night, the township voted to amend its zoning ordinance. It will now take into account interference with television broadcasts and noise levels, extended now to property lines. Those here are concerned about property values, jobs, health and sustainable energy. The divisive issues have put many at odds.
The vote changed the ordinance, toughening up the laws in Riga Township. Doug Duimering, regional manager for business development of Exelon Wind, says, "We're very disappointed in the outcome of the meeting tonight. And we'll have to go back and consider what our next step will be on this project."
Josh Van Camp says, "I think the board tonight listened to the will of the people. The people here in the township by what you could consider overwhelming margin do not support the project."
The ordinance takes effect in 7 days, unless someone files an application seeking referendum. Then, it will go up for a vote in the August primary.

http://abclocal.go.com/wtvg/story?section=news/local&id=8235937

Bruce Power delays shipment of steam generators through Great Lakes

Bruce Power said Tuesday it will delay its controversial plan to ship 16 school-bus-sized steam generators through the Great Lakes so the nuclear power company can consult with First Nations, Metis and others who have expressed concerns.
Last month, the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission granted a licence to Bruce Power to transport the radiation-laced steel generators from its plant on the shores of Lake Huron through the Great Lakes on their way to Sweden for recycling.
"We're the kind of company that wants to, in all aspects of our business, make sure we're doing the right environmental thing. That's why we've taken a really careful approach to this and have gone through the process to make sure that it's safe," said Bruce Power spokesman Steve Cannon, adding the company has satisfied regulatory obligations but is aware that there are still some unanswered questions among some "legitimate groups."
"Our relationship with these groups, particularly with First Nations and Metis, are very important to us and we want to be respectful of their concerns and make sure their questions are answered," Cannon said.
Critics have warned the shipment could contaminate waters and that it sets a dangerous precedent for the transport of what the Canadian Coalition for Nuclear Responsibility (CCNR) has called "nuclear garbage."
Gordon Edwards, president of the CCNR, said his group isn't satisfied by the newly announced delay and would rather see the shipment cancelled.
"The issue is the fact that inside the steam generators there is a significant inventory of radioactive material — 90 per cent of which are plutonium isotopes. These are very dangerous materials that have a very long half-life (the time it takes for a decaying substance to decrease by half), and so in the event of any spill you would have permanent contamination," said Edwards.
Edwards said the harmful materials would end up in clean scrap metal if Bruce Power proceeds with its plan.
"There is no such thing as recycling contaminated metal because no one wants contaminated metal. There's no purchaser of scrap metal anywhere in the world, that we're aware of, that seeks out or wants radioactively contaminated metal," Edwards said.
Cannon said regulatory authorities in Europe and Sweden wouldn't allow metal that has gone through their process that contains any trace amounts of radioactivity to be sold into the scrap metal market.
About 90 per cent of the metal in the steam generators can be decontaminated, melted down and sold back into the scrap metal market, Bruce Powers said in its statement.
The company said each steam generator contains 100 tonnes of steel and less than four grams of radioactive substances.
Bruce Power said recycling the decommissioned steam generators, instead of placing them into long-term storage, is the more environmentally friendly option.
"We do believe this is the right thing to do. The whole intention of this is to reduce the volume by 90 per cent of the amount of material that has to be stored on site and that's a principle that we operate in, and virtually every business and every household in Canada operates on — the idea of reduce, reuse, and recycle," Cannon said.
"We don't believe it's a proper rationale. We don't believe there is any public interest to be served by this whatsoever. We don't think it should happen," Edwards said.
The company has not set a new date for the shipment.
alim@postmedia.com

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/canada/Bruce+Power+delays+shipment+steam+generators/4520404/story.html