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Canadian Solar to receive C$115.5 million loan from National Bank of Canada

Canadian Solar Inc. (Guelph, Ontario) announced that the National Bank of Canada will provide C$115.5 million in short-term construction financing. The loan will support the construction of three solar power projects in Ontario, Canada, totaling 30 Mwac. Three solar power projects—Sparkle Light (Beaverton), Good Light (Kawartha Lakes), and Lunar Light (Belleville)—have all been awarded a 20-year power purchase contract by the Ontario Power Authority under Ontario’s Feed-In-Tariff Program. Sparkle Light and Good Light are already in construction and construction of Lunar Light will start in July 2014. The loans are expected to be repaid with the proceeds of the sale of the respective financed projects.

 

NSG-Pilkington selling glass plant, 185 acres

On Monday a representative from DTZ—a global firm specializing in high-dollar sales—confirmed that the 185.59-acre facility will be available for purchase once the property is finally vacated. The company’s San Francisco-based office will be handling the logistics behind the transaction. Production of float glass was halted in January and 43 employees were laid off in early March. The remaining 45 employees will be tasked with shipping glass and operating the distribution end of the business until September when the facility is expected to close for good. 

 

Recycling the next generation

About 70 billion tons of raw materials are extracted world wide annually. That is twice as much as at the end of the 1970s. This trend is continuing – even with finite resources. One way to have enough materials available for manufacturing new goods in future is to recycle continually. Fraunhofer researchers are working on the advanced “Molecular Sorting” project for the next-generation circular economy.

 

NASA seeks to evolve Space Station for new commercial opportunities

As part of NASA’s continuing effort to open low-Earth orbit to commercial space opportunities, the agency is seeking feedback on ways it can help create greater access to and use of the International Space Station for research and commercial activities. Through a Request for Information, NASA is soliciting ideas from companies interested in using the space station and the low-Earth orbit environment in innovative ways that will develop a strong commercial market and assist the agency in achieving its exploration goals.

 

Leveraging national laboratories to support H2USA

Automakers have announced that new fuel cell electric vehicles will be on the road soon, it is critical that hydrogen infrastructure is in place so drivers can quickly and easily refuel. To help solve the infrastructure challenge, in 2013 the Energy Department co-launched H2USA, a public private partnership focused on the widespread commercial adoption of FCEVs.  To support H2USA, the Energy Department’s Fuel Cell Technologies Office established the Hydrogen Fueling Infrastructure Research and Station Technology (H2FIRST) project, a unique collaborative effort between Sandia National Laboratories and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory.

 

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