David Herron .com

A new wind farm set up in Aruba shows how good choices lead to an excellent power source. While in most places the wind is gusty and unpredictable, certain places have very predictable winds. In this case the wind farm was set up on the eastern end of Aruba which gets consistent trade winds, which are highly regular and almost always in the same direction (allowing to put the turbines very close to one another). This wind farm has one of the highest capacity factors in the world, with 50% more power output per turbine than European offshore windfarms.

Copenhagen Update: European Countries Agree to Construct Offshore Wind Supergrid | Sustainability | Fast Company

Nine European countries--Denmark, Germany, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Ireland--signed the "North Seas' Countries Offshore Grid Initiative," a plan to create an offshore wind power supergrid in the North and North West seas. The plan means interconnection between the power grids in Europe allowing for electricity sales. In this case it's wind power in Ireland being sold to the rest of Europe. The article also mentions Desertec, a plan to put solar panels in North Africa to send electricity to Europe.

The Oil Drum | There is plenty of oil but . . .

A Senate Energy and Natural Resources subcommittee will consider nine energy and climate policy bills this week, covering topics from engineering education and wind energy research to carbon capture technology development incentives and biofuels for small engines. Many of the bills would authorize research spending at the Energy Department, and DOE Undersecretary Kristina Johnson will testify before the Energy Subcommittee. Five of the bills have already passed the House this year.

Sweetwater TX may appear to be a down-and-out dying town, but they're going through another wildcat phase. West Texas has a long history of energy company development, being the original location of gusher oil fields. The oil industry is rather dying itself but Texas is now focusing on wind power. If Texas were a country—and Texans love to remind you that it once was a sovereign republic—it would rank seventh in carbon-dioxide emissions: Its economy accounts for more than a quarter of total U.S.