ANN ARBOR ? Earlier this week, a host of government and business officials decided the Connected Vehicle Proving Center, a showcase for testing and evaluating connected vehicle systems ? such as smart roads and telecom technologies. The CVPC, funded by the State of Michigan, has been created through a strategic alliance between the Center for
ANN ARBOR - Is America ready for rechargeable cars? Teams of researchers at the University of Michigan and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory will explore this question and others with $2 million from the U.S. Department of Energy's offices of Electricity Delivery and Energy Reliability and Energy Efficiency & Renewable Energy. U-M's Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy
LONG BEACH, Ca. - For all the technical advances in the thriving solar power industry, the large up-front costs of solar electricity in the residential market remains a stubborn barrier to wide adoption. A number of companies, from installers to panel producers, are taking different routes to try to improve the economics of purchasing rooftop
SOUTHFIELD - Students and recent graduates of Lawrence Technological University are rushing to complete construction on their solar-powered, energy-positive house in time for the Solar Decathlon competition on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., in October. They have designed and built a house with nearly 700 square feet of living space that will use the
LANSING - Legislators meeting in Traverse City from across the Midwest jammed one of the first committee meetings dealing with alternative energy, as officials from a number of states said the growth of alternative fuels could make the region one of the world leaders in the energy source. Officials also talked about the need for
FERNDALE - Gage Products Company, the auto industry's only Michigan-based supplier of custom-blended fuels, plans a $5 million expansion of its test-fuel division, which will add 10 more jobs and meet increasing demand for hybrid fuels. Scheduled for completion during the first half of next year, the expansion calls for construction of a laboratory, test-fuel
DETROIT - General Motors is banking on the increasing demand for fuel-efficient cars by launching hybrid versions of two of its full-size SUVs: the GMC Yukon and the Chevy Tahoe. And although the cars aren't slated to go on sale until this fall, GM is already busy building buzz. The new models, available in both
ATLANTA - In the pine forests of rural Georgia, Devon Dartnell sees a path into the global fuel economy. As the biomass program manager for the Georgia Forestry Commission, Dartnell is impatiently waiting for construction to begin next month of a plant that will convert forestry wastes into ethanol, a car fuel, and rival similar
LANSING - Renewable energy facilities located in Michigan renaissance zones would include places where agricultural crops are used to create energy under legislation being considered by the House Agriculture Committee. Rep. Jeff Mayes (D-Bay City), the committee chair, has introduced HB 5100 , which adds "agricultural crops" to the definition of renewable energy facility. Currently
ROCHESTER HILLS ? Energy Conversion Devices has appointed Mark Morelli as President and Chief Executive Officer, effective September 1, replacing former GM CEO Robert Stempel, who will remain Chairman of ECD's board. Morelli, 43, has been a senior executive with United Technologies Corporation, most recently serving as President of its Carrier Commercial Refrigeration business, a