Renewable Energy Digest #6
Building
the Hen House in the Fox's Den?
by Deb Powers
Abu
Dhabi chosen to host IRENA
In a story we've been following for a while now, the International Renewable Energy Agency has chosen Masdar, outside Abu Dhabi, as the site of its new world HQ. The selection was made on the first day of the IRENA conference in Cairo. The two other competitors for the bid - Bonn and Vienna - withdrew their bids from consideration shortly before the vote was taken, sparking a bit of displeasure from Japan, which felt it should have been voted upon.
There have been some criticisms that Abu Dhabi was using its wealth to influence the vote, but the U.S., which joined IRENA along with Japan and Australia just hours before the conference started, hailed the Abu Dhabi decision as an "excellent choice". The IRENA's mission is to advise governments on technical and financial issues linked to renewable energy. The decision to site its headquarters in the capital that was built on fossil fuels - and is still the largest provider of oil in the world, as well as having the single largest per capita carbon footprint in the world - is either strategically brilliant... or akin to building the henhouse in the middle of the foxes' den.
Other renewable energy news...
Pepsi
opens Green plant in China; General Electric gets $60 million for
Michigan plant
Scots Parliament says no to new
nukes, yes to green energy
University
of Buffalo will solar-power 700 student apartments, provide 1000s of
jobs
Timing
entry into green energy investments for maximum benefits
China
to add 120GW wind power by 2020
U.S. Climate
Bill criticised by green industry - not ambitious enough to spur
investment
Green
Groups sue UK Treasury over RBS fossil fuel investments
Poo
power could soon fuel homes in Halton
Cheap
energy-from-waste plant passes performance trials - 30/06/2009
Good
prospects for solar power, if supporting policies are applie
renewable energy, renewsable digetst 
