In news that is both good and unsettling, Chevron has decided to add a slightly green tinge to their day-to-day dirty brown operations. How? By installing 7,700 solar panels generating about 740 kilowatts of electricity – to help power their oil refineries.
“By bringing together seven emerging solar technologies, Project Brightfield represents one of the [...]

Solar Energy Trade Shows recently announced that the Solar Power International (SPI) 2011 conference and trade show will take place in Dallas, Texas, at the Dallas Convention Center on October 17-21. SPI is the largest B2B conference and trade show in North America for the solar energy industry and was recently recognized by Tradeshow Week [...]

According to Section 136 of the U.S. Code, energy conservation subsidies provided by public utilities,* either directly or indirectly, are nontaxable: “Gross income shall not include the value of any subsidy provided (directly or indirectly) by a public utility to a customer for the purchase or installation of any energy conservation measure.” (This exclusion does [...]

American solar energy incentive programs are increasing every year. California’s Million Solar Roofs initiative is the latest of a number of solar energy tax breaks being legislated in the US.
You can read about state and local incentives on the DSIRE database.
Here is a list of Federal initiatives from the database (taken from dsireusa.org):
Corporate Depreciation: Modified [...]

The world’s first solar plane, called the Solar Impulse, took to the runway this week , but hasn’t yet attempted to leave the ground. The plane weighs about as much as car, boasts a 207-foot-long wingspan (equivalent to that of most commercial jets), and has 11,628 solar cells attached to its wings, according to the [...]

Sanyo Solar has just opened in Salem, Oregon, bringing with it the promise of 200 new green jobs. The $84 million facility is the first piece of what will become the Salem Energy and Technology Park. The new plant produces core materials for the manufacture of solar cells used in solar panels.
Governor Ted Kulongoski [...]

Google’s motto continues to be – If you want something done right, do it yourself. And now they’ve added the solar power business to their plan. Google’s developing new solar tech that will drop the cost from 18 cents a kW-h to just under 5 cents.
“We’ve been looking at very unusual materials for the [...]

An American firm is currently working on a prototype solar panel that could be embedded into existing roads. The company, Solar Roadways, won a $100,000 grant from the US Department of Transportation.
The panels would also be covered with a mosaic of small lights, which could be illuminated to provide road markings and warning messages [...]

Chevron will partner with BrightSource Energy to develop 29 megawatts of thermal power from the sun. The process uses mirrors to concentrate the solar rays onto a water tank, turning the water to steam. The steam can then be used to turn a turbine and produce electricity or pumped down a well to loosen heavy [...]

A national solar policy is likely to be announced in November this year, union minister for New and Renewable Energy Farooq Abdullah said here today.
Abdullah said that national policy to be announced on November 14 will promise vast incentives to the users of solar energy.
The union minister who held a meeting with Chief Minister Prem [...]