Alternative Energy/IP Profile of Biggest for-profit companies in AE: Difference between revisions

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The top ten companies account for 85% of the global turbine market [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]  The market leader is Vestas with 19.8% of the market but GE ENergy is growing quickly and has nearly caught up with 18.6% of the market. [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]  The biggest change to this distribution is likely to come from Chinese manufacturers who are expanding and bringing down the cost of manufacturing turbines. [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]
The top ten companies account for 85% of the global turbine market [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]  The market leader is Vestas with 19.8% of the market but GE ENergy is growing quickly and has nearly caught up with 18.6% of the market. [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]  The biggest change to this distribution is likely to come from Chinese manufacturers who are expanding and bringing down the cost of manufacturing turbines. [[http://blogs.wsj.com/environmentalcapital/2009/03/25/wind-shear-ge-wins-vestas-loses-in-wind-power-market-race/]]


*'''Wind Power in the United States - 10 Companies to Watch'''<br>
*''Wind Power in the United States - 10 Companies to Watch''<br>
**http://www.green-technology-investor.com/Wind-Power/US-Stocks-1-08.html<br>
**http://www.green-technology-investor.com/Wind-Power/US-Stocks-1-08.html<br>


*'''America Wind Energy Association'''<br>
*''America Wind Energy Association''<br>
**Annual US Wind Power Rankings Track Industry’s Rapid Growth (2007)<br>
**Annual US Wind Power Rankings Track Industry’s Rapid Growth (2007)<br>
**http://www.awea.org/newsroom/releases/Annual_US_Wind_Power_Rankings_041107.html<br>
**http://www.awea.org/newsroom/releases/Annual_US_Wind_Power_Rankings_041107.html<br>


*'''Wind Farm Development'''<br>
*''Wind Farm Development''<br>
**http://www.ecobusinesslinks.com/wind_farm_development.htm<br>
**http://www.ecobusinesslinks.com/wind_farm_development.htm<br>


Revision as of 19:40, 12 April 2009

Answer the questions:

What are the 10 biggest for-profit companies in this field?

See the 3 charts inserted below which split the leading companies between the fields of wind, solar, and tidal/wave.

How is the market distributed?

Alternative Energy Market Information Title: Clean Tech LLC (San Francisco, CA)

Wind The top ten companies account for 85% of the global turbine market [[1]] The market leader is Vestas with 19.8% of the market but GE ENergy is growing quickly and has nearly caught up with 18.6% of the market. [[2]] The biggest change to this distribution is likely to come from Chinese manufacturers who are expanding and bringing down the cost of manufacturing turbines. [[3]]

Solar

  • Cloudy outlook seen for solar vendors [[4]]
  • Solar Energy's Sunny Side: The credit crunch is putting the breaks on the plans of many solar companies. The survivors will be those with disruptive technologies. [[5]]

Tidal Tidal energy extraction: renewable, sustainable and predictable
Table 1. Tidal energy extraction device overview (includes the companies associated with each technology)
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_go2834/is_1_91/ai_n29429525/pg_16

Where are they located? Are there any incentives for specific locations?

The majority of the companies are locate in the north east or mid Atlantic states or in California. This pattern most likely takes advantage of the leading universities that are located in these areas.

Correlate them with their main outputs (Data. Narratives. Tools)

WIND

Vestas (Denmark)

Data

  • Collaboration with Boeing: [[6]] [[7]]
    • "exploring possible civilian collaborative technology research projects in areas such as aerodynamics, structural health monitoring, and composite materials fabrication processes, design and analysis"
    • The collaboration will take place both in Europe and the USA
  • Use of government/non profit wind data?

Narratives

  • The new Brighton, CO facilities include Vestas Business Academy for training and development of employees [[8]]
  • Winnovation Challenge for Master of Engineering and Master of Business students: a contest for students that promotes the company and is allows the winner a chance to work for the company. [[9]]
  • Annual Reports

Tools

  • Factories for the production of wind blades [[10]]
  • The new Brighton, CO facilities a technology and production engineering office [[11]]
  • the company is responsible for the installation of over 33,500 wind turbines in 63 countries [[12]]


Clipper Windpower (headquarters in the US but listed on the London Stock Exchange)

Data

  • Self Produced (Closed):
    • operating data needed for services and maintenance or wind turbine installations
    • internal engineering data needed for manufacturing and development of new models.
  • Externally Produced (Shared)
    • government and non-profit produced wind maps

Narratives

  • Annual Reports
  • Conference Presentations
    • 2006 Wind Powering America Summit by Charles Vaughan, Regional Director Eastern United States, Clipper Windpower Inc [[13]]

Tools

  • turbine installation, operation, and maintenance [[14]]
    • the company is split into:
      • Clipper Turbine Works, Inc. (manufacturing of wind turbines)
      • Clipper Fleet Services, Inc. (services related to wind turbines)
      • Clipper Windpower Development Company, Inc. (managing developed wind projects)


GE Energy (Atlanta, GA)

Data

  • Self Produced (Closed):
    • operating data needed for construction and maintenance or wind turbines
    • Data used by GE consultants
  • Externally Produced (Shared)
    • ???

Narratives

  • Annual Reports
  • Credit Suisse Alternative Energy Conference: Matt Guyette, GE Wind market development leader [[15]] [[16]]
  • GE Global Research Publications [[17]]
  • GE Reference Documents [[18]]
  • GE Wind Fleet Reliability Solutions [[19]]

Tools

  • "Wind manufacturing and assembly facilities in Germany, Spain, China, Canada and the United States" [[20]]


Suzlon (international, location in Chicago, IL for marketing only)

Data

  • Suzlon began its company by licensing key technology from other wind power companies and by hiring the engineers of a wind compay when it failed. Eventually, using the new engineers, Suzlon was able to start their own R&D. [Kumar, N., 2009. India's Global Powerhouses, pg 152] [[21]]

Narratives

  • Annual Reports
  • Investor Publications [[22]]

Tools

  • design, manufacturing, operation and maintenance services [[23]] [[24]]


Gamesa (Navarra, Spain)

Data

  • Technical publications processes allows limited sharing with clients [[25]]

Narratives

  • Required investor information and important company news [[26]] [[27]]
  • Conference Presentations:
    • European Wind Energy Conference & Exhibition 2008: Parallel-Connected Converter for Optimum Reliability and Grid Performance in the Gamesa G10X 4.5 MW Wind Turbine by Jens Birk, Gamesa Wind Engineering, Denmark [[28]] [[29]]

Tools Infrastructure required for building, operation, and upkeep of wind farms [[30]]


Developers

  • Blue Water Wind (Hoboken, NJ) [[31]]
  • National Wind (Minneapolis, MN) [[32]]


SOLAR

SunPower

Data

  • designs, manufactures and markets high-performance solar electric power technologies
  • 15 years of research and development
  • solar cells and solar panels are manufactured using proprietary processes
  • IP Strategy:
    • "We rely on a combination of patent, copyright, trade secret, trademark and contractual protections to establish and protect our proprietary rights.‚" Form 10-K Annual Report 2008
    • "Although we apply for patents to protect our technology, our revenue is not dependent on any particular patent we own.‚"
  • Based on an silicon all-back-contact solar cell invented at Stanford University [33]]
  • Vertically integrated company with core IP at the solar cell and system level. [[34]]

SunPower Core IP.jpg

  • " As of December 30, 2007, including the United States and foreign countries, we had 80 issued patents and

over 100 patent applications pending across the entire company." [[35]]

Narratives

  • Annual Reports
  • Dr. Richard Swanson, Founder, part of Keynote at IEEE PV Specialists Conference [[36]] [[37]]
  • SunPower cae study documents are available in an online publications directory [[38]]

Tools

  • Manufacturing equipment needed to produce "high-efficiency solar cells, panels and systems" [[39]]


First Solar (Tempe, AZ)

Data

proprietary production process

  • "We rely primarily on a combination of patents, trademarks and trade secrets, as well as employee and third party confidentiality agreements, to safeguard our intellectual property.‚" 2009 10K
  • US Patents
    • 23 patents
    • 37 patent applications pending
  • Foreign Patents
    • 17 patents
    • 70 patent applications pending
  • Acquired new research through a purchase of unfinished photovoltaic projects from OptiSolar [[40]]
  • Invested about $1 billion in developing thin-film technology [[41]]

Narratives

  • Annual Reports

Tools

  • Manufacturing equipment needed to produce thin-film technology solar panels


SunTech

Data

  • SunTech enters partnerships with solar develops to participate in competitive bids for solar construction. It is unclear what information is shared in these partnerships but at the very least financial data and basic installation information would need to exchanged [[42]] [[43]]

Narratives

  • In a partnership with Australia's Swinburne University on a project to research improvements to solar cell efficiency using Nanoplasmonic solar cell technology[[44]]
    • Both partners will contribute AUD $3 million
    • federal funding is being requested
    • Location: Swinburne’s new Advanced Technology Centre [[45]]
    • This collaboration is seen as a possible precursor to Suntech manufacturing solar panels in Australia

Tools


Evergreen Solar

Data

  • "Develop, manufacture and market solar panels utilizing our proprietary String Ribbontm technology‚"
  • Patents
    • 22 U.S. patents,
    • 7 Indian
    • 6 European
  • Pending Patents
    • 20 U.S. patent applications
    • 26 foreign patent applications
  • intellectual property in their "String Ribbon" solar cells [[46]]
    • patented crystalline silicon technology (uses less silicon than conventional approaches)

Narratives

  • Annual Reports, SEC Filings
  • Analyst Coverage, News [[47]]
  • Event Calendar, Audio Archives, Presentations [[48]]
    • Following these headings on their investor page lead to pages without content.

Tools

  • Evergreen Solar manufactures everything themselves — wafers, cells and panels [[49]]


Applied Materials

Data

  • Intellectual Property
    • Patents
      • Recently prevailed in EU patent case [[50]]

Narratives

  • Quarterly Solar Newsletter: The Solar Standard [[51]]

Vender Website Resources page [[52]]

    • Presentations: Applied Materials Accelerating Solar Power Cost Reduction [[53]]
    • Audio and video [[54]]
    • Photovoltaic Technology Whitepaper [[55]]

Tools

  • The manufacturing equipment needed to produce manufacturing equipment that produces thin film silicon photovoltaic modules [[56]]


TIDAL/WAVE

Verdant Power (US)

  • Home page: http://verdantpower.com/
  • Address:
    • 888 Main Street
    • The Octagon
    • Suite 1
    • New York, NY 10044-0213
    • United States
  • Phone:
    • 703-528-6445

data

  • Patents:
    • Kinetic hydropower generation from slow-moving water flows
      • US 2007/0063520 A1 [[58]]
    • Single sided power generator support frame
      • US Pat. 11429268 [[59]]
    • Rotating wedge leveler
      • US Pat. 11514900 [[60]]
    • Kinetic hydro power triangular blade hub
      • US Pat. 11889251 [[61]]
    • Non-fouling kinetic hydro power system axial-flow blade tip treatment
      • US Pat. 11634847 [[62]]

narratives

  • ???

tools

  • maker and installer of tidal power and hydroelectric systems [[63]] [[64]]


Ocean Power Technologies, Inc

data

  • Patents
    • Piezoelectric generation of electrical power from surface waves on bodies of ...
      • US Pat. 5578889 [[65]]
    • Power transfer of piezoelectric generated energy
      • US Pat. 5703474 [[66]]
    • Sensors for power conversion systems
      • US Pat. 6522048 [[67]]
    • Frequency multiplying piezoelectric generators
      • US Pat. 5814921 [[68]]
    • Protection arrangement for natural energy power generation systems
      • US Pat. 6617705 [[69]]
    • Self-powered anti-fouling device for watercraft
      • US Pat. 5552656 [[70]]
    • Piezoelectric generator protection
      • US Pat. 5548177 [[71]]
    • Field-induced piezoelectricity for electrical power generation
      • US Pat. 6376968 [[72]]
    • Energy harvesting eel
      • US Pat. 6424079 [[73]]
    • Electric power generating system
      • US Pat. 6300689 [[74]]


narratives


tools


Palamis (UK)

  • Home page: http://www.pelamiswave.com/
  • Address:
    • Pelamis Wave Power Ltd.
    • 31 Bath Rd, Leith,
    • Edinburgh
    • EH6 7AH
    • Scotland. UK
  • Phone:
    • +44 (0) 131 554 8444


data

  • Floating, articulated device

narratives


tools


Wave Dragon ApS (Denmark)

data

  • Slack-moored overtopping.
  • Sea testing in Nissum Bredning, Denmark

narratives


tools


Hammerfest Strom

Phone:

    • +47 78406200

data

  • "The Blue Concept;" Sea testing in Norwegian Strait of Kvalsundet, Norway

narratives


tools



Understand and identify cases where these companies are “experimenting” or “adopting” commons-based approaches

coming soon
Wind

  • The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has created a collaboration with the six leading wind turbine makers to promote advanced research and development [[75]] [Full text of the Memorandum of Understanding]
    • Formed through a memorandum of understanding
    • "DOE and the six turbine manufacturers will collaborate to gather and exchange information in the following areas:
      • 1) Turbine Reliability and Operability Research & Development to create more reliable components; improve turbine capacity factors; and reduce installation and operations and maintenance costs.
      • 2) Siting Strategies to address environmental and technical issues like radar interference in a standardized framework based on industry best practices. Standards Development for turbine certification and universal generator interconnection.
      • 3) Manufacturing advances in design, process automation and fabrication techniques to reduce product-to product variability and premature failure, while increasing the domestic manufacturing base.
      • 4) Workforce development including the development, standardization and certification of wind energy curricula for mechanical and power systems engineers and community college training programs."
    • The information exchanged only defines the needs and does not appear to involve exchanging solutions.

Identify these cases and treat them as entities that will also be placed in our mapping*device (the quadrants)

Macro Comparative View of Wind, Solar, and Tidal
Macroforprofit.png

Identify what companies are the “Microsofts” of the field and what companies are the “IBMs” of the field

coming soon

Wind Companies 2008 Revenue Headquarters Primary Outputs Instances of Commons-based approaches
Vestas
€6.035 billion
 Randers, Denmark development, manufacturing, marketing and maintenance of wind power systems. ?
Clipper Windpower
?
 London, England turbine manufacturing and wind project development company ?
GE Energy
US$ 182.515 billion
 Atlanta, GA Wind turbine suppliers. Over 10,000 worldwide wind turbine installations. ?
Suzlon
$2.8 billion
 Randers, Denmark (moving to Aarhus, Denmark) supplier of wind turbines ?
Gamesa
€3.274 billion (2007)
 Navarra, Spain The company participates in"promotion, construction and sale of solar and wind farms; engineering, design, manufacture and sale of wind generators; energy solutions" ?


Solar Companies Revenue ($m) Headquarters Primary Outputs Instances of Commons-based approaches
SunPower
?
 San Jose, CA designs, manufactures and markets high-performance solar electric power technologies. ?
First Solar
$638 million (2007)
 Tempe, AZ design and manufacture solar modules ?
SunTech
?
 Jiangsu Province, People's Republic of China Wind turbine suppliers. Over 10,000 worldwide wind turbine installations. ?
Evergreen Solar
?
 Marlboro, MA "develops, manufactures and markets solar power products" ?
Applied Materials
$9.734 Billion (2007)
 Santa Clara, CA provides Nanomanufacturing Technology solutions for the global semiconductor, flat panel display, solar and related industries ?


Tidal Companies Revenue ($m) Headquarters Primary Outputs Instances of Commons-based approaches
Verdant Power
?
 New York, NY designs, analyzes, develops for manufacture tidal electric power technologies. ?
Ocean Power Technologies, Inc
?
 Pennington, NJ Company focuses on offshore wave power technology, specifically their PowerBuoy® system ?
Palamis
?
 Edinburgh, Scotland Manufacturer of offshore wave power technology, specifically the Pelamis Wave Energy Converter. This is a relatively mature technology that is deployed for commercial power generation. ?
Wave Dragon ApS
?
 Copenhagen, Denmark Tidal energy manufacturer producing a floating slack-moored energy converter of the overtopping type. ?
Hammerfest Strom
?
 Hammerfest, Norway develops and manufacturers tidal power stations. ?


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