solar panel plant

A new solar panel plant will be set up in Penang to manufacture the solar panel to meet the growing global demands for clean power.

The nuclear crisis in Japan as the result of the earth quake and the tsunami reaffirm the inherent risk of the nuclear power station. A survey carried out in Japan and the majority vote against the use of radio active material for the production of energy.

Given the negative perception of the nuclear power and the increasing trend of the cost of electricity, the sun power seem to be the alternative proposition. Currently, the installation of electric panel at home is still more expensive than the use of utility electrical power. But this is expected to change soon.

The manufacturing of local solar panel locally is expected to lower the cost. A new solar panel plant is being set up in Penang..

read further from the RSS feed.

Robert Bosch to set up solar panel manufacturing facility in Penang

Jun 23, 2011 ... PETALING JAYA: Stuttgart-based technology company Robert Bosch GmbH is investing RM2.2bil in a solar panel manufacturing plant in Batu Kawan ...

biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2011/6/23/business/8954633&sec=business

Thursday June 23, 2011

Robert Bosch to set up solar panel manufacturing facility in Penang

By FINTAN NG
fintan@thestar.com.my

PETALING JAYA: Stuttgart-based technology company Robert Bosch GmbH is investing RM2.2bil in a solar panel manufacturing plant in Batu Kawan, Penang, to mainly serve Asia's growing demand for solar energy.

The new plant would provide employment opportunities for 2,000 people, which would be an increase of some 40% of Robert Bosch's current workforce in the country, said Robert Bosch solar energy division head and Bosch Solar Energy AG chairman, Holger von Hebel..

Read More

river of trash

The picture confirmed it, Klang river had been transformed to a river of trash. You could hardly see the water.

The indiscriminate dumping of rubbish in the upstream areas are causing the river to be totally polluted. It muse be a dead river, devoid of any living fishes.

The situation was covered by the newspaper the star:

===================================
Saturday February 19, 2011
Shah Alam residents fuming over trash in Klang River
By ELAN PERUMAL
elan@thestar.com.my
Photo by M. RAJAN


INDISCRIMINATE dumping of rubbish by industries and residents are affecting the quality of water in the Klang River.

The dumping of rubbish in upstream areas are affecting residents living downstream.

This is apparent during high tides and rainy weather when the rubbish from Petaling Jaya and Kuala Lumpur travel downriver to Shah Alam and Klang.

Residents in Taman Sri Muda have expressed their dissatisfaction over the presence of a “sea of rubbish” floating in the river.

Ugly sight: The Klang River near Taman Sri Muda in Shah Alam turns into a sea of trash during high tide.
They said there was so much rubbish in the river that they could hardly see the water.

S. Tamilselvan of Taman Sri Muda said the presence of the garbage in the river was a common sight in the area.

He said the river was polluted with various types of household and industrial waste that had been dumped by irresponsible people.

“It is an eyesore as we have to witness this unpleasant sight every other time. Furthermore, the water is always murky,” he said.

Another resident C. K. Lim urged the authorities to be vigilant in their bid to stop the culprits from dumping waste into the river.

He felt that the local authorities had not been doing enough to overcome the situation.

“The condition of the polluted river is in a way affecting the quality of our lives,” he said.

Shah Alam City Council (MBSA) public relations officer Shahrin Ahmad said the garbage had been dumped by people upstream.

He said the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID) was responsible for the clearing up of rubbish from the river.

“We will inform them on the presence of the waste in the river so that they can start cleaning up the river,” he said.

Read More

guarding the mangroves trees

Mangrove trees is the natural forest on the swampy beaches in Malaysia. It was growing in abundance in the west coast of the peninsular, protected from the strong north east monsoon. The trees were being cut to the extinction main to be process and turn into charcoal and used as piling material for building construction.

When the new government took over Selangor in 2008, the license to harvest the trees were suspended. Despite this, the thieves continue to illegally cut down the log. It is estimated about 50,000 were felled despite the ban.

There seem to be total disregard for the authority, despite the constant petrol, the trees are still being cut down. However a few weeks ago some progress had been made. A two week surveillance by the Selangor Forestry Department finally bear fruit as they manage to seize about 30,000 mangrove logs with estimated value or rm300,00. A crane and 13 workers were caught.

The extinction of the mangrove trees in certain location of the beaches had brought the problem od soil erosion. Slowly the beaches front had shifted, as the protections against the winds and current normally provided by the mangrove are being removed.

sources:

The star newspaper

Read More

sun energy a salleable product

Many developed nation had introduced a feature to enable small consumers to sell electricity to the national grid. This will give some incomes as well as help the nation to reduce the burden on pollution.

Malaysia is following suit with the implementation of feed-in-tariff (FiT). The new meter will be able to measure the amount of power taken from the grid as well as the value sale to the grid.

It is expected that a consumer that produces 4 KW will be earning around rm400 per month. A normal house will need about 4 KW and the investment required is about RM60,000. The consumer will pay RM6000 and the rest will be born by the bank. The expected revenue is RM696 and the monthly payment about RM456 leaving about rm240 as profit.

These are main advantage of installing the system:

1. the solar energy will reduce the carbon footprint. Is important as the pollution is taking tolls on the eco-system. There is fear of global warming and rise of the seal level.

2. The panel itself will last a long time. The normal working life is about 20 years. The project would be financially viable and pay itself.

3. It is also beneficial for the utility company as it can be operating like a middle men buying the power from the consumers at a lower price and sell it at a profit.

Sun energy is a viable proposition. A product salleable at a profit and can be a long term investment.

Read More