http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org Solutions News Bulletin Highlights Thu, 26 Aug 2010 15:42:21 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en AUGUST 20, 2010 By John Suter, Vice President, Capital Market Funding With the market outlook continuing to look tame for both short- and long-term interest rates, corporate bond issuance has gained momentum. Traditionally, September is heavily laden with bond issuance, and this year will be no different as corporations emerged from black-out ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/new-corporate-bond-issuance-market-remains-robust/ AUGUST 20, 2010 A recent report by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Idaho National Laboratory found security holes in computer networks controlling the electric grid. Hackers could access the systems and potentially steal data, deny service or otherwise take control. Many of the vulnerabilities are basic problems such as a failure ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/doe-report-reveals-cyber-security-issues/ Consumer Prices Rise in July The consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.3 percent in July—the first jump since March—meeting economists’ expectations. Higher energy costs helped lift consumer prices: Energy prices increased 2.6 percent, on the heels of a 2.9-percent drop in June and a negative streak dating back to January. Food prices ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/capital-markets-analysis-23/ AUGUST 20, 2010 ZBB Energy received special attention this week when President Barack Obama paid a visit to tout stimulus investments in its Menomonee Falls, Wis., battery manufacturing plant. ZBB Energy secured $1.3 million in state funding in June, which it will use to renovate its plant and triple capacity to ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/energy-roundup-storing-power/ AUGUST 20, 2010 A new best practices guide for designing and implementing feed-in tariffs (FITs) has been released by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. Worldwide, FITs are the most popular mechanism for accelerating renewable energy deployment—more successful than tax incentives or renewable portfolio standards, according to the guide. In the European Union, ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/guide-weighs-feed-in-tariff-options/ AUGUST 20, 2010 A federal task force has released a report outlining obstacles and next steps for making carbon capture and storage (CCS) technology viable in the United States. The group, pulled together from 14 executive departments and agencies led by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) and Environmental Protection Agency ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/task-force-carbon-capture-requires-federal-action/ AUGUST 13, 2010 The long-running FutureGen project began a new chapter last week, as U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Secretary Steven Chu announced plans for a re-envisioned “FutureGen 2.0.” The carbon capture and storage (CCS) demonstration project, first announced in 2003 but shelved after five years due to ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/futuregen-project-revisited/ AUGUST 13, 2010 The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) approved a $33.9 million matching grant to NRECA last week, essentially firing the starter pistol for a nationwide smart grid demonstration project. The project involves 19 electric cooperatives that will deploy more than 153,000 smart grid components and ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/co-ops-launch-nationwide-smart-grid-project/ AUGUST 13, 2010 U.S. wind energy projects are using a growing percentage of domestically manufactured parts, according to a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) wind market report authored by Lawrence Berkley National Laboratory researchers. The study also found that 2009 U.S. wind power additions shattered old records, although a ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/wind-energy-a-growing-business-in-u-s/ AUGUST 13, 2010 Job Losses Continue in July The economy lost 131,000 net jobs in July, versus market expectations of a much lower loss of 63,000 jobs. The drop was driven by the layoff of 143,000 temporary census workers, and a net total of 202,000 displaced government employees. The private sector ... http://www.cooperativefinancecorporation.org/capital-markets-analysis-22/