​Improving energy efficiency in the industrial sector is being prioritised in many countries because of its importance in the pursuit of energy supply security, increasing economic competitiveness and in reducing greenhouse gases emissions. One of the most energy-intensive industries in North America and Europe, is pulp and paper.
 
According to Statistics Canada, in 2014, the pulp and paper industry accounted for 24% of the total energy consumed by all manufacturing operations in the country. This was down from 31% in 2005. This decline reflects changes in the demand for certain paper products such as newsprint (Canada’s primary newsprint market, the United States, witnessed a considerable fall-off in newspaper circulation as more readers migrated to digital media sources), as well as energy efficiency improvements at various mills.
 
Typical paper mills use most of their energy in the pulping and drying processes, but the specific energy consumption in pulp and paper production is a result of several factors, including plant size, product mix, processes used, the technical age of the mill, feedstock quality, plant capacity utilization, and climate conditions.
 
Investment to improve energy efficiency in the pulp and paper industry can deliver large energy savings, improved productivity, and reduced environmental pollution. Opportunities to improve energy efficiency include: heat recovery, cogeneration, increased use of (self-generated) biomass fuel, and increased recycling of recovered paper, efficient motors and improved efficiency of steam use.
 
The pulp and paper industry requires a typically high amount of power and heat in forms of hot air and/or steam. And, with such a high, steady demand for heat as well as power, many pulp and paper plants are perfectly positioned to take advantage of the benefits offered by Thermal Energy International’s best-in-class heat recovery, cogeneration, and steam trap solutions.
 
Thermal Energy's FLU-ACE® heat recovery technology can recover as much as 90% of the heat normally lost through dryer section / hood exhausts in the form of water at 50°C to 70°C. This is possible using the FLU-ACE’s unique direct contact (gas/liquid) packed-tower design, enabling optimal recovery of both sensible and latent heat, in widely varying operating conditions.
 
The pulp and paper industry remains a prime candidate for cogeneration. Thermal Energy’s Super-Efficient Cogeneration™ solutions can provide up to 70% savings on electrical costs at a self-generated kWh cost of less than $0.04/kWh, and an additional 10% to 20% natural gas energy savings from up to 90% recovery of heat losses from existing exhaust streams.
 
The Company's GEM™ steam traps help pulp and paper manufacturers achieve a 10% to 20% permanent reduction in steam costs. GEM steam traps have no moving parts, require virtually no maintenance, and come with a ten-year “no fail” performance warranty, which means increased reliability and less maintenance costs. Venturi orifice designed GEM steam traps can help eliminate water hammering problems, eliminate the cost of replacing failed traps, and improve a plant’s production output.
 
An increasing number of pulp and paper companies are recognizing their social obligations and their role in the communities and countries in which they operate. In fact, many proactive forest-industry companies have brought responsible business practices visibly into their corporate strategies and communication efforts. Thermal Energy International is well positioned to work with pulp and paper companies in helping them achieve their corporate energy savings and greenhouse gas reduction goals. 

Canadian cleantech company, Thermal Energy International, announced yesterday that it has landed its first "Super-Efficient CogenerationTM" order.  The order, valued at $1.46 million, comes as repeat business from its leading Fortune 500 food and beverage customer. This customer most recently orders a $1.82 million FLU-ACE heat recovery system from Thermal Energy in July.

Partially utilizing the FLU-ACE(R) unit previously installed, Thermal Energy will work with this customer to implement a number of additional energy efficiency and heat recovery measures related to three new reciprocating engine units to be installed on-site. These measures are expected to result in the customer's cogeneration plant being more than 88% efficient. This compares to typical cogeneration systems, which operate between 65% and 75% efficiency.

Last week, Donald Trump announced that he was pulling out of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. It's a case of a leader not representing the interests of the masses. A leader not understanding the business case for a clean energy future, or the enormous costs of doing nothing to address climate change.  Fortunately, Trump does not have the ability to prevent the United States from pursuing that clean energy future and curbing emissions.  In fact, many government officials and businesses big and small across the United States have since reiterated that they will continue to back the Paris Agreement. They understand what what Trump does not --- that clean energy and a booming economy can go hand-in-hand.

Last week, New York City Mayor, Bill de Blasio, signed an executive order directing the city to develop a plan to honour the commitments, which includes reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 80% by 2050.  Bill de Blasio is just one of 246 U.S. mayors representing 56 million Americans, who have pledged to adopt, honor, and uphold the commitments to the goals enshrined in the Paris Agreement.

On the same day as Trump's announcement, the Governors of the states of Washington, New York and California announced their intention to form a United States Climate Alliance. Several other states quickly followed suit, most notably Massachusetts and Vermont, which have Republican governors. Many other states are expected to support the alliance in the coming days.

Businesses too are stepping forward.  Apple, Levi Strauss, Allianz, Royal Caribbean Cruises, Lyft, L’Oreal and Pacific Gas & Electric, along with hundreds of other businesses of all sizes, have declared their continued support for the Paris Agreement.

So, while Donald Trump has pulled out of the Paris Agreement, fortunately he doesn't speak for the United States. 

On Thursday, March 23, 2017, scientists in Germany flipped the switch on a giant honeycomb-like setup of 149 industrial-grade spotlights officially known as "Synlight" --- or what's being described as the world's largest artificial sun.

This experiment in pursuit of efficient and renewable energy is taking place in Jülich, a town located 30 kilometers west of Cologne, and it was designed by scientists from the German Aerospace Center ("DLR"). Each one of the industrial-grade film projector spotlights used boasts roughly 4,000 times the wattage of the average light bulb.

The giant apparatus can focus all of its simulated solar energy to a surface of 20 by 20 centimeters. By doing so, the surface would receive the equivalent of 10,000 times the normal solar radiation. The scientists involved say that the device can induce very high temperatures that may help them find new ways to obtain hydrogen, which many consider to be the fuel of the future because it does not produce carbon emissions when burned for fuel.

Proponents of hydrogen as a future fuel are keenly interested in taking water and splitting the H from the O, which is most simply done via a sizeable electric current. So far, this process has consumed lots of energy, which kind of defeats the purpose of fuel production.

With Synlight, DLR researchers are hope to shine light on a new method. Rather than an electric current, Synlight harnesses the power of the (artificial) sun. Hoffschmidt said the dazzling display is designed to take experiments done in smaller labs to the next level, adding that once researchers have mastered hydrogen-making techniques with Synlight's 350-kilowatt array, the process could be scaled up ten-fold on the way to reaching a level fit for industry. Nevertheless, experts say this could take about a decade, if there is sufficient industry support.

According to a report from Research and Markets, the global Combined Heat and Power market is expected to continue its growth trajectory, approaching an installed capacity of approximately 972 GW by 2025. This is up from approximately 755.2 GW of installed capacity in 2016.
 
The total CHP installed capacity increased from 437.4 Gigawatts (GW) in 2006 to 733.7 GW in 2015, at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 5.9%. The market is being driven by the need for energy efficiency, growing environmental concern, and increasing government incentives and policies to promote cogeneration.
 
Governments around the world are supporting the growth in CHP by way of favorable policies and financial incentives. Strong commitment from these governments for the development of CHP has led to various R&D initiatives and CHP installations, which will drive the market in the upcoming period.
 
We believe that companies that are able to combine CHP with waste heat recovery technologies will be better-positioned to capitalize on the strong market fundamentals and expected growth.  For instance, combining a typical cogeneration product with Thermal Energy International’s proprietary FLU-ACE heat recovery technology results in a marked improvement, pushing efficiency up to as high as 93%, compared to typical cogeneration systems that provide efficiency of around 65% to 75% on average.

Cleantechies | ​​Super-Efficient Cogeneration Solution Reduces Electricity Costs by up to 70%

In North America, manufacturers and other industrial operations account for approximately one third of the total energy consumed and one third of fossil fuel related greenhouse gas emissions. For the most part, that energy is not used as efficiently as it could be, with between 20 to 50% of industrial energy input being lost as waste heat – primarily as hot exhaust gases, cooling water, and heat lost from hot equipment surfaces and heated products.
 
What if we could capture lost energy and use it? There are proven technologies available today that do just that.  That’s right, there are readily available solutions that significantly increase the efficient use of our energy resources, making industrial energy efficiency one of the best clean energy sources available. In fact, according to a recent report from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, “How Much Does Energy Efficiency Cost,” the “new” power resulting from energy efficiency projects is significantly less expensive than the cost of power that would be generated by new power plants (including wind farms and utility scale solar power).
 
So why are they not being used more pervasively?  The challenge is that the upfront cost of installing clean technologies can be prohibitively expensive for companies that require a short term return on investment.  That being said, there are numerous energy efficiency solutions that provide a high return on investment with short, compelling paybacks.
 
Some of the possible improvements at the structure level are replacement of burners and use of stack economizers on boilers (15% to 20% of the energy used in a boiler plant is lost up the boiler stack), converting mechanical steam traps over to venturi orifice steam traps, and installing a cogeneration (or combined heat and power) system.
 
Waste heat to power captures waste heat that would typically be vented from an industrial facility and uses it to make electricity without additional fuel or emissions. Cogeneration plants, which produce both heat and power from a single source of fuel, provides double the efficiency of central station power generation.
 
Electricity generation based on fossil fuels is rather inefficient. At best the electrical efficiency is usually around 40% at full load, meaning 60% of the fuel energy content is wasted as residual heat. Standard cogeneration systems make use of this waste heat, potentially improving overall efficiency up to as high as 75% to 80%. Combining a typical cogeneration product with heat recovery technology can push this efficiency even higher.
 
That’s exactly what Canadian cleantech company, Thermal Energy International, is doing. By combining cogeneration and the company’s proprietary FLU-ACE heat recovery technology, Thermal Energy offers a super-efficient cogeneration solution with an energy efficiency of up to 93%.  Thermal Energy’s cogeneration solution can provide up to 70% savings on electrical costs at a self-generated kWh cost of less than $0.04/kWh, and an additional 10% to 20% natural gas energy savings from up to 90% recovery of heat losses from existing exhaust streams.
 
These are just a few examples of readily available technologies that dramatically lower energy use, emissions, and costs, thereby improving competitiveness. With companies always looking to improve their cost base, it is easy to see why energy efficiency should be a really important alternative to consider. With the short and compelling paybacks many of these projects provide, surely it is time for more companies to consider making the investment.

Ottawa based, Thermal Energy International Inc. (TSXV: TMG), today announced its financial results for the three months (Q2) and six months (YTD) ended November 30, 2016. All figures are in Canadian dollars. 

Highlights:

• Revenue grew 23% for Q2 and 3% YTD;
• Gross profit increased 19% for Q2 and 25% YTD;
• The Company was profitable for Q2 and the YTD, with strong improvements to EBITDAS, net income and adjusted cash flow;
• YTD EBITDAS, net income and adjusted cash flow increased $606 thousand, $522 thousand and $446 thousand respectively;
• Order backlog was $7.1 million as at January 19, 2017 compared to $6.9 million a year ago.

​Q2 2017 Financial Review:

Revenue for the quarter grew 23% to $3.1 million compared to $2.5 million for the second quarter of last year. Sales of heat recovery systems increased 7%, while GEM sales were up 34% compared to the same quarter a year ago.

Gross profit for the quarter increased 19% to $1.9 million compared to $1.6 million for the second quarter of last year. As a percentage of sales, gross profit for the quarter was 62.7% compared to 64.6% in the second quarter a year ago. 

The Company achieved significant increases in EBITDAS and net income for the quarter. EBITDAS for the quarter was $285 thousand compared to $84 thousand a year earlier. Net income for the quarter improved to $175 thousand from $26 thousand in the second quarter of last year. 

Adjusted operating cash flow (defined as net income for the period, plus items not involving cash, plus lease payments received) for the quarter was $274 thousand compared to $85 thousand for the same period last year. 

As at November 30, 2016, the Company had a net cash balance of $1.5 million. With cash balances and unused borrowing capacity combining for a total of approximately $1.9 million, management believes that it has sufficient capital resources to fund existing operations and anticipated capital requirements for the remainder of fiscal 2017. 

Order and Backlog Summary:

The Company had an order backlog of approximately $7.1 million as at January 19, 2017, compared to $6.9 million a year ago. The current order backlog is comprised of several heat recovery orders announced during the first half of fiscal 2017, including $2.8 million remaining in orders from three hospital customers, $1.7 million from a leading ethanol producer, $644 thousand remaining from a global brewing company, and $150 thousand remaining from a global mining and materials company.

Previously announced GEM orders included in the current backlog are $194 thousand remaining in orders from a leading performance materials company, and $147 thousand from a hospital. The current backlog also includes a $95 thousand GEM order from a Fortune 500 food and beverage leader, which was not previously announced. 

The Company includes in “order backlog” the value of projects in respect of which purchase orders have been received but have not yet been reflected as revenue in the Company’s published quarterly financial statements.

​
​About Thermal Energy International Inc.

Thermal Energy International Inc. is an established global supplier of proprietary, proven energy efficiency and emissions reduction solutions to the industrial and institutional sectors. We save our customers money and improve their bottom line by reducing their fuel use and cutting their carbon emissions.  Our customers include a large number of Fortune 500 and other leading multinational companies across a wide range of industry sectors.

Thermal Energy is also a fully accredited professional engineering firm, and can offer advanced process and applications engineering services. 

Thermal Energy International Inc. has offices in Ottawa, Canada as well as Bristol, U.K., United States, Italy and China. The Company’s common shares are traded on the TSX Venture Exchange (TSX-V) under the symbol TMG.

As the fourth largest emitter of greenhouse gasses, Germany is keenly aware of its obligation to tackle climate change.  And German industry is also keenly aware that reducing harmful emissions and using resources more efficiently is not only good for the environment, it is also good for business competitiveness and profitability.
 
Germany’s contributions to tackle climate change are manifold, but especially with regard its transition to a reliable, and affordable energy supply they are significant: By 2020, Germany’s is targeting to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 40% compared to 1990 levels, and by 80 to 95% by 2050.  Germany has also set ambitious targets for reducing energy consumption by 20% by 2020 compared to 2008 levels, and by half by 2050. While renewables will play a big role how the country looks to curb climate change, improving energy efficiency is obviously crucial.
 
According to the GTAI (a foreign trade and inward investment agency of the Federal Republic of Germany), the German energy efficiency market is expected to grow to €176 billion by 2025. That represents an annual growth of 4.9%.
 
Growth Drivers

• Compared to North America and most of Europe, energy prices in Germany are high and rising;
• Desire for energy security and independence: Currently, Germany imports more than 70% of its primary energy consumption;
• Policy & Regulations: 50.000+ energy audits required by Energy Efficiency Directice and ambitious goals of German "Energiewende" (the energy transition);
• Generous incentives: federal funding reached €320 million in 2015 and is expected to grow;

 
Industrial Energy Efficiency Has a Big Role to Play
 
Industry is the largest user of energy in Germany. With between 20 to 50% of all industrial energy input being lost as waste heat in the form of hot exhaust gases, cooling water, and heat lost from hot equipment surfaces and heated products, large cost saving opportunities and increased productivity can be achieved by companies who can use energy more efficiently. While many industrial companies are taking some positive action, substantial opportunities to improve energy efficiency still remains. The efficiency gap is found across all sectors, from food and beverage, pulp and paper, and healthcare, to pharmaceuticals, chemical, automotive, etc.
 
Energy efficiency is among the cheapest and cleanest energy resources available.  In fact, according to a recent report from the American Council for an Energy Efficient Economy, “How Much Does Energy Efficiency Cost,” the “new” power resulting from energy efficiency efforts is substantially less expensive than the cost of power that would be generated by new power plants (including wind farms and utility scale solar power). Yet for industry, and manufacturing operations in particular, the quickest and most effective source of lower energy bills remains largely under exploited.
 
At the end of the day, energy efficiency is seen as a lucrative business model. The German manufacturing industry is a world champion on the international market of innovations for energy-saving measures and green products. This is a position they fully intend to keep.

OTTAWA, ONTARIO – October 20, 2016 – Thermal Energy International Inc. (“Thermal Energy” or the “Company”) (TSXV: TMG), a global provider of proprietary energy efficiency solutions to the industrial, commercial and institutional sectors, today announced its financial results for the three-month period ended August 31, 2016. All figures are in Canadian dollars.
 
Highlights:
 

• Stronger order backlog of $7.8 million as at October 18, 2016 compared with $3.7 million a year ago;
• GEM revenue was up 55.5% for the quarter.
• Overall revenue decreased 16.5% to $2.1 million due to lower heat recovery revenues ;
• Gross margin increased to 68.2% of revenue compared to 43.0% for the same period last year due to increased GEM™ sales;
• Higher gross profit and lower operating expenses resulted in an improved bottom line compared with a year ago.

Q1 2017 Financial Review:
 
Revenue for the quarter was $2.1 million, representing a decrease of 16.5% compared to $2.6 million for the first quarter of last year. Despite a strong heat recovery order backlog, due to the timing of project implementation, heat recovery systems revenue decreased 55.9% as it included only the closing stages of an installation at a major hospital, as announced October 29, 2015 plus an installation at a major food producer, as announced May 3, 2016. Revenue from GEM condensate return systems increased 55.5% and included the partial conversion of a plant belonging to a Fortune 500 food and beverage company as well as revenues from the various orders mentioned in the Company’s news release dated September 20, 2016.
 
Gross profit for the quarter was approximately $1.5 million, an increase of 32.4% compared to $1.1 million in the first quarter a year earlier. The increase was attributable to the higher proportion of GEM product sales during the most recent quarter, which resulted in gross profit as a percentage of sales increasing to 68.2% from 43.0% a year earlier.
 
The higher gross profit combined with lower operating costs resulted in improved EBITDAS (defined as earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation, amortization, impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets, share-based compensation expense and net write down of lease) and a smaller net loss for the quarter. EBITDAS for the quarter was $3 thousand compared with negative $401 thousand a year earlier. The Company had a net loss of $80 thousand versus a net loss of $453 thousand in the first quarter of last year.
 
Adjusted operating cash flow (defined as net income for the period, plus items not involving cash, plus lease payments received) for the quarter was negative $79 thousand compared to negative $336 thousand a year earlier.
  
Order and Backlog Summary
 
On July 25, 2016, the Company announced that it had received an $840 thousand order from a multi-site hospital group to connect all four boiler plants at one of the customer’s three hospitals to an existing heat recovery system previously installed by Thermal Energy.
 
On August 4, 2016, the Company announced it had received $1,148 thousand in orders from a hospital trust, including an $868 thousand heat recovery system at one of the trust’s hospitals and a $280 thousand GEM order for another of the trust’s hospitals.
 
On August 8, 2016, the Company announced it had received a $750 thousand heat recovery order from one of the world’s largest beer companies.
 
On September 14, 2016, the Company announced it had received a $500 thousand GEM order from a new hospital customer.
 
On September 28, 2016, the Company announced it had received a $1.7 million order from a leading producer of industrial and fuel alcohols for the supply and installation of one of Thermal Energy’s proprietary FLU-ACE heat recovery systems, which will be used to heat a greenhouse being built adjacent to one of the customer’s ethanol plants.
 
The following orders were also received during the quarter or subsequent to quarter end:
 

• Four GEM orders totaling approximately $200 thousand from an international textiles manufacturer; 
• $190 thousand heat recovery order from a global mining and materials company (the Company previously sold a heat recovery system to this customer in fiscal 2014); 
• $452 thousand in GEM orders from a leading performance materials company, following the $404 thousand (including $96 thousand not yet included in revenue) in orders received during fiscal 2016; 
• $158 thousand GEM order from a Fortune 500 pharmaceutical company; 
• $105 thousand GEM order from a multinational biotech company; 
• Six GEM orders totaling $103 thousand from a leading tire manufacturer; 
• $75 thousand heat recovery order from a food service packaging company (highlighted as an example of Thermal Energy’s ability to work creatively with the customer to develop a modified system that fits within their limited budget and addresses site-specific concerns related to high particulate matter in the heat source air stream); 
• $102 thousand GEM order from a leading food ingredients business.

 
Including the above mentioned orders, the Company had an order backlog of approximately $7.8 million as at October 18, 2016, compared to $3.7 million at the same time last year. The Company includes in “order backlog” the value of projects in respect of which purchase orders have been received but have not yet been reflected as revenue in the Company’s published quarterly financial statements.
  
About Thermal Energy International Inc.

Thermal Energy International Inc. is an established global supplier of proprietary, proven energy efficiency and emissions reduction solutions to the industrial and institutional sectors. The Company saves its customers money and improve their bottom line by reducing their fuel use and cutting their carbon emissions.  Customers include a large number of Fortune 500 and other leading multinational companies across a wide range of industry sectors.
 
For more information, visit the Company website at www.thermalenergy.com and follow @GoThermalEnergy on Twitter at http://twitter.com/GoThermalEnergy.

GUELPH, Ontario, Oct. 12, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Canadian Solar Inc. (the "Company", or "Canadian Solar") (NASDAQ: CSIQ), one of the world's largest solar power companies, today announced that working together with Empowered by Light, in partnership with the GivePower Foundation, it has donated 30 kW solar panels with 72 poly cell matrix, CS6X-P, to the first mini-grid systems in Virunga National Park -- installed in August 2016.
​
Located in the Eastern regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Virunga National Park has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 1979.Virunga National Park is home to a large portion of the world's endangered mountain gorillas, chimpanzees, Okapis, and other rare species. In recent years, many wildlife populations have been damaged by the Congo Civil War and relentless poaching efforts. Due to the efforts by the Virunga park rangers, these numbers have shown signs of reversal, and Canadian Solar is proud to be part of the continued protection efforts.​

This mini-grid PV system provides electricity to the three security sectors within the conservation, powering security lights, radios, and helping enhance the ranger's ability to protect the park's wildlife, even in remote areas at night.

About Canadian Solar Inc.

​Founded in 2001 in Canada, Canadian Solar is one of the world's largest and foremost solar power companies. As a leading manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules and provider of solar energy solutions, Canadian Solar also has a geographically diversified pipeline of utility-scale power projects in various stages of development. In the past 15 years, Canadian Solar has successfully delivered over 16 GW of premium quality modules to over 90 countries around the world. For additional information about the company, follow Canadian Solar on LinkedIn or visit www.canadiansolar.com.