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Chrysler, the once-bankrupt U.S. automaker that received billions in government aid last year, will soon get new federal loans to help retool factories to make more fuel efficient vehicles, according to sources familiar with the matter.
The timing of the Energy Department award to Chrysler is fluid, but sources with knowledge of the financing and the industry say the automaker will likely receive approval for new credit before General Motors Co. Get the full story »
The Obama administration on Monday proposed the first fuel efficiency and emissions standards for big tractor trailors and other commercial trucks that run mainly on diesel fuel.
The joint Transportation Department and Environmental Protection Agency initiative covers a range of vehicles from delivery vans to long-haul rigs and is expected to cut nearly 250 million tons of greenhouse gas emissions over the lifespans of vehicles produced within the program’s first five years. Get the full story »
In light of a court ruling this month that placed funding for Commonwealth Edison’s smart grid pilot project in jeopardy, the utility is petitioning the Illinois Commerce Commission to wrap an additional $11 million into its $396 million rate-increase case.
The utility asked the commission to decide by the end of the month whether it will hear that request as part of a proposed 7 percent rate hike — a sign of good faith that would allow the utility to finish the project with the expectation that there would be some way for them to recoup the costs at a later day.
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The Thanet Offshore Wind Farm, the world's largest, located off the Kent coast in southern England. Google plans to invest in a wind farm off the coast of the U.S. (Reuters/Stefan Wermuth)
Google is investing in a new wind farm power grid to be located off the East Coast of the United States.
“We just signed an agreement to invest in the development of a backbone transmission project off the Mid-Atlantic coast, that offers a solid financial return while helping to accelerate offshore wind development — so it’s both good business and good for the environment,” announced the search engine company in a blog on Monday night.
Google said the Atlantic Wind Connection will be located at least 10 miles offshore and will stretch 350 miles from New Jersey to Virginia. The wind farm will be capable of producing 6,000 megawatts, enough to power nearly 2 million homes. The wind-generated power will be delivered to the land-based transmission system via subsea cables, the company said.
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The head of Royal Dutch Shell says that his company would never have made the mistakes that led to BP’s devastating Gulf of Mexico oil spill. Get the full story »
Honda presented its Fit Hybrid car in Tokyo Oct. 8, 2010. (Reuters/Issei Kato)
Honda Motor Co. said on Friday it would sell the hybrid version of its popular Fit subcompact for 1.59 million yen ($19,310) in Japan, making it the cheapest gasoline-electric car on the domestic market.
The company expects to sell about 5,600 units a month.
Competition in the hybrid segment is set to heat up as industry leader Toyota Motor Corp works to expand its line-up to meet growing demand for fuel-efficient cars from drivers around the world. Get the full story »
The Illinois attorney general sued Enbridge Inc.’s U.S. affiliate Enbridge Energy Partners Thursday, as the state seeks to have the company pay the costs to clean up an oil pipeline spill last month.
Atty. Gen. Lisa Madigan and James Glasgow, the state’s attorney for Will County, filed an eight-count complaint against the company. Get the full story »
A Toyota Motor Corp. worker checks a newly-assembled Prius at Toyota Tsutsumi Plant in Toyota, Japan. (AP Photo/Shizuo Kambayashi)
Toyota Motor Corp. will sell two variants of the Prius hybrid in the U.S. by the end of 2012, a larger and smaller version, according to two dealers who were briefed about the news.
One Prius will boast 50 percent more interior space and storage than the current model with the smaller one closer in size to the Yaris, said the dealers, who declined to be named because the matter is private. Get the full story »
Advertisers should steer clear of saying their products are “environmentally friendly” or “eco-friendly,” the Federal Trade Commission said in proposed rules put out Wednesday.
The agency, however, did not weigh in on other terms — “sustainable,” “natural” and “organic” — because they are the purview of the Agriculture Department. Get the full story »
Central Illinois cities that want to be part of a massive clean-coal project are getting a look at what they need to host a carbon dioxide storage facility. The FutureGen Alliance released specifications for the facility Wednesday.
It looks like PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay division is giving its SunChips bags another make over — only to make sure they are less noisy.
Frito-Lay hopes to quiet complaints about the chips bags by switching out the biodegradable bags for older packaging on most flavors, AP reports.
The change comes after consumers had grumbled about the loud crackling sound the biodegradable bags made.
The company is switching back to original packaging, which is made of a type of plastic, for five of the six varieties of the chips, AP says.
(AP)
Tesla Motors is recalling more than 400 of its battery-powered Roadsters because of the risk that a power cable in the vehicle could short and catch fire.
Palo Alto, Calif.-based Tesla said it had received one report of a 12-volt cable in the vehicle chafing against a panel, causing the cable to short. Get the full story »
BP named the Gulf of Mexico assets that it will use to help finance the $20 billion fund for victims of its oil spill and said the cost of dealing with the disaster had risen to $11.2 billion. Get the full story »
The Illinois Commerce Commission has asked the state’s three major electric utilities to assess the impact that plug-in vehicles could have on ratepayers.
With the first major plug-in vehicle rollouts scheduled for next month, it is still unclear how much ratepayers in Illinois will pay to charge those vehicles or what upgrades will be needed to the state’s electrical infrastructure. The ICC said Wednesday that utilities have been asked to report back by December about the vehicles’ potential impact in a white paper that will guide a new statewide committee established to prepare for the vehicles. Get the full story »
Medical waste disposal firm Stericycle, Inc said it has agreed to buy Healthcare Waste Solutions, Inc. for $245 million in cash.
Lake Forest-based Stericycle said Healthcare Waste “provides a resource management assessment and consulting program for all waste streams to healthcare providers.” Get the full story »
