Alabama

In October of 2010, Ameren Energy Resources, a division of Ameren Corporation, (NYSE: AEE), got a formal promise from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to commit $1 billion to the development of FutureGen 2.0.

The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) has released its fifth annual State Energy Efficiency Scorecard, which ranks all 50 U.S. states for their various energy-efficiency programs and policies.

Southern Company (NYSE:SO) has taken a significant step towards constructing two new nuclear units in Georgia.

Southern Company (NYSE:SO) has filed formal comments to the United States Environmental Protection Agency regarding the Agency's recently proposed emission rules for the nation's power generators.

Honda has just announced that 10 of its 14 manufacturing plants in North America are operating with zero-waste-to-landfill as part of its “Green Factory” initiative in North America. 

Texas retains its huge lead as the largest generator of electricity in the U.S., including the largest total amount of renewable energy generation and the largest year-over-year additions of renewable energy, according to EnergyBoom’s analysis of the latest U.S. Energy Information Agency data for January and February 2011 released May 13. Renewable energy in this data is defined as wind, solar, wood-derived fuels and biomass, and geothermal.

NextEra Energy, Inc. (NYSE: NEE), one of the largest power generators in the U.S. and the leading producer of power from wind and solar projects, released its Q1 2011 financial results Friday and said it had signed long-term power purchase agreements (PPAs) for an additional 400 megawatts (MW) of wind power since the beginning of 2011. At the end of 2010, NextEra had nearly 43,000 MW of generating capacity (approximately 53% natural gas, 19% wind, 13% nuclear, 13% oil and coal, and 2% hydro and solar), according to the company’s regulatory filings.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Thursday announced a total of more than $410 million in financing incentives for three large cellulosic ethanol projects and for small producers in 33 states. 

In a separate announcement Thursday, the U.S. Department of Energy (DoE) offered a loan guarantee of $241 million to finance a renewable diesel plant.

Here are the Top 10 Renewable Energy News Stories You May Have Missed this Week:

Recent headlines suggest that TVA (NYSE: TVC, the Tennessee Valley Authority) is launching a renewable energy program, Generation Partners, which invites project developers to participate.