Nissan Leaf - Emission and Petrol station free!

Helping with All-Energy Australia 2010, I was delighted that 3,000 industry and business people came to see the show in Melbourne on Oct 6&7, and the exhibition space included over 180 exhibitors of clean energy production and associated services, in the areas of solar, wind, bio-energy, geothermal, marine, energy efficiency, storage and measurement.

This year, All-Energy Australia was fortunate to have a Nissan Leaf electric car on display, and this attracted significant attention from businesses and local government. The Nissan Leaf is a 100% electric vehicle, which should go about 160 km on a single charge, certainly more than sufficient to cover my average 150km per week of city driving. And for the once a year, out of town drive, I would happily borrow, rent, or travel by bus. Of course, that will in the future be remedied by fast charge outlets, hopefully located close by a good coffee shop. And I am unlikely to ever need to drive at the top speed of 140km/hr.

I would like be off fossil fuels, but I do enjoy and need a vehicle, and the Nissan Leaf is definitely on my short-list! In my mind's eye, it ranks as a very stylish and electronically cool car. My only gripe is that it will be 2012 before Australia sees the first available Nissan Leaf vehicles, so, in the meantime, I will have to wait and plan where to put my fully wind offset charging outlet.

No more trips to the Service Station for fuel - priceless !


Pic by Mary at All-Energy Australia 2010

All-Energy now in Australia

For nine years, Aderdeen in Scotland has hosted a major renewable energy exhibition and conference, called All-Energy. At the recent All-Energy ’09 event, some 380 companies exhibited and 5,500 people from all industry elements came from 60 countries.

In the past, I have attended similar overseas events and certainly, there’s a buzz that so far has been absent in Australia. That – hopefully - is about to change! Melbourne, with support from the Victorian Government, has now secured the first All-Energy Clean Energy Show in Australia for companies actively involved in the clean energy industry. And the bonus is that the exhibition and conference sessions are free for visitors from business, industry, government and the university sectors.

All-Energy 09 Australia will be held in Melbourne in October and is set to become Asia Pacific’s major clean and renewable energy exhibition and conference, with sponsors such as Abengoa Solar already on board. Coming just before the Government's call for tenders for the major Australian solar contract, it's well timed. So mark it in your diary for 7/8 October, and – click here to check it out.