Approvals for small coal mines in China are to be halted

Approvals for small coal mines in China are to be halted

David Nealis President of  Ceres Ltd.

 

The Chinese State Administration of Work Safety stated on February 25, 2013 that it will no longer approve new coal mines that do not meet production capacity requirements in 2013.

High-Gas Coal mines with an annual production of less than 300,000 metric tons, as well as coal and gas outburst mines with an annual production of less than 450,000 tons.

The reason stated were for safety issues, but in my opinion I believe it’s an attempt to drive up slumping  domestic coal prices and to be able to better regulate producers in the future.

China’s farm produce prices declined

 

David Nealis President of Ceres Ltd

 

China’s farm produce prices declined in 36 major Chinese cities the week after Chinese New Year according to the Ministry of Commerce. The average whole sale price of 18 monitored vegetables declined 7 % month on month from Feb 18^th in addition 8 aquatic produce items declined 0.9% accounting to the report by Ministry of Commerce.

Chinese Scientist decoded the bamboo genome for moso bamboo

 

David Nealis President of Ceres Ltd.

 

Chinese Scientist decoded the bamboo genome for moso bamboo in hopes of improving the breed and using bamboo as an alternative to wood. China is the world’s largest producer and consumer of bamboo with of 3.86 million hectares of moso bamboo which is roughly 72% of China’s bamboo growing area.

Suntech-Guosheng Ferry Uses a Solar Sail

I thought this was a cool concept and I wanted to share it; Suntech-Guosheng Ferry Uses a Solar Sail for Power.

The Suntech-Guosheng ferry made its maiden voyage on June 5^th, 2010. At 31.5 meters or 103 feet in length, the ferry set sail on the Huangpu River in Shanghai, as part of the Shanghai World Expo. The vessel features proprietary 'solarsail' technology developed by Australia-based Solar Sailor, a leading innovator in maritime solar technology. The boat is a series hybrid, meaning its propellers are driven solely by electric power, generated by the sun or by the diesel engine that acts as a secondary source of power.

In theory the boat would the ferry’s  moving photovoltaic sails would not only track the sun to gather energy, but also serve as sails, giving the boat various power source options such as solar, diesel or wind power. When docked, the boats panels would still gather solar energy, which they would feed into the power grid that would either store the collected energy or use it directly to power the ferry.

The owners of the ferry are Suntech Power one of the world’s largest producer of crystalline silicon solar panels, and Shanghai Guosheng Group which is a Chinese state-owned investment holding company.