Subject: #81, TRENDS in RENEWABLE ENERGIES
issue #81 for May 24
A 'heads up' overview of developments in renewable energy.
Forward TRENDS to colleagues; subscription is free.
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IN THIS ISSUE:
Solar Heat Pumps are Cheapest in Most Applications
Layoffs Start in California for U-S Wind Industry
U-S Senate Backs Renewables
Canada Rejects Call for Carbon Tax
Green Supplier Registers Numerous Slogans
California City Finalizes Deal for Green Energy
Solar Technology Helps the Insurance Industry
Renewable Options to Reduce Insurance Loss
Association Set Up For Offshore Wind Power
BP Amoco Hopes Market Shines on Solar Venture
Is the Windmill Ready for a Comeback?
Solar Firm Beats Setback; Finds Its Place in the Sun
Research Group Says Conventional Energies are Fine
Analysis of Japan's Energy
Study of Electricity Industry to Examine Brand Niching
DoE Releases Energy Analysis on Nations
Nations Differ Over Greenhouse Gas Emissions
Energy Tidbits
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Solar Heat Pumps are Cheapest in Most Applications
A report prepared for Canada's energy department shows that
earth energy units have the lowest lifecycle cost in 125 of 135
new construction scenarios examined. Of the ten settings that
were more expensive to install and operate than conventional
heating options, eight were marginal. Payback periods
ranged from immediate to as high as 40 years; the average
was six years. Best applications are offices, arenas and high
schools. Sales of earth energy units across Canada dropped
in 1997 to a low of 2,000 units (residential and commercial),
but manufacturers project sales growth to 2002 of 10-20% per
year for commercial and 2-5% in the residential market. An
earlier study showed that solar heat pumps have the lowest
GHG emissions of any available technology.
Details: http://www.earthenergy.ca/renewables/bioenergy-list-archive/ers
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Layoffs Start in California for U-S Wind Industry
Enron Wind will lay off 80 of its 100 workers at the Tehachapi
windfarm, in preparation for next month's termination of
federal wind tax credits and the anticipated drop in demand for
turbines. Employees at the Zond manufacturing plant will be
laid off July 20, ending two years of production. Installations
that are commissioned before the tax credit ends will qualify
for 1.5 cents per kWh credit, and a Republican congressman
has introduced legislation to continue the credits.
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U-S Senate Backs Renewables
More than half the Senate wants to increase funding for
federal programs in renewable energy. Thirteen Republican
and 41 Democrat Senators have signed a request to "consider
supporting increases in funding for renewable energy R&D
programs." The Clinton administration has proposed a 16%
increase for renewables, from $384 to $446 million; the
energy Appropriations Subcommittee will debate the budget
this week. "Renewable energy investments are critical to
reduce our dependence on foreign sources of oil, expand U-S
markets, and create jobs," the letter says. A similar request
circulated last year was signed by 42 Senators. "America
currently leads the world technologically in developing
advanced renewable instruments and products," says the
letter. R&D has dropped the cost and improved performance
in turbines and maintained U-S dominance in solar. "We
should not surrender our lead to foreign competitors, who
clearly recognize the potential market for clean and
inexpensive renewable energy technologies."
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Canada Rejects Call for Carbon Tax
One of the world's leading environmentalists says Canada
must impose a tax on fossil fuels if the country wants to meet
its Kyoto commitments for GHG reductions. Maurice Strong,
now a special advisor to the United Nations, told an energy
conference that a formerly-unthinkable carbon tax now is
inevitable. Low oil prices must reflect real environmental
costs, and a carbon tax is needed to develop renewable
energies and encourage energy efficiency. Energy minister
Ralph Goodale said Canada would not impose a carbon tax,
and energy officials in Alberta say such a tax would increase
the cost of fuel by 30 to 40 cents a litre. Amory Lovins was
another speaker at the Ottawa conference.
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Green Supplier Registers Numerous Slogans
Keystone Energy has registered its EarthChoice and
EarthChoice logos in California, and has registered the terms
'Power of the Future,' 'The Right Choice,' 'Ask Not What Your
Planet Can Do For You...Ask What You Can Do For Your
Planet!,' 'Think Green,' 'The Power To Make A Difference,'
'We Have The World In Our Hands,' 'Save The Earth For
What Its Worth...Everything,' ' The Gift That Keeps On Giving
So The Earth Can Go On Living,' and 'Who's That Baby?'
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California City Finalizes Deal for Green Energy
Santa Monica will pay $2.2 million a year to Commonwealth
Energy to supply green electricity for all city facilities including
the airport and City Hall. As the first U-S city to buy 100%
renewable energy for it's facilities, Santa Monica's 5 MW peak
load will be supplied from geothermal plants.
Details: http://www.powersavers.comrenewables/bioenergy-list-archive/ers
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Solar Technology Helps the Insurance Industry
Research by PV experts at the U-S National Renewable
Energy Laboratory shows that solar technology can reduce
underwriting claims and enhance risk management. The
frequency of disasters is increasing, and the U-S Property
Claims Service says insurers paid $80 billion in catastrophe
losses between 1989 and 1997. Power outages are a major
concern, and NREL says renewables are "viable, affordable
and safe energy-generating technologies that can increase
resilience and can help to ... recover from disasters."
Communications, water purification, refrigeration, water
pumping, medical equipment, lighting, space heating and hot
water can all be provided by solar technologies.
PV modules are designed to withstand 2.5 cm ice balls moving
at 23 meters per second, and often are the only structures to
survive hurricanes. During the 1989 Hurricane Hugo, a
Florida firm assembled PV systems for disaster shelters and
medical clinics, and PV trailer-mounted gensets can provide 2
kW of power. Insurance companies give diesel generators to
clients after a disaster, and NREL says PV generators could
be distributed instead, at a cost of under $500.
Details: http://www.nrel.gov/rs.comrenewables/bioenergy-list-archive/ers
/surviving_disaster/documents/25866.html
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Renewable Options to Reduce Insurance Loss
DoE's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has examined
78 technologies that can reduce insurance losses and
manage risks with renewable energy and energy efficient
technologies, and has identified areas of collaboration
between U-S laboratories and the insurance industry. It has
also described some of the risk factors associated with
renewable energy technologies.
Details: http://eetd.lbl.gov/CBS/insurance/LBNL-41432.htmlst-archive/ers
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Association Set Up For Offshore Wind Power
The Offshore Wind Energy Network (OWEN) is a joint industry
and academia collaboration in Britain, to promote research on
all issues concerning offshore wind resources.
Details: http://www.owen.eru.rl.ac.ukrance/LBNL-41432.htmlst-archive/ers
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BP Amoco Hopes Market Shines on Solar Venture
(copyright by Energy.com)
A major oil company's decision to make some highly visible
investments in solar energy has raised new hopes that this
energy source will finally make some real inroads in world
markets.
BP Amoco announced in early April that it would buy the 50%
stake it did not already own in Solarex, which had been a
50-50 joint venture between Amoco and Enron. The $45
million deal created BP Solarex, the largest solar company in
the world. Solarex has manufacturing sites in the U-S and
Australia; employs 600 people worldwide; and had a turnover
(1998) of $58 million. The BP takeover joins Solarex with BP
Solar, a company based in England with 900 employees and a
reported $95 million turnover, with manufacturing sites in
Australia, England, Spain and California.
Solarex officials say major decisions still must be made about
the shape of the new company, which will be headquartered in
Maryland. The opportunity is to take advantage of the
'synergies' between Solarex and BP Solar. Although their
technologies are similar, Solarex is particularly strong in
upstream manufacturing and distribution, while BP Solar's
strengths lie in downstream systems integration.
BP Amoco clearly hopes that its solar investment will shore up
its image as an energy leader in a post-fossil-fuel world. Sir
John Browne, BP Amoco's CEO, said the deal is a step toward
the company's target of building a $1 billion solar business
over the next decade, and is designed to make solar "an
increasingly larger contribution to the energy mix of the 21st
century."
One week after unveiling the Solarex acquisition, BP Amoco
announced that 200 of its service stations will incorporate
solar power, in all new stations to be built in Britain, Australia,
Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Netherlands, Japan,
Portugal and Spain. Solar will also be incorporated into
prototype sites in France and the U-S.
Long a favorite of environmentalists, solar electricity is a
technology that has seemed for decades to be on the verge of
a breakthrough. Recent research has aimed at finding a less
expensive alternative to silicon as the base semiconductor for
solar cells. BP Solar has been a leader in the development of
thin-film cells which are deposited on a large substrate such
as glass or stainless steel that use cadmium telluride. These
cells have the potential of being both more stable and less
expensive to produce in volume than competing technologies.
The combined BP Solar and Solarex will clearly have the
scale needed to promote advanced technology. BP Solarex is
expected to have annual revenues of over $150 million, the
equivalent of 20% of the global market for panels. But that's a
drop in the bucket in the context of worldwide energy; Browne
admitted that all the solar capacity in the world could supply
little more than three days of electricity demand in New York
State.
But that will change, he predicted. "The market is developing,
and technology is advancing rapidly. It will take a decade or
more for solar power to be competitive as a means of
generating power, but we're working towards it."
Details: http://www.energy.com/news/cover/cv051199.asphtmlst-archive/ers
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Is the Windmill Ready for a Comeback?
(copyright Newsday)
It's been two centuries since the little energy producers were
part of the lifeblood of the New York economy, but some
people are starting to think about bringing them back on a
limited but decidedly grander scale.
In a considerable improvement over the wooden windmills of
colonial times, energy producers are starting to build turbines
taller than 100 feet and with propellers the diameter of a
DC-10 wingspan. On Long Island, two towns are exploring the
possibility of building windmills on their land. And in a more
fanciful vision of the future, proponents point out that windmills
could also be constructed offshore, taking advantage of the
winds that whip across the Atlantic Ocean.
Conceivably, wind could eventually provide one-fifth of electric
generation consumed by New York, said David Wooley, New
York project director for the American Wind Energy
Association. "There may be several good sites on eastern
Long Island for wind development at the utility scale."
Farmland is prime windmill space, but the town of Babylon is
exploring the idea of building a windfarm atop its landfill,
wanting to avoid the cost of constructing the half-dozen
turbines by leasing the space to a private company willing to
make the investment.
"There's not a lot positive you can say about a landfill," said
Roy Stoecker, chairman of the Environmental Conservation
Commission. "We looked at what we could do here to change
it from a liability to an asset."
In densely-populated areas, open land with unobstructed,
steady wind is hard to find. The landfill, with an elevation of
200 feet, could fit the bill and, because it's surrounded by
cemeteries, the 'neighbors' won't complain.
If an outside company is involved, Babylon would want
residents to be able to buy lower cost electricity or would
demand a share of the company's profits, said Stoecker. But it
isn't clear yet if the economics will work.
The Town of Hempstead is investigating the possibility of
building windmills on a 50-acre preserve. Officials are
working with Long Island Power on a proposal for state
funding for research into such a project.
"In a practical way, it's clean, it's potentially inexpensive and
it's an alternative to building generators," said Richard
Guardino. Also, "they're very pleasing to look at."
Richard Kessel, chairman of Long Island Power, said the state
agency has discussed the proposals and favors wind-energy
development. "If it works, it could be part of the energy mix in
the future," though he doubts it would account for a significant
percentage of the region's energy supply.
The most intriguing form of wind power would anchor turbines
to the floor of the Atlantic Ocean. Offshore wind turbines
generally yield 50% more electricity than those based on land,
though they are more expensive to construct. Offshore units
haven't been tried in the U-S, but Denmark, Sweden and
Norway are planning to invest billions in this method.
Several factors make the offshore option much less likely on
Long Island than in northern Europe. In Denmark, which is
surrounded by water on three sides, the government is making
use of a relatively shallow sea floor (about 20 m deep) that
extends for 25 miles into the Baltic Sea and North Sea. The
waters off Long Island are that depth for only two miles out,
and it's expensive to construct foundations and lay cables in
deep water.
Most important, Denmark's electricity is even more expensive
than downstate New York, so the cost of offshore windmills is
becoming more competitive. Any drive to build them off Long
Island would be met by economic objections, as well as
questions by environmentalists or fishermen about the impact
of the turbines or underwater cables on ocean wildlife.
So far, nobody on this side of the Atlantic is jumping into those
waters.
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Solar Firm Beats Setback; Finds Its Place in the Sun
(copyright Arizona Daily Star)
State regulators clouded the solar industry's future when they
pulled the plug on rules mandating the use of solar power.
But a local company producing solar film retains a sunny
business outlook.
In April, the Arizona Corporation Commission deleted from
pending competition rules a 'solar portfolio' standard that
would have required electric energy providers to use the sun
to produce a small fraction of the power they sell. Utility and
large-business representatives complained that the solar rule
would have cost them too much, and the ACC agreed.
Solar backers expressed dismay over the loss of the rule.
"To have the portfolio standard eliminated was a blow to the
industry," said Michael Neary of the Arizona Solar Energy
Industries Association. "It will considerably slow down the
growth of the industry in Arizona."
"Pulling the plug on solar was not a good thing to do,
especially in Arizona," agrees Al Sterman of the Arizona
Consumers Council. "You're not giving the solar industry a
leg up so it can go forward and develop cheaper methods of
supplying renewable energy to homes and businesses."
Sterman said ACC's later vote to consider a future renewables
portfolio offers some hope, but he is still pessimistic.
But despite the lack of regulatory and legislative support the
solar industry has received, one Tucson company is pushing
ahead with its $23 million effort to bring competitively priced
solar technology to the masses. Global Solar has developed
and is producing thin-film photovoltaic sheets at its factory in
Civano, and company official Alan Bunnell said the deletion of
the solar portfolio won't hurt Global Solar's future.
"It would have been beneficial if the solar portfolio had been
continued, to kick-start demand," he said. "But we will
continue to put money into the business."
A large demand already exists for the firm's products for space
and military applications, which value items that are light,
compact and durable.
Even though electricity produced with thin film is currently
more expensive than what local customers can get off the
power grid (under 20 cents per kWh versus the grid's 9.4
c/kWh), it still makes sense in some applications. Sites far
from existing power grids can be served for less with solar,
and India (Global Solar has a manufacturing operation) is a
big market.
Improving technologies and economies of scale will result in
lower solar prices, said Peter Dreyfuss, a U-S DoE official who
oversees community solar programs. He predicts, by 2005,
the price of solar-produced electricity should drop by about
half as production methods become more efficient.
And Sterman said consumers have shown a willingness to pay
a premium for green energy like solar.
About $23 million has been spent on developing the film and
getting the manufacturing site up and running, of which $16
million came from Defense contracts.
Tucson, which averages 350 sunny days per year, will remain
a solar hot spot, Dreyfuss said. The co-ordinator of the Million
Solar Roofs Initiative said solar water heating is more common
than electric production, but both should enjoy a solid future.
"Solar is going to happen in Tucson, whether the regulators
back it or not," he said.
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Research Group Says Conventional Energies are Fine
The Institute for Energy Research in Texas is arguing against
the phase-out of fossil fuels in favour of renewables, because
fossil-fuel resources are becoming more abundant and will
continue to expand. "Politically favoured renewable energies
for generating electricity are expensive and supply
constrained, and introduce their own environmental issues,"
says Robert Bradley of IER. "An entrenched energy
intelligentsia, career bureaucrats, revenue-seeking politicians,
and some Kyoto-aligned corporations support an
interventionist national energy strategy based on incorrect
assumptions." Combustion fuels will increase their share of
the energy market if environmentalists constrain hydro and
nuclear power. He says proven world reserves of oil, gas and
coal are officially estimated to be 45, 63 and 230 years of
current consumption, with probable resources at 114, 200 and
1,884 years, respectively.
Details: http://www.cato.org/pubs/pas/pa-341es.htmlasphtmlst-archive/ers
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Analysis of Japan's Energy
Japan is the second largest energy consumer in the world,
and imports 80% of its needs. Oil accounts for 56% of total
energy, coal is 14%, nuclear is 14%, natural gas is 12%,
hydro is 3.8%, and 0.3% from geothermal, solar and wind.
The DoE analysis says Japan has 210 GW of electrical
capacity, and nuclear, gas, and renewables will also grow.
Japan's electricity prices are the highest in the OECD.
Details: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/japan.htmlsphtmlst-archive/ers
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Study of Electricity Industry to Examine Brand Niching
A study in U-S deregulated states will identify and track brand
awareness, to demonstrate if the $300 million spent by energy
providers is working. Two marketing organizations (Second
Opinion and Opinion Dynamics) will study residential and
small business to assess brand awareness, brand value,
product and service differentiation.
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DoE Releases Energy Analysis
The International Energy Annual - World Energy Overview
includes comprehensive data by country on energy production
and consumption for 1988-1997.
Details: http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/iea/contents.htmlhtmlst-archive/ers
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Nations Differ Over Greenhouse Gas Emissions
The 15 nations in the European Union want to limit the
'flexible mechanisms' allowed under the Kyoto protocol on
GHG emissions, to ensure that countries meet commitments
by cutting domestic emissions, but the U-S wants flexibility in
emissions trading and other measures to lower the cost of
meeting cuts. The 1997 Kyoto accord says industrial nations
must reduce emissions by 5.2% below 1990 levels between
2008 and 2012; the EU target is 8%. Australia is one of the
few developed nations that will be allowed to increase
emissions, and has sided with the U-S in seeking flexibility.
More than 150 countries will meet in Switzerland later this
month to draft rules for meeting the reduction targets. The
agreement becomes legally binding when 55 countries ratify;
so far, eight have ratified.
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Energy Tidbits
- Solar panels from Sanyo have been approved under an
architecture standard for use as a roofing material. Six other
Japanese companies have received similar approval.
- A 1 MWp solar roof is under construction at an energy park
in Germany, with annual output of 750 MWh.
- The British government is developing Cumulative Effects of
Wind Turbines as a tool to provide credible methods to assess
the cumulative environmental effects of windfarms, including
landscape and visual effects.
- The public power agency in Greece has signed an
agreement with a number of private companies to launch joint
ventures in renewable energy. The French energy agency
and the country's association for renewable energy have
agreed to launch a campaign for the development of
renewable energy sources.
- Luxembourg is the fourth largest user of wind power (behind
Denmark, Germany, Holland) with installed capacity of 9 MW.
- Portugal will introduce legislation to establish a 'green tariff'
that promotes generation of electricity from renewables and a
quota system to encourage suppliers to green energy.
- The Isla Vista Park District in California will purchase green
electricity from Commonwealth Energy for its 20 parks.
- Denmark will replace its current support for wind energy with
a Renewable Portfolio System that will double the share of
renewables in electricity generation to 20% by 2002.
- A new carbon tax on fossil fuels in Italy will raise 1,250
million Euros, of which 10% will finance renewable projects.
- DoE's NREL has posted metereological field measurements
at wind turbine sites across the U-S (www.nrel.gov/wind).
- The reconstruction of Berlin includes the installation of PV
panels on the roof of the Reichstag.
- The government of Cyprus has funded an organization to
serve as the focal point for all renewable energy effort.
- The German Bundestag has approved energy taxes that will
raise the price of all fuels.
- A third hydropower site is being constructed on the river Vah
in Slovakia.
- The Argentine city of Punta Alta has imported three 600 kW
wind turbines from Germany.
- Sanyo intends to increase the sale of its solar and related
products to 5% of total revenue in 2000. The firm sold $80
million of solar products in 1998, and wants to double that.
- Two nominees at the recent Daytime Emmy Awards in Los
Angeles (Bill Nye and Michael Gross) drove to the ceremony
in GM electric vehicles.
- The U-S has approved a new P-series category of renewable
fuels, which includes ethanol and methyltetrahydrofuran from
feedstocks. P-series fuels can replace one billion gallons of
gasoline annually by 2005.
- Neuchatel canton in Switzerland will examine 16 sites for
windfarms, following positive results from Mont-Crosin facility.
- The British PV company, Solapak, has completed a 9 kW
system in North Africa that powers telecom and cathodic
protection for a gas pipeline.
- Commissioning of the 720 MW Yaly hydro plant in Vietnam
has been delayed due to technical faults and slow work.
- H Power Entreprises of Canada has developed a hydrogen
fuel cell backup power system for residential applications.
- British officials are reviewing arrangements for the trading of
electricity that will have significant implications for renewable
energy generators and suppliers.
- Germany wants all member states of the European Union to
introduce EU-wide energy taxes.
- The U-S Better Business Bureau has filed a complaint that
the nuclear industry is using misleading environmental claims
as a 'zero-emission' source of electricity. If the ads are ruled
to be deceptive or unfair, the ad campaign can be halted. The
BBB says nuclear does not emit airborne pollutants, but
claims of unqualified clean air are "overly broad" and have a
strong potential to mislead consumers.
- A 700-unit energy-efficient community in Pittsburgh will
incorporate renewable energy technologies.
- Nuclear power will contribute 3% of China's power by 2006,
with capacity of 20 million kW by 2010. Officials say the cost
of nuclear power is higher than thermal or hydroelectric.
- The Canadian Electricity Association says utilities are
spending $300 million to respond to the Y2K issue.
- Denmark wants to impose limits on CO2 that generators can
emit, and to tax emissions beyond allotted limits. Electricity
generation is responsible for half of Danish CO2 emissions.
- A study by the Ozone Attainment Coalition says electric
power plants in the eastern U-S can meet EPA standards to
reduce emissions of nitrogen oxide without compromising the
amount of electricity to be generated this summer.
- The U-S Alliance to Save Energy says the DoE analysis of
climate change technologies for energy-efficiency homes is
seriously flawed and understates the benefits of tax credits.
- The U-S National Rural Electric Cooperative Association
wants Congress to defeat the Kyoto Protocol because 80% of
their electricity is generated by coal. Average costs would
jump from 3.2 to 5.8 cents per kWh under the plan.
- The association of accountants in Europe says international
standards for corporate accounting contain little guidance on
environmental issues, and it wants mainstream financial
reporting to incorporate environment issues.
- An advisory group to the Minister of Transportation in Japan
has recommended an automobile tax based on levels of fuel
consumption to encourage fuel-efficient cars, but the Ministry
of International Trade + Industry opposes the plan because it
would create a trade barrier with Europe.
- The U-N Environment Program says $300 billion in energy
subsidies around the world result in excessive consumption of
energy and high GHG emissions, and result in environmental
problems such as oil spills.
- Public Service Electric & Gas says air quality can be
improved if the U-S Congress regulates uniform emissions
from power plant and environmental disclosure.
- A 'green building' ordinance would mandate all municipal
facilities in San Francisco to reduce their use of energy and to
be environmentally sensitive.
- More than 200 engineering students will compete in the
1999 Ethanol Vehicle Challenge, where the goal is to optimize
a Chevrolet Silverado 4x4 pickup to run a 85% ethanol blend.
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TRENDS in RENEWABLE ENERGIES is circulated by the
Canadian Association for Renewable Energies. Many sources
are examined, and it is assumed that these sources are
credible; however, CARE is not responsible for content.
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