The U.S. government on Tuesday awarded $550 million in grants to develop renewable energy projects to help double U.S. renewable energy production over the next few years, an Obama administration goal.

The grants will pay cash to companies in lieu of tax credits to support solar, wind, biomass and other renewable energy production facilities.

The Canadian Wind Energy Association is holding its annual conference and trade show in Toronto this week. It is expected to draw more than 2,000 attendees, 200 exhibitors and more than 100 speakers.

Below are facts about wind power in Canada:

Lake Turkana Wind Power (LTWP), a firm planning to build a 300 MW windfarm in Kenya, said on Tuesday it had signed an exclusivity deal with Denmark's Vestas and would be signing a final agreement in October.

LTWP intends to erect at least 353 wind turbines, each with a capacity of 850 KW, which will be procured from the world's biggest maker of wind turbines, Vestas Wind Systems A/S.

Poking out of the ground near the smokestacks of the Mountaineer power plant here are two wells that look much like those that draw natural gas to the surface. But these are about to do something new: inject a power plant

Canada's wind power companies are getting a lift from rising oil prices, a healthier economy and energy-friendly government policies, even as tight capital markets continue to curb the recovery of the fledgling sector.

Denmark on Thursday inaugurated the world's biggest offshore wind farm in time to serve as a showcase of its green technological prowess before a global climate conference in Copenhagen in December.

The 91-turbine Horns Rev 2 wind farm off the west coast of Jutland in the North Sea will generate enough electricity for 200,000 Danish households.

The European Union's executive will next month publish its strategy for promoting hi-tech solutions to climate change, aiming to give European businesses a head start as the world switches to low-carbon energy.

A draft document obtained by Reuters gives insight into the European Commission's priorities.

Germany's cabinet on Wednesday adopted a plan to speed along the construction of offshore wind parks in the North Sea, paving the way for a targeted 25,000 megawatts of capacity to come on line by 2030.

Green Infra Ltd (GIL), an independent power producer (IPP), has announced the acquisition of energy giant BP Energy India Pvt Ltd

South African industry needs to tap its 2,000 MW co-generation potential to avoid another power crisis, but is facing pricing and regulatory hurdles, an industry official said on Wednesday.

Dave Long, a former regional manager at paper maker Sappi, said that despite a battle lasting years the industry has not been able to sell any cogenerated power so far.