Energy is approximately a $14 TRILLION per year global industry…

But, in transitioning from fossil fuels to renewable forms of energy are we trading our dependence on oil for a dependence upon another limited resource?

Unfortunately, the answer may be YES!

Setting the Stage

Renewable energy companies worldwide will remember 2011 as a dark time in their history; the failing of Solyndra symbolizes that market volatility, and 2012 no doubt started with trepidation

Whereas no one can credibly argue with the fact that high technology renewables A.K.A. new renewables (small hydro, modern biomass, wind, solar, geothermal, and biofuels) will provide a major source of electricity in the not so distant future, the cause for alarm signaled by Solyndra’s abrupt bankruptcy is justified.

Solyndra is the poster child for ‘the world cannot compete with the Chinese’!  But it’s not what you may be thinking -  it’s not labor costs nor is it regulation.  Solyndra was developing a solar technology that is based upon the use of rare and precious metals as the feedstock for its solar panel technology, and this natural resource is as essential to the semiconductor industry as petroleum is to the automobile industry.  Unfortunately, as the renewable energy markets continue to expand, so does their use of these rare materials. The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that clean energy technologies (which include photovoltaic (PV) cells, wind turbines, electric vehicles, Li-ion batteries, fuel cells and fluorescent lighting) now account for approximately 20% of the global consumption of “critical materials,” including the rare-earth elements and other key elements such as platinum, palladium,  indium, gallium, tellurium, cobalt, and lithium.

With new renewables accounting for only 3% of final energy consumption worldwide, rising demand has already exposed uncertainties in the supply chains of these metals.  

3% of energy production consuming 20% of rare metals!

The fact is there may not be enough of these rare metals to facilitate our transition from petroleum to renewable sources of energy. 

And adding to the gloomy outlook, China, which currently produces around 97% of the global supply, is implementing draconian controls over its formerly under-regulated rare-earths industry.  In an unprecedented move, the Chinese government cut their exports by72% in early 2010 and a further 11 % in the first half of 2011.  It also introduced tough domestic pollution controls in late 2010 that are likely to further restrict rare-earth extraction and processing.  As a result, 2010 saw price increases of 300–700% for various rare-earth elements.

Whereas policymakers have responded with a variety of measures aimed at stabilizing the rare-earth risk expanding rare earth mining activities, and investing in large stockpiles of these strategic minerals, what most fail to understand is that there will never be enough of these metals to go around.  Because of their geochemical properties, rare earth elements are typically dispersed throughout the earth’s crust and not often found in concentrated and economically exploitable forms. It was the very scarcity of these minerals (previously called "earths") that led to the term "rare earth"

By pursuing rare-earth-based renewable technologies we are simply trading one type of foreign dependence for another.

So here we are, long beholding to foreign powers for petroleum – and newly dependent on foreign powers for green energy.  National security issues (direct defense needs and indirect dependency issues) once again rise to the fore, and the Defense Department, Government Accountability Office, House Science and Technology Committee and others are busily issuing reports, holding hearings and expressing consternation. 

Where Can Renewable Energy Go From Here?

Fortunately the solution is already at hand.

Specialty ‘organic’ chemicals are pure, single chemical substances that are commercially produced in a laboratory with chemical reactions for highly specialized applications. The chemicals produced can be categorized into active pharmaceutical ingredients and their intermediates, biocides, and specialty chemicals for technical applications.

Although many organic chemicals have come from petroleum feed-stocks, chemists have also developed ways to use raw materials that are renewable rather than depleting. Renewable feed-stocks are often made from agricultural products or are the wastes of other processes.

The major advantage to using organic compounds is that they can be manufactured in a laboratory (anywhere in the world) from readily available and renewable feed-stocks.   Thus, technologies based upon organic materials cannot ultimately be controlled for economic or political advantage. 

Another advantage of using organic chemicals is that the chemical industry, a more than $1 trillion per year global industry, is a very mature, stable and diverse industry.  With more than 170 major US chemical companies, which operate more than 2,800 facilities, supply disruptions are rare.  The U.S. industry records large trade surpluses and employs more than a million people in the United States alone.

In Europe, especially Germany, the chemical, plastics and rubber sectors are among the largest industrial sectors.  Together they generate about 3.2 million jobs in more than 60,000 companies. Since 2000 the chemical sector alone has represented 2/3 of the entire manufacturing trade surplus of the EU. The chemical sector accounts for 12% of the EU manufacturing industry's added value.

The chemical industry has also shown rapid growth for more than fifty years.  Historically and presently the chemical industry has been concentrated in three areas of the world, Western Europe, North America and Japan (the Triad). The chemical industry is, however, truly a global industry, which has been seeing significant growth in China, India, Korea, the Middle East, South East Asia, Nigeria, and Brazil.

ODIN Power: A Reliable Renewable Energy Company

Welcome to ODIN Industries’ Energy Technologies Program, a multi-year technical plan, prepared by the management and advisors of ODIN Industries, LLC.    This document describes the rationale, approaches, and results we expect to achieve in making solar energy systems a greater part of our energy landscape. 

Over the next 5 years and beyond, ODIN Industries will be engaged in the development, manufacturing and installation of off-grid  solar systems; solar photovoltaic (PV) cells for the direct generation of electricity, and fuel cells for the storage of excess electricity produced by the PV cell for use when the sun is not shining.  In combination, these two components will form the basis for a distributive generation (DG)  company, tentatively called ‘ODIN Power’ that can deliver reliable sources of base-load power; the amount of electricity needed to meet minimum demands within a given area.  Though the marriage of these two technologies makes sense from a business point of view, putting ODIN Power ahead of other companies who focus solely on energy production, it also makes sense from a scientific and engineering point of view.  It turns out that advanced solar PV- and fuel-cell technologies both use the same ‘interchangeable part’ as their key component.  Thus, advances realized in one product-line within ODIN Power can be quickly transferred to the other.  This synergistic exchange of information between seemingly different technologies will drive innovation much more quickly than can be achieved in a segregated electricity production or storage company, and give ODIN Power the ability to commercialize DG energy systems without having to adopt third party technologies as key components.

Most importantly, however, ODIN Power will not be just another renewable energy start-up with good marketing and manufacturing ideas that can be copied by its competitors or controlled by the Chinese.   Whereas there a dozens of separate solar PV and fuel cell start-ups, ODIN Power will occupy the position that the Ford Motor Company occupied at the turn of the 20th century – it is the only company that possesses the exclusive rights to the technology for the mass production of the industry’s key components.

This is a significant advantage for ODIN Power.  Platinum, for example, is an essential component for the manufacture of a traditional fuel cell – imagine if one fuel cell company not only manufactured the fuel cell, but it also owned all of the world’s platinum mines!  

ODIN Industries’ interchangeable components are built using specialty organic chemicals, pure single chemical substances that are commercially produced in a laboratory.  The key advantage to using organic compounds (as opposed to using rare or precious metals) is that they can be manufactured in a laboratory from readily available and renewable feed-stocks.   Thus, technologies based upon organic materials cannot ultimately be controlled for economic or political advantage by countries that may not have the world’s best interests in mind.  

Moreover, the chemical industry, a more than $1 trillion per year global industry, is a very mature, stable and diverse industry.  With more than 170 major US chemical companies, which operate more than 2,800 facilities, supply disruptions are rare. 

Finally, our approach is based on a rigorous analytical foundation that addresses questions of market opportunities, energy systems, individual system components, and external economic and policy factors.  We believe that this approach can help balance our portfolio while continuing to measure our progress toward our quantitative objectives.  Our programmatic activities are dynamic and are continually re-evaluated based on energy market issues, and technology progress.  To this end, this document will be revised on a regular basis.

Revenue will be derived from the sale of photovoltaic cells, fuel cells, photovoltaic and fuel cell systems, whole system solutions (such as surgical suites for rapid deployment in disaster regions), related equipment, sales of material products related to these products (such as macrocycles), installation, support and maintenance contracts, contract research and development, private label manufacturing, and from the sale of licenses to select products that have been developed internally.  

Thank you for your interest in ODIN Industries’ Energy Technologies Program. We look forward to working together toward a brighter solar future! 

Thomas E. Johnson, Ph.D. 

Chief Executive Officer

ODIN Industries, LLC

To learn more about ODIN, please contact us. We welcome the opportunity to speak with you.

Mr. Billy Fowler

Chief Global Strategist

1 (770) 367-1610

BTF@ODINIndustries.com