2018 Was A “Fulcrum Year” For Renewable Energy In The US

Donald Trump can huff and puff until he is blue in the face about the wonders of burning coal to make electricity, but experts in the field of renewable energy tell Inside Climate News that 2018 was a “fulcrum year” for energy generation in the United States. The old paradigm that has been in place for 100 years was ushered out and replaced with a new paradigm that will prevail into the foreseeable future.

“2018 has been a turning point, as some utilities are beginning to make decisions based on the market of the future rather than that of the past,” says Howard Learner, president and executive director of the Environmental Law & Policy Center. The Midwestern states are ground zero for the transition to renewable energy. “In the Midwest in particular, renewable energy is a win-win for utilities and the ratepayers at this point,” says Travis Miller, director of utilities research at Morningstar.

Build a Bridge, Not a Wall: Us Companies Have Renewable Energy Opportunities in Mexico

You might think the people of Texas are thrilled to hear the current president threaten to shut down the US government on December 7th if Congress doesn’t give him $5 billion to build a wall along the border with Mexico, where everyone is a dangerous criminal, a rapist, or a murderer. Since Texas has a border with Mexico that stretches 1,254 miles and has 28 international bridges and other crossings, surely it favors such a wall, doesn’t it?

Not necessarily. It turns out many people in Texas see the people on the other side of the border as neighbors, not mortal enemies intent on slaughtering them in their sleep. According to an op-ed in the Dallas Morning News written by Carlos Torres-Verdin, now is the perfect time to leverage some of the experience Texas has acquired in renewable energy — especially wind power — by sharing it with Mexico. There’s money to be made, and Mexico has recently elected a new president and a new mayor of Mexico City who are strong renewable energy advocates. Torres-Verdin is a professor of petroleum and geosystems engineering in the Cockrell School of Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin.

7 Incoming Governors Strongly Support Renewable Energy Goals

Two-thirds of voters in Arizona fell prey to one of the most vicious disinformation campaigns in the annals of US politics last month. Bombarded by more than $25 million worth of lies bought and paid for by local utility company Arizona Public Service, they turned thumbs down on a proposal that would have required the state to obtain 50% of its electricity from renewable energy sources — not including nuclear — by 2030.

Arizona’s loss is several other states’ gain, however. Incoming governors in Connecticut, Maine, Colorado, Illinois,  Nevada, New Mexico, and Oregon have all pledged to beef up their state’s renewable energy goals, according to a report by PV Magazine.

Scottish Power to Invest in Solar Energy for the First Time

Big six firm to focus exclusively on renewables, adding solar power to its windfarms

Scottish Power, one of Britain’s biggest energy companies, has said it will invest in solar power for the first time as part of its move away from fossil fuels.

The big six firm sold off its last gas-fired power stations to Drax Group this week to focus exclusively on renewables, which today consists of onshore and offshore windfarms.

But Keith Anderson, the company’s chief executive, told the Guardian he had decided to move into solar, too.

No Longer a Novelty, Clean Energy Technologies Boom All Across the US

A new report documents the democratization of renewables, energy storage and electric vehicles in America.

 It was 1997, and stakeholders were working hard to help craft the first renewable energy standard in the State of Massachusetts, which ultimately passed as part of an electric utility restructuring act. At that time, the notion that Massachusetts would be one of the top solar states in the country was almost laughable, recalls Rob Sargent, who currently leads the energy program at Environment America.

Today, renewable energy is taking off in virtually every state in the nation.

The State(s) of Distributed Solar

2017 Year-End Update

Energy production from renewable sources continues to expand in the U.S. at a rapid clip, thanks in no small part to the substantial growth of solar energy—and distributed solar in particular—in recent years. More states than ever are making solar a priority. But where have these gains been greatest, and what are the economic implications for residents from one state to the next?

New Bipartisan Legislation Would Repeal Trump’s Solar Tariffs

“I don’t know what good can possibly come as a consequence of stifling the growth of solar power.”

A bipartisan group of lawmakers has introduced legislation that would throw out Trump administration tariffs on imported solar products.

"Under this legislation, duties and tariffs would default back to previous rates and would allow companies that imported any affected solar products under this new tariff to receive retroactive reimbursement," according to a press release. 

California Sets Two New Solar Records

The escalating integration of solar has created “a new operating paradigm” for California’s grid operator, although the escalation is now on hold.

Mild temperatures and sunny skies helped California set two new solar records in recent days.

On Sunday, March 4, the California Independent System Operator saw an all-time peak percentage of demand served by solar, hitting a record 49.95 percent at 12:58 p.m. That's up from the previous peak of 47.2 percent set on May 14, 2017. 

"The record is a result of a cool, sunny day," Anne Gonzales, senior public information officer at CAISO, wrote in an email.

How Will BLM’s Final Rule On Renewables Impact Wind Energy?

In support of the president’s Climate Action Plan, Secretary of the Interior (DOI) Sally Jewell has announced that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) finalized its rule governing solar and wind energy development on public lands.

According to the BLM, the rule strengthens existing policies and creates a new leasing program that will support renewable energy development through competitive leasing processes and incentives to encourage development in suitable areas.

200 'Power Farmers' to Light Up Uttarakhand, India With Solar Energy

Around 200 individuals in the state will now be known as 'power farmers', thanks to Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (UREDA) that has roped in natives to set up solar power generation plants on their land.

Around 200 individuals in the state will now be known as 'power farmers', thanks to Uttarakhand Renewable Energy Development Agency (UREDA) that has roped in natives to set up solar power generation plants on their land. These farmers will directly supply the renewable energy to the state government at a fixed price of Rs 4.35 per unit.

Gov. Baker Signs Bill Lifting Solar Energy Caps in Massachusetts

A new state law could jumpstart stalled solar energy projects in Massachusetts.

The measure given final approval by lawmakers last week and signed Monday by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker raises caps on the state’s net metering program. Net metering allows homeowners, solar developers and municipal governments to sell excess power they generate back to the electrical grid in exchange for credit.

New Law Could Limit Expansion of Renewable Solar Power in Maine

Owners of solar energy businesses in Maine, and people supporting solar power, say they are worried the Legislature could take away a law that helps pay for those systems.

Solar owners can sell some of their electricity into the grid, through a process  called “net metering”.

Those rules determine how much utilities will pay for that power and how much they will buy.  

In South Korea, Auto Plants Being Put to Use for Solar Power Production

Power companies now required to have renewable energy account for a certain portion of their output

Large factory sites for domestic automobile assembly and production are being utilized for solar power generation.

A shift in Seoul’s renewable energy policy from subsidies to renewable portfolio standards (RPS) has prompted power companies to make use of the large lots available at car plants. The automakers, for their part, stand to gain by acquiring future emissions rights cheaper from the power companies.

GM Korea began power production on Mar. 11 with a 11.5-megawatt solar power facility at its Changwon plant. The facility, which is capable of producing up to 14,000 megawatt-hours of electricity, was built with solar panels on the plant roof and parking area. Plant production and management are carried out by KC Cottrell in conjunction with Korea Southern Power and other partners, while GM Korea supplies the site.

Utilities Cry “Fowl” Over Duck Chart And Distributed Solar Power

The rapid changes to the electricity system being wrought by distributed solar have utilities crying out, and they’ve poured much of their distributed solar angst into a chart being shared throughout the energy nerdocracy – the duck.

The Duck Chart, Showing Net Supply/Demand on the California Grid in 2012-13, Forecast through 2020

Until 2012, daily energy demand looked like a two-humped “camel,” with peaks mid-morning and early evening. Utility operated power plants supplied most of the needed energy. But the substitution of local solar power to meet local energy needs affects the demand for mid-day energy from the grid. The daily demand curve transforms, from a camel (orange line) to a (forecast) “duck” (bottom green line).

Here Comes the Sun: Rooftop Solar Panels Get Jump-Start in Illinois

Call it Illinois' welcome to SolarCity.

A compromise measure has surfaced in Springfield that's aimed at jump-starting the market in Illinois for solar panels on homeowners' rooftops, a much more common sight in states like Arizona and California. 

The new amendment to the bill, HB 2427, would require the Illinois Power Agency, which procures 

electricity on behalf of utility customers statewide, to buy up $30 million in electricity from clean sources, mainly solar installations.

BSW-Solar to Challenge Proposed Solar PV Self-Consumption Charge in Court

Germany's Solar Industry Association (BSW-Solar) has announced that it will challenge government plans to impose the surcharge according to the renewable energy act (EEG) on solar photovoltaic (PV) systems which supply electricity directly to their owners in the nation's Constitutional Court.

The German Federal Cabinet approved changes to the the renewable energy act including applying a portion of the surcharge on green electricity to solar power self-consumption systems, on April 8th, 2014. The bill still must go to the German Parliament (Bundestag) and the Federal Council (Bundesrat).

Remodeling: Solar Power Succeeds in Whatcom County, Washington State, Thanks to Metering Law, Incentives

When Dana Brandt started installing solar panels on homes in Bellingham nine years ago, people wondered what was next - screen doors for submarines?

"You can imagine what people say," says Brandt, sitting in the conference room at his company, Ecotech, on a cloudy December day.

The northwest corner of the Pacific Northwest is famous for its winter gloom, and there's not much energy to be had from the sun that time of year. But as it turned out, Brandt was on to something. Whatcom County is a good place to go solar.

Marty Touts Renewable Energy Law as a Key Victory of 2013 Session

Dozens of new laws passed by the Minnesota State Legislature took effect earlier this month (July) including a $1.50 cigarette hike to pay for the new Vikings stadium and more than $130 million appropriated for all-day kindergarten.

But among those new laws that Roseville state senator John Marty is most proud of and considers a key success of the 2013 session: The renewable energy law.

India Combats Energy Poverty Through Renewable Sources

India’s energy program is extremely interesting, given the sheer size of its electrical grid and the dire necessity to develop additional forms of electric generation.  Overall, it is the fourth-largest energy consumer in the world behind the US, China and Russia.  Yet over 300 million citizens in India function without electricity and over 800 million remain with limited electrical access.  What’s worse is 300,000-400,000 deaths occur each year from energy poverty, as burning traditional things like wood and animal waste indoors for cooking purposes lead to respiratory ailments that would be mitigated with better electrical services

Japan's Feed-In-Tariff System for Clean Energy Mired in Regulations

The nuclear disaster in Japan two years ago ignited a push to develop a new and clean energy industry, but those efforts are being stymied by a raft of regulations.

As part of its policy goal to diversify supply, the government introduced a feed-in-tariff system last July to kick-start the market for renewable energy.