Ebay installs solar panels after Utah lobbying victory

Ebay has installed its largest renewable energy project - a 665 kW solar installation at its Topaz data center in South Jordan, Utah - enabled by a recent legislative victory. Senate Bill 12, signed into law on March 21, allows companies to buy and transmit power directly from renewable energy developers. 

Ebay lobbied for the law with an association of data center professionals representing 1,000 companies in 66 countries, including Google, Oracle, Twitter and Adobe. The Utah legislation is free-market based, giving choice to major energy users when it comes to sourcing their energy, according to Mindy Lubber, president of investor advocacy organization Ceres, writing in Forbes. That reduces exposure to fossil fuel prices and increases a company's ability to control energy costs, Lubber said. 

Utah: Bill seeks up to 75 percent tax credit for alternative energy

A Utah Senate committee approved a bill Friday that would specify state tax credits for alternative-energy producers and shift the program to the new Office of Energy Development.

SB65, sponsored by Sen. Stuart Adams, R-Layton, would award credits starting at 20 percent and going up to 75 percent for 20 to 30 years, depending on the duration of a project’s energy production. It would apply to everything from renewables to oil shale, tar sands and nuclear.

Report finds U.S. states energy policies improving

U.S. states are continuing to embrace best practices and drive further improvements in core renewable energy policies, according to the 2011 edition of Freeing the Grid, a policy guide that grades all 50 states on net metering and interconnection procedures.

The report's methodology was adopted for use in the U.S. Department of Energy's SunShot initiative, according to the Network for New Energy Choices, which produced the report in cooperation with Vote Solar, the Interstate Renewable Energy Council, and the North Carolina Solar Center.