John Fitzgerald Weaver
Morning Brief: Florida munis ask for a second serving of solar, New York bets on batteries
Welcome to the Tuesday morning brief. Today we’ve got ACORE’s assurance that losing the ITC won’t be catastrophic, Origis’ new operations center, an EDF-Array partnership, and more.
Morning Brief: Renewably powered Wildcats and a six-project shopping spree for the US Solar Fund
Welcome back to your workweek and to the pv magazine morning brief. Today we’ve got National Grid on the project approval train, a microgrid in in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and more!
Arizona regulators mock utility, set solar power standard contract at 18 years long – is a PURPA solar boom coming?
For the first time, the state’s public utility commission has created a standard contract length for PURPA solar projects — in stark contrast to utility APS requesting a two-year term.
Hardware brief: California battery discounts, Dr. Nick!, commercial rooftop bifacial data, more!
It’s beginning to look a like fourth quarter solar rush headache time…so relax, check out some solar gear and services! Silicon and module pricing is down a touch, SMA energy storage systems approved in California, and there’s also a Fronius & BYD hook up!
California seeks $600 million+ for battery backups in “high fire threat districts”
Regulators are focusing 63% of the $1.2 billion SGIP energy storage incentive fund on those most affected by the power grid shutdowns, specifically risk electricity users with medical conditions, critical locations within communities, or those who have had multiple power shutdowns already.
A way to achieve greater than 100% solar power in the U.S., without sacrificing Arizona
Elon Musk is back at his favorite projection – powering the U.S. with a 10,000 square mile solar project in the middle of the desert, but by combining projections of various research groups, we see a better way.
Fed and state regulators are pressuring PURPA, responses are being filed
A group of organizations representing Southeastern rate payers are arguing against proposed changes to PURPA by FERC, noting – among other items – that long term contracts at fixed, publicly available pricing is necessary to fight against the monopoly power of local utilities.
US research lab rewires solar cell increasing efficiency to 27.3%, sees path to greater than 32%
NREL has published a paper showing an experimental solar cell, with a unique technique for wiring two separate solar cells into one, that increased the cell’s efficiency by 4%. As well the document offer a respectable review of other technologies being developed.
MIT sees wind+solar going big, dreams of nuclear, forgets batteries exist
Researchers see wind and solar headed to over 40% of US electricity generation, even without major national policy. However, analysts project that beyond 40%, the intermittent nature of these sources will drive costs higher without nuclear power than with it.
Solar tariff talks on the menu – bifacial exemption extended and ITC argued
Federal regulators upheld the bifacial solar module import tariff as a public good, and potential protector of irreparable harm against solar developers. Concurrently, the trade courts reviewed the solar module import tariff as a whole, with some groups stating module manufacturing showed success, while solar cell manufacturing hasn’t been helped.
