US solar racking industry is innovating and consolidating
With installers and developers needing to squeeze every kilowatt-hour out of every roof and project, racking and trackers are the unsung heroes that secure and tilt panels while maximizing output and protecting wiring and other gear.
Morning Brief: EV startup Nikola CEO out after SEC fraud claims, China mulls stronger clean energy goals
Also in the brief: Re-retiring Maui’s 72-year-old, 38-MW oil-fired plant — by adding more solar-plus-storage. Colorado Springs Utilities plans for a 175-MW solar farm to be coupled with a 25 MW battery storage system, all built and installed by Boulder-based juwi.
Energy Jobs: First Solar, Enel X, CELI, 7X Energy, National Grid, Terabase, i1 Energy, 8minute
Executive, career and boardroom moves in solar, storage, cleantech, utilities and energy VC.
Chinese PV Industry Brief: 1 GW of distributed solar came online in August
More than 1 GW of subsidized small solar arrays were installed in China last month alone and manufacturer Suntech has announced the start of operations at its 500 MW Indonesian cell and module fab.
Morning Brief: House Committee on Un-American Activities goes after EPA
Also in the brief: Nextracker to supply Shanghai Electric with more than 1 GW of trackers, plus Enel X, LG Chem and Smart Charge Hawaii.
More than 7,000 US schools are solar powered
A new report by Generation180, the Solar Foundation and SEIA shows that the amount of schools turning to solar energy is surging, as over 5% of the country’s K-12 schools now have some sort of PV installation.
FERC adopts big utilities’ narrative in PURPA ruling
FERC has issued a ruling on PURPA described by some as “death of a thousand cuts” for the policy that has spurred large-scale solar development across the country.
Plasma enables smaller, more powerful NMC-811 cathodes
Batteries could shrink even more with smaller crystals in the cathodes. Battery packs in electric vehicles and consumer goods could become smaller, while still offering high performance.
Morning Brief: Duke Energy reaches deal with Sunrun, Vote Solar to modernize rooftop PV in South Carolina
Also in the brief: 67-MWdc Lotus Solar Farm in Madera County, California, developed by 8minute Solar Energy, is now fully operational. Plus First Solar’s secondary offering for the Waltons, and Natron gets $20 million for battery scale-up.
The net metering debate comes to a head in Florida
After one state rep and utility front group attacked the state’s net metering policy, Florida regulators have decided to hold a workshop where opponents and proponents alike can hash out their arguments, with the life of the program potentially hanging in the balance.
