Finance

This year’s version of Berkeley Lab’s Tracking the Sun report saw residential installs fall 6% to $3.50 / W, small business fall 11% to $2.90 / W and large business fell 5% to $2.20 /W in 2017, with light changes in early 2018. However, these averages cover wide price variances in different markets.

A joint venture of Sol Systems and Nationwide Insurance has purchased 135 MW-DC of solar projects from Cypress Creek Renewables in North Carolina.

The board of the Arizona utility has approved a $50k donation to fight a ballot initiative to move the state to 50% renewable electricity by 2030, even though SRP would not be directly subject to the mandate.

Fluence Energy has given guidance on optimizing solar module loading ratios, suggesting that a 1.9:1 DC:AC solar panel to inverter ratio, in defined circumstances, makes economic sense with integrated DC-coupled energy storage.

The largest planned solar power plant east of the Rocky Mountains at 500 MW-AC has signed PPAs for all of its planned production with Microsoft, the University of Richmond, and a consortium of businesses including Apple.

Energy Impact Partners, who partners with 14 electric utilities, has raised $681 million to continue investing in technologies that have a high probability of influencing the future power grid.

Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners have started construction on their Misae and Sage solar power projects, located in Texas and Utah and sized 240 MW-AC and 58 MW-AC, respectively.

kWh Analytics and Swiss Re have structured a deal with GCL New Energy and PNC Bank for 50 MW of solar projects financed using the Solar Revenue Put to guarantee 95% of solar generation.

The Colorado PUC has voted to provide initial approval of a plan to retire 660 MW of coal early and not build any new gas, instead constructing over 1 GW of wind, 700 MW of solar and 275 MW / 1.0 GWh of energy storage.

The company’s shares have returned to a level slightly above where they were prior to the August 7 announcement.