A record-breaking quarter for Tesla energy storage and an improvement in solar
The internet’s favorite energy company installed 530 megawatt-hours of battery storage in Q4, beating out the previous record, set last quarter, as well as showing continued improvement in solar installations.
Morning Brief: a visit to Enphase HQ, SEIA statement on New Jersey Flexible Solar Spending Cap
This morning in the brief: Solar Games rosters released, a profile on a Minnesota solar pollinator, PG&E pays Topaz in the New Year and more.
Stem, a behind-the-meter energy storage company, is for sale
Stem, a behind-the-meter energy storage startup that has raised hundreds of millions, is up for sale, according to reports in SparkSpread.
Fitch Ratings: solar outperformed wind yet again in 2019
Fitch Ratings’s 2019 Global Renewables Performance Review has found that utility-scale solar projects are still outperforming comparable wind projects in predictability of generation and revenue.
Morning Brief: City National Bank loans $15 million to Sonnedix, McCarthy hiring construction workers for Assembly Solar
Today in the brief: Maryland releases 1,800 acres of agricultural land for solar development, the San Diego Solar Experience returns for its fourth year, Sunverge raises $11 million, and more.
DC Solar owners plead guilty to Ponzi scheme, face long prison terms
The owners of DC Solar pleaded guilty to charges of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering in a Ponzi scheme that pulled in more than $900 million. Jeff Carpoff faces up to 30 years in jail, while Paulette Carpoff confronts up to 15 years.
Report: the commercial opportunity for off-grid solar power in Africa is $24 billion per year
On a continent where 600 million people have no access to electricity, “The combination of solar and fintech is driving an economic transformation.”
Lookout Solar: ‘We are the first in Indian country to develop a large-scale solar project’
Currently ranked next-to-last in solar installations, the 140-MW Lookout project could grow PV in South Dakota from 1 MW to 141 MW and provide employment in the country’s poorest county.
BlackRock vows to exit coal as part of new climate-focused investment strategy
The U.S. asset management fund’s plan to cut future investment in coal is reportedly part of a climate-focused initiative to establish sustainability at the center of its business approach. The announcement comes weeks after the investor closed $1 billion of a record $2.5 billion fund focused on PV, wind and energy storage projects.
Kresge Foundation backs solar+storage for buildings housing low-income residents
To help safeguard residents’ health and comfort during an extended power outage, a new program will provide loan guarantees for solar+storage installations that could keep cooling systems, medical equipment and refrigerators running.
