Balcony solar comes to California
Bright Saver, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, aims to bring the European balcony solar trend to U.S. homes with low-cost, plug-in systems that require no interconnection and no permits in some jurisdictions.
Finance and construction updates from 2 GWh of batteries
Spearmint Energy has secured $252 million funding for a battery energy storage system (BESS) in Texas, Trina is supplying a 371 MWh BESS in Houston, EDF has sourced long-term funding for an operational site in California, and Strata and Power Sustainable Energy Infrastructure Inc. (PSEI) have broken ground on a solar-plus-storage project in Arizona.
California community solar project to save income-qualified residents 20% on electric bills
The Dos Palos Clean Power project in Merced County is providing low-cost, clean energy to residents in disadvantaged communities.
Berkeley report endorses all-electric fire rebuilding
Study finds all-electric reconstruction of California’s fire-ravaged towns, compared with “dual-fuel” rebuilding with electricity and natural gas, is cheaper, faster, healthier and safer.
California community solar bill would lower costs for all with no cost-shift
A study by Aurora Research finds that AB 1260 would bring multiple benefits to all ratepayers in California including reducing peak demand while also avoiding expensive infrastructure upgrades.
California proposes break to rooftop solar contracts, raising average bills $63
Over one million California households that invested in rooftop solar may have their net metering contracts rescinded under the proposed bill AB 942.
California schools and municipalities need to move fast to secure solar net metering
Public entities like schools, local government buildings, public water treatment plants have until April 2026 to install and interconnect solar projects to secure more lucrative net energy metering rates.
National battery fire standards being pushed for consideration
The American Clean Power Association is pushing for greater safety standardization in the energy storage industry, guided by the National Fire Protection Association, and their under development NFPA 855 standard.
California battery dominance coming into view
The Golden State is deploying energy storage at an exponential pace, doubling capacity every 1.2 years according to a California physicist. This raises a critical question for the state’s renewable future: what happens next?
