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.
Duke Energy, developers and regulators advance solar in the Carolinas with ‘queue reform’ and cluster studies
To address developers’ frustrations with its interconnection process, Duke Energy worked with solar industry associations to map out a second proposal aimed at rationalizing its interconnection process in 2022, after the existing queue is cleared.
For lower-cost Southeast power, double the solar and add wholesale power trading
A lower-cost grid would reach 22% renewable generation in 2040, compared to the 5% currently planned by Southeastern utilities, says a study from Energy Innovation and Vibrant Clean Energy. Wholesale power trading through an independent system operator would also help reduce costs.
Southeast states to add nearly 15 GW of solar by 2023
South Carolina is set to surpass North Carolina in solar watts per customer. Georgia and Florida will exceed the Southeast average, while utilities in Tennessee, Alabama and Mississippi will continue to lag. Overall the states will reach 5% solar generation by 2023.
Morning Brief: Best Buy’s big solar installation, Massachusetts’ largest landfill project
Also in the brief: SolarEdge is set to launch the company’s newest product, Stem Inc has launched its first solar+storage independent power producer site, PCL Construction Services has begun work on the 20 MW Odom Solar Farm and more.
Morning Brief: solar for South Carolina and batteries for Texas
Also in the brief: SolarEdge is expanding its residential and commercial power optimizer portfolio, Monterey Bay Community Power will help local school districts buy electric buses, L7 Drive has launched an energy management platform and more.
Morning Brief: natural gas company to go solar, Duke receives 2 GW of proposals
Also in the brief: Q Cells and Silfab achieve top performer rating in the 2020 PV Module Reliability Scorecard, Tigo sues APS.
Pollinator-friendly solar: a feel-good way to make projects cleaner and greener
Opposition to solar project siting can be turned into broad support by designing projects with “pollinator-friendly” landscaping — a trend gaining momentum across the country.
The Southeast has become a dual peaking region
The Southern Alliance for Clean Energy has made that determination after studying the annual maximum peaks for 22 different utility planning authorities over from 1998 to 2018.
US solar hits near record employment as Southeast shines
The solar industry, which represents 2.6% of overall U.S. electricity generation, already employs twice as many workers as the U.S. coal industry.
