News of the day comes in the majority investment of REC Solar by Duke Energy. This follows a long stream of commercial solar developers purchased or majority owned by other utilities; NextEra/Smart Energy, NRG/Solar Power Partners, Edison International/Socore to name a few. Also Total’s large investment in Sunpower Corp. The question is what is the motive? And why is it always a purchase or majority ownership? It definitely isn’t always a distressed purchase so the reason must be something else and is it the best move for the utility?
News
- Greentech Media: Duke Energy Buys Major Stake in REC Solar, Aims to Invest $225M in Commercial PV
- LA Times: Minority groups back energy companies in fight against solar power
- Motley Fool: SolarCity and NextEra Will Triple Hawaii’s Solar Power
- Utility Dive: How utilities think they will make their money in the future
- RE World: Former FERC Chief Jon Wellinghoff Speaks Out on Grid Security and Distributed Generation
- NY Times: An Incubator for Innovation
- Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Renewable energy advocates win court case on utility solar changes
- Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Georgia House passes solar energy legislation, sends it to Senate
Opinions
Have a great day!
Yann