Land Of Complicated Energy Policy. 3 years ago, I hosted a SolarWakeup Live! event in Chicago as the last energy bill made its way to reality. But politics in Illinois has never been easy and there is another clean energy bill trying to make its way to fruition. The top story today digs into whether that can happen.
Transformation Is Difficult. NextEra, the utility turned clean energy giant thanks to its amazing corporate capital, has been the leading voice commenting on the energy transition. 15 years ago you heard from Florida Power & Light that nuclear was the only way forward and that Florida was too cloudy for solar. Fast forward and they were the first utility to say that solar plus storage was cheaper than combined cycle gas plants. The company has been successful in regulated and deregulated markets while also building one of the deepest C&I solar portfolios in the Country. The sentiment today is that the energy transition is a messy transformation but 10 years from now will look obvious to where we started. I agree with the additional comment that it’s messy today because the markets and incumbents are clinging on to yesteryears.
Oil Majors Have A Moment. Andy Karsner, the former Bush 43 DOE official, has a write-up in the Washington Post as he joins Exxon as the third elected director nominated by an activist investor focused on Exxon joining the energy transition. Shell gets their own spotlight in the New York Times though you’ve seen Shell get involved in our industry through their acquisition of Sonnen and Silicon Ranch. I have written extensively that the oil majors are uniquely situated for the electrification since they are much more active in energy trading than the current electric utilities. That trading gives them insights to the ‘new pipe’ of electricity and expanding their well portfolios to more renewable generation.
Strategy Without Execution. Los Angeles wants to be the greenest city in America but it seems to me that more often than not, what they want to do is not followed up with the appropriate sentiment in policy or lobbying. LA is still one of the slowest solar markets in California with onerous rules and regulations for putting solar on homes, just ask Bill Maher for his experience. Strategy without execution is just bullshit, you have to lead with action, not words.
- Canary Media: Will Illinois finally manage to pass this massive clean energy bill?
- Utility Dive: In 10 years, the energy transformation will look simple. For now, ‘it can feel like a slog,’ says NextEra VP
- Washington Post: Why has Andy Karsner frightened the mighty ExxonMobil?
- New York Times: Shell Gets Greener, Even as Climate Advocates Say, ‘Go Faster’
- Reuters: From solar jobs to electric cars, Los Angeles seeks green future for all
- Axios: What to watch as infrastructure talks heat up
- PV-Tech: FERC seeks to establish Federal-State task force to support US transmission development
- RMI: Simple Tax Changes Can Unleash Clean Energy Deployment
- PV-Magazine: Two Duke IRPs shot down by South Carolina regulators
Opinion
Best, Yann