The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon
The Energy Show: By Barry Cinnamon
Great solar policy is just as important as great solar technology. Obviously we need the technologies for these products — but we also need the policies so that solar products can be cost-effectively installed. And I’m not just talking about incentives…policies related to net metering, interconnection and permitting are just as important. Getting good solar policy requires effective political lobbying. I hate to let you down, but these great energy policies did not magically spring from the brains of inspired politicians When I look back at the successes our industry has had over the years — net metering, the California Solar Initiative, Solar Tax Credits, state incentives — all of these policies were based on sound analytical research coupled with effective lobbying. There are a few companies that specialize in the types of analysis that’s required to put together good policies. One of the best is Cross Border Energy, based in Berkeley California. They provide clients with strategic advice, economic analysis and expert testimony on market and regulatory issues in the natural gas and electric industry. It is my pleasure to have Tom Beach, Principal Consultant of Cross Border Energy as our guest on this week’s Energy Show. Tom has been influential on many of California’s ground breaking energy policies. He has worked on the restructuring of the states gas and electric industries, the addition of new natural gas pipelines and storage capacity, renewable energy development, and a wide range of issues concerning California’s large independent power community. I also had the pleasure of working with Tom on the California Solar Initiative many years ago. To learn more about the energy industry, real world solar economics, and Tom’s perspective on energy regulatory issues, listen up to this week’s Energy Show.No column today, more solar news coming your way tomorrow. Have a great day!
Have a great day!
News
1 SolarWakeup:
A Tale Of Two Business Models - Could European Utilities Offer Path Forward For U.S. Counterparts?
2 Energy News Network:
In Massachusetts, solar developers linger amid financial uncertainty
4 Renewable Energy World:
New Mexico Ratepayers May Soon Enjoy Cheap Renewable Energy via the EIM
Opinions:
Have a great day!
Yann
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, long an outspoken champion of solar and other renewable energies, took one look at the Environmental Protection Agency's new plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and screamed, "Get my Press Spokesman on the phone right now!" And just like that, Cuomo announced that New York had joined the Powering Past Coal Alliance, a group of 17 nations and Washington D.C. that are committed to eliminating coal from their electricity-generation and putting a moratorium on new coal plants that don't have carbon-capture technology on them. New York is the first U.S. state to join, although all the provinces of Canada (as well as the federal government of Canada) have already joined. The only other U.S. representative currently in the group is, somewhat ironically, Washington D.C., the epicenter of the pro-coal EPA policies that drove Cuomo to make his announcement.[wds id="3"]
In announcing the decision, Cuomo said:
The future of our environment, our economy and our children is at stake, and New York will not let President Trump take us backward. Today I am proud to announce that New York will join the Powering Past Coal Alliance to share our expertise and experience and continue to lead the fight against dirty and dangerous fossil fuels. With our bold mandate to close all coal-fired power plants by 2020 and our nation-leading commitment to renewables, we are already at the forefront of the clean energy revolution and we will not go back.It is true that New York has come a long way in its clean-energy goals and its commitment to clean energy. With 16 other governors, Cuomo helped form the U.S. Climate Alliance, a group that has been working to promote clean energy as a way of protesting the U.S. decision to pull out of the Paris Climate Accord. Under Cuomo, it has also set a renewable portfolio standard (RPS) of getting 50% of its electricity from renewable resources by 2030, one of the most aggressive RPS's in the Northeast. New York's decision to join the Powering Past Coal Alliance just goes to show how wrong-headed many leaders believe the new pro-coal policies of the EPA are. Look for other states to consider joining the Alliance now that New York had set the pace.
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent
Two separate pieces today by Bloomberg New Energy Finance illustrate the ever-increasing gap between how utilities in Europe and the United States view distributed generation. In Europe, research suggests that utilities have come to the realization that distributed generation like solar and wind are becoming what electricity consumers want and, if they expect to thrive into the future, are what utilities will have to provide. In the United States, on the other hand, utilities continue to invest in centralized distribution and can't figure out why those investments aren't allowing them to make the money they have in the past. Go figure.[wds id="3"]
Albert Cheung, head of analysis for Bloomberg NEF, tackles the European side of the issue, saying utilities in those countries are looking at distributed generation as a boon, not a competitor. After all, utilities have the built-in customer bases and expertise to continue offering electricity to their customers even if it's in a distributed form. Their trusted brand name, after all, carries a lot of weight with consumers. After writing that utilities in Europe appear to be banking on this model, he writes:
If ... the value lies in having both scale and a local presence, with a dash of technical and market complexity thrown in, then it may be that our hypotheses prove valid, and that utilities will lead the way into a brave new future of decentralized energy.Can the same be said in the United States? In fact, at the moment, I can think of at least three situations (without breaking a sweat) where utilities are actively fighting distributed generation because they view it as competition rather than an opportunity. Most utilities in the United States are more interested in investing in technology they know rather than what technology the future will support. And the rub is this: Their customers aren't buying it any longer. From BNEF:
Regulated power companies make money by earning a return on capital investments. The business model is simple: the more they spend, the more they earn, all else equal. But investments and profits are ultimately paid for by customers, and sales have not kept pace. Is the utility business model broken?The simple answer to that final question is yes, and it doesn't take looking in Europe to find that answer. Even in this country, those utilities that have embraced distributed renewable resources like solar and wind are thriving; those fighting a rear-guard action for nuclear and fossil fuels are not. It's time for the utility model in the United States to change and change significantly - and perhaps European utilitiescompanies that have already embraced distributed generation could show the way forward. More: Cheung: Decentralized Energy and Flexibility: Reasons to Believe U.S. Utility Investment is Booming, but Sales Are Not Keeping Up