This is your SolarWakeup for October 7th, 2024
Storms Are Coming. Florida is about to go on a storm spree, or at least the weather forecasters say so. Helene ravaged the west coast and panhandle before leaving devastating flooding in Western North Carolina. This week we get a visit from Milton, including myself with an expected foot of rain and some see another storm next week. It’s wet!
Pay It Forward. Our friends in the Southeast, especially Western North Carolina got crushed by Hurricane Helene. The good folks at the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) has setup a donation fund to help with those affected. https://energync.org/disaster-relief-fund/ if you have the ability to give.
News
1 Axios:
Hurricane Milton
2 PV-Tech:
Xcel Energy advances 2024 Resource Plan to add 3.6GW new renewables
3 Financial Times:
Indian companies move in as US cuts China out of its solar industry
4 Utility Dive:
DOE selects 3-GW Pattern Energy transmission project linking ERCOT, Southeast for capacity buy
5 BLoomberg:
North Carolina Quartz Mine Owner Says Helene Damage Was Minimal
6 Energy Storage News:
European Commission approves support for ‘at least 5.4GWh’ of electricity storage in Poland
8 PV-Magazine:
Lithium-ion battery market to top $400 billion in 2035
Opinions:
9 New York Times:
Chasing Down a Trail of Climate Conspiracies
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for October 4th, 2024
Happy New Year! For those of that celebrate Rosh Hashanah, Happy New Year!
Pay It Forward. Our friends in the Southeast, especially Western North Carolina got crushed by Hurricane Helene. The good folks at the North Carolina Sustainable Energy Association (NCSEA) has setup a donation fund to help with those affected. https://energync.org/disaster-relief-fund/ if you have the ability to give.
News
1 Axios:
View from space shows path of power outages from Hurricane Helene
2 Reuters:
US funds four power grid projects with $1.5 billion
3 BLoomberg:
New Solar to Meet Most of Europe’s Power Demand Growth in Winter
4 PV-Tech:
Masdar closes acquisition of US IPP Terra-Gen
5 Solar Power World:
Trina Solar, now a US manufacturer, asks government for help with alleged TOPCon infringements
6 Heatmap News:
The Most At-Risk Projects of the Energy Transition
7 PV-Magazine:
Average U.S. residential solar project breaks even at 7.5 years, said EnergySage
Opinions:
8 Canary Media:
Why won’t PJM let batteries and clean power bolster a stressed-out grid?
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for October 3rd, 2024
Getting Political. CleanCapital’s Chief, Jon Powers, makes the case for getting more involved in politics. Jon (an amazing solar leader and someone I consider a friend) leads by example in both the way he served the Country and how he leads CleanCapital. Understanding that our industry is highly regulated and requires the participants to be involved in the political process across the landscape.
Tariff Continuation. As the solar industry maneuvers the latest tariff expansion, it’s a good reminder that the regulations are not limited to legislative action but also within the executive branch and agencies like the Department of Commerce. That being said, driving the message in Washington as well as state capitals can also be a helpful tool to advance the industry (and individual companies) priorities.
Peak Production Politics. I’ve long talked about(on in this case typed) about the fact that the US is currently producing record levels of oil and gas. Politically, the administration has been shy to highlight this at the risk of creating a wave from the left flank which is understandable given that most on the right flank would not actually believe this data point. From my seat, I see the focus across the energy ecosystem looking at the increase in energy demand in electricity. The energy bull market is a new concept after many years of declining electricity consumption and there is a concern in the market that we are not building new generation fast enough or moving projects through development (including transmission).
News
1 PV-Tech:
Solar industry needs to grow up and be more political, says ex-US federal sustainability chief
2 Reuters:
US sets preliminary new duties on solar imports from Southeast Asia
3 Axios:
Helene blows climate change into prime time
4 New York Times:
A Shift Among Democrats
5 Bloomberg:
Why Only Climate Tech Cash Can Help Avoid Catastrophe
6 Renewable Energy World:
A speed boost? FERC approves California ISO’s interconnection reforms
7 Energy Storage News:
US set grid-scale BESS deployment record in second quarter of 2024
8 PV-Magazine:
U.S. market solar panel prices increase from April lows
Opinions:
9 Canary Media:
Michigan bets on EVs to revive its economy — and hopes jobs will follow
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for October 2nd, 2024
Opinion
News
1 PV-Magazine:
Newsom rules that California schools and farms cannot use their own solar energy production
2 Utility Dive:
2M customers still without power after Helene; some local grids must ‘be completely rebuilt’
3 New York Times:
Britain Shuts Down Last Coal Plant, ‘Turning Its Back on Coal Forever’
4 Axios:
Nvidia's Jensen Huang sees possibilities in AI power use
5 Reuters:
US to unveil first of two decisions on more solar tariffs
6 PV-Tech:
Heliene closes US$50 million tax credit deal to support US manufacturing plans
7 Solar Power World:
Import duties imposed on aluminum solar racking from 14 countries
8 Heatmap News:
GM’s Chief Sustainability Officer Kristen Siemen Talks Shop
Opinions:
9 Renewable Energy World:
Trump and Harris have clashing records on clean energy, but the clean power shift is too broad for any president to control
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 30th, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
"Catastrophic" Hurricane Helene lashes Georgia after Florida landfall
2 New York Times:
At Climate Forward Event, World Leaders and Scientists Discuss Our Warming Planet
3 Utility Dive:
Hitachi Energy to expand US transformer manufacturing capacity
4 Bloomberg:
BayWa Flags €200 Million Impairment Losses Driven by Renewables Unit
5 Reuters:
Octopus Energy invests in US solar developer
6 PV-Tech:
How solar projects are tackling power market challenges
7 Solar Power World:
California storage installation licensing rule put on hold as trial continues
8 Energy Storage News:
Energy storage de-rating factor cut in Poland capacity market ‘created an opportunity’
9 Canary Media:
How Germany outfitted half a million balconies with solar panels
Opinions:
10 PV-Magazine:
Solar levelized cost of electricity 56% lower than lowest-cost fossil fuels
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 27th, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Utility Dive:
PJM says ‘concerns are growing’ after less than 2 GW added this year
3 PV-Magazine:
Solar generation up 26%, but electricity demand outpaces growth
4 PV-Tech:
SMA Solar to complete ‘restructuring’, with job cuts ‘likely’
5 Bloomberg:
Powering AI Leapfrogs Climate Concerns
6 Reuters:
Germany, EU must match green power roll-out with more batteries, says Ember
7 Renewable Energy World:
Bill requiring utilties to consider grid enhancing technologies in transmission planning signed into California law
8 Solar Power World:
First Solar opens 3.5-GW solar panel factory in Alabama
9 Energy Storage News:
Spain increases energy storage target in NECP to 22.5GW by 2030
Opinions:
10 Canary Media:
The big unsettled policy question about clean hydrogen
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 26th, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Space startup seeks to solve solar power's daylight problem
2 Washington Post:
Under a Texas sun, agrivoltaics offer farmers a new way to make money
3 BLoomberg:
BlackRock Sees Growth in Asia Infrastructure on AI Boom
4 Reuters:
Miners, investors see scope in energy transition but struggle with choices
5 Seattle Times:
PSE announces first solar project and battery storage system
6 PV-Tech:
Removing the barriers to US transmission reform
7 Heat Map News:
The Cool New Landing Spot for D.C. Insiders
8 Energy Storage News:
Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners buys Arizona BESS project through ‘flagship’ CI V fund
Opinions:
9 PV-Magazine:
Solar-plus-storage dominating future U.S. power grid
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 25th, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Climate Week confronts geopolitical hurdles
2 Bloomberg:
Macquarie to Acquire Stake in D.E. Shaw Renewable Investments
3 Renewable Energy World:
For a week, New York will be center of money-focused fight to slow climate change
4 Reuters:
Octopus buys British solar and battery storage firm Exagen
5 PV-Tech:
SEIA launches draft standard to meet CBP traceability requirements
6 Solar Power World:
Bipartisan energy permitting bill could bring solar power where it’s needed most
7 Canary Media:
Big steel buyers make a request for 1M tons of green steel
8 PV-Magazine:
How BLM balances conservation with solar development
Opinions:
9 Utility Dive:
Energy storage underused as transmission asset amid unresolved questions, experts say
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 24th, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
Fed Rate Cut to Revive Investor Interest in Clean Tech, JPMorgan Banker Says
3 Utility Dive:
GE Vernova could cut 900 jobs as it aims to curb offshore wind losses
4 Reuters:
China monthly economic reports understate power output as small-scale renewables surge
5 PV-Tech:
WTO establishes dispute panel over clean energy tax credits under US IRA
6 Renewable Energy World:
PJM proposes a 2-year delay for implementing the DER Aggregation model
7 Energy Storage News:
Germany plans long-duration energy storage auctions for 2025 and 2026
8 Canary Media:
Two years in, US clean energy manufacturing boom is still going strong
9 PV-Magazine:
U.S. solar industry standards for solar supply chain transparency
Opinions:
10 New York Times:
The U.S. Lost the Battery Race to China. Can It Make a Comeback?
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for September 23rd, 2024
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Biden goes big on batteries
2 Utility Dive:
BlackRock, Microsoft, others form AI and energy infrastructure investment partnership
3 Bloomberg:
Clean-Energy Firm Masdar Nears Deal to Buy Brookfield’s Saeta Yield
4 Reuters:
USTR to take comments on tariff hikes for Chinese polysilicon, wafers, tungsten
5 PV-Tech:
Sonnedix to acquire 250MW solar PV portfolio in Italy
6 Solar Power World:
Aspen Power completes first solar ITC transfer deal
7 Canary Media:
Chart - Which states have the most electric school buses?
8 PV-Magazine:
Chinese solar cell prices stable in a quiet market
Opinions:
9 Renewable Energy World:
Can PJM fix its battery storage problem?
Have a great day!
Yann
