This is your SolarWakeup for November 16th, 2022
The Next Chapter. Some personal news from my end. After two years as the CFO at FlexGen, I’m heading over to the other side of the business leading our commercial efforts as the Chief Commercial Officer. Energy storage is embarking on a massive growth spurt and with a lot of opportunity there will also be a lot of work to educate the market on how to do it well. Folks often forget that most investors have not commissioned a single battery so part of my responsibility is to make sure that we lead by example in educating customers and market participants alike. As you have in the past, I invite you to join me in my newest challenge and learn with me. I’ll be sure to share my thoughts on what it takes to build a more intelligent and resilient grid. Of course, if you find yourself in Durham, North Carolina, come visit our innovation center.
News
1 Bloomberg:
Battery Storage Tops List for Climate Tech Investors - ESG Survey
2 PV-Tech:
Shoals posts record revenue, raises guidance thanks to ‘improving solar market conditions’
3 Reuters:
Carlyle launches European clean energy developer - 'We would rather build'
4 Utility Dive:
State regulators urge PJM to adopt ‘circuit breaker’ to prevent extreme prices in emergencies
5 Energy Storage News:
BlackRock buys US battery storage developer Jupiter Power
6 Canary Media:
Long-duration energy storage to get $350M boost from Dept. of Energy
7 PV-Magazine:
Commerce pushes preliminary solar antidumping tariff decision to December 1, 2022
Opinions:
8 New York Times:
Nobody Cares About Biden's Energy Policy. Great!
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 15th, 2022
The Important Climate Talks. When it comes to climate, the relationship between the US market and China’s supply chain is incredibly important. This really is a world is flat issue where supply chains, logistics, demand are all a part of each other and impacts the ability for the world to accelerate the energy transition. A positive move at the G20 with the one on one meeting between the leaders is a step in the right direction.
It’s a Connected System. The energy transition is coming at the moment of continued economic growth and massive electrification. It also comes while climate events are straining the grid in addition to the expansion of generation portfolios including as available resources like wind and solar. So we need supply chains, markets, development, capital and technology providers to work in sync and allow for the greatest investment need and opportunity to work together. At the end of the day, consumers, business and the economy need the power to turn on when it’s asked to do so.
IRA Savings Need Investments. This can’t be understated and should be on the top of your procurement mind heading into 2023. The IRA is a great cost reducer for utility consumers, if the utility makes the appropriate investments. This is a huge add on in demand that may not be completely considered within forecasts or demand for hardware.
News
1 New York Times:
U.S. and China Restart Climate Talks
2 Utility Dive:
‘A sobering assessment’ - Large parts of US at risk of outages during extreme weather this winter - NERC
3 Bloomberg:
Big Utilities See Inflation Reduction Act Helping Reduce Customers’ Energy Bills
4 Axios:
Emissions tracking at all-time high as leaders meet at COP27
5 Reuters:
Mexico vows to double renewable energy capacity by 2030
6 PV-Tech:
NSW Electricity Infrastructure Roadmap gets 8GW of renewables and storage applications
7 Solar Power World:
Electriq Power to merge with publicly traded acquisition company TLGA
8 Energy Storage News:
FREYR accelerates US gigafactory plans amidst KKR investment reports
Opinions:
9 PV Magazine:
The role of solar in the Inflation Reduction Act
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 14th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Reuters:
US West faces power reliability issues from growing use of renewables
2 PV-Magazine:
Solar-plus-storage SEIA code proposals for risk designation receive preliminary ICC approval
3 Utility Dive:
‘Needs more work’- Solar industry remains skeptical of California PUC’s new net energy metering proposal
4 Bloomberg:
Saudi Arabia Says US Ties are Solid as It Defends Oil Policy
5 Axios:
Biden says U.S. "on track" to meet Paris commitment
6 Vox:
How to slash carbon emissions while growing the economy, in one chart
7 PV-Tech:
Maxeon’s Q3 results boosted by distributed generation market in Europe
8 Energy Storage News:
Project Symphony - Western Australia’s biggest virtual power plant goes online
9 Canary Media:
New California rooftop-solar plan drops ‘solar tax,’ but fears remain
Opinions:
10 Solar Builder:
Four takeaways from California NEM 3.0 remix
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 11th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
California’s New Solar Subsidy Plan Is Really About Batteries
2 New York Times:
Biden’s Message on Climate Might Not Be the One the World Wants
3 Axios:
The COP27 agenda for young African climate activists
4 Utility Dive:
Vistra’s coal-to-battery storage projects receive FERC waiver from MISO interconnection transfer rules
5 Reuters:
Portugal seeks to become major exporter of green hydrogen
6 PV-Tech:
New development JV targets 3GW of renewables in PJM region
7 Energy Storage News:
Rolls-Royce deploying biggest BESS in the Netherlands for spring 2023 commissioning
8 PV-Magazine:
DOE announces 31 finalists for $100,000 prize for community solar projects and programs
Opinions:
9 Canary Media:
Want to work in climatetech? Here’s how to get started
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 10th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Vox:
The unexpected climate wins of the midterms
2 Axios:
John Kerry makes his move on private climate finance
3 Forbes:
France Mandates Solar Panels On Most Parking Lots, A Great Marriage With The EV
4 Bloomberg:
Brookfield Leads $12 Billion Bet on Australia Climate Shift
5 PV-Tech:
EU plans to fast-track solar permitting via emergency regulation
6 Energy Storage News:
V2G specialist The Mobility House raises US$50 million SeriesC
7 PV-Magazine:
Solar tracker provider Array Technologies reports Q3 earnings surprise, chosen for 750 MW project
Opinions:
8 Canary Media:
More lower-income US households are adopting solar
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 9th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Canary Media:
Hawaii moves to time-varying ‘smart’ rates for most utility customers
2 PV-Magazine:
Preventing cyberattacks on distributed energy resources
3 Utility Dive:
Duke Energy greenlights sale of $4B commercial renewable energy unit amid ‘robust’ interest
4 Bloomberg:
France to Reap $31 Billion Windfall From Renewable Energy Firms
5 Reuters:
Norway energy giant Equinor doubles share of investment in renewables
6 PV-Tech:
SolarEdge posts record revenue and inverter shipments as ‘strong momentum’ in Europe continues
7 Energy Storage News:
Macquarie’s Green Investment Group launches global battery storage development platform
Opinions:
8 Axios:
UN panel lays out red lines against greenwashing
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 8th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 New York Times:
Michael Bloomberg announces a new initiative to phase out coal in 25 countries.
2 Axios:
Subtropical storm Nicole could hit Florida as a hurricane by midweek
3 Vox:
11 midterm races that could shape our climate future
4 Reuters:
TotalEnergies leads Shell, BP in renewables race, but shares sag
5 Bloomberg:
Europe Must Protect Its Electricity Market From Putin
6 PV-Tech:
Primergy submits permit application for 155MWac PV project in Colorado
7 Energy Storage News:
Batteries could save Europe millions in energy system costs with the right market reforms
8 PV-Magazine:
Brookfield Renewable highlights 10 GW, three-year solar, storage and wind project development pipeline
Opinions:
9 Canary Media:
What challenges will confront DOE loan program for energy retrofits?
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 7th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 New York Times:
Saudi Aramco Reports $42 Billion in Profit as Cash Rolls In for Oil Giants
2 Bloomberg:
Every Politician Wants Green Jobs in This Bitter US Battleground
3 Energy Storage News:
Canada introduces 30% refundable investment tax credits for energy storage
4 Utility Dive:
DTE Electric proposes $9B spend on 5.4 GW renewables, 760 MW storage, coal-to-gas power plant switch
5 Reuters:
Biden comments on coal-fired plants slammed by Manchin ahead of U.S. midterms
6 PV-Tech:
US utility-scale solar construction costs fell 8% in 2020 – EIA
7 PV-Magazine:
California set to release anti-rooftop solar net metering plan
Opinions:
8 Canary Media:
What to watch at COP27
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 4th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Canary Media:
How will DOE loan out $250B to make dirty energy systems clean?
2 New York Times:
New Tax Break for Clean Energy Draws Scrutiny
3 Axios:
Europe is the world's fastest warming continent - UN
4 Reuters:
Carlyle backs solar developer Aspen Power with $350 mln investment
5 PV-Tech:
Sunrun CEO calls for action to reduce US solar import delays
6 Business Journals:
Generac CEO looks beyond 'painful learning lesson' to growth in solar industry
7 Energy Storage News:
Batteries could save Europe millions in energy system costs with the right market reforms
8 PV-Magazine:
Utility-scale solar slowed in Q3 2022, but momentum expected to build
Opinions:
9 Bloomberg:
If We Want Lithium, Let China Finance It
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 3rd, 2022
Controls, Analytics, and Cybersecurity. As you buy your first battery in the Solar+ era, you’re likely overlooking scope, integration, configuration and most of all software. While traditional controls could do some of what you need, the energy storage era is going to create a financial upside that comes with additional responsibilities. The ISO may change the rules your first year of operations, just like ERCOT is doing right now and you’ve likely never heard of it (google FFR Advancement). You may also be adjusting your power marketing operations strategies to take advantage of new pricing signals. While a preventative maintenance check is occurring, a fault may trigger the asset to go into safe mode and stop revenue generation until a remote operations team dispatches the reset. While NERC figures out that energy storage assets are being built, you may be thinking that cybersecurity is important but how do you solve for it? That is where scalable software based solutions come into play that have the ability to adapt the configurations for your hardware, much like putting Microsoft Windows on your PCs, regardless of the brand of computers you bought. So as you read the top story about the Duke operations center, realize that energy storage brings a whole new segment of consideration for your asset management strategy.
News
1 Bloomberg:
How Duke Energy Controls Its Renewables From One Room
2 Axios:
Microsoft sees urgent need for more workers with climate skills
3 Reuters:
Energy crisis chips away at Europe's industrial might
4 PV-Tech:
Middle income US households accounted for a third of rooftop solar installs in 2021
5 Marketwatch:
Equinor in Deal to Buy Solar Project Developer BeGreen
6 Energy Storage News:
Ohio Power Siting Board gives approval for state’s first grid-scale battery storage project
7 Canary Media:
Electric school buses to get $1B boost from Biden administration
8 PV-Magazine:
U.S. to deploy 550 GW of new renewables by 2030
Opinions:
9 Utility Dive:
Storage, demand-side innovation, neighbors and a bit of luck — reliability lessons from summer 2022
Have a great day!
Yann
