This is your SolarWakeup for July 25th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Europe's surging electricity prices are shattering records
2 Utility Dive:
State regulators approve Georgia Power's plans to retire all coal plants by 2028 except for Plant Bowen
3 Bloomberg:
Australian Billionaire Joins Green Rush With Bid for Genex
4 PV-Tech:
Tesla solar installations rebound to four-year high
5 Solar Power World:
Array Technologies settles 5-year lawsuit with Nextracker
6 Energy Storage News:
Generate Capital enters front-of-the-meter energy storage market with developer acquisition
7 Canary Media:
Panasonic reveals Kansas as site for $4B EV battery megafactory
8 PV-Magazine:
California rulemaking to pursue demand flexibility through dynamic pricing
Opinions:
9 New York Times:
Climate Change Is Not Negotiable
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July July 22nd, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Axios:
Durham battery storage company raises $100 million
2 Bloomberg:
Batteries Are Already Helping Power Grids Weather a Hotter World
3 New York Times:
What Would a Climate Emergency Mean? Here Are 4 Key Points.
4 Vox:
Europe’s gas crisis is here
5 Reuters:
Europe's power system feels the heat as cooling demand soars
6 PV-Tech:
Totalenergies launches legal action against Trina Solar alleging breach of contract, fraud over US$300m order
7 Energy Storage News:
Mercom - Energy storage corporate funding for first half of 2022 nearly equals 2021 total
8 Canary Media:
USPS ups electric truck order to 40% of its new fleet
Opinions:
9 PV-Magazine:
Heat wave sparks fire at solar park in the Netherlands
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 21st, 2022
Building An Intelligent Grid. FlexGen is the most exciting company I’ve had the pleasure of working for and the past 18 months of watching the energy storage market take off has been incredible. Yesterday, we announced our Series C investment round of $100million anchored by Vitol. Our mission is the help our customers to build the most intelligent and resilient grid possible while maximizing the revenue opportunity for battery asset owners. While today’s environment is a challenging one, FlexGen is creating stability and bankability to build out the infrastructure of the future. Thank you to many of you on giving us the ability to work together and if you’re looking for guidance and support with you storage projects, I hope you reach out. We’ll be at RE+ (SPI) and look forward to many partnerships around the solar market.
News
1 Energy Storage News:
Energy trader Vitol leads US$100 million funding round for BESS system integrator FlexGen
2 The Hill:
Solar power is helping Texas keep its air conditioning amid brutal temperatures
3 Bloomberg:
India Plans $10 Billion Electric Bus Contract to Curb Emissions
4 New York Times:
Delay as the New Denial
5 Axios:
Biden to expand climate push with heat readiness, offshore wind moves
6 Reuters:
As EVs go mainstream, a rush for share of home charger market
7 Electrek:
Tesla stops scheduling solar roof installations in most markets
8 Solar Builder:
Community solar is a path to the future if policymakers plan for it
Opinions:
9 Politico:
Declaring a climate emergency could unlock potent tools for Biden — at a steep cost
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 20th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Utility Dive:
Texas heat wave could mean big payday for Vistra in ERCOT market - Morgan Stanley
2 Bloomberg:
White House Considers Emergency Declaration to Fight Climate Change
3 New York Times:
Trying to Salvage His Climate Agenda, Biden Weighs Remaining Options
4 Axios:
100 million under heat warnings in Plains
5 Reuters:
U.S. to seek dispute settlement talks with Mexico over energy policy-sources
6 Solar Power World:
Aurora Solar releases AI-driven PV sales and design services
Opinions:
7 Energy Storage News:
UK needs at least 50GW of energy storage for net zero by 2050, National Grid ESO says
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 19th, 2022
Why Climate Remains Partisan Policy. It’s not lost on me that climate is a bipartisan polling topic but remains deeply partisan when it comes to passing in Congress. The conservative or libertarian argument for energy policy is clearly obvious while also being a great tool to offset inflation. Energy inflation topped 40% in the latest release and when it comes to solar, the fuel cost remains consistently free for the life of the asset, passing that cost through to consumers is good for everyone. Ultimately there are two things I see as the most pressing for Congress on solar and storage policies, first is a robust and permanent tax credit structure. Second is consistent and predictable supply chain systems that eliminate volatility as much as possible. Biden could do something about the latter, using some version of emergency proclamation that grants the executive branch legitimate powers to act. It’ll be up to Congress to act on the tax credit.
News
1 Reuters:
U.S. Senate Democrats urge Biden to declare climate emergency
2 Axios:
Europe heat wave turns deadly as France and U.K. brace for hottest days on record
3 Utility Dive:
Puerto Rico’s electricity rates have nearly doubled since 2020 - IEEFA
4 Solar Power World:
GAF Energy to start second solar shingle manufacturing plant in Texas
5 Energy Storage News:
Massachusetts authorities host public comment hearings for 800MWh of battery storage
6 PV-Magazine:
Solar panels power the James Webb telescope
Opinions:
7 Canary Media:
Smart electric panels in homes could prevent overtaxing the grid
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 18th, 2022
We’re Back! Thank you for letting SolarWakeup go on a brief break last week, back to our regular programming. Like many of you, I read the news brought to us by Senator Manchin. I’ll have some thoughts for your consideration tomorrow and would love to hear from you on the topic.
News
1 CNN:
White House economic adviser says Biden will pursue climate agenda 'with or without Congress'
2 Politico:
Manchin disputes claims he rejected Dems’ climate and energy spending
3 New Yorker:
For the Third Time in Three Decades, Congress Punts on Serious Climate Legislation
4 Bloomberg:
Texas’ Power Grid Is Straining — And It’s Not Even August
5 Axios:
A GOP generation gap on climate change
6 RMI:
The Solution to Grid Reliability? Go Bigger and Bolder on Renewables and Energy Storage
7 Solar Power World:
Illinois Commerce Commission approves detailed roadmap to reach 40% renewables by 2030
8 Energy Storage News:
CEOs call on European policymakers to do more to accelerate rollout of ‘proven and scalable’ energy storage technologies
9 PV-Magazine:
Californians will still get burned under solar killer proposal
Opinions:
10 Canary Media:
5 things to know about the Supreme Court’s recent climate ruling
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 7th, 2022
The Grid Gets Managed By. In my work I have gotten to see and read about all different ways that electric regulators go about managing the grid infrastructure. France is going back to pre-monopoly days of making it the State’s business to run the grid. Meanwhile deregulated markets are seeing the most innovation coming in from energy storage with investor owned utilities really picking up the resilience focus as well. One of the hardest aspects of the planning work comes from the other end of the wire, demand response and distributed resources. When the grid was built there was very little focus or opportunity for shaping demand, only generation could be shaped against the potential demand. One thing is for sure, both ends of the wire will get focus from regulators and no one way of managing a grid will be used everywhere.
News
1 Solar Power World:
Over 100 California city, county government leaders ask CPUC to reject new solar fees
2 New York Times:
France, Hoping to Weather Energy Crisis, Will Renationalize Electricity Giant
3 Reuters:
Texas power use to keep breaking records as heatwave lingers
4 Utility Dive:
Voltus presses FERC to end state opt-outs from aggregated retail demand response in wholesale markets
5 Bloomberg:
Shanghai Cases Double in a Day, Fueling Lockdown Fears
6 PV-Tech:
Shell to build green hydrogen project in the Netherlands
7 PV-Magazine:
Entergy seeks to grow renewables up to 2500% over next decade
Opinions:
8 Energy Storage News:
Do LFP battery systems deliver lower returns than NMC ones?
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 6th, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Utility Dive:
Upheaval in utility regulation emerging nationally as Hawaii proves a performance-based approach
2 Bloomberg:
Giant UK Electric-Car Charging Station Also Will Supply the Grid
3 Axios:
Climate change - Extreme weather events slam globe from Italy to Australia
4 Reuters:
Draft law shows Germany plans to revise key emissions target for energy sector
5 Solar Power World:
Finance company Nelnet acquires Midwest renewables contractor GRNE Solar
6 Energy Storage News:
Northvolt raises US$1.1bn in ‘cautious capital market’ as IPO looms
7 Canary Media:
Puerto Rico is pushing LNG when it says it’s shifting to renewables
8 PV-Magazine:
Florida added more than 40,000 rooftop solar systems in 2021
Opinions:
9 PV-Tech:
Indiana ‘taking a huge step backward’ by ending net metering, solar advocates say
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 5th, 2022
Happy 4th. I spent the weekend in DC and there is a balance of functionality in a dysfunctional town. During a holiday weekend, you get to see how well DC prepares for the influx of tourists that want to see the festivities. That’s the thing with creating a functional system, you prepare a process that puts you in position to succeed. The struggle that’s filling the economy today is the unknown unknowns, things that are not prepared for. It would be great to have a solar and storage market that can get a decade of certainty without fights and unknowns.
News
1 Energy Storage News:
Nearly 70,000 Americans employed by battery storage industry in 2021
2 Utility Dive:
California passes legislation to avoid blackouts, create ‘insurance policy’ for the grid
3 PV-Magazine:
Product seized under UFLPA believed to be JinkoSolar
4 Axios:
Interior proposes offshore drilling plan that would allow up to 11 lease sales
5 Reuters:
Mexico's environment ministry denies permit for Audi solar plant
6 PV-Tech:
Australia’s Victoria promotes rooftop solar as part of gas substitution roadmap
7 Bloomberg:
China’s New Covid Flareup Threatens Crucial Yangtze Delta Region
8 New York Times:
Where Does the Climate Movement Go Next?
Opinions:
9 GreenBiz:
Clean tech drives record-breaking energy investment, IEA report finds
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for July 1st, 2022
Opinion
News
1 Bloomberg:
Renewable Power Costs Rise, Just Not as Much as Fossil Fuels
2 Utility Dive:
Power supply groups urge FERC to reform Western offer cap to avoid market uncertainty
3 Los Angeles Times:
California passes polarizing energy bill that could help rescue gas plants
4 Axios:
Heat waves topple monthly, all-time records from Japan to Italy
5 PV-Tech:
AEMO reveals ‘once-in-a-century’ roadmap for NEM’s energy transition, calls for AU$12bn in grid investment
6 Energy Storage News:
ArcLight - Legacy thermal plant sites ‘make excellent potential locations for battery projects’
7 PV-Magazine:
Three million U.S. jobs are dedicated to decarbonizing energy
Opinions:
8 Canary Media:
Supreme Court hamstrings federal efforts to clean up US power sector
Have a great day!
Yann
