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Yann
Is It Progressive? The headlines about the democratic primary is that the climate discussion is pushing the field to the left. I think that is entirely missing the point given that we’ve been trying to solve energy issues for decades and that many States passed 20% RPS policies more than a decade ago. This isn’t a political shift to the left, this is solving a massive climate crisis through policy because when it comes to highly regulated markets, only government can do that. Putting seat belts in cars and eliminating smoking in airplanes wasn’t a shift to the left, it was common sense.
Is It Denial? Take a look at the other side of the spectrum, Duke Energy’s IRP in Indiana is a good example. Coal plants that stay open for decades even though that increases the cost to consumers (even when Pence thinks that clean coal is the future) and new gas plants when they aren’t the cheapest option (Duke should ask NextEra about that). There should be a harder look, not only at the monopoly business model, but the decisions that are made counter to the best interests of the consumers.
The Gas Tax Cost Shift. This is true. EVs don’t pay for the typical gas tax that is included in the cost of fuel which pays for roads, highways etc. There will undoubtedly have to be an equivalent fee on the electricity used to charge electric vehicles once they’ve crossed the chasm in adoption. BUT, at the same time, EV owners including operators of charging stations will have to renegotiate their negative cost shift since they are heavy electricity users and pay for a higher portion of the grid cost than the non EV owners.
China Grows Roots. China’s Silk Road Fund is buying 49% of ACWA, the Saudi renewable energy development company that is active across the African continent and Middle East.
Nominations Ahead. I always enjoy seeing nominations and winners in the Cleantech space because it introduces me and the market to people I haven’t met yet. Now is your chance to put forth your names.
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Yann
Call Your Representative. Don’t forget to call your member of Congress and ask them to fight for the ITC to be included in the tax extenders bill. This is a crucial time to fight for your industry especially in residential, the credits will disappear before you know. Click here to find your Congresswoman or call (202) 224-3121 to have the operator connect you.
The New Energy Outlook. Bloomberg has released the annual energy outlook which is a forward looking view on the global energy markets. You can see the highlights here and catch the analyst talking about it in the link below.
Schletter US Factory Auction. I didn’t realize this happened but Schletter auctioned off its factory in Shelby, NC. The reality is that in-house manufacturing requires tremendous volume and backlog, something that is difficult to achieve with utility scale and C&I racking systems especially with a competitive market. Maybe the idea is to rebuild the company with an outsourced model.
New York Times Gets This Wrong. The New York Times tested “EVs” by driving roundtrip from LA to Las Vegas. The 8 hours of driving took 5 hours of charging. Of course this ‘test drive’ wasn’t done in a Tesla, it was done in a Chevy Bolt which naturally skews the entire test. This shows the fight that’s ahead for us in solar as well, imagine if someone did a test on how much energy you can offset on a house and used 10% efficient modules instead of the market leading technology.
Job Postings. If you want to have your job openings posted on SolarWakeup, just email me the link to the actual job. I’ll be changing them every day or so. If you want to have it stay on the newsletter you can sponsor that now, email me to inquire.
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A SolarWakeup Favor. If you enjoy getting this newsletter and the discussion we engage in every day, I would greatly appreciate it if you posted why you read SolarWakeup on LinkedIn or Twitter to help get the word out. We’re already the most read newsletter in solar but the bigger it gets the better the network effect moves forward. You can tag either @yannbrandt or @solarwakeup on either platform! Thanks in advance for your help.
Friday Fast Reads. New York is passing a giant climate bill that leads to net zero and carbon free goals in 2040 and 2050 requiring double digit GW of solar to be built in the near future. Read more to get the details.
Runaway Senators. Oregon State Senators are showing the backbone it takes to stand up for your vote by running away. The Senate republicans have left the Capitol and the State to stop a quorum from taking place for a cap and trade vote.
Nuclear PPAs. A federal bill has been filed that would require the Government to enter into a 40 year PPA with new nuclear. If legislators don’t want to give us an ITC extension, a 40 year PPA adjusted for irradiance sounds great too.
Interesting Tidbits. Texas solar is growing like crazy and my 2014 business idea of going long in Texas seems correct. Look for more utilities to want to get into the distributed energy storage systems across the Country. It creates demand and supply response capabilities.
A New Home Solar Survey. Vivint Solar engaged a survey to see where the approval ratings are for new home solar mandates. Overall the approval was 70 percent across America and even respondents over 65 years old were in favor by 61% with younger respondents (25-34) were 74% in favor.
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Yann