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FERC Denied. The PG&E saga continues, now with a federal court denying FERC the jurisdiction it called for with regard to the PPAs. If you recall, NextEra had filed with FERC that the PPAs should be safe from the bankruptcy. This means that the issue becomes a political problem for Governor Newsom. If PG&E is able to cancel existing PPA contracts, it would create irreparable harm to solar in California and across the Country. The cost of solar would skyrocket and all goals that Newsom had planned for would be endangered.
Utility Startup Incubator. This is a smart move, a utility in the Midwest is starting a tech startup space to enable young companies to get started. Starting a company in energy is difficult and the funding mechanisms for startups in this space requires some traction before money is likely to come in. In the Northeast, the leader in this space is Greentown Labs led by Emily Reichert. Greentown Labs is the largest clean tech incubator in the Country with over 170 companies incubated that have raised over $320million in funding. Emily is joining me on stage at SolarWakeup Live! Boston to share her experiences and the work it takes to raise money in the space.
Oil Speaks Up GND. Energy executives at CERAWeek went on the record to talk about the Green New Deal and the fact that investors are asking the energy companies what their plan is to lower carbon emissions. Even Rick Perry agreed that AOC shouldn’t be castigated for wanting clean air and clean water. BP’s CEO said that there is a lack of progress on climate issues that investors are angry about. This continues the trend that will see cash rich companies looking for ways to have an impact, not make headline announcements. Big investments into companies that create a big impact on the overall company’s sustainability.
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Solar Market Grows. The market data for 2018 is out and the result is another double digit year with 2018 closing at 10.6GW. Residential market grew by 7 percent to 2.4GW while the utility scale had some headwinds from the tariffs. The forecast from Wood MacKenzie for 2019 is over 12GW.
New Mexico Joins Club. Congratulations to the advocacy teams in New Mexico as the legislature overwhelmingly passes a 100% by 2045 RPS bill. The Governor is eagerly waiting for the bill to arrive for her signature which will happen as quickly as possible. New Mexico joins Hawaii, California and D.C. in the 100% club with bills filed in several other States including Massachusetts. We will be digging into the details in Boston on the 26th to talk about what this means to the solar and storage markets.
More Name Changes. COSeia, the Colorado solar association, is changing its name. With a recent change in leadership, former SEPA staffer Mike Kruger, is now the President and CEO of the Colorado Solar and Storage Association. COSSA is now your State trade association and my hat goes off to the team for making the change.
PG&E, CPUC and More. There was a story in yesterday’s wakeup about the California Governor’s look inside the CPUC, potentially replacing one or more commissioners. Vote Solar’s Adam Browning opined on the news in this tweet. Adam is right, commissioners should come with or from the renewable energy or solar industry so that the industry that is tasked with changing the energy landscape has an internal expert.
Sec’s Pompeo and Perry Come To SPI. Just kidding of course, but that was my first thought when I saw that CNBC was interviewing both members of Trump’s cabinet at an energy conference. CERA Week is the Davos of energy with every major energy executive in Houston (just imagine what the tarmac at the airport looks like). There will be a day when the solar trade show brings major cabinet members to the event. There was on solar panel at CERA Week, some names you will recognize.
Welcome To Live! Join me and many of your market colleagues as we gather in Boston on March 26th. The speakers are getting ready to have a conversation about the current state of affairs and how SMART will roll out. You can see the full agenda at solarwakeuplive.com
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Listening Closely. When it comes to the presidential nomination cycle, the race has begun. Each of the aspiring candidates is talking about their renewable energy platforms and what it means to our industry. Pete Buttigieg, Mayor of South Bend Indiana, is getting a national audience on all of the big platforms including Pod Save America and a town hall on CNN. During his Pod Save America interview he spoke more clearly about renewable energy, climate change and the Green New Deal than anyone else on the circuit. Given that we are the same age, I was discounting his ability to cut through the noise but at least on this issue, I want to hear more from the Mayor from an industrial city in the Midwest. If anyone can get coal miners and factory workers to realize that the future of work includes our industry, I think Mayor Pete has a chance. As he puts the Green New Deal, “It correctly situates this as a major national emergency.” Watch the full Pod Save America interview and let’s start a campaign to have Mayor Pete join me on SolarWakeup Live!
Get Your Tickets. Curious about community solar investments in the Northeast and within the SMART program in MA? We have three of the leading operators and developers in the business on stage at solarwakeuplive.com
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Presented by Pfister Energy. Changing the way energy is generated and delivered. Pfister Energy is a leading turnkey design-build renewable energy solutions company. Servicing C&I, community and utility sectors for solar, storage and O&M. Visit pfisterenergy.com for more information.
Senate Tax Extenders Diss Solar and Storage. The Senate Finance Committee is out with their list of extenders to be considered in the annual exercise to extend tax credit and deductions. Out of some 29 line items, not a single one is for solar or storage even though the ITC is stepping down at the end of the year and storage isn’t considered at all. There is no sense on casting blame, yet, but the question is how does an industry that should be at the top of power in DC doesn’t get a mention in one of the most important memos of the year? How does storage, which is the future of replacing expiring power generation, get completely ignored? We have to have an internal evaluation on how our industry advocates, what it asks for and how we make those requests. If we rationalize this failure
InterSolar N/A. What once was my favorite trade show of the year is now over, InterSolar North America has been sold to a new show producer and the July event is rescheduled for February in San Diego. 3 Floors at Moscone is not a cheap venue to fill and with the declining attendance of both visitors and exhibitors spread the rumors across the market about how this event could possibly still move forward. That being said, the famous Solar Battle of the Bands will continue, make sure to keep that date in your calendar.
Norway Divesting. The Norwegian Sovereign Wealth Fund is divesting from certain oil investments, totaling $8billion out of their $1trillion pool. That makes this a big story with a little effect unless it gets copied. Moreover, this also shows some signal to the oil majors that are not divested from that their business plans better align with the mission to decarbonize.
Total Cost Of Ownership. By now you’ve heard the $93trillion price tag for the Green New Deal, a figure that sounds so absurd that even the think tank that’s credited with it is shunning it. So while Showtime’s hit show The Circus opens with dialogue of green jobs and climate change, it’s clear that the debate will be had over the total cost benefit of a policy in line with the Green New Deal.
Get Your Tickets. Register for SolarWakeup Live! on solarwakeuplive.com
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