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Put It To A Vote. The Green New Deal resolution could make its way to the Senate floor for a vote. McConnell threatened the vote as a threat to democrats so they would have to be on the record thinking that voting for the resolution could hurt them politically. Schumer is calling his potential bluff and saying it should go tot he floor for a vote because not only does he think the democratic caucus will support it (the resolution) Schumer also thinks that republicans will be hurt by voting against it. Climate change and renewable energy are going from unknown political issue to the vote that matters in the Senate.
The Midwest Factor. Politicians from the Midwest will have to think a few times about how to play their messaging to their voters. A ’No’ vote would have to be pitched as being against the bill while still remaining in favor of renewable energy, especially wind. The Iowa caucus used to be about the ethanol pledge and it’s now turning into the support for wind energy and the PTC. That’s the upside of the Green New Deal language, it isn’t specific to the technology and drives the best path towards the local decision makers.
I Missed This Too. Part of the Bloomberg announcement was a specific goal around the Beyond Carbon campaign. That goal is the closure of all coal plants by 2030 and to transition away from oil and gas. My follow up question is about the strategy to reach that goal, is it political, financial or through regulatory changes?
The Hopeful Outlook. After the feedback from yesterday on whether SMART is smart, let’s look at the more optimistic view of the Massachusetts future. First, energy storage is going to be a giant market and MA is leading the charge. That is why I am interview the CCO of Engie Storage Marc Roper. Second, when it comes to startups in solar and clean energy there are very few people as committed to that mission as Greentown Labs and I will be joined with CEO, Emily Reichert. I’d love for you to join me at the theatre for this event, see the agenda and more at solarwakeuplive.com
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Is SMART Smart? Massachusetts has been the most prolific market for developers through SREC I and II. SMART could prove to be as successful if used correctly and developers work the various multipliers the right way. At SolarWakeup Live! I will be interviewing the person in charge of the program implementation and bring together the developers and investors looking to buy and sell projects. The event is the same amount of information gathering and networking with the people that will make you money. You can use SWLB20 as a SolarWakeup reader to lower the cost of entry at SolarWakeupLive.com
Bloomberg Is Out, In On Climate. Michael Bloomberg is not running for President, realizing the tough route to the nomination and will instead double down on the issues he feels most strongly about including climate change. Part of the plan will be to launch the campaign Beyond Carbon which is a play on the campaign he largely funded with the Sierra Club called Beyond Coal. It’s impressive how much climate change has gotten to the top of the issue list when just 2 years ago, climate change wasn’t brought up in the debates.
Coal Wants Competitive Monopoly. It’s increasingly unbelievable to watch regulators and legislators look to bail out power plants that can’t add value to ratepayers. Instead of doing whatever is best for consumers, regulators want the plants to continue operating even if it means running it as a net detriment to the ratepayers. This is in line with the legislative control the incumbent market participants still have without having support from the majority of voters or consumers regardless of political party.
Trade War Pains. Coming up on the article from yesterday where business is questioning whether the trade war has been worth it at all and today we talk about the actual cost that it has caused the Country. Between the nearly $8billion in cash that the government has had to spend to help out the farming community and the lackluster GDP we expect in this quarter, it is clearly shown that it was probably a bad idea. For solar we’ve seen the cost increase and the jobs impact from the 2018 jobs census.
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Busy week here in the Walnut Creek headquarters so some quick notes on what is on my desk right now.
The Trade War. General optimism about the tariffs being settled is making the rounds in corporate board rooms. Mostly we are looking for our long term supply chain pipelines to come back to normal and many domestic manufacturers are looking for that as well. Lead times are unsustainable right now causing lots of crunch on procurement offices.
Corporate Solar Responsibility. As DTE energy is looking to kill rooftop solar in Michigan, it strikes a renewable supply deal with GM and Ford. GM and Ford have a responsibility to make sure that their employees have access to the same type of renewable energy as they do. Using their power for their own advancement without trickling down the benefits is short sighted and hurts the effort.
The RPS One-Uppers. I’m all in for States to compete on their own versions of the RPS. Sooner, renewable or other is the type of 100% debate that helps the markets.
Nuclear Schemes. I doubt that the real truth about the Georgi & South Carolina nuclear boondoggles will ever come out but you can read between the lines here. That is why I get frustrated when renewable energy advocates get labeled as anti-nuclear. I am anti-nuclear subsidies and rule making because even when the industry has been given EVERYTHING, free insurance, free cleanup, free water and early cost recovery from ratepayers, they have failed to build anything at all. Nuclear isn’t dead because ‘environmentalists’ won, nuclear failed because of their own lack of execution.
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