APS-Backed Lawsuit Challenges 75% Of The Signatures For Arizona RPS Initiative

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent Wow….The fight over the Arizona renewable portfolio standard (RPS) just got ugly. Arizonans for Affordable Energy, a political action committee backed by Arizona Public Service (APS) – the state’s largest utility – has alleged in a lawsuit that 75% of the signatures gathered to put a ballot initiative to raise the Arizona RPS are fraudulent. The action comes as a competing proposal to raise the Arizona RPS, put forth by the Arizona Corporation Commission (ACC) (which oversees APS), moves its way through the process. [wds id=”3″] To review: The Arizona RPS ballot initiative is backed … Read More →

This is your SolarWakeup for July 23rd, 2018

$10 Billion Question. “If someone said, ‘Here’s $10 billion to invest in renewables,’ we wouldn’t know how to do it,” Dudley said. That’s a recent statement from the CEO of BP, Robert Dudley. As crazy as this sounds, he’s not wrong. He doesn’t have the cheapest capital and even if he did, it takes a lot of work to properly invest that kind of money into renewables. Just ask any solar developer what they would consider a good year, even if they disregard the hurdle rate of their private equity capital. Even if an oil company came to the US with an energy trading desk willing to take merchant exposure to solar projects, deploying $10 billion or even $1 billion would difficult to do year over year. That’s the scale problem in our industry that is often distributed and fragmented.
Going 100% Solar. What is it going to take to connect large corporate users with solar generation at the solar sites? That’s the question that could be the key in opening up markets like Texas, Pennsylvania or Virginia. Finding off takers is too expensive for individual developers in low energy value markets so if there is a demand created at the corporate level, solar developers will be able to focus on the work they already know.
Subsidies, Bailouts And The ITC. There is no doubt that all energy sources are still getting multiples of the incentives and non-monetary benefits compared to solar. While the big newspapers wonder how incumbent power and utility companies ready themselves for solar’s growth, I wonder how our industry should look forward the next time they want a subsidy, export change or bailout. At the State level, solar does this week (see Illinois and NJ) but what happens at the Federal level now?
Net Metering Fights. Curious to see a utility ‘pondering’ solar growth in a State that has 500% growth when it goes from 10 systems to 50. The opportunity utilities to be different is so great but the mentality of what worked 20 years ago is deeply ingrained into the utility boardroom. Now expect more fights in low solar penetration States like Arkansas, Michigan, etc and the industry needs to step up.
I’m Hiring. If you or someone you know are looking for an inside or outside sales position for a great company in Quick Mount PV, send me an email. We are doing great things including manufacturing right here in Walnut Creek in the Bay Area.
Resi Highlights Continue. As we enter the first residential solar advisory council survey, I will continue to post images of your installs. Just send your with your logo and location and yours can be highlighted as well.

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Yann

Coal, Nuke Bailout Could Reach $34 Billion, New Study Says

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent So apparently the bailout of nuclear and coal plants is still a thing that is under consideration, so I have to keep writing about it. This time, there’s a new study out that says the new bailout is going to cost $34 billion – that’s B-illion, with a “b” – to implement. When there are more competitive solutions like solar and wind on the open market. Are we tired of all the winning yet? [wds id=”3″] The Houston Chronicle reported today on the study, which was prepared for pro-solar advocacy group Advanced Energy Economy by … Read More →

Washington D.C. Could Move To 100% Clean Energy By 2032

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent Washington D.C. is a city full of symbols. Monuments to leaders of the past abound, and as the seat of our national government it carries great symbolic power for the rest of the country. Which is why the fact that it’s considering a resolution to move to a 100% renewable energy future as soon as 2032 could provide tangible gravity to the cause and encourage other cities to follow its lead, according to various local and national reports. [wds id=”3″] Tony Clifford, chief development officer for Standard Solar, a D.C.-area national solar company, is thrilled … Read More →

This is your SolarWakeup for July 20th, 2018

Go Solar, Save Money. Now that the 5 tech companies make up 50% of the value in the S&P, you have to ask yourself what it takes for the remaining 495 companies to jump on the bandwagon. I know the idea is that those 5 companies make so much money that solar is a nice to have, but I assure you that on a portfolio basis that it is going to make them money. Retail energy companies have been an interest of mine for many years, that’s why I like to continue to highlight CleanChoice Energy. They come up all the time in my work and our customers overlap because they want solar on their house if they can and use renewable energy for everything else. Moreover, corporates want to have solar but it can’t be complicated which is a specialty of the solar industry. I’m interested to see how CleanChoice continues to innovate and how their competitors follow suit. Thus far the copycats have been scarce.
Use Credit To Drive Scale. It was just over a year ago that I had the opportunity to sit with the amazing solar ambassador, Bill Walton, at the PAC 12 Sustainability Summit. Together we spoke about the meaning and opportunity solar presented to the universities. My message was, as it is today, that entities with large usage and good credit can work backwards. Identify the sites (or even think offsite) and outline the energy price that works for the entity, then go big. It is hard to find an entity that has its data together, anywhere in America, that couldn’t save money with solar if they contracted for a large enough portfolio. As Vote Solar’s Thad Culley wisely said yesterday on Twitter (I’m paraphrasing), solar already makes financial sense, this is a question of morality!
Great Logic, Wrong Implementation. Utilities helping customers buy electric cars is the right idea, helps the ecosystem and increases demand, but it is the wrong policy and use of funds for utilities. Consumers already want electric cars but their fear is not knowing where to charge the cars. This isn’t range anxiety, this is fear of the unknown and fear of the logistics required. How do I add a charger to my house? Who installs it? What do I install and where do I buy it? Where else can I charge? Those are the questions that go into the mind of someone that wants an EV but can’t get the answers. Utilities should have a hotline to answer that and if consumers want an EV, utilities should provide and install the charger in their home while at the same time drastically increasing the number of charging stations. Remove the fear and consumers will buy their own EVs.
Fix The AD/CVD. The impact on the silicon manufacturers is one of the worst parts of the overall solar trade war. These were amazing infrastructure investments made by companies in parts of the Country where solar still struggles to get off the ground. Instead of net metering being attacked in Michigan, silicon could be made there and sent around the world, the same is true for Tennessee. Removing the AD/CVD and replacing it with a domestic aid package funded by import fees is exactly the way we need to go. US made silicon would then travel the world once again.
Showing Off Resi Solar. Are you installing awesome systems across America? Let’s show off some pictures on this platform. Send me a picture with your logo and location (city and state) on the image and I’ll post it on the newsletter. Every homeowner is a solar advocate and let’s help them show off their investment in the future!

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Have a great day!
Yann

CleanChoice Wants To Accelerate Trend Of Businesses Seeking 100% Clean Energy

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent As more businesses decide to pursue 100% clean energy goals, they often need people to help them get there. CleanChoice Energy has launched a new service in several states designed to do just that. The announcement comes on the heels of solar’s own national association, the Solar Energy Industries Association, signing an agreement with WGL Energy Services to offset its employees’ travel with 373 solar renewable energy credits (SRECs) from two solar projects in Virginia and Maryland, respectively. The move is an effort for the association to practice what it preaches to become carbon neutral. … Read More →

Arizona County Saves $220,000 Over Three Years Buying Electricity From Private Solar Arrays

By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent Privately owned solar arrays in Pima County, New Mexico, have saved the county $220,000 since 2015, according to a report by Arizona Public Media’s Zachary Ziegler. The irony is that the savings could even be higher than reported, but three of the arrays haven’t provided savings yet because of some issues with a rebate program from Tucson Electric Power, facilities management Director Lisa Josker told Ziegler. [wds id=”3″] The news comes as the county considers entering into 15 more deals to purchase electricity at lower rates from privately owned solar arrays than the rates they … Read More →

This is your SolarWakeup for July 19th, 2018

Thank You! You are all too kind and I promise I will respond to everyone. Day 1 in the books and I can feel that (solar) energy already. Lots of coffee plans in the future and of course you are all welcome to visit me in Walnut Creek, especially given the co-located Calicraft Brewery at the office.
Build More Solar. Some good questions today for you to ponder. What would be a better way to get industry, solar in our case, to grow domestically, especially in manufacturing, without imposing the tariffs that try to do one size fits all. One way would be for the Government to do more purchasing and understand where the products come from. This would also save the Government money aside from creating volume for the domestic manufacturers, lawyers, and developers that house the jobs in the industry. Question for the crowd, how much solar would it take to offset the Government’s usage?
Good Question. If Congress is looking into the question of what energy storage policy should look like, then I ask myself that same question. Storage is a bit more complicated, for behind the meter for example, who should have the ability to dispatch the batteries. If a third party, what is the compensation and what are the parameters for operating the system? For central storage, is there an RPS that can take advantage of federal policy? Should the storage industry push for an ITC as well, adding ‘and energy storage’ to the solar tax credit or create its own PTC version.
US Assembly. The auto industry could be an interesting partner for the solar industry. They have campuses around the Country, mainly in the Southeast, assembling cars with parts that come from across the world. Shipping is an enormous cost in supply chain and shipping parts often gives an advantage to suppliers that are more local. Look at the Ontario parts manufacturing sector that services Detroit as an example. With VW announcing EV assembly in Tennessee, do the motor manufacturers start retraining workforce to build or assembly battery packs? The important takeaway is that the final assembly and ecosystem is a big part of the process. Tariffs hurt all of the supply chain and cause less of the final product to be made which results in job losses in the places you least hope to impact.
APS Continues, Learns Limited Lessons. This is incredibly similar to the anti-solar campaign in Florida. APS is spending, $11million thus far, to stop the RPS increase ballot initiative that Tom Steyer is backing. Honestly, it eludes me that the utility companies don’t take advantage of these circumstances. Instead of blocking the RPS, push for giant rate base initiatives, billions in EV infrastructure, colocating storage at the edge, substation and neighborhood levels amongst a few ideas. I get that being the APS CEO is tough when you only operate on 3-month increments but maybe there is a better way to run APS and Pinnacle West should let someone else try.

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Have a great day!
Yann

This is your SolarWakeup for July 18th, 2018

SolarWakeup Is Now Pacific Time. Yesterday I took the one way flight to SF to be here full time. I appreciate the many notes of welcome and look forward to being within the hub of the solar industry. I’ll start most mornings right here in Walnut Creek at the Quick Mount manufacturing facility to serve the residential solar market. These are exciting times and I’m glad to play my part in this role. I look forward to working with many readers and hopefully do some business together along the way.
Political Reality Of Corporate America. Much has been written and said about Elon Musk’s political donations. Most of the comments I’ve received come from outside the solar industry but even within the industry, people are whispering. Yes, Elon gives to the republican party including PACs. The numbers released are in the 10’s of thousands, hardly a dent for a billionaire that has two companies, both of which require legislative action and funding. Just with SpaceX you can imagine the tens of millions that the Government pays to shuttle satellites on top of the access to locations like Cape Canaveral. This is a long way to say that donating to politicians is part of the game and one that even Elon has no choice in participating in. The solar industry isn’t immune, from hiring former republican Senators to lobby or handing out solar champion awards to GOP congressmen.
Blockchain Docket In Arizona. Transactive energy, seems like a fancy way to say that net metering or its equivalent can be handled by a blockchain protocol similar to our discussion with LO3 Energy during SolarWakeup Live! New York. I’m interested to see how the providers engage this discussion and if a pilot program is implemented.
Undermining Net Metering. There is going to be an urgency to change net metering programs across the Country. Infrastructure investments by utilities have a way of stacking on top of each other in a way that the value of solar and solar plus storage increased over time. More solar means less infrastructure spending needed which results in bigger and bigger savings to all energy consumers. The cost shift argument is a talking point, I haven’t heard of utilities trying to ban LED lightbulbs or more efficient refrigerators. Net metering is simple and it gives consumers comfort to make investments, the simplicity is what opponents want to disrupt.
Presented by ENGIE. ENGIE (formerly SoCore Energy) is a market leader in commercial, industrial, and distributed solar and storage portfolio development with installations across some 25 states. ENGIE offers commercial and industrial companies, electric cooperatives, and communities solar and storage solutions that provide energy cost savings, increased resiliency and carbon reduction opportunities.

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Yann

This is your SolarWakeup for July 17th, 2018

A Bridge To Prosperity. Natural gas was the political bridge that let politicians take money from the rich gas industry while advocating for a renewable energy future by ending coal with natural gas. The last 10 years were basically about that trend, utilities across the Country rate based the end of coal power generation in favor of the gas plants. If anything, the natural gas bridge to a renewable future cost utility consumers 100’s of millions of dollars in new generation. The bridge has essentially reached the other side of the transition because solar plus storage is competitive in almost every market.
Exhibit A. Using demand response, the CPUC is showing utilities how they can avoid building new generation. The interesting aspect of this is that it shows how the natural gas bridge ends and more importantly why our sector is important. Oil, auto and utility companies are buying companies that focus on the distributed space, not just because of their business model but because the intersection of DERs, EVs and generation will need teams that build that distributed ecosystem.
Exhibit B. Here is more NV solar for you, this time a whopping 690MW project. The most obvious omission from this announcement is the size of the storage associated with the project which would likely be the world’s largest announced after last week’s 1.2GWh project from Vistra. Storage will absolutely be built on this plant, not just an option as it is outline to have. This is a big project but we’ll need many of them to make up for the fossil power plants that will be replaced by this type of generation.
More Solar Manufacturing. JA Solar is adding more manufacturing in Vietnam. For $68million, the company will add 1.5GW of wafer capacity for shipment of products not made in China. The plant will start to operate this year and deliver 500MW in 2018.
Presented by Sunrun. Sunrun is the largest residential solar, storage and energy services company in the United States with a mission to create a planet run by the sun. Since establishing the solar as a service model in 2007, Sunrun continues to lead the industry in providing clean energy to homeowners with little to no upfront cost and at a savings to traditional electricity. Sunrun is excited to expand its solar offerings to Illinois residents.

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Yann