This is your SolarWakeup for April 13th, 2018
We Want Solar. We’ve gotta stop being surprised when we see polls that show Americans wanting more solar. This isn’t just an environmental decision, it’s also one of control of cost and of self-reliance. A poll would likely show Americans preferring to disconnect from the grid but that’s a different topic. In a Q&A with Dan Rather last night, the first question came about science and climate change which makes me wonder where we fall short in spreading our message. A few years ago, a leading solar advocate told me that it doesn’t matter how much money solar has in its coffers, it would never win based on spending or campaign donations. Solar wins because of the people on the Capitol steps and marches in front of the PUC. I can’t help but think that all of these conversations we’ve had over the past few weeks about money vs values, that this advice is as true as ever and these polls are proof of that. Open the tent, it doesn’t have to be gold plated.
Solar Moves To EV Charging. GM is signing a deal with EVgo to get more fast charging done. EVgo is an interesting story with notable solar ties. EVgo was acquired from NRG, post David Crane, by Reuben Munger’s investment firm, Vision Ridge. Since then, in recent months, solar veterans Cathy Zoi (DOE, Silver Lake, SunEdison) and Julie Blunden (SunPower, SunEdison, CalCEF) have joined the company.
Do You DER? It seems that a gathering workshop on the FERC 841 order has attracted quite the attendees. Were you there? What was your takeaway?
Vehicle To Grid. Using your EV battery for distributed resources seems like a strange way to use an expensive battery in your car, causes all sorts of issues to the lease transaction and makes non-energy professionals have to trust a new market. Some companies are road testing this technology and I can see how this could work in the future. My guess is it happens in some fashion at some point.
MidWest Solar, Illinois. The Land of Obama is finally going solar (and other RE/EE). I am extremely bullish on early stage development in that region and see opportunities for all segments of this market. The politics could play well, as well as politics in Springfield could look at least. We will be announcing our dates and agenda for the Illinois event shortly, stay tuned.
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Yann
EVs Will Start School Later This Year
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Blue Bird Corporation, whose iconic logo you’ve probably seen on a school bus near you, is diving bravely into the future by unveiling the electric versions of its Type C & D configuration school buses. According to CleanTechnica, Blue Bird is reportedly the only U.S. company offering electric buses in those configurations. You could see these buses delivering your kids to school as soon as this fall. SolarWakeup’s View: Pretty soon, you may not hear the churning of diesel engines as school buses stop at the end of your driveway to pick up … Read More
Americans Tell Gallup: Develop More Solar, Please
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Gallup’s annual Environment survey indicates that Americans want to develop more alternative energy sources instead of traditional fossil-fuel generation, to the tune of 73%. (Psst…Gallup….Lynn Jurich called and would like her conclusion back, please. Thank you.) In contrast, only 25% of the country is worried about the availability or affordability of energy in this country. And finally, more than half of Americans want to prioritize environmental conservation over fossil-fuel energy development (which may mean that, for now, the Arctic National Wildlife Reserve is safe from oil derricks). SolarWakeup’s View: All I keep hearing … Read More
This is your SolarWakeup for April 12th, 2018
See You In Charlottesville. I’m not the only one leaving town (I see you Paul Ryan). I’m on my way to Charlottesville to moderate a panel on solar investments and financing at the Tom Tom Festival. Let me know if you are in town for this.
Shame In SC. I thought 60-40 victory in the SC House would mean that a mild solar win for the industry was safe. BUT never underestimate the power of greedy monopolies, especially in Southern States. Using some crazy legislative tactics, the utilities got the House to reconsider the matter AND requiring a 2/3 margin to pass. This failed to happen and the bill died, for now, costing SC around 3,000 jobs. These jobs won’t come back in the nuclear industry, after that $9billion boondoggle, but hopefully legislative leaders will see a way to fix this. Frank and local news on the topic.
Monopoly Regulations. More on the topic of what monopolies should be allowed to do later but since SC happened, I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the legislative power investor owned monopolies have through their lobbying. A monopoly is given to a private corporation for the public good, to have a responsibility to serve the consumer in the best way possible for key markets, energy being one. Having that privilege should come with restrictions, especially around influencing politics and participating in competitive markets that they could have an unfair advantage in. I believe, and most consumers would agree with me, utilities should be prohibited from lobbying and should be treated like non-profits that are only allowed to educate. No political fundraising or underhanded legislative tactics should be allowed by someone that already has 100% market share.
The Energy Show With Barry Cinnamon. Is now available on SolarWakeup. His latest episode about microgrids is here. We are excited to have Barry join the SolarWakeup community as we continue to grow and look forward to hearing his podcasts going forward.
More Murray Quotes. Another gem from Murray, saying “People will die in the dark” if coal goes away. Quite the opposite, no more mining accidents and cleaner air will mean society lives longer and solar will keep the lights on.
The Quiet Bus. If my kids could ride the Tesla electric bus, they definitely wouldn’t want me driving them to school. I discussed the school bus route with Proterra’s CEO in this podcast.
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Yann
The Energy Show – What are Microgrids?
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The Energy Show, a podcast by Barry Cinnamon is now available on SolarWakeup We call our power system an electric “grid” because it is composed of a network of wires that move the power around from node to node – basically a combination of power sources (natural gas power plants, solar farms, nukes), wires (long distance transmission lines and local distribution utility poles) and controls. Microgrids are the same concept but on a much smaller scale. One example of a microgrid is a complex of buildings on an island. The power plant on an island has historically been a diesel … Read More
Jigar Shah Speaks On The Future Of U.S. Solar, And He’s Optimistic
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Jigar Shah talked with GreenBiz writer Lucy Kessler to discuss how taxes and tariffs are going to affect the future of the solar industry. In the interview, he argues the “sky is falling” mentality the solar industry has surrounding President Trump’s ill-advised tariffs on imported modules is counterproductive and overblown. He also believes that while the tax-code changes may slow tax-equity financing in solar temporarily, the dust will settle once everyone understands the details of the law. SolarWakeup’s View: Ever since I joined the solar industry in 2011, the name Jigar Shah has … Read More
Utility Monopolies Screw SC Solar After Sneaky Shift On Bill
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Damn, that was cold – although you have to admire solar’s opponents in South Carolina for employing an obscure legislative sleight of hand to kill a bill that would have eliminated residential net metering caps. After the utilities raised all holy hell about how removing net metering caps would COMPLETELY DESTROY THEIR BUSINESS RIGHT NOW, the cowards in the South Carolina House of Representatives reclassified the bill as a tax increase, which mean it needed a 2/3 majority instead of a simple majority. So…solar advocates in South Carolina can kiss the expected industry … Read More
This is your SolarWakeup for April 11th, 2018
What Energy Future Do You Want? Sunrun has been busy this week. CEO, Lynn Jurich, has authored a report that asks the question we already know the answer to, what should be the default scenario for utility investments going forward? Do we rebuild the century old poles, plants and wires or focus on distributed generation in smart energy systems? For Sunrun, and others, the hope is to get consumers upset at the status quo and expect a newer, better system. My hope is this report makes it into the mainstream, it’s lengthy but simple enough to be understood by those outside of our industry. Here is the report
My Convergence Thesis Is Coming True. Solar is a vital part of the EV revolution which means that as the energy sector seeks new generation caused by automobile OEMs building more EVs, the two sectors will come together into one. Your utility, solar contractor, auto manufacturer and energy IPPs will all serve the same market. Look to the latest move at E.ON as a BMW board member joins the supervisory board.
Energy, Carbon, And Baseload. I didn’t watch the BNEF Summit live, just reading the twitter coverage makes me realize how we are still stuck in the past in so many ways. Wind and solar development are causing our energy grid to get cleaner (and cheaper) but holding back the replacement of fossil based plants is delaying the inevitable. I get that Tom Fanning and Rick Perry make for nice names to have at a conference but I don’t understand having Bob Murray the coal magnate at the NEW energy finance summit.
More On Murray. He has some funny commentary about his oil and gas colleagues. Sub-tweet is the fact that he’s showing who is true enemy is and what really killed coal.
Unrated Credit. As a reminder to you, each afternoon Frank writes up the story you found most interesting in that day’s SolarWakeup email. The story that gets the most clicks gets a follow up. I spoke with CleanCapital’s President, Jon Powers, about what the raise means to the company and how it advances C&I solar.
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Have a great day!
Yann
C&I Snags $250 Million To Expand Sector Breadth
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Greentech Media reports that the commercial/industrial (C&I) sector now has $250 million in new money to purchase operational assets, thanks to the efforts of CleanCapital and CarVal Investors, the investment arm of industrial giant Cargill. According to GTM, CleanCapital has purchased mroe than $100 million in distributed generation projects in the past several years. focusing entirely on the C&I sector. The money will also allow CleanCapital to increase its focus on segments such as energy efficiency, storage and new construction solar. SolarWakeup’s View: OK, I must admit I was mildly confused by Greentech … Read More
What Would Consumers Choose? (Solar. They Would Choose Solar.)
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent What Happened: Sunrun has produced a consumer-friendly report called Affordable, Clean, Reliable Energy, which asks the ever important question: What would consumers choose for their own electrical production? In a delightfully readable format, Sunrun’s CEO Lynn Jurich posits that given a choice between a distributed-generation, renewable-energy based electrical system and the traditional fossil-fuel based one, consumers would choose the former. She also forcefully lays out the case for solar as a job generator and calls for an end to the “war on solar” (now there’s a woman who knows how to use catchy slogans). Lastly, … Read More