This is your SolarWakeup for June 11th, 2018
I’ll Take Instant Permits for $1. Imagine a solar market where you can install solar like it was an air conditioner. Sell it, install it and then pull the permit. It puts some pressure on you to do it right but it solves so many more of the solar market’s inefficiencies. This idea, not without prior attempts, is being spearheaded by Andrew Birch and many others and I sat down with Andrew in this episode of SolarWakeup Live! podcast. We talk about why, why now and what’s next. If there is a conversation you want to be listening to, this is one of them.
A Meeting To Make It Happen. The starting point on the execution towards instant permits is a two day summit which happened last week. Day 1 hosted at Sunrun and day 2 hosted at Mosaic in the Bay Area. Co-chairing with Andrew Birch are Lynn Jurich and Billy Parish. Facilitated by the Rocky Mountain Institute and with involvement of SEIA and The Solar Foundation this makes it a venture to be looked after. More details about the meeting in the podcast and how you can get involved.
Where Do We Go From Here. This is just the start! After the meeting comes a decision of how to proceed, how to raise money and where to get the early victories. SunShot invested in this idea through Broward County, a venture that appears to have failed as the program was passed to the Florida Solar Energy Center and the website is dead. Unfortunate but hopefully recoverable by the trade groups and private sector. The residential advisory council from SolarWakeup will be involved and advising the course of this endeavor to make sure that small solar installers have a seat at the table because without the small installers this will not go as well as it can.
Laudato Si Se Puede. The Pope is doing the work that few can assemble. Bringing oil and gas to the table and asking them to understand the needs of the planet as part of their business. The Pope and I believe in some different things but on this issue, we are in sync.
Chicago! One last panel to put speakers on, the one that has billions at stake so I’ll let you give me some ideas. Development of large scale solar in Illinois is already in the works and I want to hear from those working on it. If you know of anyone that would make a great panel discussion at SolarWakeup Live! Chicago.www.solarwakeuplive.com
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Yann
Instant Solar Permitting, The Most Important Issue Facing Solar? (Podcast)
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By Yann Brandt, Managing Editor This may be the most important topic to be organized in solar since the start of net metering. The permitting process in the US adds almost $1/watt to the cost of the installations and increases the cancellation rate for customers looking to go solar. In this episode of SolarWakeup Live! I speak with Andrew Birch who was a co-founder of Sungevity. Andrew tackles this issue by spearheading a two-day meeting which happened last week along with his co-chairs Billy Parish of Mosaic and Lynn Jurich of Sunrun. SEIA and The Solar Foundation will be intimately … Read More
OhmHome Introduces New Solar Mapping Project To Facilitate Solar Adoption
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent OhmHome, a website devoted to educating consumers about the Solar Revolution and other energy issues, has decided it wants to one-up Google’s Project Sunroof with its new solar mapping service called NextDoor Solar. In addition to showing consumers what other homes in the neighborhood have solar, it will also tell them which companies have done the installations – a feature OhmHome says is important because of its long-term financial implications. In its release, the company cites NREL research that shows local installers can offer consumers 10% more savings than large national companies. It also cites … Read More
Senators Launch Campaign To Repeal Solar Tariffs, Mirroring Similar Effort In The House
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent Mirroring the efforts in the House, two Western-state Senators have introduced a federal bill to repeal the 30% solar tariffs President Donald J. Trump imposed on imported solar modules in January. Earlier this year, solar tariffs repeal became a federal issue when five members of the House of Representatives introduced similar legislation. U.S. Senators Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.) have introduced the Protecting American Solar Jobs Act, which would accomplish the same goals as the House solar tariffs repeal bill, meaning it would not only eliminate the tariffs immediately but would refund money … Read More
This is your SolarWakeup for June 8th, 2018
Have a great weekend. See you all in San Francisco next week and in Chicago the week following.
CUSTOMER Side Of The Meter. This may sound like NH’s Liberty Utility is acting with good faith but let’s be real. Anytime the utility wants to own equipment on your side of the meter, they are taking your ability to control your own energy usage away from you. This is the storage version of net metering, owning storage in rate base is one way to exert more control by the monopoly.
The Toll Trump Tariffs Take. Just the 201 tariffs are taking a massive toll on the industry. More than anything, it’s the uncertainty that it caused in an industry that is already struggling to keep its growth going. Every time someone mentions a company having problems to me, the joke quickly follows “Think they’ll file a 201 case?” The aluminum and steel tariffs are going to be a business planning issue as well. Hopefully the industry associations understand that these issues need to be resolved, quickly. The unknown is potentially worse than the result. So between 201, commodity tariffs, and coal bailouts, how many calls have you made to your representative?
Can CCAs Go National? As we see solar go below 3 cents per kWh, you would think that off takers would be on the prowl for more solar generation but that isn’t the case. A lot of new solar is going to the CCAs in California. Solar finance pros are ignoring (out of necessity) some of the credit issues but big solar means big dollars going into projects.
1970 Called, Wants Energy Policy Back. Take a moment and read this ridiculous article about the politics of energy in Trump world. Wouldn’t it be great if solar is the policy that gets Congress to work in a bipartisan way?
Presented By Chicago. Are you investing hundreds of millions into solar projects in Illinois? Make sure you know the rules and for $250, this is the best education you will get. solarwakeuplive.com for your tickets
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Yann
Liberty Utilities Wants To Own Your Behind-The-Meter Battery System (And Why That’s A Bad Idea)
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent Liberty Utilities, New Hampshire’s largest utility currently has a docket before the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission that sounds like a good idea. At issue is the state’s largest pilot program in history that would allow New Hampshire solar users to install batteries at no cost to them. Sounds good, right? And although the intent of the program – to see how batteries will affect grid resiliency and performance – is pretty benign, solar advocates in the state have concerns about the size of the program and what it could mean for the long-term future … Read More
sPower and CleanPowerSF Sign Long-Term PPA for 100 MW of Solar
sPower, the largest private owner of operating solar assets in the United States, has signed a 22-year, 100 MW solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with CleanPowerSF, a California Community Choice Aggregator (CCA) managed by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) that serves the City and County of San Francisco. The energy will be sold from sPower’s San Pablo Raceway Solar Project located in Lancaster, California. San Pablo Raceway is expected to be commercially operational in 2019 and generate enough renewable energy to power over 87,000 average San Francisco households. The project will create approximately 500 positions during its construction and 10 full time positions during operation. “We are thrilled to partner with sPower and deliver on our promise to invest in renewable energy projects and ensure clean, safe and reliable energy for our customers for years to come,” said Barbara Hale, SFPUC Assistant General Manager for Power. “We are excited to partner with CleanPowerSF to provide clean renewable solar energy for San Francisco,” said Hans Isern, SVP of Power Marketing at sPower. The San Pablo Raceway Project will be part of sPower’s large solar portfolio in the Antelope Valley, which totals over 600 MW. This is the fourth PPA sPower has signed with CCAs in California.sPower, the largest private owner of operating solar assets in the United States, has signed a 22-year, 100 MW solar Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) with CleanPowerSF, a California Community Choice Aggregator (CCA) managed by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) that serves the City and County of San Francisco. The energy will be sold from sPower’s San Pablo Raceway Solar Project located in Lancaster, California. San Pablo Raceway is expected to be commercially operational in 2019 and generate enough renewable energy to power over 87,000 average San Francisco households. The project will create approximately 500 positions during its construction … Read More
Despite True Believers, EXPERTS Say Trump Nuke Bailout Could Cost $17 Billion Per Year In Overly High Electric Bills
By Frank Andorka, Senior Correspondent No matter how many utility executives say, “We don’t have enough information to decide whether the President Trump nuke bailout is a good idea yet,” the people who know stuff – you know, experts – have weighed in, and the news is not good. At the same time Exelon’s CEO was telling a crowd at the Edison Electric Institute’s annual meeting that no one had any idea whether Trump’s plan to mandate that grid operators buy electricity from failing nuclear and coal plants was a good one yet, the Nuclear Information & Resource Service (NIRS) … Read More
This is your SolarWakeup for June 7th, 2018
How Big Will Florida Be? Big! Here’s a couple of things to consider when you think about Florida. First, it’s a really, really big State. It takes 8 hours to drive from Miami to Tallahassee which justifies the 3rd highest usage of electricity in the Country. Second, the building codes here are as tough as they come because of a long history of hurricanes destroying homes. As such, the building officials care about the installation methods and products used, so I expect a quick stop to any subpar installation methods. Third, and most important, ‘everyone’ in Florida wants solar on their home. This is based on being in the Sunshine State and the fact that Floridians have a unique view on consumerism, more on that soon.
Consumers Come First For IPPs. NRG is shedding its power plants, the fossil ones this time. Earlier, NRG had announced it was selling its solar business to a private equity invest at the pressure of an activist investment firm. Getting rid of fossil fuel power plants is the trillion dollar game of hot potato for IPPs and that was foreseeable years ago. Much of the David Crane strategy centered around de-carbonization of the fleet but was also rooted on the fact that coal was finished. This time Wall Street is buying into the strategy, given that that customers are as well. Next step is getting back into EVs so that NRG comes full circle and gives Crane a board seat for his vision.
A Story About Tesla. It’s not all race cars and rocket ships at Tesla. At the shareholder meeting, Tesla announced it has reached a cumulative energy storage capacity of 1GWh. Given the average size of the systems, that is quite impressive and adds a level or storage scale to the company trying to lower the cost of batteries for car buyers. Look back at today as a funny milestone, because it’s so small, compared to what’s coming up.
What’s Next For Trump’s Coal Bailout. The immediate next step is likely a hearing or directive from FERC to the ISOs that will be subject to the coal bailout. It’s also indicative of the absurdity that Exelon came out with a statement against the policy. Good coverage from GTM on the legal aspects of the case.
The Jobs Of The Future. Not too many Wells Fargo carriage coachmen around anymore. That’s what happened when Ford came out with the Model T and the innovation that followed. Solar and wind plus batteries will replace much of the central power plant portfolio. Each time the innovation changes a fundamental sector, jobs have to adapt. The blacksmith became a toolsmith and so on. The same is true for internal combustion motor manufacturing sector, it is going to go away as EVs take the segment over. That is a reality of the future of work, but it isn’t going to happen overnight and economies must plan for it.
Sponsor SolarWakeup Live! Chicago. Join a great crowd of sponsors and attendees for the Chicago event on June 21st. We have a few more sponsorship slots left, email me for more info. Tickets at solarwakeuplive.com
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Yann
The City of Pratt, Kansas will be powering 10,000 homes with solar power
Inovateus Solar, Kenyon Energy and the City of Pratt, Kansas announced today the upcoming solar farm project (6MW) located on the North East Corner of town. Half mile North of 54 highway on NW 20th Ave. The awarded project will produce 12.6 MWh annually, enough to power 10,000 homes and offsetting over 23 million tons of CO2 emissions. "The City of Pratt is a highly diverse community moving in a progressive direction, supporting extensive growth and business opportunities. For these reasons, we are very pleased to announce our partnership with Inovateus Solar to lead in our region with the utilization of clean energy sources," said Doug Meyer, Mayor of Pratt. The construction of the solar project will start in June and is expected to begin commercial operation in January, 2019. The project is contracted under a 15-year power purchase agreement, with Pratt's utility power plant for 100% of the array's output. Construction will be managed by Inovateus. "Kenyon Energy is very pleased to partner with Inovateus Solar and the City of Pratt on this exciting solar energy project," said Clay Biddinger, Chairman & CEO of Kenyon Energy. "This project is creating tangible economic and environmental benefits for Pratt's citizens and local businesses. We continue to develop solar energy projects similar to this throughout Kansas and encourage other cities and municipalities across Kansas to reach out if they are interested in benefiting from solar energy." Another benefit from this project is to provide Pratt Community College with assistance in the development of a solar program. "We are impressed by the enthusiasm expressed by city officials as well as Pratt Community College in the creation of a solar program. This aligns really well with our core values to continue educating and promoting the use of solar technologies," said Jordan Richardson, Business Development Manager at Inovateus Solar.Inovateus Solar, Kenyon Energy and the City of Pratt, Kansas announced today the upcoming solar farm project (6MW) located on the North East Corner of town. Half mile North of 54 highway on NW 20th Ave. The awarded project will produce 12.6 MWh annually, enough to power 10,000 homes and offsetting over 23 million tons of CO2 emissions. “The City of Pratt is a highly diverse community moving in a progressive direction, supporting extensive growth and business opportunities. For these reasons, we are very pleased to announce our partnership with Inovateus Solar to lead in our region with the utilization … Read More