This is your SolarWakeup for November 21st, 2017
Happy Thanksgiving. 50/50 shot at a newsletter coming your way so I am taking the time to thank you for your continued readership and support for our Live! events. Interacting and learning from you makes this a path worth undertaking. If you buy tickets for DC and sell out the event this week, I’ll be even more thankful.
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 20th, 2017
Short Week. I will be off for Thanksgiving and the Wednesday edition is up in the air depending on if there are enough articles to send your way. Enjoy your holiday and make sure to do something that we can all be thankful for – starting with the 1st item on the rundown.
Your Comment? Have you taken a few minutes to send comments to the trade representative ahead of the December 6th hearing? You can use this script from SEIA and send the comments on this page. Make sure to have your entire office do this as well.
Tesla’s Rig and Roadster. No doubt, Elon puts on a show. Electrification of transportation is the leap we need for climate change. At 500 miles per charge, I am also interested in the impact to the grid for the electrification of freight. With an 8-pin charger (and a dose of real-life needs), some engineers are theorizing that the “mega-charger” could be up to 1.6MW of power to charge the semi in 30 minutes. Power density times massive scale (3.5 million trucks in America) means having to re-rethink the energy grid, mostly around our highway system. Best of all, this will get financed through non-dilutive funding from 1,000 rich people that want to go fast – placing $250k payments for the new roadster. If the money were in my account, it would no longer be there either because this thing is sick.
Public Manufacturers. As JA Solar goes private with its manufacturing, I wonder how long it will take for all of them to be off the public markets. In relation to Renesola, taking the manufacturing private while keeping the public vehicle to focus on owning assets, it comes across as an internal reverse merger. This strategy makes sense to me, I wouldn’t be surprised if it is replicated again.
Another Great Speaker. I’m excited to have Amy Harder from Axios join us at SolarWakeup Live! DC. Amy has been covering energy for years and was in Bonn for COP23 last week. Axios has an incredible insight to the DC ecosystem and was the publication that brought us Trump’s “I want tariffs, bring me tariffs.” I look forward to speaking with Amy about the news of energy. Get your tickets here.
Presented by MMA Energy Capital. At MMA Energy Capital, we partner with developers, EPC contractors, and system owners to provide project capital necessary to develop, build, and operate world-class renewable energy systems. We are currently hiring at our growing company.
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 17th, 2017
A Nuclear Mea Culpa? Citing customer frustrations, South Carolina’s SCE&G will be canceling a set of rate increases stemming from the construction of the failed VC Summer nuclear plant. The shareholders of the utility will be ‘paying’ for $2.2billion in construction costs in what appears to be future reduced ratepayer earnings over the next 50 years. In short, it seems like the ratepayers are lending the write down of the losses. While the reporting appears to show a utility showing ‘remorse’ over its business actions – utility monopolies continue to operate in a dreamland far away from reality.
In Murphy We Trust. With the election of Phil Murphy, who ran strong on the solar issues, New Jersey is looking to reinvigorate its market. While projects are happening, it is nowhere near the scale as previous eras in the New Jersey solar market. David Crane has been named to the transition team which bodes well for us looking at markets for a long term sustainable sector. I look forward to seeing how that plays out as he takes the Governor’s mansion.
Subsidy Prescription. The DOE NOPR is looking like FERC is open to the idea, Commissioner Chatterjee is quoted wondering why anyone would consider it controversial. The article also goes into the concept of resiliency and focusing on the power plant as opposed the distribution lines. When I was in Boston a few weeks ago, a million customers lost power – some for as long as a week. They didn’t lose power because generators went down, they lost power because trees and wind took down the transmission infrastructure. In my mind the controversy is based in the cost to consumers. If ISOs offered $10billion in incentives for resiliency, I doubt a single coal plant would be offered. My interview with Jon Wellinghoff covers much of this.
MA NEM Cap. If you haven’t listened to or read the latest podcast (there is a full transcript on the page) you are missing on vital information for your business or understanding the impacts to your customers’ business. The other interview that will come out next week is with Senator Boncore about the NEM cap in Mass. While the takeaway is muted, there are a bunch of crumbs that would make me look hard to ignoring NEM caps for my business. More to come on this.
Kentucky Coal. Even in coal country with what I would assume to be a utility friendly regulatory body, PPL is shutting two coal plants that are old (~50 years) and would cost too much to make compliant with environmental standards. These aren’t the first and far from the last coal plants to close – this is purely a consumer induced move since customers want cheaper energy and clean air & water.
Live! DC. The event will now feature Congresswoman Gonzalez-Colon, the resident representative of Puerto Rico. Puerto Rico is more than a goodwill story, it has been one of the most enticing solar markets plagued with external issues. Now that the grid is torn apart and people have no energy, it represents a challenge to rebuild the grid in a 21st century way. I look forward to having this discussion and finding the path to the opportunity that it represents for the solar industry to help.Get your tickets now.
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 16th, 2017
DC Tickets. 4 of the speakers are almost confirmed, as soon as they are, you will be told their names. Andrea Luecke and Dr. Lidija Sekaric are confirmed and two more have signaled their availability. Solar Foundation is doing great work including the ongoing jobs census, analyzing diversity in solar and now their leadership on helping rebuild Puerto Rico. Dr. Sekaric spent the entire Obama tenure working on solar related issues including as the director of the SunShot initiative. She is now at Siemens working on innovation in energy including how microgrids are put together. I will be talking to her about the City that gets 100% of its power and energy from renewable energy – what does that look like and what would it cost? Get your tickets now, early bird pricing only goes until Thanksgiving.
Bourbon With Your Whine. The WTO is likely to allow retaliatory tariffs against US goods if Trump goes forward with 201 tariffs. The threat now looks to target bourbon and cheese, neither of which have really anything to do with solar except for their lobbying impact on two important individuals – Paul Ryan and Mitch McConnell. Maybe someone needs to get Duterte from the Philippines to target US investment into local real estate, that could get some attention.
CAISO Projects. Advisory work – I am looking for a few projects that have CAISO interconnection but no offtakers. If you have this or know where I could find it, please let me know. My advisory work keeps the SolarWakeup lights on for everyone.
Puerto Rico Update. An interesting pro and con take on the topic of how to rebuild the grid in Puerto Rico. Meanwhile, as Bernie Sanders points out, more than 50% of the Americans in PR still don’t have power after two months. Imagine that happening anywhere in the US – it would never happen.
On To Emissions. The finish line isn’t at 100% renewable energy for operations after all. Microsoft is out with a goal to drop emissions 75% by 2030. Google had previously outlined its energy goals to not only match geography but also time of use. It may seem like corporations were close to finished, but it seems like they are just getting started.
Solar On Coal Mines. Solar should have a quiet goal of getting Senators Capito and Joe Manchin to be as avid of solar supporters as they are coal today. Part of that is showing the value of land is greater with solar and the second would be to switch the economy into a solar focused one. There are great teams on the ground in West Virginia looking at this and doing some ‘greenfield’ development. Rocky Mountain Institute also published a report appropriately titled ‘A Second Life For Legacy Mining Sites.’
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 15th, 2017
We’ve Got You Covered On SMART. If you were to look around other publications you would be hard pressed to find information about the SMART program release in Massachusetts even though it’s the most important topic in the State in years. Not to worry, we’ve got you covered with information that you need to figure out your bidding strategy. Not to shorten it to a few words, you have a 40 minute information filled interview with the person in charge of the program. This platform isn’t about covering news, instead looking to give you exactly the facts you need to run your business.
The Point of Live! Events. It’s been two weeks since SolarWakeup Live! in Boston. The people that attended that event already knew what you are only reading today. They also know more information about NEM caps than you. My reason for creating the events and asking for your trust in the content is to change the way you have experienced conferences. Right now, you go to conferences for networking, not content. You go for several days and spend thousands on a badge. While I look forward to having people travel to SolarWakeup Live! events, I trust that you believe in the content you’ve been reading for 5 years on this site. Live! DC is coming up in a few weeks and there are still tickets available. If you live on the East Coast you should either be at Live! DC or waving signs in front of the USTR hearing on December 6th.
When, Not If. This is a unanimous assumption in the solar industry, storage is coming. It may not pencil everywhere today, neither does solar but it will grow like a hockey stick similar to the solar growth from 2007 to today. It may actually happen faster than solar since the solar penetration aids in the market growth. In the near future, I will share with you my upcoming venture which involves energy storage with a value proposition aimed at the solar industry.
Terminate That Language. Schwarzenegger is right, stop talking about climate change especially to people outside of your echo chamber. Clean air, clean water and solar energy. All of these things poll at over 70%. Monopoly utilities poll at well below 50% so play the spread between those two issues and you will win people over. Great coverage from Amy Harder at Axios from COP23 in Bonn.
Micro And MacroGrids. This may be the 2017 buzzword of the year, microgrids. Really what we are talking about is power generation and power controls inside a disconnect switch. If the grid shuts off, the home/building/network can continue to function within the designated panel loads. The trick comes with multiple power generation sources on the inside of the disconnect switch. When you look at it this way, I’ve come to learn that there are less suppliers able to participate than you would expect. Backup power may be a better way to sell this, it also allows a homeowner to buy emotionally as opposed to asking for payback numbers.
Who Is Terence Stewart? Making the case for 201 tariffs is always tricky, you have to lie to yourself and the people you are speaking to. I don’t know who this lawyer is that got to write for the WSJ on behalf of the 201 petitioners, but he did a poor job. It took GTM’s Shayle Kann more than 140 characters but less than 280 to destroy the case he was making.
Presented By True Green Capital. Our current partnership, Fund III, is actively seeking investment opportunities and channel partners to deploy capital in a scalable focused on DG and small utility scale projects. Fund III has ~$350million in equity commitments to build out a ~$1billion solar portfolio.
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Yann
E025: SMART Program In Massachusetts and How Regulators View 201 Petition Risk with Mike Judge
On the 14th of November, DOER released the RFP for the initial block of the much anticipated SMART program. The timing of the release was cause of many questions considering the shadows of the 201 petition which could affect the price of solar in Massachusetts. SolarWakeup covered many of these questions with Mike Judge, Director of Renewable Energy at DOER, during last month’s SolarWakeup Live! in Boston. Full Transcript Below. (While we attempt to make it verbatim, it may miss a few words) Make sure to rate and review the podcast! Make sure to check out SolarWakeup Live! in D.C. on … Read More
MA DOER Releases 100MW RFP, Starting SMART, But Results Could Be Changed
- MA DOER has released the initial block procurement with a 100MW RFP ahead of the resolution of the 201 petition case which could increase the cost of solar modules significantly
- The MA distribution companies, that make up the SMART program, have selected CLEAResult as the administrator and the initial bidder conference will occur on November 17th, 2017
- DOER has issued the final regulations and submitted them to the DPU to enact the tariff rules. DOER has requested the tariff to be created by June 1st, 2018 but the process is ongoing
- The regulations from DOER and the RFP are meant to be final, however if the 201 case severely impacts the results of the program, DOER reserves the ability to make changes
- Developers are looking at their own situation for bidding strategy. Some bidders are considering submitting projects meant for SREC II as NEM cap increases seem unlikely and other bidders have modules reserved without 201 impact
MA DOER has released the initial block procurement with a 100MW RFP ahead of the resolution of the 201 petition case which could increase the cost of solar modules significantly The MA distribution companies, that make up the SMART program, have selected CLEAResult as the administrator and the initial bidder conference will occur on November 17th, 2017 DOER has issued the final regulations and submitted them to the DPU to enact the tariff rules. DOER has requested the tariff to be created by June 1st, 2018 but the process is ongoing The regulations from DOER and the RFP are meant … Read More
This is your SolarWakeup for November 14th, 2017
Great Response. There are days I wonder if you are listening to anything I write but then there are days like yesterday. Over 1,000 of you went to the USTR site to make your comments heard. Plus I am sure many of you asked your colleague to do the same. Keep up the pressure and ask your partner companies to do the same. Use an engineer, a lawyer, an accountant that depends on your business to be successful? Send them the link today!
National Security. Jobs, consumer cost, and now national security – all worthy editorial content on why the 201 petition is bad for America. The military has been ahead of the game when it comes to renewable energy for far longer than the rest of the government. These op-eds are crucial to show the diverse and unanimous opposition to companies that look to destroy an industry for their own good.
No Sympathy To SolarWorld. This is the third time in the US that SolarWorld looks to step on hundred of thousand jobs for the enrichment of its investors and executives. During the second anti-dumping case, I publicly called for solar people to stop supporting SolarWorld by no longer buying their products. Unless there are consequences outside of this process, like no sales, SolarWorld will continue to find bailouts wherever possible. This includes all partners. Taking money to help advance the SolarWorld goals, means you are taking sides. Lawyers, accountants, marketers – run away and find business from the solar industry away from SolarWorld. That is the only way to stop this behavior that hurts us all. This may be an unpopular opinion but I doubt I am the only thinking it.
Pennsylvania SRECs. In-State SRECs only for Pennsylvania compliance. Let’s see how the market grows from here going forward, looking for 5 year strips to drive some growth in the market.
SMART Goes Live. You heard it hear yesterday and the interview with Mike Judge will get published tomorrow. SMART RFP has been released and bidding will start soon. Be wise with your strategy and how it overlaps with the 201 case.
Kerry Plots Legacy. It sounds like John Kerry is pushing emerging economies to look at other sources of energy besides coal, namely renewable energy. He was a rockstar at the Paris COP and pushing this agenda abroad is fantastic.
Bonn Bonn. The global community is not surprised by the lack of US involvement at the COP23 hearing. I continue to be amazed and surprised by the leadership from Governors like Jerry Brown and leaders like Mike Bloomberg (Go Hopkins!). We need more Cities and State level politicians to push for 100% renewable energy policies and local leadership on solar policies. As an industry, focus on changing the rules at your City Hall, it is a much easier and immediate path to market development.
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 13th, 2017
A Moment To Write A Note. You really have no choice, today is the day that you need to take a minute and forward an email to your team. If you didn’t know, Robert Lighthizer, is the US Trade Representative. He is the one that sits in the oval office and briefs the President on trade issues. The solar 201 petition is essentially passed the trade commission phase and moving into the Lighthizer hearing phase. This hearing is happening on December 6th and while you will not be able to get into the hearing, you can send public comment. Here is your task for today. As each of your employees to write a comment and ask your customers to send one too. Together we can get 100,000 comments on behalf of the solar industry to Mr. Lighthizer. The link to comments is here, if you need a draft script, it is here.
Not What If but Would You? Everyone has done this math but it is time to execute. What if your employee cost went up by 5 cents per hour. $2 per week. What if your salary went down 5 cents per hour or $2 per week? $2 per week isn’t going to break your business or personal budget. On the other hand, if every solar professional provided 10 cents per hour to an advocacy campaign, I guarantee that your job prospect would improve and be saddled with less regulatory uncertainty. In theory, if I started a SolarWakeup advocacy campaign that was funded by our readers and their companies employees, we would have over $10million in annual budget. With that budget, we would have a mailing list of over a million American solar supporters and local officials would know better than to vote against solar. Call this SolarPledge 2.0. If 10,000 readers/employees commit to this, I’ll quit my other work and we can conquer the solar coaster together. Would you?
Power Markets & Solar. In my conversation with Tom Matzzie last week we spoke about his work in the power markets as an energy retailer. Part of being a retailer is matching generation with customer load through financial products common in the power markets. Those same products, outside of accounting rules, allow retailers to create their own synthetic community solar programs. Some cautionary messages from Tom on this as well but if you aren’t working with a retailer yet, you probably should be.
The MA SMART Program. This week you will hear the recording of my conversation with Mike Judge, Director of Renewable Energy at Mass DOER. Mike is in charge of the SMART program regulations draft and the auction process. The news he made at SolarWakeup Live! was that the RFP for the first block will come out this week or next. There was some hesitation in light of the 201 proceeding but if the SMART program were to start on time, next summer, the RFP has to go out now. Be aware that the auction could be skewed by developers that have protected modules without 201 tariffs meaning that any assumed increase of price you include could put you outside of the bidding norm.
Your Event. I want to thank MDV-SEIA for asking me to hold an interview at their event. If your group is hosting an event and want to chat about doing the same, I welcome the opportunity.
House Versus Senate. Keep your eyes on the difference between the Senate and House tax bills.
DC Sponsors. Starting today you will see logos and links for Live! DC sponsors. I want to thank Standard Solar, MMA Energy Capital, NTCIC, GAF and True Green Capital for sponsoring. Please take a moment and learn more about their work.
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Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for November 10th, 2017
Today is Veteran’s Day and a great time to thank all veterans working alongside us in the solar industry. I also want to thank the leaders that give opportunity and seek out veterans when the time comes to work as a civilian.
10 Minutes. 10 People. The trade rep hearing on the 6th is a big deal. SEIA is likely to be planning some great and public participation that you should look for. In the meantime take ten minutes and get ten colleagues to do the same to send your comments to the trade representative about what this 201 petition means to you, your job and your company. 10 minutes times ten people. That’s what we need.
Rocking The Policy. Vote Solar is doing some pretty awesome things and getting involved in policy battles across the Country. They are also growing and adding superstars to the already stacked team, (much like the Miami Heat team a few years ago). Keep watching them, and their efforts.
Steyer. Is compiling quite the email list with his impeachment efforts. Moreover, with the likely tracking code on the website, he is capturing the Fox & Friends viewers that are coming back to his website. The retargeting I would do would then show a Facebook ad for Trump support with an email capture system there. Information warfare starts with someone clicking a link. The stated goal is 2million emails, which would give him almost 2% of the last election, which is a great place to start if you want to run any sort of issue campaign.
Painter’s Union. In this conversation with Tom Matzzie he tells the story of his time as a union organizer and his experience working with a painter looking to join the union. Painters had to spend many hours working on political related advocacy to advance their union. Learning to educate those that affect their business was classified as a requirement. If you compare the importance of policy in the painting sector versus solar, ask yourself the importance of investing the time to advocate.
Dollars In Dallas. This is a brutal headline for local politicians and may be the best news push of the 201 petition. Losing $100million investment in a single County is brutal for a county admin and this is happening across the South because of the trade case. If you know a project halted, at risk, let’s put it into the newspapers.
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Yann