This is your SolarWakeup for June 10th, 2016
Ready for some ramp up this year? Only 1.6GW of solar were installed in the first quarter of 2016, confirming the thoughts that things have been a bit slow to start the year. That doesn’t bode poorly for the rest of the year because we are still supposed to get to 14.5GW. In the 1.6GW you see an almost even split between residential and utility scale, a split that I don’t believe we have seen in years past. Time to get pushing towards the next 5 years and get projects into the ground.
News
1 Greentech Media:
Solar Made Up 64% of New Electric Generating Capacity in the US in Q1 2016
2 Reuters:
GE starts production of solar power inverters in Brazil
3 PV-Magazine:
North American solar investors concerned about H2 oversupply
4 CleanTechnica:
Illinois Power Plant Closings Reveal Worldwide Nuclear Issues
5 PV-Tech:
11,493 rooftop solar systems in Hawaii still waiting to be installed, says report
6 Utility Dive:
Nevada officials to fund new rooftop solar study
7 Grist:
Solar panels don’t raise regular utility rates — and might even lower them
8 Portland Press-Herald:
Solar supporters urge Maine PUC to go slow on new rules
Opinions:
9 Renewable Energy World:
Seize The Day — Market Solar to Solidify the Future
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 9th, 2016
Some fun stuff today. The Business Journal in the Bay Area published the 20 highest paid under 40. Who knows the methodology for this but number 1 and 19 are from solar. The CEOs of Sunrun and SolarCity. I will let you scroll to number 1 but you will enjoy seeing Lyndon Rive's comp for 2015.
News
1 Business Journal:
The 20 highest-paid Bay Area executives under 40 in 2016
2 Bloomberg:
Japanese Solar Summers May Trim Peak Fossil Fuel Power Costs
3 PV-Tech:
China sets 2016 solar cap at 18.1GW
4 CleanTechnica:
Australia Can Be Powered 100% By Renewables Without Fossil Fuel ‘Baseload’, Reports WWF
5 Renewable Energy World:
Industry Seeks Regulatory Clarity on Energy Storage Paired with Renewables
6 Rocky Mountain Institute:
Accelerating Sustainable Electricity Access in Sub-Saharan Africa
7 Solar Industry:
Groups Call On N.Y. Regulators To ‘Put Community Solar Back On Track’
8 PV-Magazine:
Germany - Cabinet approves EEG draft
Opinions:
9 Utility Dive:
New PJM capacity rules challenge demand response aggregators
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 8th, 2016
At the risk of reversing the tremendous gains made in Paris, President Obama unveiled a $1.4billion market opportunity with Prime Minister Modi of India yesterday. Climate goals are not only about changing our electric profile but also a race on how we electrify the billion plus people around the world that have no access to electricity today. That is why this initiative is relevant, it doubles and triples down on the fact that solar is the cheapest, fastest and cleanest way to electrify the entire world. Electricity means internet and connectivity but it also means cleaner method for cooking and lighting to let children read after the sun goes down. Solar is so much more than a means to an end, its a means to the beginning.
News
1 Think Progress:
A Million New Solar Homes Projected With India-U.S. Announcement
2 PV-Tech:
Recognising solar’s value key to NEM 3.0, says interim SEIA chief
3 Greentech Media:
Renewables Are Getting Cheaper. But That Doesn’t Mean We Should Eliminate Subsidies
4 Utility Dive:
APS rate case sparks concern beyond mandatory demand charge proposal
5 Forbes:
TVA Way Ahead Of The Pack With Nuclear And Solar
6 CBS:
How going solar can lighten your tax bill
7 The Guardian:
UK solar eclipses coal power over month for first time
8 Renewable Energy World:
Forget Red-Blue Divide - When It Comes To Clean-Energy Deployment, Both Sides Lead
Opinions:
9 Arizona Central:
Robb - The bigger electricity subsidy no one talks about
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 7th, 2016
If you get involved in markets outside of the US, as I have recently, you realize that complications in projects come of different shapes and sizes. In the US, tax equity creates the biggest complexity but with the right sponsor or sponsor partner, this can be solved. In other Countries you start thinking about other things like exchange rates and currency volatility. The volatility drives the cost of your financing if you are hedging (you probably should) so you have to think about events that cause issues. Brexit, the UK’s potential desire to leave the EU, has a vote coming up and such an event creates a lot of volatility and depending how the vote ends up, really changes the value of a project that was underwritten a few years ago with a feed in tariff.
News
1 Greentech Media:
UK Solar Industry Split on How a British Exit From the EU Would Impact Business
2 PV-Magazine:
France - EDF embraces self-consumption and digitization
3 PV-Tech:
Yingli Green’s shipments in Q1 lead to profit claims
4 Think Progress:
Another Giant Pension Fund Divested From Oil, Coal, And Gas Companies
5 Utility Dive:
Minnesota court upheld size limits for Xcel community solar
6 Renewable Energy World:
What Size is the Global Solar PV Industry? Pick a Size, Any Size
7 New York Times:
Energy Bill Prospects Dim in Dispute Over Drilling, Drought
8 Bloomberg:
GE Ventures Buys Stake in German Sonnen to Boost Solar Storage
Opinions:
9 Huffington Post:
Why the Next Five Years Will Determine Our Clean Energy Future
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 6th, 2016
The biggest problem with public companies is that they fail to see the future because everyone is just worried about the next 3 months. Sometimes when the future is actually already here, CEOs make decisions that are only good for themselves. Let me explain with a quote: "I think in the future, renewables will become a bigger part of the industry, and it will become a bigger part of …” Solar and energy choice are clearly the leading part of the energy sector and growing exponentially every year. So why is the new CEO of NRG giving such a ridiculous quote to the New York Times? My guess is that he thinks that the shareholders want to hear backwards thinking from him so he can get a bigger bonus, or worse, not get fired.
News
1 New York Times:
NRG Shifts Focus Away From Empowering Consumers
2 Grist:
John Kerry just cannot with Donald Trump’s climate plan
3 Utility Dive:
FERC - Rooftop solar, battery storage could pose threats to reliability
4 CleanTechnica:
Two Former Australian Brown Coal Bosses Switch To Solar & Clean Tech
5 PV-Tech:
Global PV manufacturing capacity expansion announcements in April close to 9GW
6 Greentech Media:
Solar Will Replace Nearly All Retiring Coal in Texas
7 MIT:
Finally in Sight $1-a-Watt Solar Milestone Shows Long Road Ahead
8 The Guardian:
Greens want 'fair price' for solar power and access to grid for all
Opinions:
9 Motley Fool:
The Next Solar Shakeup - Death of the Solar Lease
Have a great day!
Yann
These are the top 10 most read solar articles by your peers this week!
News
1 EcoWatch:
This One Chart Says It All for the Future of Solar Energy
2 Vox:
Donald Trump's horrifying gullibility, as revealed in his energy speech
3 Greentech Media:
Which Solar Companies Will Benefit Most From SunEdison’s Bankruptcy?
4 Think Progress:
Job Losses Expected As Maryland Governor Stuns Solar Industry With Clean Energy Veto
5 Rocky Mountain Institute:
Fannie Mae’s Financing for Solar - A Game Changer for the Solar Industry
6 Greentech Media:
SolarCity Relaunches Residential PV Loan With Simpler, Shorter-Term Plan
7 Fortune:
Why Sales of Solar Panels Could Soon Start Booming
8 GreenBiz:
The future of energy in 4 charts
9 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
In GE solar plant closing, a miscalculation of equipment demand
10 PV-Tech:
A solar industry in three parts?... Continued
The Top 10 is ranked by the number of SolarWakeup.com readers that clicked on the news article during the previous week. It is the poll of the most relevant solar news of the week as judged by your colleagues and competitors.
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 3rd, 2016
Securitization of solar is the current method for the most profitable spread compression. Spread compression is the ownership version of selling an asset without losing title to the long term revenue stream. The long term revenue stream is post contract period. Now that leases are losing ground to loans, solar companies like SolarCity are getting into it after smaller shops have taken market share from them by going contractor direct with fancy IT solutions. Loans are easy to securitize which generates the cash everyone is looking for to pay for the platforms.
News
1 Greentech Media:
SolarCity Relaunches Residential PV Loan With Simpler, Shorter-Term Plan
2 PV-Tech:
Concerns mount over China’s weak solar demand leading to overcapacity
3 Think Progress:
The New York Assembly Just Passed The Nation’s Most Ambitious Climate Bill
4 EDF:
New York Takes a Major Step toward Rethinking Utility Economics
5 GreenBiz:
The future of energy in 4 charts
6 Vox:
The western US grid is fragmented. Stitching it together is a no-brainer.
7 Solar Industry:
Community Solar + Demand Response - Three Steps For Utilities To Consider
8 Utility Dive:
The corporate green team - Utilities partner to meet renewables demand from large U.S. firms
Opinions:
9 Bloomberg:
Chile Has So Much Solar Energy It’s Giving It Away for Free
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June 2nd, 2016
The current state of the solar industry can be explained by two numbers. $100/watt and 64GW. Those numbers are relevant because we are at a tipping point in our industry. 40 years ago, modules cost over $100/W and the market globally was 2MW, today modules are sub $0.50/watt and the market is 64GW globally. The tipping point is here because at our levels, margins now matter. Companies need to efficiently build projects, deploy capital and develop projects while keeping growth going. This year, we will shape our industry for the next 10 years. If you happen to be at the Reznick conference tomorrow, make sure to say hello and visit my panel at noon on solar M&A in the US.
News
1 EcoWatch:
This One Chart Says It All for the Future of Solar Energy
2 Think Progress:
Led By Solar And Wind, Renewable Energy Grew Like Never Before Last Year
3 CleanTechnica:
Why Energy Democracy Offers A Faster Approach To Clean Energy
4 Renewable Energy World:
Solar PV Module Recycling — Why It's Important
5 PV-Tech:
Shunfeng to sell solar manufacturing operations to property tycoon
6 Rocky Mountain Institute:
Fannie Mae’s Financing for Solar - A Game Changer for the Solar Industry
7 Greentech Media:
Subsidy Cuts Will Cause a ‘Sharp Negative Turn’ in Japan’s Solar Market Through 2020
8 AZ Daily Sun:
APS seeks 8 percent rate boost, solar changes
Opinions:
9 GreenBiz:
Why women are critical to clean energy
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for June1st, 2016
Stupidity strikes again, this time in the form of Maryland Governor Larry Hogan. An RPS change from 20% to 25% and a move forward was passed by the legislature but vetoed by him. Public support, job gains, driving economy trumped by politics and rhetoric. Total nonsense in my opinion because Maryland was on the cusp of being a terrific market even in an SREC market that was driving prices down. All of this to prop up his reelection campaign with coal donations in my opinion and hoping for some love from the Koch Brothers at ALEC. If you feel like ranting about ALEC, enjoy this…
News
1 Think Progress:
Job Losses Expected As Maryland Governor Stuns Solar Industry With Clean Energy Veto
2 Fast Co Exist:
China Is Going Solar In A Big Way
3 CleanTechnica:
Mark Jacobson - Transitioning To A 100% Renewable Economy (Video)
4 NRDC:
In Finalizing Its Important Clean Energy Standard, NY PSC Should Focus on Getting the Details Right
5 Greentech Media:
Which Solar Companies Will Benefit Most From SunEdison’s Bankruptcy?
6 Utility Dive:
Energy storage's role in decarbonization will depend on duration, cost cuts
7 Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:
In GE solar plant closing, a miscalculation of equipment demand
8 Fortune:
Why Sales of Solar Panels Could Soon Start Booming
Opinions:
9 Los Angeles Times :
If L.A. wants to avoid summer blackouts, we need to reinvent our energy system.
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for May 31st, 2016
I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday weekend. As we near the end of the 1st half of the year, does anyone have any guesses on the size of the US market for this year? It seems to me that we are no longer aiming for 16GW but something less, even substantially so due to a desire to shift projects forward. The manufacturers are returning from their shows in Shanghai and word has it that the US market will not live up to the hype it created from earlier this year when the ITC was expected to sunset, creating a larger than normal year.
News
1 PV-Tech:
SNEC 2016 - A solar industry in three parts?... Continued
2 PV-Magazine:
Greece to auction new PV power
3 Energy Collective:
Industrial and Electric Power Sectors Drive Projected Growth in U.S. Natural Gas Use
4 PV-Tech:
Solar advocacy groups urge California net-metering equalising bill to come out of ‘limbo’
5 NRDC:
Michigan Energy Legislation
6 Vox:
Donald Trump's horrifying gullibility, as revealed in his energy speech
7 Renew Economy:
Australia brown coal warriors switch to solar, disruptive technologies
8 Utility Dive:
Donald Trump's energy proposals echo old GOP priorities
Opinions:
9 Grist:
Brazil’s impeachment crisis is bad news for climate change
Have a great day!
Yann
