This is your SolarWakeup for January 25th, 2016
Jake Saper, an energy SAAS VC, delivers a good segue on the next big thing in solar. Emily Kirsch was on This Week in Startups with legendary angel investor Jason Calacanis last week as well to talk about the emergence of solar software. I'm excited to see how many of these companies grow, hopefully within solar, to a point where they show that startups can thrive in our energy vertical. It has a long way to go from here but it can happen.
News
1 Techcrunch:
How Solar Software Can Save The World
2 Gizmag:
Plant openings signal "birth of large-scale solar in Australia"
3 Newsobserver:
Vermont solar growth slowed for now as utilities hit limit
4 Sacbee:
California should resist utility attacks on rooftop solar
5 Chinadaily:
Chinese solar panel makers shift to Thailand for growth
6 Las VegasSun:
Consumer watchdog raises questions about rooftop solar rehearing
7 PV-Magazine:
Too big to fail? Yingli confirms debt restructuring
8 Greentech Media:
Breaking Down DOE’s New $220M Grid Modernization Plan
Opinions:
9 Renew Economy:
Germany says solar and wind have won technology race
Have a great day!
Yann
These are the top 10 most read solar articles by your peers this week!
News
1 New York Times:
Proof That a Price on Carbon Works
2 Grist:
Rooftop solar isn’t quite as great as you thought it was (but it’s still pretty great)
3 Washington Post:
This technology may be the future of solar energy
4 Greentech Media:
The Solar Tax Credit Extension Will Make Net Metering Battles Much More Intense
5 News & Observer:
Solar panels permanently ‘ruin’ farmland, NC senator says
6 Forbes:
The Two Things To Note In The DOE's Solar + Storage Initiative
7 Greentech Media:
Utilities, Regulators and the Solar Industry Actually Agree on Net Metering
8 Dallas Morning News:
Solar power starts ascent in Texas
9 Vox:
Nevada’s bizarre decision to throttle its own solar industry, explained
10 PV-Magazine:
California regulators may consider utility proposal for net metering 2.0
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 January 22nd, 2016
A few days ago the Sunshot team added a new goal to their list or at least announced winners of grants to achieve the goal. The goal is simple, bring solar + storage to under $0.14 per kWh. Storage in the home is coming. Storage in your driving is coming. Just wait until all of this works in conjunction with your smart home and more intelligent energy efficiency. Sunshot is good at what they do, their success rate is high and their secondary funding channel is great. DOE is a well oiled machine so I look forward to not only seeing the goal met but seeing how fast it happens.
News
1 Forbes:
The Two Things To Note In The DOE's Solar + Storage Initiative
2 Bloomberg:
New York Governor Cuomo Pledges $5 Billion for Clean Energy Fund
3 Think Progress:
What Will It Take For America To Go 100 Percent Renewable?
4 Rocky Mountain Institute:
How Much Does Storage Really Cost? Lazard Weighs In.
5 Greentech Media:
Nevada PUC to Reconsider Grandfathering Rooftop Solar Customers In New Net-Metering Policy
6 Los Angeles Times:
Utilities push a solar pricing proposal they say is fairer for non-solar users
7 PV-Tech:
Top 10 solar module manufacturers in 2015
8 PV-Magazine:
Africa - Djibouti announces 300 MW solar project as part of 100% renewable future goal
Opinions:
9 Huffington Post:
Utilities Exert Influence Through Universities to Sway Regulatory and Political Debate
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 21st, 2016
California is easily the largest market in the US but that doesn’t mean we should take if for granted. Solar adds tremendous value to the grid and its operators, even though nobody is doing a good job of tracking the amount that is actually being produced or asking for it to be counted towards the RPS. The value it creates has been documented in thesis and we know from other States that solar is more valuable to the grid than any perceived costs. The NEM battle continues and solar pros in the California should not take it for granted. Get involved and make your job known to regulators.
News
1 PV-Magazine:
California regulators may consider utility proposal for net metering 2.0
2 Greentech Media:
SunShot Program Seeks to Lower Solar-Plus-Storage Costs to 14 Cents per Kilowatt-Hour
3 PV-Tech:
SolarCity CEO vows to fight Nevada net metering decision
4 Utility Dive:
REV in 2016 - The year that could transform utility business models in New York
5 Renewable Energy World:
Wind, Solar Secure $11.5 Billion in Tax Equity Deals in 2015
6 Renew Economy:
When will private sector learn that age of fossil fuels is over?
7 Vox:
Nevada’s bizarre decision to throttle its own solar industry, explained
8 Los Angeles Times:
Op-Ed Smug about your solar roof? Not so fast.
Opinions:
9 NRDC:
Circuit-Breaking Net Metering Policy for Rooftop Solar Will Leave Everyone in the Dark
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 20th, 2016
The New York Times editorial board takes a swing for Carbon Taxes. Society has a long tradition of taxing things it wants people to use less of or get manufacturers to be more efficient for. Cigarettes are a good example of a tax that is meant to save people lives, of course this is a behavior that is self inflicted but can also create bystander harm. The gas tax is meant to pay for infrastructure and get manufacturers to make more efficient cars, thereby saving people money and spewing less emissions, that’s why all those people bought Volkswagens. Carbon taxes work, they are generally growth neutral and make companies more conscious of their energy use.
News
1 New York Times:
Proof That a Price on Carbon Works
2 Greentech Media:
Survey - Utilities, Regulators and the Solar Industry Actually Agree on Net Metering
3 Fortune:
Angry Nevada Solar Customers Sue Over New Fees
4 Dallas Morning News:
Solar power starts ascent in Texas
5 Grist:
Rooftop solar isn’t quite as great as you thought it was (but it’s still pretty great)
6 Solar Server:
Berkeley Lab researchers pinpoint drivers for low-priced solar PV systems in the U.S
7 Energy Collective:
DOE Announces Grid Modernization R&D Projects, Partners, and Funding
8 PV-Tech:
How Dubai will deliver sub-6¢ solar
Opinions:
9 Los Angeles Times:
Op-Ed Bill McKibben - How to drive a stake through the heart of zombie fossil fuel
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 19th, 2016
The first I’ve seen in global estimates for solar installed in 2015. A few firsts that I can point out (not fact checked however, so point out if I missed some highlights). Over 50GW installed globally being led by China (15GW). China now has more solar than Germany with 43GW, a stunning reminder of how much solar Germany installed to push the global industry forward. The US beat out Europe 9.8GW versus 8.5GW and Europe was led by the UK with 4GW versus Germany’s 1.4GW. From where Germany was, it is great to see the Country still installing 1.4GW which beats out almost every US State besides California.
News
1 Solar Server:
PV Market Alliance estimates global photovoltaic installations of at least 51 GW in 2015
2 Greentech Media:
The Solar Tax Credit Extension Will Make Net Metering Battles Much More Intense
3 Think Progress:
Martin Luther King And The Call To Direct Action On Climate Change
4 Breaking Energy:
Obama’s Last Gasp Climate Proposals
5 Renewable Energy World:
Cook Islands On Target To Be 100 Percent Renewable
6 Solar Power Portal:
Mayor of London candidate Zac Goldsmith unveils solar pledge
7 Clean Technica:
Nevada PUC May Be Setting State On Path Toward Grid Defection
8 PV-Magazine:
Shunfeng warns of 90% profit decrease, completes Suniva acquisition
Opinions:
9 The News & Observer:
Solar panels permanently ‘ruin’ farmland, NC senator says
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 18th, 2016
It is clear to me that we need to stop mining for and using coal for electricity. This doesn’t mean that I am not empathetic for the 64,000 direct jobs in the coal mining industry in the US. What gives me hope however is that those jobs are clearly not in States we would consider solar hotbeds. I think the President was right in saying that we need to shift these jobs into the future, because I would rather the Government spend money creating new industries for them as opposed to letting them keep their current jobs. West Virginia and Kentucky can great solar markets, so I welcome the sight of the coal workers having the opportunity to work out in the sun and installing solar panels.
News
1 New York Times:
U.S. Pledges to Ease Pain of Closing Coal Mines in Shift to Cleaner Energy
2 Greentech Media:
Solar Customers Launch a Class Action Lawsuit Against NV Energy
3 CBC:
Solar energy set to shine in greener Alberta
4 Renew Economy:
Doubling of renewables will add $A1.9 trillion to global economy by 2030
5 The Energy Collective:
Economics of Batteries for Stabilizing and Storage on Distribution Grids
6 PV-Magazine:
EnergyTrend - 5 GW of new capacity will relieve multi-wafer shortage
7 Washington Post:
This technology may be the future of solar energy
8 Solar Industry:
Is Nevada PUC's Anti-Solar Ruling Devastating Local Solar Companies?
Opinions:
9 Huffington Post:
Adapting to climate change in Latin America and the Caribbean means ending social disparity
Have a great day!
Yann
These are the top 10 most read solar articles by your peers this week!
News
1 Las Vegas Sun:
Q+A - Hillary Clinton shares stances on Nevada solar shake-up
2 Bloomberg:
Nevada Solar-Law Author Concerned as Solar Companies Flee
3 Think Progress:
The Little-Known Reason Renewable Prices Are Dropping
4 ABC Las Vegas:
PUC votes to keep new rates for rooftop solar customers
5 PV-Magazine:
What does solar have to do with the bankruptcy of the second-largest U.S. coal miner?
6 Poughkeepsie Journal:
NY weighs rules that may limit rooftop solar panels
7 Greentech Media:
10 Solar Trends to Watch in 2016
8 Solar Novus:
Venture Capital Funding in Solar Sector Tops $1 Billion
9 Fortune:
Nevada's New Solar Fees Have People Furious
10 Renewable Energy World:
Fifteen Things to Watch Out for in 2016
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 January 15th, 2016
BNEF came out with the 2015 analysis of clean energy investments. There is also some information about the global markets. In 2015, global solar saw $156Billion (with a B) of investments with the great majority of that in projects. Hard to ignore those kinds of numbers and a 7 year runway in the US will tempt a lot of investors to get off the bench. Remember that until about 2013, the solar numbers in the US were still quite small in comparison to other markets and by the time the numbers came up, the regulatory uncertainty made them sit out for good. Get in the game because the big money is in solar. Just figure out how to create some scale and standardize the process in a risk managed way.
News
1 PV-Magazine:
2015 - 57 GW of solar PV installed, clean energy investment hits highest ever levels
2 Fortune:
Nevada's New Solar Fees Have People Furious
3 Fast Co Exist:
Requiring Utilities To Use Renewables Saves Billions Of Dollars
4 Utility Dive:
Solar prices are stabilizing at new lower levels, but causation remains elusive
5 EDF:
State of the Union Recap - We can Afford Obama’s Clean Energy Legacy
6 NRDC:
Proposal to Charge Electric Cars in Southern California Gets the Green Light
7 Solar Power Portal:
UK solar investment fell in 2015 despite global upward trend, claims BNEF report
8 CNBC:
Harvesting solar, 6km in the air
Opinions:
9 CleanTechnica:
NYU Study - Economics Of Climate Change Is A No-Brainer
Have a great day!
Yann
This is your SolarWakeup for January 14th, 2016
Hard to ignore thousands of people and a few celebrities standing outside your office. While last night showed the President taking a bit of a solar victory lap, the headlines today show what’s happening on the ground in Nevada once again. Keep in mind this is the headline in the news today but the definitely not alone in terms of policy fights happening. It’s one thing to have a discussion about issues but its another to make them a political fight that become retroactively damaging to consumers. NV has to fix this and do so fast.
News
1 ABC Las Vegas:
Actor Mark Ruffalo, others call out PUC at solar meeting
2 PV-Tech:
Obama flags solar achievements in final State of the Union address
3 Grist:
Rubio says he likes renewables, but he clearly likes oil and gas a lot more
4 Utility Dive:
How a new business model could get the Puerto Rico public utility out of debt
5 Reuters:
Solar investors join list of those smarting from $30 per barrel oil
6 Arizona Daily Star:
Arizona utility to study time-shifting rooftop solar power
7 Las Vegas Review Journal:
Utility regulators reject call to delay new rooftop-solar rates
8 USA Today:
Solar industry growing, with some setbacks
Opinions:
9 Think Progress:
How A Solar Decision In Nevada Could Shape The 2016 Presidential Results
Have a great day!
Yann
