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Sales of energy storage batteries take off as utilities try to smooth power demands on the grid
Electric utilities, once happy to provide nonstop power to all of their customers all of the time, are beginning to warm to the idea of socking power away for another day.Thanks to rapid technological advances and market shifts, large utilities like Duke Energy of North Carolina, Consolidated Edison of New York and Southern California Edison are investing tens of millions of dollars in the development and deployment of commercial-scale energy storage facilities. New data released this morning by GTM Research and the Energy Storage Association show that U.S. utilities and other firms installed 5.8 megawatts of energy storage in the first quarter of 2015, an 18 percent increase from the same quarter in 2014. [ read more … ]
Cape Wind seeks more time to restart stalled wind farm
Cape Wind has asked state regulators for more time to revive its stalled project after the state’s two major utilities backed out of buying power from the proposed offshore wind farm.
The wind farm’s developer was supposed to begin construction by May 1, but just before the deadline, it asked the Massachusetts Energy Facilities Siting Board for a two-year extension. Cape Wind Associates LLC said it needs additional time to work through the mountains of litigation facing the project, while trying to persuade the two utilities to reactivate contracts critical to financing the $2.6 billion construction.
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Bipartisan set of governors urge Congress to pass policy certainty ASAP to avoid job loss
“These tax credits have made possible the robust growth of the American wind industry and thousands of renewable energy jobs in recent years, with substantial economic returns to our states and the nation,” the governors’ letter reads. “But these gains are at risk today because ongoing federal policy uncertainty continues to hamper the further development of the nation’s wind industry.” After adding 23,000 jobs in 2014, American wind power continues to ramp up in 2015, gaining momentum over the first quarter of the year with $23 billion worth of new wind projects under development. [ read more … ]
Calif. gives money to swap clunkers for electric vehicles and other clean cars
California is giving money to residents who get rid of polluting cars and buy ones that use less gasoline or no gasoline at all. The Golden State yesterday launched a pilot program advancing the effort. It’s funded by $4.8 million in proceeds from California’s cap-and-trade program for carbon emissions. By state law, that money must be used on endeavors that further the goals of climate law A.B. 32. Under the new program, a low-income family could receive as much as $12,000 toward the purchase of an electric car. Residents in areas considered disadvantaged also qualify. [ read more … ]
Southern Co. goes all in on solar, storage, smart homes
Southern Co. Chief Executive Officer Tom Fanning made it clear at the company’s annual meeting yesterday that Georgia Power customers will soon be able to go directly to the utility and get solar panels to put on their roof. “Starting July 1, we will now offer distributed generation rooftop solar in Georgia,” Fanning said. Fanning is making good on his word that Atlanta-based Southern is trying to find strategies for customers and tap the rising demand for distributed forms of generation, like solar. His remarks also coincide with the date for a new state law that lets Georgians enter into long-term financing arrangements with independent solar power providers.
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Court rejects greens’ bid to force federal review of wind farm road
A federal appeals court yesterday rejected a bid by environmentalists to force regulators to consider the impact of a wind farm’s road over federal lands in California on endangered species. The Sierra Club, the Center for Biological Diversity and Defenders of Wildlife contended that the Bureau of Land Management was required to consult the Fish and Wildlife Service before granting a right of way to build a road near Tehachapi in California’s Sierra Nevada. The road connects a 12,000-acre wind farm developed entirely on private land by North Sky River Energy LLC. It links the project to a state highway. Beneath the road are power and fiber-optic cables that connect the power generated from the farm to California’s grid. [ read more … ]
Note: News clips provided do not necessarily reflect the views of coalition or its member governors.