Utility-scale solar and wind each added more generating capacity than natural gas during the first nine months of 2022

More utility-scale solar has been installed this year than all other forms of energy

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Utility-scale solar and wind each added more generating capacity than natural gas during the first nine months of 2022, according to a SUN DAY Campaign review of FERC data. FERC’s latest three-year forecast suggests that installed natural gas capacity will begin to decline by 2025 while solar and wind continue to rapidly expand.

Solar (6,751 MW) and wind (6,328 MW) each provided more new generating capacity during the first three-quarters of this year than did natural gas (6,086 MW). Combined with capacity additions by geothermal (90 MW), biomass (22 MW) and hydropower (14 MW), renewable energy sources accounted for 13,205 MW or 68.4% of the 19,316 MW of new generation put into service this year.

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Source: Solar Power World

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CPUC is considering changes to the rules on compensation for solar customers who generate excess power from their rooftop solar systems.

California Public Utilities Commission to hear oral arguments on rooftop solar rules

It looks like a decision is finally moving forward on a long-awaited and controversial rule affecting the roughly 1.3 million customers in California who have installed rooftop solar panels on their homes and businesses.

The California Public Utilities Commission said in a notice Friday it will hear oral arguments from parties who have battled one another over potential changes to NEM, or Net Energy Metering — the rules that determine the size of the credits customers receive on their utility bills when their rooftop solar systems generate more energy than they consume.

The remote hearing is set for Nov. 16 and will run for two hours.

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Source: The San Diego Union-Tribune

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The study found about 1/3 of Golden State households that installed rooftop solar in 2021 were solidly working- and middle-class families.

California’s middle-income residents outpace wealthy in rooftop solar installations in 2021

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Middle-income and working-class Californians represented by far the largest block of the million-plus households in the state that installed rooftop solar in 2021, according to a new Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory study.

The study shows how essential California’s subsidies for rooftop solar are in helping deploy the clean, renewable power source across the state. Solar not only cuts rates for consumers suffering from astronomical bills caused by California’s monopoly utilities like Pacific Gas & Electric, but it also helps to fight the climate crisis.

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Source: ewg

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Sunrun will build the first virtual solar power plant in Puerto Rico. It will be 17 megawatts and designed to strengthen the power grid.

Solar company to build Puerto Rico’s first virtual solar power plant

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Sunrun, a solar power and battery company based in San Francisco, will build the first virtual solar power plant in Puerto Rico. The virtual power plant (VPP) will be 17 megawatts and is designed to strengthen the power grid with solar energy aggregated from more than 7,000 customers’ residential solar and battery systems.

During 2023, Sunrun will work on enrolling customers into the VPP program and expects network dispatches to begin in 2024. According to the company, the enrolled customers receive cost savings from generating solar energy, and any backup power also earns customers money for sharing stored energy with the power grid.

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Source: EcoWatch

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KB Home, SunPower and UCI joined forces to reimagine what a new home community could look like if built to reduce carbon emissions

200 all-electric homes in California will be solar-powered and have battery backup

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SunPower, the University of California, Irvine (UCI), Schneider Electric and Southern California Edison (SCE) announced their partnership with KB Home as the strategy, research, technology and energy providers for the homebuilder’s newly launched Energy-Smart Connected Communities in Menifee, California. More than 200 all-electric homes will be solar-powered, equipped with individual energy storage systems and connected to a microgrid powered by a large, shared community battery. These power-outage resistant communities are designed to offer a blueprint for sustainable and resilient new home development of the future.

KB Home, SunPower and UCI joined forces to reimagine what a new home community could look like if built to reduce carbon emissions, cut energy costs and provide new ways of producing reliable and resilient energy. With a $6.65 million Department of Energy (DOE) grant, microgrid design and engineering support from Schneider Electric, and strong collaboration with SCE to ensure a smooth transition between grid and off-grid electricity, these innovative homes are now available to the public.

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Source: Solar Power World

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Heliogen announced the $4.1M award from DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies Office for accelerating large-scale development of its technology

Solar thermal energy company receives $4.1M federal grant

Pasadena-based solar thermal energy company Heliogen Inc. on Oct. 24 announced that it is to receive a $4.1 million award from the U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office to accelerate the large-scale development and deployment of its technology.

Heliogen has been developing technology to harness the sun’s energy to heat industrial materials used in manufacturing processes, providing an alternative to carbon-based fuels. Specifically, Heliogen’s apparatus starts with an array of mirrors that align to track the sun, then concentrate the solar energy to a nearby thermal tower, where it’s used to heat industrial materials.

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Source: LA Business Journal

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The US and UAE announced the signing of a strategic partnership that will see $100B mobilized to develop 100 gigawatts of clean energy by 2035

US and UAE sign strategic partnership deal to spur $100B in clean energy investment

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The United States and United Arab Emirates on Tuesday announced the signing of a strategic partnership that will see $100 billion mobilized to develop 100 gigawatts of clean energy by 2035.

The deal, signed during the Adipec energy conference in Abu Dhabi, is entitled the “Partnership for Accelerating Clean Energy” (PACE) and encompasses four main pillars: the development of clean energy innovation and supply chains, managing carbon and methane emissions, nuclear energy, and industrial and transport decarbonization.

“The cooperation comes within the framework of the close friendship between the UAE and the United States of America” and “affirms the commitment of both sides to work to enhance energy security and advance progress in climate action,” according to a UAE government statement published by state news agency WAM.

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Source: CNBC

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Solar development can provide work opportunities in San Joaquin Valley while keeping fallowed land productive & curbing environmental risks.

How California can expand solar development and support San Joaquin Valley farmers

California’s largest farming region faces a daunting challenge.

As farmers reduce their groundwater use under California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act, the footprint of irrigated agriculture in the San Joaquin Valley will have to shrink. The Public Policy Institute of California estimates that at least 500,000 acres of farmland will likely need to come out of production over the next two decades.

Fallowing land can lead to a host of problems, including employment losses for the valley’s agricultural workers and revenue losses for landowners and local governments. It could also exacerbate issues with airborne dust in a region already suffering from some of the worst air quality in the nation. And pests and weeds could cause a nuisance for lands still in production.

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Source: The Sentinel

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The San Jose City council approved four contracts worth an estimated $530 million to build out the city's battery storage.

San Jose invests in solar power to reach climate goals

San Jose plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars over the next two decades to meet its carbon neutral goals, including utilizing solar power.

On Tuesday, the city council approved four contracts worth an estimated $530 million to build out the city’s battery storage to access and store more solar energy through its San Jose Clean Energy utility. It’s the start of a significant series of renewable energy contracts coming before councilmembers in the next few months. This massive investment in renewable energy is expected to keep the city on track to meet its carbon neutral goal by 2030.

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Source: Patch

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Beam Global announced a continued stream of solar powered charging infrastructure orders from California State Agencies for 2022 year-to-date.

California state agencies place solar charging infrastructure orders

Beam Global, (Nasdaq: BEEM, BEEMW), the leading provider of innovative sustainable products and technologies for electric vehicle (EV) charging, energy storage, energy security and outdoor media, announced a continued stream of orders from California State Agencies for 2022 year-to-date, with EV ARC™ systems ordered for the Department of General Services (DGS), California Highway Patrol (CHP), Department of Parks and Recreation, Department of State Hospitals, California Military Department (CMD), Department of Public Health (CDPH) and Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP). The systems were purchased using the California Department of General Services (DGS) contract #1-22-61-16 which simplifies the state procurement process and ensures best negotiated pricing.

The solar-powered EV ARC™ EV charging infrastructure products are off-grid, generate and store their own electricity, and are deployed with no electrical work, no construction, and no utility bill, reducing California’s costs through avoided construction, electrical upgrades, operational disruptions and ongoing utility bills. Over 75% of the EV ARC™ systems ordered by the State are multi-unit orders, and 100% of the systems include the optional Emergency Power Panel that can provide vital electricity to first responders in disasters, emergencies and power outages.

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Source: yahoo

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