Tag Archive for: renewable

The BLM is moving forward with renewable development, including issuing final construction approval for the Oberon solar project.

Feds give final approval to eastern Riverside County solar, transmission projects

The Bureau of Land Management is moving forward with renewable development in the desert this month, including issuing final construction approval for the Oberon solar project on about 2,600 acres near Interstate 10 in eastern Riverside County, and greenlighting a major transmission line from western Arizona to Blythe, California to help carry more power.

Both actions are part of a push by the Biden Administration to significantly ramp up renewables development in the southwest.

The BLM Palm Springs office on July 13 announced it had authorized a subsidiary of Intersect Power to build the 500 megawatt Oberon renewable energy project, enough to power approximately 146,000 homes and 200 megawatts of battery storage.

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Source: Desert Sun

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Expanding community solar will enable people who rent their homes and people without the means to finance such investments.

Biden administration launches plan to bring solar to low-income homes

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The Biden administration unveiled a new effort on Wednesday to hook up low-income residents with solar power — a move that could allow communities that have long been shut out of the fast-growing market for renewable power to reduce their utility bills.

The move, shared earlier with POLITICO by an agency official, is the latest by President Joe Biden to focus on executive actions to reach his ambitious climate goals after plans to pass hundreds of billions worth of clean energy incentives collapsed in the Senate.

The initiative would connect participants in a federal program that subsidizes energy costs for low-income residents with developers of community solar projects, which sell subscriptions to households for renewable power with the promise of lowering their monthly electricity bills.

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Source: POLITICO

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Research shows the need for storage decreases if the majority of the solar capacity is installed vertically in an east-west orientation.

New research says vertical solar panels have improved performance

Researchers in Germany claim vertical solar panels may be better than horizontal solar panels. Typically, solar panels are mounted horizontally and oriented toward the south to get maximum exposure to the sun as it travels across the sky. Instead of lying flat, they are angled at between 20 and 35 degrees, depending on how far from the Equator they are located. There are complex mathematical formulas that tell solar farm developers the precise angle the panels should be mounted at in Pensacola, Peoria, or Penticton. There are tracking systems that can move the panels during the day to follow the sun, but they are expensive and need regular maintenance.

But what if conventional wisdom is wrong? Researchers at Leipzig University of Applied Sciences claim that mounting bifacial solar panels with one side facing east and the other facing west would produce more renewable electricity and reduce one of the side effects of traditional solar energy farms — an abundance of electricity at midday and not enough in the morning or afternoon. Their study was published in the August, 2022 edition of the journal Smart Energy.

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Source: Clean Technica

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Energy storage systems with a large amount of capacity are being developed to cover five sites in California and Hawaii, including one of the largest solar-plus-storage projects in the world.

One of largest solar-plus-storage projects part of California, Hawaii energy effort

Energy storage systems with a large amount of capacity are being developed to cover five sites in California and Hawaii, including one of the largest solar-plus-storage projects in the world.

The energy storage systems, which have a total capacity of 500 megawatts (MW) and 2-gigawatt hours (GWh), are being supplied by Wärtsilä to clean energy company Clearway Energy Group. The largest of the projects is located in San Bernardina, California, where 482 MW of solar and 275 MW and 1.1 GWh of energy storage are being installed.

That is the combination of two projects, called Daggett 2 and Daggett 3, and when combined will be one of the largest solar-plus-storage facilities, according to Wärtsilä. Both projects, which are being built on a retired coal and natural gas plant site, were planned in late 2021 with construction underway with completion set for 2023.

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Source: Environmental Leader

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Investor-owned utility SDG&E and the City of San Diego are launching a dozen microgrid projects with energy storage across San Diego, CA.

Storage-enabled microgrid projects proliferate in California

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Investor-owned utility SDG&E and the City of San Diego are launching a dozen microgrid projects with energy storage across San Diego, California, following similar announcements elsewhere in the state.

San Diego Gas & Electric (SDG&E) received approval on June 24 from the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) to build four microgrid projects at existing substations in the San Diego region, with a combined 39MW/180MWh of energy storage capacity.

The units will help the state of California meet high energy demand, particularly on hot summer days and during peak demand evening hours when solar generation is low. They will be able to operate independently or in parallel with the larger regional grid ensuring critical community facilities remain powered during grid-level outages.

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Source: Energy Storage News

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Growing crops beneath solar panels is an innovative way to use farmland to generate renewable energy in countries with limited space.

Electric farms are using solar power to grow profits and crops

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In many respects, Takeshi Magami’s farm is like any other in Japan, growing everything from potatoes to ginger and eggplants. But one major difference sets it apart from its neighbors: the 2,826 solar panels perched above the crops.

The panels, covering much of the one hectare (2.5 acres) of land in the tranquil countryside east of Tokyo, serve a dual purpose. They supply nearly all the power needed to run the farm, and are a source of extra income by selling surplus renewable energy to the grid.

For Magami that can mean 24 million yen ($187,000) of additional revenue a year, eight times more than the maximum 3 million yen generated from his produce. While he benefits from generous tariffs that have since been reduced, it’s an indication of the added value available to farms in Japan and globally.

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Source: Bloomberg

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Renewable electricity just powered California 100% for the first time in history

Renewable electricity met 100% of California’s demand for the first time on Saturday, environmentalists said, much of it from large amounts of solar power produced along Interstate 10, an hour east of the Coachella Valley.

While partygoers celebrated in the blazing sunshine at the Stagecoach music festival, energy demand statewide hit 18,672 megawatts at 2:45 p.m. local time, and 37,172 megawatts were available to meet it. The power came from renewables, according to a continuous tracker provided by California Independent System Operator, or CAISO,  a nonprofit that oversees the state’s bulk electric power system and transmission lines.

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Source: USA Today

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CDCR on track to produce a quarter of its energy needs from renewable sources by 2025

SACRAMENTO– As we celebrate Earth Day, set aside annually to demonstrate support for environmental protection, raise awareness, and work to protect the planet, the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) is doing its part.

“Earth Day is marked by more than a billion people around the world. CDCR is working to minimize its impact on the environment with a multi-faceted energy and sustainability program designed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, conserve water, and reduce its overall carbon footprint,” CDCR Secretary Kathleen Allison said.

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Source: CDCR

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Amazon ramps up green push with more renewable energy deals

Amazon.com Inc. struck deals to boost its access to renewable energy by almost a third as the company looks to get all of its power from green sources within a few years.

The retail giant will buy power from 3.5 gigawatts of new projects — mostly solar farms in the U.S. — to supply its offices, warehouses and data centers, it said in a statement. Amazon is seeking to bolster its standing as the world’s largest corporate green energy buyer as investors and consumers pressure big businesses to go greener, and has signed a number of deals in recent years.

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Source: Bloomberg

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Interior Department outlines roadmap for continued renewable energy progress on public lands

Interior Department outlines roadmap for continued renewable energy progress on public lands

WASHINGTON — As part of its commitment to support and inspire a clean energy transition, the Department of the Interior today announced a series of steps taken to advance the Biden-Harris administration’s goal to permit 25 gigawatts of renewable power on public lands by 2025. These efforts support the Department’s strategy to responsibly unlock and deliver the full potential of renewable energy on our public lands and waters, while creating good-paying union jobs and reducing emissions.

“The Department of the Interior continues to make significant progress in our efforts to spur a clean energy revolution, strengthen and decarbonize the nation’s economy, and help communities transition to a clean energy future,” said Secretary Deb Haaland. “The demand for renewable energy has never been greater. The technological advances, increased interest, cost effectiveness, and tremendous economic potential make these projects a promising path for diversifying our national energy portfolio, while at the same time combatting climate change and investing in communities.”

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Source: US Department of the Interior

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