First Reserve announced late last week it will acquire the 298 MW Kingfisher Wind power project located in Canadian and Kingfisher Counties in Oklahoma from Apex Clean Energy. The wind farm is expected to be completed this year. “First Reserve believes the project benefits from a strong, consistent wind resource. In addition, the firm expects… Keep reading →
Gov. Jerry Brown of California has proposed ambitious new targets for increasing the quantity of renewable energy in state’s electric grid to 50% by 2030 from the current target of 33% by 2020. California is a leader in renewable power production and is already running into technical challenges managing the overproduction of renewable power. Four… Keep reading →
The second big round of SolarWorld’s controversial trade cases ended in the usual fashion on Wednesday, with the U.S. International Trade Commission handing the Oregon-based unit of the German company a final victory that expands duties on Chinese solar manufacturers and penalizes Taiwanese companies that underpriced their solar products in the United States. The ITC… Keep reading →
Statement from Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz on the 2014 Solar Job Census WASHINGTON, D.C. — Secretary Ernest Moniz issued the following statement today on the 2014 National Solar Jobs Census: “Solar power is a key component of our all-of-the-above approach to American energy, creating good-paying American jobs that support our growing clean energy economy. According to… Keep reading →
The Investment Tax Credit (ITC) is arguably America’s most important solar policy. This 30 percent tax credit spurred 1,600 percent annual growth since implementation began in 2007 and turned solar into an economic engine. But the ITC is only authorized at 30 percent through 2016 before falling to 10 percent thereafter (for non-residential systems), and… Keep reading →
Solar power continues to be a high-revving jobs engine in the United States, surging to 173,807 positions industrywide by late 2014, a 21.8 percent increase over a year earlier, according to an annual survey released on Thursday. High-profile trade cases brought by Oregon-based SolarWorld Industries Americas have put a focus on solar manufacturing in the… Keep reading →
Recovery from the dramatic supply-driven oil price slide of 1986 took 5 years. Will the current cycle follow the same pattern? This piece plays a bit of Monday morning quarterback and suggests that if Saudi/Opec did more to moderate prices over the past 6 years the current supply glut could have been avoided. [Bloomberg via… Keep reading →
Tesla and SolarCity’s Elon Musk told utility executives at the Detroit auto show that utilities and solar power can get along just fine. “Rive’s cousin and SolarCity investor Elon Musk sought to assuage such fears further at the Detroit auto show. Speaking about utilities’ role in the future of the energy mix, he said: ‘Long-term,… Keep reading →
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve was established at a time when US refining configuration and oil production profile looked very different. Given new realities, Energy Secretary Moniz is calling for system modifications. “The Government Accountability Office warned in 2006 that in an emergency, refineries configured to use heavy crude would not be able to efficiently… Keep reading →
Solar is increasingly providing clean, sustainable energy for our nation’s homes, businesses and industries. Clocking record-breaking growth and reaching a total of more than 4,700 megawatts of new installed capacity, 2013 was a big year for solar photovoltaic systems. But we’re also excited to watch 2014, which will mark a major milestone for a different… Keep reading →
