The Minnesota Public Utilities Commission will rule whether a solar project or natural gas plant should be constructed based on which facility is most in the public interest. A judge recently ruled the solar project was best for consumers. [Fresh Energy] Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei recently said the nuclear talks “showed the enmity… Keep reading →
As we begin a new year, the outlook for 2014 looks bright. But as the Polar Vortex has descended upon the U.S. over the last few days, we have been reminded of the past, specifically the winter of 2011 when Texas’ electricity grid stuttered under the extreme cold. Monday, as a record-breaking cold snap whisked… Keep reading →
It might the hottest issue in solar, but a leading analyst says not to worry – for now, at least. We’re talking about the debate over net metering – NEM, for net energy metering, by the industry’s nomenclature. Utilities have been pushing back against NEM policies that often reward solar power system owners at the… Keep reading →
Quick Take: An excellent article in the Atlantic provides a valuable summary of solar’s existential threat to utilities. Team up rooftop solar with a Tesla battery unit and you can (theoretically) do away with your electric power utility. In reality of course, few homeowners will really want grid divorce. First, they will want to sell… Keep reading →
Natural gas, the enemy of many frack-fearing greens, is the very thing that will allow California to more than double the amount of renewable energy on its grid by 2020. So says the man who runs the California Independent System Operator, which oversees the vast bulk of power distribution in the Golden State. The assertion from… Keep reading →
The utility business model is changing from one of large, centralized generators that own and run entire power systems – from plants, to transmission, to distribution – to one involving more distributed generation and more players offering innovative products, services, and most importantly, customer savings. But crafting the right policies and regulations will be cornerstones… Keep reading →
Utility customers often don’t know how their power is priced and who makes the decisions that impact price, delivery, reliability and other important factors. “Decisions made by PUCs [Public Utility Commissions] will influence the $100 billion in utility infrastructure investments expected each year between now and 2020, ranging from smart meters to transmission lines to… Keep reading →
The New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) could be the most important state agency you’ve never heard of, and help fund. “NYSERDA’s earliest efforts focused solely on research and development with the goal of reducing the State’s petroleum consumption. Today, NYSERDA’s aim is to help New York meet its energy goals: reducing… Keep reading →
