There will be enough workers to “keep the lights on” at key agencies if the shutdown persists. At 12:03 a.m. this morning, after lawmakers in Congress failed to reach agreement on funding the government, thousands of federal employees lumbered out into the streets of Washington, D.C. looking for taxpayer money to spend. They knocked over… Keep reading →
Various products have hit the market to try to overcome a major hurdle to solar financing and securitization – a lack of standardized metrics to provide a measuring stick against which financial institutions can quickly and easily assess solar projects. These include Mercatus’ solar project scoring system and Sol Systems’ SolMarket. Both of these seek… Keep reading →
Many assume that it’s cheap labor that gives Chinese companies an edge at producing solar panels that cost less than those that come out of Europe or the United States. But a new study says uh-uh. Researchers from the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and MIT said a bottom-up cost model they developed shows that a plant… Keep reading →
We couldn’t have said it better ourselves. Last year’s election season brought us an amazing series of zingers and gaffes from national politicians — including a number on Solyndra and the clean energy stimulus. Since 2013 isn’t an election year (well, sort of), cleantech hasn’t been in the national spotlight in the same way. That means most of the key… Keep reading →
The US federal government has long had a hand in guiding development of the country’s energy sector. In some cases, such as the Department of Energy’s role in the early stages of research and development that helped usher in the shale boom, this has been hailed as a success. In others, such as the highly-publicized… Keep reading →
One of the biggest obstacles to connecting solar project developers with the investors that could provide them with financing comes down to communication, according to Haresh Patel, Chief Executive of Mercatus, which provides origination and syndication services for energy investors. The company has scored some big clients offering software that gives banks and other funding sources… Keep reading →
There certainly has been a lot of interest in renewable sources of energy in recent years. Truth be told, it hasn’t always been a good thing considering the loud missteps witnessed by the likes of Solyndra, A123 and Fisker. However, even those who have cringed at the thought of investing in areas such as solar… Keep reading →
President Obama’s nominee to lead the Department of Energy, Ernest Moniz, dealt with questions about LNG exports from both sides of the aisle during his Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources hearing held Tuesday April 9th.
If confirmed, which is widely expected, Moniz would be in charge of the department responsible for issuing some of the permits needed to export LNG from the US. He previously supported exports in a co-chaired 2011 MIT report entitled “The Future of Natural Gas,” which concluded “The U.S. should sustain North American energy market integration and support development of a global ‘liquid’ natural gas market with diversity of supply. A corollary is that the U.S. should not erect barriers to natural gas imports or exports.” Keep reading →
“No more Solyndras!” may make the headlines but money is continuing to be deployed in the green energy sector each year. It is a global phenomenon. According to an analytical service, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the first trillion dollars was invested at the end of 2011 and the next trillion will be invested in five years. This is occurring because renewable energy technologies and clean energy are beginning to scale globally, due to cost reductions and wider deployments. Added to this reality is the phenomena of impact investing as younger people with money are more engaged in clean energy solutions. This factor is significant, with 52% of the world’s population being under 30 and generational wealth being transferred to the young.
Another factor in this rising green financial milieu is the nascent impact of crowd funding. Solar Mosaic, a photovoltaic solar play in New York and California, was able to raise $1.1 million in one day for several projects in multifamily housing. The projects are expected to generate 4.5% returns for many years. More capital will be flowing into US clean energy as community solar takes off and smaller investors, who are not accredited at $ 1million in net worth, begin deploying their capital in this sector. It is the law of large numbers and it is opening a flood gate
in innovative financing. The SEC has yet to write the rules of the game in this emerging arena catalyzed by the Jobs Act. Keep reading →
Are DOE’s most effective problem solvers outside the Department itself?
In the fall of 2011, the Department of Energy’s Inspector General issued a sobering report calling for a major restructuring of operations. Keep reading →
