Focus
Developer sPower teams up with Navajo Power to replace coal plant with solar
Greentech Media – May 6
For decades, the massive coal-fired Navajo Generating Station powered the great cities of the Desert Southwest: Los Angeles, Phoenix, and Las Vegas. Yet the Navajo Nation that hosted it contains 75 percent of all the households in the U.S. that lack electricity, according to the American Public Power Association. The 2,250-megawatt plant shut down in November, leaving job losses and underutilized electrical transmission infrastructure in its wake. Now, startup Navajo Power wants to fill the vacuum with massive solar power plants while channeling the proceeds into electrification and economic development for Navajo communities. This Wednesday, Navajo Power took a big step toward that ambition by signing a co-development deal with renewables powerhouse sPower.
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News
Treasury Department agrees to help renewable energy projects with subsidy revision
Reuters – May 7
The federal government this Thursday agreed to change rules governing key renewable energy tax credits, a win for wind farm owners seeking more time to claim the subsidies because new projects have been stalled by the global coronavirus pandemic. In a letter to Senator Charles Grassley, Frederick Vaughn, principal deputy assistant secretary in the Treasury Department’s Office of Legislative Affairs, said the department “plans to modify the relevant rules in the near future” for the renewable energy tax credits. He was not specific about what those changes would be.
SunPower secures $1B in solar and storage financing
Solar Industry Magazine – May 6
SunPower Corp. has entered into a new $1 billion partnership with Technology Credit Union, which will increase financing options for qualified U.S. residential solar customers. The new partnership will give SunPower access to capital for its loan program. SunPower has multiple financing provisions for customers wanting to go solar with loan, lease, and cash options. Last month, the company announced special promotions that can significantly reduce the upfront costs of going solar for U.S. customers.
Amid pandemic, U.S. renewable power sources have topped coal for 40 days
Reuters - May 4
Electricity generated by renewable sources like solar, wind, and hydropower has exceeded coal-fired power in the United States for a record 40 straight days, according to a new report released last Monday. The boost for renewables is due to seasonal increases in low-cost solar and hydropower generation, alongside an overall slump in electricity demand caused by coronavirus-related stay-at-home orders, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. Coal tends to be the first power source to be cut by utilities when demand falls because subsidized renewable sources are cheaper to operate and often backed by state clean-energy mandates. The report, which is based on preliminary data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration, reflects how the pandemic could accelerate a shift away from coal-fired power.
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Projects
SCE procures 770 MW of battery storage to bolster California's grid as gas plants approach retirement
Utility Dive – May 5
Southern California Edison (SCE) is procuring a 770-MW/3,080-MWh package of battery resources to bolster grid reliability, the utility announced last Friday, in what marks one of the largest storage procurements made in the United States to date. The battery projects will "enhance electric grid reliability and help address potential energy shortfalls identified in California," SCE said, adding that they would also help California’s broader clean energy transition as multiple coastal once-through-cooling plants approach retirement dates in the next three years. The utility has entered into contracts with seven battery projects developers, ranging from 50 MW to 230 MW with 10- to 20-year contract terms, all of which are slated to come online in August 2021. Most of the projects are co-located with adjacent solar power plants, at the same point of interconnection.
Humboldt County community choice aggregator signs PPA for 100-MW solar project
Solar Power World – May 6
DP Renewables SA and Redwood Coast Energy Authority (RCEA) have executed a 15-year PPA for the 100-MW Sandrini Sol 1 Solar Park in Kern County. Located near Bakersfield, Sandrini Sol 1 Solar Park is expected to be operational in 2022 and represents an estimated capital investment of more than $100 million. As the solar park’s only off-taker through the long-term PPA, RCEA will receive 100 percent of the project output. RCEA is a community choice aggregator serving more than 60,000 customers in Humboldt County.
Grid-scale battery projects joining transmission operator-run markets in California and Texas
Energy Storage News – May 6
Two grid-scale battery energy storage projects, one recently completed in Texas and one just announced in California, give an indication of the growing market opportunities in the U.S. regional grid operators’ service areas. In California, technology provider Wärtsilä announced that an unnamed customer has contracted it to build a 70-MW battery energy storage project, which will play into markets run by the California Independent System Operator. The 70-MW battery system will be combined with the customer’s existing renewable energy power system. The project is expected to be built by mid-2020.
Napa County to soon have 2 PG&E microgrids
Patch – May 1
PG&E began construction began this week on the second of two microgrids in Napa County meant to provide electricity during future wildfire-related public safety power shutoffs (PSPS). The downtown Calistoga location of the temporary microgrid generation site was selected through analysis of prior and expected future shutoffs, overall feasibility, and related utility work in the region that could also reduce the impact of shutoffs, company officials said. The new site enables PG&E to rapidly connect mobile generators to the grid, allowing much of the downtown area to remain energized during future PSPS events impacting the area.
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