Focus
Congress overlooks solar, wind obtains modest victory in tax deal
Greentech Media – December 17
The clean energy industry secured minimal tax credit extensions in the $1.37 trillion end-of-year spending deal that Congress passed this week to fund the government in 2020. Of the possible clean energy tax extensions that could have been included in the bill, wind was the only winner. Under the deal passed this week, wind developers can now qualify for the production tax credit through 2020 — a year longer than anticipated. Meanwhile, lawmakers left solar— the industry that most aggressively fought for an extension of its investment tax credit (ITC) — and electric vehicles out of the deal. Storage, which lawmakers had sought incentives for in legislation like the November GREEN Act, will continue without credits. An ITC extension through 2030 would have added 82 gigawatts of solar on top of baseline forecasts, according to analysis from SEIA and Wood Mackenzie Power & Renewables. The Senate this Thursday passed the spending package, sending it to President Donald Trump, who is expected to sign it before the end of day on Friday.
|
News
California moves to boost storage to combat safety-driven power shutoffs
Utility Dive - December 17
California regulators are proposing to authorize an annual collection of $166 million from ratepayers from 2020 through 2024 to fund the state’s Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), with 85 percent of that budget to be allocated to energy storage technologies. The California Public Utilities Commission’s proposed decision would also expand the parameters of SGIP to benefit customers in high fire-threat areas. The SGIP’s funds are used to incentivize customer-side distributed energy resources in California, and cover technologies like wind turbines, fuel cells, and storage systems.
Irvine City Council supports local-run energy, invites neighbors to join
Governing – December 14
Orange County is one step closer to getting government-run energy following a move by the city of Irvine, and some neighboring cities are ready to jump aboard. The Irvine City Council voted this Tuesday to move toward establishing a community choice aggregation (CCA) program, sometimes referred to as community choice energy, and will invite Costa Mesa, Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, and Tustin to join. Forming a CCA enables local officials to choose what kinds of energy to buy for their communities. Participating governments get a say in setting rates and designing incentives for clean energy technologies. The five-member council gave staff the green light to prepare preliminary joint powers documents, the next move toward implementation. The matter is on track to be presented to the California Public Utilities Commission by January 21.
Corporation Commission ruling could spur solar development in Arizona
Arizona Daily Star – December 13
Arizona could see a surge in renewable energy projects built by non-utility operators following a ruling this week by the Arizona Corporation Commission. The new rule requires state-regulated utilities to sign long-term contracts of at least 18 years with owners of smaller solar, wind, and other renewable energy projects. Under the federal Public Utility Regulatory Policies Act (PURPA), utilities must take power from qualified renewable facilities when their prices are less than what the utility would otherwise pay to generate or buy power from other sources. Though state regulators have power over some PURPA contract terms, Arizona’s original rules, adopted in 1981, didn’t specify the length of contracts signed. Over the last few years, local utilities urged the Corporation Commission to limit PURPA power-purchase contracts to two years, subject to renegotiation. But solar developers and solar energy supporters argued that fixed-rate contracts of at least 15 years are needed to attract investors and make the projects financially viable.
First Solar sells 278-MW solar portfolio to EDP and ConnectGen
PV-Tech – December 17
EDP Renewables and ConnectGen has signed off on a deal with First Solar to acquire three PV projects with a combined installed generation capacity of 278 megawatts. The three projects are the 154-megawatt Sun Streams 1 project in Maricopa County, Arizona; the 20-megawatt Windhub A project in Kern County, California; and the 103-megawatt Sunshine Valley project in Nye County, Nevada. All three projects are scheduled to reach substantial completion by the end of the fourth quarter of 2019.
|
Projects
Humboldt County Board of Supervisors rejects Terra-Gen’s wind energy project
The Times-Standard – December 17
The Humboldt County Board of Supervisors this Tuesday voted 4-1 to deny the Terra-Gen wind energy project, rejecting a widely controversial plan to build wind turbines on the Bear River and Monument ridges above Scotia. Terra-Gen had proposed building 47 wind turbines to produce renewable energy that would contribute to over half the county’s own power supply. Debates over the plan’s merits included a myriad of issues, including the Wiyot Tribe’s sacred ties to the ridges, the company’s promise to hire local union workers for construction, the impact of wind turbines on threatened bird species, Terra-Gen’s private equity ownership, and the need for renewable energy amid climate change’s mounting urgency.
SCE built solar microgrid in 27 days to avert wildfires in Sierra Nevada mountains
Microgrid Knowledge - December 13
A solar microgrid, built in 27 days in cold and windy weather, was Southern California Edison’s solution to an urgent need to avert wildfires near a remote dam in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Installing the microgrid in November allowed the utility to turn off a line that provided power to the site of the Gem Dam, part of the Rush Creek Hydroelectric Facility, located 8,900 feet above sea level close to Yosemite National Park, said Sarah Loyola, major construction project manager for SCE. The microgrid includes two 3.3-kilowatt solar arrays, a 600-amp, 48-volt storage system, and a propane backup generator. The company filed requests for expedited project approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission and the U.S. Forest Service.
Clean Coalition helps Santa Barbara Unified School District start solar microgrid initiative
Solar Power World – December 18
The Santa Barbara Unified School District (SBUSD) has unanimously approved an ambitious initiative with the Clean Coalition, a nonprofit organization, and Sage Energy Consulting to stage solar-driven microgrids and electric vehicle charging infrastructure (EVCI) at schools throughout the District. The microgrids will feature solar and energy storage that can provide long-duration resilience, along with EVCI that supports staff and students during the day and provides overnight charging options for neighbors who have challenges installing electric vehicle chargers where they live. The Clean Coalition and Sage Energy will conduct feasibility analyses for solar-driven microgrids and EVCI at all 18 SBUSD sites and as determined to be feasible, followed by designing and executing a request for proposal process to select a developer to build, own, and operate the microgrids under a long-term power purchase agreement.
|