California to spend $20 million on building part of 'hydrogen highway'

The California Energy Commission is spending $20 million to build nearly half of the approximately 100 stations needed to give a driver of a hydrogen car enough range to travel freely through most parts of the Golden State. So far, only about 10 stations are operational, mostly in the Los Angeles and the San Francisco areas, servicing only a couple of hundred hydrogen-powered cars running statewide. Starting in October with a new fuel station in the city of Coalinga, near Interstate 5 in the San Joaquin Valley, hydrogen cars will be able to get from Los Angeles to San Francisco. Such vehicles can go about 300 miles on one fill-up.

First Solar and SunPower plan to form joint venture yieldco

First Solar Inc. and SunPower Corp., the two largest U.S. solar-panel manufacturers, are planning a joint venture that will own and operate some of their projects. The companies expect to register for an initial public offering for the new venture, according to a statement Monday. They didn’t say when that may occur or how much they would seek to raise through the IPO. The shares surged in after-hours trading. The SunPower-First Solar venture would be part of a growing trend in the renewable energy industry to pool projects into publicly traded entities that offer shareholders payouts, known as yieldcos. Disclosure: Allen Matkins is representing SunPower in this transaction.

Oil industry takes aim at California’s war on carbon

California’s effort to combat climate change was subjected to a fresh round of scrutiny Thursday as oil industry representatives urged regulators to ease off on the state’s low carbon fuel standard, a centerpiece of the effort to rein in greenhouse gases. A California Air Resources Board hearing on whether to renew the standard, turned into a three-hour debate on whether the regulation is workable or effective. The agency is expected to make a final decision during the spring or summer.

San Mateo County looks to jump into renewable energy movement

In the latest sign that a Bay Area renewable energy trend is picking up steam, San Mateo County is taking a close look at buying its own power on the open market, instead of relying on PG&E, in a bid to lower its greenhouse gas emissions. The county is exploring whether to establish a community choice aggregation program, which allows local governments to create their own energy portfolios that rely more on alternative sources like wind and solar and less on fossil fuels. On Tuesday, the board of supervisors will vote on allocating $300,000 toward a technical study of the proposal.

SolarCity and Google partner on $750 million solar fund, largest of its kind

SolarCity and Google are teaming up on a fund expected to finance $750 million in residential solar projects across 14 states, including California, and the District of Columbia, which the companies say would be the largest nest egg of its kind. Google will put in $300 million, which the search giant said was its largest renewable energy investment yet, topping the $280 million invested in a similar SolarCity fund in 2011. Jonathan Bass, vice president of communications for SolarCity, said the $750 million, which will include $450 million in debt financing, will cover solar systems for 25,000 homes, and the company expects to fully exhaust the cash in 2015.

Swinerton Renewable Energy completes solar plant using NEXTracker technology

San Diego-based engineering, procurement, and construction company Swinerton Renewable Energy has finished work on a 6-megawatt PV plant using NEXTracker technology. The project, located in Lancaster, California, will provide 12 million kilowatt-hours of clean energy annually through a long-term power purchase agreement.

SunEdison introduces initiative to provide electricity to 20 million people by 2020

Renewable energy development company SunEdison has unveiled a plan to provide electricity to 20 million people in impoverished communities around the world by 2020. The mission will be led by SunEdison Social Innovations, a group built around fostering new businesses and technologies that will spur renewable energy growth in rural communities.

The first full-scale Hyperloop test track may launch in California next year

Hyperloop Transportation Technologies has secured land for the first full-scale Hyperloop, planned for a 2016 launch in the California model town of Quay Valley. Building off Elon Musk's freely available designs, the crowdfunded company has staked out a five-mile stretch of Quay Valley adjacent to California's Interstate 5 freeway as a place where the innovative transportation system can be deployed. First planned as a solar-powered "city of the future," Quay Valley only recently emerged from a six-year legal battle over water rights with a neighboring farm.

Vivint Solar recruits transitioning military members for solar industry

Vivint Solar has extended job offers to all of the graduates of the U.S. Department of Energy's "Reach for the Sun" pilot program at U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, just north of San Diego. "Reach for the Sun" is an intensive workforce training program designed to help place military personnel who are transitioning out of active duty into jobs within the solar industry. This program, offered to 20 transitioning marines, included four weeks of comprehensive photovoltaic coursework.