Focus
Clean Power Alliance is looking for renewables, at all scales
PV Magazine – October 23
Community choice aggregators (CCAs), entities formed by local governments to take over the procurement of energy in their jurisdictions, are breathing new life into California’s large-scale solar market. As the latest development in this trend, last week the Clean Power Alliance (CPA), which covers communities in Los Angeles and Ventura Counties, opened a solicitation for both large-scale and distributed renewables. In the utility-scale track, CPA is looking for “Renewables Portfolio Standard (RPS)-eligible generation” and “RPS + storage” projects, up to 400 megawatts in capacity, to go online by the end of 2023. For the distributed track, CPA seeks “RPS + storage” and standalone storage projects from 500 kilowatts to 10 megawatts in capacity to come online by 2024.
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News
PG&E may speed development of 40 microgrids following power shutoff
Microgrid Knowledge - October 21
Pacific Gas & Electric (PG&E) may hasten the development of 40 microgrids to help customers maintain electricity when wildfire threats force it to de-energize portions of its grid. The utility described its plans in mid-October in a four-hour emergency meeting called by the California Public Utilities Commission in response to the October 9-12 shutoffs to 2 million customers (738,000 accounts). Sumeet Singh, vice president of PG&E’s Community Wildfire Safety Program, described plans to accelerate development of what the utility calls “resilience zones,” areas of the grid configured to act as microgrids with temporary, mobile generation. Eventually the utility may develop them into permanent microgrids, according to PG&E’s 2018 wildfire mitigation plan.
Solar and wind energy have provided almost 10% of total generation in the U.S. in 2019
Renewable Energy World – October 28
According to a SUN DAY Campaign analysis of the latest EIA “Electric Power Monthly” report, with data through August 31, 2019, renewable energy sources accounted for 18.49 percent of net domestic electrical generation during the first eight months of 2019, up from 17.95 percent in 2018. Solar, including small-scale solar photovoltaic systems, grew 13.7 percent compared to the first eight months of 2018 and accounted for a bit more than 2.7 percent of total electrical output. U.S. wind-generated electricity increased by 4.4 percent, accounting for 6.94 percent of all electricity generated.
California proposes energy efficiency market overhaul with single administrator
Utility Dive – October 29
California regulators are mulling a proposed decision to allow local governments to continue collaborating on regional energy networks aimed at rolling out energy efficiency efforts more flexibly, along with other changes designed to help consumers use less energy. The order would adopt a framework for market transformation initiatives that the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC) has been developing in the third phase of its energy efficiency rulemaking process. Initial funding would be $250 million over five years under Chief Administrative Law Judge Anne Simon's proposal.
Nuclear fusion is still frustratingly far off despite recent signs of momentum
Greentech Media – October 28
Governments are not giving up on nuclear fusion making a meaningful contribution to global decarbonization efforts. Last month, the U.K. government pledged $283 million toward getting a fusion power plant up and running by 2040. This month it emerged that the Los Alamos National Laboratory has preparations “well underway” for a novel fusion concept experiment involving plasma guns in a spherical chamber. Greentech Media has identified at least one private U.S. fusion plant developer that is also getting ready to make an announcement. For now, the world’s most advanced fusion program is ITER, funded by the European Union, China, India, Japan, Russia, South Korea, and the U.S. Commercialization of fusion technology will depend on a demonstration project that will be developed once ITER starts delivering results. Because of this, said Chris Warrick, communications manager for the U.K. Atomic Energy Authority, said that, “commercial power plants are expected to come online in the second half of this century.”
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Projects
Chevron turns to solar energy to help power its Lost Hills oil field
Environment and Energy Leader - October 29
Disclosure: Allen Matkins represented SunPower in the development of the Chevron project discussed in this article.
SunPower this week announced that construction is underway on the Lost Hills Solar Project, a 35-megawatt DC system that will deliver low-carbon electricity to Chevron‘s Lost Hills oil field in Kern County, under a power purchase agreement. Over the project’s term of up to 20 years, it is estimated to produce more than 1.4 billion kilowatt hours of solar energy, reducing carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 1 million metric tons. Once complete in early 2020, the solar project is expected to provide power to the Lost Hills production and processing facilities and offices, meeting approximately 80 percent of their energy needs.
Largest planned wind farm in U.S. gets key federal approval
Utility Dive – October 25
The U.S. Bureau of Land Management this Monday released for public comment its last environmental analysis of the Chokecherry and Sierra Madre Wind Project in Wyoming after more than a decade of reviews. At 2,500 megawatts to 3,000 megawatts and up to 1,000 turbines, Chokecherry and Sierra Madre will be the largest wind farm in the United States once completed. Its output would be sent to California through a $3 billion high-voltage transmission line that is still under development.
Gap adding more solar at Fresno distribution center
Solar Industry Magazine – October 29
SunPower has installed the first solar panel at a 3-megawatt project for Gap Inc. at the retailer’s distribution center in Fresno. Once complete, the system is expected to meet approximately 50 percent of the Fresno facility’s energy needs and will support Gap’s goal of reaching 100 percent renewable energy across its owned and operated facilities worldwide by 2030. The ground-mount system will feature solar panels assembled at SunPower’s factory in Hillsboro, Oregon.
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